En rules

January 6, 2016March 16, 2016Hannah McCall 3 Comments

You are probably familiar with two types of dashes: the en rule and the em rule. Neither is to be used as if it is a hyphen.

The en rule (–) is longer than a hyphen (-) and half the length of an em rule (—).

You will often see it used with a space either side as a parenthetical dash; this is usually the preferred style for British publishers (the alternative is a closed-up em rule).

When considering the other uses, it might be helpful to think of the en rule as meaning (roughly) and or to.

The en rule should be used closed up (with no spaces either side) in elements (usually figures) that form a range:

pp. 18–25        1865–72        Monday–Friday

The en rule should also be used at the end of unfinished number ranges.

It is important to remember to always write from xxxx to xxxx or xxxx–xxxx. Do not use a combination of the two. The same applies when writing between xxxx and xxxx.

An en rule can be used closed up to express connection or relation between words, to express an alternative (in a similar way to a solidus) or to indicate joint creators (a hyphen between the names would suggest it was only one person).

En rules can also be used to indicate individual missing letters:

'The utter b – – – – – – !' she shouted.

It isn’t common to see this any more; people tend to be able to cope with seeing rude words spelt out.

Noel

December 18, 2015March 16, 2016Hannah McCall 7 Comments

If you sing or listen to carols, this word is probably very familiar. It is to me – some of my best childhood memories are of singing carols with a choir at Christmas.

Noel is often used as a refrain in carols and on Christmas cards. It means ‘Christmas’. A noel is a Christmas carol.

Its origin is early 19th century, from the French Noël. Noël is based on the Latin word natalis meaning ‘birthday’.

Joyeux Noel is sometimes used by English speakers to wish others a happy or merry Christmas. If you are writing to a French speaker, remember to use Noël.

You may have seen the spelling Nowell or Nowel. Nowell is the Middle English spelling of Noel. It’s now regarded as archaic and is rarely used. However, it is common for the carol ‘The First Nowell’ to be spelt using the original form (you can read more on why here).

If you use Spotify, here’s the carol with its famous refrain:

This is my last post for a week or so. I’ll still be contactable should you have any proofreading-related emergencies.

I wish you a very merry Christmas.

‘Slay’ and ‘sleigh’

December 14, 2015March 16, 2016Hannah McCall 2 Comments

It is getting closer to the time when Father Christmas delivers presents! As he dashes around the world every Christmas Eve, his method of transport is a sleigh.

Santa’s Slay is a film I don’t think I ever need to see.

Slay

to kill something in a violent way
to delight, impress or amuse someone very much
a tool used in weaving

Sleigh

a sledge drawn by animals, usually horses (or reindeer!)
(sleighing) ride on a sleigh

Here’s ‘Jingle Bells’, with the well-known sleigh-related lyrics:

Feeling Christmassy yet?

Xmas

December 11, 2015March 16, 2016Hannah McCall 5 Comments

Xmas gets a bad rap. It is often seen as a symptom of the commercialisation of Christmas and is accused of ‘removing Christ from Christmas’.

Given the history of the word, that interpretation seems unfair. I don’t think it is as elegant as Christmas but it is an abbreviation that stays true to its meaning.

The use of Xmas is not a recent phenomenon. Fowler’s states it was first recorded in the 18th century; it appeared in a slightly different form even earlier.

The X represents the first letter (chi) of the Greek word for Christ – Χριστóς (Khristos, meaning ‘the anointed one’).

The use of X and XP to represent Christ has a long religious history. (You might recognise XP from the Chi-Rho monogram or symbol.) It’s worth reading about, particularly in regard to the influence of the Roman emperor Constantine I.

In spoken English, Xmas is usually (or should be) pronounced as ‘Christmas’ rather than as ‘ex-mass’.

‘Mincemeat’ or ‘minced meat’?

December 7, 2015March 16, 2016Hannah McCall 5 Comments

We are progressing rapidly through December, and that means it is now acceptable to eat lots of mince pies.

Mince pies contain mincemeat, and you probably wouldn’t want to put brandy cream on a pie containing minced meat.

Minced meat: Meat that has been cut up into very small pieces (usually by a machine).

Mincemeat: A mixture of dried fruit, sugar and spices. It may also contain alcohol (often brandy) and suet.

Mincemeat did once contain actual meat, and there is an interesting article on the history of the filling of mince pies here. Some dictionaries do give mincemeat as another word for minced meat, so be sure to check the context it is being used in.

Defenestration

December 4, 2015March 16, 2016Hannah McCall 12 Comments

Defenestration is the action of throwing someone (or something) out of a window. It can also be used to describe the process or action of removing someone from a position of authority or power.

You can defenestrate someone or be defenestrated.

Defenestration is early 17th century in origin, stemming from de- meaning ‘down from’ and the Latin fenestra meaning ‘window’.

The word is thought to have been coined around the time of the Defenestration of Prague in 1618. The incident at Prague Castle saw two Catholic governors and their scribe thrown from windows by Protestant citizens. The defenestration helped to start the Thirty Years War.

‘Team’ and ‘teem’

November 30, 2015November 30, 2015Hannah McCall 3 Comments

Team:

a group of players forming one of the sides in a sporting contest or competitive game
a real or notional group which supports or favours a thing or person
two or more people working together
two or more animals working together
harness together (animals, typically horses) to pull a vehicle
‘team up’ – to join with someone in order to work together to achieve a common goal
‘team with’ – to match or coordinate something with something else (typically clothes)

Teem:

‘teem with’ – to have a great number of, to be full of, or swarming with
(of water, typically rain) to pour down or fall heavily

Thank you to Jeff Curry for suggesting this post.

Rub-a-dub

November 27, 2015March 16, 2016Hannah McCall Leave a comment

You might be familiar with a nursery rhyme about three men in a tub. Or the BBC’s version about socks (if my socks had that many holes, I would just get rid of them).

Rub-a-dub was originally a word for the sound made by beating a drum or for a drumming sound.

It is often used to describe a rhythmic sound or motion, such as rubbing or scrubbing to make something clean.

Rub-a-dub is also rhyming slang for pub.

‘Palate’, ‘palette’ and ‘pallet’

November 23, 2015November 23, 2015Hannah McCall 1 Comment

I must admit I have to think very carefully about these three.

Palate:

the roof of the mouth
the sense of taste or ability to distinguish between and appreciate flavours
the flavour of wine and beer

Palette:

a flat, thin board used by artists to mix paints
the range of colours characteristic of a particular artist or school of painting, also the range of colours used in a particular painting
the range of colours, patterns or shapes that can be displayed on the visual display unit of a computer
the range of tonal colour in a piece of music

Pallet: