With all the time we’ve been spending at home, craft has been coming up a lot online. Somehow kraft also came up in an article about paper. While I know that there’s kraft paper, a.k.a. sack paper — that heavy duty brown paper that’s popular for giftwrap or drawing on for consumers and it’s a VERY popular choice for paper sacks in shopping bags and product packaging — the context was that of making crafts. Which took me aback.
It turns out that kraft paper does come in a variety of weights and colors, making it ideal for crafting. You know me, I immediately had to wonder if kraft paper was the proper term and not craft paper. Phew…we’re safe, or rather, I’m safe, oh heck, we’re all safe, as both are fine to use.
Simply be aware that kraft paper is a heavier-duty paper than craft paper. And don’t use craft paper to make paper sacks that are intended to carry any weight…
That takes care of the little “k”. The big “K” in Kraft is the cheese company. Yes, I know they make more than cheese these days, but…Cheez Whiz, mac ‘n cheese, Velveeta…
Craft is all about the making things by hand and the skill involved. Hmmm, that sounds like writing to me! A smithcraft *grin*
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 noir for you from either end.
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| Craft | Kraft |
|---|---|
| Credit to: Apple Dictionary.com; Lexico.com: craft | |
Family Craft Night by Staff Sgt. Daniel Bowles, US Air Force, is in the public domain, via Joint Base Charleston. |
Cheez Whiz by Mark Morgan is under the CC BY 2.0 license, via Flickr. — Cheez Whiz is made by Kraft Foods. |
| Part of Grammar: | |
| Noun 1, 2; Verb, transitive 1
Plural for the noun: craft, crafts |
Noun; Proper noun
Plural: kraft |
| Noun: An activity involving skill in making things by hand 1
Skill used in deceiving others A boat or ship 2
Verb, transitive: |
Noun: A strong paper or cardboard made from wood pulp produced from wood chips boiled in an alkaline solution containing sodium sulfate Proper noun: |
| Examples: | |
| Noun: I would love to learn the craft of bookbinding. The shop sells local crafts. There’s a craft fair in town this weekend. He’s a player with plenty of craft. He got into craft brewing a few years ago. She’s a craft baker. Craft distillers across the United States provide important contributions to their local economies, tourism, and job market…let alone making some great liquor. Has John joined the Craft then? Her cousin was not her equal in guile and evasive craft. A warning has gone out to all sailing craft to return to harbor. “Aircraft and spacecraft are acted upon by the gravity of planets and other celestial bodies and, in the case of flight in the atmosphere, by atmospheric drag” (Aircraft and Spacecraft). Verb, transitive: Crichton knows how to craft a tale, one that keeps the reader turning the pages. It was a carefully crafted peace process. He was extremely gifted in crafting metals and his skills were much needed. Move your listeners and express yourself more effectively by crafting your songs the way hit writers do. |
Noun: Is there any of that kraft paper left? We’ll need some more kraft paper. She plans to use kraft bags to make a paper tree. Kraft paper is suitable for a variety of arts and crafts projects. Proper noun: Do you have those Kraft coupons? Nah, the kids’ll only eat Kraft mac ‘n cheese. |
| Derivatives: | |
| Adjective: crafted (as submodifier), craftier, craftiest, crafty Adverb: craftily Noun: crafter, craftiness, crafting, craftsman, craftsmanship, craftsmen, craftspeople, craftsperson, craftswoman, craftswomen, craftwork, craftworker |
Noun: kraft-paper, kraft-process, kraft-pulp |
| History of the Word: | |
|
Early 20th century from the Swedish, literally meaning strength and used to form the term kraftpapper meaning kraft paper. |
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 by exploring the index. You may also want to explore Formatting Tips, Grammar Explanations, and/or the Properly Punctuated.
Resources for Craft versus Kraft
NeSmith, Alan. “Kraft Vs Craft: The Secret to Kraft Paper for Your Craft Projects.” Oren International. 7 Sept 2017. Web. 28 July 2020. <http://www.oren-intl.com/blog/kraft-vs.-craft-the-secret-to-kraft-paper-for-your-craft-projects>.
“Aircraft and Spacecraft.” The Free Dictionary. The Great Soviet Encyclopedia. 1979. Web. 28 July 2020. <https://encyclopedia2.thefreedictionary.com/Aircraft+and+Spacecraft&get;.
Pinterest Photo Credits:
Winter on Kraft Paper by Geralt is under the Pixabay License, via Pixabay.
