Jump to content

Grammar Rodeo #8


Renee Stevens

2,067 views

Ever wonder what the correct word to use is? Cia has written a blog entry to help show which word should be used in different instances. It's been a while since we had a Grammar Rodeo, but I find these posts to be rather informative and we hope you do too.

 


Commonly Misused Words

 


When writing, most authors know there are homophones to watch out for, and we all know the big ones like your/you’re/yore and there/their/they’re. But there are a lot of words that are harder to figure out because they’re not as common.

 

Affect/Effect

 

I know I’ve written this one up before, but I see it misused a lot. An affect is a verb and an effect is a noun. The way I remember it is affect = action word. If something is affecting something else, an action is occurring. Effect is the result of an action.

 

Examples:

 

I want this scene to affect my readers in a meaningful way.

 

The effect of the scene was devastating.

 

Me vs I

 

Using I or me can be confusing for some, usually when used with another noun (usually another person). The difference in use is whether or not the pronoun is being used as the subject or object of the verb. I could explain the difference if you don’t automatically know the difference between subjects and objects in a sentence… or I could just remind you of the easy cheat: Take the other noun out of the sentence.

 

Examples:

 

Chase and me went to the store vs Chase and I went to the store. Take out ‘Chase and’

 

Me went to the store vs I went to the store. Easier to figure out.

 

Can you send the files to Patrick and I? vs Can you send the files to Patrick and me?

 

Can you send the files to I? vs Can you send the files to me?

 

Peak vs Peek vs Pique

 

Most people know peak vs peek, but I often see them used equally as often instead of pique because authors don’t know that’s a whole other spelling. Peak means a pointy point, like a mountain, peek means to take a quick look, and pique means to stimulate or be irritated.

 

Examples:

 

We climbed to the peak.

 

She took a peek at the cake before the party.

 

She left the party in a fit of pique, upset at the gossip circulating among the guests.

 

Lose vs Loose

 

Really, these words aren’t anywhere close to each other in meaning, but you see authors not knowing the difference all the time.

 

Lose means to fail to keep/maintain or cease to have while loose means not tight, not in possession, lacking in restraint, ect…. These sentences are almost exactly the same but mean totally different things.

 

Examples:

 

Lose the ball means to get rid of it/not be able to find the ball.

 

Loose the ball means to let the ball go, like if you threw it.

 

Then vs Than

 

I have a simple trick to help remember which should be used and when. First, what do they mean? Then indicates time and than compares items.

 

Memory Trick

 

Then = Time such as We went to the store then the park.

 

Than = Compare such as The kids liked the trip to the park better than the store.

 

Compliment vs Complement

 

Another example where the words sound the same and are spelled very close… yet the meaning is completely different. You can use the letters to help remember here too. Complement means to complete or enhance something. Compliment means an expression of praise or the action of praising someone.

 

Examples:

 

Her scarf complemented her dress.

 

He complimented her choice of scarf.

 

Farther vs Further

 

Yet again, similar but not the same. Both farther and further are often used as if they’re interchangeable, but in reality, there is a difference in the shades of meaning in the words that both mean ‘a great distance’. Unfortunately, I don’t have any tricks for this one, you just have to remember.

 

Farther is used to indicate a physical distance and further is used to indicate a figurative distance.

 

Examples:

 

We went farther than any other team in the race.

 

Nothing he said could further from the truth.

 

What other words do you commonly see misused?

  • Like 16

36 Comments


Recommended Comments



I've an extensive list I check in every chapter, but my pet peeves are capital/capitol, principal/principle and cereal/serial. The one that really gives me a fit of pique however is morning/mourning!

 

Add there/their/they're to the list. I'll repeat something I've said before: A writer should read over what they've written, before sharing it with the public. The rush to post can be strong for new and old authors alike, taking time to review your work may prevent many of these mistakes.

 

English being my second language, I'm succeptible to frequent pangs of fear I'm using the wrong word. The list Kitt mentions is something which can help highlight the often misused words. Once they're pointed out though, the author must ensure they look at the sentence and if in doubt, ask for help. GA has plenty of members willing to lend a hand.

 

As usual, the Grammar Rodeo is one of my favorite blog entries. Thank you Cia and Renee, and thank you to my editors/betas for helping me when I fail to notice one of these in my work!

  • Like 5
Link to comment

Editors take note: we authors need you! LOL

Homophones are the devil's whispers in our ears...  We must defend ourselves from their religious confusion with knowledge! Save us all!!!

 

Seriously... we can all use the help...

  • Like 4
Link to comment
  • Site Administrator

'Aloud' for 'allowed' and 'sell' for 'sale' are errors I'm seeing with increasing frequency. 

 

I love these Grammar Rodeos.  It's a great refresher and I'm a total grammar geek.  :gikkle: 

 

Mann is right...a second set of eyes never hurt.  We all make mistakes from time to time.  ;) 

  • Like 3
Link to comment

I often have to correct words with unnecessary double consonants:

Stared and starred are two very different words in meaning, the first means to look intensely and the second to be the star of e.g. a show.

Similar with scared and scarred (afraid and having scars).

  • Like 2
Link to comment

Even if you 'know' most of this, you're a fool if you think you don't need another pair of eyes. It's human nature to make mistakes, so thank God for editors!! I can't get enough of these type of posts. Thanks, Cia... and Renee!

  • Like 3
Link to comment

There was a meme floating around my Facebook wall yesterday that really makes this point. *facepalms*

 

anti-learning_zpso88uyuav.jpg

I'll make sure to send my kids to The Learning Academy. Their educational prowess is evident in their spelling :P

  • Like 3
Link to comment

An egregious error which I have noticed of late is the use of "shown" instead of "shone".  I suspect it to be based in the way the word is pronounced in the Southern states of the U.S.A.  Please, if something was shiny, then it shone.  Now that I have shown you the error of your ways, you will know better!  Hopefully.

  • Like 2
Link to comment

Thanks for this. Always good to have a reminder and though I'm pretty careful, everyone makes mistakes. Lose and loose are what I see used incorrectly most often. 

 

And there are lots of online places that can help with this type of thing, in addition to this cool Grammar Rodeo. 

 

I'm forever looking things up to check spellings etc. 

 

AC and were just talking the other day about: on to  and  onto.

  • Like 4
Link to comment

at least the toad error was funny :lol: (the your instead of you're was :pinch: )

or maybe they get all the kids to collect toads and stick them on the car?

  • Like 2
Link to comment

I have begun to notice the following mistake in some stories I've come across recently: "except" for "accept" :pinch:

 

i.e. "She excepted her father's gift" I am left speechless when I come across this error :blink:

  • Like 2
Link to comment

There was a meme floating around my Facebook wall yesterday that really makes this point. *facepalms*

 

anti-learning_zpso88uyuav.jpg

This was hysterical! But very sad considering it's coming from an educational facility! Never mind leaving out the comma! lol

 

I saw something somewhere recently about a school district in Mississippi. They were so proud that their students were really learning...something along those lines, but...THEY SPELLED MISSISSIPPI WRONG!!!! IN THE ARTICLE ABOUT STUDENT EDUCATION!!!! How sad is that? And stupid.

 

I see lose/loose a lot when I edit, along with chose/choose. It's/its drives me crazy, as does seeing apostrophe s after verbs: 'The driver honk's his horn.' 'The boy hit's the ball with his bat.'

 

Thank you Renee and Cia for these informative Grammar Rodeos! These are my favorite blogs! :)

Link to comment

 

 

AC and were just talking the other day about: on to  and  onto.

'AC and I were just talking...' Speaking of 'I or me' or...nothing. :P Sorry, Tim, couldn't resist! :)

 

'It's been a while since we had a Grammar Rodeo, but I find these posts to be rather informative and we hope you do to.'  Sorry, Renee! Another one I see a lot is to/too/two. You forgot the other 'o' in 'to'. :P Maybe a comma after 'informative' and before the 'and'?

 

Oh! Speaking of which (commas!), may I ask Cia a question? If you have more than one conjunction in a sentence, and the sentence consists of all independent clauses, shouldn't you put a comma after each conjunction? Not just the first one? As in the example above: 'It's been a while since we had a Grammar Rodeo, but I find these posts to be rather informative, and we hope you do too.' Wouldn't that be correct in putting in the second comma before 'and'?

Thanks!

  • Like 2
Link to comment

I've an extensive list I check in every chapter, but my pet peeves are capital/capitol, principal/principle and cereal/serial. The one that really gives me a fit of pique however is morning/mourning!

So, what's wrong with a cereal killer.

  • Like 3
Link to comment

So, what's wrong with a cereal killer.

Breaking News: Cap'n Crunch was murdered last night, the police suspect the Cereal Killer was involved.

  • Like 3
Link to comment

The ones I have on post-it notes taped to my monitor are:

 

- conscious/conscience

- emerge/immerge

- discreet/discrete

- literately/literally 

 

Those are always the toughest ones for my dyslexia to cope with :)

  • Like 4
Link to comment

Oh, I should also say, ColumbusGuy taught me that when studying or going over material, the verb is 'pore over records.'

 

Thank you, GC! <3 <3 <3 Get well soon  

  • Like 2
Link to comment

at least the toad error was funny :lol: (the your instead of you're was :pinch: )

or maybe they get all the kids to collect toads and stick them on the car?

Yes, I'd pay to see them turn my car into a toad!

  • Like 1
Link to comment

I thought of another set of words: decent and descent.

Sometimes, I come across those two words when someone meant dissent :) Oddly enough, I usually notice these mistakes in Youtube comments.

  • Like 2
Link to comment

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

Our Privacy Policy can be found here: Privacy Policy. We have placed cookies on your device to help make this website better. You can adjust your cookie settings, otherwise we'll assume you're okay to continue..