The Grammar Guru Butts in and Corrects Everyone

I refuse to start pointing fingers or editing everyone’s blogs — I don’t have the time or the inclination to cultivate rabid enemies. But there are a few words that need to be defined so that we don’t keep using the wrong word and making ourselves look silly.

Those in the know will notice that all of the following are (or can be, depending on where you live) “homophones” — that is, words which sound alike, but which are spelled differently and have different meanings.

• Ascent means “going in an upward direction. Assent means “agreeing.”
• Descent means “going in a downward direction.” Dissent means “disagreeing.”
• A council is a group of people who come together to determine policy. Counsel is advice, or the one who gives advice. A consul is a country’s ambassador, and is pronounced /KON sull/.
• The Capitol is the building with the big domed rotunda in Washington, D.C. A capital is the primary lawmaking city of a country, region, or state. [The Capitol is in our nation’s capital.]
  
• Than means an alternative; then means a point in time.
• The President is an official who heads an organization or country. A precedent is a standard or benchmark.
• The principal is the head of a school, or can be indicative of the main or primary thing. [The principal reason he failed is that he didn’t study.] A principle is a standard or ideal.
• A prophet foretells the future. A profit is a sizeable chunk of earnings.
• Hear, hear! is what one says when one wishes to express agreement with a speaker or an author. (It’s as if you were saying, “Hey everybody, you need to hear this!”) Hear means “to take in with the ears whatever is being said.”
  Here, here! is what one says to one’s child when it is running away in the store. (It’s as if you were saying, “Hey, you get over here right now!” This is usually the precursor to “If you don’t hold my hand and stop touching stuff, I’ll take you outside and spank you.”) Here means “in this place.”

I have seen lots of these kinds of errors lately, both in blogs and in a number of otherwise respectable publications. Hope this little entry helps clear up a little confusion.

Tags: homonyms, homophones, Spelling, usage