Bryan A. Garner

vane. “Vane” (= a device for showing wind direction) is sometimes mistakenly made “vain” or “vein” — e.g.: o “The SPM buoy’s top deck is designed to swivel, allowing a tanker to act like a weather vain [read “vane”] and remain head-on in the wind.” L.R. Aalund, “Hawaii Offers Challenge and Opportunity to Refiner,” Oil …

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vale of tears. In this age-old idiom, “vale” means “world.” But writers have often mistakenly spelled it *”veil of tears” — e.g.: o “Edwin C. Daly left this veil [read ‘vale’] of tears on Monday (April 15, 1996) at his home in Tamarac, FL.” “Edwin C. Daly” (obit.), Hartford Courant, 30 Apr. 1996, at B8. …

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Miscellaneous Entries. umpteenth is sometimes misspelled *”umteenth” — e.g.: “A House subcommittee is at work on Virginia’s umteenth [read umpteenth] study of campaign-finance reform.” “Campaign-Finance Reform: Mandate Disclosure,” Virginian-Pilot & Ledger Star (Norfolk), 8 Aug. 1996, at A18. unalterable; *inalterable. The latter is a needless variant. unanimous appears in various redundant phrases, such as *”unanimously …

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*used to could. *”Used to could” is dialectal for “used to be able to” or “could formerly.” It appears mostly in reported speech — e.g.: o “‘I was a lot stronger back then,’ Webb said. ‘I used to could [read ‘once could’ or ‘used to be able to’] take a 100-pound bag and lift it …

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used to (3). Today: Contracted Form of “used not to.” In Irish speech, the formal phrase “used not to” is sometimes contracted (rather awkwardly) to “usen’t to” or “usedn’t to” — e.g.: o “Ivy Reading, who worked there for 40 years, said: ‘Saturdays we usen’t to be able to [read ‘couldn’t’] stop even for a …

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used to (2). Today: “didn’t used to”; *”didn’t use to.” “Didn’t used to” (= formerly didn’t) is the informal equivalent of the standard form “never used to” and the rarely encountered phrase “used not to” — e.g.: o “‘Green’ didn’t used to be a popular word in the white world of skiing and snowboarding.” Gary …

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used to (1). Today: Generally. “Used to,” not *”use to,” is the phrase meaning “formerly” — e.g.: o “For those who don’t know, Dagmar was a very big blond, what we use to [read ‘used to’] call in those days ‘well-endowed.’” Nick Clooney, “Hanging Out with Rosie on Early TV,” Cincinnati Post, 8 Jan. 2003, …

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usage. “Usage” generally refers to an idiom or form of speech, an occurrence of one, or forms of speech in general. E.g.: o “The first three usages [of ‘received pronunciation’] attested in OED indeed derive from his work, beginning in 1869.” L.C. Mugglestone, “John Walker and Alexander Ellis,” Notes & Queries, 1 Mar. 1997, at …

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Miscellaneous Entries. ukulele. So spelled — not *”ukelele.” ultimately = (1) in the end {she ultimately changed her mind}; (2) basically; fundamentally {the two words are ultimately related}. ultimatum. The plural is “ultimatums.” The native plural “-ums” has long been considered preferable to the Latinate “-ta” — e.g.: “The 49ers president delivered an ultimatum to …

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upward(s). Although “upward” is generally the preferred adverb and adjective in American English, the form ending in “-s” has become established in the set phrase “upwards of” (= more than). But “more than” is usually better than “upwards of” — e.g.: o “The company said that upwards of [read ‘more than’] 15 percent of the …

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*up to —- off and more. This bit of illogic crops up fairly often in print ads and store signs. At a sale touted as offering up to 50% off and more, for example, all we know is that the sale price is (1) less than 50% off, (2) 50% off, or (3) more than …

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upon. “Upon” is a formal word appropriate for formal occasions — e.g.: “Beneath his likeness sits a table upon [read ‘on’] which participants place the fabric after prostrating themselves three times.” Norine Dresser, “Southern California Voices,” L.A. Times, 8 Feb. 1997, at B7. But in most contexts “upon” is unnecessary in place of “on” — …

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unwieldy. “Unwieldy,” an adjective meaning “difficult to handle” {unwieldy packages}, often seems to be mistaken for an adverb ending in “-ly” — e.g.: o “And it doesn’t require an unwieldly [read ‘unwieldy’], lengthy tournament to improve the situation.” Mark Kiszla, “Nittany Lions Left with Whine, Roses,” Denver Post, 3 Jan. 1995, at C1. o “The …

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Miscellaneous Entries. typography; topography. “Typography” = the study and techniques of using type in printing, esp. as a designer or a typesetter. “Topography” = the three-dimensional shape of terrain. On occasion the first word gets misused for the second — e.g.: “The highest and best use of the property is the mining of limestone, says …

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untrammeled. “Untrammeled” = unfettered; free. A trammel is a restraint in the form of a net or shackle. E.g.: “When Bush leaves office . . . , the radical theory of untrammeled executive power propounded by his administration will leave, too.” Richard Just, “House Hold,” New Republic, 12 Mar. 2008, at 2. The traditional sense …

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