-
Feedback and Staff
Peter told me that his company has 20 "staffs". If you’re talking about the personnel in an organization, there is no plural for "staff".
Instead, he should say his company has 20 staff members.
The same goes for "feedback". I received feedback from ten people instead of feedbacks from ten people.
-
One Another
Mother said, “Brother and sister should take care of one another.”
You use "each other" when referring to two people doing the same thing. So, it should be "brother and sister should take care of each other."
When referring to more than two people, use one another.
And here’s one more tip. When you do something for your team, you kuhn-trib-yoot, not con-tri-boot.
-
Anxious
When meeting friends who you haven’t seen for a long time, do you say you are "anxious" to see them?
This actually means that you are frightened of them!
"Anxious" implies a looming fear, dread or anxiety.
Say you’re "eager" or "excited" to see your friends instead.
Unless of course, you really are dreading to meet them!
-
Any
“Did you read any book today?” your friend asks her daughter.
The word "any" can mean one or all. When asking for any of something, the item that is being asked for needs to be plural in form.
For example, "Did you make any phone calls?" or "Did you read any books today?"
And here’s another tip, the "b" in "subtle" is silent, so it’s sa-tle, not sub-tle.
-
Fragrance or Aroma
Your friend brings a bottle of wine to your house warming party and says that he likes the fragrance of the wine.
Well, the correct way to describe the wine would be to say that he enjoys the aroma of the wine as we usually use the word “aroma” to describe food and drink while “fragrance” usually describes perfumes and flowers.
Another phrase you could use would be the “bouquet of the wine”, an expression used by wine experts when referring to wines that are mature.
-
Like or As
"Like" and "as" are usually confused with one another, due to the lack of understanding of the word’s role.
"Like" is used as a preposition telling where, when or how the noun in the sentence is doing whatever it may be doing. Most of the time "like" compares two things.
For example, "Imagine a grown woman acting like a child."
On the other hand, "as" is used as a conjunction, joining two clauses. Frequently, "as" can be replaced by "the way".
For example, "No one makes dim sum as my grandmother does". This can also be expressed as: "No one makes dim sum the way my grandmother does."
-
At or In
Is it "I stayed at London for a month" or "I stayed in London for a month"?
An easy way to choose between "at" or "in" is to remember that people stay "in" cities and countries and other general locations, while people "stay" at hotel’s, people’s homes, and other specific locations.
So the correct answer would be, "I stayed in London for a month".
-
Attain or Obtain
The words “attain” and “obtain” both ultimately mean to get something, but they have different nuances in their meanings.
If you had to put in a lot of effort and overcome some difficulty in reaching your goal, the best word to use would be “attain”. For example, “I finally attained my driving license after two failed attempts.”
On the other hand, the word “obtain” simply means to get something that doesn’t always require a lot of work. For example “I breezed through my driving test and obtained my license on my first try.”
-
Since or Because
Is there a difference between "since" and "because"?
The answer is yes.
"Since" refers to time whereas "because" refers to a reason for something.
For example, "Since I started work today, I have received 25 emails".
"Because I started my new job today, I am no longer looking for employment".
-
Put to Sleep or Put to Bed
Your friend has to leave the dinner party early because she has to “put her children to sleep”.
The right phrase should be to “put her children to bed” as to put someone to sleep means to either bore someone, or cause someone or an animal to sleep through medical intervention.
That’s quite different from the intended meaning and it would be rather awkward being misunderstood in this situation!
-
Bi or Semi
"Bi" and "semi" are prefixes related to the concept of two. Though they seem similar, they are not synonymous.
"Bi" means every two or every other, while "semi" means twice.
An example of "bi" would be: "The magazine is published bi-weekly, every other Wednesday".
An example of "semi" would be: "Our semi-annual appraisals are in January and July".
-
Redundancy – Blue Colour
Your brother tells you that the sky is a lovely blue colour at 10 am in the morning.
Uh-oh! Redundancy alert. Redundancy is when you say the same thing twice.
Instead of saying blue colour, just say blue.
And just saying 10am is enough to get you understood.
And here’s another tip, ‘nonchalant’ is pronounced as non-shuh-lant, not non-cha-lant, just non-shuh-lant.
-
Borrow or Lend
Your brother tells you, “I want to lend books from Dennis.”
If you want something that belongs to another person, you borrow, not lend.
The owner of the object lends the object to someone.
So, you borrow books from Dennis and Dennis lends the book to you.
And here’s another tip, dee-pore-zit is never pronounced as dare-per-seet, just dee-pore-zit.
-
Chop
Returning from an overseas trip, your friend tells you: “Looking at my passport chop makes me happy. It reminds me of the countries I have been to”.
In this instance, the word "chop" refers to a stamp. While Singaporeans would understand this, most people would be shocked, as they would imagine your passport being cut into pieces, based on the word "chop".
So the correct word to use in this instance would be, passport "stamp".
Another example of a common error often overheard in the workplace with regard to the word "chop" would be: “Can you please chop and sign?”. This statement would be absurd as after chopping something into smaller bits, where would you put your signature? Instead, you should ask: “Can you please stamp and sign?”
-
Close or Closed
Have you come across a sign that says “Please keep the door close”?
We don’t think this is what the person who wrote the sign intended to say because this means that he wants you to unhinge the door and keep it near you!
What the sign maker should have written is “Please keep the door closed” so that users will remember to shut the door after they have walked through it.
-
Complement or Compliment
While both have positive meanings, “complement”, spelled with the letter E, refers to something that completes or makes something else better. For example, “that glass of wine really complements the food”.
On the other hand, “compliment”, spelled with the letter I, can refer to an expression of praise or the act of praising something. For example, “He complimented his wife on her pretty dress.”
Why not make someone’s day by giving them a compliment!
-
Comprise Of
A travel agent told you, “This package comprises of a two-night stay at the resort and three meals a day.”
The word "comprise" is defined as "made up of". It is therefore redundant to say comprise of. Just "comprise" will do.
And here’s another tip, rendezvous is pronounced as ron-deh-voo, not ren-dez-vous.
-
Condemn or Condone
Did the principal condemn or condone the students for misbehaving.
If the principal was very upset and expressed strong disapproval, then we would say that the principal condemned the students misbehaviour.
On the other hand, if the principal was feeling magnanimous that day, we would say that the principal was upset with what the student did but chose to condone the incident in the hope that the student will mend his ways.
-
Convince or Persuade
Though "persuade" and "convince" seem synonymous, they do not mean the same thing.
The root of "persuade" is "sweet talk". It means bringing someone to the desired point by means of clever argument, enticement or appeal.
For example, "I persuaded them to stay for dinner".
The root of convince however, is to "overpower". It means to make a person unable to maintain a contrary position by force of logic.
For example, "She convinced the police she was telling the truth".
-
Could or Would
When do you use could or would?
Use “could” when referring to possibilities in the future, for example, “I could make dessert for next week’s party.”
You can also use “could” when making polite requests. For example, “Could you please help me carry these bags?”
Regarding “would”, use this word when talking about unreal or unlikely situations. For example, “I would travel around the world if I have more time and money.”
You can also use “would” when you are making polite offers, for example, “Would you like to drink some tea?”
-
Cut
While driving, your friend angrily tells you: “His car cut mine!”
While Singaporeans would have no problem understanding this, other people would be stunned at this statement, as they would think the car is being severed by another car.
The correct phrase would be either "to cut in front of" or "to cut off". So the next time you want to express your displeasure, it should be: “His car cut in front of mine!” or “His car cut me off!”
-
Day Off or Off Day
If you’re taking leave from work, remember to tell your colleagues that it’s your “day off” and not your “off day”.
If you’ve had an “off day”, it means that your day has been going poorly. For example, “Mary was late for work because the bus broke down and now her computer refuses to work. I guess she’s just having one of those off days.”
You would be a lot happier having a “day off” as this refers to a day where you are not required to work.
We hope you get to take a break and enjoy a day off soon!
-
In Spite Of or Despite
Your friend says she doesn’t like to travel overseas in spite of her love for adventure. You disagree and say that she should have said “despite”. So who is correct?
Actually, both of you are right. “In spite of” and “despite” mean the same thing and can be interchangeably used in your sentences.
Although you can choose which word to use, take note not to merge them into one phrase as “in despite of” is incorrect.
-
Disinterested or Uninterested
It has been observed that many young people these days are apathetic. Does this mean they are disinterested or uninterested in politics?
Well, in this case, they are simply “uninterested”, meaning “not interested”.
If we were to say the young people are “disinterested” towards politics, it means that they are unbiased or impartial to any political issues. For example, “As she had no stake in the new policy on housing loans, she was disinterested in the progress of its implementation.”
-
Drop
When delivering something, we usually say “I’ll drop the papers at your office”.
If you say this, most people would imagine the papers being dropped on the floor of your office, possibly causing a mess.
To avoid making such an impression, the word ‘off’ needs to be included. It should thus be, “I’ll drop off the papers at your office”.
And here’s another tip, encore is pronounced as ‘ahn-kohr’ not ‘an-kohr’.
-
Specially or Especially
Walking pass the candy store, your friend exclaims, “I love chocolates, specially the ones with nuts inside.”
What your friend meant to say was that she “especially” enjoys eating chocolates that have an added crunch of nuts.
“Especially” usually means “particularly”, which in this case, your friend is especially fond of a particular type of chocolate.
Use “specially” when referring to something done in a special, careful or specific manner. For example, “Nuts were specially added to this exclusive batch of chocolates.”