English is a quirky language. However, it often lends itself to interesting discoveries because of the diversity it contains. While I was in college, I took a course entitled, “The History of the English Language.” Yes, on the surface it may sound dull and boring but it was really quite the opposite. I enjoyed learning about our words. Etymology (the study of words and their origins) is really interesting at times. Plus, it gives you lots of good conversation material when you’re with your friends!

Have you ever wondered why we say some of the words and phrases used in modern English? Occasionally I want to feature a word or words that, at times, make us stop and wonder why we say them. I have a lengthy list of words that I can pull from over time and post here. However, I’d like to see if anyone has a certain word or phrase that they would like to offer up for consideration. Let me know!

I made a list of my favorite words, so I thought I’d do the same with my least favorite words and phrases.

1. Taxes. Not much explanation needed.
2. Insurance
3. Credit. As in credit cards. I hate them.
4. Politics
5. Consequences. If you choose poorly, you have to deal with the consequences.
6. Practice. Practice makes perfect? No. Perfect practice makes perfect.
7. Sin
8. Garbage
9. Litter
10. Telemarketers. They are probably nice people; I just don’t want them calling me.
11. Pre-authorization. Oh, the woes of the healthcare industry.
12. Diet
13. Debt
14. Misspellings
15. Cursing
16. Abortion
17. Selfishness
18. Impatience.
19. Certified. A word that has lost it’s meaning.
20. Vegetables. Only a few of them are good in my opinion.
21. Vomit. It’s what vegetables make me do…just kidding.
22. Sleeplessness
23. Slacks. What is the origin of this word? Here’s another thought…why is it plural? But then again, why do we refer to what we wear on our legs as “a pair of pants”? I digress though…perhaps I should cover that in another post, haha.
24. Representative. He/She is working in whose best interest? Mine?! Nah…
25. Senator. Ditto the above.
26. Citation. a.k.a. ‘ticket’
27. Road Construction Ahead
28. Political correctness
29. I forgot
30. He hit me first…
31. I didn’t do it
32. Annual Percentage Rate (If it’s my money, it’s always a low rate. If I borrowed someone else’s money, the sky is the limit.)
33. Mortgage
34. Racism
35. Suit and tie
36. Dentist appointment
37. Cavity
38. “10 easy steps to…”
39. Out of order
40. Satan
41. Monday
42. Hackensack. It probably is a nice little town in NJ. It just sounds like something someone coughed up. Not my favorite name for a town.
43. Cough Syrup. It tasted gross when I was a kid and it still does.
44. Not Me… Apparently I have a 5^th child whose name is Not Me. He sure does get blamed for a lot of stuff…
45. Cialis, Viagra, Levitra and every other name for this junk. Can we please stop advertising it everywhere?!
46. Jughandles. This is a torturous East Coast, but primarily New Jersey traffic phenomenon.
47. Smog
48. Humidity
49. Time. I’m always running out of it.
50. Speed Limit. Where I live now, I’d be thrilled if people would at least drive as fast as the posted speed limit. I’ve never lived in a place where people drive so slowly, until now.

Everyone has words/phrases that they dislike…what’s on your list of the words or phrases that drives you crazy?

There, their, they’re

Your, you’re

Here, hear

We, wee

Add, ad

Tea, tee

Ate, eight

Seas, sees, seize

Mall, maul

Awl, all

Aye, eye, I

Flair, flare

Lone, loan

Sail, sale

Stair, stare

Minor, miner

Tacks, tax

Tale, tail

Heel, heal, he’ll

Hymn, him

Heroin, heroine

Sole, soul

Write, right, rite

Medal, Metal, Meddle

Seam, seem

The list goes on and on. The mistakes people make with them seems endless too.

If you simply rely on your computer’s spell checker to edit your work, then you are most likely making quite a few mistakes in your writing. You cannot trust your spell checker as the sole editor for your writing. You need to look at the words you have written and make sure they are used in their proper context. Sometimes it is a good idea to print out your work and look at it on paper. Read your content in reverse. It gives you a different perspective than simply staring at your screen. This forces you to look at each word, giving you a chance to check its spelling along with its placement and usage. Just because all of the words are spelled correctly doesn’t mean that your writing is properly formatted. Make sure you are using the correct word! As an example, there is a huge difference in the words ‘their’ and ‘they’re.’ It’s a simple mistake, yet it can alter the context of your writing immensely.

The English language is quirky. It’s easy to mess it up. Homophones are a common problem for many people. Hopefully these easy suggestions will help you avoid a few of the potential pitfalls that surround word selection and usage. Of course, it’s always wise to seek the assistance of a good proofreader to review your content too (ahem…hint, hint).

If you feel like adding more homophones to the list, please feel free to list them in the comments. I think it would be fun to create a very large, encompassing list.

**Update:

Canon, Cannon (see this post: http://www.mcwriters.com/2008/06/18/i-found-another-bad-sign/).

Have you ever made a list of your favorite words? I thought it might be fun and insightful to attempt it. So, here I go!

1. God. How awesome and amazing to be able to create and sustain a universe.
2. Jesus. What an incredible sacrifice He made for me.
3. Wife. She’s my best friend and I love her.
4. Kids. I’m a dad and it makes me really glad! (Now, I must stop and say I can’t continue listing all my relatives…yes they’re great, but I only have 46 positions available now. Also, after the above four, the rest of these are not in any order of rank.)
5. Persnickety. I just like to say it.
6. Plethora
7. Obtuse
8. Propseudocontraneoantidisestablishmentarianalistically. My daughter loves really big words.
9. Chaubunagungamaug. It’s a lake in Massachusetts. (How many times did you attempt to sound it out?)
10. Freedom. A word and condition taken too lightly.
11. Maggie. My wonderful Golden Retriever.
12. Porsche. They make beautiful cars.
13. Brouhaha
14. Yahoo. (Not the company, but, “Sometimes my boys act like yahoos.”)
15. Perseverance
16. Grace
17. Mercy
18. Redemption
19. Forgiveness
20. Coffee
21. Elixir. Just think it’s a funny word.
22. Liniment. Underused in today’s society. Wonder why…
23. Smithereens. A favorite of my oldest son.
24. Chicken. A favorite of my middle son.
25. Somewhat. A favorite of my youngest son.
26. Sleep. One of my wife’s favorite words.
27. Consistency
28. Superfluous
29. Respect
30. Anathema
31. Colloquial. It just rolls off your tongue in a fun way.
32. Rural. My father-in-law can’t say this word!
33. Thither. Not used in too many conversations these days.
34. Family
35. Love
36. Shucks. A rarely used expression.
37. Creativity
38. Moose. They are so ugly that it kind of makes them cute.
39. Steak. I’m a true carnivore.
40. Teriyaki. Now I’m really hungry…
41. Microcosm
42. Sir
43. Ma’am
44. Please
45. Courtesy
46. Manners
47. Chivalry
48. Strength
49. Organization
50. Slither

At first I thought this would be a quick, easy list. It was harder than I thought it would be to come up with 50 favorites. They aren’t all rare, eloquent words, but they are favorites. I would like to challenge you to come up with your own list of 50 favorite words. Please feel free to share some of your favorite words in my comments section. Thanks!