This is a very good list, on which most people will find something useful (if only a helpful reminder).
To the list, I would add a few things:
HOMOGENEOUS/HOMOGENOUS
If things are all the same, they are homogeneous (five syllables: ho-mo-JEEN-e-us). If they share biologic similarities because they have the same origin or come from the same place or source, but aren't necessarily all the same, they are homogenous (four syllables: ho-MOJ-ən-əs); this is typically only used to describe living things biologically.
REGARDLESS/IRREGARDLESS
Regardless means that the next statement is true irrespective of whatever statement preceded it. Irregardless isn't a word; stop using it.
INCENTIVIZE/INCENT
While some may claim these are a legitimate words, they're really just improper verbifications (think opposite of a gerund) of the noun "incentive." English already has several perfectly good words to mean "provide an incentive (to do something)," such as motivate, influence, persuade, inspire, propel, actuate, and so on. Business professionals should not be using sentences like, "We need to incent our sales team." Ever.
MORAL/MORALE
Moral (MOR-əl), as an adjective, is similar to "ethical," although philosophers will tell me I'm wrong on that. Moral, as a noun, is the (ethical) lesson in a story. Morale (mor-AL), on the other hand, is a noun meaning the general attitude or emotional state of a group or organization. The 'e' on the end makes all the difference between these unrelated words.
h/t Meg L
http://mentalfloss.com/article/65217/20-word-usage-mistakes-even-smart-people-make
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I have seen many of these misused. I read the list and am happy to say I do all of them correctly and understand the differences. Surprising? Not to me. You see I am not a product of the American education system. I learned English as a second language and my grammar is pretty decent. I do cringe when I see even the basics butchered (e.g. "there" vs "their"). Of the list presented, my biggest pet peeve is "affect" vs "effect". I see this one fail every time.
ReplyDeleteI admit to having to stop and ponder affect vs. effect every time. This is a very good list. "Sneak Peak" drives me up the wall.
ReplyDeleteWhat I see the most is misuse of advise/advice, especially when someone is asking to "Please advise."
ReplyDeleteGood list. I remember when corporate types first started using incent and incentivize. It still jangles my nerves.
ReplyDelete"Going forward", "looking forward", and forward-looking also jangle my nerves, even after decades of hearing them. Blecch.
I was surprised number six was the only one that affects me from time to time.
ReplyDeleteI'm not sure, but I may have used comprised wrong at some point, although I don't really use it much.
ReplyDeleteAffect/effect are the devil incarnate! Puts my teeth on edge.
American English is totally different than True English.
ReplyDeleteWhat, no envious/jealous ?
ReplyDeleteSome of the language is hard to always get right on the first try; I make mistakes all the time, but I almost always proofread to correct myself.
ReplyDeleteWhile I'm all for being a grammar-Nazi, I don't agree 100% with all of these.
"Affect" can actually be a noun which can influence (and etymologically comes from influence). When used this way, the stress usually moves to the beginning of the word. It sounds different than the verb, but is spelled the same.
To verbify "incentive" doesn't feel redundant to me (I just used a verbification there, for fun!); it seems to fill a niche, distinct from the other examples you gave. To me "incent" as a verb sounds ridiculous, as if someone is misusing the verb "incense" which is older and more common ("The convention incensed the crowd, nearly to violence "), but I'd forgive someone for calling that slightly archaic.
James Graham meh, "true" English doesn't exist. It's evolved in all places. "Received Pronunciation" is quite artificial, as study of its origins would show, and so is less true than most American English. I say true English disappeared in 1066.
ReplyDeleteAlso: Dap vs Pound
ReplyDeleteDean Reimer "Efforting"? Are you frigging kidding me???
ReplyDeleteBryce Miller Yep, "affect" is a noun, too. Sadly, however, most people don't realize that.
ReplyDeleteRegarding "incentivize," how do you see it as distinct from "reward" or "motivate" or "influence" or any of the other verbs we already have? What specific niche does it fill that isn't already by an existing word?
Dean Reimer That would make me violently ill if I heard it IRL.
ReplyDeleteI can't even figure out what they mean.
ReplyDeleteGreat examples, Craig Froehle. I still don't like gift used as a verb (e.g., I gifted him with concert tickets.) when give/gave work perfectly well. Never heard of incent until now. The horror.
ReplyDeleteCraig Froehle Hmm. I've heard efforting since the mid-1970s. I've used it myself a few times.
ReplyDeletePhillip Landmeier this has got to be a sick joke that you are all in on, trying to convince me efforting is a word.
ReplyDeleteMeg L Ah, YES! Using "gift" as a verb makes my skin crawl. But, the engineer in me does appreciate the fact that saying "I gifted John a bike." is more efficient than saying "I gave John a bike as a gift." Efficiency is good, but I'm not comfortable yet with that specific evolution.
ReplyDeleteBryce Miller Yeah, I'm not convinced it's a real thing. ;-)
Efforting is not a word. Neither is incent. Giftmas, however, is both a word and a holiday.
ReplyDeleteBryce Miller Lol. I don't think it's a real word but it communicates nonetheless. Where I first heard it was in a discussion about Zen Buddhism. As you probably know, Zen recommends going with the flow of life, like a leaf on a stream, effortlessly. Efforting is to struggle against the natural flow and is ultimately pointless. It seemed like a good word for which I haven't found a good substitute. Anyways, that's the meaning I ascribe to it.
ReplyDeleteCraig Froehle Gifting still sounds wrong but I accept it because we have that word in Spanish - dar versus regalar. English lacks the word.
ReplyDeleteJust because a word is not in common usage does not make it 'not a word'.
ReplyDeleteJohn Lewis I think people mean that it's not in the dictionary.
ReplyDeletePhillip Landmeier To which I reply the same thing, because a dictionary is just a list of words in common usage.
ReplyDeleteJohn Lewis Your razzelflabberjinking mumgizm is wrenaking my comferbudgies into a plenkletootled wafferpish!
ReplyDeleteCraig Froehle Yes, it probably is.
ReplyDeleteIf a series of letters are combined to create a shared idea, you have a word. In your above example, we don't share an understanding, so unless someone else understands what you wrote, then you have not made words.
Irregardless is in many dictionaries, however, and even has enough usage that I bet you would understand what was intended in a sentence that contained it. It's a word. Move along.
I don't make those listed mistakes but only because I was raised by a polyglot and multi-licensed language teacher.
ReplyDeletemy mother would never have allowed me out of the house if I made those sorts of mistakes.
:)
I can't believe that no one has busted me for that stinker I planted in my earlier post. It's another fingernails-on-the-blackboard blooper.
ReplyDeletePhillip Landmeier it's bad, but not terrible (for me).
ReplyDeleteDaniela Huguet Taylor Since this thread seems to have attracted numerous fellow grammarians, I figured I'd mess with y'all, but it didn't work. :-(
ReplyDeleteROFL (love this one, sounds like a dog laugh/snort, Scooby Doo FTW)
ReplyDeleteDifferent things affect (affect, people!) people different ways. My hubby can't stand the sound of people filing their nails, eg., which is innocuous for me. Same for grammar no-nos.
John Lewis Your definition of "word" is inadequate. If I mispell a word, yet you understand it, you would claim that that is still a legitimate word? It may serve the same function, symbolically, as the actual word, but it's not a legitimate word in that it isn't recognized by society as a legitimate word. Otherwise, spelling bees wouldn't exist because any reasonable answer would have to be accepted because "well, that's how I spell it" would be an excuse.
ReplyDeleteJust because I understand what you're trying to say doesn't mean you've abided by the rules of language; it just means I guessed correctly.
Craig Froehle I'd say it's still a word, but one more likely to cause confusion and slow down communication, which is really the (only) reason one should spell things consistently.
ReplyDeleteDaniela Huguet Taylor Sure. I think the dispute is over my saying "it's not a word" -- symbolically, yes, it's a word -- when what I meant was that "it's not a recognized and proper word". And, as you say, we only care about recognized and proper words because they help ensure the fastest, most accurate communication possible.
ReplyDeleteBut, certainly, it's no guarantee. If I use words like tendentious or peregrinations, many (if not most) people will have no idea WTF I'm talking about. And while those are indeed words, they're probably not the best choices unless my audience is exceptionally literate.
Craig Froehle exactly. And in my house, "trasting" is a word, for example. (it's Spanglish, from "trasto", piece of junk, means thingamajig)
ReplyDelete/么鳥人qg？？？？？？？手手抖爾 g1a手g烏紆啊嗯9ny0h j
ReplyDeleteCraig Froehle The spelling of a word if often mixed. Meaning is always guessed at, because you can never be sure you share the same meaning as someone else for a word. There is a non-trivial amount of ambiguity for words. English is particularly susceptible to this because it "steals" words from other languages. For example the spice;
ReplyDeleteCardamom
Cardamum
Cardamon
These three words are represent the same thing (to me) and they are all spelled correctly. There is no singular spelling for this spice, but there may be one that is used more than the others, or used more regionally.
Your presumption of common usage would kill a living language. No new words would exist, because they would not be "real" words.
Does something magical happen when Webster's Dictionary adds new words? Are jargon and technical terms not words until the public starts to use them? Can I create a new word?
John Lewis It appears that Yan hsun Tang above you is communicating with you using words. Enjoy your conversation. ;-)
ReplyDeleteCraig Froehle Is this how you respond when you can't refute during a debate?
ReplyDeleteJohn Lewis I was trying to be funny.
ReplyDeleteOur opinions disagree. I'm not going to waste additional time trying to change your opinion since (in this case) your opinion doesn't really create the potential for harm. Enjoy your day.
Craig Froehle I like that you can agree to disagree. Thanks for letting me express my opinion(s) and not feel the need to be "right".
ReplyDeleteI hope you enjoy your day too.
John Lewis I only truly feel the need to be right if we're dealing with facts. That's not the case here, so c'est la vie. :-)
ReplyDelete