As I listened to the radio this morning, there was a report on yesterday’s shooting at the Washington D.C. Navy Yard. The news reported "we have the single and sole person responsible" for the shooting. As I pondered that redundancy, I heard the local news repeat the same line about the “single and sole shooter.” I started wondering if there was some subtle difference I was missing. I looked both words up and they are definitely redundant: single is defined as “only one” and sole is defined as “only or single.”
1.
2. Here I offer you the A’s and B’s from a list of 200 common redundancies, brought to us by grammar.about.com:
A
- (absolutely) essential
- (absolutely) necessary
- (actual) facts
- advance (forward)
- (advance) planning
- (advance) preview
- (advance) reservations
- (advance) warning
- add (an additional)
- add (up)
- (added) bonus
- (affirmative) yes
- (aid and) abet
- (all-time) record
- alternative (choice)
- A.M. (in the morning)
- (and) etc.
- (anonymous) stranger
- (annual) anniversary
- (armed) gunman
- (artificial) prosthesis
- ascend (up)
- ask (the question)
- assemble (together)
- attach (together)
- ATM (machine)
- autobiography (of his or her own life)
B
- balsa (wood)
- (basic) fundamentals
- (basic) necessities
- best (ever)
- biography (of his–or her–life)
- blend (together)
- (boat) marina
- bouquet (of flowers)
- brief (in duration)
- (brief) moment
- (brief) summary
- (burning) embers
Have a good day!
Kara
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