Thalia's List of Much-Abused Words and Phrases
Part 1: A - H
affect/effect
Usually, "affect" is used as a verb, and "effect" as a noun. There are a couple special cases: "Effect" is a verb meaning "to cause" or "to bring about." "Affect" as a noun means "the conscious subjective aspect of an emotion considered apart from bodily changes"--but it's not generally used outside the field of psychology. If your use doesn't fall into one of those cases, use "affect" as a verb and "effect" as a noun.The rain didn't affect Obi-Wan's lightsaber.
The effect of the new rule was to discourage cheating.
Hermione was affected by the sentiment on the card.
Bartlet ran for president in order to effect change.
allude/elude
To "allude" to something is to make an indirect reference to it. "Elude" means "to avoid" or "to escape."The police report alluded to Jim's unusually strong sense of smell.
Harry eluded Snape, thanks to his invisibility cloak.
Daniel alluded to the Tollan's advanced technology.
Merry and Pippin eluded the Orcs for a while.
alter/altar
An "altar" is a place or a table that's involved in religious rites. Any usage besides that should be "alter."Daniel was intrigued by the hieroglyphs at the base of the altar.
Qui-Gon needed to have his robes altered.
Where's your alter ego?
anal/annals
"Anal" is an adjective that means "referring to the anus." Colloquially, it can also be shorthand for "anal-retentive" and mean "parsimonious, meticulous; stick-in-the-mud." "Annals" is a plural noun that means "a record of events arranged in a yearly sequence; chronicles." Annals is always plural.Boromir had never had anal sex before.
The War of The Ring was recorded in the annals of Gondorian history.
Han thought Threepio was rather anal.
(Thanks to Fishgoat)
Top of page | Index | E-mail Thalia with a comment or correctionante-/anti-
"Ante-" is a prefix meaning "before" or "front." "Anti-" is a prefix meaning "against" or "opposite."Antebellum: before the war (esp. the U.S. Civil War)
Anteroom: a small room that leads into a larger room
Antediluvian: antiquated or old-fashioned
Antibiotic: a medicine that destroys micro-organisms
Antisocial: antagonistic or hostile to others
Antiquate: to make obsolete
averse/adverse
"Averse" means "having an active feeling of repugnance or distaste."Harry was averse to Potions.
Snape is averse to washing his hair.
Harry hated playing Quidditch in adverse weather.
Jim's testimony was adverse to the DA's position.
all right/alright
Traditionally, "all right" has been properly written as two words, and many people still think that that's the only correct way. "All right" is usually an adjective, and the two-word form fits with the adjectives "all ready" and "all together," as opposed to the adverbs "already" and "altogether." However, "alright" is used fairly frequently, and many dictionaries say that it's correct. Just be aware that if you use "alright," some of your readers will be grinding their teeth, correct or not.Top of page | Index | E-mail Thalia with a comment or correction
bare/bear
"Bare," as an adjective, means "uncovered." It can also be a transitive verb meaning "to uncover." "Bear" isn't an adjective; as a noun, it's a large, furry animal. As a verb, it can mean "to support" or "to give birth to" or "to carry" or "to produce fruit" or "to exert influence."Jim bared his chest.
Hermione said, "Bear with me while I read the instructions."
How is Obi-Wan bearing up after Qui-Gon's death?
Lucius Malfoy brought all his influence to bear.
blond/blonde
"Blond" and "blonde" both refer to people with light-colored hair. Traditionally, blond has been used for men, blonde for women. However, it's becoming more common to use "blond" to refer to someone of either gender, and you can safely use "blond" to refer to hair, regardless of the gender of its owner. I highly recommend reading Bartleby.com's discussion of this issue, which describes the pros and cons of differentiating between the two forms. "Brunet" and "brunette" fall into the same category, although they don't seem to be used as frequently.Lucius Malfoy is blond.
Cassie Wells is blonde.
Cassie Wells has blond hair.
boarder/border
A "boarder" is someone who pays for lodging that includes meals. That's it. Otherwise, use "border."Martha had to take in boarders after Jonathan died.
Harry stopped at the border of the Forbidden Forest.
Daniel's love of coffee borders on a fixation.
borne/born
"Borne" and "born" are both past participle forms of "bear." According to dictionary.com, "Traditionally, born is used only in passive constructions referring to birth: I was born in Chicago. For all other uses, including active constructions referring to birth, borne is the standard form: She has borne both her children at home. I have borne his insolence with the patience of a saint."Lucius Malfoy was a born leader.
Harry was borne up by his broom.
The petals were borne on the wind.
Blair was born in 1969.
Jim didn't want Brackett to release the air-borne virus.
breach/breech
"Breeches" are, in the US, anyway, pants that come down to the knees. In addition, a baby can be "breeched," that is, coming out legs first. That's it for "breech."A "breach" is a break of some sort. "Breach" can also be a verb, meaning "to form a breach."
The whale breached the water.
The Asgard breached their agreement with the SGC.
Draco's behavior was a breach of Quidditch protocol.
Once more unto the breach, dear friends.
breath/breathe
"Breath" is a noun and is pronounced with a soft th (like with). Most of the time it means the air one takes into and pushes out of one's lungs. It can also mean "spirit" or "suggestion," as in "the faintest breath of scandal." "Breathe" is a verb and is pronounced with a hard th (like father). It means, mostly, "to respire" or "to pause and rest before continuing."Harry used Gillyweed to breathe underwater during the Tri-Wizard Tournament.
Obi-Wan watched as Qui-Gon drew his last breath.
broach/brooch
A "brooch" is "an ornament that is held by a pin or clasp and is worn at or near the neck." "Broach" is usually a verb; it can mean "to pierce," "to open up" or "to make known for the first time." If you "broach" a subject, there's a definite connotation of its being a difficult discussion. "Broach" has other, less common meanings as well, but it's never a piece of jewelry.This is another case where British English is more strict than U.S. English--in the U.S. you can get away with using "broach" for "brooch," but anyone speaking British English would say that's incorrect.
Hermione pinned the brooch to her collar.
Obi-Wan was afraid to broach the subject of Anakin.
Sam broached the cask of beer.
cannon/canon
A "cannon" is a very large gun. "Canon", in fandom, is usually used to mean the characterizations and events that are taken directly from the source. In the dictionary, "canon" means "an accepted principle or rule." (It can also refer to the accepted list of books of the Bible, or to a song like "Row, Row, Row Your Boat.") In fandom, you almost always want to use "canon," even though it seems like no one else does. They're all wrong.Top of page | Index | E-mail Thalia with a comment or correction
choose/chose/chosen
"Choose" - present tense "Chose" - past tense "Chosen" - past participleI choose not to go on the roller coaster. (present)
Qui-Gon chose Obi-Wan as his padawan. (past)
Jim was chosen Detective of the Year. (past participle)
compliment/complement
A "compliment" is when someone says something nice to you. Plural, it means best wishes, as in "compliments of the season." As a verb, "compliment" means "to pay a compliment to." Everything else is "complement". It usually has to do with something that makes a thing complete, or the number required to make something complete.Jack complimented Daniel on his translating skills.
"Was that a compliment I just got from Jack?" Daniel wondered.
Harry's dress robes complemented his eyes.
The ship's entire complement disembarked for shore leave.
congratulations/congradulations
It's spelled congratulations. With a "t". This is one that drives me absolutely up the wall.Top of page | Index | E-mail Thalia with a comment or correction
conscious/conscience/conscientious/unconscionable
"Conscious" is an adjective with several meanings, mostly relating to being awake and aware."Conscientious" is also an adjective, but it means "governed by or conforming to the dictates of conscience," or scrupulous, meticulous or careful.
"Unconscionable" is another adjective. It means "not guided or controlled by conscience : unscrupulous."
Finally, "conscience" is a noun that means, well, Jiminy Cricket. It's that little voice that tells you whether you're behaving.
It's tough keeping all these words straight, because they're all related, but it's important. People who know the difference will be very jarred if you get them wrong.
Harry's conscience nagged him after he snuck into Hogsmeade without permission.
Blair became conscious in the ambulance
Obi-Wan was conscious of Qui-Gon's anger.
Hermione is very conscientious in Potions class.
Leaving Anakin in slavery would have been unconscionable.
couldn't care less/could care less
The phrase "couldn't care less" means that one has the lowest possible level of interest in something. Taken literally, "could care less" means just the opposite--that one does have some sort of interest. However, people do say they could care less when they really mean they couldn't, and some American sources say this is accepted usage. In writing, using "could" instead of "couldn't" tends to lead to confusion. "Could care less" is much more informal; some characters might use it in dialogue, but, in general, it's safer to stick with "couldn't care less," which can't be misunderstood.Note that using "could care less" is an American thing. British characters would use the proper phrase, "couldn't care less." And British readers will probably think you made a mistake if you use "could care less."
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cue/queue
A "queue" is a line of people or things. To "queue," or "queue up," means to get in line, or to form a line. (A queue can, incidentally, also be a braid, but it's not used that way very often--unless you're in an Age of Sail fandom.)As a verb, "cue" means "to prompt" or "to position in readiness for playing" or "to insert into a continuous performance." A "cue" is a signal or a hint, or the stick you use to play pool with.
These get kind of tricky sometimes. You could queue a list of songs on your iPod, but most likely you cue a song. When a director brings in an instrument, he's cuing.
Harry and Hermione queued up to pay for their books.
Cue the violins.
That's your cue--get on stage.
Look how long that queue is!
Horatio's queue had come undone during the battle.
defuse/diffuse
"Defuse" means "to remove the fuse from," or "to make less harmful, potent, or tense." "Diffuse," as a verb, refers to spreading out or thinning.When Harry and Draco pulled out their wands, Dumbledore stepped in to defuse the situation.
The nerve gas diffused throughout the room.
desert/dessert
A "dessert" is a sweet course or a fruit course served at the end of a meal. So far so good."Desert" can be a verb, in which case the accent is on the second syllable, and it means "to leave in the lurch" or "to abandon," especially in the military. As a noun, "desert" is usually pronounced with the accent on the first syllable, and it means "an arid land with sparse vegetation," or "a desolate or forbidding area."
However, "desert" has another meaning that most people aren't aware of. As a noun, it can be pronounced with the accent on the second syllable, like "dessert," and in that case it means "a deserved reward or punishment." So it's actually "just deserts," not "just desserts."
When Malfoy ended up in the infirmary, Hermione thought he had got his just deserts.
Jack was tired of having pie for dessert.
Most of "Lawrence of Arabia" takes place in the desert.
The soldier was court-martialed for deserting his unit.
discreet/discrete
"Discrete" means "consisting of distinct or unconnected elements" and is mostly used in mathematics.You most likely want "discreet," which can mean prudent, unpretentious or unobtrusive.
Harry discreetly peered around the corner.
Jim reminded Blair to be discreet when talking about police cases.
exacerbate/exasperate
"Exacerbate" means "to make more violent, brutal or severe." "Exasperate" means "to excite the anger of," or "to cause irritation or annoyance to." In general, people are exasperated; situations are exacerbated. Make sure you're using the right one.Jim was exasperated by Blair's sloppiness.
Closing the factory will exacerbate unemployment problems.
fallow/follow
"Fallow" has several uses, mostly relating to farming. If a farmer decides not to plant in a particular field one season, he's letting that field lie fallow. It's much more likely that you want to use "follow", which means, generally, to come after something, or to obey something.Farmer McDonald decided to let twenty acres lie fallow this year.
Don't forget to follow the directions.
fiancé/fiancée
A "fiancé" is a male person who's engaged to be married. If the person is female, it's "fiancée". In English, both these words tend to be used without the acute accents fairly often, just because accents are hard to type on an English keyboard. Technically, though, the words are borrowed from French, and the accent is correct.Before they were married, Carolyn was Jim's fiancée, and Jim was Carolyn's fiancé.
Top of page | Index | E-mail Thalia with a comment or correctionflaunt/flout
"Flaunt" means "to display or obtrude oneself to public notice" or "to display ostentatiously or impudently." It generally has to do with showiness and attention-getting. "Flout" means "to treat with contemptuous disregard" or "to indulge in scornful behavior." In the U.S., it's not uncommon to see "flaunt" used in place of "flout," and not all dictionaries say this is non-standard, but if you use "flaunt" in this way, many readers will think it's wrong.Harry was known for flouting Professor Snape's rules.
Amidala tried not to flaunt her expensive clothes.
Hermione sometimes flaunts her knowledge.
hanged/hung
"Hanged" and "hung" are both past participle forms of "hang." In general, when you refer to an execution, "hanged" is preferable. If you refer to a man as being "hung," it's usually more of an endowment thing. For other meanings of "hang," "hung" is fine.The traitor was hanged at dawn.
Qui-Gon is hung like a horse.
Hear, hear!/Here, here!
"Hear, hear!" is an expression used to indicate approval, e.g. during a speech. It's absolutely not "Here, here!"--which makes no sense at all.Top of page | Index | E-mail Thalia with a comment or correction
hoard/horde
"Horde" is a noun, meaning "a teeming crowd or throng."Genghis Khan led the Mongolian hordes.
Anakin was amazed by the horde of people on Coruscant.
Harry needed to access his hoard of Galleons.
Squirrels hoard acorns for the winter.
Hermione hoarded her thoughts.
Additions to the misused words list are always welcome! Feel free to send examples to thalia@destinysgarden.net
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