Commonly Misused Words

[CarlusMagnus]

This thread is a companion thread to AllardChardon's Seldom-Used Words thread.

Let's get the lie/lay pair and the sit/set pair out of the way at the very beginning. Efforts to get folks to make correct distinctions between the words of these pairs (and their forms) correctly are probably now a rear-guard action---at best. As any reader of Lit. stories knows.

Though I was stupefied to see, recently, in a Lit. story, the sentence "She lied on the bed." It was clear that the author, who commonly commits this particular crime, meant that she reclined on the bed, and not that she told an untruth from that location.

Let me start with comprise, which does not mean "compose", but "contain".

"A sentence is comprised of a subject and a predicate." is wrong. So is "A related subject and predicate comprise a sentence.".

Correct: A sentence comprises a subject and a predicate.

 

[Boxlicker101]

This thread is a companion thread to AllardChardon's Seldom-Used Words thread.

Let's get the lie/lay pair and the sit/set pair out of the way at the very beginning. Efforts to get folks to make correct distinctions between the words of these pairs (and their forms) correctly are probably now a rear-guard action---at best. As any reader of Lit. stories knows.

Though I was stupefied to see, recently, in a Lit. story, the sentence "She lied on the bed." It was clear that the author, who commonly commits this particular crime, meant that she reclined on the bed, and not that she told an untruth from that location.

Let me start with comprise, which does not mean "compose", but "contain".

"A sentence is comprised of a subject and a predicate." is wrong. So is "A related subject and predicate comprise a sentence.".

Correct: A sentence comprises a subject and a predicate.

Actually, the first sentence is not quite correct. "A sentence is comprised of a subject and a predicate, and may also include other parts, such as a direct object and modifers."

Here is the definition in the online dictionary: http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/comprise

 

[Sugary_Comfort]

The one I can't stand is when someone uses 'then' when they mean 'than.'

Simply put, the word 'then' is usually used when talking about time or an order of actions. Yes, feel free to reword that because my brain is not working at 100% right now.

The word 'than' is usually for comparison. Think of the term 'rather than.'

If people would just enunciate then there wouldn't be a problem.

 

[CarlusMagnus]

Actually, the first sentence is not quite correct. "A sentence is comprised of a subject and a predicate, and may also include other parts, such as a direct object and modifers."

Here is the definition in the online dictionary: http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/comprise

I suggest that you read that definition more carefully. "...is comprised of..." is exactly the commonly made mistake.

 

[CarlusMagnus]

The one I can't stand is when someone uses 'then' when they mean 'than.'

The other way around is a real pain, too.

 

[SamScribble]

There are some interesting examples in this recent blog post by Jack Scrivano.
http://www.kiwistreet.co.nz/wordpress/?p=154

 

[CarlusMagnus]

There are some interesting examples in this recent blog post by Jack Scrivano.
http://www.kiwistreet.co.nz/wordpress/?p=154

He got one of my pet peeves---unique.

 

[Sugary_Comfort]

Oh man, lately I've been seeing a ton of people using 'women' when they mean 'woman.' It makes me cringe!

One is plural, the other is singular. One starts with the 'wi' sound (like the i sounds for in and is) and the other starts with a sort of 'wuh' or 'woh' sound.

 

[CarlusMagnus]

Oh man, lately I've been seeing a ton of people using 'women' when they mean 'woman.' It makes me cringe!

One is plural, the other is singular. One starts with the 'wi' sound (like the i sounds for in and is) and the other starts with a sort of 'wuh' or 'woh' sound.

No thinking person likes to see women misused.

Or to see "women" misused, either.

 

[Tio_Narratore]

"When I use a word," Humpty Dumpty said in rather a scornful tone. "It means just what I choose it to mean - neither more or less."
"The question is," said Alice, "whether you can make words mean so many different things."
"The question is," said Humpty Dumpty, "which is to be master - that's all."

(Lewis Carroll, of course)

Ultimately, Mr. Dumpty is correct, and supported by even the OED. Dictionaries are there to record what words are used to mean, not prescribe their meanings and uses, and they reflect changes in meaning as well.
Still, it is best to agree on the meanings of words, even if such are not what they once were, so that we can avoid not knowing what the fuck we're talking about.

 

[Boxlicker101]

Quote:
Originally Posted by Boxlicker101
Actually, the first sentence is not quite correct. "A sentence is comprised of a subject and a predicate, and may also include other parts, such as a direct object and modifers."

Here is the definition in the online dictionary: http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/comprise

I suggest that you read that definition more carefully. "...is comprised of..." is exactly the commonly made mistake.

The definition says either usage is correct. What I am saying about your sample sentence is that sentences should frequently include more than just a subject and predicate. This is especially so to an author. If your writing is going to be interesting, you will also need to include direct objects and modifiers, as well as interjections and conjunctions.

 

[soflabbwlvr]

It drives me crazy when someone uses "dominate" when the mean "dominant," and vice versa. Dominate is a verb; dominant is either an adjective or a noun. It seems simple enough, but I see them used improperly all the time.

 

[oggbashan]

One confusion that irritates me in newspaper reports is:

Discreet adj 1.a circumspect; b. tactful, trustworthy; 2. unobtrusive (a discreet touch of rouge).

Discrete adj individually distinct; separate; discontinuous.

A discreet reporter might refuse to use an 'off-the-record' statement.

A discrete reporter might have a very individual style of writing that is instantly recognisable.

 

[LettersFromTatyana]

compliment v. complement, verb and noun forms

Verb: person A compliments person B on his kindness, but if they are soul-mates, person A complements person B.

Noun: person A can give person B a compliment, but if they are soul-mates, they are complements.

 

[Boxlicker101]

I always keep a dictionary handy when I'm writing, because I tend to confuse some homonyms, such as "role" and "roll" and similar sounding words such as "affect" and "effect."

Some of the complaints here are about typos, such as "than" and "then" and "woman" and "women." I believe most people know the differences, but fingers sometimes hit the wrong keys.

 

[TheeGoatPig]

I always keep a dictionary handy when I'm writing, because I tend to confuse some homonyms, such as "role" and "roll" and similar sounding words such as "affect" and "effect."

Some of the complaints here are about typos, such as "than" and "then" and "woman" and "women." I believe most people know the differences, but fingers sometimes hit the wrong keys.

It's not a typo when it is chronic throughout an entire story/article. I have seen "women" used in every instance that should have been "woman" just recently (don't remember where though...).

 

[sr71plt]

I suggest that you read that definition more carefully. "...is comprised of..." is exactly the commonly made mistake.

Yep.

The whole comprises the parts.

The whole is composed of the parts.

"The gaggle of witches comprised Kremehilda, Florence, and Myrtle."

"The gaggle of wiches was composed of Kremehilda, Florence, and Myrtle."

 

[sr71plt]

your/you're

affect/effect

when to use that/which/who and how to use commas with them.

bear/borne/born

advise/advice

script/scrip

breath/breathe

rebound/redound

allude/elude

clique/cliché/click

pique/peek/peak

resume/résumé

quiet/quite

confident/confidant

blond/blonde

procede/proceed

different/definite

allusion/elusion/illusion

emerge/emerse/immerge

alternately/alternatively

emigrant/immigrant

persecute/prosecute

inclose/enclose

personal/personnel

altogether/all together

enquire/inquire

flaunt/flout/flute

irregardless

passed/past/pass

rational/rationale

sensual/sensuous

way/weigh

too/to/two

then/than

they're/their/there


I get so tied up in knots with the "lay/lie" one that I try to write around it.

 

[michchick98]

I get so tied up in knots with the "lay/lie" one that I try to write around it.

Yeah, I do too. Most of the time I use this page:

http://public.wsu.edu/~brians/errors/errors.html#errors

I think the examples you posted are there.

The other one I still get confused on, even after looking at the above mentioned page over and over is affect/effect. I've seen both used the same way, hence the confusion.

I won't give examples, because I'm not sure any more what's right and what's wrong.

Oh and another I see a lot of is alright/all right.

 

[Handley_Page]

compliment v. complement, verb and noun forms

Verb: person A compliments person B on his kindness, but if they are soul-mates, person A complements person B.

Noun: person A can give person B a compliment, but if they are soul-mates, they are complements.

complement complementum, f. complere: see COMPLETE a. & adv., -MENT. Cf. COMPLIMENT n.]

1 a Completing, fulfilling. LME-E18.
b Completeness, fullness. Chiefly & now only Her. of the moon. E17.
2 A thing which puts the finishing touches to a thing; the perfection, the consummation, the culmination. (Foll. by of.) LME.
3 a, The quantity or amount that completes or fills, the totality. (Foll. by of.) L16.
b The full number required (to man a ship, fill a conveyance, etc.). E17.
4 A thing which, when added, completes or makes up a whole; either of two mutually completing parts. L16.
b Math. & Astron. The angle which when added to a given angle makes 90 degrees. Cf. SUPPLEMENT n. 1c. L16.
c That colour which, mixed with another, produces white. M19.
d Gram. A word, phrase, or clause added to the verb of a sentence to complete the predicate, esp. to a verb of incomplete predication. Also, a restrictive relative clause identifying or defining the noun (in Eng. often introduced by that, as in the fact that). L19.
e Physiol. A group of proteins present in blood plasma and tissue fluid, which by combining with an antigen-antibody complex can bring about the lysis of foreign cells. E20.
f Computing. The number related to a given number in such a way that their sum is a number consisting entirely of 9s (in the decimal system), 1s (in the binary system), etc. Also, such a number increased by one. M20.
5 A completing accessory. L16-L17.
6 A personal accomplishment or quality. L16-M17.
7 a A ceremony, a formal observance. L16-M17.
b Civility, politeness. Cf. COMPLIMENT n. 3. L16-L17. c = COMPLIMENT n. 1, 2. L16-E18.Comb.: complement-fixation, complement-fixing
Med. the reaction of complement (sense 4e) with an antigen-antibody complex, freq. as the basis of a diagnostic test.complementizer
n. (Gram.) a word, suffix, etc., that introduces a complement clause M20.

---------------------------------------------------------
Excerpted from Oxford Talking Dictionary
Copyright © 1998 The Learning Company, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

 

[litfan10]

The other one I still get confused on, even after looking at the above mentioned page over and over is affect/effect. I've seen both used the same way, hence the confusion.

Thanks for the link MC, very handy.

I don't know if this will help you. The easiest way to keep track of affect/effect is by the word's function - "affect" is usually used as a verb which you can check by seeing if switching tense (present to past for example)works - I was affected by the recent events. "Effect" is usually used as a noun, adding -ive makes the noun an adjective "effective;" you would usually find an article ("a," "an" or "the") in front of it - The events will have an effect on my future.

I run into all sorts of problems with this with my students when it is time for cause and effect papers!

Good luck and take care of yourself!

 

[sr71plt]

Unfortunately "affect" also has a noun form, which doesn't help the writer in the least.

 

[litfan10]

Unfortunately "affect" also has a noun form, which doesn't help the writer in the least.

true, but in common day-to-day usage that form almost never comes up, In fact, my Oxford Compact English Dictionary doesn't even have the noun form.
Where I get in trouble working with students is when the adjective, adverb uses and endings come into play.

 

[CarlusMagnus]

The definition says either usage is correct.

I'm afraid I don't see that in the definition you've cited. Please show us where your citation supports "...is comprised of...".

What I am saying about your sample sentence is that sentences should frequently include more than just a subject and predicate. This is especially so to an author. If your writing is going to be interesting, you will also need to include direct objects and modifiers, as well as interjections and conjunctions.

The subject of a sentence can be more than simply a noun. And the predicate can be more than simply the verb. But I won't quarrel about what that sentence said. The important thing is that the phrase "...is comprised of..." means "...is contained of..."---which is silly.

 

[CarlusMagnus]

your/you're

affect/effect

.
.
.

they're/their/there


I get so tied up in knots with the "lay/lie" one that I try to write around it.

A nice list.

To which we might add

cite/sight/site.

As in "When I saw her web-page, I knew at first sight that I would cite that site frequently."

I frequently see "site" where "sight" is wanted in Lit. stories. I suspect that a spell checker is usually an accomplice.

The pair lie/lay requires some brute force memory work. "To lie" is "to recline". (I'll ignore "to tell an untruth, that form of "to lie" being regular and not usually troublesome.) It's an intransitive verb and does not take an object. The principal parts are lie, lay, lain[\i].
Thus, when we want to say that someone reclined on the bed yesterday, we should say "He lay on the bed."

"To lay" is "to place". This verb is transitive, and it requires a direct object. The principle parts are lay, laid, laid, so when we see, as we so commonly do in Lit. stories, "He laid on the bed," we are inclined to ask ourselves just what it was that he put there. "He laid himself on the bed," is a correct way to use "to lay" to say "He lay on the bed." But in the latter sentence "lay" is the past tense of "to lie". This may cause a large part of the confusion.