Each of the following quotations contains a grammatical error: 1. This process is one of several that is required to maintain nuclear SREBP1-c at very low levels… –Yeshiva University website 2. A study designed by Drs. Liu and Clarke is one of several that is slated to be included in the pilot run. –Georgetown University … Read more
A reader stumbled on the word OKing in the following: Owners of eight rooftop clubs abutting Wrigley Field sued to overturn city approval of the $375 million plan to rebuild the aging ballpark, saying the city broke its own rules in OKing the plan and effectively deprived them of their property rights without due process. … Read more
This odd use of the verb venerate occurs on a funeral home website: Prior to the age of photography, death masks were used to venerate the death. The use is odd because the transitive verb venerate means “to regard with feelings of respect and reverence.” The taking of a death mask may be seen as … Read more
A reader asks, What is the meaning and usage of landscape in [phrases] like ’emerging media landscape’ or ’emerging distribution landscape’? First I’ll address traditional meanings of the noun landscape as it refers to scenery. Although Old English had the word landscipe, meaning “a tract of land” or “a region,” the word landscape entered modern … Read more
Some idioms are confused in the speaking; others just in the spelling. The following idioms are usually pronounced correctly, but they are often misspelled in writing. 1. waiting with bated breath The word bated in this expression is often misspelled “baited.” For example, “We’re waiting with baited breath to hear if Rosie O’Donnell is officially coming … Read more
Several opinions about what is permissible in writing have acquired an almost religious authority with some English speakers. One of these opinions is that beginning a sentence with the coordinating conjunctions and and but is an unpardonable breach of usage. Here are some typical reader attitudes: I almost fainted when I read [a post] about … Read more
Readers frequently ask whether to place commas, periods, question marks, and exclamation points inside or outside closing quotation marks. Note: This post illustrates American usage. Periods and Commas The period and comma are always placed within closing quotations: Patrick Henry said, “Give me liberty or give me death.” “If you are going through hell,” said … Read more
Conjunctions are words that link words, phrases, and clauses and provide a smooth transition between ideas. Adverbs modify verbs, adjectives, and other adverbs. Some adverbs can also join or show connections between ideas. When they do this, they are called conjunctive adverbs. Conjunctive adverbs show comparison, contrast, sequence, cause-effect, or other relationships between ideas. The … Read more
A reader has asked for a post on the incorrect use of advanced in the sense of advance. Both words are used with an assortment of meanings. This post will focus on only two: advance (adjective): provided or carried out in advance; prior. advanced (adjective): far on or ahead. The adjective advance is properly used … Read more
The suffix -esque is frequently used by pop-culture writers who enjoy making adjectives from celebrity names: Paris Hilton dons Madonna-esque fingerless gloves as she takes to the decks in Washington Never Say Never (sung in Beiber-esque voice, of course) Keith Ford, Looking Very Clooney-esque The suffix -esque means, “resembling or suggesting the style of.” This … Read more
The word innuendo derives from a Latin verb meaning “to nod to, to signify.” As a legal term in the Middle Ages, innuendo was used to introduce the explanation of a word that was previously uncertain. For example, in modern conversation, we often find ourselves explaining an ambiguous pronoun: “Mary and Gilda went to the … Read more
Sometimes the best way to deal with conundrums of jointly owned possessions is to retreat and rewrite, especially when one of the owners is represented by a pronoun. When the owners are named, the rule is straightforward enough: When two nouns are used to indicate common ownership, the sign of possession is placed after the … Read more