Bryson's Dictionary for Writers and Editors - Bill Bryson [8]
Aristides. (c. 530–c. 468 BC) Athenian statesman.
Aristophanes. (c. 448–c. 380 BC) Greek dramatist.
armadillo, pl. armadillos.
Armageddon.
armament.
armature.
aroma applies only to agreeable smells; there is no such thing as a bad aroma.
Aroostook River, Maine and New Brunswick.
Arran, Isle of, Scotland. See also ARAN ISLAND.
arrière-pensée. (Fr.) Ulterior motive, mental reservation.
arrivederci. (It.) Goodbye.
arriviste. Disagreeably ambitious person.
Arrol-Johnston. British automobile of early 1900s.
arrondissement. Principal division of French departments and some larger cities.
Arrows of the Chace, not Chase, by John Ruskin.
Artemis. Greek goddess of the moon, associated with hunting. The Roman equivalent is Diana.
arteriosclerosis.
Arthur Andersen. Not -son. Accountancy firm.
Arthur, Chester Alan. (1829-1886) U.S. president (1881-1885).
artichoke.
artifact, artefact. The first spelling is generally preferred, but either is correct.
Aruba. Caribbean island, a self-governing dependency of the Netherlands; capital Oranjestad.
Asahi Shimbun. Japanese newspaper.
as…as. “A government study concludes that for trips of 500 miles or less…automotive travel is as fast or faster than air travel, door to door” (George Will, syndicated columnist). The problem here is what is termed an incomplete alternative comparison. If we remove the “or faster than” phrase from the sentence, the problem becomes immediately evident: “A government study concludes that for trips of 500 miles or less…automotive travel is as fast than air travel, door to door.” The writer has left the “as fast” phrase uncompleted. The sentence should say “as fast as or faster than air travel.”
ascendancy, ascendant.
Asch, Sholem. (1880-1957) Polish-born American novelist.
ASCII. Short for American Standard Code for Information Interchange; computer terminology.
Asclepius. Use Aesculapius.
ASEAN. Association of South East Asian Nations, formed 1967; members are Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar/Burma, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam.
aseptic.
as far as is commonly misused, as here: “As far as next season, it is too early to make forecasts” (Baltimore Sun). The error here has been exercising authorities since at least Fowler’s heyday and shows no sign of abating, either as a problem or as something that exercises authorities. The trouble is that “as far as” serves as a conjunction and as such requires a following verb. The solution is either to remove the conjunction (“As for next season, it is too early to make forecasts”) or to supply the needed verb (“As far as next season goes, it is too early to make forecasts”).
Ashbery, John. (1927–) American poet and critic.
Asheville, North Carolina.
Ashgabat. Capital of Turkmenistan; also sometimes spelled Ashkhabad.
Ashkenazi. An East or Central European Jew; pl. Ashkenazim.
Ashkenazy, Vladimir. (1937–) Russian-born Icelandic pianist and conductor.
Ashmolean Museum, Oxford, England.
Ashuapmuchuan River, Quebec, Canada.
Asimov, Isaac. (1920-1992) American biochemist and prolific science-fiction writer.
asinine.
Asmara. Capital of Eritrea; formerly Asmera.
asparagus.
Assad, Bashar. (1965–) President of Syria (2000–); succeeded his father, Hafez Assad (1928-2000).
assagai/assegai. Either spelling is correct for the African spear.
assailant.
assassin.
Assateague Island, Maryland and Virginia.
assault, battery. They are not the same in law. Assault is a threat of violence; battery is actual violence.
assessor.
asseverate. To declare.
assiduous, acidulous. Assiduous means diligent; acidulous means tart or acidic.
Assiniboine River, Manitoba, Canada.
Assisi. Town in Umbria, Italy, birthplace of St. Francis.
assonance. Words that rhyme in consonants but not vowels (e.g., cat and kit) or in vowels but not consonants (e.g., bun and sponge).
assuage, assuaging.
assume, presume. The two words are often so close in meaning as to be indistinguishable, but in some contexts they do allow a fine distinction to be