Top 10 Misused English Words

[eksdee]

Found this list really interesting, the couple I wasn't aware of especially - disinterested and decimated especially.

Top 10 Misused English Words

As a proof reader this is the kind of crap I deal with every day. However, the most surprising thing that the well-trained reporters' work that I proof read (I work at a newspaper) often have really basic mistakes. For example, in the same article the same reporter used 'there' where it should have been 'their' twice and also used 'it's' where it should have been 'its' three times. I work at a pretty hokey countryside local newspaper, but still, it really amazes me that people whose profession it is to write can get things like that wrong.

I have to say proof reading has worsened the already somewhat pedantic nature I had before taking this job. I get really annoyed, for example, by the fact that seemingly all signs in car parks which say along the lines of 'Cars Parked at Owner's Risk' often don't have the apostrophe. It could be owner's or owners', either makes sense, but they all just say 'owners'. Drives me wild. Am I crazy?

However, no, I'm (thankfully) not that annoying guy who corrects all their friends when they speak/write. If I ever become like that, I'm hoping someone will shoot me.

 

[Cerb]

Do you use the AP Stylebook mate? Any tips on proof reading? Gota look for a new job soon and mostly I've been looking at Editorial Assistant/ Copy Writer positions and I want to get better at it!

 

[Sparx]

yes you are crazy

 

[georgie]

I would suggest that this is how language evolves. In it's [sic] (only teasing) original form Ultimate might have once meant "the last in a list", a check in the dictionary now says:

ultimate
- 3 dictionary results
ul·ti·mate
–adjective
1.
last; furthest or farthest; ending a process or series: the ultimate point in a journey; the ultimate style in hats.
2.
maximum; decisive; conclusive: the ultimate authority; the ultimate weapon.
3.
highest; not subsidiary: ultimate goal in life.
4.
basic; fundamental; representing a limit beyond which further progress, as in investigation or analysis, is impossible: the ultimate particle; ultimate principles.
5.
final; total: the ultimate consequences; the ultimate cost of a project.
6.
not to be improved upon or surpassed; greatest; unsurpassed: the ultimate vacation spot; the ultimate stupidity.
COLLAPSE
–noun
7.
the final point; final result.
8.
a fundamental fact or principle.
9.
the best, greatest, or most extreme of its kind.

So I'm guessing at some moment there was a tipping point where Ultimate went from being misused aplenty to having this extra definition and thereby accepted.

I'm glad I speak English as my first language cos I'd be shite at learning it.

 

[eksdee]

Do you use the AP Stylebook mate? Any tips on proof reading? Gota look for a new job soon and mostly I've been looking at Editorial Assistant/ Copy Writer positions and I want to get better at it!

We have an in-house style guide. The style of English we used is very much rooted in the past - it is a family-run newspaper that has been around for over 150 years so there is a big emphasis on tradition.

I had never done anything remotely close to proof reading before getting the job, and I was actually employed on the strength of my graphic design work (my job is about 70% graphic design, 30% proof reading). They pretty much trusted I could do the proof reading because I got a 1st on my dissertation, ha. (And I studied illustration!) I had about 3 days of training, got shown all the proofing marks and then just set off on it. It's honestly a very easy job if you have the right mindset for it, if you're easily distracted or prone to letting your mind wander then you'll be bad at it. My desk for proof reading is in the editorial office which can get very loud/busy so I always wear headphones while working or I miss things.

In my experience, which is limited, it's all about trying to keep your focus and keep your reading to a steady pace. Not so fast that you miss obvious things, but not so slow that you over-think and do unnecessary additions or subtractions which ultimately detracts in some way from the writer's work. I think the real 'art' of proof reading is being able to reach a balance where your corrections keep things flowing, ensure consistency both in terms of the narrative and style, as well as the obvious things like double spaces, grammar, spelling etc but at the same time ensuring the piece retains the identity of who wrote it.

Honestly if you've worked as a journalist, or any other job involving English as its primary focus you can easily do the average proof reading job. I have no idea how it translates to more high brow or high end publications though.

 

[eksdee]

double post

 

[eksdee]

I would suggest that this is how language evolves. In it's [sic] (only teasing) original form Ultimate might have once meant "the last in a list", a check in the dictionary now says:



So I'm guessing at some moment there was a tipping point where Ultimate went from being misused aplenty to having this extra definition and thereby accepted.

I'm glad I speak English as my first language cos I'd be shite at learning it.

Yeah, depending on your outlook, that kind of thing is one of the best or worst things about the English language. It is constantly changing. I hesitate to use the word evolving because I think certain things (like this especially) that change are completely ridiculous. Essentially accounting for the stupidity and lack of will to learn of Joe Average is just frustrating - especially to a pedant like me!

 

[Sparx]

According to the Oxford dictionary number one there can mean

Ultimate

1 being or happening at the end of a process; final:their ultimate aim was to force his resignation

2 being the best or most extreme example of its kind:the ultimate accolade

So that site is wrong it seems

definition of ultimate from Oxford Dictionaries Online

 

[Sparx]

Its seems i am late with my post

 

[eksdee]

Yep, it's an evolution (or bastardisation, depending on your outlook ) of the word's meaning.

 

[DaGaffer]

Glad to see the list included the two that annoy me most, "literally" and "less". I can kind of forgive misuse of "less", except I increasingly hear people who should know better (like news presenters) doing it. There's no forgiving literally since its almost always used by wankers engaging in hyperbole (like most sports presenters for instance).

 

[Ctuchik]

I'm probably the one that misuse its and it's, and your/you're, well probably most of those kind of words.

I just never learn when to use what....

 

[GimmlyThe3rd]

What a fucking boring thread, I bet you are really fun to work with. if I worked with you, I would make sure I misused everything just to piss you off in the morning.

I'm probably the one that misuse its and it's, and your/you're, well probably most of those kind of words.

I just never learn when to use what....

Really who cares if you misuse its or it's, thats what the spelling and grammar nazi OP gets paid for. He would be out of a job otherwise ..

 

[Ctuchik]

What a fucking boring thread, I bet you are really fun to work with.


Really who cares if you misuse its or it's, thats what the spelling and grammar nazi OP gets paid for. He would be out of a job otherwise ..

Yeah but as a wannabe grammar nazi, things like that is slightly embarrassing...

And i cant grammar nazify anyone until then..

 

[Helme]

Knew most of these already from reading another list similar to this. You're/Your I've managed to sort out in recent years after taking a moment to really learn the difference. I still fuck up its/it's occasionally though.

 

[old.Tohtori]

How about awesome

I've always found it interesting that it's mostly native english that make these "mistakes", or misuses.

 

[Helme]

I think it mostly has to do with fear of looking like an idiot, in your native tongue you know what you can and cannot get away with - if it's your 2nd language you're going to be more careful.

 

[eksdee]

What a fucking boring thread, I bet you are really fun to work with. if I worked with you, I would make sure I misused everything just to piss you off in the morning.


Really who cares if you misuse its or it's, thats what the spelling and grammar nazi OP gets paid for. He would be out of a job otherwise ..

I work for a newspaper, it's kind of a given that there is an expectancy for journalists to be able to use proper English.

 

[TdC]

Really who cares if you misuse its or it's, thats what the spelling and grammar nazi OP gets paid for. He would be out of a job otherwise ..

Because the meaning of what you write could change -or- people could think you're an asshat.

If you are in a line of work where neither matter, then there is always the personal preference of using a tool, eg language, in a way that is correct. If you don't care about that either then I suppose any argument I could give would be meaningless to you

 

[old.Tohtori]

Go help your uncle J(j)ack off a horse and see how much language affects things

Helme; could be right, though i think it's partly due to not being taught your own native language to such extent. In Finland, for example, we have 9 years of Finnish teaching and a whopping 5 years of English in basic school alone.

 

[eksdee]

Go help your uncle J(j)ack off a horse and see how much language affects things

Hahahaha! Brilliant.

 

[ST^]

"Instant" isn't being misused. Anyone with half an ounce of common sense knows that they're using a little exaggeration there.

"Less" isn't being misused. That is what the word now means. Language evolves. Grammar Nazi's obviously don't.

 

[eksdee]

"Instant" isn't being misused. Anyone with half an ounce of common sense knows that they're using a little exaggeration there.

"Less" isn't being misused. That is what the word now means. Language evolves. Grammar Nazi's obviously don't.

Is 'less' a necessary evolution, though? I can understand new words, the removal of hyphens from words such as relocate, reopen etc which used to have hyphens. The point being, there is a perfectly good word already for the purpose that 'less' has been reappropriated for, so why do it?

I completely accept that a lot of people don't care about this stuff, and neither do I to a large extent, but I do find it interesting.

 

[Aoami]

Decimate is one that particularly annoys me.

 

[Tom]

Found this list really interesting, the couple I wasn't aware of especially - disinterested and decimated especially.

Top 10 Misused English Words

As a proof reader this is the kind of crap I deal with every day. However, the most surprising thing that the well-trained reporters' work that I proof read (I work at a newspaper) often have really basic mistakes. For example, in the same article the same reporter used 'there' where it should have been 'their' twice and also used 'it's' where it should have been 'its' three times. I work at a pretty hokey countryside local newspaper, but still, it really amazes me that people whose profession it is to write can get things like that wrong.

I have to say proof reading has worsened the already somewhat pedantic nature I had before taking this job. I get really annoyed, for example, by the fact that seemingly all signs in car parks which say along the lines of 'Cars Parked at Owner's Risk' often don't have the apostrophe. It could be owner's or owners', either makes sense, but they all just say 'owners'. Drives me wild. Am I crazy?

However, no, I'm (thankfully) not that annoying guy who corrects all their friends when they speak/write. If I ever become like that, I'm hoping someone will shoot me.

If you're a proof reader then perhaps you might, in future, take care to compose posts that make grammatical sense.

 

[eksdee]

Touché. Posting while I should be working = rushing.

 

[Ctuchik]

"Less" isn't being misused. That is what the word now means.

Just because the general public accept the word less to mean something it doesn't, doesn't mean it's correct just generally accepted.

Here's a proper grammar nazi's view on it...

Less Versus Fewer : Grammar Girl :: Quick and Dirty Tips ™

 

[Wazzerphuk]

Grammar Naziism is good and appropriate IMO, for some things, but not for others.

For example, the apostrophe. It actually (as evidenced in the OP) affects meaning, so it's REALLY IMPORTANT.

Things like less than or fewer than can get to fuck off. It's like people raging at "can I get a <blank>". You ALWAYS know what the person means, and mutual intelligibility is KEY. If there is no mutual intelligibility, or there is potential for confusion then the 'correct' form should be used. Otherwise, there's utterly no point and it's just a bunch of old men ranting at the world, trying to be as pretentious as the French (who utterly hate it that several hundred French words are in popular English usage ).

 

[Helme]

Hah, that reminds me of this quote for some assbackwards reason; "The problem with the French is that they don't have a word for entrepreneur." - George W. Bush

 

[Trem]

Your and You're are the most annoying words for me.

Your a dick etc....

Drives me up the fucking wall