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Thursday Thirteen - 13 (MORE!) Frequently Misused/Confused Words

10/1/2013

24 Comments

 
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Ciao a tutti! Hello, everybody! You know what? It's that time of year again - time for me to drag out a few more corrections on the grammar front! I keep hoping these posts will become unnecessary, but, alas, they do not.

So this week, I must present to you

13 (MORE!) Frequently Misused/Confused Words

1) Formerly and Formally -
Formerly means what something (or someone) *used* to be. 

ex: the Artist Formerly Known as Prince.

Formally means with ceremony or with respect:
We were introduced formally at the reception.


2) too, to, two -
too: also
to: from one point to another point in time or space
two: the number 2.
3) infer/imply -
To infer means to take information and come to a conclusion.
To imply means to subtly give evidence to lead someone to a conclusion.

The television series The Big Bang Theory illustrated this well. Toward the end of the clip below, around 1:35, this exchange takes place:

Zack: I don't get it.

Leonard: A dolphin might.

Zack: Oh, I see. You guys are inferring that I'm stupid.

Sheldon: That's not correct. We were implying it. You then inferred it.


4) Exciting and Exiting -
Exciting: a person, place or thing which stirs excitement in an individual. Exiting: the act of leaving a place; to go out from someplace or something.
"I don't know why you're exiting this exciting online conversation!"
"Dude, I gotta PEE!"

5) As a general rule, it's Grammar, not Grammer.
If you're talking about writing, speaking and so on, you want to use proper grammar. You always want to get an "A" (two, actually) in grammar!
Now, if you're talking about the star of the television series Frasier?

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Grammer.
6) Principle and Principal -
Principle is a noun, referring to a fundamental standard, law, rule or doctrine. It only means this.
Principal can be a noun with many different meanings (the principal of a school; the amount of financing; the primary person in a given role - acting or otherwise; and so on), an adjective meaning of the greatest significance or importance ("My principal objection is to the blatant sexism shown here!"), or even an adverb, "principally", meaning "for the most part".

7) It's Separate NOT Seperate -
Separate in its verb form means to part or divide, to section off. In its adjective form, it describes something cut off from other things, set apart.
Seperate means NOTHING!!! IT IS NOT A WORD!
*ahem*

Just remember: There's always "A RAT" in a "SepARATion"!
8) It's Milquetoast, not "Milk Toast" -
The term "milquetoast" is used to described an ineffectual and timid person, someone unlikely to raise a fuss in any circumstance. It is derived from the name of a comic strip character from the 1920s. Which character? Well, I'm going to cheat here and use Wikipedia:
"Caspar Milquetoast was a comic strip character created by H. T. Webster for his cartoon series, The Timid Soul. Webster described Caspar Milquetoast as "the man who speaks softly and gets hit with a big stick". The character's name is a deliberate misspelling of the name of a bland and fairly inoffensive food, milk toast. Milk toast, light and easy to digest, is an appropriate food for someone with a weak or "nervous" stomach.


So:
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Milquetoast (see how meek and mild he is?)
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Milk toast.
9) Expatriate not Ex-patriot -
I'm sure you've heard me call myself this from time to time, most likely using the abbreviation "Expat".
An expatriate is someone who lives in a country other than the one they are born in, whether temporarily or permanently. It derives from the Latin words "ex" (out of) and "patria" (country, fatherland).

Ex-patriot doesn't exist. It's not a word.
Well, unless you're referring to a former member of the New England Patriots Football team.

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Rodney Harrison. And yes, I totally had to Google "Former New England Patriot" to find something for this.
10) Supposedly not supposably -
Both of these terms are adverbs, derived from the word "supposed". However, there is still a lot of debate about the veracity of "supposably" (and as I write this, it keeps getting highlighted as an error).

Supposed means to assume something for the sake of argument, or to consider something to be truth. So, "supposedly" can mean an action is expected to turn out a certain way.
"Suppose we were to just take that short cut. What's the worst that could happen?"
"Supposedly, we could get lost in the woods, that's what! I'm not doing it!"

Supposably simply means that something is conceivable. And aside from the whole "i before e, except after c (or sounded as 'a' as in neighbor and weigh)" thing, "conceivable" is probably the better word to use if that is what you're trying to convey.

11) Breath and breathe -
Breath is a noun and means the air taken in or expelled by the lungs.
Breathe is a verb, and means to take air in and then expel it from the lungs.
"He has such bad breath. I wish he wouldn't breathe on me!"
12) Council and counsel -
Council: A group of people gathered to regulate or advise others.
Counsel: to give advice.

"The council gave fair counsel on the subjects at hand."
13) Hoard and horde -
"Hoard" is a noun, referring to a collection of something for future use, and as a verb, to "Hoard" is to collect obsessively.
A "Horde" is a large number of people, frequently used in reference to invading armies.
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Hoard.
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Horde.
And there you have them: 13 MORE Frequently Misused/Confused Words.





I hope this has proven helpful for some of you.














At the very least, I hope it was mildly entertaining.



















Now I need to take a little break and get on with some writing.






















Feel free to come back from time to time if you need a refresher, of course.





















Or, you know...















Whatever.
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Ciao for now!
24 Comments

I am a writer, and I live in Italy.

5/11/2010

0 Comments

 
I've really got to learn to multi-task better. I'm struggling daily with my wordcount for 27 Stages, thanks to my preparations for my trip to London and doing what promotional work I can from home for Ask Me if I'm Happy.

Strangely, I've had a couple of opportunities in recent days to refer to myself as a writer. As in, "I am a (soon-to-be) published writer." It felt good, but a little strange - kind of like one's first real kiss. It's wonderful and exciting and a little bit off, somehow. In a delightful, happening-to-someone-else sort of way.

Or was that just me?

Hmph.

I think the reason it's taking some adjusting is the fact I've always said I was a writer. I've believed it in my heart of hearts from a pretty young age. It's only now that other people are conceding the point in a real way.

And then there's the sense of unreality that comes from this phrase:
"I am a writer and I live in Italy."

There's so much weight in those words, it's almost inconceivable to me how to make them mean what I want them to. Because when I say "I am a writer and I live in Italy", people get all sorts of wrong ideas. They imagine that I don't have a "real" job. They think I don't need one. They think I live in a place full of warmth and sunshine year-round. They think I live in a Tuscan villa, complete with vineyards and/or olive groves. They think I have an airy apartment filled with light. They think I live a glamourous lifestyle, sipping wine on a balcony which overlooks rolling hills, while I wear some sort of designer frock.

The reality is far different.

I have a "real" job. I teach English to Italians at a language school in the city where I live. Yeah, the job can be fun sometimes, no doubt about it - I've probably mentioned some of my students here before, and how much I adore them - but it's still work, with all the bureaucracy and paperwork any teaching job entails.

My writing hasn't made me rich. The book isn't even out yet, remember? (November 15th is coming soon, though! Not that I'll be "rich" anytime in the near future. Heh.)

Reggio nell'Emilia is a sunny place - in Spring and Summer, anyway. In Autumn and Winter, however? Not so much. It's rainy, it's cold and it's very foggy. Which is one reason I love it so much here. It suits me and my creative energies.

I most definitely don't live in a Tuscan villa, or sit on a balcony overlooking rolling hills, vineyards or olive groves.
Picture
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These are the views from my balcony. I don't see any vineyards, do you?
Some folks - including my husband - don't understand why I might want to correct the misinformation about my life or my lifestyle - such as it is. I think I do this because I want people to see that I'm the same person I've always been. I'm not particularly lucky, or blessed, even though I am.

Does that make sense?

I'm here because of chance, and because I followed my heart and did what I had to do in order to be happy. I took chances, and chance took me where I needed to be, so I could tell the story I needed to tell and find more stories when that one was finished.

I'm here because I was open to the possibilities which lay before me. I'm here because a real gem of a guy caught my eye when he slipped under the radar of women who were too focused on the flashy guys around them. Their loss, my gain, thank you very much. This is the payoff for ignoring the superficial and appreciating the substance of a real man.

I have friends who envy my living here in Italy. Sometimes I don't know why, but I suspect it's because of those words I mentioned. For the record, my life is no different here than when I'm in the States, in many ways. I write, I work, I do laundry, I cook dinner and clean the catbox (not at the same time). I grouse about politics with friends. I complain about the potholes in the road and the fact people can be so darn rude! Argh!

I miss home a little bit, every single day. I miss my family, and my friends. I miss the view of the mountains from my mom's back porch. I miss being able to find clothes in my style and size. I miss US junk food and television and driving myself around (I don't have an Italian driving license - another story for another time). I miss a lot about the US, but overall, it's just like here, in Italy.

Wherever I am, it's just life. And yes, life is beautiful. Life is strange, and life is hard wherever you are.

It's all in how you choose to look at it.
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