A Tricky Less/Fewer Construction

The rule is (Okay, maybe I should say “the rules are.)

• Use “less” when you’re measuring
• Use “fewer” when you’re counting.

Warning: pay attention to the context!

This sentence looks okay, right?

Astronomers have detected less than half of the estimated 25,000 near-Earth objects thought to be 459 feet in size or greater.

https://www.axios.com/newsletters/axios-space-0c3f02e5-1453-4f8c-b9fa-6dd90db64456.html

“Less than half” feels correct, doesn’t it? That’s because with fractions, usually you’re measuring. But this sentence is counting asteroids, so it should say “fewer.”

When you write, be alert! Pay attention! Here’s a picture of an asteroid so you have something besides text to look at. Thanks, NASA.

This post first appeared on The Writing Rag.

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• Concise means you take out unnecessary words. For example, write “daily,” not “on a daily basis.”
• Terse means you take out too many words. Terseness introduces ambiguity.

Here’s an example of ambiguity caused by terseness:

The sign leaves out the possessive adjective that tells whose hands to wash. Readers shouldn’t have to pause to figure out what you mean. Say enough to remove ambiguity, but say no more.

This post first appeared on The Writing Rag.

She’s right of course. Get it right in your own writing, and don’t correct others unless they ask. Or to make a joke.

Use “fewer” when you’re counting and “less” when you’re measuring.

This post first appeared on The Writing Rag.

Everybody knows what a mentor is. It’s a well-trusted usually older person who teaches and trains someone, and who generally has a close relationship with the person they’re mentoring.

Mentor was a fellow in Homer’s story The Odyssey. He instructed Odysseus before he left on his journey, and took care of the home castle while Odysseus was gone.

But what do you call the person who has a mentor? Not “student” that goes with “teacher.”

Maybe mentee? That’s what these guys think (it’s a good guess, but they’re wrong).

Mentors help their mentees to get back into work, find volunteering, apply to university or develop new skills, all whilst working on their own communication and leadership techniques.

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/jul/26/moments-kindness-around-share-your-favourite-upside

The actual correct name of the person being mentored is protégé. Yup, from the French.

Betchya didn’t know that, huh?

This post first appeared on The Writing Rag.

This is a grammar and writing blog, after all, and I frequently write about mistakes, or at least about how not to make mistakes. I not infrequently use “goof” for mistake, though my serious word for a mistake is “solecism.” Here’s a definition:

solecism
PRONUNCIATION:(SOL-uh-sizz-ehm) 

MEANING
noun:
1. A grammatical mistake or a nonstandard usage.
2. A breach of etiquette.
3. An error, inconsistency, or impropriety.

ETYMOLOGY
From Latin soloecismus, from Greek soloikismos, from soloikos (speaking incorrectly; literally, inhabitant of Soloi) after Soloi, an ancient Athenian colony in Cilicia where a dialect considered as substandard was spoken. Earliest documented use: 1577.

I’m quoting A Word a Day, a daily vocabulary lesson that I’ve plugged several times in the past. Check it out. For the home page, it’s https://wordsmith.org.

This post first appeared on The Writing Rag.