Revised as of
8 Sept 2022
A pair of heterographs with which you can devise a device to make it easier to self-edit.
Actually, there are a number of apps and websites that can help with self-editing, at the least to reduce the number of hours a professional editor or proofreader spends on your manuscript, so the idea of a device that be devised to help you out truly is out there.
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.
If you found this post on “Device versus Devise” interesting, consider tweeting it to your friends. Subscribe to KD Did It, if you’d like to track this post for future updates.
| Device | Devise |
|---|---|
Smartphone Touchscreen by stevepb is under the Pixabay License, via Pixabay. — An amazing device that is capable of so much. |
Edison Electric Light by Marcin Wichary and uploaded by Johan Klintberg is under the CC BY 2.0 license, via Flickr. — Through the millennia, man has devised easier and easier ways to light up a room. |
| Part of Grammar: | |
| Noun
Plural: devices |
Noun; Verb, intransitive & transitive Plural for the noun and third person present verb: devises |
A thing made or adapted for a particular purpose, especially a piece of mechanical or electronic equipment
A plan, scheme, or trick with a particular aim
An elaborate or fanciful drawing or design
A portable, wireless communication gadget made for a particular purpose |
Noun: [Law] A clause in a will leaving something, especially real estate, to someone
Verb, intransitive:
Verb, transitive: [Law] Leave real estate to someone by the terms of a will [Archaic] Imagine
|
| Examples: | |
| A man’s foot was the original measuring device.
Incendiary devices do a great deal of damage. Writing a public letter is a traditional device for signaling dissent while blogging is more common today. Writers use rhetorical devices to convince, influence, or please an audience. Helen found the cutest decorative device for the baby shower invitations. Their shields bear the device of the Blazing Sun. Apple uses an apple with a bite out of it as their device. They describe works of strange device. Hospitals insist you not use your mobile device, especially in the Intensive Care unit. |
Noun: “So the decedent in Charmaine’s case bequeathed his personal property, and he devised his real property — his land” (Russell). In some cases, there is no choice but intestacy because of lack of capacity or restriction on the right to devise specific property. Verb, intransitive: His wife took the necessary measures to protect the family, measures Edward had not the art to devise. It was a complicated game of his own devising. They took every weapon they could discover or devise. Verb, transitive: Help me to devise some way of escaping from this place. All the residue of my estate, both real and personal and wheresoever situate, I give, devise, and bequeath to the children of my fourth wife. |
| Derivatives: | |
| Adjective: deviceful Adverb: devicefully Noun: devicefulness |
Adjective: devisable, self-devised, undevised, well-devised Noun: devisee, deviser, devisor Verb, transitive: predevise |
| History of the Word: | |
| Middle English from the Old French devis, based on the Latin divis- meaning divided, which is from the verb dividere.
The original sense was desire or intention, which is found now only in leave someone to their own devices (which has become associated with scheme). |
Middle English with the verb from the Old French deviser, which is from the Latin divis- meaning divided, from the verb dividere and remains in the original sense of desire or intention; the noun is a variant of device in the early sense of will, desire. |
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 Device versus Devise
Apple Dictionary.com
Dictionary.com: device, devise
The Free Dictionary: devise
Russell, Judy G. “Bequeath or Devise.” Legal Definitions. The Legal Genealogist. 20 July 2015. Web. n.d. <https://www.legalgenealogist.com/2015/07/20/bequeath-or-devise/>.
Pinterest Photo Credits:
Two Windmills, <https://visualhunt.com/f2/photo/4120057418/d700f0b64b/>, Holland, is courtesy of The Library of Congress with no known copyright restrictions, via VisualHunt.
