Glossary of Usage

The following are frequently misused words. Look for them in your own work.

advice, advise Advice is a noun; advise is a verb. We advise you to follow John's advice. (Plural form is also advice--not advices.)

affect, effect Affect is usually a verb meaning "to influence." Effect is usually a noun meaning "result." The drug did not affect the disease, and it had several adverse side effects. Effect can also be a verb meaning "to bring about." Only the president can effect such a dramatic change.

all ready, already All ready means "completely prepared." Already means "previously." Susan was all ready for the concert, but her friends had already left.

angry at, angry with To write that one is angry at another person is nonstandard. Use angry with instead.

anyplace Anyplace is informal for anywhere. Avoid anyplace in formal writing.

beside, besides Beside is a preposition meaning "at the side of" or "next to." He slept with a glass of water beside his bed. Besides is a preposition meaning "except" or "in addition to." No one besides Terrie can have that ice cream. Besides is also an adverb meaning "in addition." I'm not hungry; besides, I don't like ice cream.

contact Although the use of contact to mean "to get in touch with" is common in speech, it is not appropriate in formal writing. If possibly, use a precise verb such as write or telephone. We will telephone (not contact) you soon.

criteria Criteria is the plural of criterion, which means "a standard rule or test on which a judgement or decision can be based." The only criterion for the scholarship is ability.

data Data is a plural noun technically meaning "facts or propositions." But data is increasingly accepted as a singular noun. The new data suggest (or suggests) that our theory is correct. The singular datum is rarely used.

eminent, imminent Eminent means "outstanding" or "distinguished." We met an eminent professor of Greek history. Imminent means "about to happen." The announcement is imminent.

etc. Avoid ending a list with etc. it is more emphatic to end with an example, and in most contexts readers will understand that the list is not exhaustive. When you don't wish to end with an example, and so on is more graceful than etc.

farther, further Farther usually describes distances. Further usually suggests quantity or degree. Sophia is farther from Varna than I thought. You extended the deadline further than you should have.

firstly Firstly sounds pretentious and leads to the ungainly series firstly, secondly, thirdly, fourthly, and so on. Write first, second, third, forth instead.

good, well Good is an adjective; well is an adverb. He has good ideas for next week's session. He doesn't work well with others.

in, into In indicates location or condition; into indicates movement or a change in condition. They found the lost letters in a box after moving into the house.

irregardless Irregardless is nonstandard. Use regardless.

its, it's Its is a possessive pronoun; it's is a contraction for it is. This computer has its own distinct personality; it's likely to do anything.

maybe, may be Maybe is an adverb meaning "possibly." May be is a verb phrase. Maybe the sun will shine tomorrow. Tomorrow may be a warmer day.

OK, okay, O.K. All three spellings are acceptible, but in formal speech and writing avoid these colloquial expressions for consent or approval.

percent, percentage Percent is always used with a specific number. Percentage is used with a descriptive term such as large or small, not with a specific number. The candidate won 80 percent of the vote. Only a small percentage of voters turned out for the election.

precede, proceed Precede means "to come before." Proceed means "to go forward." As we proceeded up the mountain, we noticed fresh tracks in the mud, evidence that other hikers had preceded us.

quote, quotation Quote is a verb; quotation is a noun. Avoid using quote as a shortened form of quotation. Her quotations from Shakespeare intrigued us.

shall, will Shall was once used as the helping verb with I or we: I shall, we shall, you will, he/she/it will, they will. Today, however, will is generally accepted even when the subject is I or we. The word shall occurs primarily in polite requests. Shall I call your assistant?

toward, towards Toward and towards are generally interchangeable, although toward is preferred in American English.

who, which, that Do not use which to refer to persons. Use who instead. That, though generally used to refer to things, may be used to refer to a group or class of people. Fans wondered how an old man who walked with a limp could play football. The team that scores the most points will win the game.

who, whom Who is used for subjects and subject complements; whom is used for objects.