although / though As conjunctions, although and though are generally interchangeable: Although (or though) she smiled, she was angry. Although usually occurs at the beginning of its clause (as in the preceding example), whereas though may occur elsewhere and is the more common term when used to link words or phrases, as in wiser though poorer. In certain constructions only though is acceptable: Fond though (not although) I am of sports, I’d rather not sit through another basketball game altogether / all together If you and your local scout troop go all together on a hike, you may be altogether tired when you get back. As this example shows, altogether and all together do not mean the same thing. We use all together to indicate that the members of a group perform or undergo an action collectively: The nations stood all together. The prisoners were herded all together. We use all together only in sentences that can be rephrased so that all and together may be separated by other words. Thus you can tell that all together is correct in the sentence The books lay all together in a heap since you can rephrase it as All the books lay together in a heap. The adverb altogether, on the other hand, has several different meanings. It’s easy to see how confusion might arise with the phrase all together when we use altogether to mean “all told, in all”: Altogether, there were fifty people at the wedding. Most frequently, however, we use altogether as a synonym for entirely or completely: The researchers tried an altogether different approach this time. But we can also use it as a sentence adverb meaning “with everything considered, on the whole”: Altogether, I can understand why she took offense anticipate Some people hold that you should never use anticipate as a synonym for expect, as in We didn’t anticipate that it would take so long to drive across Ohio. They would restrict its use to situations in which advance action is taken either to forestall an occurrence (as in She anticipated her opponent’s next move) or to fulfill a desire (as in He anticipated my wish by making reservations at the Mexican restaurant). In earlier surveys, however, a majority of the Usage Panel accepted the use of anticipate to mean “to feel or to realize beforehand” and “to look forward to.” Thus by their lights it is OK to say They really anticipate the joys of homeownership or We’re anticipating a larger turnout at this year’s school fair unanticipated The word unanticipated, however, is not established as a synonym for unexpected. Seventy-seven percent of the Usage Panel rejected the sentence They always set aside a little extra food for unanticipated guests, inasmuch as guests for whom advance provision has been made cannot be said to be unanticipated, though they may very well be unexpected anxious People have been using anxious as a synonym for eager for over 250 years, and for over 100 years language critics have been objecting to it. Objectors feel that anxious should be used only when the person it refers to is worried or uneasy about the upcoming event. By this thinking, it is OK to say We are anxious to see the strike settled soon but not We are anxious to see the new show of contemporary sculpture at the museum. The Usage Panel splits down the middle on this issue. Just 52 percent accept anxious in the second example So left to your own devices, what should you do? Using anxious to mean “eager” can have its own effectiveness, at least in colloquial discourse, since it adds emotional urgency to an assertion. It implies that the subject so strongly desires a certain outcome that frustration of that desire will lead to unhappiness. In this way, it resembles the informal adjective dying in sentences such as I’m dying to see your new baby. So use anxious when it fits your purpose. apparent You might think that the meaning of a word like apparent would be, well, apparent. But language is never that easy. Used before a noun, apparent means “seeming”: For all his apparent wealth, Pat always had trouble paying the rent. Used after a form of the verb be, however, apparent can mean either “seeming” (as in His virtues are only apparent) or “obvious” (as in The effects of the drought are apparent to anyone who sees the parched fields), so be careful that the meaning you want is clear from the context arrant / errant If you’re unsure of the difference between these words, don’t feel bad. Arrant was once a variant spelling of errant, which meant and still means “wandering.” Thus an errant (or an arrant) thief was a bandit who roved the countryside. It was not a far stretch from this use to the meaning “notorious, outright, thoroughgoing,” which is the meaning that arrant developed and kept. Now if you wander and rove, you can only be errant. And if you want an intensive adjective to add spice to insults, you want arrant. An arrant fool is a complete one. assure / ensure / insure Assure, ensure, and insure all mean “to make secure or certain.” Only assure is used with reference to a person in the sense of “to set the mind at rest”: The ambassador assured the Prime Minister of his loyalty. Although ensure and insure are generally interchangeable, only insure is now widely used in American English in the commercial sense of “to guarantee persons or property against risk.” If you want to keep them straight, it may be easier just to give these words separate roles: I assure you that we have insured the grounds to ensure that we will be protected in case of a lawsuit stemming from an accident awhile / a while People often confuse the adverb awhile with the noun phrase a while. This is hardly surprising because they sound the same and the noun phrase can function like an adverb. In many cases both forms are acceptable. You can say It took a while to get down the hill, where a while functions like other noun phrases such as an hour or a long time. You can also say It took awhile to get down the hill, where awhile functions like the adverb phrase quite long or the comparative adverb longer You may want to be careful using a while after prepositions, where traditional grammar calls for a noun as object. Thus you should write I’ll stay for a while, but not I’ll stay for awhile. Without the preposition, either form is acceptable: I’ll stay a while or I’ll stay awhile backward / backwards You can spell the adverb backward or backwards. The forms are interchangeable: stepped backward, a mirror facing backwards. But in Standard English the adjective has no -s: a backward view bad / badly Bad is often used as an adverb in sentences such as The house was shaken up pretty bad or We need water bad. This usage is common in informal speech but is widely regarded as unacceptable in formal writing. In an earlier survey, 92 percent of the Usage Panel rejected the sentence His tooth ached so bad he could not sleep want badly The use of badly with want was once considered incorrect but is now entirely acceptable. So don’t feel bad if you find yourself wanting to go to the beach badly feel badly If you say I feel bad, people may think you have a cold, or they may just as likely think your spirits need a lift. But what if you say I feel badly? Will you get sympathy, censure, or an aspirin? The adverb badly is often used after verbs such as feel, as in I felt badly about the whole affair. In fact, this usage bears analogy to the use of other adverbs with feel, such as strongly in We feel strongly about this issue. Many people like to restrict feel badly to refer to emotional distress and let feel bad cover physical ailments. There is nothing wrong with maintaining this distinction, but don’t expect everyone else to share this view. It’s another useful distinction that is often ignored. Be sure that readers will understand feel badly from its context. badly meaning “unwell” In some regions people use badly to mean “unwell,” as in He was looking badly after the accident. Poorly is also used in this way. You may want to be careful with this usage, however. In an earlier survey, 75 percent of the Usage Panel found it unacceptable in formal writing.