Monthly Archives: January 2013

Dear Dallas Morning News: As you know, I certainly can’t complain about the coverage I’ve generally had in the Dallas Morning News. You’ve been generous to me over the years. But I really must protest the paltry and even silly … Continue reading →

Miscellaneous Entries. statistics = (1) the mathematics of collecting and analyzing numerical data; or (2) numerical data. Sense 1 is singular {statistics is an exacting discipline}. Sense 2 is plural {the statistics aren’t yet in}. status (/STAT-uhs/ or /STAY-tuhs/) forms … Continue reading →

What’s the lawyer’s single best source for typography and document design? ANSWER: All the most important points of typography are covered in LawProse’s Advanced Legal Writing & Editing course. Professor Garner has also written a good deal about the subject … Continue reading →

stalactite; stalagmite. They're both deposits of calcium carbonate found in caves and caverns. The difference is that a "stalactite" hangs from the ceiling, while a "stalagmite" rises from the floor. Writers sometimes fall into error by using "stalagmite" for "stalactite" … Continue reading →

squash; quash, vb. "Squash" (= to flatten or soften [something] by forceful crushing or squeezing) is not a substitute for "quash" (= to overturn or make legally invalid; to suppress, as a rebellion). Many writers err on this point — … Continue reading →

stadium. Although several dictionaries seem to prefer *"stadia" as the plural, "stadiums" is the more natural and the more usual form. "Stadiums" is also 30 times as common — e.g.: o "Dozens of stadiums have sprouted up all over the … Continue reading →

It seems obvious that you shouldn’t put your audience to sleep, doesn’t it? It should also be obvious to people who deliver dull presentations or talk in circles at dinner parties — but consider how many boring speakers you’ve had … Continue reading →

spring / sprang / sprung. So inflected. But "springed" is correct when the sense is "equipped with springs" {a springed mattress} {springed hinges} or "to spend the season of spring" {they springed in Europe}. (The latter usage will strike many … Continue reading →

sprightly. "Sprightly" (= [1] lively, airy; or [2] zesty, esp. spicy, in flavor) is subject to the mischievous misspelling *"spritely" — e.g.: o "Will she end up a bitter, washed-up star a la Baby Jane, psychologically torturing her spritely [read … Continue reading →