Стивен Пинкер - The Sense of Style - The Thinking Person’s Guide to Writing in the 21st Century

accepts

to hone in on,

but it is a malaprop

of

to home,

“return home” (what homing pigeons do). The overlap in meaning (“gradually converge on a precise point or edge”) conspires with the similar sounds to encourage the malaprop.

hot button

an emotional, divisive controversy (

She tried to stay away from the hot button of abortion

.)

hot topic (*

The hot button in the robotics industry is to get people and robots to work together

.)

Slang and vogue words give rise to malaprops, too (see also

New Age, politically correct, urban legend

). The

button

metaphor pertains to eliciting an instant, reflexive response, as in

He tried to press my buttons.

hung

suspended (

hung the picture

)

suspended from the neck until dead (*

hung the prisoner

)

Hung the prisoner

is not incorrect, but the Usage Panel and other careful writers prefer

hanged

.

intern

(verb)

detain, imprison (

The rebels were interned in the palace basement for three weeks

.)

inter, bury (*

The good men do is oft interned with their bones.

)

It’s

interred with their bones

. The meanings overlap, but listen for the

terr

(earth, as in “terrestrial”) in

inter,

and for the

internal

related to

intern.

ironic

uncannily incongruent; seemingly designed to violate expectations (

It was ironic that I forgot my textbook on human memory.

)

inconvenient, unfortunate (*

It was ironic that I forgot my textbook on organic chemistry.

)

You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means.

irregardless

There isn’t one.

regardless, irrespective

Purists have been ranting about this misnegated portmanteau for decades, but it’s not particularly common, and virtually all the Web hits are to claims that “

irregardless

is not a word.” The purists should declare victory and move on.

literally

in actual fact (

I literally blushed

.)

figuratively (*

I literally exploded

.)

The “figuratively” sense is a common hyperbole, and it is rarely confusing in context. But it drives careful readers crazy. Like other intensifiers it is usually superfluous, whereas the “actual fact” sense is indispensable and has no equivalent. And since the figurative use can evoke ludicrous imagery (e.g.,

The press has literally emasculated the president

), it screams, “I don’t think about what my words mean.”

luxuriant

abundant, florid (

luxuriant hair, a luxuriant imagination

)

luxurious (*

a luxuriant car

)

The “luxurious” sense is not incorrect (all dictionaries list it), but as a showy synonym for a perfectly good word it’s in bad taste.

meretricious

tawdry; offensively insincere (

a meretricious hotel lobby; a meretricious speech

)

meritorious (*

a meretricious public servant, *a meretricious benefactor

)

The word originally referred to prostitutes. My advice: Never try to compliment something by calling it meretricious. See also

fulsome, opportunism, simplistic.

mitigate

alleviate (

Setting out traps will mitigate the ant problem

.)

militate, provide reasons for (*

The profusion of ants mitigated toward setting out traps

.)

Some good writers have been caught using

mitigate

for

militate

, but it’s widely considered a malaprop.

New Age

spiritualistic, holistic (

He treated his lumbago with New Age remedies, like chanting and burning incense

.)

modern, futuristic (*

This countertop is made from a New Age plastic

.)

Just because the expression contains the word

new

, that does not mean it can refer to any new thing.

noisome

smelly

noisy

It’s from

annoy

, not from

noise.

nonplussed

stunned, bewildered (

The market crash left the experts nonplussed.

)

bored, unimpressed (*

His market pitch left the investors nonplussed.

)

From the Latin

non plus,

“no more.” It means “nothing more can be done.”

opportunism

seizing or exploiting opportunities (

His opportunism helped him get to the top, but it makes me sick

.)

creating or promoting opportunities (*

The Republicans advocated economic opportunism and fiscal restraint

.)

The correct sense can be a compliment (“resourcefulness”) or an insult (“unscrupulousness”), more often the latter. As with

fulsome,

if you use it carelessly you may insult something you meant to praise.

parameter

a variable (

Our prediction depends on certain parameters, like inflation and interest rates.

)

a boundary condition, a limit (*

We have to work within certain parameters, like our deadline and budget.

)

The pseudo-technical “boundary” sense, a blend with

perimeter

, has become standard, and is accepted by most of the Usage Panel. But as with

beg the question,

the sloppy usage gets on the nerves of technically sophisticated readers who need the original sense.

phenomena

plural of

phenomenon

(

These are interesting phenomena

.)

singular of

phenomenon

(*

This is an interesting phenomena

.)

See

criteria.

politically correct

dogmatically left-liberal (

The theory that little boys fight because of the way they have been socialized is the politically correct one.

)

fashionable, trendy (*

The Loft District is the new politically correct place to live.

)

See

hot button, New Age, urban legend.

The

correct

is sarcastic, lampooning the idea that only one kind of political opinion may be expressed.

practicable

easily put into practice (

Learning French would be practical, because he often goes to France on business, but because of his busy schedule it was not practicable

.)

practical (*

Learning French would be practicable, because he often goes to France on business

.)

The –

able

means “able,” as in

ability.

See also

credible, unexceptionable.

proscribe

condemn, forbid (

The policies proscribe amorous interactions between faculty and students.

)

prescribe, recommend, direct (*

The policies proscribe careful citation of all sources.

)

A doctor writes a prescription, not a proscription, when he tells you what you should do.

protagonist

actor, active character

(

Vito Corleone was the protagonist in

The Godfather.)

proponent (*

Leo was a protagonist of nuclear power

.)

The “proponent” sense is definitely a malaprop.