Bryson's Dictionary for Writers and Editors - Bill Bryson [104]
Rastafarianism. Religious sect.
ratatouille. Vegetable stew.
rational, rationale. The first means sensible or sound (“a rational decision”); the second describes a justification (“the rationale for his actions”).
rattan. Type of cane.
ravage, ravish. The first means to lay waste. The second means to rape or carry off—or, a touch confusingly, to enrapture. Clearly, in all senses, for both words, care needs to be exercised to avoid confusion.
Ravenna, Italy.
Rawalpindi, Pakistan.
Ray, Satyajit. (1921–1992) Indian film director.
razed to the ground is a common but mistaken expression. The ground is the only place to which a structure can be razed. It is enough to say that a building has been razed.
razzmatazz.
re-words. Somewhat mystifyingly, many publications show a formidable resistance to putting hyphens into any word beginning with re-. Yet often the presence or absence of a hyphen can usefully and immediately denote a difference in meaning, as between recollect (remember) and re-collect (collect again), or between recede (withdraw) and re-cede (give back again, as with territory). My advice, for what it is worth, is always to insert a hyphen if you think it might reduce the chance of even momentary misunderstanding.
react is better reserved for spontaneous responses (“He reacted to the news by fainting”). It should not be used to indicate responses marked by reflection.
real. Brazilian currency; the plural is reais.
realpolitik. Politics based on the achievable.
reason…is because is a common construction that almost always points to an overwritten sentence. Consider an example: “The reason she spends less and less time in England these days is because her business interests keep her constantly on the move.” Remove “the reason” and its attendant verb “is,” and a crisper, more focused sentence emerges: “She spends less and less time in England these days because her business interests keep her constantly on the move.”
reason why, like reason…is because (see above), is generally redundant. Consider two examples: “Grover said her contract had been terminated, but no one at the company would tell her the reason why” “His book argues that the main reason why inner-city blacks are in such a sorry state is not because whites are prejudiced but that low-skilled jobs near their homes are disappearing.” An improvement can nearly always be effected by removing one word or the other—e.g., “the reason” from the first example, “why” from the second.
receptacle.
recherché. Farfetched.
reciprocal, reciprocity.
reckless. Not wreckless, unless you are describing a setting in which there are no wrecks.
reconnaissance.
reconnoiter.
reducible.
reductio ad absurdum. (Lat.) To deflate an argument by proving it absurd.
reebok. Type of antelope.
Reekie, Auld. (Scot.) “Old Smoky” nickname for Edinburgh.
reflector.
refute means to show conclusively that an allegation is wrong. It does not mean simply to dispute or deny a contention.
regalia is plural.
Regent’s Park, London (apos.).
reggae. West Indian music.
regretfully, regrettably. The first means with feelings of regret (“Regretfully they said their farewells”); the second means unfortunately (“Regrettably I did not have enough money to buy it”).
rehabilitate.
Reims, France, is the usual spelling, though Rheims is sometimes used. It is pronounced reemz in English but ranz in French.
relatively, like comparatively, should not be used unless there is some sense of a comparison or relationship. Often it can be removed without loss from sentences like “The group has taken the relatively bold decision to expand its interests in Nigeria.”
religieuse. (Fr.) A nun; pl. religieuses.
religieux. (Fr.) A monk; pl. religieux.
Remarque, Erich Maria. (1898–1970) German-born American novelist.
Rembrandt Harmensz (or Harmenszoon) van Rijn is the full name for the Dutch painter (1606–1669).
remembrance. Not -berance.
remissible.
remittance, remitted.
remittent.
remunerate. Not renum-.
Renaissance, the. In European art, roughly the period