Bryan A. Garner

troop; troupe. Both “troop” and “troupe” have their origins in the medieval French term “troupeau,” meaning “crowd” or “herd.” “Troop” = an assembled unit of soldiers {a troop of parachutists}. The plural form “troops” signifies soldiers {the troops were deployed along the crest of the ridge} and is usually modified by an adjective to indicate …

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Garner’s Usage Tip of the Day trompe l’oeil; *trompe d’oeil; *tromp d’oeil; *trump l’oeil. “Trompe l’oeil,” meaning “deceives the eye,” is by far the most common spelling of this gallicism. It’s the one recorded in most dictionaries. “*trompe d’oeil” is less common. *”Tromp d’oeil” and *”trump l’oeil” are needless variants. The phrase can apply to …

Garner’s Usage Tip of the Day: trompe l’oeil; *trompe d’oeil; *tromp d’oeil; *trump l’oeil. Read More »

trek, n. “Trek” derives from the Dutch “trekken” (= “to march or travel”). It’s occasionally misspelled *”treck” — e.g.: o “Jordan Pond is a good spot to begin your mountain-bike treck [read ‘trek’] northward past Eagle Lake to Bar Harbor.” Judith Wynn, “Work of Art,” Boston Herald, 7 Aug. 1997, at 52. o “Hawaii’s many …

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Miscellaneous Entries. toxicology; toxology. “Toxicology” = the science of poisons. “Toxology” = the branch of knowledge dealing with archery. tradable. So spelled — not “tradeable.” trademark; tradename. Today in American English, “tradenames” identify businesses; “trademarks” identify goods produced by or services provided by businesses. Each term is now preferably written as one word. traffic, v.i., …

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tread / trod / trodden. So inflected. “Trod” is a variant past participle. Although many American dictionaries (surprisingly) list ‘untrod’ as the standard adjective in preference to ‘untrodden,” the latter form is four times as common. Many writers, unfortunately, have tried to make “trod” into a present-tense verb. They’re treading heavily on the language — …

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trawl, vb.; troll, vb. “Trawl” = to fish with a large cone-shaped net (called a trawl) that is dragged on the bottom of a sea or lake. “Troll” = v.t., (1) to roll (something) around and around; (2) to sing robustly; (3) to pull through water; v.i., (4) to catch fish by dragging a lure …

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transpire. The traditionally correct meaning of this word is “to pass through a surface; come to light; become known by degrees.” But that sense is now beyond redemption, though writers should be aware of it. Today, of course, the popular use of “transpire” is as a formal word equivalent to “happen,” “occur,” or “take place.” …

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transgender; transgendered. The precise meaning of this new term (dating only to the mid-1970s) is hard to pin down, but it’s most commonly used as a broad adjective describing people whose self-identity does not match the sex they were labeled with at birth — e.g.: “[Dr. Norman] Spack subjects his patients to a lengthy evaluation …

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Miscellaneous Entries. total, vb., makes “totaled” and “totaling” in American English, “totalled” and “totalling” in British English. to the effect that is often verbose for “that.” totting up (= adding up, calculating) is sometimes incorrectly made *”toting up” (which means “carrying up”) — e.g.: “Toting [read ‘Totting’] up a lifetime of 35 campaigns, in primaries …

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tortuous; torturous; tortious. “Tortuous” (/TOR-choo-uhs/) = full of twists and turns {a tortuous path through the woods}. “Torturous” (/TOR-chuhr-uhs/) = of, characterized by, or pertaining to torture {torturous abuse}. “Tortious” (/TOR-shuhs/) = (1) of or relating to a civil wrong (i.e., a tort) for which a person can sue {tortious liability}; or (2) constituting a …

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too. Part A: Beginning Sentences with. It is poor style to begin a sentence with “too” (= also), although there is a tendency in facile journalism to use the word this way. Instead of *”Too, we shouldn’t forget,” write “Also, we shouldn’t forget” or, better, “And we shouldn’t forget.” Words such as “moreover,” “further,” and …

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Miscellaneous Entries. tolerance; toleration. The former is the quality, the latter the act or practice. tome refers not to any book, but only to one that is imposingly or forbiddingly large. tornadic (= of or relating to a tornado or tornadoes) is often a pomposity because “tornado” generally serves as its own adjective {tornado activity}. …

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