romantic: Common Errors in English Usage Entry for Saturday, February 14, 2015

romantic 
If you are studying the arts, it’s important to know that the word “romantic” is used in such contexts to mean much more than “having to do with romantic love.” It originated in the Middle Ages to label sensational narratives written in romance languages—rather than Latin—depicting events like the fall of King Arthur’s Round Table (in French, novels are still called romans whether they depict love affairs or not). In literature and art it often refers to materials that are horrifying, exotic, enthralling, or otherwise emotionally stimulating to an extreme degree. A romantic art song is as likely to be about death as about love.


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so/very: Common Errors in English Usage Entry for Friday, February 13, 2015

so/very
Originally people said things like, “I was so delighted with the wrapping that I couldn’t bring myself to open the package.” But then they began to lazily say, “You made me so happy,” no longer explaining just how happy that was. This pattern of using “so” as a simple intensifier meaning “very” is now standard in casual speech, but is out of place in formal writing, where “very” or another intensifier works better. Without vocal emphasis, the “so” conveys little in print.


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This is the ten-year anniversary of the Common Errors in English Usage calendar. To celebrate, we are bringing back some of our favorite interesting, funny, but sometimes merely silly entries through the years before going on hiatus in 2016.

Enjoy the calendar? Buy the book!

abject: Common Errors in English Usage Entry for Thursday, February 12, 2015

abject
“Abject” is always negative—it means “hopeless,” not “extreme.” You can’t experience “abject joy” unless you’re being deliberately paradoxical.



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Proverbial? Paul Brians thinks not in his most recent blog post.

This is the ten-year anniversary of the Common Errors in English Usage calendar. To celebrate, we are bringing back some of our favorite interesting, funny, but sometimes merely silly entries through the years before going on hiatus in 2016.

Enjoy the calendar? Buy the book!

sole/soul: Common Errors in English Usage Entry for Wednesday, February 11, 2015

sole/soul
The bottom of your foot is your sole; your spirit is your soul.

 
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This is the ten-year anniversary of the Common Errors in English Usage calendar. To celebrate, we are bringing back some of our favorite interesting, funny, but sometimes merely silly entries through the years before going on hiatus in 2016.

Enjoy the calendar? Buy the book!

goal/objective: Common Errors in English Usage Entry for Tuesday, February 10, 2015

goal/objective
Most language authorities consider “goal” to be a synonym of “objective,” and some dismiss the popular bureaucratic phrase “goals and objectives” as a meaningless redundancy.

However, if you have to deal with people who insist there is a distinction, here is their usual argument: goals are general, objectives are more specific. If your goal is to create a safer work environment, your objective might be to remove the potted poison ivy plant from your desk. In education, a typical example would be that if your goal is to improve your French, one objective might be to master the subjunctive.


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Read Paul Brians' latest blog post here.

This is the ten-year anniversary of the Common Errors in English Usage calendar. To celebrate, we are bringing back some of our favorite interesting, funny, but sometimes merely silly entries through the years before going on hiatus in 2016.

Enjoy the calendar? Buy the book!

veracious/voracious: Common Errors in English Usage Entry for Monday, February 9, 2015

veracious/voracious
If you are extremely hungry, you may have a “voracious” appetite (think of the O as an open mouth, ready to devour anything). “Veracious” is an unusual word meaning “truthful, honest” (think about the E in “verify”). A truthful person has “veracity.” “Voracity,” meaning “extreme appetite,” is a rare word you are unlikely to have a use for; “voraciousness” is more common.



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Happy birthday, Thomas Paine (1737).

This is the ten-year anniversary of the Common Errors in English Usage calendar. To celebrate, we are bringing back some of our favorite interesting, funny, but sometimes merely silly entries through the years before going on hiatus in 2016.

Enjoy the calendar? Buy the book!

gaff/gaffe: Common Errors in English Usage Entry for Sunday, February 8, 2015

gaff/gaffe
“Gaffe” means “embarrassing mistake,” and should not be mixed up with “gaff”: a large hook.


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This is the ten-year anniversary of the Common Errors in English Usage calendar. To celebrate, we are bringing back some of our favorite interesting, funny, but sometimes merely silly entries through the years before going on hiatus in 2016.

Enjoy the calendar? Buy the book!