Category : Word Processors
Archive   : PCBRWSE1.ZIP
Filename : MISUSED

accept adapt adopt advice advise [BR= /I:6.18 /J:22.20 /K:0.0]
affect allude allusion alot altar
alter author awhile born borne
breadth breath breathe capital capitol
choose chose complement complementary compliment
complimentary council councilor counsel counselor
credible creditable dual duel effect
elude envelop envelope except fewer
foreword formally formerly forward gorilla
guerilla illusion imply infer it's
its last later latter lead
led less loose lose maybe
moral morale passed past peace
persecute personal personnel perspective piece
precede principal principle proceed propose
prosecute prospective purpose respectfully respectively
right rite stationary stationery tack
tact than their then there
they're to too two weather
whether who's whose wright write
ACCEPT versus EXCEPT

Accept, verb, To receive [something]:
Tom accepts the gift from Mary.
Except, preposition, In every case but:
The memo was sent to everyone except John.
ADAPT versus ADOPT

Adapt, verb, To change or be changed [in response to a situation]:
Jenna rapidly, if unhappily, adapted to the longer work week.
We can adapt our old forms to work with window envelopes.
Adopt, verb, To take on as one's own:
We can adopt this stray cat as our mascot and office manager.
ADVICE versus ADVISE

Advice {ad-Vyess'}, noun, Suggestions, guidelines:
Consultants can be hired to give advice.
Advise {ad-Vyez}, verb, Make suggestions:
Consultants can be hired to advise us.
AFFECT versus EFFECT

In normal usage, effect can be both noun and verb, whereas affect is only
a verb.
Affect {uh-Fehkt'}, verb, To have an impact on:
I can affect the atmosphere in my office.
The atmosphere in my office affects my work.
Effect {eh-Fehkt'}, verb, To bring about:
I can effect changes in the atmosphere in my office.
Effect {eh-Fehkt'}, noun, Something brought about:
The atmosphere in my office has an effect on my work.
In addition, affect has two special meanings:
Affect {uh-Fehkt'}, verb, To simulate, put on, or pretend:
Joanna affects a high, whiny tone when she's imitating our boss.
Affect {Af'ehkt}, noun, Feeling or emotion (psychology):
John showed little affect when he learned of the death of his brother.
ALLUDE versus ELUDE

Allude, verb, Refer to, often indirectly:
At the presentation, Susan alluded to our reputation in the industry.
Elude, verb, Avoid or get away from:
The difference between these words can elude the incautious author.
(See also ALLUSION)
ALLUSION versus ILLUSION

Allusion, noun, A reference to [something], often indirect:
Susan made an allusion to our reputation in the industry.
Illusion, noun, A mirage, or an error in belief:"
Our professionalism gives the illusion that we are a large corporation.
(See also ALLUDE)
ALTAR versus ALTER

Altar, noun, The place where a [religious] ceremony is held:
I regret that our competitor worships at the altar of greed.
Alter, verb, To change:
Since we've altered our approach, we've become more competitive.
AUTHOR

Author is used correctly only as a noun ÄÄ the person who writes something:
We're going to the bookstore to meet the author of "The Author's Guide."
It describes the writer, never the act of writing:
WRONG: I am authoring a book called "The Author's Guide."
CORRECT: I am writing a book called "The Author's Guide."
(See also WRITE)
BORN versus BORNE

Both words are past participles of bear.
Born, past participle of bear as in To give birth to:
People cheered when the new prince was born.
Borne, past participle of bear as in To carry:
People waved when the new prince was borne through the crowd.
BREATH versus BREATHE versus BREADTH

Breath {rhymes with death}, noun, Intake of air:
He was so tense that he held his breath.
Breathe {rhymes with seethe}, verb, To take in air:
He was so tense that he forgot to breathe.
Breadth {rhymes with death}, noun, Size or scope [of something]:
The breadth of his knowledge is breathtaking.
ALOT

This misspelling of "a lot" is increasingly common ÄÄ but is no more correct
than it was 20 years ago. (For that matter, "a lot" of something is itself
less than acceptable in formal writing.)
WRONG: She has alot of friends.
BETTER: She has a lot of friends.
BEST: She has many friends.
AWHILE

Be careful not to use awhile when you mean a while. A "while" is a period
of time; if you can replace "while" with, say, "minute" in a sentence, you
should use a while instead of awhile. For example, consider
1) RIGHT: Susan's going to shop for a while.
2) RIGHT: Susan's going to shop awhile.
In (1), you could as easily write
1) RIGHT: Susan's going to shop for a minute.
Thus the correct ending for sentence (1) is a while. In (2), however, you
may sense something awkward about the revised
2) WRONG: Susan's going to shop a minute.
This construction is fine in conversation, but it's incorrect in writing.
Since you can't substitute "minute" for "while," the correct form of sentence
(2) ends in the single word "awhile."

Technically, awhile is an adverb (while is a noun). Adverbs hang out with
verbs (He spoke well), adjectives (The sky is very blue), and even other
adverbs (The sky is very very blue); however, they're not good pals with
prepositions such as "for" (WRONG: Stay for awhile). Only a noun (such as
while can be the object of a prepositional phrase (Stay for a while).
CAPITAL versus CAPITOL

Capitol's only meaning is the building in which a legislature meets:
We're going to the capitol to watch our legislators in action.
It's capitalized for a particular capitol in our nation's capital:
We're going to the Capitol to watch America's government in action.
All other meanings require capital:
We're going to the capital of New York, Albany.
Our business failed because we didn't have enough capital.
A sentence must begin with a capital letter.
America is one of the few Western countries with capital punishment.
That's a capital idea!
The top part of a pillar is called a capital.
An alert businessperson capitalizes on opportunities.
CHOOSE versus CHOSE

Chose is the past tense of choose:
Let's choose up sides for the game.
We chose up sides in the game of love.
COMPLEMENT versus COMPLIMENT

Complement, noun, Something that completes
Joanna skills are a good complement to Bill's.
Compliment, noun, Praise
Joanna gave Bill a compliment on his work.
Complement, verb, Completing, filling in
Joanna skills complement Bill's work.
Compliment, verb, To praise
Joanna complimented Bill on his work.
(See also COMPLEMENTARY)
COMPLEMENTARY versus COMPLIMENTARY

Complementary, adjective, Completing
Joanna and Bill have complementary skills.
Complimentary, adjective, Expressing praise, or given free(ly)
Joanna gave Bill complimentary tickets.
(See also COMPLEMENT)
COUNCIL versus COUNSEL

Council, noun, A group of people handing down laws or advice
The city council meets this evening.
Counsel, noun, Lawyer
Ray is the City Counsel. (He's the city's chief lawyer.)
Counsel, verb, Give advice
Suzanne will be counseling me on how to behave in front of the committee.

As a noun, counsel is somewhat more formal and restrained than lawyer:
"You'll be hearing from my lawyer, you %#&*@(#!($!!."
"On advice of counsel, I have nothing further to say."
(See also COUNCILOR)
COUNCILOR versus COUNSELOR

Councilor, noun, A person who serves on a council
The city councilor spoke at our annual meeting.
Counselor, noun, Lawyer or advisor
The camp counselor spoke at our annual meeting.
(See also COUNCIL)
CREDIBLE versus CREDITABLE

Credible, adjective, Believable
His account of the journey was barely credible.
Creditable, adjective, Worthy of praise
His effort on the journey was quite creditable.
DUAL versus DUEL

Dual, adjective, Pertaining to two
A saber has a dual purpose in a fight.
Duel, noun, A battle or a (formal) fight
I propose we fight a duel with sabers.
ENVELOP versus ENVELOPE

Envelop {en-Vel'up}, verb, Enclose
The arms of night reached out to envelop me, but I escaped.
Envelope {En'veh-lope, Ahn'veh-lope}, noun, container
I sent my purple prose to the publisher in a self-addressed envelope.
FEWER versus LESS

Fewer is used to describe things that are discrete ÄÄ fewer tacks, fewer
people. Less is used for continuous quantities or collective nouns ÄÄ less
water, less growth.

There are fewer tourists here this year than last.
There is less tourism this year than last.
FORMALLY versus FORMERLY

Formally, adverb, Officially; following conventions
He dresses formally for dinner. (He wears a tuxedo.)
Formerly, adverb, In the past
He formerly dressed for dinner. (He used to wear clothes at the table.)
FOREWORD versus FORWARD

Foreword, noun, Introduction [to a book] (literally, a "word before")
She is writing the foreword to Rachel's new book.
Forward, adjective, Near the front
She is sleeping in the forward cabin.
Forward, adverb, Toward the front
Despite the publisher's misgivings, Rachel is going forward with the book.

Note that there is no such thing as a "foreward." (Wanna bet? More than
one book has been delivered to a major publisher with such a section!)
Traditionally, a book's foreword is written by someone other than the book's
author, usually a more famous author rounded up by the publisher in the hope
of increasing sales. The book's author writes the preface, often to explain
the rest of the book. The author may also write an introduction, a prelimi-
nary chapter to tell you how he/she's going to tell you whatever he/she plans
to tell you. Sometimes all of this front matter can make one wonder if books
are sold by weight rather than content.
GORILLA versus GUERILLA

Gorilla, noun, Largest of the primates
Gorillas have gotten a bad rap from Hollywood; they're really rather meek.
Guerilla, noun, Fighter in a revolutionary movement
Guerillas have gotten a bad rap from Washington; they're rarely meek.
IMPLY versus INFER

Inferring is something you do in RESPONSE to something you've read or heard.
Implying, on the other hand, is something you can do ACTIVELY, suggesting
something.

Infer, verb, Draw a conclusion
I infer from your tone that you're angry with me.
Imply, verb, Suggest (often indirectly)
I didn't mean to imply that you're being unreasonable.
IT'S versus ITS

It's, contraction of "it is" (or "it has")
It's raining, it's been raining, and it shall continue to rain.
Its, possessive pronoun, Belonging to [the subject of the phrase]
The dog scarfed down its dinner, and then went after mine.

Confusion arises here because most possessives DO require apostrophes ÄÄ
Tom's, the dog's, and so on. However, possessive pronouns DON'T take
apostrophes ÄÄ hers, his, ours, whose, and its. There's no deep-rooted
logic here; its simply ÄÄ whoops, it's simply a rule of thumb. (The
possessive "its" used to take an apostrophe, once upon a time, but of course
that made English spelling too uniform. At any rate, the apostrophe has
vanished from the possessive; it's ÄÄ no, its reappearance in your writing
will result in readers with permanently raised eyebrows.)
LATER versus LATTER (versus LAST)

Later, adjective, At some time in the future
You can have ice cream later, after you eat the liver.

Latter, adjective, The second in a group of two
Of liver and ice cream, I prefer the latter.
Last, adjective, The final item in a group of three or more
CORRECT: Of liver, beets, and peas, I prefer the last.
WRONG: Of liver, beets, and peas, I prefer the latter.
LEAD versus LED

Lead {Leed}, verb, To direct
Murphy will lead the expedition.
Led {Lehd}, verb - past tense, Directed
Murphy led the expedition, until he got lost.
Lead {Lehd}, noun, A dense grey metal
They were looking for gold, but found only lead.
LOOSE versus LOSE

Loose {Looss}, adjective and adverb, Free, not compact
Despite the leash law, I let my pit bull run loose.
Lose {Looz}, verb, Be separated from, suffer defeat
I'm going to lose the suit brought on by my dog's actions.

Loose sees occasional use as a verb in its own right, meaning "To set free:"
"Let us loose the dogs of war." This meaning is obsolete; use it with
caution.
MAYBE

Maybe, written as one word, means "Perhaps." Written as two words, may be
is part of a verb form similar to "might."
CORRECT: Maybe we can go to the movies today.
CORRECT: We may be going to the movies today.
MORAL versus MORALE

Moral {Mawr'ul}, adjective, Ethical
We have moral obligations to our fellow passengers on Spaceship Earth.
Moral {Mawr'ul}, noun, Lesson
The moral is, Do unto others before they do it unto you.
Morale {muh-Rall'}, noun, Spirit
After 48 consecutive losses, our morale was beginning to flag.
PASSED versus PAST

Passed is a verb form, the past tense (and past participle) of "pass"; past
is a noun, adjective, adverb, or preposition.

The due date for this bill has passed. (verb, past participle)
The two ships passed in the night. (verb, past tense)
The runner dropped the passed baton. (verb, past participle)
The due date for this bill was some time in the past. (noun)
We've been discussing the past tense. (adjective, modifying the noun
"tense")
My ship steamed past yours without recognition. (adverb, modifying the
verb "steamed")
You're up past your bedtime. (preposition)

What's the difference between passed baton and past tense? The passed in
"passed baton" refers to the action of passing (the verb "to pass") ÄÄ the
baton was passed to the runner. The past in "past tense" refers to a time.
PEACE versus PIECE

Peace, noun, A calm period
As Elvis said, "What's so funny 'bout peace, love, and understanding?"
Piece, noun, Part of something
Graceland is a significant piece of modern pop culture.
Piece, verb, To join or mend
Elvis retreated to Graceland to piece together his shattered dreams.

(Actually, the Elvis of the first example is pop icon Elvis Costello, not
pop icon Elvis Presley.)
PERSECUTE versus PROSECUTE

Persecute, verb, Harass, oppress
Most countries have at least one persecuted minority.
Prosecute, verb, Start or conduct legal proceedings, persist
One can be prosecuted for infringing the rights of others.
PERSPECTIVE versus PROSPECTIVE

Perspective, adjective, A way of looking at something
I saw him in a new perspective when he gave me his business card.
Prospective, adjective, In the future
Suddenly, I realized he was a prospective client.
PERSONAL versus PERSONNEL

Personal, adjective, Belonging or pertaining to a person; private
She borrowed the corporate hot tub for personal use.
Personnel, noun, People working in a job or service
However, she was one of the personnel with free access to it.

Note; it is bureaucratese to use personnel with a specific number:
WRONG: We have 14 personnel in the Department of Redundancy Department.
BETTER: We have 14 persons in the Department of Redundancy Department.
CORRECT: We have 14 people in the Department of Redundancy Department.
PRECEDE versus PROCEED

Precede, verb, Come before
The robber made me precede him into the apartment.
Proceed, verb, Go forward
I thought, "What would Bogart do now?" and proceeded to faint.
PRINCIPAL versus PRINCIPLE

Principal, adjective, Primary
My principal objection to the deal was the appearance of impropriety.
Principal, noun, Major participant; head of a school
The school principal was also the principal in the land deal.
Principle, noun, A basic or moral truth
It's an American principle that education should be available to all.

Principle can never be an adjective; if you need the adjective, you need
principal. As a noun, a principal is a person. (Teachers used to foist
upon their students the mnemonic phrase, "You have a pal in the principal."
This phrase seems to have stuck in the memory of many students during the
1950s; once bedeviled by it, such students had little chance of misusing
priciple and principal. However, misuse of these words is creeping back into
today's writing, suggesting (1) that overworked teachers have less time to
impart such gems, (2) that jaded students are less receptive to responding to
them, or (3) that the relationship among students, teachers, and principals,
somewhat awkward to begin with, has by now broken down so completely that the
phrase evokes undisguised derision from all parties involved.
PROPOSE versus PURPOSE

Propose {pruh-Poze'} is a verb, purpose {Per'puhs} an adjective.
I propose to go to the store.
My purpose is to buy some tangelos and kiwi fruit.

(In Shakespeare's time, purpose was also a noun, and one could say, "I
purpose to go to the store." That was then, however, and this is now.)
RESPECTFULLY versus RESPECTIVELY

Respectfully, adverb, With deference or respect
Jane and John went respectfuly to church.
Respectively, adverb, In order, as mentioned
Jane and John went respectively to work and to the health club.
RIGHT versus RITE versus WRITE versus WRIGHT

As nouns:
Right, noun, Permission
We signed a treaty giving our ships right of passage in the channel.
Rite, noun, Ceremony
Getting drunk is an unfortunate rite of passage for some teenagers.
Wright, noun suffix, Maker, builder
Eugene O'Neill, playwright, wrote often of drunkenness.
(Note: don't confuse the maker of plays, a playwright, with the act
of creation of a play, playwriting.)
As verbs:
Right, verb, To set straight
We had to right the sailboat after we got hit by the squall.
Write, verb, To create, to put on paper
Eugene O'Neill writes often of drunkenness.
As an adjective:
Right, adjective, Proper, correct
Astronauts need to believe that they have "the right stuff."
As an adverb:
Right, adverb, Directly
The damp cold of a Boston winter cuts right through your clothes.
STATIONARY versus STATIONERY

Stationary (with an "a") is an adjective, meaning "fixed." Stationery (with
an "e") is a noun, meaning "writing materials."
I tried to write outdoors, but my stationery blew away.
The deck isn't stationary in a high wind.
TACK versus TACT

"Take a new tack" has gained currency as a phrase meaning "try a different
approach." Unfortunately, it often appears incorrectly as "a new tact."
Used in this sense, tack derives from a nautical term meaning "to change
direction in order to sail into or against the wind." It's a perfectly valid
metaphor, although it's becoming perfectly overused; in any case, it's
perfectly awful when tact replaces tack.
THAN versus THEN

Than, conjuction, (Used to begin the second part of a comparison)
Carrie is taller than I.
Then, adverb, At some time
First Carrie and then I borrowed the tape measure.
Then, noun, At a given time
I had thought of myself as tall until then.

When than is used in a comparison, the phrase following "than" should
parallel is structure the phrase preceding it:
RIGHT: Carrie is taller than I am.
RIGHT: Carrie is taller than I. ("...I am" is implied)
WRONG: Carrie is taller than me.
RIGHT: They pay Carry more than they pay me.
RIGHT: They pay Carry more than me.
WRONG: They pay Carry more than I.
A conjuction separates two equivalent structures ÄÄ "Carrie" and "I" are the
subjects of the sentence in the first group of examples and the objects of
"they pay" in the second.
What's the difference between different from and different than? There's no
real rule, but usage suggests that the former is preferable unless it would
create an awkward construction:
RIGHT: Carrie's car is different from mine.
POORER: Carrie's car is different than mine.
RIGHT: Her hair is different this evening than last.
THEIR versus THERE versus THEY'RE

Their, possessive pronoun, Belonging to them
They leapt onto their horses and rode into the imaginary sunset.
There, noun, In some place
They leapt onto the horses and rode from here to there.
There, adverb, In some place
Even with fast horses, you can't get there from here.
There, adverb/introductory expletive
There sure are a lot of horses around here.
They're, contraction, They are
They're riding their hobby horses at breakneck speed.
TO versus TOO versus TWO

To, preposition, Toward
I thought I heard the doorbell, so I went to the door.
Too, adverb, Also
Sara thought she heard the doorbell too; she too went to the door.
Two, noun, The number 2
Could two of us be hearing things?
WEATHER versus WHETHER

Weather, noun, Meteorological conditions
The weather in Seattle changes dramatically from hour to hour.
Weather, verb, Survive
I'm not sure I could weather another Boston winter.
Whether, conjunction, In one case or the other
I had to choose whether to live in Boston or Seattle.
WHO'S versus WHOSE

Who's, contraction, Who is
I don't know who's going to the party.
Whose, possessive pronoun, Belonging to [someone]
I don't know whose party it is.

(See also the notes about IT'S)