Word Confusion: Access versus Excess

Posted June 27, 2013 by Kathy Davie in Author Resources, Self-Editing, Word Confusions, Writing

Revised as of
16 Oct 2022

Ooh, yeah, I’d love ta git me some access to an excess!

Just like kids would love I B to those cookies in the cookie jar, or an unhappy woman might want an excess of Ben and Jerry’s Chunky Monkey.

I reckon one might consider that, while we don’t have an excess of accessible ramps for the handicapped, the availability of this access is improving.

Word Confusions . . .

. . . started as my way of dealing with a professional frustration with properly spelled words that were out of context in manuscripts I was editing as well as books I was reviewing. It evolved into a sharing of information with y’all. I’m hoping you’ll share with us words that have been a bête noire for you from either end. Consider sharing this Word Confusion with friends by tweeting it.

Access Excess

Feeringbury Manor Black Sculpted Gates in the civil parish of Feering, Braintree, Essex, England, is Acabashi‘s own work is under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license, via Wikimedia Commons.

Black sculpted metal gates, designed and constructed by Ben Coode-Adams, grant access to the garden of Feeringbury Manor.


Excess Human Adipose Tissue is Aspen04‘s own work and is in the public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.

Part of Grammar:
Adjective 1; Noun 1, 2;
Verb, transitive 1

Plural for the noun: accesses
Gerund: accessing

Third person present verb: accesses
Past tense or past participle: accessed
Present participle: accessing

Adjective; Noun

Plural for the noun: excesses

Adjective:
Denoting noncommercial broadcasting produced by local independent groups, rather than by professionals 1

Noun:
Right or opportunity to use or benefit from something 1

Right or opportunity to approach or see someone

Action or process of obtaining or retrieving information stored in a computer’s memory

Condition of being able to be reached or obtained

[Singular noun] Attack or outburst of an emotion

Means of approaching or entering a place 2

Verb:
Usually as be accessed


[Computing] Obtain, examine, or retrieve data or a file 1

Approach or enter a place

Gain the right or opportunity to use or benefit from something

Adjective:
Exceeding a prescribed or desirable amount

Noun:
Amount of something that is more than necessary, permitted, or desirable

Amount by which one quantity or number exceeds another

Lack of moderation in an activity, especially eating or drinking

[Plural noun] Outrageous or immoderate behavior

Action of exceeding a permitted limit

Examples:
Adjective:
PBS is public-access television.

Noun:
Wheelchair access is on the side.

I’ll need access to the security tapes.

Since the divorce, his grandparents have been denied access.

Verb:
Can you access the financials?

This hotel has private beach access.

Adjective:
I’d like to get rid of my excess fat.

In an excess of hatred, he threw his Nintendo through the TV screen.

Noun:
People addicted to food usually eat an excess of it.

There was an excess of imports over exports which affects the debt ratio.

Hangovers usually result from an excess of alcohol.

The worst excesses of the 1960s were free love and drugs.

History of the Word:
  1. Middle English in the sense of a sudden attack of illness from the Latin accessus from the verb accedere, which means to approach.
  2. It was first recorded in the early 17th century.
Late Middle English from the Old French, which is, in turn, from the Latin excessus from excedere meaning go out, surpass.

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C’mon, get it out of your system, bitch, whine, moan . . . which words are your pet peeves? Also, please note that I try to be as accurate as I can, but mistakes happen or I miss something. Email me if you find errors, so I can fix them . . . and we’ll all benefit!

Satisfy your curiosity about other Word Confusions on its homepage or more generally explore the index of self-editing posts. You may also want to explore Book Layout & Formatting Ideas, Formatting Tips, Grammar Explanations, Linguistics, Publishing Tips, the Properly Punctuated, Writing Ideas and Resources, and Working Your Website.

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Resources for Access versus Excess

Apple Dictionary.com

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Pinterest Photo Credits:

Seattle – Pie-eating Contest, 2003 was uploaded by Jmabel from Seattle Municipal Archives from Seattle, Washington, under the CC BY 2.0 license, via Wikimedia Commons.

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