Bear vs. Bare
Bear and bare are homophones—words that sound alike but have different meanings.
bear
-v.
1. To carry something.
2. To be equipped with something.
- the right to bear arms
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bear
-n.
- 1. A large omnivorous mammal, related to the dog and raccoon, having shaggy hair, a very small tail, and flat feet; a member of family Ursidae, particularly of subfamily Ursinae
- (informal) An animal that resembles a bear, such as a koala or ant bear.
(Visit Grammarly Words for a more complete definition.)
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bare
-adj.
- Minimal; that is or are just sufficient.
- the bare necessities
2. Naked, uncovered.
- Don’t show your bare backside in public.
3. Having no supplies.
- a room bare of furniture
- The cupboard was bare.
(Visit Grammarly Words for a more complete definition.)
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Grammar Revolution is a documentary Kickstarter project by David and Elizabeth O’Brien, aimed at changing the way people think about grammar.
From the Kickstarter page:
“Dear Backers,
$22,000 is the minimum we need to finish the Grammar Revolution documentary. This fundraising campaign is all or nothing. We have to meet our goal of $22,000 by February 7. Your credit card will only be charged if we reach our goal.
We’ve already filmed many amazing interviews, but we need your help if we are going to finish filming and do all the work needed to produce, edit, release, and distribute it! Please contribute what you can and share this video with your friends. Thank you for your support!”
This brings up a valuable question: why is grammar important? Tell us what you think!
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SHARE your really bad writing with us in the comments!
The Style Invitational is a humorous word play contest that runs weekly in the Washington Post. These really bad analogies come from the contest results of a 1995 invitational, http://wapo.st/13zgzDS.
Cold Weather Idioms and Phrases
With the frigid weather that swept the USA this week, many of us have been “freezing our butts off” (a frequently used, colloquial phrase in English that implies weather so cold that our buns turn to ice!).
Some other cold weather phrases are:
- To come in from the cold (bring in from the cold): to be welcome in or become part of a group, particularly if you are new or alone.
Susan brought me in from the cold when she offered for me to join the team.
- To leave someone out in the cold: to refuse or neglect to include someone in an activity, group, or conversation.
As soon as she went to the table where the group was sitting, they stopped talking. She was left out in the cold.
- To give someone the cold shoulder: to ignore someone or minimally interact with them, usually as a passive aggressive form of punishment or disapproval.
He’s giving me the cold shoulder after our argument last night.
- To be snowed in: to be trapped in a building due to the amount of snow.
“I can’t make it to the party tonight. I can’t even get out of the garage. I’m snowed in!”
- To be snowed under: to be very busy with work, overwhelmed.
Since we took on the new clients, I’ve been snowed under. There is so much work to be done.
- To be on thin ice: to be on the verge of an unfavorable situation; to be on probation; to push the limits.
You’re on thin ice, John. You’ve been late to work a lot lately and could lose your job!
- To put something on ice: to postpone something.
We’ve been talking about this project for a while, but haven’t got anywhere. I suggest putting it on ice for now and moving onto another project.
Reblog if you agree.
Double Comparatives and Superlatives
The comparative and superlative of mountains!
There are times in writing when a comparison is necessary. A description gives the reader specific details in order to provide them with an image. Making a comparison is another way of providing the reader with imagery within a descriptive narrative. The usage of both comparison and description helps in to keep the reader engaged with the text.
Comparative sentences contain adjectives and adverbs that tend to end in –er, ‑est or have the words “more” and “most”. As a refresher, adjectives describe a noun or pronouns; while adverbs describe a verb, adjective or other adverb. The Standard English language has different forms that coincide with the endings –er, ‑est, and the words “more” and “most”. Some common mistakes with the construction of comparative sentences are not finishing the comparison, or trying to compare things that should not be compared. This may seem simple enough, but there are some exceptions and things to note.
Double Comparatives
A double comparative is a sentence that compares two things. Forming adjectives and adverbs in the comparative degree can be a little tricky.
Adjectives in the comparative degree end in -er, such as newer in the previous sentence “My car is newer than his car.”. Adverbs that end in -ly use “more” instead to form the comparative degree, as in more highly in the sentence “Mary speaks more highly of the iTouch than the iPod.”.
The most common error with double comparatives is the usage of both the -er ending and the word “more”. These sentences generally sound awkward when read out loud. Consider the following sentence:
“Mary speaks more highlier of the iTouch than the iPod.”
In this case it would be best to remove the -er and use the adverb in its comparative degree. Now, reconsider the sentence:
“Mary speaks more highly of the iTouch than the iPod.”
Double Superlatives
Adjectives and adverbs in the superlative degree are similar to the comparative degree, but use the -est ending and the word “most” instead. In addition, the article “the” must be placed before the adjective or adverb in the sentence. Comparative sentences using the superlative degree are saying that something is the most when compared to the rest of the group.
Consider the following sentences:
Justin is the fastest runner on the track team.
Mr. Copeland spoke the most highly of Juan than the other interview candidates.
Generally speaking, the superlative degree is used when something is being compared to three or more things.
A common mistake with double superlatives is using both the ending -est and the word “most” in the same sentence. Errors with double superlatives can also be identified when the sentence by reading the sentence out loud. For example, the prior sentence would be incorrect if it was written as follows:
“Justin is the most fastest runner on the track team.”
It would be best to remove “most” and keep fastest in the superlative degree.
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onomatopoeia
-n.
- (uncountable) The property of a word of sounding like what it represents.
- (countable) A word which has the property of onomatopoeia, such as “gurgle” or “hiss”.
Definition from Grammarly Words, a free, easy-to-use dictionary and thesaurus.
In English, word order is very strict. In many other languages, however, word order is fluid.
