5 common linguistic missteps
Errors in usage, spelling and redundancy plague many of us who write as part of our workday. Here’s a handful of examples of what not to do.
1. A massive diffused bomb sat in the middle of the courtyard.
One form of erroneous word usage is use of a similar-sounding word, as in the case of effect in place of affect, or as shown in this example.
Instead, it should read: “A massive defused bomb sat in the middle of the courtyard.”
2. Passwords can be harvested from keystroke loggers and other malware on publically accessible computers.
Another error is the misspelling of an inflected ending, as with extention instead of extension, or the misspelled adverbial form of public:
Corrected version: “Passwords can be harvested from keystroke loggers and other malware on publicly accessible computers.”
3. This policy engenders an altruistic comradery.
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