Everybody makes mistakes

No, “irregardless” is not a word: Terms often used incorrectly

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Surely, we’ve all made grammatical mistakes that still haunt us. But that doesn’t mean our eyes are safe from twitching when we hear words like "irregardless." A dozen popular mistakes have spread and infiltrated the vocabulary of many, much to the dismay of word lovers. Let’s explore some of these and hope we aren’t among the ones committing them!

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Careful: If you say you are nauseous, that means you are causing someone else nausea. You probably don’t mean that you stink, but that you are feeling sick yourself.

When stepping off a rollercoaster, you don’t feel nauseous: You might feel nauseated, which is the correct term.

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When did people start using "infamous" interchangeably with "famous"? It’s hard to know, but this mistake is heard often. Remember, "infamous" and "notorious" are adjectives that imply the subject has a bad reputation.

Maybe the confusion comes from "famous" being right there in the word, but keep in mind: infamous isn’t the kind of fame you want.

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If you’re bemused, you’re scratching your head, not laughing. "Bemused" gets thrown around as a fancier way to say "amused," but it actually means "confused" or "bewildered." One often isn’t bemused by a funny meme, but a complex set of instructions could leave you bemused.

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People often use "decimate" to mean "destroy entirely," but its original meaning is "reduce by one-tenth." It derives from a Roman practice of punishing armies.

For example, you could announce that a crop was decimated by pests but that some survived. The confusion is likely because "one-tenth" doesn’t sound dramatic enough. Ironically, modern misuse has decimated the word’s original meaning.

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Some people wrongly state that they have perused a magazine when what they did was flip through it lightly. To "peruse" means to read thoroughly and carefully.

You could peruse a contract document before signing it, for example. Remember, the verb shouldn’t be used as a fancy synonym for "skim."

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"Irregardless" gets thrown around, but it is an incorrect form of the word "regardless." Adding "ir-" to it makes it a nonstandard double negative. The word "regard-less" already means "without regard."

Why do people use the wrong form, then? Maybe inventing a prefix feels extra emphatic, but really, it’s like putting a hat on a hat.

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"Supposably" is often (and incorrectly) used instead of "supposedly." While the former does exist, it means "as could be imagined or believed". "Supposedly" means "according to what is assumed or believed".

So, which adverb should be used? It depends on whether the reality described is supposed to be true (supposedly) or possible to be true (supposably).

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Irony isn’t just a coincidence or bad luck; it’s when there’s a contradiction between expectation and reality. It would be ironic, for example, that a fire station should burn down.

If you simply ran into someone you know, however, that would not be ironic. It would simply be a funny coincidence.

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"Literally" means something is true exactly as is stated. It is often misused for exaggerations to add emphasis.

People have grown used to inserting that word into any hyperbolic sentence, such as "I’m literally dying of laughter". The word does have its correct place in some phrases, though. For example, you could literally trip over your own shoelaces.

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You cannot feel jealous of someone who enjoys something that you’ve never had. That’s because, strictly speaking, "jealousy" involves the fear of losing something.

"Envy" would be the correct term for referring to the desire to have what someone else does. For example, envying a gold medal when you only achieved the silver one.

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Sometimes students claim to be failing a class because they are "disinterested" in the subject, which is an incorrect statement. "Disinterested" means "impartial", or "unbiased". What they mean is that they are not interested, or "uninterested".

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"Affect" is a verb, meaning "to influence," while "effect" is a noun, meaning "a result." These two are spotted in the wrong sentence way too often. A speech can have an effect on an audience, but it cannot "effect" the audience. It can only "affect" it.

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The space between the words (or lack thereof) does affect the meaning! "Everyday" is an adjective meaning ordinary, while "every day" means "each day." Ask yourself carefully which of the two you are using.

Remember, every day we can find everyday words used incorrectly!

Nature & Language

Grow your vocabulary with these 10 plant-related idioms

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Individual words combined in a certain way result in metaphorical phrases with a new meaning, different from the one they have by themselves. These phrases are called idioms and can originate from different contexts and situations. In this case, we have cherry-picked 10 expressions related to plants and flowers that will make you want to go outside and smell the roses!

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Some people are direct and get to the chase, and others take their time to say what they have to say. When we need to discuss something important with one of the latter and they keep beating around the bush instead of getting to the point, it can be really annoying, don't you think?

But who would have thought that this expression we use every day without giving it a second thought is actually related to nature? The first written record dates back to 1572. It appears in a text by the Elizabethan poet George Gascoigne, although it was probably a metaphor used regularly at the time. Apparently, it has its origins in a game of bird hunting. Beating is the practice of striking plants with a stick to make the birds come out of hiding and thus catch them in flight.

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When we are faced with a conundrum or have to make a life-changing decision, it is sometimes difficult to figure out what’s really important. We are probably focusing on a specific, small aspect of the problem and fail to see the big picture. When this happens, a good friend will ideally help us gain some perspective and say: "You can't see the forest for the trees!" —Fun fact: in Old English, for was used in the sense of "on account of", "because of"—.

This proverbial idiom originated in the 16th century and makes perfect sense: back then, before cities took over, people's contact with nature was an everyday thing. According to the Oxford English Dictionary, it first appeared in 1546 as part of the works of English writer John Heywood.

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Imagine a small animal running from the clutches of a large predator. The only thing in sight is a tall, fragrant tree. If it can climb up to the top, it will be safe, but the beast will still be waiting below with sharp teeth. This is how the idiom up a gum tree came to mean to be in a predicament or in a problem that is difficult to get out of.

Its origin is not so clear. Some etymologists suggest it is a phrase that appeared in Australia, where gum tree is the common name for the Eucalyptus. Others found records from the early 19th century in the United States. There was even a folk song called "The 'possum up the gum-tree" that stood the test of time only as a popular expression.

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According to the Merriam-Webster Dictionary, wither means "to become dry and sapless" or "to lose vitality, force, or freshness". When we leave fruit abandoned on the vine, it goes to waste, and to be honest, the same thing happens with all aspects of life.

The idiom wither on the vine —an equivalent of _die on the vine_— is used to express that something failed to be implemented or dealt with because of neglect or inaction. The Oxford Dictionary says it probably originated in the biblical image of a withered vine as a metaphor for physical or spiritual impoverishment.

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To continue with trees, fruits, and biblical references, this proverbial idiom means that a person's character should be judged by their actions —and the results of those actions— and not so much by appearances, prejudices, or what they have to say about themselves.

This parable appears in at least two different sermons in the New Testament. From Matthew 7:15-20: "Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves. Ye shall know them by their fruit."

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Gardens usually have a positive and pleasant connotation. But for some reason, to lead someone down the garden path means to deceive or mislead. Like many of the expressions that are orally transmitted from generation to generation, we cannot be sure of the exact origin of this one. However, there are some theories.

According to legend, this idiom has its roots in England at the beginning of the 20th century. Apparently, it had to do with men being led into the gardens to get engaged to young ladies covered by veils that hid their faces completely. In any case, one of the earliest written records of this phrase dates back to 1926 and belongs to British writer Ethel Mannin. In her text Sounding Brass, she refers to women leading men up the garden for the purposes of seduction.

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These two idioms have a similar meaning. Shrinking violet is used figuratively to describe shy and introverted individuals, while a wallflower, in its colloquial sense, is a shy or unpopular person who usually remains on the sidelines of social activities.

The expression shrinking violet was probably coined in the United States, although there is no certain theory to explain the connection between these beautiful, vibrant flowers and shy people. One of the earliest written records is a sarcastic newspaper article from 1870 that mentions a shrinking violet businessman from Pennsylvania accused of stealing public money. Real wallflowers, on the other hand, are perennial herbs that grow on cliffsides and walls, hence the name. In this case, it is easier to see the analogy.

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We can tend our garden with love and dedication, but weeds can still sprout out and damage other plants and flowers. When this happens, the course of action is to get rid of these intruders as soon as possible to stop them from growing further. In life as in gardening, when we see a problem on the horizon, it is best to address it before it becomes more serious. This is when the expression nip it in the bud comes in handy.

The bud is the early stages, the undeveloped part of a plant. If you cut it —or nip it— before it springs up, you are avoiding future troubles. In the 16th century, this phrase was used literally. Over time, it became a common idiom that we use every time we find an issue that is best to tackle at an early stage.

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This one has a bit of a dark meaning but, at the same time, it allows us to think about death in a slightly more pleasant and positive way. After all, a little bit of dark humor never hurts. Let's not beat around the bush; pushing up daisies means to be dead and buried.

The origin of this idiom is not too clear, although there are records of analogies between daisies and death coined by romantic poets such as John Keats. The first written mention of this expression in its current form is from a 1917 poem by Wilfred Owen. On the other hand, we know it was a widely used metaphor during World War I.

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You probably already know the meaning of this idiom, and the truth is that it is pretty straightforward. But since it is one of our favorites, we thought it was a good idea to bring it to the gardening table. To plant the seed of suspicion means to cause someone to have doubts —often in an indirect manner— or to introduce someone to a worrisome idea that wasn't there before.

The origin of this expression is totally unknown and has different variables: to sow the seed of doubt, to plant a seed in one's head, etc. Interestingly, to plant the seeds (of something) is also used to describe an action done to ensure a certain outcome in the future, especially an unfortunate one.