enviroment/environment
The second N in “environment” is seldom pronounced distinctly, so it’s not surprising that it is often omitted in writing. If you know the related word “environs,” it may help remind you.
Saturday, June 30, 2012
Friday, June 29, 2012
individual/person: Common Errors in English Usage Entry for Friday, June 29, 2012
individual/person
Law-enforcement officers often use “individual” as a simple synonym for “person” when they don’t particularly mean to stress individuality: “I pursued the individual who had fired the weapon at me for three blocks.” This sort of use of “individual” lends an oddly formal air to your writing. When “person” works as well, use it.
Law-enforcement officers often use “individual” as a simple synonym for “person” when they don’t particularly mean to stress individuality: “I pursued the individual who had fired the weapon at me for three blocks.” This sort of use of “individual” lends an oddly formal air to your writing. When “person” works as well, use it.
Thursday, June 28, 2012
say/tell: Common Errors in English Usage Entry for Thursday, June 28, 2012
say/tell
You say, “Hello, Mr. Chips,” to the teacher and then tell him about what you did last summer. You can’t “tell that” except in expressions like “go tell that to your old girlfriend.”
You say, “Hello, Mr. Chips,” to the teacher and then tell him about what you did last summer. You can’t “tell that” except in expressions like “go tell that to your old girlfriend.”
Wednesday, June 27, 2012
doggy dog world/dog-eat-dog world: Common Errors in English Usage Entry for Wednesday, June 27, 2012
doggy dog world/dog-eat-dog world
The punning name of the popular rap star Snoop Doggy Dogg did a lot to spread this misspelling. The original image is of a cannibalistically competitive world in which people turn on each other, like dogs eating other dogs.
The punning name of the popular rap star Snoop Doggy Dogg did a lot to spread this misspelling. The original image is of a cannibalistically competitive world in which people turn on each other, like dogs eating other dogs.
Tuesday, June 26, 2012
all for not/all for naught: Common Errors in English Usage Entry for Tuesday, June 26, 2012
all for not/all for naught
“Naught” means “nothing,” and the phrase “all for naught” means “all for nothing.” This is often misspelled “all for not” and occasionally “all for knot.”
“Naught” means “nothing,” and the phrase “all for naught” means “all for nothing.” This is often misspelled “all for not” and occasionally “all for knot.”
Monday, June 25, 2012
slog it out/slug it out: Common Errors in English Usage Entry for Monday, June 25, 2012
slog it out/slug it out
Slogging is a slow, messy business, typically tramping through sticky mud or metaphorically struggling with other difficult tasks. You might slog through a pile of receipts to do your taxes. If you are engaged in a fierce battle with an adversary, however, you slug it out, like boxers slugging each other. There is no such expression as “slog it out.”
Slogging is a slow, messy business, typically tramping through sticky mud or metaphorically struggling with other difficult tasks. You might slog through a pile of receipts to do your taxes. If you are engaged in a fierce battle with an adversary, however, you slug it out, like boxers slugging each other. There is no such expression as “slog it out.”
Sunday, June 24, 2012
overtake/take over: Common Errors in English Usage Entry for Sunday, June 24, 2012
overtake/take over
When you catch up with the runners ahead of you in a marathon, you overtake them; but when you seize power, you take over the government.
When you catch up with the runners ahead of you in a marathon, you overtake them; but when you seize power, you take over the government.
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