Bryson's Dictionary of Troublesome Words - Bill Bryson [78]
various different is inescapably repetitive.
venal, venial. Venial, from the Latin venialis (“forgivable”), means excusable; a venial sin is a minor one. Venal means corruptible. It comes from the Latin venalis (“for sale”) and describes someone who is capable of being bought.
venerate, worship. Although in figurative senses the words are interchangeable, in religious contexts worship should apply only to God. Roman Catholics, for instance, worship God but venerate saints.
ventricles for the heart valves. Not ventricals.
vermilion. “The great naval powers of Europe . . . all competed for control of the trade in nutmeg and mace (the vermillion-colored membrane that encases the nut)” (New Yorker). Although most dictionaries accept vermillion as an alternative spelling, vermilion is the preferred and very much more common spelling.
very should be made to pay its way in sentences. Too often it is used where it adds nothing to sense (“It was a very tragic death”) or is inserted in a futile effort to prop up a weak word that should be replaced by something with more punch (“The play was very good”).
viable. “Such a system would mark a breakthrough in efforts to come up with a commercially viable replacement for internal-combustion engines” (Newsweek). Properly, viable does not mean feasible or workable or promising, senses in which it is frequently used. It means capable of independent existence, and its use really ought to be confined to that meaning. Even when it is correctly used, it tends to make the sentence read like a government document, as here: “Doing nothing about the latter threatens the viability of the lakes and woodlands of the northeastern states” (Chicago Tribune). Deleting “the viability of” would shorten the sentence without altering its sense.
vichyssoise for the soup. Note -ss-.
vicissitude for a change or variation. Although there is no compelling reason for it, the word is almost always used in the plural.
vitreous, vitriform. The first describes something made or having the quality of glass. The second means to have the appearance of glass.
vocal cords. Not to be confused with chords (groups of musical notes), as happens all too often: “Understudy Nancy Ringham will play opposite Rex Harrison because Miss Kennedy has problems with her vocal chords” (Evening Standard). Vocal cords are so called because of their shape and structure, not because of their tonal qualities.
volcanology, vulcanology. Both are terms for the science of volcanoes. The first is the preferred American spelling, the second the preferred British one.
vortexes, vortices. For the plural of vortex, either is correct.
W
waiver, waver. The first is a relinquishment of a claim; the second means to hesitate.
Wal-Mart for the discount-store group. The company’s full name is Wal-Mart Stores Inc. See also KMART.
“Water, water, everywhere/Nor any drop to drink” are the lines from the Samuel Taylor Coleridge poem “The Rime of the Ancient Mariner.”
way, shape, or form. “Some people may be amused by that kind of behavior, but I don’t like it in any way, shape, or form” (Cleveland Plain Dealer). Choose any one—but only one, please.
wean means to be parted from something that is no longer needed. Babies are weaned from their mothers’ milk, for instance. You often hear wean used wrongly in the almost opposite sense of being a central and continuing part of one’s upbringing, as in “The challenge is to attract youths weaned on raunchy rap music” (New York Times). The simple rule is that if you can’t follow wean with from, you need another word or phrase—raised, trained, brought up on, or any of several others.
weather conditions. “Freezing weather conditions will continue for the rest of the week” (Times).