To anticipate an objection: yes, language evolves but language also has a fixed core. There is a connection between language and the nature of things. There is a distinction in nature between the subject and the object. The languages with which I . . . Continue reading →
HB reader Barbara asks, “Is conversate a word? I am a nurse and see other nurses using it in their progress notes. Example: ‘The resident was seen conversating with her room mate.’ Thanks Barbara. That is a good question. In English, verbs, . . . Continue reading →
Language evolves over time and that process is often driven by popular usage. This may be one of those instances where popular usage has so outstripped the original use of a phrase that it is beyond correcting. Nevertheless I persevere if only . . . Continue reading →
There are a couple of simple ways to distinguish it’s from its: It’s is a contraction. It stands for it is. Whenever you wish to say it is informally use it’s as in “It’s almost time for lunch.” Its is the neuter possessive. It performs the same function . . . Continue reading →
It’s that time of year. Chapters from MA theses and term papers are beginning to come across my desk and one of the mistakes that I see most often is the confusion of while for though. The latter may be used as . . . Continue reading →
So they took counsel and bought with them the potter’s field as a burial place for strangers (Matt 27:7). Then Festus, when he had conferred with his council, answered, “To Caesar you have appealed; to Caesar you shall go.” (Acts 25:12) When . . . Continue reading →
Not only is impact being widely abused now I hear the verbal Frankenstein impactful. There are alternatives. An impact occurs when when two cars collide. The word that is usually wanted is influence as in, “Her writing had an influence on the recovery of good . . . Continue reading →
In recent years a number of ersatz words have entered the popular vocabulary (particularly in sports broadcasting). One of the chief offenders is “comfortability.” Comfortability, as in, “He shows great comfortability moving the pocket” is a classic example of the practice of . . . Continue reading →
On sports-talk radio one gets a good sense of what is happening to the English language. College-educated hosts regularly abuse the language in ways that would frustrate their teachers to no end. For example, one of the hosts of one of my . . . Continue reading →
Clear writers distinguish between further and farther. The latter refers to distance and the former refers to logic. There are parts of the country (e.g., where I grew up, on the plains) where this distinction is ignored. Back home we say, “Go further down . . . Continue reading →
These are two distinct words. They aren’t quite homophones (there and their are homophones, two distinct words that have the same pronunciation)2 but they do sound sufficiently similar to create confusion. To be wary is to be cautious or concerned “about possible dangers…”.1 . . . Continue reading →
Table Of Contents Podcasts Articles Bibliography Podcasts Heidelminicast: Grammar Guerrilla (1): Discomfort with Comfortability Heidelminicast: Grammar Guerrilla (2): Still not Comfortable with Comfortability Heidelminicast: Grammar Guerrilla (3): “Imply” is not “Infer” Heidelminicast: Grammar Guerrilla (4): Him, Her, Whom, He, She…It Really Matters . . . Continue reading →
Several years ago I began to notice that young people were verbally articulate but their ability to speak well did not necessarily translate into an ability to write well. More recently it seems that verbal skills are suffering. There are a variety . . . Continue reading →
This one will not be easy to change but it is easy enough to understand. Hopefully is an adverb, a word that modifies a verb (an action word). Thus, a correct usage would be: “Hopefully, he rose to address the assembly.” In . . . Continue reading →
These two sets of words present two different problems. The first, affect and effect, is that two words sound alike and are formally distinguished by vowels that can be easily confused for one another. Nevertheless, affect and effect do mean different things. . . . Continue reading →
English is a wonderfully flexible and acquisitive language. Estimates vary but as the British and European colonial powers that harvested antiques and riches from the Mediterranean, so English has harvested a significant number of words from a variety of sources. English is . . . Continue reading →
One of the weirder abstract nouns that has popped up recently is the word agreeance, as it, “I am in agreeance with that position.” A noun is a person, place, or thing. An abstract noun is a concept. One cannot see, touch, . . . Continue reading →
Have you ever used, heard, or read these cumbersome constructions: “I had had that same experience but then something else happened” or “She said that car nearly hit her”? My experience suggests that they are being used more frequently but they need . . . Continue reading →
One of the more frequent mistakes I see in email and online is confusion between role and roll. These are homophones. They usually make the same sounds in English but they are different words with distinct meanings. One plays a role on . . . Continue reading →