Bryson's Dictionary for Writers and Editors - Bill Bryson [53]
gorgheggio. Musical term for a trill.
Gorgons. In Greek mythology, three creatures (Medusa, Stheno, and Euryale) so ugly that anyone gazing at them turned to stone.
Gorgonzola (cap.) for the cheese and the village in Italy in which it originated.
gorilla.
Göring, Hermann. Use Goering.
Gorky, Maxim. Pseudonym of Aleksei Maksimovich Peshkov (1868–1936), Russian writer. The Russian city named for him has reverted to its original name of Nizhny Novgorod.
Gothenburg, Sweden; in Swedish, Göteborg.
Götterdämmerung. (Ger.) “Twilight of the gods.” Last part of Wagner’s Ring cycle; figuratively, a complete downfall.
gouache. A kind of opaque watercolor paint mixed with a gluelike preparation; a picture painted in this way or with such a pigment.
Gould, Elliott. (1938–) American film actor; note unusual spelling of first name; born Elliot Goldstein.
gourmand is a word to be used carefully. Some dictionaries now define it only as a person who likes to eat well, but others equate it with gluttony. Unless you mean to convey a pejorative sense, it would be better to use gourmet, gastronome, epicure, or some other more flattering term.
goy. (Yid.) A gentile; pl. goyim.
gracias. (Sp.) Thank you.
Gradgrind. (Cap.) A cold, emotionless person, after a character in Charles Dickens’s Hard Times.
Graeae. In Greek mythology, three sisters who guard the Gorgons.
Graf, Steffi. (1969–) German tennis player.
graffiti is, strictly speaking, a plural. If all you mean is a single embellishment, the proper term is graffito. However, it must also be noted that fewer and fewer authorities insist on the distinction.
graham cracker. (Not cap.)
Grahame, Kenneth. (1859–1932) British writer, author of The Wind in the Willows.
Graian Alps. Stretch of alps along French-Italian border.
Gramm-Rudman Act. Law intended to reduce and eliminate U.S. federal deficit; formally, it is the Gramm-Rudman-Hollings Act.
Grammy, pl. Grammys. Musical awards formally known as the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences Awards.
gramophone. Not grama-.
Granada, Grenada. The first is the historic city in Spain, the second the Caribbean island state; capital St. George’s. They are pronounced respectively gr-nah-d and gr-nay-d.
Grand Coulee Dam, Columbia River, Washington.
granddad, granddaughter. Note -dd-.
Grand Guignol. High drama, constructed around a sensational theme. The term comes from the Théâtre du Grand Guignol in Paris, where such plays were in vogue in the last years of the nineteenth century.
grandiloquence, not -eloquence, for inflated speech.
grand jury. In U.S. law, a jury of up to twenty-three people empowered to decide whether enough evidence exists for a case to proceed against an accused person.
Grand Ole Opry.
Grasmere, Cumbria, England; site of Dove Cottage, home of the poet William Wordsworth.
gratia Dei. (Lat.) “By God’s grace.”
grazie. (It.) Thank you.
Great American Ball Park. Cincinnati baseball stadium, home of the Reds. Note Ball Park is two words.
Greater London, Greater Paris, etc. Cap. Greater.
Great Smoky Mountains National Park, North Carolina and Tennessee.
Greco, El. (1541–1614) Cretan-born Spanish painter; real name Domenikos Theotokopoulos.
Greeley, Horace. (1811–1872) American politician and journalist, founder of the New York Tribune (1841). The expression “Go west, young man” is frequently attributed to him, probably wrongly.
Greene, Graham. (1904–1991) British writer.
Greene, Nathanael. (1742–1786) American Revolutionary War general.
Greenstreet, Sydney. (1879–1954) British character actor.
Gregorian calendar is the type now in use in most of the world; named for Pope Gregory XII.
Grenada. Small island state in the Caribbean, capital St. George’s. Not to be confused with the Spanish city of Granada.
grenadier.
grenadine (lowercase) for the fabric and flavoring, but Grenadines (cap.) for the Caribbean island chain.
Grendel. Monster in Beowulf.
Gresham’s Law is that