A.

Abacus—ab´a-kŭs, not a-băk´ŭs.

Abdomen—ab-dō´men, not ab´do-men.

Acclimate—ak-klī´māte, not ak´kli-māte.

Acclimated is also accented on the second syllable.

Acclimatization—ak-kli-mat-i-zā´shun, not ak-klī´ma-ti-zā-shun.

Adult—a-dŭlt´, not ăd´ult.

Aerated—ā´er-ā-ted, not ā´rē-ā-ted. "Areated bread" is a mistake that is frequently made.

Ailantus—ā-lăn´tŭs, not ā-lăn´thŭs; ăt-lăn´tus is a still worse error.

Albumen—al-bū´men, not al´bu-men.

Alder—awl´der, not ăl´der; it is the name of a tree and does not mean the ordinary elder.

Alike. It is sufficient to say that two persons or things are alike, not both alike. The word associated with alike is just as unnecessary as it is with resemble and equal in the following sentences: "These two men both resemble each other." "These two sums are both equal."

Allopathy—al-lŏp´a-thy, not al´lo-path-y.

Allopathist is similarly accented.

Alpaca—al-păk´a, not al-la-păk´a.

Altercate—ăl´ter-kāte, not awl´ter-kate.

Amenable—a-mē´na-ble, not a-mĕn´a-ble.

Among. A thing is divided among many and between two.

Amour—a-mōōr´, not am´-mōre nor ā´mōōr.

Angry. Say angry with a person and at a thing.

Animalcula is the plural of animalculum; there is no such word as animalculœ. Animalcule (singular) and animalcules (plural), are proper words; the former is pronounced an-i-mal´kūle and the latter an-i-mal´kūlz.

Antarctic—ant-ärk´tik, not ant-är´tik.

Antepenult—an-te-pe-nŭlt´, not an-te-pē´nŭlt.

Apex—ā´pex, not ăp´ex.

Apparatus—ap-pa-rā´tus, not ap-pa-răt´us.

Aquaria, not aquariums, is the plural of aquarium.

Arabic—ăr´a-bĭk, not a-răb´ĭk, a-rā´bĭk, nor ăr´a-băk; which errors are very common, especially in the compound word gum-arabic.

Arbitrary is often incorrectly pronounced as if spelled ar-bi-ta-ry.

Archangel—ärk-ān´jel, not ärch-ān´jel.

Archbishop—ärch-bish´op, not ärk-bish´op.

Archipelago—ärk-i-pel´a-gō, not ärch-i-pel´a-gō.

Architect—är´ki-tect, not är´chi-tect.

Archives—är´kīvez, not är´chīvez, nor är´kēvez.

Arctic—ärk´tik, not är´tik.

Arid—ăr´id, not ā´rid.

Aroma—a-rō´ma, not ăr´o-ma.

At should not be used when it has no possible connection with the other words of a sentence; as, "Where are you living at?"

At all, not a tall.

Attacked, not attackted.

Auction—awk´shun, not ŏk´shun.

Ay or Aye, meaning yes, and aye, an affirmative vote, are pronounced äĭ and not ī nor ā.

Aye, meaning forever, always (used chiefly in poetry), is pronounced ā not ī nor äĭ.

 

B.

Bade—băd, not bāde.

Badinage—băd´in-äzh, not băd´in-āje. Worcester gives the same pronunciation, but places the accent on the last syllable.

Balance. There are two common errors connected with this word. One is to write it ballance: the other is to use it in the sense of remainder, rest, etc.; as, the balance of the day, the balance of the people. Balance means properly "the excess on one side, or what added to the other makes equality." The corrupt use of the word, as above mentioned, is laid down as a vulgarism.

Bantam, not banty.

Bellows—bĕl´lŭs, not bĕl´lōz. The plural is the same as the singular.

Besom—bē´zum, not bē´sum. A broom.

Betroth—be-trŏth, not be-trōth. Betrothed, Betrothal, etc., are similarly pronounced.

Blacking, not blackening for boots and shoes.

Blouse—blowz, not blowss.

Bologna—bō-lōn´ya, not bō-lō´na. Bologna sausage, Bologna phial, etc.

Bona fide—bō´na-fī´de, not bō´na-fīde nor bŏn´a-fīde.

Booth. The th is sounded as in the preposition with, not as in both.

Bouquet—bōō-kā´ or boōō´kā, not bō-kā´.

Bourgeois, meaning a kind of type, is pronounced bür-jois´, not like the following word:

Bourgeois, a citizen, pronounced bōōr-zhwaw´.

Brand-new, not bran-new. Although the latter adjective is much used, it is evidently a corruption of the former. An article in its newness may be bright like a brand of fire, or the brand of the manufacturer may remain intact, but there is certainly no bran about it.

Breeches—brĭtch´ez, not as spelled.

Bretzel, not pretzel. A brittle German cake.

Brilliant. A diamond of the finest cut, with its faces and facets so arranged as to secure the greatest degree of brilliancy—whence the name. The name to many conveys the idea of paste, or imitation. A rose diamond may be just as pure, but its depth does not permit it to be made a brilliant of without a much greater loss of substance.

Brougham—brōōm or brōō´am, not brō´am nor brow´am. A kind of carriage.

Burst, Burst and Bursting, not bust, busted and busting.

 

C.

Calculate is often inappropriately used in lieu of believe, suppose, expect, etc., as in the following sentences: "I calculate you are my friend;" "I calculate the report is true." Still worse than this passive misuse is that active one of using the word in some such sense as this: "Doctor, I know that you are a man of great intelligence and I have unlimited confidence in your honor and ability; but I must say that I think the course of treatment pursued by you during this epidemic, is calculated to increase the mortality among your patients." How inconsistent with the encomium is the dreadful accusation just following! As if the Doctor had sat down and calculated how he could cause injury rather than benefit. Calculate means to ascertain by means of figures or to study what means must be used to secure a certain result. A person may make a speech, write a book, or do anything else calculated to do good, or more rarely, evil, but the intention to accomplish the object spoken of must be present, before the word can be properly used.

Calliope—kal-lī´o-pe, not kal´li-ōpe.

Calvary, not cavalry, when the place of our Saviour's crucifixion is meant.

Camelopard—ka-mel´o-pärd or kam´el-o-pärd, not kam-el-lĕop´ard.

Cantatrice—kăn-ta-trē´che, not kăn´ta-treess.

Canon—kăn´yun, not kăn´nun. A deep gorge or ravine. Spelled also Canyon, pronounced kän-yōn´ or kăn´yon.

Capoch—ka-pōōtsh´, not ka-pōch´. Capouch is another orthography.

Caption in the sense of the heading of a discourse, chapter, page, etc., is not sanctioned by good writers.

Carminative—kär-mīn´a-tive, not kär´mi-nā-tive.

Casualty—kăzh´u-al-ty, not kăz-u-ăl´i-ty.

Cater-cornered—kā´ter-cor-nered, not kăt´ty-cor-nered. Not down, thus compounded in Webster, but his pronunciation of the separate words is as given. Worcester gives the word as above and defines it as an adjective—diagonal. It is generally used though, I believe, as an adverb; as, "the piano stands cater-cornered" (diagonally). It is regarded as an inelegant word, diagonal and diagonally being preferred: though it is probable that this opinion has been caused by the abominable pronunciations catty and kitty cornered.

Catalpa—ka-tăl´pa, not ka-tawl´pa.

Catch, Catching—kătch and kătching, not kĕtch and kĕtching.

Catholic means liberal, general, not bigoted, and not Roman Catholic, unless specially so applied.

Caucasian—kaw-kā´sian,not kaw-kāzh´ian, kaw-kăsh´ian, kaw-kāz´ian nor kaw-kăss´ian.

Cayenne—kā-ĕn´, not kī-ĕn´.

Chaps—chŏps, not chăps. The jaws. Chops is also correct orthography.

Chasten—chās´en, not chăs´en. Chastened, chastening, etc., have also the long a.

Chew, not chaw. The latter word either as a verb or noun is now considered quite vulgar.

Chid, not chī´ded, is the imperfect tense of chide.

Chimera—kĭ-mē´ra, not chi-mē´ra, nor kī-mē´ra.

Chivalric—shĭv´al-rik, not shĭv-ăl´rik. Worcester allows the latter.

Chivalrous—shĭv´al-rŭs, not shĭv-ăl´rus. Worcester gives chĭv´al-rus also.

Chivalry—shĭv´al-ry, not chĭv´al-ry. Worcester sanctions both.

Cicerone—chē-che-rō´ne or sĭs-e-rō´ne, not sĭs´e-rōne. A guide.

Citrate—sĭt´rate, not sī´trate. "Citrate of magnesia."

Climbed, not clomb (klum). One climbs up but does not climb down.

Cochineal—kŏch´i-neel, not kō´chi-neel nor kō´ki-neel.

Cocoa (kō´kō) is not made from the cocoa-nut or tree, but from the seeds of the cacao (ka-kā´o) or chocolate tree. The word is evidently a perversion, but it has gained a permanent footing in its present signification.

Cognomen—kŏg-no´men, not kŏg´no-men.

Cold-chisel, not coal-chisel. It is a chisel of peculiar strength and hardness for cutting cold metal.

Cole-slaw. In the former editions of some dictionaries it has been taught that this word is derived from cole meaning cabbage, and slaw meaning salad. Cole-slaw—cabbage-salad. The uninstructed soon changed the cole into cold and substituted hot for the other extreme of temperature, thus entirely changing the signification. What was really meant, was hot cole-slaw and cold cole-slaw. Many persons still regard cole-slaw as the proper word, and receipt books give that orthography. The last editions of Webster and Worcester, however, only give the words cole and slaw in separate places and define the latter as "sliced cabbage."

Combatant—kŏm´bat-ant, not kom-băt´ant.

Combativeness—kŏm´bat-ive-ness, not kom-băt´ive-ness.

Come is often thoughtlessly used for go or some other word. If How is just leaving Howard's house it is right for How to say, "I'll come to see you soon," but Howard could not properly say, at that place, the same thing. He should say, "I will go to see you soon." If they both live in Philadelphia and should meet in New York, neither could say appropriately, "I'll come to see you after I get home;" that would mean that one would travel back from his home in Philadelphia to New York to see the other. But either might say, "Come and see me when you get home."

Comparable—kŏm´pa-ra-ble, not kŏm-păr´a-ble.

Complaisance—kŏm´pla-zans, not kŏm-plā´zăns. In complaisant and complaisantly, the accent is also on the first syllable. Worcester places it on the third, thus: complaisant (kom-pla-zănt´), etc.

Comptroller—kon-trōl´ler, not kŏmp-trōl´ler.

Conduit—kŏn´dĭt or kŭn´dit, not kŏn´duĭt or kŏn´dūte. A pipe or canal for the conveyance of fluid.

Confab, not conflab. A contraction of confabulation.

Congeries—kŏn-jē´rĭ-eez, not kon-jē´rēz nor kŏn´je-rēz. A collection of particles into one mass.

Contemptuous, not contemptible, when the manifestation of contempt for another is meant. I once heard a young lady describing how she had withered at a glance a poor young man that had incurred her displeasure. "O, I gave him such a contemptible look," said she. If in the enthusiasm of the rehearsal, the look that dwelt upon her features was akin to that given upon the occasion mentioned, no auditor doubted the exact truth of what she said; but she meant differently.

Contiguous—kon-tig´ū-ŭs, not kon-tĭj´ū-ŭs.

Contour—kŏn-tōōr´, not kŏn´tōōr. The boundary lines of a figure.

Contra-dance is better than country-dance, the latter word being a corruption; but it has become admissible from long use. Contredanse is the French original, and means that the parties stand opposite to each other.

Contrary—kŏn´tra-ry, not kon-trā´ry, interfering with the rhythm of the distich from Mother Goose's Melodies:

Contumacy—kŏn´tu-ma-sy, not kon-tū´ma-sy. Obstinacy, stubbornness.

Contumely—kŏn´tu-me-ly not kŏn-tū´me-ly. Insolence, contemptuousness.

Conversant—kŏn´ver-sant, not kon-vĕr´sănt.

Conversazione—kŏn´ver-sät-se-ō´nā, not kon-ver-săs´si-ōne. A meeting for conversation. Worcester pronounces it kŏn-ver-sät-ze-ō´nā. The plural is conversazioni (-nē).

Corporal punishment, not cor-pō´re-al.

Cortege—kôr´tāzh, not kor´tēje. A train of attendants.

Councilor, is a member of council.

Counselor, one who gives advice. Worcester's spelling is councillor and counsellor.

Creek, not krĭck.

Creole. From Webster's dictionary are taken the following definitions and remarks:

1. "One born in America, or the West Indies, of European ancestors.

2. "One born within or near the tropics, of any color. 'The term creole negro is employed in the English West Indies to distinguish the negroes born there from the Africans imported during the time of the slave trade. The application of this term to the colored people has led to an idea common in some parts of the United States, though wholly unfounded, that it implies an admixture greater or less of African blood.'—R. Hildreth."

Crinoline—krĭn´o-lĭn, not krĭn´o-līne nor krĭn´o-leen.

Cuirass—kwē-răs´ or kwē´răs, not kū´răs. A piece of armor.

Cuisine—kwe-zēn´, not kū-seen´ or kū-zīne´. Cooking or cooking department.

Culinary—kū´li-na-ry, not kŭl´i-na-ry.

Cupola—kū´po-la, not kū-po-lō´.

 

D.

Dahlia—däl´ya or dāl´-ya, not dăl´ya.

Dare not, not darse'nt.

Data—dā´ta, not dăt´a, is the plural of datum (dā´tum).

Debris—dā-brē´, not dē´brĭs nor dā´brē. Rubbish, ruins.

Decade—dĕk´ade, not dē´kade nor dē-kāde´. Ten in number.

Defalcate—de-făl´kate, not de-fawl´kāte.

Defalcation—dē-făl-kā´shun not dē-fawl-kā´shun. Worcester gives dĕf-al-kā´shun. No such word as defalcater is seen.

Deficit—dĕf´i-sit, not de-fī´sit nor de-fĭs´sit. A deficiency.

Delusion, not illusion, when deception occurs from want of knowledge of the world, ignorance of business or trade, or from lack of acumen generally. Illusions are deceptions arising from a temporarily or permanently disordered imagination, or from phenomena occurring in nature: thus we speak of the illusions of fancy, of dreams, and of optical illusions. The mirage of the desert and the fata Morgana are instances of the latter.

Demonstrative—de-mŏn´stra-tive, not dĕm´on-strā-tive.

Demonstrator—dĕm´on-strā-tor, not de-mŏn´strā-tor. Worcester allows the latter.

Depot—de-pō´ or dē´pō, not dā´pō, nor dĕp´po. Worcester sanctions de-pō´ only. I once had a friend, deceased now, of course, who called it de-pŏt´.

Dereliction—der-e-lĭk´shun, not dĕr-e-lĕk´shun. A forsaking, abandonment.

Deshabille—dĕs-a-bĭl´, } Dishabille—dĭs-a-bĭl´, } not dĕs´ha-beel nor dĭs´ha-beel. The French is déshabillé, pronounced about like dā-zä-be-yā, without any particular accent. Some persons, in their vain efforts to get the peculiar liquid sound of the double l, sometimes used, distort the word terribly, pronouncing it even as broad as dĭs-ha-beel´yuh.

Desideratum—de-sid-e-rā´tum, not de-sĭd-er-ăt´um; plural, de-sĭd-er-ā´ta. Something particularly desired.

Desperado—des-per-ā´do, not des-per-ä´do.

Dessert—dĕz-zërt´, not dĕz´zert, nor dĕs´sert: dessert-spoon (dez-zërt´-spoon).

Die. One dies of a disease, not with it.

Differ. One differs with a person in opinion; one person or thing differs from another in some quality.

Disappointed. One is disappointed of a thing not obtained and in a thing obtained. "He will be disappointed of his expectations."

Discourse—dis-kōrs´, not dĭs´kōrs.

Disputable—dis´pu-ta-ble, not dis-pū´ta-ble.

Disputant—dis´pu-tant, not dis-pū´tant.

Distich—dĭs´tĭk, not dĭs´tĭch. Two poetic lines making sense.

Docible—dŏs´i-ble, not dō´si-ble. Tractable; teachable.

Docile—dŏs´ĭl, not dō´sīle.

Dolorous—dŏl´or-ŭs, not dō´lor-oŭs. Dolorously and Dolorousness are similarly accented; but dolor is pronounced dō´lor.

Doubt. "I do not doubt but that it is so," is a very common error. The meaning conveyed is just the opposite to that which the speaker intends. He declares in other words, that he has no doubt but a doubt that it is so; or he does not doubt that it is false. "I have no doubt but," and "there is no doubt but,"—are similar mistakes. The word "but" should be left out.

Dough-face means one that is easily molded to one's will, or readily changed in his views, and not a putty-faced or white-faced person.

Dragomans, not dragomen, is the plural of dragoman, an Eastern interpreter.

Drama—drä´ma or drā´ma, not drăm´a. Worcester says drā´ma or drăm´a.

Dramatis Personæ—drăm´a-tīs per-sō´nē, not dra-măt´is pĕr´so-nē.

Drank, not drunk, is the imperfect tense of drink.

Ducat—dŭk´at, not dū´kat.

 

E.

Ear—ēar, not yēar. Persons frequently speak of the year-ache, and occasionally "a year of corn," may be heard.

Ecce Homo—ĕk´sē hō´mō, not ĕk´kē hō´mō.

Eider—ī´der, not ē´der. Eider-down and eider-duck.

Elm is pronounced in one syllable and not ĕl´lum.

Elysian—e-lĭz´i-an, not e-lĭs´sian. Worcester gives e-lĭzh´e-an.

Embryo—em´bry-ō, not em-bry´ō.

Employe (Fr. employé)—ĕm-ploy-ā´ or ŏng-plwaw-yā´, not employ´ē or ong-ploy´ā. Employee is not allowed.

Encore—ŏng-kōr´, not ŏng´kōr nor ĕn´kōr.

Eneid—ē-nē´id not ē´ne-id. A poem of Virgil. Worcester sanctions both methods of pronunciation.

Ennui—ŏng-nwē´, not ŏng´wē. Worcester gives a much simpler pronunciation, viz: än-wē´.

Enquiry—en-kwī´ry, not ĕn´kwĭ-ry.

Epsom Salt, not Epsom Salts.

Equable—ē´kwa-ble, not ĕk´wa-ble.

Equally well, etc., not equally as well, etc.

Espionage—ĕs´pe-on-āje or ĕs´pe-on-äzh, not ĕs-pī´o-nāje nor es-pē´on-äzh.

Esquimau—ĕs´ke-mō, not ĕs´qui-maw: plural, Esquimaux (ĕs´ke-mōz), not ĕs´ke-mawz nor ĕs´ke-mō.

Etagere—ĕt-a-zhâr´, not e-tăzh´er-y nor at-tăzh´ĭ-a. Worcester's pronunciation is ā-tä-zhâr´. A piece of parlor furniture with shelves, used for placing small ornaments and fancy articles upon; a what-not.

Excrescence—ex-krĕs´sense not ex-krē´sense. A superfluous appendage: morbid outgrowth.

Expect has reference to the future only, and not to the present or past. "I expect that you are wrong." "I expect you were disappointed yesterday," are errors. There is an abundance of words that may be correctly used, as suppose, suspect, imagine, believe and think.

Expose (Fr. exposé)—ĕks-po-zā´, not ex-pōz´. An exposition; statement.

Exquisite—ĕks´quĭ-zĭt, not eks-quĭz´itĕ. Exquisitely is accented on the first syllable also.

Extant—ex´tant not ex-tănt´.

Extol—ex-tŏl´, not ex-tō´. Extolled, ex-tŏld´, etc.

 

F.

Facet—făs´set not fā-sĕt´. A small surface or face; as one of the facets of a diamond.

Falchion—fawl´chun, not făl´chĭ-on. A sword. Worcester sanctions fawl´shun, also.

Falcon—faw´kn, not făl-kŏn.

Fang. When applied to a tooth, fang means the portion that is outside of the jaw. This name is often, even by dentists, erroneously given to the root or part that is set into the jaw.

Far, not fur.

Febrile—fē´brĭl or fĕb´rĭl, not fē´brīle. Relating to fever.

February, as it is spelled, and not Fĕb´u-a-ry, as many say and write it.

Feod, feodal, feodality—fūd, fūd´al, and fū-dăl´i-ty. Relating to a kind of tenure formerly existing in Europe, in which military services were rendered by the tenant as a consideration. Feud, feudal, feudality, is the orthography generally adopted now.

Ferret. A ferret is an animal of the weasel kind, used to drive rabbits out of their burrows, and not a species of dog.

Fetid—fĕt´id, not fē´tid.

Fetor—fē´tor, not fĕt´or.

Finale—-fe-nä´lā, not fī´nāle or fī-năl´ly.

Finance—fĭ-năns´, not fī´-năns.

Finances—fĭ-năn´sĕz, not fī´năn-sĕz.

Financier—fĭn-an-seer´, not fī-nan-seer´. Financial, and financially, have also the short i in the first syllable.

Finis—fī´nis, not fĭn´is.

Firmament means the expanse of the sky: the heavens. The meaning, solid foundation, is obsolete.

Flannel, not flannen.

Florid—flŏr´id, not flō´rĭd.

Florin—flŏr´in, not flō-rĭn. A piece of money.

Florist—flō´rist, not flŏr´ist.

Forage—fŏr´aje, not fō´raje.

Forceps—fôr´seps, not fōr´seps. The word is spelled the same in both the singular and the plural numbers. Such mistakes as, "hand me a forcep," instead of "hand me a forceps," are very common. Strictly speaking, "a pair of forceps," ought, I suppose, to mean two forceps; but like the expressions "a pair of scissors" and "a pair of stairs," the phrase has been in use so long that it must be tolerated.

Forehead—fŏr´ed, not fōr´hĕd. Worcester allows either.

Foreign—fŏr´in, not fŭr´in.

Fortnight—fôrt´nīte, not fōrt´nīte, fōrt´nĭt nor fôrt´nĭt. Worcester gives what is authorized above and fôrt´nĭt.

Fortress—fôr´tress, not fōr´tress.

Fragile—frăj´ĭl, not frā´jĭl nor frā´jīle.

Fritter, not flitter, is the name of a kind of fried cake.

Frivolity—fri-vŏl´i-ty, not frĭv´ol-ty.

Frontier—frŏnt´eer, not frŭnt´eer nor frŭn-teer´.

Frontispiece—frŏnt´is-pēse, not frŭnt´is-pēse.

Fuchsia—fōōk´sĭ-a, not fū´shĭ-a. Worcester gives the latter.

Fuzz, not furze, is the word to use, if used at all, when the embryo whiskers, or the downy surface of fruit, etc., are meant. Down is the more appropriate word. Furze is the name of an evergreen shrub.

 

G.

Gallivating, not gallivanting. Gallivanting is a word that is used to some extent, being applied to persons that are roaming about for amusement or adventure; as, "this young man has been gallivanting around." If it is a corruption of gallanting, it should certainly be abolished as a vulgarism; but if it is a corruption of gallivating, from gallivat, the name of a small sailing vessel, it might be clothed in its proper garb and retained as a useful word in our language. If either is used, the one above preferred should be chosen, at any rate.

Gallows—găl´lus, not găl´lōz. Gallowses, plural.

Gamin—ga-măng´, not găm´in nor gā´min. A street child.

Gape—gäpe or gāpe, not găp.

Gargle. One gargles, not gurgles, the throat.

Gaseous—găz´e-us, not găss-e-us. Worcester gives gā´ze-us too.

Gather—găth´er, not gĕth´er.

Genealogy—jĕn-e-ăl´o-jy, not jē-ne-ăl´o-jy nor je-ne-ŏl´o-jy.

Genealogist (jĕn-e-ăl´o-jist), genealogical (jĕn-e-a-lŏj´i-kal) and genealogically (jĕn-e-a-lŏj´i-kal-ly).

Generic—je-nĕr´ik, not jĕn´er-ik, nor je-nē´rik. Relating to a genus, or kind.

Gerund—jĕr´und, not jē-rund. A kind of verbal noun in Latin.

Get, not gĭt.

Giaour—jowr, not gī´ōōr, jī-owr´ nor jōōr. An epithet applied by the Turks to a disbeliever in Mahomet; the name of one of Byron's poems.

Gibbet—jĭb´bet, not gĭb´bet.

Glamour—glā´mōōr, not glăm´mur. Worcester gives glā´mer, also. A charm in the eyes, making them see things differently from what they really are.

Gneiss—nīs, not nēs nor gnēs. A kind of rock.

Gondola—gŏn´do-la, not gon-dō´la.

Got. There are some sticklers for niceties that overdo themselves in contending that the use of the verb got is generally unnecessary and incorrect in conjunction with have and had. Get means to procure, to obtain, to come into possession of, etc., and it is a very tame assertion that one simply has a thing that cost much mental or physical labor. A scholar has his lesson, but did it creep into his head while he passively shut his eyes and went to sleep? On the contrary, he got it or learned it by hard study, and it is proper to say that he has got it. A man has a cold, but he got it or took it by exposing himself. A person has a sum of money, but he got or earned it by his labor. Another has good friends, but he got or secured them by his pleasant address. The great causes of the warfare against this word are, I think, that have and had, though generally used as auxiliaries, can sometimes be used as principal verbs and make good sense; and that it has not been recollected that in the majority of cases got either stands for, or can be substituted for another verb. In confirmation of this last statement, is appended the following composed by Dr. Withers: "I got on horseback within ten minutes after I got your letter. When I got to Canterbury, I got a chaise for town, but I got wet before I got to Canterbury; and I have got such a cold as I shall not be able to get rid of in a hurry. I got to the Treasury about noon, but first of all I got shaved and dressed. I soon got into the secret of getting a memorial before the board, but I could not get an answer then; however, I got intelligence from the messenger, that I should most likely get one the next morning. As soon as I got back to my inn, I got my supper and got to bed. It was not long before I got asleep. When I got up in the morning, I got my breakfast, and then I got myself dressed that I might get out in time to get an answer to my memorial. As soon as I got it, I got into the chaise and got to Canterbury by three, and about tea-time, I got home. I have got nothing for you, and so adieu."

Applying this test of substitution to any doubtful case, I think it right to assert that if there is no other verb, or participle, that will appropriately take the place of "got," the latter word is unnecessary; but it should hardly be considered as an error, as it is so slight an impropriety compared with many others that are allowed, and especially because we have long had the usage of many of the best writers to sanction the employment of the word. The very people that appear to be so shocked at the use of the superfluous got, may generally be heard making use of such expressions as "fell down upon the ground," "rose up and went away," "covered it over," and "a great, big fire." The down, up, over and big are certainly superfluities, but they have been heard so long that they are seldom mentioned as errors.

Gourmand—gōōr´mänd, not gôr´mand, unless the orthography gormand is used.

Gout—gowt, not gōōt, as actors are sometimes heard pronounce it in the following line from Macbeth: "On thy blade and dudgeon, gouts of blood."

Government—gŭv´ern-ment not gŭv´er-ment. It is a mistake, frequently made, to write and pronounce the word as if it had no "n" in the penultimate.

Gramercy—gra-mër´sy, not grăm´er-sy. A word formerly used to express thankfulness with surprise.

Granary—grăn´a-ry, not grā´na-ry. There are no such words as grainery and grainary.

Gratis—grā´tis, not grăt-is.

Grenade—gre-nāde´, not grĕn´ade. A kind of explosive shell.

Guardian—gärd´ĭ-an, not gär-dē´an.

Guerdon—gër´don, not gwĕr´don nor jĕr´don. A reward; a recompense.

Guild—gĭld, not gīld. A society; a fraternity.

Guipure—ge-pūr´, not gĭm-pūre´ nor gwĭ-pūre´. An imitation of antique lace.

Gunwale—commonly pronounced gŭn´nel and spelled so sometimes.

Gutta-percha—gŭt´ta-për´cha, not gŭt´ta-për´ka.

Gyrfalcon—jër´faw-kn, not jēr´făl-kun.

 

H.

Habitue (Fr. habitué)—ä-bĭt-u-ā´, not hăb-it-u-ē nor hăb-ĭt-u-ā´.

Halloo (hal-lōō´), holla (hŏl´lä), hollo (hŏl´lō or hŏl-lō´) or hollow (hŏl´lōw), but not hŏl´ler. Worcester gives halloo (hal-lōō´), holla (hŏl-lä´), hollo (hŏl-lō´) and hollow (hŏl´lōw or hŏl-lōw´). It is strange that with such a variety of words to choose from, people generally say "holler."

Hanged is preferable to hung, when the infliction of the death penalty by hanging is meant.

Harass—hăr´ass, not ha-răss´.

Harem—hā´rem, not hăr´em. Worcester gives hä´rem also. Written also haram (ha-răm´).

Hardly. Don't and can't should not be used with hardly. Such errors as, "I don't hardly believe it," are not uncommon. Hardly means scarcely, and the use of don't or can't gives an opposite signification to the sentence.

Haunt—hänt, not hănt.

Haunted—hänt´ed, not hănt´ed.

Hawaiian—ha-wī´yan, not ha-waw´yan. Relating to the island of Hawaii.

Hearth—härth, not hërth.

Hearth-stone—härth´stone, not hërth´stone.

Heather—hĕth´er, not hēth´er. Worcester gives hēth´er as the pronunciation.

Heinous—hā´nus, not hē´nus, hēn´yus nor hān´yus.

Herb—ërb, not hërb.

Herbaceous—her-bā´shus, not er-bā´shus.

Herbage—ërb´ej or hĕrb´ej, not hĕr´bāje.

Heroine—hĕr´o-ĭn, not hē´-ro-īne nor hē´ro-ĭn. Worcester gives the first and the last of the above.

Heroism—hĕr´o-izm, not hē´ro-ĭzm. Worcester sanctions both.

Hieroglyphic—hī-er-o-glĭf´ik, not hī-er-o-grĭf´ik.

Hindoostanee} Hindustani  } hin-dōō-stăn´ee, not hin-dōō´stăn-ee. Worcester's orthography is Hindostanee and Hindostany, but the accent is on the penult as above.

Homage—hŏm´aje, not ŏm´-aje.

Homeopathy—hō-me-ŏp´a-thy, not hō´me-o-păth-y.

Homeopathist—hō-me-ŏp´a-thist, not hō´me-o-păth-ist.

Hooping-cough—hōōp´ing-cough, not hŏŏp´ing-cough. Spelled Whooping-cough, also.

Horizon—ho-rī´zon, not hŏr´i-zon.

Horse-radish—horse-răd-ish, not horse-rĕd-dish.

Hough—hŏk, not hŭff. To disable by cutting the sinews of the ham. As a noun, the word means the joint at the lower portion of the leg of a quadruped; written hock, also.

Houri—howr´y, not owr´y. A nymph of paradise.

Hovel—hŏv´el, not hŭv´el.

Hundred, as spelled, not hun´derd.

Hydropathy—hī-drŏp´a-thy, not hī´drō-păth-y.

Hydropathist—hī-drŏp´a-thist, not hī´drō-păth-ist.

Hygiene—hī´ji-ēne, not hī-geen´ nor hī´geen. Worcester authorizes the first and last.

 

I.

Illustrate—il-lŭs´trate, not ĭl´lus-trāte. Illustrated, illustrating, illustrative and illustrator, are likewise accented on the second syllable.

Imbroglio—ĭm-brōl´yō, not ĭm-brŏl´yō. Worcester says ĭm-brōl´ye-ō.

Immobile—im-mŏb´ĭl, not ĭm-mō´bĭl nor ĭm-mō´bīle.

Imperturbable—im-per-tür´ba-ble, not ĭm-per-tōō´ra-ble, nor ĭm-për´tu-ra-ble. Incapable of being disturbed.

Implacable—im-plā´ka-ble, not ĭm-plăk´a-ble.

Impotent—im´po-tent, not ĭm-pō´tent. Impotency and impotence are accented similarly.

Improvise—im-pro-vīze´, not ĭm´pro-vīze.

Incognito—in-kŏg´ni-tō, not in-cŏn´i-to nor in-cŏg-nĭsh´ō. Incog is an authorized abbreviation. Incognita, is a female in disguise.

Indiscretion—ĭn-dis-krĕsh´un, not ĭn-dis-krē´shun.

Indissoluble—in-dĭs´so-lu-ble, not ĭn-dĭs-sŏl´u-ble. Indissolubly, etc.

Industry—in´dus-try, not ĭn-dus´try.

Infinitesimal—in-fin-i-tĕs´i-mal, not ĭn-fĭn-tĕs´i-mal.

Ingenious—ĭn-jēn´yŭs, means possessed of genius; skillful, etc.

Ingenuous—ĭn-jĕn´yu-us, means noble, open, frank, generous, etc.

Inquiry—in-kwī´ry, not ĭn´kwĭ-ry.

Inveigle—ĭn-vē´gle, not ĭn-vā´gle. Inveigler (in-vē´gler) and inveiglement (in-vē´gle-ment).

Irate ī-rāte´, not ī´rāte. Worcester gives the latter.

Irrational—ir-răsh´un-al, not ĭr-rā´shun-al. Irrationally (ĭr-răsh´un-al-ly), etc.

Irrecognizable—ir-re-kŏg´ni-za-ble, not ĭr-rĕk´og-nī-za-ble.

Irrelevant, not irrevelant. Not applicable; not suited.

Isinglass ī´zĭng-glass, is a kind of gelatine prepared from the sounds or air-bladders of certain fish, and is used in jellies, for clarifying liquors, etc.; while the transparent substance, frequently called isinglass, which is used in the doors of stoves and lanterns, is really mica, a mineral that admits of being cleaved into thin plates.

Isolate—ĭs´o-lāte, not ī´so-late. Isolated (ĭs´o-lā-ted), etc. Worcester gives ĭz´o-lāte, etc.

Itch—ĭtch, not ēch.

 

J.

Jamb, not jam is the spelling of the side-piece of a door, window or fire-place.

Jaundice—jän´dĭs, not jan-ders.

Jean—jāne, not jeen. A twilled cotton cloth. Written also jane.

Jew's-harp—jūz´härp, not jūs´härp.

Jocund—jŏk´und, not jō´kund. Jocundity, jocundly, jocundness, have also the short o.

Jugular—jū´gu-lar, not jŭg´u-lar.

Jujube—jū´jūbe, not jū´jū-be. "Jujube paste."

Just, not jĕst in such sentences as: "I have just done it;" "He has just enough," etc.

 

K.

Knoll—nōl, not nŏl.

 

L.

Lamm, to beat, is not spelled lăm nor lămb.

Lapel—la-pĕl´, not lăp´el. That part of a coat which laps over the facing.

Lariat—lăr´i-at, not lā´ri-at. A lasso.

Lay. This word in the sense here considered is a transitive verb, or one in which the action or state implied by the verb, passes over to an object. The present tense is lay; the imperfect tense and past participle are laid; and the present participle laying. Requiring an object in each of the various meanings attached to it, it is proper to say: "The hen lays an egg every day;" "The man laid his load on the ground;" "The rain has laid the dust;" "The hunter is laying a snare." The verb lie is an intransitive verb and can have no object after it. The present tense is lie; the imperfect tense is lay; the past participle is lain; the present participle is lying. Having no objective case to which the action or state passes over, it is correct to say: "Ohio lies north of Kentucky;" "The sick man lay upon the bed yesterday;" "He has lain there helpless for weeks;" "The goods I bought are lying on my hands." Contrasting the sentences under each verb it will be readily seen that Ohio does not lie Kentucky, but the hen lays the egg; the invalid did not lay the bed like the man laid his load; he has not lain anything, as the rain has laid the dust; and the goods are not lying anything, as the hunter is laying the snare. If the foregoing differences have been carefully observed, I imagine that it will always be easy to select the proper word by remembering the following rules: