Common Errors Starting with Z

zeroscape vs xeriscape

If you nuke your front lawn I suppose you might call it a “zeroscape,” but the term for an arid-climate garden requiring little or no watering is “xeriscape” (-xeri is a Greek root meaning “dry”).

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zero-sum gain vs zero-sum game

The concept of a zero-sum game was developed first in game theory: what one side gains the other loses. When applied to economics it is often contrasted with a “win-win” situation in which both sides…

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zoology

Both O’s in “zoo” are needed to create the “oo” sound in this word; but the same is not true of words like “zoology” and “zoologist.” Here each O has its own sound: oh followed by ah. The first two s…

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