Editor's Corner

We’ve already covered most of the words in the “N” category because the homonyms started with letters earlier in the alphabet (e.g., knows/nose, knight/night). Today I only have two pairs of homonyms for you, but thanks to Keith Slayton, we have a comic about Noah for your enjoyment. Thanks, Keith!

Kara Church

Senior Technical Editor

I’m a bit late today, but here are the other interjections many of you were looking for after yesterday’s e-mail; these are from the same list at DailyWritingTips.com. I hope you have a splendid afternoon (or evening).

· Hmph (also hrmph or humph) indicates displeasure or indignation.

· Ho-ho is expressive of mirth, or (along with its variant oh-ho) can indicate triumph of discovery.

· Ho-hum signals indifference or boredom.

· Hubba-hubba is the vocal equivalent of a leer.

· Huh (or hunh) is a sign of disbelief, confusion, or surprise, or, with a question mark, is a request for repetition.

· Hup, from the sound-off a military cadence chant, signals beginning an exerting task.

· Hurrah (also hoorah, hooray, and hurray, and even huzzah) is an exclamation of triumph or happiness.

· Ick signals disgust.

· Lah-de-dah denotes nonchalance or dismissal, or derision about pretension.

· Mm-hmm, variously spelled, is an affirmative or corroborating response.

· Mmm, extended as needed, conveys palatable or palpable pleasure.

· Mwah is suggestive of a kiss, often implying unctuous or exaggerated affection.

· Neener-neener, often uttered in a series of three repetitions, is a taunt.

· Now (often repeated “Now, now”) is uttered as an admonition.

· Oh is among the most versatile of interjections. Use it to indicate comprehension or acknowledgment (or, with a question mark, a request for verification), to preface direct address (“Oh, sir!”), as a sign of approximation or example (“Oh, about three days”), or to express emotion or serves as a response to a pain or pleasure. (Ooh is a variant useful for the last two purposes.)

· Oh-oh (or alternatives in which oh is followed by various words) is a warning response to something that will have negative repercussions.

· Olé, with an accent mark over the e, is borrowed from Spanish and is a vocal flourish to celebrate a deft or adroit maneuver.

· Ooh, with o’s repeated as needed, conveys interest or admiration, or, alternatively, disdain.

· Ooh-la-la is a response to an attempt to impress or gently mocks pretension or finery.

· Oops (and the jocular diminutive variation oopsie or oopsy and the variant whoops) calls attention to an error or fault.

· Ouch (or ow, extended as needed) signals pain or is a response to a harsh word or action.

· Oy, part of Yiddish expressions such as oy gevalt (equivalent to “Uh-oh”), is a lament of frustration, concern, or self-pity.

· Pff, extended as needed, expresses disappointment, disdain, or annoyance.

· Pfft, or phfft, communicates abrupt ending or departure or is a sardonic dismissal akin to pff.

· Phew, or pew, communicates disgust, fatigue, or relief. (Phooey, also spelled pfui, is a signal for disgust, too, and can denote dismissal as well. PU and P.U. are also variants.)

· Poof is imitative of a sudden disappearance, as if by magic.

· Pshaw denotes disbelief, disapproval, or irritation or, alternatively, communicates facetious self-consciousness.

· Psst calls for quiet.

· Rah, perhaps repeated, signals triumph.

· Shh (extended as necessary) is an imperative for silence.

· Sis boom bah is an outdated encouraging cry, most likely to be used mockingly now.

· Tchah communicates annoyance.

· Tsk-tsk and its even snootier variant tut-tut are condemnations or scoldings; the related sound tch is the teeth-and-tongue click of disapproval.

· Ugh is an exclamation of disgust.

· Uh is an expression of skepticism or a delaying tactic.

· Uh-huh indicates affirmation or agreement.

· Uh-oh signals concern or dismay.

· Uh-uh is the sound of negation or refusal.

· Um is a placeholder for a pause but also denotes skepticism.

· Va-va-voom is an old-fashioned exclamation denoting admiration of physical attractiveness.

· Whee is an exclamation of excitement or delight.

· Whew is a variant of phew but can also express amazement.

· Whoa is a call to halt or an exclamation of surprise or relief.

· Whoop-de-doo and its many variants convey mocking reaction to something meant to impress.

· Woo and woo-hoo (and variations like yahoo, yee-haw, and yippee) indicate excitement. (Woot, also spelled w00t among an online in-crowd, is a probably ephemeral variant.)

· Wow expresses surprise.

· Yay is a congratulatory exclamation. (Not to be confused with yeah, a variant of yes.)

· Yikes is an expression of fear or concern, often used facetiously.

· Yo-ho-ho is the traditional pirates’ refrain.

· Yoo-hoo attracts attention.

· Yow, or yowza, is an exclamation of surprise or conveys being impressed.

· Yuck (also spelled yech or yecch) signals disgust. (Not to be confused with yuk, a laugh.)

· Yum, or yummy, is a response to the taste of something delicious and, by extension, the sight of an attractive person.

· Zoinks is an expression of surprise or amazement popularized by the cartoon character Shaggy, of Scooby Doo fame.

· Zowie, often in combination following wowie, a variant of wow, expresses admiration or astonishment.

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Today I’m taking a leap over to a part of speech that is often forgotten: the interjection. An interjection is a word or phrase use to express emotion; an exclamation; a short utterance; a command.

Here are a few from www.dailywritingtips.com:

1. Ack communicates disgust or dismissal.

2. Ah can denote positive emotions like relief or delight (generally, pronounced with a long a).

3. Aha signals triumph or surprise, or perhaps derision.

4. Ahem is employed to gain attention.

5. Argh, often drawn out with additional h’s, is all about frustration.

6. Aw can be dismissive or indicative of disappointment, or, when drawn out, expressive of sympathy or adoration.

7. Aye denotes agreement.

8. Bah is dismissive.

9. Blah communicates boredom or disappointment.

10. Blech (or bleah or bleh) implies nausea.

11. Boo is an exclamation to provoke fright.

12. Boo-hoo is imitative of crying and is derisive.

13. Boo-ya (with several spelling variants) is a cry of triumph.

14. Bwah-hah-hah (variously spelled, including mwah-hah-hah) facetiously mimics the stereotypical archvillain’s triumphant laugh.

15. D’oh is the spelling for the muttering accompanying Homer Simpson’s trademark head-slapping self-abuse.

16. Duh derides someone who seems dense.

17. Eek indicates an unpleasant surprise.

18. Eh, with a question mark, is a request for repetition or confirmation of what was just said; without, it is dismissive.

19. Er (sometimes erm) plays for time.

20. Ew denotes disgust, intensified by the addition of one or more e’s and/or w’s.

21. Feh (and its cousin meh) is an indication of feeling underwhelmed or disappointed.

22. Gak is an expression of disgust or distaste.

23. Ha expresses joy or surprise, or perhaps triumph.

24. Ha-ha (with possible redoubling) communicates laughter or derision.

25. Hamana-hamana, variously spelled, and duplicated as needed, implies speechless embarrassment.

26. Hardy-har-har, or har-har repeated as needed, communicates mock amusement.

27. Hee-hee is a mischievous laugh, while its variants heh and heh-heh (and so on) can have a more derisive connotation.

28. Hey can express surprise or exultation, or can be used to request repetition or call for attention.

29. Hist signals the desire for silence.

30. Hm, extended as needed, suggests curiosity, confusion, consternation, or skepticism.

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The following is a partial list of what the author calls “problem words and phrases.” There are several on here that I’d classify as shredder-worthy, and at the top of that list would be “due to the fact that.” Here are ten of the uglier ones, from DailyWritingTips.com:

Tried-and-true words and phrases are convenient, but they are also truly trying—as with clichés, when a writer relies too heavily on stock usage, the resulting prose is tired and uninspired. Watch out for the following deadly usages.

· And also: And and also are redundant; use one or the other.

· As to whether: As to is extraneous; use whether only.

· At this point in time: Omit this meaningless filler.

· Basically, essentially, totally: Basically, these words are essentially nonessential, and you can totally dispense with them.

· Could care less: No, you couldn’t. You want to convey that it’s not possible for you to care
less, so you couldn’t care less. [KC – Richard S., this one’s for you!]

· Due to the fact that: Replace this phrase with because.

· Equally as: As is superfluous; write equally only.

· In the process of: This extraneous phrasing is acceptable in extemporaneous speaking but unnecessarily verbose in prepared oration and in writing.

· Lots/lots of: In formal writing, employ many or much in place of one of these colloquialisms.

· On account of: Replace this awkward phrase with because.

Kara Church

Senior Technical Editor

Our language is inundated with sports metaphors. I thought this was an amusing attempt at “revenge” by taking a basketball tradition and turning it into serious word nerdery. Enjoy!

The Quest for the Best Word Ever by Mark Nichol

(From http://www.dailywritingtips.com/the-quest-for-the-best-word-ever/)

Last year, an advertising executive named Ted McCagg embarked on a whimsical endeavor: Using a bracketing schematic like that employed to record the outcome of athletic tournaments—in which, in each iteration, the number of selections displayed is reduced by half according to some criterion, until only one choice remains—McCagg subjectively selected the best word ever. [KC – Not sure what a bracketing schematic looks like? Have a look here: http://www.ncaa.com/interactive-bracket/basketball-men/d1%5D

McCagg’s Final Four?

· diphthong (two vowel sounds in one syllable)

· gherkin (a type of cucumber, or the vine from which it grows)

· hornswoggle (a hoax, or to hoax)

· kerfuffle (a disturbance)

Is there any practical use for this exercise? I see it as an entertaining vocabulary-building activity: Brainstorm any number of interesting words, whether you know their meaning or not. Subject them to match-ups, two words at a time, and select the one you favor on whatever merits—definition, euphony, or some ineffable quality (I like euphony and ineffable). Repeat until you have a winner, then resolve to learn the word’s meaning if you don’t know it already, and use it in your writing.

There are no losers in this game: The runner-up simply takes its place in line, followed by the favored term in the duel between the no. 3 and no. 4 seeds and then by the runner-up in that contest. Try to use each new front-runner as it is identified.

Organize a tournament with a circle of friends (in real life or online), a writing group, or a class. Make submissions anonymous, match them up randomly, and have the participants vote on their favorite word in each pair, which then advances to a run-off with another favored word.

Perhaps this activity seems silly. After all, maybe the writing you’re paid for is about finance or technology, or you produce marketing content. However, I doubt you work in a kerfuffle-free milieu, and hornswoggling may occur betimes (I like milieu and betimes), but you can apply your best-word-ever efforts to specific jargon and vocabulary.

Oh, and McCagg’s best word ever? Diphthong.

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Good morning to you all! I hope your week started off well. Today’s fare is from grammarbook.com, with a great photo and some word play from Jill Beauvillia.

In college, I rented a room in a house that was owned by a retired schoolteacher. He and his son lived upstairs; three of us girls rented rooms downstairs. His son was my age, but he should’ve been a teenager in the ‘50s and ‘60s. We used to cruise around looking for classic cars in our friend George’s ’65 Chevy.

Anyway, every Monday—winter, summer, rain, or shine—Eric would have The Mamas & The Papas on the record player and I’d be awakened to the “la, la…la, la, la, la” of the song “Monday, Monday.” Being a little obsessive, he wouldn’t play it just once. No, he’d set it to replay and it would go on and on until I was on my way to work or school.

Today, that earworm is still with me, and every Monday when I try to think of an Editor’s Corner title, I get stuck with it for the rest of the day. Thanks a lot, buddy.

Here is the rest of the “L” list as I promised Friday (from grammarbook.com):

Today’s list of frequently confused and misspelled words includes lie and lay. I separated these two troublemakers from the other “L” words because they deserve special attention. The following chart is from the Purdue OWL, with examples from the grammarbook.com website below.

LIE versus LAY

Examples in the Present Tense:

I am tempted to lie about my age.
I am not lying about my age.

I like to lie down for a nap at 2:00 p.m.
I am lying down for a nap today.
The hens lay eggs.
The hen is laying eggs.

Examples in the Past Tense:

He lied on the witness stand.

I lay down for a nap yesterday at 2:00 p.m.
The hen laid two eggs yesterday.

Examples with a Participle (has, have):

He has lied each day on the witness stand.

I have lain down for a nap every day this week.
The hen has laid two eggs every day this week.

Have a great weekend!

Kara Church

Senior Technical Editor

Well, the moral to this story is that pronouns are difficult. We’ll have to return to this topic in the weeks to come. Here are the results:

ABBBA – 46

ABABA – 11

BAABA – 5

BABAB – 37 (Congratulations!)

BACAB – 4

Question 1

Question 2

Question 3

Question 4

Question 5

Here are some additional tips and examples from the site where the quiz came from: http://www.grammarbook.com/grammar/pronoun.asp

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It has been forever since we last had a quiz! To test your knowledge of pronouns, I have five questions for you.

The way this works:

· You choose the correct sentence from each group below

· Write down your answers (please do not send them to me)

· Look for the voting buttons at the top of this e-mail

· Select the voting button corresponding to the set of answers that you think is correct

· Wait until noon (or later, depending where you are) and all will be revealed!

Choose the correct sentence from each group:

Question 1

Question 2

Question 3

Question 4

Question 5

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