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Category Archives: Commonly Confused Words
Summer Reading
Let’s mark the beginning of the last full summer month with some light subject matter. Grab a lemonade and tackle August quiz #1. Select the correct word. 1. I blame all the back-and-forth email as the (principal/principle) cause of the mix-up. … Continue reading
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Watch Your Step II
Last week we discussed a few handle-with-care issues pertaining to the word “impact” – including the irony that although the word seems inherently compelling, it can be vague. Now let’s look at examples of two other commonly used adjectives that … Continue reading
Writing with “Impact”
“Impact” is a highly useful, compelling word, but it requires some special handling. Let’s examine four issues. 1) “Impactful” is in the dictionary, but it made its appearance there relatively recently, and some folks consider it nonstandard. You may want to avoid … Continue reading
A Matter of Degrees
Each of these sentences expresses comparisons – and each can be improved. What edits would you make? 1. Ruth is one of the most passionate, creative, and wisest committee chairs we have had. 2. Of High Street or Lincoln Road, which … Continue reading
Mirror, Mirror …
When we look into the mirror, we see ourselves as others do, right? With that cryptic hint as your guide, find the clarity problems in the following sentences. 1. Having perused several evaluations of the latest vacuum cleaners, I think … Continue reading
Quiz Time
Correct weaknesses in each of these sentences. 1. We both went to the same high school for a period of time until Jack won a scholarship to a private school. 2. The meeting is set for 8:30 am tomorrow morning, … Continue reading
Hit Your Target
The December 2, 2015, post focused on the relative weakness of the verb “to be” and the recommendation to look for a livelier verb in the editing process. (For example, instead of Several of us were wondering who will be the new … Continue reading
Alumni Reunion
If you took Latin, maybe you get cranky, too, because you can’t go on a trip anywhere and chat in Latin – unless it’s to your old Latin teacher’s house. But what really perturbs me is pulling up at a … Continue reading
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Setting Alarms
As we grow more proficient in any pursuit – be it bowling, baking, or barbecuing – we are continually setting new alarms to avoid problems. This is particularly true in writing and editing. Once we realize we’re prone to mistakenly … Continue reading
Eye on the Arts
With the Academy Awards ceremony set for Sunday, let’s continue our refinement of newspaper excerpts with a look at two arts pieces – a movie review and book review. Each excerpt was chosen, in part, because it’s unwieldy, but I … Continue reading