“All are but factors of one
stupendous whole,
Whose body Nature is, and God the soul.”
Pope employs the better word parts.
Hung, Hanged
Pictures, signs, bells, and other inanimate objects are hung; men are hanged. While some writers ignore this distinction, the best authorities observe it.
Healthy, Healthful
A lady wrote to a paper asking, “Are plants in a sleeping-room unhealthy?” The answer came, “Not necessarily; we have seen some very healthy plants growing in sleeping-rooms.”
Persons are healthy or unhealthy. A plant or tree is ____________________________________________________________
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healthy or unhealthy according as it possesses vigor. Food, surroundings and conditions are healthful or unhealthful according as they promote or destroy health.
Idea, Opinion
“Many persons think that the interior of the earth is a mass of fire; what is your idea?” Say, “What is your opinion?”
Alone, Only
“An only child” is one that has neither brother nor sister. “A child alone” is one that is left to itself. “Virtue alone makes us happy” means that virtue unaccompanied by any other advantages is sufficient to make us happy. “Virtue only makes us happy” means that nothing else can do it.
Grow, Raise, Rear
“We grow wheat, corn, oats, and potatoes on our farm.” “We raise wheat,” etc., would be better. With the same propriety we might use sleep for lodge, and eat for feed, or supply with food; as, “We can eat and sleep fifty persons at one time.”
The word raise is often incorrectly used in the sense
of rear; as, “She raised a family of nine children.”
It is sometimes employed in the sense of increase,
as, “The landlord raised my rent.”
Increased would be better.
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Has went
“He goes to school,” “He went to school yesterday,” “He has gone to the West.” Avoid such ungrammatical forms as “He has went,” “I have saw.”
Badly, Greatly
Badly is often incorrectly used for greatly or very much, as, “I need it badly,” “He was badly hurt.”
“That fence wants painting badly, I think I’ll do it myself,” said the economical husband.
“Yes,” said his wife, “you had better do it yourself if you think it wants to be done badly.”
At you
“If you don’t stop teasing me I will do something at you,” meaning “I will punish you.” That form of expression is very common in some localities, and it is even more inelegant than common. The use of the preposition to instead of at would be a slight improvement, but the sentence should be entirely recast.
Haply, Happily
In the reading of the Scriptures the word happily
is sometimes used where the archaic word haply should
be employed. In like manner the word thoroughly
is substituted for the old form throughly. Both
words should be pronounced as they are spelled.
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