I hope you find my writing and business tips and observations useful. My business and blog are dedicated to helping businesses communicate clearly and reach their potential.
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Finding hares in your bathroom
I admit the only times I have seen today’s words used incorrectly is in bathrooms or children’s writing, but is a bathroom notice less important than any other business communication?
Putting up a notice in your public bathroom as part of a policy of keeping them clean and pleasant for all users is fine and can communicate more than the words on the paper. However, a very different message can be conveyed with signs like:
Please keep your hares out of the basins
and graffiti replies such as
Then provide some rabbit hutches for us
But hairs are ok in the basins?
So for the sake of all of us using public bathrooms with hair issues, here are today’s definitions.
hair [noun]: a long protein fibre produced by animals (mostly by mammals) from follicles in the skin. Humans consider head hair as part of our appearance whilst hair is important for warmth and survival in many other animals. Similar strands (such as on plant roots) are also called hairs.
Jenny brushes her hair every morning before leaving her room.
hare [noun]: a mammal belonging to the genus Lepus, similar to rabbits
The hare is related to the rabbit but does not have burrows for its young and is generally larger.
My tips for remembering which is which – hares are like rabbits while hair is in the air.
Feeling content with contempt?
These three words are completely different, and if said clearly, should never be confused by someone who knows their individual meanings. However, said quickly, these words can sound alike and lead to confusion – do you know the difference and take care to pronounce them carefully?
contend: [verb] taking a position or stand in an argument, competition, contest or effort
The politician contends his position again, hoping his past achievements will win back his seat.
content: [adverb] satisfied, happy; [noun] contained or what is contained
Having finished another 10,000 words, the writer was content with her efforts.
He warily viewed the content of the student’s locker.
contempt: [noun] feeling of disapproval and superiority to something or someone that is regarded as vile, of little account or mean
He treated all criminals with contempt, and never tried to hide the fact.
The birth of a berth
With my daughter’s birthday this week, this seemed like an appropriate pair of similar but unrelated words.
birth (noun): a new start, especially relating to a baby leaving its mother’s body
My youngest child’s birth was quicker than my earlier experiences.
berth (noun): a space for a ship or large vehicle to be tied up or parked; a sleeping space in a boat; a job (usually on a ship); space in which to turn or manoeuvre a ship
The Captain skilfully brought the ship into its berth.
There are two ways to remember which birth is which. The first is to think of the sea in relation to the ship’s berth. However, the more fun option is to think of the i in birth as a candle on the-all-important birthday cake!
Pause to check the meaning
My daughters recently had a confusing conversation because of the incredible similarity between today’s Monday Meanings – sunscreen and skin care mixed in with dogs was a bit strange so here are the actual meanings for you!
paws: [noun] feet of a clawed animal. [verb] touch in a clumsy or dirty way
The mouse pulled thorns from the lion’s paws. Their dog paws me every time I wear white to their house!
pause [noun]: a period without action or noise
There was a pause in the meeting while lunch was served.
pores: [noun] a tiny opening in membranes such as skin. [verb] be intent and focussed
A facial will open up your pores. He pores over his book whenever Mary goes out.
pours: [verb] to make something flow, such as out of a jug; a heavy flow, such as of rain or events.
Joan always pours the tea before the coffee. We will cancel our hike only if it pours in the morning.
Not so easy to show you how to remember which is which, other than that wild animals may have paws and jaws to watch out for! Do you have a way to tell pores/paws/pause/pours apart?
Elocution is an art, locution a style
If you have ever tried acting or serious public speaking, you may well have thought about your elocution – but how about your locution?
locution: [noun] style of spoken language, a phrase or idiom
A linguist can easily tell people apart by their locution.
elocution: [noun] how speech is delivered, the art of delivery speech
The actress changed characters predominantly by changing her elocution.
To tell them apart remember that elocution is how you orally express your thoughts.
Wrongs meanings can eclipse the message
A clear and simple message will always bring better results than a complicated or confusing message. However, even if your message is clearly written, one misused word can cloud the message and make it hard to understand or sometimes give the opposite meaning to your intention.
Make sure you know the meanings of eclipse, ellipse and ellipsis as you can eclipse your message by mixing them up!
ellipse: [noun] an oval shape
My daughter calls an ellipse a squashed circle!
ellipsis: [noun] a set of 3 dots to signify missing words
As a sole trader, Sally keeps all the profits… and accepts all the risks.
eclipse: [noun] loss of light or splendour, generally due to something coming between the light source and the eye. Common use is mostly about the sun or moon but it can be used for other situations
Huddled in a corner, they froze as the hunting man eclipse plunged them into darkness.
Note that ellipsis has more dots (as in “dot your i’s”) and means using 3 dots, and an eclipse includes a c for clouding over, and you’ll be using your words wisely!
Take counsel from the council
In business, you may well have to deal with your local council for registrations, permits and various services.
Yet are you sure of the spelling of council? Some spelling mistakes will be corrected by a spell check but sometimes it will lead you to writing counsel instead which will totally change the meaning of your sentence – make it completely meaningless.
council: [noun] an administrative or planning body or committee
The local council is responsible for assigning industrial and business zones in our area.
counsel: [verb] to discuss and debate, advise, talk over; a person’s views or intention
A business coach or mentor can counsel you about your priorities and objectives.
To remember which is which, think of the self involved in counsel.
Resolve your new resolution
It’s early January and new years resolutions are still being discussed and worked on so today’s definitions are inspired by the word resolution…
resolve: [verb] decide upon (alone or as a vote), solve, analyse
After hearing all the evidence, the judge will resolve the custody question.
[as a noun, it means being steadfast, sticking to a course or showing mental resolution and strength]
resolute: [adjective] being determined, consistent, staying on track, focussed, purposeful
Hamish was resolute throughout the year and became due of his school.
resolution: [noun] something resolved or decided on, a formal decision or opinion from a meeting, solution to a question
The committee passed the resolution after only fifteen minutes.
[as a verb, it means resolving, deciding, analysing or solving]
So you need to be resolute to resolve an issue and make a resolution. (Don’t say that too many times in a row!)
Does a suite suit you?
I was happily reading a blog post nicely laid out with tables and sub-headings when I came across a sentence “change your pricing strategy to suite your business needs.”
I’ll say no more other than to give a new pair of misused words…
A business woman in a suit on a lounge suite – one little letter makes a world of difference.
suit: (verb) to be acceptable to or enhance something
Will it suit you to meet at 10am on Wednesday?
Does your pricing strategy suit your business needs?
suit: (noun) a set of clothing, generally consisting of a jacket with pants or skirt; legal action; one of four divisions in a pack of cards club, diamond, spade, heart); a romantic interest.
Most men wear a suit to a funeral.
Jason was very pleased when he won the law suit against his competitor.
Rachel’s hand of cards included every suit.
After three years, Elizabeth accepted his suit.
suite: related things together as a set, such as a group of rooms in a hotel or a set of furniture for one room; music in one key but several parts
Jane ordered a new bedroom suite at the sales.
These are the types of errors I spot naturally and instinctively correct for clients so if you are concerned about your word usage don’t worry about showing your writing to a professional writer/editor – apart from the fact we’ve seen it before, it is better one professional sees it and fixes it than you publish it and your prospective clients see it, don’t you think?
[Tweet “Do you know your suite from your suit?”]
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