Aug 3, 2006

Stop talking like an idiot

There are many words and phrases commonly misused in the English language. I know i fuck up my share of them. (Hell I'm probably doing it now) When i saw this list of Common Errors in English I skimmed through to look up some that i was curious about, but was surprised at some of the stuff that people fuck up enough they had to be listed.
here's some examples:
"Ceasar"
Did you know that German “Kaiser” is derived from the Latin “Caesar” and is pronounced a lot more like it than the English version? We’re stuck with our illogical pronunciation, so we have to memorize the correct spelling. (The Russians messed up the pronunciation as thoroughly as the English, with their “Czar.”) Thousands of menus are littered with “Ceasar salads” throughout America which should be “Caesar salads”—named after a restaurateur, not the Roman ruler (but they both spelled their names the same way).

"Obtuse"
Most people first encounter “obtuse” in geometry class, where it labels an angle of more than 90 degrees. Imagine what sort of blunt arrowhead that kind of angle would make and you will understand why it also has a figurative meaning of “dull, stupid.” But people often mix the word up with “abstruse,” which means “difficult to understand.”When you mean to criticize something for being needlessly complex or baffling, the word you need is not “obtuse,” but “abstruse.”

"Copyright"
You can copyright writing, but you can also copyright a photograph or song. The word has to do with securing rights. Thus, there is no such word as “copywritten”; it’s “copyrighted.”

"RMPs"
“RPM” means “revolutions per minute,” so it is redundant to add an S at the end of the abbreviation—it’s already plural. Adding the S is so common among people working with engines that it’s not likely to get you into trouble, but you will impress some by avoiding it.

so, check out this site which has a list of commonly misused words and phrases in alphabetical order. It also has some other great resources to help you to stop talking like an idiot.
(btw, thats a real unedited photo, go usa!)

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