Ooh, I love words!
Okay, Folks, pay attention:
Mendacity (n) means deceit; hiding a lie within a truth. Ex. "I'm an award-winning public speaker" might suggest far more prestige than the ribbons earned at my club!!
The adjective form of mendacity is mendacious.
Mendicant (adj) means beggar, supplicant - completely different meaning from deceitful.
Watch Your Language!
Thursday, October 16, 2014
Friday, October 10, 2014
Proximal v. Proximate v. Approximate
Oh, Boy! What a mess...
Overheard recently: "The proximal tourniquet time was 3 minutes." Really??? Proximal (adj.) means located near to the center, or near the point of attachment. Proximate (adj.) means closest in relationship, immediate, as in "The deer crossing the street was the proximate cause of the accident. When discussing or measuring time, the correct word is approximate (adj.). In the case of the overheard sentence, the correct adjective should have been approximate.
Overheard recently: "The proximal tourniquet time was 3 minutes." Really??? Proximal (adj.) means located near to the center, or near the point of attachment. Proximate (adj.) means closest in relationship, immediate, as in "The deer crossing the street was the proximate cause of the accident. When discussing or measuring time, the correct word is approximate (adj.). In the case of the overheard sentence, the correct adjective should have been approximate.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)