Bryson's Dictionary for Writers and Editors - Bill Bryson [108]
sandal for the type of shoe. Not sandle.
sandalwood.
Sandburg, Carl. (1878–1967) American poet.
Sanders, Deion. (1967–) American football and baseball player.
Sandinistas/Sandinists. Revolutionary party in Nicaragua; named after General Augusto César Sandino (1895–1934), a Nicaraguan revolutionary.
sangfroid. Unflappability.
Sangre de Cristo Mountains, Colorado and New Mexico.
sangria. Spanish drink.
sanitary. Not -tory.
San Joaquin Valley, California.
San Luis Obispo, California; not Louis.
San Salvador. Capital of El Salvador.
sansculotte. (In French, sans-culotte.) “Without breeches” an extreme revolutionary or republican. French revolutionaries were so called because they wore pantaloons rather than breeches.
sans serif. A typeface without serifs.
Santa Ana. Wind; it is also the name of a town in California.
Santa Isabel. Former name of Malabo, capital of Equitorial Guinea.
Santayana, George. (1863–1952) Spanish-born American poet, novelist, and philosopher.
Santo Domingo. Formerly Ciudad Trujillo; capital of the Dominican Republic.
Saône. French river.
São Paulo. Largest city in Brazil.
São Tomé and Príncipe. West African republic; capital São Tomé. Natives are known as São Toméans.
sapphire. Note -pp-. Precious stone.
Sappho. (c. 620 BC–c. 565 BC) Greek poetess.
Sara Lee, not Sarah, for the U.S. food company.
sarcoma. A malignant tumor in connective tissue, bone, or muscle; pl. sarcomas/sarcomata.
sarcophagus. Stone coffin; pl. sarcophagi.
Sardegna. Italian for Sardinia.
Sargasso Sea. Area of Atlantic Ocean where masses of floating seaweed are found.
Sargent, John Singer. (1856–1925) American painter.
Sarkozy, Nicolas. (1955–) French politician, president of France (2007–).
SARS. Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome, a viral disorder.
sarsaparilla.
Sartre, Jean-Paul. (1905–1980) French philosopher, dramatist, and novelist.
SAS. Scandinavian Airlines System.
Saskatchewan. Canadian river and province.
Saskatoon. City in Saskatchewan.
sasquatch. North American abominable snowman.
sassafras. North American tree, source of flavoring.
Sassoon, Siegfried (Lorraine). (1886–1967) British poet.
satellite.
saucisse. (Fr.) Pork sausage.
saucy. Not -ey.
sauerbraten.
sauerkraut.
Saugatuck. River in Connecticut and town in Michigan.
Sauk Centre, Minnesota; birthplace of Sinclair Lewis. Note irregular spelling of Centre.
Sault Sainte Marie. Towns in Michigan and Ontario, and canal linking Lake Huron and Lake Superior.
Sausalito, California.
Sauternes. A sweet French wine and the village in Gironde from which it comes. The name of the wine is sometimes lowercased and, in the United States, spelled sauterne.
sauve qui peut. (Fr.) Literally “save who can.” To flee wildly; every man for himself.
savanna (or savannah). Tropical and subtropical grassland.
Savannah, Georgia, but Savana Island, U.S. Virgin Islands, and Savanna for towns in Illinois and Oklahoma. The river is also Savannah.
Savile Row. Not -ll-. Sartorially famous street, London.
savoir-faire, savoir-vivre. Both are French, of course. The first indicates social grace; the second, good breeding.
Savonarola, Girolamo. (1452–1498) Italian religious and political reformer.
Saxony-Anhalt. German state; in German, Sachsen-Anhalt.
saxophone. Musical instrument invented by Adolphe Sax (1814–1894), a Belgian.
Scafell Pike. The highest hill in England at 3,206 feet. There is a separate neighboring eminence called Sca Fell (two words).
Scala, La. Opera house in Milan. Formally, Teatro alla Scala.
scalawag. A rascal.
scalene triangle. One with no equal sides.
scaloppine. Italian dish.
Scandinavia. Not Scanda-.
Scapigliatura, La. Nineteenth-century Italian literary movement. Literally, “the dishevelled ones.”
scarce, scarcely.
scared, scarred. The first means frightened; the second, disfigured.
Scarlatti, Alessandro (1659–1725) and Domenico (1683–1757), father and son composers from Italy.
scarves, scarfs. Either is correct for the plural of scarf.
scary. Not -ey.
schadenfreude. (Ger.) Deriving pleasure