Bryson's Dictionary For Writers And Editors (v5.0)

by Bill Bryson

  in vino veritas. (Lat.) “In wine there is truth.”

  in vitro. (Lat.) Literally “in glass,” i.e., in a test tube, as with in vitro fertilization.

  in vivo. (Lat.) “In a living organism.”

  ipissima verba. (Lat.) “The very words.”

  IPO. Short for initial public offering, the term for stock issued on a company’s market debut.

  ipso facto. (Lat.) “By the very fact.”

  IQ. Intelligence quotient.

  Iraqi, Iraqis.

  Ireland, Republic of (in Gaelic, Eire), consists of the following provinces (and their counties): Connacht (Galway, Leitrim, Mayo, Roscommon, Sligo), Leinster (Carlow, Dublin, Kildare, Kilkenny, Laois, Longford, Louth, Meath, Offaly, Westmeath, Wexford, Wicklow), Munster (Clare, Cork, Kerry, Limerick, Tipperary, Waterford), and Ulster (Cavan, Donegal, Monaghan).

  Irgun Zvai Leumi. Jewish guerrilla organization whose aim was to establish a state in Israel.

  iridescence, iridescent.

  irony, sarcasm. Irony is the use of words to convey a contradiction between the literal and intended meanings. Sarcasm is very like irony except that it is more stinging. Where the primary intent behind irony is to amuse, with sarcasm it is to wound or score points.

  Iroquois. Native American group consisting of Cayuga, Mohawk, Oneida, Onondaga, Seneca, and Tuscarora peoples; pl. same.

  Irrawaddy. Principal river of Burma.

  irreconcilable.

  irrefragable, irrefrangible. The first means indisputable, the second indestructible, but both are inescapably pretentious when such useful synonyms are available.

  irregardless is not a real word; make it regardless.

  irrelevance, irrelevant.

  irreparable.

  irreplaceable.

  irrepressible.

  irresistible.

  irreversible.

  Isaiah. Book of the Old Testament.

  Isakson, Johnny. (1944–) U.S. senator from Georgia.

  ISBN. International Standard Book Number, an identifying number on books.

  Ischia. Volcanic island in the Bay of Naples, Italy.

  -ise/-ize. Since about the time of Noah Webster, American users have been strongly inclined to use -ize terminations on verbs such as recognize and conceptualize, while in Britain -ise endings remain more common. However, it is worth noting that even under the -ize system, certain verbs continue always to end in-ise, of which the following are the main ones: advertise, apprise, chastise, circumcise, comprise, compromise, demise, despise, devise, disguise, excise, exercise, franchise, improvise, incise, merchandise, reprise, supervise, surmise, surprise, televise.

  Iseult/Isolde/Isolt/Ysolt. In Arthurian legend, an Irish princess who falls tragically in love with Tristan, the nephew of a Cornish king. Wagner’s opera is Tristan und Isolde.

  Ishiguro, Kazuo. (1954–) British novelist.

  isosceles triangle. One with two equal sides.

  Isozaki, Arata. (1931–) Japanese architect.

  Issigonis, Sir Alec. (1906–1988) Turkish-born British car designer.

  Italy is divided into twenty regions: Abruzzi, Basilicata, Calabria, Campania, Emilia-Romagna, Friuli–Venezia Giulia, Lazio, Liguria, Lombardia (Lombardy), Marche (Marches), Molise, Piemonte (Piedmont), Puglia (Apulia), Sardegna (Sardinia), Sicilia (Sicily), Trentino–Alto Adige, Toscana (Tuscany), Umbria, Valle d’Aosta, Veneto.

  ITAR-TASS. Russian news agency; formerly just called TASS.

  its, it’s. Its is the possessive form of it: “Put each book in its place.” It’s is the contraction of it is: “The beauty of solar power is that it’s environmentally friendly.”

  Iverson, Allen. (1975–) American basketball player.

  Ivy League. Group of eight universities in the eastern United States noted for high academic standards: Brown, Columbia, Cornell, Dartmouth, Harvard, Princeton, University of Pennsylvania, and Yale.

  IWW. Industrial Workers of the World, called Wobblies.

  Izmir, Turkey; formerly Smyrna.

  Izvestia (or Izvestiya). Russian newspaper.

  Jj

  ja, jawohl. (Ger.) “Yes.”

  “Jabberwocky.” Poem by Lewis Carroll in Through the Looking-Glass (1872), and (no cap.) any kind of nonsense writing.

  jacana. Tropical bird.

  jacaranda. Tropical tree.

  jackal.

  jackanapes. A cocky person.

  Jacobean, Jacobin, Jacobite. Jacobean describes the period of the reign of James I of England (1603–1625). Jacobins were radical republicans during the French Revolution. Jacobites were supporters of James II of England and his heirs following the Glorious Revolution.

  Jacobi, Derek. (1938–) English actor.

  Jacobs Field. Cleveland baseball stadium, home of the Indians.

  Jacobs Suchard. Swiss chocolate company.

  jactitation of marriage. Note -ctit-. Falsely claiming to be someone’s wife or husband.

  Jacuzzi. (Cap.) Whirlpool bath.

  Jaeger clothing.

  jai alai. Also called pelota. Fast-paced ball game popular in Spain and Latin America.

  Jakarta. Not Djakarta. Capital of Indonesia; formerly Batavia.

  jalopy. Old car.

  jalousie. Type of slatted shutter.

  jamb. Not jam. A doorpost or similar.

  James’s, St., not James’, for the palace, park, and square in London.

  Janácek, Leoš. (1854–1928) Czech composer.

  Jane Eyre. Novel by Charlotte Brontë (1847).

  Jankovic, Jelena. (1985–) Serbian tennis player.

  Janus. Roman god of the gate of Heaven, depicted as having two faces—one at the front and one at the back—because every door or gate looks two ways; also god of beginnings and of the first month, January.

  Japan Air Lines. Not Airlines.

  Jaques, not Jacques, for the character in William Shakespeare’s As You Like It.

  jardinière. Ornamental pot or stand for plants; garnish of mixed vegetables.

  Jaruzelski, General Wojciech. (1923–) Polish general, prime minister (1981–1985), head of state (1985–1989), president (1989–1990).

  Jarvik-7. Artificial heart invented by Robert Jarvik (1946–).

  javelin.

  JCPenney. (One word.) Venerable U.S. retailer.

  Jeanne d’Arc. French for Joan of Arc.

  Jeddah/Jidda, Saudi Arabia.

  jeep, Jeep. Use jeep generally for army vehicles, but Jeep specifically for the brand name of cars produced by DaimlerChrysler.

  Jeffreys, George, Baron. (1648–1689) British “hanging” judge, infamous for severity of his punishments handed down after Monmouth’s rebellion (1685).

  Jehovah’s Witness.

  jejune. Insubstantial.

  Jekyll and Hyde. The full title of the book by Robert Louis Stevenson is The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (1886).

  Jelinek, Elfriede. (1946–) Austrian writer, awarded Nobel Prize for Literature in 2004.

  Jellicoe, John Rushworth, Earl. (1859–1935) British admiral.

  Jell-O. Venerable dessert.

  Jemaah Islamiah. Islamist group responsible for several bombings in Indonesia.

  je ne sais pas. (Fr.) “I don’t know.”

  je ne sais quoi. (Fr.) “I don’t know what” applied to the indescribable.

  Jenkins’ Ear, War of. (1739–48) War between Britain and Spain over trade with South America, ostensibly provoked by an incident in which Spanish sailors boarded a British vessel in the Caribbean and cut off the ear of the captain, Robert Jenkins, but this happened seven years before the hostilities began.

  jeopardy, jeopardize.

  jeremiad. Elaborate lamentation.

  jeroboam. Wine bottle that contains four ordinary wine bottles’ worth of wine.

  jerry-built, jury-rigged. Occasionally confused. The first applies to things that are built cheaply and sloppily without regard to quality. The second describes things made in haste, with whatever materials are at hand, as a
temporary or emergency measure.

  Jervaulx Abbey, England; pronounced jer-vo'.

  jetsam, flotsam. Jetsam applies to goods that have been thrown overboard (jettisoned) at sea; flotsam describes goods that have floated free from wreckage. Historically flotsam went to the Crown and jetsam to the lord of the manor on whose land it washed up.

  Jeu de Paume, Galerie Nationale du, Paris.

  jeune fille. (Fr.) A girl.

  jew’s harp. (No caps.)

  Jhabvala, Ruth Prawer. (1927–) German-born British novelist and screenwriter.

  jibe means to be in agreement and is also a nautical term for the act of changing course. See also GIBE.

  jihad. A Muslim holy war.

  Jinnah, Mohammed Ali. (1876–1948) Founder of Pakistan, governor-general (1947–1948).

  Jobs, Steven. (1955–) Not -ph-. Computer entrepreneur, co-founder of Apple Computer Inc.

  jodhpurs. Riding breeches, named after the Indian city of Jodhpur.

  Johannesburg, South Africa, but the German wine is Johannisberger.

  John Newbery Medal. Award for outstanding children’s literature.

  John o’ Groat’s. House and ferry site in Scotland traditionally (but incorrectly) given as the northernmost point on the British mainland.

  Johns Hopkins (note s on both) is the name of the university and medical center in Baltimore.

  Johnson, Lady Bird. (1912–2007) Wife of Lyndon Baines Johnson; her real name was Claudia Alta Johnson.

  Johnson, Lyndon Baines. (1908–1973) U.S. president (1963–1969).

  Johnson, Magic. (1959–) Basketball player; his real name is Earvin Johnson Jr.

  Johnson, Nunnally. (1897–1977) American screenwriter, film director, and producer.

  joie de vivre. (Fr.) State of being carefree, full of joy.

  Joiners’ and Ceilers’ Company. London livery company. Ceiler is an old term for a wood carver.

  Joliet, Illinois.

  Joliet (or Jolliet), Louis. (1645–1700) French-Canadian explorer.

  Joliette County, Quebec.

  Jones, Inigo. (1573–1652) English architect and designer.

  Joneses, keeping up with the. Not Jones’ or Jones’s or other common variants.

  jonquil. Species of narcissus.

  Jonson, Ben. (1572–1637) Not John-. English dramatist and poet.

  Jordaens, Jakob. (1593–1678) Flemish painter.

  Joslyn Art Museum, Omaha.

  joss stick.

  Jove. Alternative name for the Roman god Jupiter.

  JPMorgan Chase & Co. Financial services company.

  Juan de Fuca Strait. Passage in Puget Sound between Washington and British Columbia.

  Juárez, Mexico; formally it is Ciudad de Juárez.

  Judas Iscariot. Apostle who betrayed Jesus for thirty pieces of silver.

  jugular vein.

  Juilliard School of Music, New York City. Note Jui-.

  jujitsu. Japanese form of unarmed combat.

  julienne. To slice vegetables into strips; a soup containing such vegetables.

  Juno and the Paycock. Play by Sean O’Casey (1924).

  Jurgensen, Sonny. (1934–) American football quarterback; real name Christian Adolph Jurgensen III.

  just deserts. Not desserts. The expression has nothing to do with the sweet course after dinner. It comes from the French for deserve, which may help you to remember that it has just one middle s.

  Juvenal. (c. 60–c. 140) Roman poet; full name Decimus Junius Juvenalis.

  j’y suis, j’y reste. (Fr.) “Here I am, here I stay.”

  Kk

  Kaaba. Sacred shrine at Mecca.

  Kabardino-Balkariya. Russian republic.

  kabuki. Japanese theater.

  Kaczýnski, Lech, and Jaroslaw. (1949–) Identical twin brothers, respectively president (2005–) and prime minister (2006–2007) of Poland.

  Kádár, János. (1912–1989) Hungarian politician.

  Kaddish. (Cap.) Type of Jewish prayer.

  kaffeeklatsch. (Ger.) A gathering for coffee and conversation.

  Kahlúa. Coffee liqueur.

  Kahneman, Daniel. (1934–) Israeli-American academic; awarded Nobel Prize in Economics (2002).

  Kahoolawe. Smallest of the main Hawaiian islands.

  Kakadu National Park, Northern Territory, Australia.

  kakapo. Endangered flightless bird from New Zealand.

  Kalamazoo, Michigan.

  Kalashnikov. Rifle.

  kaleidoscope.

  Kalgoorlie. Mining town in Western Australia.

  Kamchatka Peninsula, Russia.

  kamikaze.

  Kampuchea. Official name for Cambodia, 1975–1989.

  Kandinsky, Wassily (or Vasily). (1866–1944) Russian-born French artist.

  Kaneohe. City and bay on Oahu, Hawaii.

  Kant, Immanuel. (1724–1804) German philosopher.

  Kaohsiung. Second-largest city in Taiwan.

  Kapusściński, Ryszard. (1932–2007) Polish writer.

  Karachayevo-Cherkesiya. Russian republic.

  Karadzć, Radovan. (1945–) Bosnian Serb politician accused of genocide and war crimes.

  Karajan, Herbert von. (1908–1989) Austrian conductor.

  Karamanlis, Kostas (or Costas). (1956–) Prime minister of Greece (2004–); formally Konstantinos Karamanlis.

  Karl-Marx-Stadt. (Hyphens.) Name of Chemnitz, Germany, during Communist era.

  Karlovy Vary. Czech spa formerly known as Carlsbad.

  Kármán, Theodor von. (1881–1963) Hungarian-born American physicist.

  Karolinska Institute, Stockholm.

  Kaskaskia River, Illinois.

  Kasparov, Garry. (1963–) Note -rr-. Russian chess player; born Harry Weinstein.

  Kassel, Germany.

  Katharina. Character in The Taming of the Shrew by William Shakespeare.

  Katharine’s Docks, St., London. Note the unusual spelling of Katharine.

  Katmandu (or Kathmandu). Capital of Nepal.

  Kattegatt. The strait between Denmark and Sweden; in Danish Kattegat.

  Kauai. Hawaiian island.

  Kauffman Stadium. Kansas City baseball stadium, home of the Royals.

  Kaufman, George S(imon). (1889–1961) American dramatist.

  Kazakhstan. Central Asian republic, formerly part of the Soviet Union; capital Astana.

  keelhaul.

  keenness, but keenest.

  keeshond. Breed of dog; pl. keeshonden.

  Kefauver, (Carey) Estes. (1909–1963) American politician.

  Keino, Kip. (1940–) Kenyan runner; full name Kipchoge Keine.

  Keneally, Thomas. (1935–) Australian writer.

  Kenyatta, Jomo. (c. 1897–1978) Born Kamau Ngengi; president of Kenya (1964–1978).

  Kerensky, Alexander (Feodorovich). (1881–1970) Russian revolutionary, briefly prime minister (1917).

  kerfuffle. Disorder, commotion.

  Kerguelen Islands. Group of islands in the southern Indian Ocean.

  Kerkyra. Greek for Corfu.

  Kern, Jerome. (1885–1945) American composer.

  kerosene.

  Kerouac, Jack. (1922–1969) American novelist, a spokesman for the “beat generation” born Jean-Louis Kerouac.

  Kerrey, Bob. (1943–) U.S. politician and academic; president of the New School.

  Kerry, John. (1943–) U.S. Democratic senator from Massachusetts; ran for president in 2004.

  Kertész, Imre. (1929–) Hungarian writer; awarded Nobel Prize for Literature in 2002.

  kewpie doll.

  Key, Francis Scott. (1780–1843) Author of “The Star-Spangled Banner.”

  KGB. Komitet Gosudarstvennoi Bezopasnosti, “Commission of State Security” the secret service of the former Soviet Union. The name ceased to be used after 1991.

  khaki, pl. khakis.

  Khalilzad, Zalmay. (1951–) Afghan-born American academic and diplomat; U.S. ambassador to United Nations (2007–).

  Khamenei, Ayatollah Sayyid Ali. (1
939–) Supreme Leader of Iran (1989–). Note that Sayyid has many variant spellings, among them Seyyed, Seyed, and Said.

  Khartoum. Capital of Sudan.

  Khayyám, Omar. Omar is not a first name, so alphabetically this Persian poet and mathematician (c. 1050–c. 1125) should be listed under O.

  Khomeini, Ayatollah Ruhollah. (1908–1989) Iranian religious and political leader, head of state (1979–1989).

  Khrushchev, Nikita. Few errors make a publication look more careless than misspelling the name of a world leader, and few leaders’ names have been misspelled more frequently or variously than that of the late Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev. Note that the surname has three h’s.

  Kibaki, Mwai. (1931–) President of Kenya (2002–).

  kibbutz, kibitz. The first refers to Israeli communal settlements (pl. kibbutzim). The second is to watch at cards or some other such activity, often in an interfering manner.

  kibosh.

  kidnapped, kidnapper, kidnapping.

  kielbasa. Polish sausage.

  Kierkegaard, Søren (Aabye). (1813–1855) Danish philosopher.

  Kigali. Capital of Rwanda.

  Kiick, Jim. (1946–) American football player.

  Kilauea. Active volcano on the island of Hawaii.

  Kilimanjaro. Mountain in Tanzania, the highest point in Africa (19,340 feet; 5,895 meters). At the end of a line the name should be divided Kilima-njaro.

  Kill Van Kull. Strait between Staten Island and New Jersey.

  kiloton. (Abbr. kT.) An explosive force equal to 1,000 tons of TNT.

  kilowatt. (Abbr. kW.) 1,000 watts.

  Kimberley, South Africa and Australia.

  Kimberly-Clark. U.S. paper and forest products group.

  Kim Il Sung. (1912–1994) North Korean prime minister (1948–1972) and president (1972–1994), succeeded by his son, Kim Jong Il (1942–).

  kimono, pl. kimonos.

  kind, kinds. There should always be agreement between kind or kinds and its antecedents. “These kind of mistakes” should be either “This kind of mistake” or “These kinds of mistakes.”

  kindergarten, but kindergartner.

  kinesiology. The study of body movement.

  kinetics is singular.

  King, (William Lyon) Mackenzie. (1874–1950) Prime minister of Canada (1921–1926, 1926–1930, 1935–1948).

  Kings Canyon National Park, California (no apos.).