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Because of the unsavory associations that have gathered around the term “masseuse,” serious practitioners generally prefer to be called “massage therapists.” List of errors file:///C|/Te

MASS

MASSIVE

When the dumb Coneheads on Saturday Night Live talked about consuming “mass quantities” of beer they didn’t know any better, but native Earth humans should stick with “massive” unless they are trying to allude to SNL “Mass” is often used by young people in expressions where “many” or even

the informal “a lot of” would be more appropriate

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file:///C|/Temp/livres/commonerrors/errors/mass.html03/09/2005 15:38:49

MASSEUSE/MASSEUR

“Masseuse” is a strictly female term; Monsieur Philippe, who gives back rubs down at the men’s gym, is a masseur Because of the unsavory associations that have gathered around the term

“masseuse,” serious practitioners generally prefer to be called “massage therapists.”

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file:///C|/Temp/livres/commonerrors/errors/masseuse.html03/09/2005 15:38:49

MAUVE

“Mauve” (a kind of purple) is pronounced to rhyme with “grove,” not “mawv.” List of errors

file:///C|/Temp/livres/commonerrors/errors/mauve.html03/09/2005 15:38:49

MAY/MIGHT

Most of the time “might” and “may” are almost interchangeable, with “might” suggesting a

somewhat lower probability You’re more likely to get wet if the forecaster says it may rain than if she says it might rain; but substituting one for the other is unlikely to get you into trouble—so long as you stay in the present tense

But “might” is also the past tense of the auxiliary verb “may,” and is required in sentences like

“Chuck might have avoided arrest for the robbery if he hadn’t given the teller his business card

before asking for the money.” When speculating that events might have been other than they were, don’t substitute “may” for “might."

As an aside: if you are an old-fashioned child, you will ask, “May I go out to play?” rather than “Can

I go out to play?” Despite the prevalence of the latter pattern, some adults still feel strongly that

“may” has to do with permission whereas “can” implies only physical ability But then if you have a parent like this you’ve had this pattern drilled into your head long before you encountered this page List of errors

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maybe/may be

MAYBE/MAY BE

“Maybe” is an adverb meaning “perhaps,” so if you are uncertain whether to use this word or the phrase “may be,” try substituting “perhaps”: “Maybe she forgot I said I’d meet her at six o’clock” becomes “Perhaps she forgot .” When the substitution makes sense, go with one word: “maybe.” When you are wondering whether you may be waiting in the wrong cafe, you’re dealing with a verb and its auxiliary: “may be.” Two words

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MEDAL/METAL/MEDDLE

METTLE

A person who proves his or her mettle displays courage or stamina The word “mettle” is seldom used outside of this expression, so people constantly confuse it with other similar-sounding words

List of errors

file:///C|/Temp/livres/commonerrors/errors/medal.html03/09/2005 15:38:50

MEDIA/MEDIUM

There are several words with Latin or Greek roots whose plural forms ending in A are constantly

mistaken for singular ones See, for instance, criteria and data Radio is a broadcast medium

Television is another broadcast medium Newspapers are a print medium Together they are media Following the tendency of Americans to abbreviate phrases, with “transistor radio” becoming

“transistor,” (now fortunately obsolete) and “videotape” becoming “video,” “news media” and

“communications media” have been abbreviated to “media.” Remember that watercolor on paper and oil on black velvet are also media, though they have nothing to do with the news When you want to

get a message from your late Uncle Fred, you may consult a medium The word means a vehicle

between some source of information and the recipient of it The “media” are the transmitters of the news; they are not the news itself

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file:///C|/Temp/livres/commonerrors/errors/media.html03/09/2005 15:38:51

Medieval Ages

MEDIEVAL AGES

MIDDLE AGES

The “eval” of “Medieval” means “age” so by saying “Medieval Ages” you are saying “Middle Ages Ages.” Medievalists also greatly resent the common

misspelling “Midevil.”

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file:///C|/Temp/livres/commonerrors/errors/medieval.html03/09/2005 15:38:51

MEDIOCRE

Although some dictionaries accept the meaning of this word as “medium” or “average,” in fact its connotations are almost always more negative When something is distinctly not as good as it could

be, it is mediocre If you want to say that you are an average student, don’t proclaim yourself

mediocre, or you’ll convey a worse impression of yourself than you intend

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MEDIUM/MEDIAN

That strip of grass separating the lanes going opposite directions in the middle of a freeway is a

median

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file:///C|/Temp/livres/commonerrors/errors/medium.html03/09/2005 15:38:52

MEMORIUM

MEMORIAM

The correct spelling of the Latin phrase is “in memoriam.”

List of errors

file:///C|/Temp/livres/commonerrors/errors/memorium.html03/09/2005 15:38:52