How do you remember which word is right?
This past week, an author questioned if I’d used the right word. Should the sentence refer to the decision to add or to ad an accessory to his car?
As I responded to his email, my brain invented a memory trick to distinguish the two. “We want the word related to ADDitional,” I wrote, “not ADvertising.”
At last I had an easy way to remember how to distinguish a pair of words I often mistake.
English is filled with perilous word pairs.
English is filled with such perilous word pairs. They lie (not lay) in wait to trip us. Our only defense (other than hiring a sharp editor), is to memorize which word means what.
For me, such memorizing works better when I learn or invent some memory trick.
Like this one for compliment vs. complement. My mental trick to distinguish them is to remember the one with the I is used for when “I say something nIce” about someone. Nothing profound, but it sticks in my memory.
Some pairs (or triplets) still trip me, especially those for which I’ve not yet learned a mental association. If you have other such words tricks up your sleeve, let me know. They’ll complement my knowledge, and I’ll compliment your thoughtfulness.
