Archive for June, 2008
June 26th, 2008
One of the simpler concepts in subject-verb agreement is that a compound subject (that is, more than one thing connected with an “and”) requires a plural verb. And yet, consider the following:
“The state’s roads, bridges and other infrastructure has been suffering because of it.”
The word “has” should be “have.”
Two things to watch for;
If the subject contains “and,” it usually needs a plural verb.
Don’t be fooled when the last item in a compound subject is singular, as in the example above. Even though the verb is closest to that word, the subject is the whole thing and still needs a plural verb: “roads, bridges and other infrastructure have,” not “infrastructure has.”
June 25th, 2008
The phrase “push the envelope” means to exceed, or try to exceed, established boundaries, limits, rules, etc.
The “envelope” is spelled and pronounced the same as that thing a letter arrives in.
However, if you omit the last “e,” you change the pronunciation and the word becomes a verb instead of a noun.
To “envelop” is to “wrap up,” “surround” or “conceal.”
There’s no such thing as “push the envelop.” That’s pushing too far.
The phrase was popularized by Tom Wolfe’s “The Right Stuff,” published in 1979. Before that it was rarely encountered outside aviation circles, where the “flight envelope” referred to capabilities and limits of aircraft. The job of test pilots was to push the envelope, sometimes was disastrous results.
A similar use of “envelope” also can be found in mathematics, but I stink at math, so we’ll leave it at that.
June 24th, 2008
The word “by” can save you a few keystrokes when writing about deadlines.
For example, in “construction is set to start on or before Aug. 1,” replace “on or before” with “by.” Whenever there’s a deadline, that’s the due date, but it’s understood it’s OK to go earlier.
“By” covers both situations, “before” and “on.”
Bye for now!
June 23rd, 2008
This one is strictly for entertainment — and edification.
Once upon a time, there was a popular cartoon strip, originated in 1897, called “The Katzenjammer Kids.” The word “katzenjammer” comes from German words for “cat” (“katze”) and “woe” (“jammer”).
In English, it actually has three meanings, the first influenced by the cartoon strip: “a farcical quality; travesty.”
The other two are “a bewildering hodgepodge or distressing confusion” and “a severe headache, especially as part of a hangover.”
Interestingly, one of the folk remedies for the third type of katzenjammer is the “hair of the dog.”
June 20th, 2008
A long time ago, the word “presently” meant “instantly.” Pretty soon it evolved into “soon.” Now it can mean “now.”
Most usage experts frown on “presently” as “now.”
John B. Bremner, in “Words on Words,” had the best solution:
“Because ‘presently’ means both ‘now’ and ’soon,’ why not say ‘now’ when you mean ‘now,’ and ’soon’ when you mean ’soon’?”
Hard to argue with that, but some people just seem to be drawn to words and phrases that appear to be more impressive, such as “prior to” instead of “before,” “following” for “after” and even “currently” for “now.”
Sometimes there are legitimate style reasons for such choices, but usually they are ill-advised.
June 19th, 2008
The following is a common error:
“The board tends to look at one criteria.”
The word “criteria” is plural. The singular is “criterion.” It comes from the Greek “kriterion,” for “means of judging,” which is exactly what it means in English. A good synonym is “standard.”
One “criterion,” many “criteria.”
Similar confusion, though less frequently, is encountered with “phenomenon” (singular) and “phenomena” (plural), also of Greek origin. It is incorrect to say “this phenomena.”
So many English plurals end with an “s” sound that we can be fooled into thinking that any word that doesn’t end in “s” must be singular. T’ain’t necessarily so.
June 18th, 2008
The past tense and past participle of “learn” is “learned,” pronounced as one syllable, “lurnd.”
This is also true when it’s used as an adjective to mean “acquired by study, experiences, etc.,” as in “a learned response.”
However, it acquires another syllable — “LUR-nid” — when it means “well-informed” or refers to scholarship — “my learned colleague.”
Another word with a similar dual character is “blessed”:
One syllable: “We feel we are truly blessed.”
Two syllables: “Help us celebrate this blessed event.”
Writing can be less complicated than speaking.
June 17th, 2008
It’s still considered quite an honor in what’s left of the British Empire to “be knighted.”
However, to be “benighted” is not a compliment. It means either “caught or surrounded by darkness or night” or, more commonly, “intellectually or morally backward.”
The key is the “night” part. That is, in darkness, or unenlightened.
June 16th, 2008
Webster’s considers the verb “hearken” to be either “literary” or “archaic.” That means we ought to avoid it as much as possible.
Its only current application is in the phrase “hearken back,” meaning “to go back in thought or speech; revert.”
If you have occasion to use it, perhaps in a quote, the spelling “hearken” is preferred to “harken.”
Or you could go with “hark back.”
June 13th, 2008
In recognition of Thursday’s Supreme Court ruling on the Guantanamo detainees, today’s word is “justice.”
The word, from the Latin for “lawful, rightful, proper,” has several meanings, including “the quality of being righteous,” “fairness,” “the quality of being right or correct,” “sound reason,” “reward or penalty as deserved,” “the use of authority and power to uphold what is right, just or lawful,” and “the administration of law.”
The judges on the Supreme Court also are called “justices,” and they voted 5-4 against the case presented by the “Justice Department.”
The personification of Justice is usually a blindfolded goddess holding scales and a sword. The blindfold is symbolic of impartiality, of being able to ignore things that are inappropriate. Still, the idea that “justice is blind” can be disturbing — and easily misinterpreted.
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