Webster's English Usage Guide

404 Pages·2006·12.506 MB·English

by  Merriam-Webster

Webster’s
English
Usage
Guide
Quick answers to common
usage questions
Created in Cooperation with the Editors of
MERRIAM-WEBSTER

Webster’s
English
Usage
Guide
Created in Cooperation with the Editors of
MERRIAM-WEBSTER
II
1
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Contents
• •
Preface Vll
Pronunciation Symbols xi
Guide to English Usage 1
Glossary 348
Punctuation Guide 382

Preface
This book presents over 1,500 brief discussions of
common problems in English usage. Its main strengths
are its recognition of the historical background to
questions of usage and the fact that it is based on a
thorough examination of present-day usage. Merriam-
Webster’s extensive citation files of 15 million exam¬
ples of English words used in context have been a
valuable resource in developing this book.
While English, like some other languages, has long
had its commentators who seek to proscribe certain
usages and prescribe others, standard usage tends to
evolve quite independently of such critics. This book
sets out in concise form the standard uses to which
common English words, phrases, and grammatical
constructions are actually put, especially in writing.
Articles. Each article is introduced by one or more
boldface words indicating the subject for discussion.
data
glance, glimpse
reason is because
In cases where it seemed helpful to do so, homo¬
graphs are distinguished by italic labels indicating part
of speech.
Preface Vlll
account, noun
account, verb
Otherwise such distinctions are made as part of the
accompanying discussion.
An article that treats more than one aspect of its
subject may be divided into sections, each section
introduced by a boldface numeral. The topic of the
section is occasionally indicated by an introductory
word or phrase in italics.
allow 1. Allow, permit. Usage commentators
have long sought to distinguish between allow
and permit. . . .
2. Allow of. The intransitive allow, used with
of, occurs primarily. . . .
3. Allow in the sense “admit, concede”. . . .
Verbal Illustrations. This book includes thousands of
verbal illustrations offering examples primarily of
standard, but also occasionally of nonstandard, usages.
Standard usages are shown within angle brackets, with
the particular word or words at issue in italics.
When the verb date is used to point to a date of
origin, it may be used with from, back to, or to
<these vases date from the early Ming period>
<the poem dates back to 1843> <the dispute
dates to Japan’s annexation of the islands>.
When two different but equally acceptable alternatives