Glossary

G.1: Write the phrase you misused and the rule.

Do not write just “G” or “Glossary.”

unbelievable

Overused as a hyperbole. It means “too improbable to believe”

OVERSTATED: The weather was unbelievable.

BETTER: The weather was sunny and clear.

RIGHT: The jury easily saw through his unbelievable stories.

use to

Sometimes used mistakenly for “used to.”

WRONG: He use to be her boyfriend.

RIGHT: He used to be her boyfriend.

utilize, use, usage

Two errors are common.

1. Do not write “utilize” when “use” will do. Some writers feel compelled to write “utilize” for the wrong reason. Academic writing should not be informal, but “utilize” means nothing more than “use,” and it may make your writing sound pretentious (and make you sound insecure). Would you ask a friend, “May I utilize your phone?” Would you tell your parents, “I have to utilize the bathroom”? Would you call a big, fancy synonym for a simple word “utilizationless”?

STILTED: The author utilizes irony.

NATURAL: The author uses irony.

2. Do not write “usage” when you mean “use.” “Usage” means “customary or generally accepted practice,” especially with regard to words. In most other contexts, “use” is correct. The most common error is using “usage” instead of “use.”

RIGHT: In English usage, “apart” and “a part” are different.

WRONG: The proper usage of the butter knife is for spreading, not cutting.

RIGHT: The proper use of the butter knife is for spreading, not cutting.

WRONG: My essay is about the poet’s usage of irony.

RIGHT: My essay is about the poet’s use of irony.

The Glossary you are now reading is a glossary of usage—of the ways words are used.