Note from a cranky editor

[Greg Cox]

When referring to the part played by an actor, the word is "role," not "roll."

This is not aimed at anyone at particular. I've just been seeing this error popping up more and more frequently lately, including twice today!

Just had to get that off my chest. You may now return to your regularly scheduled threads . . .

 

[Trent Roman]

That's just how an editor roles...

Fictitiously yours, Trent Roman

 

[Greg Cox]

The pain, the pain . . . !

 

[Christopher]

While we're on the subject, one frequently occurring error that's been bugging me lately is "sneak peak." It's supposed to be "sneak peek." It's an understandable error, but "peek" means a quick or surreptitious look and "peak" means a mountaintop or the highest point of a curve.

Also, it's not "free reign" but "free rein." Giving a horse free rein means letting go of its reins so that it's free to go where it wishes.

And one thing doesn't "jive with" another, it "jibes with" another. To jive is to speak nonsensically or deceptively; to jibe is to agree or correspond. To gibe, meanwhile, is to mock or heckle.

 

[tharpdevenport]

I've now seen Osama Bin Laden spelled Usama twice now, on hte FOX News ticker.

 

[Greg Cox]

And the phrase is "dire straits," not "dire straights." I saw that twice last week, too. Both times in print articles that should have known better.

 

[iguana_tonante]

While we're on the subject, one frequently occurring error that's been bugging me lately is "sneak peak." It's supposed to be "sneak peek." It's an understandable error, but "peek" means a quick or surreptitious look and "peak" means a mountaintop or the highest point of a curve.

Also, it's not "free reign" but "free rein." Giving a horse free rein means letting go of its reins so that it's free to go where it wishes.

And one thing doesn't "jive with" another, it "jibes with" another. To jive is to speak nonsensically or deceptively; to jibe is to agree or correspond. To gibe, meanwhile, is to mock or heckle.

Damn, the English language is confusing!

Italian is much simpler: buongiorno, buonasera, no spelling competitions, no homophones, that's it!

 

[auntiehill]

UM.....why is this in SciFi and not in Misc. ?

 

[Harvey]

I've now seen Osama Bin Laden spelled Usama twice now, on hte FOX News ticker.

That's been transilterated into English, though. There's no definitive spelling, although Osama has been the most widely accepted.

 

[Lonemagpie]

It's "horde" and "hoard" getting mixed up that most bugs me...

That and "Emporer"

 

[23skidoo]

When referring to the part played by an actor, the word is "role," not "roll."

This is not aimed at anyone at particular. I've just been seeing this error popping up more and more frequently lately, including twice today!

Just had to get that off my chest. You may now return to your regularly scheduled threads . . .

That one's not quite as annoying to me as cannon vs. canon, though!

Alex

 

[Klaus]

Spelling is bad enough, but the epidemic mass amnesia over the last decade or so about how to use a frakkin' apostrophe drives me absolutely nuts!

It's a short trip, I understand, but still...

The ' is, after all, the crux of the biscuit!

 

[John Clark]

Don't forget Moot/Mute - though I did like the argument from Earl about it

 

[Vendikarr]

UM.....why is this in SciFi and not in Misc. ?

It's probably meant for the Trek Lit folder.

 

[JustKate]

I've seen a lot of "Trek rolls" lately too, Greg. I always want to ask if they're white or whole wheat. And I saw a "jibes with" just the other day, Christopher. Others that rouse my inner curmudgeon:
It's bellwether not bellweather...
It's into the breach not into the breech...
It's farewell not fairwell...
And it's definitely mother lode not mother load...

And my personal favorite: coleslaw not coldslaw. Which I've only seen a couple of times, but that's more than enough.

I'm not even going to get into your vs. you're. That's a very common error, of course, and it always bugs me, of course, but I've been seeing it a lot lately. A lot.

 

[Lindley]

What, no one's mentioned lose vs loose yet?

 

[captcalhoun]

And one thing doesn't "jive with" another, it "jibes with" another. To jive is to speak nonsensically or deceptively; to jibe is to agree or correspond. To gibe, meanwhile, is to mock or heckle.

Larry Nemecek fucked that one up in the TNG companion a few times. he used 'gibe' not 'jibe'.

 

[Mike Farley]

To jive is to speak nonsensically or deceptively...

I thought it meant to speak in colorful street-slang, much like the beloved character J.J. Evans. Dyn-o-mite!

(Did anyone else proofread their post with a little extra care before they hit the "submit" button?)

 

[JustKate]

(Me me me! Didn't want to make the next list of "Can you believe that this dumbass couldn't tell these homonyms apart?" )

 

[Mike Farley]

Homonyms...those are primitive forms of humans, right?