Word Confusion: Warrior versus Worrier

Posted May 1, 2017 by Kathy Davie in Author Resources, Self-Editing, Word Confusions, Writing

Revised as of
14 July 2023

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I can see where a warrior, particularly a general, could be a worrier before the start of battle. But I would never confuse your average worrier as a warrior.

Thinking of a worrier brings to mind a person pacing up and down the floors, wringing their hands, anxious that “something” will happen (or not). Hardly the experienced fighter to my mind.

This Word Confusion pair is an heterograph.

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.

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Warrior	Worrier
Hoplita soldado espartano is Mbmrock’s own work under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license, via Wikimedia Commons. — A Spartan warrior.	Jack the Hunchback: A Story of Adventure on the Coast of Maine (1892) is from Internet Archive Book Images with no restrictions, via Wikimedia Commons. — That mom on the bank looks like a worrier.
Part of Grammar:
Noun Plural: warriors	Noun Plural: worriers
[Especially in former times] A brave or experienced soldier or fighter A person engaged in, experienced in, or devoted to war [As modifier] A warrior nation [Also warrior pose] Any of a number of standing poses in yoga in which the legs are held apart and the arms are stretched outwards	Person who is in a state of anxiety and uncertainty over actual or potential problems
Examples:
They are fearsome warriors. Spartans were formidable warriors. When you return to downward dog after the first round, add warrior poses I and II. Ariel Sharon was both politician and warrior.	“A revolutionary effort must be made before the worrier and the folly-doubter can throw off his shackles” (Walton). People who suffer from stage fright tend to be worriers. Jesse is a worrier. As soon as one worry eases, he’s hunting for another. A regular worrier is Ma. She worries if we’ll be out late. She worries if we’ll get enough to eat, to sleep. She worries . . . well, you get the picture. She’s a worrier and will never change.
Derivatives:
Adjective: warriorlike	Adjective: worriless Adverb: worryingly Noun: worries, worry Verb: worry, worried, worrying
History of the Word:
Middle English from the Old Northern French werreior, a variant of the Old French guerreior, which is from guerreier meaning make war, which is itself from guerre meaning war.	Early 19th century, evolving from the Old English wyrgan meaning strangle. By Middle English it meant harass, cause anxiety to.

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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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