Avoid the misuse of literally! It is often (not) literally correct!.. The Montreal Gazette runs a column by Mark Abley on writing. This is one of my favourites, reprinted with his kind permission. ..”When the global oil companies run your country,” the B.C. columnist Murray Dobbin wrote a few weeks ago, “when they own your […]
Tag: writing tips
Use of words: Impact
I don’t enjoy seeing the word ‘impact’ used as a verb when the writer is talking about the effect one thing has on another. I especially don’t like it when talking about injuries… it comes close to punning, because so many injuries involve impacts! But I guess this is another battle I am losing. When […]
A new word: Paraprosdokian
Ian Scott introduced me to a new word “paraprosdokian’ — “a figure of speech in which the latter part of a sentence or phrase is surprising or unexpected in a way that causes the reader or listener to reframe or reinterpret the first part.” Wikipedia adds: “It is frequently used for humorous or dramatic effect, […]
Writing tips (I)
Writing tip I doubt if the vast majority of majorities are vast. “vast majority” is a cliché; Surely there are some majorities that are simply majorities or large. Avoid clichés like the plague! […]