Tag Archives: building vocabulary/conceptual knowledge

Based on text from Paul Brians’ book Common Errors in English Usage (Sherwood, Oregon: William James & Co., 2013), to which, as I always remind users of the this blog, Professor Brians allows free access at his Washington State University web page, here is a worksheet on the uses of the adjective loath and the verb loathe. I was a bit surprised to hear the adjective (used as “I am loath to drive my car into the lake”) is actually pronounced like both. I’ve always pronounced it like the verb, which sounds like clothe.

If you find typos in this document, I would appreciate a notification. And, as always, if you find this material useful in your practice, I would be grateful to hear what you think of it. I seek your peer review.

From Paul Brians’ book Common Errors in English Usage (to which Professor Brians allows free access at his Washington State University page), here is worksheet on the adverb literally. Professor Brians rightly emphasizes the overuse of this word as an all-purpose intensifier. He advises, and I fully agree, that unless you have swallowed a stick of dynamite, you should not say “I literally blew up.”

If you find typos in this document, I would appreciate a notification. And, as always, if you find this material useful in your practice, I would be grateful to hear what you think of it. I seek your peer review.

From the pages of Paul Brians’ book Common Errors in English Usage (to which, amazingly, he continues to allow free access at his Washington State University webpage), here is a worksheet on the use of the noun phrase “lion’s share.”

This is a relatively spare document, with Professor Brians’ text on the use of this phrase, and plenty of white space for students to practice writing sentences that include it.

If you find typos in this document, I would appreciate a notification. And, as always, if you find this material useful in your practice, I would be grateful to hear what you think of it. I seek your peer review.