By Peter J. Francis, HGPublishing Editor
Grammar Help — Words — Misused Word List F-Z
Here's a list of words which are commonly misspelled or otherwise abused. Some of them appear on other grammar pages on this site. Use the Question form to submit more.
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Word |
Common Mistake |
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first of all |
Actually, this can be used but I prefer the shorter "first." The common mistake associated with the word is to follow it by the erroneous "second of all" and even by the egregiously horrible "third of all." Think about it. Something can come first before all (first of all) but not second of all because it's really "second of all but one" and finally "third of all but the first two." Why not forty seventh of all but the first forty six? |
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firstly vs first |
I prefer "first" to "firstly." But other grammarians don't care. So take your pick, but be consistent. "First, he told me how to write; second, he told me what to write." "Firstly, he told me how to write; secondly, he told me what to write." |
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garnishee, garnish |
I got my comeuppance researching this one. Oxford says both can be used as a verb which means to legally seize money. For years I have been embarassing myself by stating that I would welcome having my salary 'garnished' because it would then have some extra decoration. In actual fact, with or without the extra 'ee' it's something to be avoided. |
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honour, honor |
It's just like 'colour'; Brit vs. Yank. My degree, however, granted by Simon Fraser University in Burnaby, BC, Canada, states "Honors English" when it should state "Honours English." |
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its, it's & its' also see apostrophe page |
Let's be clear about this:
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jargon |
It's not a word that's misused, but it's a terribly common writing fault. Sometimes terms specific to certain disciplines are needed to make the meaning clear, but don't use esoteric language solely for the onanistic pleasure of discourse which is ultimately exclusionary and creates redundant pleonasms. Read my blog about "penultimate." |
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likelihood |
one word, sometimes misspelled |
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magnate or magnet |
a magnet is a device with a magnetic field; it attracts iron and nickel a magnate is someone with a lot of wealth and power |
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past, passed |
Past is a reference to time; something happened in the past. Passed is the past tense of the verb "to pass." I passed the slower car on the road. |
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precedence, precedent |
A precedent is something that sets the bar that others will have to live up to: A court ruling sets a precedent. Precedence is something that comes before something else: Senior citizens have precedence for seating on the bus. |
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than, then |
Than is used to compare two things: I'd rather do this than that. He has more money than she does. Then is used to express an order of events; I will go to the bank then spend my money. We also use then in logic. If I go to the bank, then I will have some money. Think of the first condition as coming before the second condition, then you will see that then is the right word. |
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"use to" or "used to" |
When talking about something that happened in the past, use "used to", as in "I used to go to school," or "I used to live in Chicago." |
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Who, Whom |
Who — used as the subject of a sentence Example: Who threw the ball? Whom — used as the object of a sentence Example: To whom was the ball thrown? Use 'who' when it's the subject of a clause when even though the clause is the object of the sentence. I spoke to the principal, who is also the gym teacher. |