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IMPLY/INFER These two words, which originally had quite distinct meanings, have become so blended together that most people no longer distinguish between them.. in the fact thatIN THE FA

IMPLY/INFER

These two words, which originally had quite distinct meanings, have become so blended together that most people no longer distinguish between them If you want to avoid irritating the rest of us, use

“imply” when something is being suggested without being explicitly stated and “infer” when

someone is trying to arrive at a conclusion based on evidence “Imply” is more assertive, active: I

imply that you need to revise your paper; and, based on my hints, you infer that I didn’t think highly

of your first draft

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file:///C|/Temp/livres/commonerrors/errors/imply.html03/09/2005 15:38:28

in regards to

IN REGARDS TO

WITH REGARD TO

Business English is deadly enough without scrambling it “As regards your downsizing plan ” is acceptable, if stiff “In regard to ” is also correct But don’t confuse the two by writing “In regards to.”

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file:///C|/Temp/livres/commonerrors/errors/regards.html03/09/2005 15:38:28

in the fact that

IN THE FACT THAT

BY THE FACT THAT

Many people mistakenly write “in the fact that” when they mean simply “in that” in sentences like “It seemed wiser not to go to work in the fact that the boss had discovered the company picnic money was missing.” Omit “the fact.” While we’re at it, “infact” is not a word; “in fact” is always a two-word phrase

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file:///C|/Temp/livres/commonerrors/errors/fact.html03/09/2005 15:38:29

INCENT, INCENTIVIZE

ENCOURAGE

Business folks sometimes use “incent” to mean “create an incentive,” but it’s not standard English “Incentivize” is even more widely used, but strikes many people as an ugly substitute for “encourage.”

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file:///C|/Temp/livres/commonerrors/errors/incent.html03/09/2005 15:38:29

INCREDIBLE

The other day I heard a film reviewer praise a director because he created “incredible characters,” which would literally mean unbelievable characters What the reviewer meant to say, of course, was precisely the opposite: characters so lifelike as to seem like real people Intensifiers and superlatives tend to get worn down quickly through overuse and become almost meaningless, but it is wise to be aware of their root meanings so that you don’t unintentionally utter absurdities “Fantastic” means “as

in a fantasy” just as “fabulous” means “as in a fable.” A “wonderful” sight should make you pause in wonder (awe) Some of these words are worn down beyond redemption, however For instance, who now expects a “terrific” sight to terrify?

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file:///C|/Temp/livres/commonerrors/errors/incredible.html03/09/2005 15:38:30

INCIDENCE/INCIDENTS/INSTANCES

These three overlap in meaning just enough to confuse a lot of people Few of us have a need for

“incidence,” which most often refers to degree or extent of the occurrence of something (“the

incidence of measles in Whitman County has dropped markedly since the vaccine has been provided free”) “Incidents,” which is pronounced identically, is merely the plural of “incident,” meaning

“occurrences” (“police reported damage to three different outhouses in separate incidents last

Halloween”) Instances are examples (“semicolons are not required in the first three instances given

in your query”) Incidents can be used as instances only if someone is using them as examples

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file:///C|/Temp/livres/commonerrors/errors/incidences.html03/09/2005 15:38:30

INDEPTH

IN DEPTH

You can make an “in-depth” study of a subject by studying it “in depth,” but never “indepth.” Like “ a lot ” this is two words often mistaken for one The first, adjectival, use of the phrase given above is commonly hyphenated, which may lead some people to splice the words even more closely together

“Indepth” is usually used as an adverb by people of limited vocabulary who would be better off saying “profoundly” or “thoroughly.” Some of them go

so far as to say that they have studied a subject “indepthly.” Avoid this one if you don’t want to be snickered at.

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file:///C|/Temp/livres/commonerrors/errors/indepth.html03/09/2005 15:38:30

INDIAN/NATIVE AMERICAN

Although academics have long promoted “Native American” as a more accurate label than “Indian,” most of the people so labeled continue to refer to themselves as “Indians” and prefer that term In Canada, there is a move to refer to descendants of the original inhabitants as “First Peoples,” but so far that has not spread to the U.S

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file:///C|/Temp/livres/commonerrors/errors/indian.html03/09/2005 15:38:31

INDIVIDUAL

PERSON

Law-enforcement officers often use “individual” as a simple synonym for "person” when they don’t particularly mean to stress individuality: “I pursued the individual who had fired the weapon at me for three blocks.” This sort of use of “individual” lends an oddly formal air to your writing When

“person” works as well, use it

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file:///C|/Temp/livres/commonerrors/errors/individual.html03/09/2005 15:38:31

in fact

INFACT

IN FACT

“In fact” is always two words.

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file:///C|/Temp/livres/commonerrors/errors/infact.html03/09/2005 15:38:32

INFAMOUS/NOTORIOUS

“Infamous” means famous in a bad way It is related to the word “infamy.” Humorists have for a couple of centuries jokingly used the word in a positive sense, but the effectiveness of the joke depends on the listener knowing that this is a misuse of the term Because this is a very old joke indeed you should stick to using “infamous” only of people like Hitler and Billy the Kid

“Notorious” means the same thing as “infamous” and should also only be used in a negative sense

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file:///C|/Temp/livres/commonerrors/errors/infamous.html03/09/2005 15:38:33