by Bill Bryson
militate, mitigate. Often confused. To militate is to operate against or, much more rarely, for something: “The news of the scandal militated against his election promises.” To mitigate means to assuage, soften, make more endurable: “His apology mitigated the insult.” Mitigate against often appears and is always wrong.
Milius, John. (1944–) American film writer and director.
Milken, Michael. (1946–) American financier.
Millais, Sir John Everett. (1829–1896) British painter.
Millay, Edna St. Vincent. (1892–1950) American poet.
millennium. Note -nn-. The preferred plural is millenniums, but millennia is also accepted.
milli-. Prefix meaning one-thousandth.
milliard. British term now almost never used there or anywhere else, meaning 1,000 million or 1 trillion.
millipede.
Miloševíc, Slobodan. (1941–2006) President of Serbia (1989–1997). He died while on trial on charges of genocide and crimes against humanity in The Hague.
milquetoast, not milk-, for a timid person. The name comes from an old newspaper cartoon called The Timid Soul featuring a character named Caspar (not -er) Milquetoast.
Mindanao. Island in the Philippines.
Mindszenty, József, Cardinal. (1892–1975) Roman Catholic primate of Hungary, long opposed to Communist regime.
minimize, strictly speaking, does not mean merely to play down or soften. It means to reduce to an absolute minimum.
Minorca, Balearic Islands, Spain; in Spanish, Menorca.
Minos. In Greek mythology, a son of Zeus and Europa, and king of Crete.
Minotaur. In Greek mythology, a figure that is half man and half bull.
Minsk. Capital of Belarus.
minuscule. Frequently misspelled. Think of minus, not mini.
minute detail. The two words not only are tautological, but also have a kind of deadening effect on any passage in which they appear, as here: “Samples of the shards were brought back to the college, where they were studied in minute detail.” Why not just say “Samples of the shards were brought back to the college for study”? One can normally assume that any objects being subjected to study will be examined closely.
minutia. A detail; pl. minutiae. Note that the latter is pronounced min-oo-she, not min-oo-she-ay.
mirabile dictu. (Lat.) Wonderful to relate.
Miricioiu, Nelly. (1952–) Romanian opera singer.
MIRV. Multiple independently targeted reentry vehicle; a type of ballistic missile.
miscellaneous.
mischievous.
mise-en-scène. Stage or film scenery, or the general setting of an event.
mishit.
misogamist, misogynist. The first hates marriage, the second hates women.
misshapen.
Mississauga. Suburb of Toronto.
Missolonghi, Greece.
misspell. If there is one word that you don’t wish in print to misspell, it is this one. Note -ss-.
misspend.
misstate.
misstep.
mistime.
mistletoe.
mistral. Cold, unpleasant wind in France.
MIT. Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
mitigate, militate. The first means to soften or make more endurable; the second to act against.
mitochondrion. Type of cell organelle; pl. mitochondria.
Mitsukoshi. Japanese department store chain.
Mitterrand, François (Maurice Marie). (1916–1996) President of France (1981–1995).
Mitzi E. Newhouse Theater, Lincoln Center, New York.
Miyazawa, Kiichi. (1919–2007) Prime minister of Japan (1991–1993).
Mnemosyne. Greek goddess of memory and mother of the nine Muses by Zeus.
MO. Postal abbreviation of Missouri. The traditional abbreviation is Mo., with period.
Möbius strip (or band). A piece of paper or other material twisted in such a way as to form a continuous surface; named after its discoverer, German mathematician August Möbius (1790–1868).
Mobutu Sese Seko. (1930–1997) President of Zaire (1965–1997); born Joseph-Desiré Mobuto.
Moby-Dick. (Note hyphen.) Novel by Herman Melville (1851). The full title on publication was Moby-Dick; or, the Whale.
moccasin.
modem is short for modulator/demodulator.
Modigliani, Amedeo. (1884–1920) Italian artist.
modus operandi. (Lat.) The way of doing something.
modus vivendi. (Lat.) Way of life, or a kind of truce pending the settlement of a dispute.
Mogadishu. Capital of Somalia.
Mohave, Mojave. The first is the spelling for the Native American tribe and mountains in Arizona; the second is the spelling of the desert.
Mohorovicíc discontinuity. Boundary between Earth’s crust and mantle, named for the Croatian geophysicist Andrija Mohorovicíc (1857–1936).
Mojave Desert, but Mohave for the Native American tribe and mountains in Arizona.
Moldova. Not Moldavia. Eastern European republic, formerly called Bessarabia, formerly part of Soviet Union; capital Chişinău. The people and language are Moldovan.
Molière. (1622–1673) French playwright; born Jean-Baptiste Poquelin.
mollycoddle.
Molly Maguires. Secret society active in Pennsylvania in nineteenth century.
molt. Not moult.
molybdenum. Chemical element; symbol Mo.
Mombasa. Seaport and resort in Kenya.
Mona Lisa. Painting by Leonardo da Vinci, also called La Gioconda.
Mönchen-Gladbach, Germany.
Mondrian, Piet. (1872–1944) Dutch abstract painter; born Pieter Cornelis Mondriaan.
Monégasque for a person or thing from Monaco. Not Mona-.
moneyed, not monied, for someone with wealth.
mongooses is the plural of mongoose. (The word is of Indian origin and has no relation to the English goose.)
moniker (not monicker) for a name or nickname.
Monnet, Jean. (1888–1979) French statesman; but Claude Monet for the artist.
Monongahela. River in West Virginia and Pennsylvania.
mononucleosis is the American term for the illness known in Britain and elsewhere as glandular fever, a consideration that should be borne in mind if writing for an international audience.
Monserrat, Spain, but Montserrat, Leeward Islands.
monsieur, pl. messieurs.
Montagnard. French for “mountain dweller,” it is the name given to the radical faction during the French Revolution because of the elevated position of their seats in the National Convention. The term is also applied to some Southeast Asian hill tribes.
Montaigne, Michel (Eyquem) de. (1533–1592) French philosopher and essayist.
Mont Blanc. Alpine mountain. But Montblanc for the pen.
Montenegro, Republic of. Formerly part of Yugoslavia; capital Podgorica.
Monterey for the city and bay in California and towns in Indiana, Massachusetts, Tennessee, and Virginia, but Monterrey for the city in Mexico and town in Colorado.
Montesquieu, Charles-Louis de Secondat, Baron de La Brède et de. (1689–1755) French philosopher and jurist.
Montessori. System of teaching developed by Maria Montessori (1870–1952), Italian doctor and educator.
Monteverdi, Claudio Giovanni Antonio. (1567–1643) Italian composer.
Montevideo. Capital of Uruguay.
Montparnasse, Paris.
Montpelier for the capital of Vermont, but Montpellier, France.
Mont-Saint-Michel, France (hyphens).
Montserrat, Leeward Islands, but Monserrat, Spain.
moose. Pl. same.
More, Sir Thomas (also St. Thomas). (1478–1535) English statesman and author.
morganatic marriage. One between a noble and a commoner in which the commoner and his or her descendants enjoy no privileges of inheritance.
Morgan le Fay. Sister of King Arthur.
Morg
enthau, Henry, Jr. (1891–1967) American statesman, secretary of the treasury (1934–1945).
moribund does not mean sluggish or declining; it means dying, on the point of death. To be moribund is to be critically, indeed irreversibly, ill.
Morison, Samuel Eliot. (1887–1976) American historian.
Mormon Church. Officially the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
Morocco, Morrocan.
Morris, Gouverneur. (1752–1816) American statesman, signatory of U.S. Constitution.
Morrison, Toni. (1931–) American novelist, awarded Nobel Prize in Literature in 1993.
mortar, in the context of weaponry, is the launching device, not the explosive projectiles. It is generally better, and sometimes necessary, to write that troops fired mortar rounds (or bombs or shells, etc.) rather than simply that they fired mortars.
Morte d’Arthur, Le. Not La. Fifteenth-century prose narrative by Thomas Malory relating the legend of King Arthur.
mortise lock.
Moselle for the river and wine; in German, Mosel.
Moser-Pröll, Annemarie. (1953–) Austrian skier.
Moskva. Russian for Moscow.
Moslem is an accepted variant, but Muslim is generally preferred.
mosquitoes.
Mossad. Israeli secret service.
most. Unless you are striving for an air of folksiness, most as an adverb should be confined to signifying the topmost degree (“the most delicious cake”) or as a synonym for very (“Your offer is most welcome”). As an alternative for almost or nearly (“He would eat most anything”) it is generally not welcome in serious writing.
Mother’s Day.
mot juste. (Fr.) The right word.
motto, pl. mottoes.
mountebank. A charlatan.
Mourning Becomes Electra. Play by Eugene O’Neill (1931).
moussaka.
mousy (pref.), mousey (alt.).
Mozambique, but Mozambican.
mozzarella.
Mpumalanga. South African province, formerly Eastern Transvaal.
MRSA. Short for methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, a type of bacterial infection.
MS is the abbreviation for manuscript; pl. MSS (capitalized but without periods).
MT is the postal abbreviation of Montana; the traditional abbreviation is Mont., with period.
Mubarak, (Muhammad) Hosni (Said). (1928–) Egyptian president (1981–).
mucous, mucus, mucosa. The first is the adjectival form, the second the noun form. Thus, mucus is the substance secreted by the mucous membranes. A more formal name for the latter is mucosa.
Mueller, Lisel. (1924–) German-born American poet.
Muenster/Munster. Either is correct for the cheese from Alsace. See also MUNSTER, MNSTER.
muezzin. In Islam, an official who calls the faithful to prayer.
mufti. Plain clothes worn by a person who usually wears a uniform.
Muhammad (or Mohammed). (c. 570–632) Founder of Islam.
Mühlhausen, Germany.
mujahideen is the most common spelling in English for Islamic guerrilla fighters, but there are many alternative spellings, including mujahidin, mujahedin, and mujahedeen.
Mukhabarat. Iraqi secret police.
mukluk, muktuk. The first is a kind of boot; the second is whale blubber as food.
mulatto, pl. mulattos.
mullah. Muslim teacher.
mulligatawny soup.
Mumbai. Indian city formerly known as Bombay.
Munch, Edvard. (1863–1944) Norwegian artist.
Munster, Münster. The first is a province of Ireland comprising six countries: Clare, Cork, Kerry, Limerick, Tipperary, and Waterford. The second is a city in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany.
Murchison River, Australia; Murchison Falls, Uganda.
Murfreesboro, battle of. (1863) U.S. Civil War; sometimes called the battle of Stones River.
murmur.
Murphy’s Law. If anything can go wrong, it will.
Muscovite for a person from Moscow. The name comes from the ancient principality of Muscovy.
Muses. The nine daughters of Zeus and Mnemosyne who presided over the arts: Calliope (eloquence and epic poetry), Clio (history), Erato (elegiac poetry), Euterpe (music), Melpomene (tragedy), Polyhymnia (lyric poetry), Terpsichore (dancing), Thalia (comedy), and Urania (astronomy).
Musharraf, Pervez. (1943–) President of Pakistan (1999–).
“Music hath charms to soothe a savage breast” is the correct quotation from the Congreve play The Mourning Bride. Not “the savage breast” or “a savage beast.”
musk-ox (hyphen), but muskmelon, muskrat, muskroot.
Muslim (pref.), Moslem (alt.).
Mussolini, Benito. (1883–1945) Italian prime minister (1922–1943) and dictator.
Mussorgsky/Moussorgsky, Modest Petrovich. (1839–1881) Russian composer.
mustache.
mutatis mutandis. (Lat.) “With the necessary changes.”
mutual, common. Many authorities continue to insist, with varying degrees of conviction, that mutual should be reserved for describing reciprocal relationships between two or more things and not loosely applied to those things held in common. Thus, if you and I like each other, we have a mutual friendship. But if you and I both like Shakespeare, we have a common admiration. The use of mutual in the sense of common has been with us since the sixteenth century and was given a notable boost in the nineteenth with the appearance of the Dickens novel Our Mutual Friend. Most authorities accept it when common might be interpreted as a denigration, but even so in its looser sense the word is generally better avoided. It is, at all events, more often than not superfluous, as here: “They hope to arrange a mutual exchange of prisoners” (Daily Telegraph). An exchange of anything can hardly be other than mutual.
muumuu. Loose-fitting Hawaiian dress.
Muzak. (Cap.)
MW. Megawatt.
mW. Milliwatt.
myalgic encephalomyelitis. (Abbr. ME.) A type of chronic malaise.
Myanmar, Burma. Burma is the former official name of the Southeast Asian nation and the one preferred by most publications and other informed users outside Burma. Myanmar was for a time used by many publications, but now its use is mostly confined to the country’s government and institutions under its influence. Some authorities write “Burma/Myanmar.” The United Nations uses just Myanmar.
Mycenae. Ancient Greek city and civilization; things from or of there are Mycenaean.
My Lai, Vietnam; site of notorious massacre of villagers by U.S. troops (1968).
myrrh.
myself. Except when it is used for emphasis (“I’ll do it myself”) or reflexively (“I cut myself while shaving”) myself is almost always timorous and better avoided. In the following two examples, the better word is inserted in brackets: “Give it to John or myself [me]” “My wife and myself [I] would just like to say…”
myxomatosis. Viral disease in rabbits.
Nn
NAACP. National Association for the Advancement of Colored People.
Nacogdoches, Texas.
NAFTA. North American Free Trade Agreement, a 1994 trade pact signed by Canada, Mexico, and the United States.
Nagorno-Karabakh. Armenian-dominated enclave in the former Soviet republic of Azerbaijan.
Nags Head, North Carolina.
Nagurski, Bronko. (1908–1990) Canadian-born American football player; real name Bronislau Nagurski.
Naipaul, V.S. (for Vidiadhar Surajprasad) (1932–) Trinidad-born British writer; awarded Nobel Prize for Literature in 2001.
naïve, naïvety.
namable. That which can be named.
namby-pamby.
Namen (Flemish)/Namur (French). Belgian city.
nano-. Prefix meaning one-billionth.
naphtha. Note naph-tha, not nap-tha-.
Napoleon I. (1769–1821) born Napoleon Bonaparte; emperor of the French (1804–1815).
narcissism.
Narragansett Bay, Rhode Island.
NASA. National Aeronautics and Space Administration.
nasal.
Nascar. National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing.
NASDAQ. National Association of Securities Dealers Automated Quotations; stock market specializing in technology stocks.
Nash (or Nashe), Thomas. (1567–1601) English dramatist.
National Governors’ Association. (Apos.)
National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Maryland. Note Institutes plural. It is part of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
NATO. North Atlantic Treaty Organization. As of 2007, the member countries were Belgium, Bulgaria, Canada, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Turkey, United Kingdom, United States.
Natty Bumppo. Main character in James Fenimore Cooper’s Leather-stocking Tales.
Naugahyde is a trademark.
naught, nought. Although dictionaries increasingly treat the words as interchangeable, traditionally the first means nothing (as in “His efforts came to naught”), while the second is used to signify the figure zero. The game is noughts and crosses (known in the United States as tic-tac-toe).
nauseous is an adjective describing something that causes nausea (“a nauseous substance”). To feel sick is to be nauseated.
Navajo/Navaho. The first is generally preferred, the second accepted.
naval, navel. The first pertains to a navy and its possessions or operations; the second to belly buttons and like-shaped objects. The oranges are navel.
navigable.
Nazism. Not -ii-.
n.b. (or NB). Abbreviation of nota bene (Lat.), “note carefully.” Note that n.b. is spelled with periods and NB without.
NCAA. National Collegiate Athletic Association.
Ndeti, Cosmas. (1971–) Kenyan distance runner.
Ndjamena (or N’Djamena). Capital of Chad.
’Ndrangheta. Organized crime group in Calabria, Italy.
Neandertal increasingly is the preferred spelling for the extinct species of human, though the formal scientific rendering Homo neanderthalensis still generally keeps the -thal spelling. Neanderthal man as a term for the species is both sexist and old-fashioned.
near disaster. “His quick thinking saved an RAF jet pilot from a near disaster.” Not quite. The pilot was saved from a disaster. A near disaster is what he had.