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Misuse of 'Frequent' is Frequent
Q: Does "frequented" imply often? I have heard "they occasionally frequented" and even "they rarely frequented." Is that possible? — David Markowitz, West Hartford, Conn.
A: What's next? "They rarely …Read more.
'Whom' is Where the Heart is
The "who/whom" dilemma is the health care debate of grammar. The issues involved are so complicated and convoluted that no one really understands them.
That's why the late William Safire threw up his hands in 1992 and advocated a kind of …Read more.
Why Are These Sentences Loony?
What's wrong with these sentences?
1. Like the duck, the loon's nest is built near the shore.
2. The loon is a Bow Lake resident, on which several other loons live.
3. The baby loon is four times smaller than its mother.
That's right; they're loony …Read more.
Phrase Origins Served Piping Hot
Mel Kopel of Windsor, Conn., writes to ask why food is served "piping hot" and a car fresh from the showroom floor is "spanking new" (as opposed to the "clanking old" clunker you traded in for it).
You could conjure up …Read more.
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'Grammar' Gets a MakeoverThe word "glamour" is the Susan Boyle of English. Though "glamour" is now a dazzling celebrity, the word began, astoundingly enough, as the nerdy, erudite word "grammar." Derived from the Latin "grammatica" and, ultimately, from the Greek word "gramma" (letter), "grammar" originally referred only to the study of language and literature. But during medieval times, it came to denote learning in general, including such occult subjects as magic and astrology. These esoteric "dark arts" of grammar were considered to be mysterious and exciting. Soon alchemists and sorcerers had become the movie stars of medieval Europe, and "grammar" had come to mean "an alluring or fascinating attractiveness." But how did "grammar" become "glamour"? Like Boyle, "glamour" is a Scot. During the 1700s, the Scots replaced the "r" in "grammar" with an "l" to produce "glamer" or "glamour." Eventually, "glamour" spread throughout English with its current meaning of "enchanting allure." Meanwhile, "grammar" withered to its original linguistic roots to mean "the study of the function and relationships of words in a sentence." Now that "glamour" has been given a complete makeover and gained international celebrity, it's hard to believe that it once stood on the stage, dowdy and diffident, as the scholarly word "grammar." It dreamed a dream. Let's look at the origins of three other words associated with the study of language: "Syntax," meaning "the way in which words and phrases are put together," derives from the Greek prefix "syn- " (together) and "tassein" (to arrange). "Semantics," which surprisingly enough didn't appear in English until the late 1800s, refers to the study of meaning in language. "Etymology," the study of the origin and development of words, derives from the Greek "etumos" (true) and "logia" (word), hence it denotes the truth (history) of a word. During my first year of teaching, when the English department chairman was observing my class one day, I repeatedly referred to "etymology" as "entomology" (the study of insects), a blunder that he gently noted in his evaluation. Fortunately, I didn't refer to "grammar" as "glamour." That probably would have made his blood … well, boil. Rob Kyff, a teacher and writer in West Hartford, Conn., invites your language sightings. Send your reports of misuse and abuse, as well as examples of good writing, via e-mail to Wordguy@aol.com or by regular mail to Rob Kyff, Creators Syndicate, 5777 W. Century Blvd., Suite 700, Los Angeles, CA 90045. To find out more about Rob Kyff and read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate website at www.creators.com. COPYRIGHT 2009 CREATORS.COM
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