I was recently introduced to Professor Paul Brians' web site at Washington State University (WSU). I know I've made many mistakes like these over the years, and would like to think that I have learned from those mistakes. Would that I could have learned them, then, without having to go through those experiences.
So, with a sense of gratitude for what I've been taught and learned so far, and in hopes that it might afford a Soylentil a chance to avoid a red-face-inducing faux pas, I offer you examples of some Common Errors in English Usage:
People send me quite a few word confusions which don't seem worth writing up but which are nevertheless entertaining or interesting. I simply list a number of these below for your amusement. Many of them are discussed on the Eggcorn Database site.
Note: if you don't find what you're looking for below, please be aware that this is only a supplementary page to a much more extensive site that begins here.
NOTE: This is a greatly thinned list of examples from the linked page and has been reformatted for use here. Ellipses ([...]) between entries are implied.
What was said | What was meant |
---|---|
ad homonym | ad hominem |
aerobic numbers | Arabic numbers |
ashfault | asphalt |
Cadillac converter | catalytic converter |
circus sized | circumcised |
deformation of character | defamation of character |
flamingo dancer | flamenco dancer |
four-stair heating | forced-air heating |
gentile manners | genteel manners |
glaucomole | glaucoma |
gorilla warfare | guerilla warfare |
Heineken remover | Heimlich maneuver |
immaculate degeneration | macular degeneration |
in sink | in synch |
ivy tower | ivory tower |
misconscrew | misconstrue |
muncho man | macho man |
parody of virtue | paragon of virtue |
piece of mind | peace of mind |
pot-bellied politics | pork-barrel politics |
shock ways | shockwaves |
techknowledgy | technology |
two sense worth | two cents' worth |
tyrannical yolk | tyrannical yoke |
very close veins | varicose veins |
windshield factor | wind chill factor |
What are your favorites — either from this list — or from elsewhere?
(Score: 2) by DannyB on Friday October 11 2019, @02:12PM (6 children)
I care very much about the list. Especially the fact that we cannot post tables. I've occasionally wanted to include a short table. I've seen useful posts with useful tables used in a usefully useful way.
People today are educated enough to repeat what they are taught but not to question what they are taught.
(Score: 4, Informative) by RamiK on Friday October 11 2019, @04:12PM
Try this: http://www.tablesgenerator.com/text_tables [tablesgenerator.com]
Wrap it in <ecode>foobar</ecode> as follows:
compiling...
(Score: 2) by bzipitidoo on Friday October 11 2019, @05:08PM (4 children)
Should of lobbied SoylentNews harder for table markup, eh?
(Score: 2) by MostCynical on Friday October 11 2019, @05:17PM
-1 ouch
+1 touché
"I guess once you start doubting, there's no end to it." -Batou, Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex
(Score: 2) by TrentDavey on Saturday October 12 2019, @01:52AM (2 children)
Should have ?
FTFY
(Score: 2) by bzipitidoo on Saturday October 12 2019, @03:17AM (1 child)
Woosh :D
(Score: 2) by maxwell demon on Saturday October 12 2019, @08:10AM
That's “whoosh”, with an “h”. And yes, it has a dictionary entry! [merriam-webster.com] :-)
The Tao of math: The numbers you can count are not the real numbers.