A

The Painless Path to PROPER ENGLISH USAGE

PROF. PERRY'S

POPULAR PEDAGOGICAL PICTORIALS

Proudly Presents

The Painless Path to

PROPER ENGUSH USAGE

Ably Arranged, Edited and Illustrated by

Stan Malotte

St. Martin's Press

New York

THE PAINLESS PATH TO PROPER ENGLISH USAGE. Copyright 1986 by Stan Malotte. All rights reserved. Printed in the United States of America. No part of this book may be used or

reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission except in the case of brief
quotations embodied in critical articles or reviews. For information, address St. Martin's Press, 175 Fifth Avenue, New York, N.Y. 10010.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Malotte, Stan.

The painless path to proper English usage.

1. English languageUsageDictionaries. 2. English languageUsageCaricatures and cartoons.
I. Title.

PE1460.M278 1987 ISBN 0-312-00714-0

428.3

87-4469

Originally published by R. & E. Miles, San Pedro, CA.

Names herein are fictional. Any resemblance to real persons or products is unintentional.

USER'S NOTE

Because the word pairs are arranged alphabetically by only the first word, a complete index is included. Further help also appears: AppendixA reprintsan old rhymeon the parts of speech, and Appendix B givesa sample listing of American vs. British spellings, a continuing source of
confusion for us all.

For Shirley

Preface

For his book, Prof. Perry has chosen 126 ofthe most frequently confused words in our language. Most are included in the usage chapters of our standard high school and college texts. Despite our schools' best efforts, however, we still see examples of mis-usage in the media and daily business communications and, even worse, do not see them as they
sneak by in our own writing.

To straighten us all out. Prof. Perry first explains the correct usage for each word and then farther clarifi... oops!.. .further clarifies the lesson with examples from his personal collection of rare grammatical art. These magnificent illustrations, incidentally, have been hanged in some of... excuse me ... have been hung in some of the principle ... I mean principal... well, it's obviously time we get started.
S.M.

The Painless Path to

PROPER ENGLISH USAGE

accept/except

Use accept to mean receive. Just think of other words that begin with ac and also have a sense of receiving like acquire and accumulate. (The prefix ac is from the Latin and means toward,) except means not included. Its first two letters {ex) are the Latin prefix that means ^rom, as in excerpt, extrsci, and other ex words suggesting to take from.

HERE IT is! THE COTOVERSIflL PROPOSAL SCENE FliOM:

W Wt
f^iTH the THE one
I donY OIVN

\F I

AXOLOTL

-rrrir^r'ui^YOU

{.pTthIomW- .
11

-JULi-

affect/effect

affect {to have an influence on) is always a verb,* as in "Too much rain will affect plant growth adversely." effect is usually a noun, as in "The right amount of rain has a good effect on plant growth." However, effect can also be a verb meaning to bring about a result, as in "The right amount of rain will help effect {bring about] proper plant growth." The principal thing to remember is that ^fect is always a
verb its a stands for action.
*Except for its special use in psychology.

, 6 THi SmSMMT
i^roTTi; So YouVc Got OSTTlOSiS
NO EFFECT,
O
o
o

AH ha/ zrH/iD

I KNBW IT
WOOLOA/'r

AFFECT,

aggravate / annoy

aggravate is commonly misused to mean annoy. We can annoy people and we can aggravate (increase the unpleasantness of) an already unpleasant effect or situation, but we cannot "aggravate" people. That
would mean we would "increase" them.

lAOVERTISEMENTi

cAZTmrm3BS!

WMTf
annoyance to a professional level/ even if youVe never
HAD MUSICAL TRAININ6 / / 7"'5 S/MPlE WITH -

SURE YOU CAN ^l\ll\IOY people/ BUr/V0H^,YOl/ CAN AGGRAVATE that

'BEFORE.

NORMAL AWNOYANCE

AGGRAVATEDANNOYANCE

Simply pldy^'^TheA'ttacKSucte"(pi"ovided) on^our HTrfiCKTUBA: Vro/JIVES'EM crazy/''SAYS BtLLTHE B>EE, AKRON,OHIO

Here's how! V/hih huz-z-mg ^ diving near a. person's face,

ORDER YOURS TODAy! *

"ATTACK TUBA FOR BEES.'"

*N(yr 50LO w swres rHfitrprohibit tobpa

all ready/already

all ready means that everything is prepared, all is ready, already (an adverb) refers to time, as in "Are you here already?" (so soon?), "We did that already!" {previously!), etc.

u/ntir dm/ aoid^ cL&^Mlp

(0aum^

didij duly daruu,^/ia/LduA/ndh^diJzynM^

M1IKIM(^ JFfMI Will? MTOT *

all right/"alright'

all right is the correct word, "alright" is a nonstandard version of all right and is not to be written by users of this book.

A-a
FROM

1: BUI and HiS DuTTiplrucK

CMGOf
\ s ^ iVl.

Uri

\ \v\^
N^"^((/ >'" 1

z<}\M
Jt vCv.

all together/altogether

The meanings are altogether different, all together means the individual items are not separated, they are together, altogether means totally, entirely, as in "Altogether there were 14 deer at the river
all together at one time."

From: The Life of Bill the Tbreman

TOO late/

/-iCESHir/AI^OS o

amount/number fewer/less

amount refers to volume or bulk, number refers to separate items you

can count. For instance, you can't count rain, but you can count raindrops (although you must hurry). The same logic applies to fewer and less. You would not, for example, say, "We had fewer rain this year." You would say, "We had less rain and therefore fewer raindrops."

.5olv\<^&j:%

/^/?oaLENV

" ^^

...

WAT<

any any any any any

body/anybody more/anymore one/anyone time/anytime way/anj^ay

As two separate words, each of these reveals its meaning in the second part. For example, the separate more in any more indicates the subject under discussion is more, whereas in the combined anymore, the emphasis is shared equally by both parts, thus forming a brand new word. Just analjrze the meaning you want to get across. The same logic applies to compoxmd words like everybody, everyday, and so on.

# j| /

JtOte

FROM:

X)d?ec6LVt

the llbfary but has -macie the comTYion -mistaKe of provCdlTiq

elicLt Irrelevant comTnents and delay -the Inv/estiqation.

Inthiseyample,thedetectLve has properly called everyone fnto

large (^uaTitLtles of chocolates for the suspects. This tends to

Normally^only small (^uar^tities of chocolates should be provided.

r\THE.S

lllillll

Nl>/MI_||||

apt/liable/likely

apt (from the same root as aptitude) suggests proneness, natural tendency liable means subject to, susceptible, likely suggests probability.

C' j} Ti

^ H- tr ul O

rcr

Hvor/ 7^17? ;f' ^rz-'i

h^?r^jw3o

*-ovj\i j-lAot (/jr '.

Wbather Bureau W/ns Award

Excitemenb reigned all
over the weather bureau

this week when forecast

ers there won the cov-

eted^'iSood Engi Lsh Usage

In Meteorology Award."
^Vour statements es

AAGS 6EUIM Award Winners

pecially stand out^'sald

1. IT VERY likely will rain,

MAYBE.

Willard Kbokyboodle,
president oF the Amer

2. THI5 AREA 15 LIABLE TO RAIN

,v;
AND OTHER FORMS OF WEATHER.

ican Award Giving Soci ety, a private ^roap

country givtno awards.
The four statements

3. IF IT RAINS TOO MUCH,THE

5TREETS ARE APT TO FLOOD.
4. HEAD FOR THE HILLS/

that travels about the

have been permaneTitly engraved on a plac^ue

that wij/ serve as a

words actualljj spoKen. **Sound fadesj' explained

durable reminder oFthe

Bureau^winning weathei^ report statements.

27

FORECASTERS view award plaQue engraved with

assure / ensure / insure / reassure

assure means to help remove doubt, to bolster confidence, ensure means to make certain of something. Use insure only for commercial insurance purposes, reassure means to give further encouragement, to restore confidence. (Note: In British usage, assure is used for the
commercial insurance sense.)

TOi
I ASSUREYouTSaSS!
MADAME,IT
v\,u^

(io(L(L m

mtiiQ

BUT HOW DO WE KWOW ?/WH/IT DID

YOU DO TO ENSURE IT3 ARRIVAL?

TO ENSURE ITS ARRIVAL.MADAME,^

[willARRIVE.

UNSURED 'T./^

a
n

(^ASSURE HER, ^ OSt"

w.

(oh, IFEEL SO UNSURE/

a while/awhile

while is a noun and nouns are used with prepositions like for. So, we say, "Let's rest for a while." Putting a and while together makes the adverb awhile. Adverbs aren't used with prepositions; adverbs modify verbs. So,
there's no need for the for. So, we say, "Let's rest awhile."

O0(ii0W0@Kl
IFORTY YEARS LATER.I
OECIOING TO BUY THE SUIT, BILL
RETURNS TO THE 5T0RE ONLY TO
FIND IT HAS BEEN DEMOLISHED

AND IN ITS PLACE, A TRIBUTE TO

THE AMERICAN CLOTHlNS SALESMAN.

/j"...I'LL...I'LL THINK^ Tn^-rAWAIT WHILE... lU : (JUST AWH ILF.

bad/badly

"I feel bad" (adjective) is the correct way to describe how you feel with, say, an upset stomach. "I feel badly" (adverb) means I have a poor sense of touch because adverbs tell how something is done. (Note: feel is a
non-action verb. See also good/well.)

LumusftixheesLaiKfDiitch'Venneei" in

oV

THE STORY OF AN EX-SHORTSTOP WHO TURNEDTO CRIME AND NOW HAS DYSPEPSIA

hand

S:coMt> f-ATUl?e
1 JFIiE,
o

TftfrTel./.siT
CR.OOK

THE MOVl

Like: it-sHouZ-D 8E TOtD/

beside/besides

If you are beside {next to) someone and a third person joins you, there is now someone besides (in addition to) the two of you. He may also stand beside the two of you.

 CEMETERY "

YOU MAY ASK -

WAS. I AFRAIP,?

X \AjAS

6:&\D W3Elf

can/may

can means is able to; may indicates permission. Maybe this will help:
"I can can-can, but my doctor says I may not!"

LEADERSHIP SKILLS-SKill8:

DECISIOK-MAiai

vOU SM

37

capital/capitol

Use capital for the city and capitol for the building.

Chapter 7:
A LowPolTit

ffOTTl! TheLife of Bill: America's Educational IJoet

rftplTOLTbu'i'^"^^ ^*0^

\ S^"1;
.0

ath ^rftpiTOU

censer/censor/censure

A censer is the small container in which incense is burned, censor means

to cut out objectionable material (think of the o in censor as standing for out). To censure is to criticize and place bkrnie.

THAT DO (\)0T WORK, &

FROM; SELLING FOR FUN AND PROFIT

Ltl.

compare to/compare with

As a rule of thumb, use compare to to compare in general; use compare with to compare in detail. Shakespeare, for example, wrote: "Shall I compare thee to a simuner's day?/Thou art more lovely and

more temperate." Had he written "Shall I compare thee with a summer's day," he would have had to continue: "It begins at sunrise, you don't begin until around 11; its temperatures are in the 80's whereas you have cold hands," and so forth. Shakespeare knew how to use words.

LE530N 4: THE ROLE OF FOOD IN EATING

Sm COMPftRE MEM/-A-M
PLASTIC. QUESTION:

^111 MAKE VOU MORE ATTRACTIVE

WEAL
lsS^i9

(WEAL

tg//

W(JW>

is

n\^/ii l\\7\i\nin mi

complement/ compliment

Use complement to mean goes with, to make something mxrre complete. Let the e in complement remind you ofthe word comply. A compliment is something I like to receive.

Og ?K)(

mi>

XOUR

A
^ScoRE lOpoin-ts if you said ''Hft's -forgettLns to iip his hat/' Scope onljj 6 pomts If you sald^*!don't Know/'fBufc add Z points back on LF 4/ou could have gatten"the right answer if you had ideally thou9ht about Lt.)
45

continual /continuous

Use continual for something that continues in an off-and-on manner (like continual barking), continuous means non-stop. Remember the difference by describing escaping steam as continuoussssss.

It: u)35 militatij history's saddest moTyieT)fc luheti Sgb. Bill was...

COURT-MARTIALED FOR OBEYING ORDERS

Ordered to keep a CONTINUAL
mtch'-'overh/s area, sgt bill
periodically covered his eyes^thus
FOLLOWING ORDERS TO THE LETTER. HE

What his superiors had meantto

SAY IjUas:^'keepa CONTINUOUS
WATCH'-* OVER HIS AREA,THE DIFFERENCE
IS SHOWN IN THE TWO PHOTOGRAPHS

WAS,NEVERTHELESS, COURT-MARTIALED,
ANDTODAY LIVES IN DISGRACE WITH HIS WIFE AND TWO LOVELY CHILDREN!.

BELOW FROM THE NEWLY REVISED

TRAINING ^KW^kL,THEADl/ENTURE
OF GUARD DUTY.

CONTINUAL
WATCH
NON-ALERT PHASE

CONTINUOUS WATCH

(MIL spec;

(UNACCEPTABLE;

47

council / counsel / consul

council (noun) is a group ofpeople who meet to discuss and decide things (e.g., the city council), counsel means to give advice or guidance; it also means the advice given (e.g., "The counselor counseled me and his counsel was good"), consul is a person working in the foreign service of his country. Ifyou just remember the c in council as relating to the city council, you'll have a head start.

[ HOUjTOecorosuL-GewefflLFoiJWPTrefoft W) icecReflm ]
CITY

COUNCK

F/W0U5 FITNESS EXPERT DR.ZHOG

HAD ARRIVED LATE TO COUNSEL

THE COUNCIL ON COMMUNITY FITNESS.

50,THE COUNCILcouldn^t counsel THE CONSUL ON LOCAL AFFAIRS.

COUNSELING WAS CANCELEO ...

so,THECOUNCIL'S CONSUL-

LEAVING AMPLE TIME FOR THE CONSUL

TO ENJOY A SINGLE PISTACHIO.

desert/desseli:

The verb desert (de*sert': to abandon) and the noun desert (des'ert: arid

land) are both spelled with a single s. We can remember that the dessert we eat has ss because, of course, the ss stands for "strawberry shortcake."

^THEOLD DAY5,PI0WEER ANTS

WOULD CROSS AVAST DESSERT
LIKE THIS IN COVEReD WAGONS.

En 184%when ants learned of

a great DESERT that extended
fop hundreds of mlles^theij
rushed west bij the Tntllions

(HISTORY IS INTEReSTINSj

for what they thought luould be

the TTiost glorious treat of their

lives.Before the^ realized their mistake^ they perished the thousands. Once agaln^ history shows the importance ofgood spelling. Becauseof this
dramatic incident in their

history^ ants toda]) are nearly

all excellent spellers.

device/devise

device is the noun, devise is the verb. We devise a device. Just remember;

the ability to devise something shows you're quite wis^e and the device
you create is always quite nice.

1
)\\9. I V JUST ONE OF BILL'S SCHEMES TO GET RICH ANO FAMOUS ^ FROM THE MUSlCALs^JUST TWO OF BILL'S SCHEMES TO SET RICH AND FAMOUS"
,

llL DEVISE ADEVICE

THAT 15 MflDE OUT OF ICE

THE PUDDLES IT MAKES ^ <v

I

CAN BE SOLD AS SMALL LAKES ,

AND MELTS WHEN ITi

0RASIN6LE, LARGE FLAT

PUJGGED INTHEWALLV

WATERFALL.

J^ee FOR.5^

MKhWn

S^ECtM.

disinterested/uninterested

Use disinterested to mean impartial, neutral, uninterested means you just don't care to hear about it probably because it's uninteresting.

OBSERVER RECOGNITION CHART REPLACES CHARTS Uthra84

DISINTERESTED OBSERVER
STANDARD

UNINTERESTED OBSERVER

OBSERVER

/COAJ

emigrant/immigrant

When you permanently leave your country, you emigrate from that country (think of e for exit). When you come into your new country to stay, you immigrate (i for into). Just remember that "emigrants exit" and
you'll have it.

WEltKNOWN MWfERIES SOLVED/

At what precise Tnoment does the change occur

froTT^ EMIGRANT to immigrant?

MIGRANTS (gxiT the place

WHERE THEYVe BEEKl, So MTO some new place AS

/\s You CAN SEE, they're ALL

THE SAME BUNCH

MM16RANT5 them.

They do it, i think, to get

TWO TURNS at lunch.

<

emigrants'
t " - n****/!.. ^ - .tJ

IMM16RANTS ^

LUNCH

LUNCH
IZiP-IJo

lliS-IZi9

X/>% ^ IcHlCKEty J
(WHERE DEEP INSIDE THE HULL)^
TYPICAL IMMI6RANT SHIP OF 1890
y

\TOWi^ ^

ft

1^39530 a31JViH9lilsj.

eminent/immineiit

Use eminent for well known, outstanding. Use imminent for something that's about to happen immediately! (Note: immanent is a different word altogether and should be looked up for extra credit.)

THE

POINT from: lx/0(/ie(\) IW 6ROAOCASTI(\)G

LIMMIN'JNT-IMEAN''LIMMINU-IMEAN

^-
vouVe ^'^^9 take over I

every day/everyday

As two separate words, every day means each separate day. As one word, everyday means ordinary, routine, commonpUice. We do everyday things
practically every day.

fVlfVl

TeASEH (3)o
y DI0K OWNS NICE
SUITS FOR EVERY
SUIT DESIGNATED FOR THAT

DICK ALSO OWNS AN ORDINARY

OF

THE WEEK. HE MUST WEAR THE P/\RTICULAR DAY ON THAT PARTICULAR DAY/

EVERYDAY suit HE MUST WEAR HIS EVERYDAY suit EVERY DAY/

PROBLEM: HOW CAM DICK DO BOTH?

(HINT: NO, HE CAN/MOT WEAR MORE

THAN ONE SUIT AT ATIME.j

%.
ANSWER-.

tTf^2

3N0a 39
J.ONNVD 1

farther/further

Use farther when referring to physical distance. Reserve further for all
other uses such as "further in the future," "We'll discuss it no further," and so on. Think of the a in farther as standing for area.

GTi

)1
danger

A A iL^

EP/SODE 1Zi TheFURTHERiheij investigated,-the FARTHER ^@(S Sr?&9/ "the^ had iotcavel -till one day deep Lv -thejungle.

WextWeek: FURTHER DEVELOPMEWTS/

flair/flare

Ifwe can remember how to spell one of them, the other will take care of itself. Perhaps this will help: flare aooA. flame are so close in meaning they differ by only one letter.

r'

Qhuu! (htoMj!
5aUi!jMW-uM!md.Mo./mE!

The Onl^ Fbem Deflniteljj Thought-b Be by Bill^the Unknown Ifcet

(UoA^/a M/uaMJU mjo'flair

^flJyjwwOn^urhmuiir'^JiiAeA.Jkajv

- ^ ^vv

0^

-aim

flaunt/flout

We are show-offs when we flaunt {ostentatiously display) and rebels when we flout {openly defy). Just remember "Bill's aunt who flaunts her independence by flouting the rules."

TXS TOllTg
A LOUT WHOWILL

J'-.to8eh,ce
COUNT

...IS SOMEONE
WE SHUM WITH ALL OUR AGILITY...

FLOUT ALL THE

RULES OF6ENTILITY...

CfS

V'.

...WHILE MAKING pUlTE...

WANT ^Uch
FLAUNT
IMA6INED ABILITY

...SURE THAT IT's DONE...

...WITH CIVILITY.

forbear / forebear

forbear means to control oneself to refrain from an impulse, forebear, with an e in the middle, means a relative from whom we are descended. Just remember the connection with people who came before us. (Note: This logic should also help with forgo vs. forego.)

Jfn/(L/ t(MlL-.Jyri(Hv7V/mjietc^ M>1976

clI^c/oMiJbu oid/j
:tS<ru^/rrurm/rCt'MJUMuSi^^

AND HE

goldilocks should have been kinder.

foreword/forward

You'll never confuse these two if you just remember that the word that comes be/ore is the foreword.

)ehmQ tte Scenes; \

AT THE PUBLISHERS
soYoy

,NF(NJ
so

good/well

good is an adjective and therefore tells something about a noun, as in "She is a good singer." well is an adverb and therefore tells something about a verb that is, how something is done as in "She sings well." (Note: good can also be used with verbs, but only mth non-action verbs like looks, tastes, and feels, as in "She sings well and looks good." We never say, "She sings good" or "The ice cream tastes well.")

wiO

SCeWES^ FROM RURAL LIFE o

mm

hanged/hung

Both words are the past tense of hang, but hung is for pictures, hanged is for people.

FI?OM VOLUME M
CHAPTER 7

life.

^'BILL'S FIRST JOB^

75

1/me

I is the pronoun when I do something, me is used when something is done to me orfor me, as in "He's done a lot for you ind me" (not "for you and I").
I is the doer, me is the receiver.

TheHilariousTlftie Bill Couldn't Hflish/

Now,some people say CAnd 111 nevet' Knooj whu):

Thejj really shouldjun)p Up and down with greatglee

And properly sau

They never uxjuld say,

''Agiftcame todau

And Lt's for you and l!

"OhlThisgiffc b for I/", They'd say/It's for

That iivyor you and ME!"

If you touch ^^ou'ljdiel

When'^^Ljou''' isthere^-though,

But it's wron^/oh^'tis utonq/

Alon^ with ^''He don't"
And should be corrected-

They thinK they're polite SaytTi^ '*Sor you andI/'

Somethipggoes all awry -

Andother mistakes Too TiuiD''rous to mention-

And '"5 he's Jaif compiectedj'''

So please pau...oops/...

Which I'mcioin^-to anyuay

/y\

r<\

imply/infer

imply means to say something indirectly, to beat around the bush. infer means to draw a conclusion (perhaps from something that has
been implied).

EDUCATION TIHROIJGH CRIME

froTn: LAU6H AT HI6H COLLEGE COSTS

S'OU MAY

in/into

Use in if something is already inside. Use into if it's in the process of entering. For example: "He decided he would not jimip into the Isike when he noticed that he was already in the lake."

tTAFTRI 1 WILL 8

incredible / incredulous

Use incredible to mean not to be believed and incredulous to mean

skeptical. Just remember the ending -o-u-s as in "o-u-s just pullin' my leg!"

E8

I. f .-/N \\ I

><

ingenious / ingenuous

ingenious means clever, inventive, ingenuous means unsophisticated,

innocent, unworldly even to the point of being naive. You'll never forget which is which if you let the first u in ingenuous stand for unsophisticated.

AVISIT TO MADAME SINCERE'5

TZHH

ICOMES ASHINY SILVER DOLLAR THERE/

lU

ISIMPLY DROP A PENNY HERE AND OUT

meENious/

INGENUOUS

Exn-

ace money maker

irrespective / regardless

Use irrespective to express neutrality, fairness, equal consideration. regardless suggests a sense of being careless, indifferent, even reckless. (Note: There is no such word as "irregardless" and therefore it only seems to appear on this page. It should be reserved for humorous use.)

BUSMSSB5 YOU CM START AT HOWE (*66)

FLywGr

^/-^'Vyove /

\M^ REG/1RDLSS^ / TAg cof/sEs>oei/c^& '

ro

IF YOU HAVE ANAIRPLAME /^ND A REASONABLY LARGE BACKYARD, YOU RE ALL 5ET TO GET INTO THIS EXCITING WORK/ EVERYTHING YOU NEED To
KNOW IS REVEALED IN OUR BEAUTIFULLY DUPLICATED INSTRUCTION SHEET.

DROP BY AND PICK ONE UP/ FREE 6UITAR LESSON WHILE YOU WAIT/

ML'B CmEflCf/T/i^ SHOE R^PAIFL

Also mm WFAvm ay a native iTUbooyou/i i/wnortwhile you're here

its/it's

its without the apostrophe is the possessive form of it. it's with the apostrophe is the contraction for it is. The apostrophe indicates the missing i in is. (Note: There is no such form as "its'.")

mm iiKi m
FlROM:

OUR ANIMAL FRIEWOS

89

lie/lay

Present Tense

Present

lie (to recline)

lay (to put)

lie (to fib)

Participle lying laying lying

Past Tense

Past

Participle
(have) lain (have) laid (have) lied

lay
laid lied

Unfortunately, it would be wise to memorize the above.

Taals ai4 ()tfeitf TaOgs CDo^ Stories for an Overcast Afternoon )

imilER JVAIL5

Jby ^-ntoLne

LAY HIM DOWN

CAREFULLY.

me/myself

IfI do something to myself, I use the word myself as in "I hurt myself." Ifsomebody else does something to me, I use me as in "They gave the award to Bill and me" (not "They gave the award to Bill and myself"). Also myself is never a doer of anything. Never say, "Bill and myselfwon the award"; simply say, "Bill and I won the award."

>\REYOUINTHIS PICTURE?
Fromihe booK: ARE YOUINW/Si BOOK? (Based onthe opera,

ARE youIN TMbROOM? from the play^/S MBODYfiOMEl)

LOOl^?
/

93

principal / principle

Use principal to mean the chief thing or person, the most important. Use principle to refer to rules of conduct, ethics, basic laws behind something. Example: "The principal thing to remember is to base your decisions on
high principles."

tAj^U

/o\(S't?

Va/V&voUmO Bill arrived at the school. And tiowj,..

AMOMENT LATER

^ o -DsspLte a20-second delaw for a stoplight^

OH,CERTAINLY, LE.. .1 MAN"AL? NW^
UNDERSTAND YOU HAVE; A REPUTATION

HLLO,VHaLO,Bia. I'M AL,THE PRINCIPAL.'

sir/j i'mthe PRIMCIPAl official in

THE SCHOOL.

^Y^THAT' STHE PRIWCIPALRE(iSON. A { RC/ISON 15THAT MY NAME l3"ALf'J

YOU MEAN...? ?)

(l5 THATH/HYTHEY call YOUTHE ^'PRINCIPAf^

YES. IFMY NAME WERE'LE,"

FOR BEIMG EXTREMELY FAIR.

Ili'l COULON T BE PRINCIPAL. I EXPECT YOU UNDERSTAND THE 7

15 THAT WHY THEY CALL YOU

woNo-Youwe/?W'r

the-PRINCIPAL"?

LISTENING. THE

I'M CALLED

principal IS. ,

i
EXCITING CONCLUSION-: V
OONT MI55 NEXT WEEK^^^'Why /\\Is Called TfMTheConlmuinaAdventuresof

the ^PrmcipalV'^ M Bill^ His Nlicrophane-

prophecy/prophesy

prophecy is the noun, prophesy is the verb. One must prophesy

a prophecy.

mimu WM0COOL0 EYWITH HIS TOiS

from: AMAZING FEMS

fool

raise/rise

raise means to elevate, rise means to stand up. Therefore, I can rise from a chair, and I can raise myself from a chair, and I can raise a window but I cannot "rise" a window. It is now considered acceptable usage to
"raise" children instead of "rear" children, but we should at least make

sure that we really do "elevate" them.

WHY PAY SKY'HIGH/aIRLINE FARES WHEN YOU CAN ...

WITH

The World's

MM smfij m/

Bread Dough

to a dream vacation while jou foaf (!) in the

L

As WHOLE SRAIN PLUS/ Bread Douqh RISES, it expands at a phenomenal rate and RAISES your house. Lrvbo the open blue above. Soon uou're on your way
comfort oF ^our own home/

ut deTvbs^sJiey' oWV QjmcO /now^ THE MoE.3j:tAe^oAA^tinltMJiju

ByCup Cake Ovb/^

io-MJm^<xmoLEemNPUJSij:UbJ^

Scone to Ireldndf Q/'o/ssani io fhe Rivietal Waffle to WashingtofnjBC.o^ . OrJust popoveir to the, next to\/jn g
REpUIREO
FAA LICENSE

Ca/.'maKE up your own recipes/ rAe $kj/i (wowf) ifo^e //mt/

A ,

*lnclude5 both short- and long-distahce recipes.

set/sit

Use set to mean to put something down, as in "Please set the box on the kitchen table." Use sit to mean sit down in a chair, as in "Louella, please sit here." (Exception: Although it seems to sit, the sxin sets but we will not argue with the sun.)

mA2R ASACK
FRO/*): THE ADVmURES Of 6ILLT6 6UTCR,
you

101

stationary/ stationery

For something that can't he moved, use stationary. For letter vniting,
use stationery.

ASEMUINE SOUND PHOTOGRAPH* FROM:

&iuoll(moJL

Chapter 7: Team-teaching

^le.)->e-r
^r'

-kal
REALIA
'=^

INC.

///^

^HOLDiy/SPAGE VERY, VERY clOSE TO YOUR EAR AND l/STEN /A/TE/VTLY

THE DIALOGUE HA5 ALSO BEEN PRINTED FOR BEQINNINQ LISTENERS.

that/which

that introduces a restrictive clause or phrase. For instance, the phrase "that sings" restricts the kind ofhorse you mean. The phrase "that sings" could not be left out of the sentence without destroying its meaning. How
ever, the non-restrictive phrase "which everyone knows" is not essential to the speaker's point that "Horses cannot sing" and could be omitted.

The Eternal Conflict Between

)(go(iRi(gg m TOi mm&f

\> rthPor sm'^

OVE^

Poo^

their/there/they're

It's easy to remember that you can get from here to there just by adding a t. You can also remember that they're is they plus are with the apostrophe teiking the place of a in are. What's harder to remember is that their means belongs to them. But if you remember the other two
words and their meanings, you won't need to remember that their means belongs to them.

lEffi Msisg m
THEREA a JIM. THEY'RE!
SmiNGOUR BOAT/

im

Lesson 6: Making Certain

yii=F=^THEIR boat
my,SO IT IS/]
WHAT BILL
SAW THROUGH THESPYGLASS

INO,B(LL.THAT'S

poir BOUh/CiNG
AROUhiD WILL yA?

fWHY DID YOU CHANGE-THE NM^ WANT TO STEAL GRIEF. WE. BO^/f wniii OUR /

NEXTWEfK^
LESSON
THE

MAGNA CARTA

use/utilize

use is the broader word and is fine in most cases, but utilize has the special sense of making use of a neglected skill or of something not normally used for the piupose, as in "Luckily, we were able to utilize the cook's knowledge of the coastline to find a safe landing place."

From: The Mad Dr/s Plot

n

MIPLY
ose up
nn\<-^ ^
^ ^ \ 122^

DEEP INS/OE THE MAD DOCTOR'S CAVE

Wmbfrs S 0^^ S;\U2E TWECOM' ltPLUMBERS

WE^fyP PUKf o

\HiI{lH^A/UivJ8R5 -rHEW0^^30 h i p v t i oi w

Tiumbers go all the way to inKnlti//What

NEXT MONTH: The Mad Doctor learns that

will he do? Blow up the secret computei* center? Destroy his banjo? et a job?

WATCH THIS SPACE/

Bur MEANWHILE

DON'T neglect
YOUR REGULAR DUTlEa

was/were

It's easy to confuse "if I was" and "if I were." Here's how to remember

which to use: If the idea to be expressed is a possibility, use "if I was" ("The children asked ifI was the king"). Ifthe idea is known to be false, use were ("I said if I were the king I'd be wearing a much nicer hat").

I
I7P

-TO

.jS4^/
\\V&

who's/whose

who's means who is. The apostrophe takes the place of the missing i. whose is the possessive form of who. Although we usually make possessives by adding's to a word (as in "the cat's paw") certain exceptions exist like whose (as in "The cat, whose paw is in the milk, is Felix"). (Note: Examples of other possessives with no apostrophes are hers, theirs, and its.)

/3v)0H
V

JLSOT i@ Hi) W<>

Ul cib

your/you're

Use plain your when something belongs to somebody, as in "I like your book." ("Thank you.") you're means you are. The apostrophe takes the place of the missing a in are and thus makes the contraction you're
as in "You're welcome."

THE

or DR. (msiom,
from: YOU MAY NOT HAVE OSMOSIS

u*m_a^MW/T

Appendix A
THE PARTS OF SPEECH

If you are among those who have forgotten the Parts of Speech and their functions, the following anon3nnous verse that helped our great-grandparents as children is still of help to us:

Three little words you often see Are ARTICLES, a, an, and the.

A noun's the name of anything; As school or garden, hoop or swing. ADJECTIVES tell the kind of noun; As great, small, pretty, white, or brovm.
Instead of nouns the PRONOUNS stand; Her head, his face, our arms, your hand. VERBS tell of something being done; To read, count, sing, laugh, jump or run. How things are done, the ADVERBS tell; As slowly, quickly, ill, or well. CONJUNCTIONS join the words together; As men and women, wind or weather.
The PREPOSITION stands before

A noun, as in or through a door. The INTERJECTION shows surprise; As oh! how pretty! ah! how wise! The whole are called nine parts of speech, Which reading, writing, speaking teach.
117

Appendix B
AMERICAN VS. BRITISH SPELLINGS

A Sample List

Although not technically a usage problem, spelling variants adopted from British spelling preferences are another common source of confusion for Americansand vice versa. While we cannot tackle the whole problem of spelling in this book, we can at least help answer another aspect of the question, 'Which word should I use?"
Thus, the following list as a little something extra. Add to it as you notice others.
AMERICAN

BRITISH

abridgment acknowledgment
amuck

abridgement acknowledgement
amok

analyze
anesthetic

analyse
anaesthetic
arbour

arbor

caliber
canceled

calibre cancelled carburettor

centre

carburetor
center

chiseled color defense

enroll

chiselled
colour

defence
enrol

119

AMERICAN

BRITISH

enthrall

enthral

equaled esophagus
fxber fulfill furor
gray

equalled oesophagus
fibre

fulfil
furore
grey

gypsy

gipsy
honour humour
inflexion

honor humor
inflection

installment
instill

instalment
instil

jeweler judgment kidnaped

labor

jeweller judgement kidnapped

labour

leveling
license luster
maneuver

levelling
licence
lustre
manoeuvre

meager

meagre

mold

mould

AMERICAN

BRITISH

neighbor
offense

neighbour
offence

paneling paralyze practice

pretense
raccoon

panelling paralyse practise (as a verb)

pretence
racoon

sepulcher
shoveled skillful smolder somber

sepulchre
shovelled skilful smoulder sombre

specter

spectre

spelled
theater toward traveled
vapor

spelt

theatre (also Broadway usage)

towards travelled
vapour

vise

vice (the tool)

wilful

willful

worshiped

worshipped

International Dictionary (1981) pp. 21a-24a.

121

'=

--"

Bibliography

American Heritage Dictionary: Second College Edition. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1982 The comments on usage by the Usage Panel are extremely helpful.
Bernstein, Theodore M. The Careful Writer: A Modem Guide to English Usage.
New York: Atheneum, 1965
Balanced advice and fun to read.

Fowler, H. W. A Dictionary of Modem English Usage. 2nd ed. revised by

Sir Ernest Gowers. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1965
The classic.

Strunk, W., Jr., and White, E.B. The Elements of Style. 3rd ed.. New York:
Macmillan, 1979

Everybody should have this book just on general principles.

Webster^s Third New International Dictionary of the English Langua^ey Unabridged. Springfield, Mass.: G. & C. Merriam Co., 1981
Has all the words anyone would need.
123

Index

Italicized words appear only in explanatory matter on lefthand page. Quotation

marks indicate a nonstandard word.

accept, 11 affect, 13 aggravate, 15 all ready, 17

a while, 31 awhile, 31 bad, 33 badly, 33 beside, 35 besides, 35

can, 37

all right, 19 all together, 21 already, 17 "alright," 19 altogether, 21

amount, 23 annoy, 15 any body, 25 anybody, 25 any more, 25 anymore, 25 any one, 25 anyone, 25 any time, 25 an3rtime, 25 any way, 25 anyway, 25 apt, 27 assure, 29

capital, 39 capitol, 39
censer, 41 censor, 41 censure, 41

compare to, 43 compare with, 43 complement, 45 compliment, 45 consul, 49 continual, 47 continuous, 47 council, 49 counsel, 49

125

desert, 51 dessert, 51 device, 53 devise, 53 disinterested, 55 effect, 13 emigrant, 57 eminent, 59 ensure, 29 every day, 61 everyday, 61 except, 11 farther, 63 fewer, 23 flair, 65 flare, 65 flaunt, 67 flout, 67 forbear, 69 forebear, 69 foregoy 68 foreword, 71

forgo, 68 forward, 71 further, 63

good, 73 hanged, 75 hung, 75
I, 77 immanent, 58 immigrant, 57 imminent, 59 imply, 79 in, 81 incredible, 83 incredulous, 83 infer, 79 ingenious, 85 ingenuous, 85 insure, 29 into, 81

"irregardless,'' 86 irrespective, 87

its, 89 it's, 89
88

set, 101 sit, 101 stationary, 103 stationery, 103

lay, 91 less, 23 liable, 27 lie, 91 likely, 27

may, 37 me, 77, 93

that, 105 their, 107 there, 107 they're, 107

uninterested, 55 use, 109 utilize, 109
was. 111 well, 73 were. 111 which, 105 who's, 113

myself, 93
number, 23

principal, principle, prophecy, prophesy,

95 95 97 97

whose, 113
your, 115 you're, 115

raise, 99 reassure, 29

regardless, 87
rise, 99
127

About the Author/Illustrator

Stan Malotte is a former magazine and newspaper editor and teacher. He lives in California and writes and produces educational films.