Word Confusion: Villain versus Villein
The villainous villainy of this horrid villain has been revealed to his victims, those innocent villeins of yesteryear…in this Word Confusion from KD Did It.
Category: Writing
Word Confusion: Bruit vs Brut vs Brute
There’s a bruit of brut in the fridge, and I’m making a brute charge for it in this Word Confusion from KD Did It.
Word Confusion: Harm versus Hurt
This is gonna hurt, but it shouldn’t do any harm to learn the difference between harming and hurting in this Word Confusion from KD Did It.
Word Confusion: ‘Til vs Till vs Until
Discover why, where, and when to use ’til, till, or until with KD Did It. I gotta say, until I explored this Word Confusion, I thought ’til was more appropriate than till…who knew!?
Word Confusion: Fate versus Fete
One doesn’t normally consider going to one’s fate as being fete-worthy. Not in this Word Confusion from KD Did It.
Word Confusion: This (These) vs That (Those)
When it’s near in time or space, choose this or these, but if it’s in the past or farther away, choose that or those in this Word Confusion from KD Did It.
Word Confusion: Cachet versus Panache
Treat those around you with panache, and you’ll have all the cachet you could desire in this Word Confusion from KD Did It.
Word Confusion: Alternate versus Alternative
A book club may offer an “alternate selection” as an alternative to the main selection, but this Word Confusion only allows one “Alternate versus Alternative”.
Word Confusion: Eschatology versus Scatology
Even self-editing writers have their own “theology” over the eschatology of the writing process and it coming to an end. It’s when they don’t come in on deadline that the scatology of obscene words is explored in this Word Confusion from KD Did It.
Word Confusion: Formally versus Formerly
Revised as of 22 Jan 2022 Formerly she was a dental hygienist, now Katrina is a writer, formally, a technical writer. Of course, we could reverse this as well: “Formally, Katrina was a dental hygienist; she had formerly been a technical writer”. One trick you can use to remind yourself which is which is to take off the -ly. Formal. Former. Formal manners. Needing a formal for the prom. Formal invitations. All things done in the proper, traditional way. Former is prior, before, previously. And former simply doesn’t care about manners. 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. If you found this post on “Formally versus Formerly” interesting, consider tweeting it to your friends. Subscribe to KD Did It, if you’d like to track this post for future updates. Return to top Formally Formerly 379th Assumption of Command by Tech. Sgt. Jeff Fitzmorris is in the public […]