Part 6

~feel good~, ~feel well~: Distinguish carefully between these phrases. _Good_ signifies having physical qualities that are useful, or that can be made productive of comfort, satisfaction, or enjoyment, as, a _good_ view, _good_ flour; _well_ signifies having physical health, free from ailment; as, “two are sick, the rest are _well_.” Compare GOOD.

~felicitate~, ~congratulate~: The distinction in the meanings of these words should be carefully noted. To _felicitate_ is to pronounce one happy and in the strict sense, applies to self alone; _congratulate_ is to wish joy to another. In recent years _congratulate_ has been applied to one’s self, and _felicitate_ to another; thus the application of the meanings of these words have been reversed by careless usage.

Trench says, “When I _congratulate_ a person (_congratulor_) I declare that I am sharer in his joy, that what has rejoiced him has rejoiced me also.” _Gratulation_, does not signify participation, and therefore, is a mere _felicitation_ (or admission of existing happiness or cause for happiness) addressed to another.

~female~: An opprobrious or contemptuous epithet for woman. _Female_ should be restricted to its correct use. Do not say “With that modesty so characteristic of a _female_”; say rather, “... so characteristic of a woman.” Compare LADY.

~fermentation~, ~fomentation~: Exercise care in the use of these words. _Fermentation_ is a chemical decomposition of an organic compound; _fomentation_, is the act of treating with warm water.

~fetch~. Compare BRING.

~few~: Sometimes used incorrectly for “in some measure”; “to an extent”; “somewhat”; “rather”; as, “Did you enjoy yourself?” “Just a _few_.” _Few_ is correctly applied to quantity and incorrectly to quality; therefore, its use as in the illustration given here is not good English.

~few~ and ~a few~ must not be confounded. “_Few_ men would act thus” means that scarcely any would; but “_A few_ men will always speak the truth” means that there are some, though not many, whose custom this is.

~few~, ~little~: The first of these words is sometimes improperly used for the second. Measurement by count is expressed by _few_, measurement by quantity by _little_; as, “the loss of a _few_ soldiers will make but _little_ difference to the result.” “The _fewer_ his acquaintances, the _fewer_ (not the _less_) his enemies.” _Few_, _fewer_, _fewest_, are correctly used in describing articles the aggregate of which is expressed in numbers; _little_, _less_, and _least_ are used of objects that are spoken of in bulk.

~figure~: E. S. Gould and other critics object to the use of the word in the sense of an amount stated in numbers, as “Goods at a high _figure_.” But Dean Alford is content to give his sanction to its use, and the literary and general public have followed him.

~final~: Sometimes misused in such a sentence as “the _final_ completion of the work.” This is inadmissible, for completion necessarily implies finality.

~financial~, ~monetary~, ~pecuniary~: Discriminate carefully between these words. _Financial_ is applied correctly to public funds or to the revenue of a government. _Monetary_ and _pecuniary_ apply only to transactions between individuals.

~finish~. Compare COMPLETE.

~fire~: As this verb possesses the sense of impel, explode, discharge, as by using fire; as, “_fire_ a mine or gun,” it has been humorously applied to discharge from employment, as “_fire_ a clerk.” But the usage is slang, and as such is avoided by careful speakers.

~first~: Say the “_first_ two” rather than the “two _first_,” for unless they be bracketed equal there can not be two _firsts_. For a similar reason the expression seen in cars, “Smoking on the _four rear_ seats,” is equally incorrect. There can not be four _rear_ (or _last_) seats; but there can be “the _last four_ seats.” As meaning the four seats collectively which are situated at the rear, the phrase has its only justification.

~first~ and ~firstly~: _First_ being an adverbial form is the correct form to use. _Firstly_ has been used by Dickens, De Quincey, and others but in modern usage _first_ is the preferred form.

~first-rate~ is an adjectival not an adverbial expression. One may say correctly, “He is a _first-rate_ walker,” but not that “he walks _first-rate_.”

~fish~: When speaking of fish collectively this word represents the plural; speaking of fish severally the plural is formed by the addition of _es_.

~fix~: The colloquial use of this noun for a position involving embarrassment or a dilemma or predicament has not the sanction of literary usage. Do not say “I am in a bad _fix_” say, rather, “... in a bad _condition_.” As a verb, it is better unused in the sense of _set_ or _arrange_. As meaning “put into thorough adjustment or repair,” with the word _up_ added, it is sanctioned by popular usage; but the expression is thought inelegant and indefinite. Some more discriminating term is to be preferred. _Fix_, in the sense of “disable, injure, or kill,” and “fix up” in the sense of “dress elegantly,” are vulgarisms.

~flap-doodle~: An inelegant term for “pretentious silly talk characterized by an affectation of superior knowledge.” _Twaddle_ is a preferable synonym. Compare FLUB-DUB.

~flash~ for ostentatious display, as of money, is inelegant. _Display_ is a preferable word.

~flew~ is often misused for _fled_. Do not say “He _flew_ the city” when you mean that he _fled_ from it.

~flies on~: “There are no _flies on_ him,” is a slang phrase not used by persons accustomed to refined diction.

~flock~: A word sometimes misapplied. Do not say “a _flock_ of girls;” say, rather, “a _bevy_ of girls” and “a _flock_ of sheep.” _Flock_ is correctly applied to a company or collection of small animals as sheep, goats, rabbits, or birds.

~flop~ is an inelegant word used sometimes to denote change of attitude on a subject. Do not say “He _flopped_ over to the other side”; say, rather, “He went over....”

~flub-dub~: A slang term used to designate a literary work that is worthless.

~flummux~: A vulgarism sometimes used for “perplex” or “disconcert.”

~fly off the handle~: A colloquial phrase meaning to “lose one’s self control” as from anger.

~folks~: The modern colloquial plural use of this term is not to be recommended. The word is properly used, both in singular and plural form, as _folk_, its correct signification being “people, collectively or distributively.”

~foment~, ~ferment~: Exercise care in the use of these words. _Foment_ is to bathe with warm or medicated lotions; _ferment_, to cause chemical decomposition in. Both words are also used figuratively.

~fondling~, ~foundling~: Discriminate carefully between these words. A _fondling_ is a person fondled or caressed; a _foundling_ is a deserted infant whose parents are unknown.

~fooling~: The use of the word in the sense of “deceiving” has been condemned by certain writers as a “very vulgar vulgarism,” but is permissible, having the sanction not only of good literary authority but of modern dictionaries. See Tennyson’s “Gareth and Lynette” (st. 127): “Worse than being fool’d of others is to fool one’s self.”

~for~ and ~to~: These words are often added at the end of a sentence by careless speakers but are redundant. Do not say “Less than you think _for_”; nor “Where are you going _to_?”

~forget it~: When used as the equivalent of “don’t talk about it,” is a vulgarism that can not be too severely condemned.

~fork over~: Slang for “hand over,” a preferable phrase.

~former~: This word can refer to only one of two persons or things previously mentioned, never to any one of three or more. Avoid such construction as the following: “Mr. Henley says that had Rosetti and Byron been contemporaries, some of the _former’s_ (meaning Rosetti) verses would have caused the latter (meaning Byron) to blush.” Here, _former_ refers to Mr. Henley, but the context shows clearly the intention of the writer to refer to Rosetti.

~forsake~. Compare ABANDON.

~fort~, ~forte~: These two words similarly pronounced must be distinguished. In each case the derivation is the same (the Latin _fortis_ strong), and although there is an alternative spelling of _fort_ for “forte” it is not the favored form. A _fort_ signifies a fortification held by a garrison; _forte_ is that in which an individual chiefly excels.

~fracas~: A _fracas_ is a brawl or an uproar, not a part of the human anatomy. Therefore, avoid such expressions as “He was stabbed in the fracas.” Say, rather, “During the fracas he was stabbed.”

~fraud~: Just as _cheat_ has been made to do duty both for the act and the person committing the act, so in colloquial usage has _fraud_ been made to represent not only the act but also its perpetrator. It has even been extended to “a deceptive or spurious thing.” These usages of _fraud_ are, however, not to be recommended.

~freeze~: This word has nothing in common with _frieze_ save the pronunciation. The former is an Anglo-Saxon term, whereas the latter comes from the French _frise_, for _fraise_, a ruff. To _freeze_ is to convert into ice, congeal; to _frieze_ is to provide with a _frieze_, which is, in architecture, the middle division of an entablature.

~freeze out~: A vulgar phrase for to “treat with coldness, as of manner or conduct.”

~freeze to~: An inelegant colloquialism for “cling to,” sometimes found in literature as in Kipling’s “Mine Own People,” p. 209.

~frequently~. Compare COMMONLY.

~fresh~ in the sense of “full of ignorant conceit and presumption” is slang and as such is avoided by persons careful with their diction.

~friend~: Carefully distinguish between _friend_ and _acquaintance_. The former is an acquaintance who has been admitted to terms of intimacy, and who is regarded with a certain amount of affectionate regard. A person to whom one has received a bare introduction is an acquaintance--nothing more.

~frieze~. Compare FREEZE.

~from~: A preposition often incorrectly used for “of.” _From_ should not be used elliptically. Do not say “He died _from_ pneumonia” when you mean “_from the effects of_ pneumonia.” Here _effect_ suggests the cause from which the result proceeded. “He died _of_ pneumonia” is correct.

~froze~: A term sometimes misused for frozen. _Froze_ is the imperfect of the verb _freeze_, while _frozen_ is a participial adjective. It is incorrect to say, “My hands are _froze_,” here _frozen_ should be used.

~-ful~. The plural of compounds ending in _-ful_, as _spoonful_ is formed in the same manner as the plural of other nouns of regular formation--by the simple addition of a final “s,” as, _spoonfuls_. So when a physician prescribes medicine to be taken by the spoonful more than once a day, these are correctly spoken of as _spoonfuls_. But supposing more than one medicine is to be taken and that the medicines do not assimilate thus requiring _more than one spoon_ to administer them; then it would be correct to refer to the different doses as _spoons full_, since the words denote more than one spoon full. _Spoonfuls_ denote one spoon filled more than once.

~fulfil~: Remember that in this word the “l” is not doubled but that it is in _fulfilling_.

~full~, ~fuller~: Terms sometimes incorrectly used. A “_full_ cup,” is a cup completely filled, therefore it would seem illogical to say “my cup is _fuller_ than yours.” As a rule all words that in themselves express the idea of completion or perfection should be used only in the positive degree. A perfection greater than itself is inconceivable, yet in literature, and with speakers who are accustomed to a careful choice of words, this form of expression has been permitted for comparison in the absence of an absolute standard of measurement.

~full~: A coarse substitute for “intoxicated.”

~funeral~: A term sometimes misused for “affair,” or “business,” as in the phrase “Not my _funeral_” meaning “No business of mine.” The use is not to be commended.

~funny~: As a colloquialism signifying “queer” this adjective should be used with care. It is better retained for signification of that which is mirth-provoking or ludicrous. _Funny_ is sometimes used incorrectly to imply silly impropriety, as in the phrase, “Don’t get _funny_.” Such usage should be avoided.

~further~. Compare FARTHER.

~future, the~: Used sometimes to signify the present; as, “I _shall be_ happy to accept”--this is not what is meant. The meaning is “I _am_ happy to accept, for I _shall be_ happy to come,” or “(Because) I shall be happy to (come I am happy to) accept”; and the elliptical result is that there is elision of the words in parentheses. In a recent lawsuit the plaintiff lost $10,000 because a so-called guarantee was given in these terms: “I _will_ guarantee” instead of “I (hereby _do_) guarantee.” The guarantee provided had never been asked for, given, or obtained. The credulous victim had accepted a promise, without condition, for a performance; and he lost. Time has improved his knowledge of the force of the English tongue.

G

~galaxy~: Exercise care in the use of this word. It signifies any brilliant circle or group; as, a _galaxy_ of beauties or of gems, and is never correctly used of any person or thing of inferior quality.

~gall~: Correctly used is “an intensely bitter feeling.” When used as a synonym for “cool assurance” or “impudence” it is slang which should be avoided.

~gang~ is correctly applied to a squad of laborers, and others detailed to certain given tasks. But sometimes applied also, usually in an uncomplimentary way, to a company of persons who meet habitually for social intercourse; as, “He sent a letter to the _gang_ at Seelig’s.”

~gazebo~: A term often misused for “chief person.” A _gazebo_ is a belvedere or elevated summer-house and as such is often the highest point of a building: applied to a person the term is slang.

~gee whiz~: A slang exclamation of astonishment that it is best to avoid.

~geezer~: A vulgar term applied, usually in derision to elderly persons, particularly women. Formerly it was used to designate a mummer or other grotesque character.

~generally~. Compare COMMONLY.

~genius~, ~genus~: Discriminate carefully between these words. _Genius_ implies the possession of remarkable natural gifts through which their possessor may attain ends or obtain results by intuitive power. _Genus_ is a class or kind. In the natural sciences it is the subordinate of an order, tribe, or family.

~gent~: As an abbreviation for _gentleman_ this word is not permitted in refined speech; and _gentleman_ is never correctly used for _man_ as a mere indication of sex. Compare LADY.

~genteel~ is sometimes improperly applied to persons who are preferably spoken of as polite or well-bred. If used with regard to persons, it should only be in connection with some specific characteristic, as “a person of _genteel_ speech or appearance,” or to indicate suitability to the condition of a well-bred person, as in the expression “a _genteel_ fortune.”

~genuine~. Compare AUTHENTIC.

~get a gait~ or ~move on~: Slang phrases for “hasten one’s steps or actions,” which, while it may not be so expressive, is more elegant and refined.

~get over~: Sometimes used for _deny_ or _refute_. One doesn’t get over a charge but _refutes_ it.

~git~: Vulgarism used in the imperative for _get out_.

~go~. See WENT.

~go back on~: A colloquialism for abandon, deceive, play false. Inelegant and not used by persons accustomed to nice discriminations of speech.

~going~ is sometimes used as a synonym for _just about_. One frequently hears, “I am just going to sing,” from a person who is _about to_ do so. The verb _go_, in the transitive, is sometimes used loosely in the colloquial sense of “endure” or “wager.” Polite speech does not sanction such locutions as “I can not _go_ that music;” “I will _go_ you a dollar on the race.”

~gone~: The phrase “He’s been _gone_ this month,” though frequently used, is better rendered thus: “It’s a month since he went.” The verb “to go” does not lend itself agreeably to this treatment which is common with other verbs (as “He has been known and loved for years”), and the expression “this month,” for “this past month,” is somewhat too elliptical to be received with favor.

~gone case~: A vulgarism sometimes used to denote that the affection bestowed by one person on another of the opposite sex shows him to be serious in his intentions. It is also a vulgarism when applied to one who is in a hopeless condition, as from illness.

~good~ should never be used for _well_. Do not say, “I feel pretty _good_” or “she plays that pretty _good_” when you mean that you “feel pretty _well_” or that “she plays fairly _well_.”

~go past~: “Go” usually implies motion forward, therefore, it is pleonastic to say “go past.” Say, rather, that you “go _by_” and not _past_. Nevertheless a march _past_ is a recognized expression.

~got~: This word is used correctly for acquired or obtained, but is incorrectly used to denote simple possession and correctly implies _effort to secure_ something. Sometimes it is used redundantly; as, “He has _got_ it”; the simpler form, “He has it” is preferable. “We have _got_ to do it,” while emphatic, is less so than “we _must_ do it.”

~go the whole hog~: An inelegant phrase used for “to go to the utmost limit.” Carlyle traces the origin of this phrase from the Irish because in Ireland _hog_ was a synonym for a ten penny piece, a coin once current in that country.

~graduate~: The use of this verb in the intransitive has been condemned by purists but is now well established. Thus, one may correctly say “He _was graduated_ from a university” or, “_He graduated_ from a university.”

~grammar~: The phrases ~good grammar~ and ~bad grammar~ have been condemned as false syntax by some persons unfamiliar with the meanings of the word “grammar.” One meaning recorded by the STANDARD DICTIONARY is “speech or writing considered with regard to its correctness; propriety of linguistic usage; as, he uses _good_ or _bad grammar_.”

The _New York Herald_ (March 4, 1906) says: “_Good grammar_ is one of those cheap vulgarisms which most offend the scholarly ear. A phrase is either grammatical or ungrammatical. It can not be characterized as either ‘good’ or ‘bad’ grammar.”

The writer of the foregoing based his criticism on a misunderstanding. The word “grammar” is not like the word “orthography,” a word made up of _orthos_, correct, and _grapho_, to write. Grammar does not carry with it the implication of correctness, and modern grammarians bear this out. Prof. Edward Maetzner in his “English Grammar: Methodical, Analytical and Historical,” so defines the term:

“_Grammar_, or the _doctrine of language_, treats of the laws of speech, and, in the first place, of the _Word_, as its fundamental constituent, with respect to its _matter_ and its _form_, in _prosody_, or the doctrine of sounds, and _morphology_, or the doctrine of forms, and then of the _combination_ of words in speech, in _syntax_, or the doctrine of the joining of words and sentences” (vol. i. p. 12).

Syntax, which is a part of grammar, is sometimes confused with grammar itself. It is that part of grammar which treats of the sentence and of its construction, and embraces, among other features, the doctrine of the collocation of words in sentences in connected speech, treating of their arrangement and relative positions, as required by grammatical connection, euphony, and clearness and energy of expression.

The “New English Dictionary,” edited at Oxford University by Dr. J. A. H. Murray, treating this subject says:

“The old-fashioned definition of grammar as ‘The art of speaking and writing a language correctly’ is from the modern point of view in one respect too narrow, because it applied only to a portion of this branch of study; in another respect it is too wide, and was so even from the older point of view, _because many questions of ‘correctness’ in language are recognized as outside the province of grammar_: _e. g._, the use of a word in a wrong sense, or a bad pronunciation or spelling, would not have been called a grammatical mistake. Until a not very distant date, grammar was divided by English writers into Orthography, Etymology, Syntax, and Prosody, to which Orthoepy was added by some others. The division now usual is that into Phonology, treating of the sounds now used in the language, Accidence, of the inflexional forms or equivalent combinations, and Syntax, of the structure of sentences.”

In defining grammar, Lindley Murray wrote “English grammar is the art of speaking and writing the English language with propriety.” Following the style of the STANDARD DICTIONARY, Dr. Murray gives one of the meanings of grammar as follows; “Speech or writing judged as good or bad according as it conforms to or violates grammatical rules; also speech or writing that is correct according to those rules.”

If grammar can not be good or bad, as contended by the _New York Herald’s_ editor, then it can not be true or false. Yet Dryden wrote, “And I doubt the word ‘they’ is _false grammar_” (Almanzor, II. Def. Epilogue); and Macaulay writing of Frederick the Great, said: “He had German enough to scold his servants, but his _grammar and pronunciation are extremely bad_” (Essays; Frederick the Great). Again, elsewhere, “The letter may still be read, with all the original _bad grammar_ and bad spelling” (History of England, IV., xviii., 245). Both phrases are permissible. Compare BAD.

~grammatical error~: A common locution, but “an error in grammar,” is to be preferred as avoiding what is sometimes considered a violation of grammatical precision.

~grant~. Compare ACCORD.

~grass, go to~: A vulgar imperative meaning “get away” or “clear out!”

~grass widow~: A common term of disparagement applied to a woman abandoned by or separated from her husband: a term which is not used by persons of refinement and one that, if used at all, should be applied only with great care.

~grass widower~: A term used to denote a husband who lives apart from his wife or one from whom the wife is temporarily absent.

~gratitude~, ~thankfulness~: Gratitude, from the Latin _gratitudo_, from _gratus_, kind, is a sense of appreciation of favors received, as indicated by actions. It is the actual feeling, of which _thankfulness_, or the fulness of thanks, is the mere outward expression. It is therefore quite possible, and indeed often the case, for a person who at one time is _full of thanks_ to show subsequently a want of gratitude.

~great~. Compare BIG.

~groom~ should not be used for “bridegroom.”

~grouchy~: A slang term for sulky or disgruntled.

~grow~ sometimes used for _become_ is gaining the sanction of usage; as, “to _grow_ smaller.” In this sense _grow_ has been used by such masters of English as Steele, Gray, Johnson, and Macaulay.

~guess~, ~suppose~, ~think~, ~conjecture~: Words sometimes used incorrectly. We _guess_ when we are content to hazard an opinion based on data which are admittedly insufficient, but we _suppose_ when we have good ground for assuming a thing to be true. When we _think_, we give thought to a matter on which we yet admit the thought has been insufficient to furnish us with exact or certain knowledge. _Thinking_ is allied to _conjecturing_, in which, though holding a pronounced opinion, this falls short of absolute _conviction_. We _guess_ the outcome of an event, but _suppose_ that an event which has happened may result in good. We _think_ that a certain medicine may effect a cure, but if we have tried it successfully before for a similar complaint, _conjecture_ that it will, although not being absolutely sure that the conditions are precisely the same we are not _convinced_ and do not _know_.

~gums~. Compare RUBBERS.

H