Bryson's Dictionary for Writers and Editors - Bill Bryson [81]
Menninger Clinic, the. Psychiatric hospital founded in 1925, moved to Houston, Texas, in 2003; the Menninger Foundation remains in Topeka.
menorah. Seven-branched candelabrum used in Jewish worship in ancient times; today’s Hanukkah menorah has nine branches.
Menorca. Spanish name for Minorca.
Menotti, Gian Carlo. (1911–2007) Italian-born American composer.
men’s, women’s. However eagerly department stores and the like may strive to dispense with punctuation in their signs (writing “Mens Clothing” or “Womens Department”), the practice is subliterate and to be avoided in any serious writing. Equally incorrect, if slightly less common, is placing the apostrophe after the “s” (e.g., “mens’ hats,” “womens’ facials”). However, note that the apostrophe is discarded in such compounds as menswear and womenswear. See also CHILDREN’S.
Menuhin, Yehudi. (1916–1999) American-born British violinist.
meow. The sound that cats make; in Britain and elsewhere it is usually spelled miaow.
Mephistophelean (or Mephistophelian). Evil; after Mephistopheles, the devil to whom Faust sold his soul.
Mercalli scale. A measure of earthquake intensity; named for the Italian volcanologist Giuseppe Mercalli (1850–1914).
Mercedes-Benz. (Hyphen.) The plural is Mercedeses, but is best avoided.
meretricious. Vulgar, insincere.
meringue. Confection made from egg whites and sugar.
merino. Type of sheep; pl. merinos.
meritocracy. System of government based on merit.
Merkel, Angela. (1954–) German chancellor (2005–).
Merrion Square, Dublin.
mesmerize.
Messaggero, Il. Italian newspaper.
Messerschmitt, not -schmidt, for the type of aircraft.
metal, mettle. Metal denotes chemical elements such as gold and copper; mettle is for contexts describing courage or spirit.
metamorphose (verb), metamorphosis (noun), pl. metamorphoses.
metaphor, simile. Both are figures of speech in which two things are compared. A simile likens one thing to another, dissimilar one: “He ran like the wind” “She took to racing as a duck takes to water.” A metaphor, on the other hand, acts as if the two compared things are identical and substitutes one for the other. Comparing the beginning of time to the beginning of a day, for instance, produces the metaphor “the dawn of time.”
metathesis. The transposition of sounds or letters in a word or between words; the latter commonly are called spoonerisms.
mete, meet. The first means to allot; the second means suitable. One metes out punishment, but a fitting punishment is meet.
meteor, meteorite, meteoroid. Meteoroids are pieces of galactic debris floating through space. If they enter Earth’s atmosphere as shooting stars, they are meteors. If they survive the fall to Earth, they are meteorites.
meter, but metric and metrical; one meter equals 39.37 inches.
meticulous. Several usage books, though fewer and fewer dictionaries, insist that the word does not mean merely very careful, but rather excessively so. Unless you mean to convey a negative quality, it is usually better to use scrupulous, careful, painstaking, or some other synonym.
metonymy. Figure of speech in which a thing is described in terms of one of its attributes, as in calling the monarch “the crown.”
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. Hollywood film studio, abbreviated MGM.
metronome. Instrument for marking time.
mettle. Courage or spirit.
Meuse. River in northern Europe; in Dutch, Maas.
mezzanine.
Mezzogiorno. The southern, poorer half of Italy.
mezzotint. Method of engraving, and the engraving so produced.
MGM. Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer.
miaow. British spelling of meow.
Michaelmas. Feast of St. Michael, September 29.
Michelangelo. (1475–1564) Italian artist, architect, and engineer; full name Michelangelo di Lodovico Buonarroti Simoni.
micro. Prefix meaning one-millionth, or very small.
Micronesia, Federated States of. Comprises Korsae, Ponape, Truk, and Yap; capital Kolonia.
Middlesbrough. Not -borough. City in northern England.
Mid Glamorgan. (Two words, no hyphen.) County in Wales.
Midi-Pyrénées. Region of