Revised as of
14 Jan 2023
The useful bit about these three word confusions being heterographs — laager vs lager vs logger — is that at least one knows how to pronounce lager and laager. Although, I suppose if you have a few too many lagers, you shouldn’t run out to be a logger or build that laager.
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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| Laager | Lager | Logger |
|---|---|---|
Battle of Kambula Map by Archibald Forbes, Arthur Griffiths, and others is in the public domain, via Wikimedia Commons. |
Bud and Budvar is by Dorisall at English Wikipedia under the GFDL or CC BY-SA 3.0 licenses, via Wikimedia Commons. — Budweiser is a popular lager. |
A Lumberjack at the Great Alaskan Lumberjack Show is Wknight94’s own work under the GFDL or CC BY-SA 3.0 licenses, via Wikimedia Commons. — A logger standing by some logs. |
| Part of Grammar: | ||
| Noun; Verb, intransitive & transitive Plural for the noun: laagers Third person present verb: laagers Variant spelling for lager |
Noun 1, 2; Verb, intransitive 1 Plural for the noun: lagers Third person present verb: lagers Variant spelling for laager |
Noun 1, 2
Plural: loggers |
| Noun: [South African; historical] A camp or encampment formed by a circle of wagons An entrenched position or viewpoint that is defended against opponents [Military] A place where armored vehicles are parked Verb, intransitive: Verb, transitive: |
A.k.a., lager beer
Noun: A beer stored from six weeks to six months for aging before use 1 A light-bodied effervescent beer, fermented in a closed vessel using yeasts that sink to the bottom of the brew 2 Verb, transitive: |
Noun: A person who fells trees for timber 1
A tractor used in logging A machine for loading logs A device or computer program for making a systematic recording of events, observations, or measurements One who enters data in a log 2 |
| Examples: | ||
| Noun: Get those horses inside the laager. I don’t trust any one news outlet, as they’re each in their own political laager. Form up the laager. We’re camping here tonight. Trump’s mind is its own laager. Verb, intransitive: We laagered for the night. The troops crossed the river to laager for the night. Verb, transitive: Laager the camp! For more protection, let’s laager two rings. |
Noun: I do enjoy a cold lager in the summer, otherwise I prefer ales and stouts. Some of the German lagers include pilsner, Bock, Märzen, and Schwarzbier. Lagers are the world’s most popular beers. Verb, transitive: “Centuries of lagering brought about a new strain of yeast, one that thrives at colder temperatures” (Lager). Lagering beer makes it clearer and cleaner-tasting. |
How many loggers ya got on this crew?
Pull that logger around and get these logs loaded. Sorry, boss, but the logger is in maintenance. A logger is a command line utility that can send messages to the syslog in your computer. Be careful you don’t have a keystroke logger installed in your computer! Most loggers are data entry clerks. |
| Derivatives: | ||
| Noun: loggerhead | ||
| History of the Word: | ||
| Afrikaans, 1840-50, from the Dutch leger or lager meaning camp. |
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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.
Resources for Laager vs Lager vs Logger
Apple Dictionary.com
Dictionary.com: scutch, logger
“Lager: I Do Not Think That Word Means What You Think It Means.” Lagering – Chapter 1: Common Misconceptions. Homebrewing.org. n.d. Web. n.d. <http://www.homebrewing.org/Lagering–Chapter-1-Common-Misconceptions_ep_58-1.html>.
Pinterest Photo Credits:
Forstarbeiter, Studentenbrigade, from Bundesarchiv, Bild 183-1982-0728-004, which is under the CC BY-SA 3.0 de license and Bud Beer by Algont from nl is under the GFDL or CC-BY-SA-3.0 licenses; both via Wikimedia Commons.
