by Bill Bryson
von Braun, Wernher. (1912–1977) German-born American rocket scientist.
von Karajan, Herbert. (1908–1989) Austrian conductor.
Vonnegut, Kurt. (1922–2007) American novelist.
von Sternberg, Josef. (1894–1969) Austrian-born American film director.
von Stroheim, Erich. (1885–1957) German-born Hollywood actor and director.
Von Willebrand’s disease. Genetic disorder that affects blood clotting.
voodoo.
voortrekker. Afrikaans for “pioneer.”
Vorderasiatisches Museum, Berlin, Germany.
vortexes/vortices. For the plural of vortex, either is correct.
vox populi. (Lat.) “Voice of the people.”
Voyageurs National Park, Minnesota.
voyeur. One who enjoys watching others engage in sexual acts.
Vuillard, Édouard. (1868–1940) French artist.
vulpine. Having the nature of a fox.
vying.
Ww
wacky.
Waikiki. Beach and district in Honolulu, Hawaii.
wainscot, wainscoting. Type of paneling.
Waitemata Harbor, Auckland, New Zealand.
waiver, waver. The first is a relinquishment of a claim; the second means to hesitate.
Wajda, Andrzej. (1926–) Polish film director; pronounced vie'-da.
Walden Pond. Small lake in Massachusetts associated with Henry David Thoreau.
Waldenses. Puritanical Christian sect originating in the twelfth century.
Waldheim, Kurt. (1918–2007) Austrian politician, secretary-general of the United Nations (1972–1982), and president of Austria (1986–1992).
Wa⌢ęsa, Lech. (1943–) President of Poland (1990–1995); awarded Nobel Peace Prize (1983).
walkie-talkie.
wallaby. Species of small kangaroo.
Wallace, Alfred Russel. (Not -ll.) (1823–1913) British naturalist.
Wallenberg, Raoul. (1912–1947?) Swedish diplomat who helped to save thousands of Hungarian Jews from being sent to concentration camps in World War II.
Wallis and Futuna Islands. South Pacific island cluster, formerly a French overseas territory, now formally a French overseas collectivity; capital Mata-Utu.
Walloon. A French-speaking Belgian, but Wallonia for the region.
Wal-Mart. Discount stores group. The company’s full name is Wal-Mart Stores Inc.
Walpurgis Night (or Walpurgisnacht). The night of April 30, when witches were once thought to gather.
Walton, Izaak. (Not Isaac.) (1593–1683) English biographer and naturalist.
Wampanoag. Native American group, part of the Algonquin people.
Warszawa. The Polish spelling of Warsaw.
Wassermann test. Blood test for syphilis, named after German bacteriologist August von Wassermann (1866–1925).
wasteland is one word, but the poem by T. S. Eliot is “The Waste Land..
wastrel. Good-for-nothing person.
“Water, water, everywhere,/“Nor any drop to drink” are the lines from the Samuel Taylor Coleridge poem “The Rime of the Ancient Mariner.”
Waterston, Sam. (Not -son.) (1940–) American actor.
Watteau, Jean-Antoine. (1684–1721) French painter.
Watusi. African people.
Waukegan, Illinois.
Waugh, Evelyn. (1903–1966) English novelist.
waver, waiver. The first means to hesitate; the second is the relinquishment of a claim.
Waverley Station, Edinburgh, Scotland.
wavy. Not -ey.
way, shape, or form. Choose one.
WCTU. Women’s Christian Temperance Union.
Wealth of Nations, The, by Adam Smith; formally it is entitled Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations (1776).
weasel.
weather conditions is redundant, as in “Freezing weather conditions will continue for the rest of the week.” Delete conditions. Similarly tiresome is the weather forecasters’ fondness for “activity,” as in “thunderstorm activity over the plains states.”
Weddell Sea, Antarctica.
Wedgwood china. Not Wedge-.
weevil. Type of beetle.
Wehrmacht. German armed forces (1935–1945).
Weidenfeld and Nicolson for the British publisher. Not -field, not Nich-.
Weil, Simone. (1909–1943) French philosopher; pronounced vay.
Weill, Kurt. (1900–1950) German-born American composer.
Weimar Republic. German republic (1919–1933).
Weimaraner. (Cap.) Breed of dog.
Weinmeister, Arnie. (1923–2000) American football player.
Weir, Peter. (1944–) Australian film director.
weird.
Weisz, Rachel. (1971–) British actress.
Weizmann, Chaim. (1874–1952) Russian-born Israeli scientist and statesman, president of Israel (1948–1952).
Welch Regiment, Royal Welch Fusiliers, but the Welsh Guards for British military units.
Welles, Orson. (1915–1985) American film actor and director.
Wellesley College, Wellesley, Massachusetts.
wellington boots. (No cap.)
weltschmerz. German for sadness over the state of the world.
werewolf, pl. werewolves.
West, Mae. (1892–1980) American actress.
West, Nathanael. Pen name of Nathan Wallenstein Weinstein (1903–1940), American novelist.
Westchester, New York, but West Chester, Delaware and Pennsylvania.
Western Australia for the Australian state, but the West Australian for its largest newspaper.
Westmeath. Irish county.
Westmoreland, William C. (1914–2000) American general.
Westmorland, not -more-, for the former English county, now part of Cumbria.
Westpac Banking Corporation. Australian bank.
West Point-Pepperell. U.S. textiles company, now WestPoint Home.
wether. A castrated sheep.
Weyerhaeuser Company. Forestry products company.
whacky (alt.)/wacky (pref.).
whammy. A curse.
wharf, pl. wharves/wharfs.
wheedle. Coax.
wheeze.
whelk. Edible mollusc.
whence. Although there is ample precedent for writing “from whence”—the King James Bible has the sentence “I will lift up my eyes unto the hills from whence cometh my help”—it is nonetheless tautological. Whence means “from where.” It is enough to say “the hills whence cometh my help.”
whereabouts is plural.
whether or not. The second two words should be dropped when whether is equivalent to if, as in “It is not yet known whether or not persons who become reinfected can spread the virus to others.” Or not is necessary, however, when what is being stressed is an alternative: “I intend to go whether or not you like it.”
whet one’s appetite. Not wet. The word has nothing to do with heightened salivary flow or anything of the like. It comes from an old English word, hwettan, meaning “sharpen.” Hence also whetstone for a stone used to sharpen knives.
which. The belief that which may refer only to the preceding word and not to the whole of a preceding statement is without foundation except where there is a chance of ambiguity. The impossibility of enforcing the rule consistently is illustrated by an anecdote cited by Gowers. A class in Philadelphia had written to a local paper’s resident usage expert, asking him what was wrong with the sentence “He wrecked the car, which was due to his carelessness.” Notice how the authority hoists himself with the last three words of his reply: “The fault lies in using which to refer to the statement ‘He wrecked the car.’ When which follows a noun, it refers to that noun as its antecedent. Therefore in the foregoing sentence it is stated that the car was due to his carelessness, which is nonsense.” See also THAT, WHICH.
whim, whimsy.
whinny. The sound a horse makes.
whippet. Breed of dog.
&nb
sp; whippoorwill. North American bird, so named because of its call.
whirligig for the fairground ride and beetle, but whirlybird is the slang term for a helicopter.
whiskey.
Whistler, James Abbott McNeill. (1834–1903) American painter.
White Friars. Carmelites.
whitish. Not white-.
Whit Sunday. The seventh Sunday after Easter.
Whittier, John Greenleaf. (1807–1892) American poet.
whittle. To pare wood; to reduce gradually.
whiz, whizzed, whizzing.
whiz kid, not whizz-, is generally the preferred spelling, though most dictionaries recognize both. The same applies for whiz-bang, but with the addition of a hyphen.
who, whom. Whom is used when it is the object of a preposition (“To whom it may concern”) or verb (“The man whom we saw last night”) or the subject of a complementary infinitive (“The person whom we took to be your father”). Who is used on all other occasions.
whodunit is the usual spelling for a mystery story. Note the single n.
whortleberry.
Who’s Who. Biographical reference work.
Whyte & Mackay. Scotch whiskey.
widget. A gadget or other small undefined item.
wield.
Wien. German for Vienna.
Wiener, Norbert. (1894–1964) American mathematician, developed the science of cybernetics.
Wiener schnitzel. Fried breaded veal cutlet.
Wiesbaden, Germany. Not Weis-.
Wiesenthal, Simon. (1919–2005) Celebrated hunter of Nazi war criminals.
Wiest, Dianne. (1948–) American actress.
Wi-Fi. (Generally cap.) Short for wireless fidelity.
Wilde, Oscar (Fingall O’Flahertie Wills). (1854–1900) Irish poet and playwright.
wildebeest, pl. wildebeeste/wildebeests.
wildflower (adj.), wild flower (noun). A wildflower garden is filled with wild flowers.
Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania.
Wilkes Land, Antarctica. (Two words, no apos.)
willful.
Willkie, Wendell L(ewis). (1892–1944) American businessman chosen by Republican Party as its presidential candidate in 1940.
will-o’-the-wisp.
Wills, Garry. (1934–) U.S. historian.
willy-nilly.
Wilshire Boulevard, Los Angeles. Not Wilt-.
Wimbledon. Tennis club; officially, the All-England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club.
Windhoek. Capital of Namibia.
Winger, Debra. (1952–) American film actress.
Winnemucca, Nevada.
Winnibigoshish, Lake, Minnesota.
Winnipeg. Capital of Manitoba, Canada.
Winnipesaukee, Lake, New Hampshire.
wisteria, not -staria, for the flowering shrub, though the American scientist for whom it was named was Caspar Wistar.
withal. Not -all. In addition, moreover.
withhold, withheld. Note -hh-.
Wittgenstein, Ludwig. (1889–1951) Austrian-born British philospher.
Witwatersrand. South African region in which Johannesburg is located. The university commonly known as Wits University is formally University of the Witwatersrand (note the).
wizened. Shriveled.
Wobegon, Lake. Fictional town in stories by Garrison Keillor. The word itself is spelled woebegone.
Wodehouse, P. G. (1881–1975) Prolific comic novelist; formally Sir Pelham Grenville Wodehouse.
Wojciechowicz, Alex. (1915–1992) American professional football player.
Wolfe, Thomas. (1900–1938) American novelist.
Wollongong, New South Wales, Australia.
Wollstonecraft, Mary. (1759–1797) English author, mother of Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley.
wondrous. Not -erous.
Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, Woods Hole, Massachusetts.
woofer. Type of loudspeaker.
woolen, but woolly.
Woolf, Virginia. (1882–1941) English novelist.
Woollcott, Alexander. (1887–1943) American journalist and critic.
Woolley, Monty. (1888–1963) American actor.
Woolloomooloo for the euphonious district of Sydney, Australia. Note the single l in the last syllable.
Woonsocket, Rhode Island.
Woosnam, Ian. (1958–) British golfer.
Worcestershire. English county famous for its sauce.
workaholic.
World Bank. Officially the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development, but that title is rarely used, even on first reference.
World Court. Officially the International Court of Justice, and that title should generally be used on first reference or soon thereafter.
Worrall Thompson, Antony. (1951–) British chef.
worshiped, worshiper.
worsted fabric. Not -stead.
would like. “I would have liked to have seen it” is a common construction and may be excused in conversation, but in writing it should be “I would like to have seen it” or “I would have liked to see it.”
wound, scar. The two are not as interchangeable as writers sometimes casually make them. A scar is what remains after a wound heals. Thus it is always wrong, or at least stretching matters, to talk about a scar healing, including in figurative senses.
Wozniak, Steve. (1950–) Computer engineer, co-founder of Apple Computer with Steve Jobs.
wrack, rack. Wrack means to wreck; rack to strain. The expressions are wrack and ruin, nerve-racking, and rack one’s brain.
Wrangell Mountains, Cape Wrangell, Wrangell–St. Elias National Park, Alaska.
wreak havoc.
Wroclaw, Poland; formerly Breslaw.
wunderkind, not wonder-, for a prodigy.
WWW. (Cap.) World Wide Web.
Wycherley, William. (1640–1716) English playwright.
Wyclif (or Wycliffe), John. (c. 1320–1384) English religious reformer.
Wylie, Elinor. (1885–1928) American poet and novelist.
Wynette, Tammy. (1942–1998) American country singer; born Virginia Wynette Pugh.
Xx
Xavier, St. Francis. (1506–1552) Spanish missionary, one of the founders of the Jesuit order.
XDR TB. Extensive drug-resistant tuberculosis.
Xenophon. (c. 430–c. 350 BC) Greek historian-soldier.
xerography. (No cap.) Photocopying process.
Xerox. (Cap.) Brand of photocopier and the copies it produces.
Xerxes. (519–465 BC) Persian king, defeated by Greeks at Salamis.
Xianggang. Pinyin name for Hong Kong, but use Hong Kong.
Xinhua. Chinese news agency; pronounced shin-hwa'.
Xizang. Pinyin name for Tibet, but use Tibet.
X-ray.
xylophone.
Yy
Yablonovy Range, Russia.
Yahoo! Computer search engine company. Note exclamation mark.
yakuza. (Not cap.) Japanese organized crime groups.
Yamaguchi, Kristy. (1971–) American figure skater.
Yamoussoukro. Capital of Côte d’Ivoire.
Yangon. Formerly Rangoon, capital of Burma.
Yangtze. China’s greatest river, now increasingly known by its Pinyin name, Chang Jiang. Until the relationship between the two names is more generally known, however, Yangtze should also be used on first reference.
Yaoundé. Capital of Cameroon.
Yar’Adua, Umaru. (1951–) President of Nigeria (2007–).
yarmulke. Skullcap worn by Jews.
yashmak. Veil worn by Muslim women.
Yastrzemski, Carl. (1939–) American baseball star.
Yerevan. Capital of Armenia.
Yesilköy Airport, Istanbul, Turkey.
Yevtushenko, Yevgeny. (1933–) Russian poet.
yoicks. Fox hunter’s call.
Yoknapatawpha County. Fictional county in William Faulkner novels.
Yokohama, Japan.
Yokosuka, Japan.
Yom
Kippur. Jewish holy day, also called Day of Atonement.
Yourcenar, Marguerite. Pen name of Marguerite de Crayencour (1903–1987), Belgian-born French-American writer.
Yushchenko, Viktor. (1954–) President of Ukraine (2004–); not to be confused with Viktor Yanukovych (1950–) whom he narrowly beat in a runoff election.
Yzerman, Steve. (1965–) Canadian ice hockey player; pronounced eye-zer-man.
Zz
Zaandam, Zaanstad, Netherlands.
zabaglione. Italian dessert.
Zacatecas. City and state in central Mexico.
Zaharias, Babe Didrikson. (1913–1956) American golfer and athlete; real first name Mildred.
Zaire. Central African republic; former name of the Democratic Republic of Congo. Capital Kinshasa.
Zákinthos. Greek island. Also variously known as Zacynthos, Zakyntos, and Zante.
Zambezi. African river.
Zambia. African republic; formerly Northern Rhodesia. Capital Lusaka.
Zanuck, Darryl F(rancis). (1902–1979) American film producer and studio executive, father of Richard Darryl Zanuck (1934–), film producer.
Zapatero, José Luis Rodríguez. (1960–) Prime minister of Spain (2004–).
Zappeion Gardens, Athens, Greece.
Zarathustra (Persian)/Zoroaster (Greek). (fl. sixth c. BC) Persian prophet, founder of Zoroastrianism.
Zarqawi, Abu Musab al-. (1966–2006) Jordanian insurgent associated with Al Qaeda.
Zatlers, Valdis. (1955–) President of Latvia (2007–).
Zátopek, Emil. (1922–2000) Czech long-distance runner.
Zeebrugge. Belgian port.
Zeffirelli, Franco. (1923–) Italian film, theater, and opera director.
Zeil, Mount, Northern Territory, Australia.
zeitgeist. Spirit of the age.
Zell am See. (No hyphens.) Austrian resort.
Zellweger, Renée. (1969–) American actress.
Zeppelin. Germany military airship in World War I.
Zermatt, Switzerland.
zeros.
Zeus. Preeminent Greek god.
Zhao Ziyang. (1910–2005) Prime minister of China (1980–87), general secretary of Chinese Communist Party (1987–89).
Zhonghua Remnin Gongheguo. Mandarin for the People’s Republic of China.
Zhou Enlai (Pinyin)/Chou En-lai. (1898–1976) Prime minister of China (1949–1976).
Zia (ul-Haq), Muhammad. (1924–1988) President of Pakistan (1977–1988).