10 More Misused Words and Expressions

By guest contributor PJ Feinstein - read part one right here. Photography by People People.

Why is good grammar so important to blogging? To start, a well-written and grammatically correct blog conveys a sense of professionalism. And aren't many of us bloggers striving to become professionals in our respective fields, whether it’s event planning, interior design, or photography?

Also, poor grammar is frustrating to the reader, and blog posts with numerous grammatical errors (especially the most basic mix-ups) can be hard to read. But have no fear! Your friendly grammarian is back with ten more examples of misused words and expressions to help you quickly and easily improve your writing.

Accept/Except
Accept has a couple of meanings: to receive (accept the package), to believe (accept that version of the story), and to agree to a responsibility (accept a job).
Except means to exclude: "My son will eat everything except vegetables."

Blond/Blonde
A blond (noun) is a male with light-colored hair: "That blond vaguely resembles Brad Pitt."
A blonde (noun) is a female with light-colored hair: "Is it true that blondes have more fun?"
Blond (adjective) may be used to describe the hair color of either gender: "I love the fishtail braid in her blond hair."

Can't Hardly Wait
Despite being the title of a 1998 movie featuring Seth Green and Jennifer Love Hewitt, the expression "can't hardly wait" is incorrect because it implies a double negative. Instead say, "I can hardly wait until Alt!"

Complement/Compliment
Complement (verb) means to complete or enhance: "The new rug complements the eclectic style of her living room."
Compliment (verb) means to praise: "When I saw the new rug, I complimented her taste in home decor."

Every day/Everyday
Every day is an adjective-noun combination that means each day: "I try to blog every day."
Everyday is an adjective meaning typical or ordinary: "Now that I'm a mom, my everyday outfits are very casual."

Handmade
Handmade (adj) is one word, not hand-made or hand made.

Mantel/Mantle
A mantel, or shelf, is where your display your holiday vignette.
A mantle is a type of cloak or cape.

Plurals
DO NOT use an apostrophe-s to form a plural word. The one exception is single letters: "Her name is spelled with two N's."

Round up/Roundup
Round up is a verb: "It’s time to round up the little ones for dinner."
Roundup is a noun: "Her blog posts on Friday feature a roundup of her favorite links."

Seasons
Unless part of a formal name (Winter Olympics), winter, spring, summer, and fall are lowercase.

Comments

[Whitney]

Let's also add bias vs. biased. Bias is a noun, meaning prejudice. Biased is a verb, meaning to show unfair preference for one thing over another. I've seen that so many times on blogs and Twitter!