Transcript Common Usage Errors

Common Usage Errors
21-40
21. CONSCIENCE, CONSCIOUS,
CONSCIOUSNESS

Your conscience makes you feel guilty when you
do bad things, but your consciousness is your
awareness. If you are awake, you are conscious.
Although it is possible to speak of your
“conscious mind,” you can’t use “conscious” all
by itself to mean “consciousness.”
22. CRITIQUE/CRITICIZE

A critique is a detailed evaluation of something.
The formal way to request one is “give me your
critique,” though people often say informally
“critique this"—meaning “evaluate it
thoroughly.” But "critique” as a verb is not
synonymous with “criticize” and should not be
routinely substituted for it.
23. DISCREET/DISCRETE

The more common word is “discreet,” meaning
“prudent, circumspect”: “When arranging the
party for Agnes, be sure to be discreet; we want
her to be surprised.” “Discrete” means
“separate, distinct”: “He arranged the guest list
into two discrete groups: meat-eaters and
vegetarians.” Note how the T separates the two
Es in “discrete.”
24. DISBURSE/DISPERSE

You disburse money by taking it out of your
purse (French “bourse”) and distributing it. If
you refuse to hand out any money, the eager
mob of beggars before you may disperse
(scatter).
25. DRANK/DRUNK

Many common verbs in English change form
when their past tense is preceded by an auxiliary
(“helping”) verb: “I ran, I have run.” The same
is true of “drink.” Don’t say “I’ve drank the - ”
unless you want people to think you are drunk.
An even more common error is “I drunk all the
milk.” It’s “I’ve drunk the -” and “I drank all the
milk.”
26. EMIGRATE/IMMIGRATE

To “emigrate” is to leave a country. The E at the
beginning of the word is related to the E in
other words having to do with going out, such
as “exit.” “Immigrate,” in contrast, looks as if it
might have something to do with going in, and
indeed it does: it means to move into a new
country.
27. ENVELOP/ENVELOPE

To wrap something up in a covering is to
envelop it (pronounced “enVELLup” ). The
specific wrapping you put around a letter is an
envelope (pronounced variously, but with the
accent on the first syllable).
28. FARTHER/FURTHER

Some authorities (like the Associated Press)
insist on “farther” to refer to physical distance
and on “further” to refer to an extent of time or
degree, but others treat the two words as
interchangeable except for insisting on “further”
for “in addition,” and “moreover.” You’ll always
be safe in making the distinction; some people
get really testy about this.
29.FORCEFUL/FORCIBLE/
FORCED

These words sometimes overlap, but generally
“forceful” means “powerful” (“He imposed his forceful
personality on the lions.” ) while “forcible” must be
used instead to describe the use of force (“The burglar
made a forcible entry into the apartment.”). “Forced” is
often used for the latter purpose, but some prefer to
reserve this word to describe something that is done or
decided upon as a result of outside causes without
necessarily being violent: “a forced landing,” “a forced
smile,” “forced labor.”
30. GOOD/WELL

“Good” is the adjective; “well” is the adverb.
You do something well, but you give someone
something good.
31. HEAR/HERE

If you find yourself writing sentences like “I
know I left my wallet hear!” you should note
that “hear” has the word “ear” buried in it and
let that remind you that it refers only to hearing
and is always a verb (except when you are giving
the British cheer “Hear! Hear!” ). “I left my
wallet here” is the correct expression.
32. HOLE/WHOLE

“Hole” and “whole” have almost opposite
meanings. A hole is a lack of something, like the
hole in a doughnut (despite the confusing fact
that the little nubbins of fried dough are called
“doughnut holes”). “Whole” means things like
entire, complete, and healthy and is used in
expressions like “the whole thing,” “whole
milk,” “whole wheat,” and “with a whole heart.”
33. IMPLY/INFER

These two words, which originally had quite distinct
meanings, have become so blended together that most
people no longer distinguish between them. If you
want to avoid irritating the rest of us, use “imply” when
something is being suggested without being explicitly
stated and “infer” when someone is trying to arrive at a
conclusion based on evidence. “Imply” is more
assertive, active: I imply that you need to revise your
paper; and, based on my hints, you infer that I didn’t
think highly of your first draft.
34. INFAMOUS/NOTORIOUS

“Infamous” means famous in a bad way. It is
related to the word “infamy.” Humorists have
for a couple of centuries jokingly used the word
in a positive sense, but the effectiveness of the
joke depends on the listener knowing that this is
a misuse of the term. Because this is a very old
joke indeed you should stick to using
“infamous” only of people like Hitler and Billy
the Kid.
35. ITCH/SCRATCH

Strictly speaking, you scratch an itch. If you’re
trying to get rid of a tingly feeling on your back
scratch it, don’t itch it.
36. LATER/LATTER

Except in the expression “latter-day” (modern),
the word “latter” usually refers back to the lastmentioned of a set of alternatives. “We gave the
kids a choice of a vacation in Paris, Rome, or
Disney World. Of course the latter was their
choice.” In other contexts not referring back to
such a list, the word you want is “later.”
37. AMOUNT/NUMBER

This is a vast subject. I will try to limit the
number of words I expend on it so as not to use
up too great an amount of space. The confusion
between the two categories of words relating to
amount and number is so pervasive that those
of us who still distinguish between them
constitute an endangered species; but if you
want to avoid a mistake, learn the difference.
Amount words relate to quantities of things that
are measured in bulk; number to things that can
be counted.
38. LOSE/LOOSE

This confusion can easily be avoided if you
pronounce the word intended aloud. If it has a
voiced Z sound, then it’s “lose.” If it has a hissy
S sound, then it’s “loose.” Here are examples of
correct usage: “He tends to lose his keys.” “She
lets her dog run loose.” Note that when “lose”
turns into “losing” it loses its “E.”
39. LEGEND/MYTH

Myths are generally considered to be traditional
stories whose importance lies in their
significance, like the myth of the Fall in Eden;
whereas legends can be merely famous deeds,
like the legend of Davy Crockett.
40. MAYBE/MAY BE

“Maybe” is an adverb meaning “perhaps,” so if
you are uncertain whether to use this word or
the phrase “may be,” try substituting “perhaps”:
“Maybe she forgot I said I’d meet her at six
o’clock” becomes “Perhaps she forgot. . . .”
When the substitution makes sense, go with one
word: “maybe.” When you are wondering
whether you may be waiting in the wrong cafe,
you’re dealing with a verb and its auxiliary: “may
be.” Two words.