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Evening Star, Issue 11830, 9 March 1903, Page 3

"ENGLISH US MIS SPOKE" DO YOU WRITE AND SPEAK CORRECTLY? Some errors in Common Speech set right—Showing Unique Treatment of Words ability and capacity are frequently need one {or the other. Ability denotes power to perform. Capacity conveys the idea of the possession of ssources. Ability is manifested in action, CAPACITY does not imply action, as -when »«, spealc of a CAPACITY for virtue. CAPACITY - la the gift of nature; ABILITY, is partly the result of education or opportunity. ** thb Cbhtuby." accident Is often wrongly used in place of MISTAKE. An accident is that which happens by chance without the concurrence) of the will. It differs from MISTAKE, in that the latter always supposes the operation of the will in producing the event, although that will is caused by erroneous impression* upon the mind. " The Cesttrt." acquire does not oorreotly express temporary pos although it is often wrongly used thus. What one ACQUIRES he is assumed to kee,. ■,.. a length of time, as, to ACQUIRE a title, estates, learning, etc Bor the other meaning, obtain, procure, are more exact, as, to obtain a loan, to procure supplies for the journey. , " The Cektury." adjacent ADJOnnNG and COXTIGUOUS are often used indiscriminately. Adjaceht means lying near, neighbouring, but not necessarily In contact. Adjointsg, joining to or on, so as to touch. COSTIGUOUS, touching along a considerable line. . i - ■ " Thb Ckstury." affable. "Tub cbbtury." aggravate doesn't mean to "provoke," or to "anger," or to " irritate," but merely to add weight to, to therefore, to say, "You aggravate me," although this misnsage is a common one. " THB CKSTURY." alike jeans "similar; having no marked difference." BOTH means " the one and the other; the tiro, «nd denoting that neither of thorn is to be excluded." Two brothers may look ALIKE —not BOTH look 4.L1E8. " The Cb&tuky." is often coupled with ALIKE, to the serious hurt of one's English. All means the total nur* K ~- -- J : - -- A able. It is thr * of children dressed all ALIKE" —BACH ALIKE being the correct form. " Thb Crxtury." apt Ts confounded with liable in many ways, when properly they have entirely separate shades of meaning. Apt indicates tendency toward, as apt to catch cold, while LIABLE is practically equivalent to exposed. Thus, sitting by the fireside one may be APT to catch cold—yet is not at all LIABLE to. "The Ceh~tuhy." balance is the difference between two sides of an i it. t which is necessary to make one equal correctly, a surplus, though _ 'ore often than in its rightful meaning. One may say " a BalantjH is dne me at my banker's —but never that one "bequeathes the balance of his estate," etc " The Century." below and beneatb 3re not clearly understood by many. BELOW means lower than the piano of; underlower in the perpendicular lino of. ' Bbitbath, close nnder, underneath, beinz general, and in many senses a synonvm of eacii of the others. Thus, the sun sinks BELOW the horizon; a thing is under a chair or a tree, or BENEATH a pile of rubbish. "The Cextury." beside'and besides are commonly nsed as though there to nc uHerence in their meaning. Beside means at the side of; besidks, in adrfi*,on to - One may say "sit down BSSTOB nu\" but not thero was nobody there BESim: thr president," unless it is meant that nobody vi near him, although there wero present, besides him. "The Century." blnndcr should not be confounded with such words a error, mistake, etc An error is a wandering from truth, primarily in impression, or judgment, and by extension of the ideas in conduct. A MISTAKE is a foIBC judgment or choice. A BLUHTDBR is a strong word for a Jiistvke "hich is Btupid, or for a gross error in action or speech. A bull is a blunder in language—and is not properly apptied to action. " The Century." bomba«t and fustian are interesting from their derivation. Bombast was originally a stuff of soft, loose textnre used to swell or pad a garment. Fustian was also a kind of cloth of stiff, expansive character. Hence the application of these terms to a high swelling stylo of writing or speech, full of extravagant sentiments and expressions. , . "The Ckwtury." Urine is the dis — ± — _* . , inside of a uj»muer. Therefore its figurative use Is for the exprearian of height or depth, thinness or thickness. It is incorrect to say, for inetaneo, "« much higher mental caliber." "the Csi'mm." can and may are made to answer for each otter quite in defiance of their very distant* differences of mwng'» A . man ''rill say to his child: " You as go out, when he means only to give him penaiwion to do so. Can- means " to be able"} HAY "ittilcstes possibility with contingency, and. In Us most oommaa use, permission." -»»f«™» "Thb Cmymtx." dock, ly used to mean a wharf or is 1 enclosed water-space in which a Correctly speaking, one could no mora "fatt-ieft a dock " than ono could tall off a hole. "Thb Ckxxbxt."' expect means to look for with anticipation of; awaits* likely to happen or to appear. Its mieusage commonly takes some inch form as " I expect ho went to town yesterday." Expect refers only to that which is to com*. One cannot expect backward. "Thb CBsxmss." expert . is often used to express a higher degree of excellence than skilful—and wrongly bo. Expert emphasises experience and practice, while skilful implies knowledge as the principal thing, combined With emertnxmi- a. mrrr.wrrr. are use of his mind than an to say, "Go to hj: though after havii, fc uu to say, " I brijtg yon this book, IN COMING; is, or where " The Cestury. to end in ruin." Surely the. Pr polioy did not mean that it " The Century.' "The Ckbtubt." for and at. One often hears some such use of fob for AT, as "We had salad FOR supper last evening " when, unless it is meant that the meal consisted entirely or chiefly of salad, or that the salad was served in place of supper, the proper rendering would bo " at supper." " The Cebwby." Bel, meaning, correctly, to obtain, gain, attain to, signifies only that which is striven for and acquired. One gets riches, but one doeen'tl IKT sick; GET implying voluntary pursuit ' . The most common misuse of this word and its preterit got is to express- simple possession, as in the phrase have got: possession iB completely expressed by hate, and the GOT is quite Bnperflnons. " The ckbttoby." belpmcct. The common use of this word as signifying a wife is as ridiculous as its origin—"An absurd compound taken as equivalent to helpmate, the form being suggested by the expression used in Glen, xi, 18, in reference to Adam's wife, 'An help meet for him'—La., fit for him, but properly a help (helper) like himself." One might as well call his "-partner" his helper or help-proper. " The Cbhtuby." Ice-cream, foe-water. Through carelessness tho compound words hare come to be used in place of iceD-cream and ioeDwater, for what is called ioe-water is seldom made from ice, but is water mado cold with ice, and real Ire-water might bo warm as snow-water often is. There is no such thing as ICR-CRHAM, correctly speaking. "The Cestury." leave is commonly misused by being lejt without an object, as: "I will leave soon," « I left last evening." When the verb is used tho mention of U» place is absolutely necessary. The correct meaning of tho word in Una sense is to go away from, or depart from, whether temporarily or permanently. From what must therefore be mentioned in every insiance. "The Cbntuby." 'nan i« not a verb, tho'agli it is often wrougly-Trei»d as such. A loan is " that which is lent" Von may favour your friend with a LOAJI, hnt you may not ask him to LOAir yon anything. He may, however, LExn you what you desire. " The Cbstuby." uiri ook muans simply " to take or have a part, portion, ( r share IV 'cOMMOJf WITH OTHERS." Tts common misuse is in Buch sentences as " Breakfasting alone. I PAKTOOK of coffee and rolls." One cannot partakh of his breakfast alone, 'lough he m«y invite a friend to PARTAKE of it with him. "THE CEHTURY." •rl'-tnclf mnans confused violence, in a 'disorderly )I|:»6S, etc It always implies a crowd and confusion, and its common misuse, as "I rushed PELL-MELL out of the honse," is manifestly absurd. One might ■ds well say that ho rushed out by the dozen. "The Cbhtuht." When you use this word at all, use it-only in its correct meaning. " Completely, wholly, entirely," etc. To say, " Quite a rcoro of persons were prespnt " is correct if there were twenty there, but to siry " Quite a number wore present'' is improper. The same may be eaid of OUTTE a few, QUHB a little, etc "The Crsturt." remember and recollect are often misused—one for tho other. Don't say you " can't remember," for you mean tlAt you " can't rbcollect." Behxxbkr * iples that a fact exists *- ASA.. ber or yon do not invi pernaps by an effort you CAB recollect it "The Ckktubt." Kit and act. Sit means to put one's Belf in a position ol rest—SßT means to cause another person or thing to sit. Thus hens do not SET I —they STT;and the common phraso " setting hen " should be " am hen." Ton may SET a hen, or SET tho eggs, bat the hen SITS. CeHTURY?* "THE CENTURY" . . AS A . . ;r 150,000 encyclopasdic articles are given in works as are most of its other features First, the word itself and its different spell are given. Then a complete history of the chai through which the J v -- - - - One of the unique features of "The CENTUIcI *" . __ nd one of its most practical departures from the in an ages, Berving to show the every shade'of old-line referenco works, is this individual arrangemeaning tne word possesses or has possessed, ment of headings. Instead of extremely long articles _ .!£ H" 8 »r™>nyms, of which a greater number on general subjects, the Information in "THE whether devoted specially to that subject or not. I each indexed under its own head, showing just in _rne_ immense number of 500,000 definitions make I the right place all there is to know about the one ""k. k r v TO,w,ces ' professions, arts, and trades, Century Habit "—the constant consultation of " tho vrnicn have heretofore either been scattered through great question-answerer," for going to "THE many different technical text-books or not before Century " for vomr facts is simply KSOWJJtßembraced in any. • THINGS EFFOBTI I "THE CEISTURY" ATLAS. The maps of "The Century" ATLAS for completeness, legibility, and mechanical perrcetmn. tar excel anv that hAvn hitherto annonrori Th... ~«,. tin j„..ui , n n , » »-- ~~« « .k!!^ 011 ?™^* 1 , m * p , s Y Th 6 tad exes show nearly 200,000 entries of place-names, a number present: the location of famous The illustrations number nearly 8000. and, unlike those found in most worta of reference, tier ,«, every one, examples of the highest degree of artistic and mechanical BkilL Both the arswinw -nd the engravings were made by the artists who illustrate THE CESTUB* HTumi™, whose art features have placed it easily first among tho publi.--"- -' " - * - •- - - point. " The Century Dictionary & Cyclopaedia & Atlas, aptly named "The Great Question-Answerer," is, we .believe, the shortest path to the whole realm of knowledge. It is the best of all reference works, is much more usable than all others combined, and is acknowledged to be a practical necessity to every one who reads, writes, or thinks. "The Times" (London), New Zealand Office, PJXBocs 285, "Wellington.