[etni] Fwd: Does Your Dictionary Rule? - DailyWritingTips

From: Michele Ben <mggben@xxxxxxxxx>
To: ETNI <etni@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Date: Tue, 14 Dec 2010 06:06:36 +0200
For everyone who has trouble getting off their high horse, here's an
interesting read!
Michele

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Daily Writing Tips <info@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Date: Mon, Dec 13, 2010 at 3:16 PM
Subject: Does Your Dictionary Rule? - DailyWritingTips
To: mggben@xxxxxxxxx


Does Your Dictionary Rule? - DailyWritingTips

________________________________

Does Your Dictionary Rule?

Posted: 13 Dec 2010 02:40 AM PST

I was going to write about the proper use of hopefully and presently,
two adverbs that were bugaboos for a few of my college professors.

But today’s visit to a dictionary has made me reconsider proper.

For decades, I carried high the language flag, circled these words in
my own students’ essays, and went to bed at night satisfied that I had
bequeathed a small but shiny gem of language education. (I never was
that smug, but you get the idea.)

And while working as a newspaper copy editor, I patiently explained to
new reporters that they meant “I hope” or “people hope” rather than
“hopefully” in sentences such as:

Hopefully, fuel prices will drop.

I hoped each trainee would consider this knowledge more dazzling than
a new press pass and hold it secure within his or her writer’s heart.

I had learned that we may use the adverb hopefully in this manner only:

Villagers stood on the beach and looked hopefully out to sea, spirits
beginning to soar in the rising morning light as they sighted the
small fishing boat previously feared lost forever in last night’s
brutal storm.

Here, hopefully means “with hope.”

On another job, I cringed at the outgoing phone message of my boss, a
smart, efficient, and orderly director at a publishing company, as her
voice rang with confidence:

I am presently unavailable and will return your call as soon as possible.

“Currently unavailable!” I silently shouted. “You can return the calls
presently, or soon! But you are currently unavailable!”

Uh-oh. Apparently, what I was taught, went on to teach, and held
tucked away in the I-know-better-than-you back pocket of my editorial
pants does not hold true, entirely.

Why do I say this? Because I checked that dictionary I mentioned earlier.

Hopefully can be used in exactly the manner just about everybody wants
to use it:

Hopefully, your party will have a huge turnout and your guests will
supply their own drinks!

Here, hopefully means “I hope.”

Likewise, it’s OK to tell your caller that you’ll call back presently
or soon and also that you’re presently unavailable. The word means
soon . . . and now.

Balking at what’s acceptable today is still acceptable. But you might
want to balk lightly, limiting yourself to self-regulation rather than
to the regulation of others until you check a now source.

And to a dictionary, together we shall presently turn, hopefully!

A good, contemporary dictionary functions as a fabulous guide and a
trustworthy gospel. It will tell you about words and a lot more, like
grammar. Your dictionary will empower you.

Some of us like to adhere to one guide, some to more. Sometimes we
must stick with a dictionary selected by the person for whom we’re
writing or editing.
The trick is to remember, if in doubt about a word’s usage, to opt to
explore your dictionary. Then you can refer others to it while
defending your position.

Usage notes may affirm your previous understanding or teach you
something new. Today, though I’m pretty sure I’m going to keep using
hopefully and presently as I was taught, I am re-humbled by the
various and changing meanings and uses of words as I explore my chosen
dictionary in order to offer you this presentment—the word that so
happens to follow presently.

________________________________
Original Post: Does Your Dictionary Rule?
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[etni] Fwd: Does Your Dictionary Rule? - DailyWritingTips

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