When speakers are trying to impress audiences with their rhetoric, theyoften seem to feel that the extra syllable in “importantly”lends weight to their remarks: “and more importantly, I have anabidin…
Apple’s Macintosh computers are usually referred to as “Macs” for short. Windows users unfamiliar with the usual way of rendering the name often write it as if it were an acronym, in all caps: “MAC.”…
“Macabre” is a French-derived word which in its original language has the final “ruh” sound lightly pronounced. Those who know this are likely to scorn those who pronounce the word “muh-COB.” But thi…
When Thomas Hardy titled one of his novels Far from the Madding Crowd he was quoting a phrase from Thomas Gray’s 1750 poem “Elegy on a Country Churchyard” which used the archaic spelling “madding.” T…
In modern English there are a number of specialized uses for the phrase “magic bullet”; but the traditional term for a quick, effective solution to a difficult problem is “silver bullet.” It is deriv…
“Majority” is one of those words that can be either singular or plural. Common sense works pretty well in deciding which. If you mean the word to describe a collection of individuals, then the word s…
“Majorly,” meaning “extremely” is slang and should not be used in formal writing, or even speech if you want to impress someone. “Brad was extremely [not ‘majorly’] worried about the course final unt…
<p>Manufacture is a verb which means ‘to make or produce something’.</p><pre> “In a factory in our city, they manufacture washing machines.” </pre><p>The manufacturer is the person or company that ma…
<p>Marshal is commonly used as an official/military title for someone who performs close duties to a sheriff.</p><pre>"His dad is an Air Marshal in the military."</pre><p>Marshall has been mostly ref…
Your s’mores may taste mellow, but that gooey confection you use in them is not “marshmellow,” but “marshmallow.” It was originally made from the root of a mallow plant which grew in marshes.
<p>Massive is used to refer to something which is very large in size.</p><pre>"The oak door is massive."</pre><p>Mass is the property of a body that causes it to have weight in a gravitational field.…
“Masseuse” is a strictly female term; Monsieur Philippe, who gives backrubs down at the men’s gym, is a masseur. Because of the unsavoryassociations that have gathered around the term “masseuse,” ser…
<p>Material is a matter which maybe shaped or manipulated particularly in making something. It could be also referred to as worldly as opposed to the spiritual.</p><pre>"The dress' material is made o…
Most of the time “might” and “may” are almost interchangeable, with “might” suggesting a somewhat lower probability. You’re more likely to get wet if the forecaster says it may rain than if she says …
“Maybe” is an adverb meaning “perhaps,” so if you are uncertain whether to use this word or the phrase “may be,” try substituting “perhaps”: “Maybe she forgot I said I’d meet her at six o’clock” beco…
To find the mean (or average) of a series of numbers, for example 1,2,3,4,5 & 6, add them all together for a total of 21; then divide by the number of numbers (6) to give the mean (or average) of 3.5…
“I didn’t mean for you to see your present until I’d wrapped it.” This sort of use of “mean for” is a casual pattern inappropriate in written or formal English. Instead, say “I didn’t mean you to see…
Although most authorities now consider these words interchangeable, some people still prefer to use “meanwhile” when it stands alone at the beginning of a sentence: “Meanwhile the dog buried the baby…
A person who proves his or her mettle displays courage or stamina. Theword “mettle” is seldom used outside of this expression, so peopleconstantly confuse it with other similar-sounding words.
There are several words with Latin or Greek roots whose plural forms ending in A are constantly mistaken for singular ones. See, for instance, and . Radio is a broadcast medium. Television is another…
The “eval” of “Medieval” means “age” so by saying “Medieval Ages” you are saying “Middle Ages Ages.” Medievalists also greatly resent the common misspelling “Midevil.”
Although some dictionaries accept the meaning of this word as “medium” or “average,” in fact its connotations are almost always more negative. When something is distinctly not as good as it could be,…
<p>Medium is a format for communicating or presenting information. It can also be described as the means or channel by which an aim is achieved.</p><pre>"To boost sales, have you tried the Internet a…
Inside a longer sentence, “me either” can be perfectly legitimate: “whole-wheat pie crust doesn’t appeal to me either.” But by itself, meaning “neither do I,” in reply to previous negative statement,…
A chunk of rock out in space is a “meteoroid.” If it plummets down through the earth’s atmosphere, the resulting streak of light is called a “meteor.” And if it lands on the ground, the chunk of ston…
A fondness for big words isn’t always accompanied by the knowledge of their proper use. Methodology is about the methods of doing something; it is not the methods themselves. It is both pretentious a…
Until very recently the casual term for a microphone was “mike,” not “mic.” Young people now mostly imitate the technicians who prefer the shorter “mic” label on their soundboards, but it looks disti…
“Midriff” derives from “mid-” and a very old word for the belly. Fashions which bare the belly expose the midriff. People think of the gap being created by scanty tops and bottoms as a rift, and mist…
In some American dialects it is common to say things like “I might could pick up some pizza on the way to the party.” In standard English, “might” or “could” are used by themselves, not together.“Had…
In some dialects it’s common to say things like “you might ought to [pronounced oughta] turn off the engine before changing the spark plugs.” If you want to sound educated, you might want to avoid th…
These are not very common words, but people who use them—especially lawyers—tend to mix them up. “Militate” is usually followed by “against” in a phrase that means “works against”: “His enthusiasm fo…
A book, a person, or any other source stuffed with gems of useful knowledge is a mine of information, a metaphorical treasure trove of learning. The information involved may or may not be in someone’…
In the US the term “minority” frequently refers to racial minorities, and is used not only for groups, but also for individuals. But many authorities object to calling a single person a minority, as …
When baffled computer users phone Support they may say they have a Model AB “minus” 231. In the model name “AB-231” the linking character is a hyphen, though “dash” will do. “Minus” makes no sense in…
<p>Might as well is a popular phrase in English used to suggest the intention to perform an action.</p><pre>"I might as well just sleep after reading this chapter."</pre><p>Minus Well is an incorrect…
<p>Mislead means to lead someone astray or in a false direction through deception and other funny tricks.</p><pre>"Joshua attempted to mislead his girlfriend by sending her on a fool's hunt."</pre><p…
A misnomer is a mistake in naming a thing; calling a debit card a “credit card” is a misnomer. Do not use the term more generally to designate other sorts of confusion, misunderstood concepts, or fal…
“We will be descending shortly into Denver,”says the flight attendant, sounding very weird. People who have torepeat announcements by rote—including radio station-breakannouncers and others—often try…
Mixed media can be great; mixed-up media not so much.Books are published, movies and musical recordings released, and plays and TV shows premiered.Movies are shown, plays staged, and TV shows broadca…
“Molten” is now usually used of hard materials liquified by very high heat, like lava, glass, and lead. Most other substances are “melted,” though some people like to refer to “molten cheese” and a p…
“Mongoloid” is an outdated anthropological term referring to certain peoples from central and eastern Asia. Its use to label people with Down Syndrome is also dated and highly offensive. Avoid the te…
“Mono e mono” is an error caused by mishearing the Spanish expression mano a mano which means not “man-to-man” but “hand-to-hand,” as in hand-to-hand combat: one on one.
If you are trying to make people behave properly, you are policing their morals; if you are just trying to keep their spirits up, you are trying to maintain their morale. “Moral” is accented on the f…
The customs of a people are its mores. These may include its morals (ethics), but the word “mores” is not synonymous with “morals.” Some eels are morays, but they aren’t known particularly for their …
“Most always” is a casual, slangy way of saying “almost always.” Thelatter expression is better in writing. The same is true of “most every,” “most all” and related expressions where the standard fir…
Although you may dig a load of ore out of a mother lode, the spelling “motherload” is a mistake which is probably influenced by people thinking it means something like “the mother of all loads.” A “l…
<p>Motion refers to a change in position with consideration to time. It also means the progression from one location to the other.</p><pre>"Do not run in front of a vehicle in motion."</pre><p>Move i…
“Yama” means “mountain” in Japanese, so when you say “Mount Fujiyama” you are saying “Mount Fuji Mountain.” The Japanese usually say “Fujisan”; but “Fujiyama,” or “Mount Fuji” is standard in English—…
Mucous membranes secrete mucus. “Mucus” is the noun and “mucous” is the adjective. It’s not only snotty biologists who insist on distinguishing between these two words.
In many European languages family names are often preceded by a preposition (de, da, di, von, and van all mean “of”), an article (le and la mean “the”) or both (du, des, del, de la, della and van der…
The original and by far the most common form of this expression referring to superstitions or needlessly complex and obscure language is “mumbo jumbo.” “Mumble jumble” is far less common, but still a…
After my wife—an accomplished soprano—reported indignantly that a friend of hers had stated that her church had “no music, only singing,” I began to notice the same tendency among my students to equa…
“Moot” is a very old word related to “meeting,” specifically a meeting where serious matters are discussed. Oddly enough, a moot point can be a point worth discussing at a meeting (or in court)—an un…
Some traditionalists object to the word “of” after “myriad” or an “a” before, though both are fairly common in formal writing. The word is originally Greek, meaning 10,000, but nowusually means “a gr…
<p>Money is no object is an expression used to mean that money will not be an obstacle to achieving a goal.</p><pre>"Regarding the upcoming acquisition, you can reassure the new partners that money i…