And finally, part 3 in our series of words that cause the most problems. Here’s this week’s top five list.
- Adverse and averse
Adverse is an adjective meaning bad or unfavorable, acting against. Averse is also an adjective, but it means feelings of dislike or distaste.“The adverse effect of the stock market is beyond our control.”
“I was averse to paying $7 for a mocha latte.”
- Bring and take
Finally one that’s easier to remember: you bring things here and take things there.“Would you bring donuts to next week’s group meeting?”
“Yes, I can take some donuts.”
- Farther and further
There’s a trick to remembering which word to use here, too.
Farther relates to physical distance — “Our new office is farther from my home than the old one.” When you think physical distance, think “how far, farther.”Further is figurative, or metaphorical, distance — “We can’t take this policy change any further without support from the top.”
- Fewer and less
This is a tough one. So let’s start with this…When it comes to fewer and less: use fewer for a noun you can actually count, as in “fewer cups of coffee,” “fewer bowls of egg salad” or “fewer pencils.”
Use “less” if the noun can’t be counted — “less coffee,” “less egg salad” or “less paper.”
So, you can count each cup, but not the coffee. You can count each bowl, but not the egg salad. You can count each pencil and each sheet of paper, but not the paper itself.
Still confused? Then try this trick to help make sure you use the correct word: use less for singular nouns (coffee, egg salad, paper) and fewer for plural nouns (cups, bowls, sheets, pencils).
- Number and amount
Likewise…Use number when you can count what you’re talking about and amount if it can’t be.
“The number of cups of coffee the staff drinks directly increases with the amount of stress they’re under.”
And there you have it. The most commonly abused and misused words, and tips for getting them right.
Now go forth and write with confidence.
