Grammar Girl's 101 Misused Words You'll Never Confuse Again

Millions of fans around the world write and communicate better thanks to Mignon Fogarty, aka Grammar Girl, whose weekly grammar podcast has been downloaded more than 30 million times. Since her first book, Grammar Girl's Quick and Dirty Tips for Better Writing, hit the New York Timesbestseller list, her grammar empire has expanded to boast more than 40,000 newsletter subscribers, over 75,000 Twitter followers, and thousands of loyal "devotees" worldwide. Now she's focusing her attention on improving our vocabulary with a series of 101 Words books designed to appeal to the masses. The series kicks off with Grammar Girl's 101 Misused Words You'll Never Confuse Again,an immensely useable guide that tackles those words that confound and confuse even the smartest of people. Nearly everyone has trouble remembering the difference between "affect" and "effect," whether it's "supposedly" or "supposably," or which form of "hear" you use in "Hear, hear!" (Or is it "Here, here!"?)Each word pair entry contains a straightforward explanationcomplete with examplesto ensure (or is it "insure"?) readers will be confidently choosing "who" over "whom" or "uninterested" over "disinterested" with ease. Alongside these usage notes will be fun tidbits including famous quotes, sample crossword entries, and the memory tricks Grammar Girlis known for.

MIGNON FOGARTY, the creator of Grammar Girl and the founder of the Quick and Dirty Tips Network, is also the author of the New York Times bestselling Grammar Girl’s Quick And Dirty Tips For Better Writing and The Grammar Devotional. Her straightforward, bite-sized tips on grammar have led to features in the New York Times, USA Today, the Los Angeles Times, and an appearance on Oprah. She lives in Reno, Nevada.

A Versus An
 

Sadly, a lot of people were taught the wrong rule for using the articles a and an. It’s the sound of the next word that determines the word choice, not the first letter.
If the next word starts with a vowel sound, use an. If the next word starts with a consonant sound, use a. That means a word starting with u or o, for example, can require a or an depending on the pronunciation: a unicorn, an uncle, a onetime deal, an owner.
QUICK AND DIRTY TIP
To remember that words starting with certain letters can go either way, set the image in your mind of a man playing a ukulele under an umbrella—an image that uses two u-words that require different articles.

 
Copyright © 2011 by Mignon Fogarty, Inc.