----------------------------------------------------------------- THE BETTER WRITING SKILLS NEWSLETTER, September 2012 By Tim North of Scribe Consulting www.scribe.com.au ----------------------------------------------------------------- Welcome to the Better Writing Skills newsletter. IN THIS ISSUE 1. "Effect" versus "affect" 2. "A historic" versus "an historic" 3. "How many" versus "how much" 4. Just for fun Your comments and questions are always welcome. Just send email to: info@scribe.com.au Cheers, Tim North (Perth, Western Australia) ----------------------------------------------------------------- 1. "Effect" versus "affect" ----------------------------------------------------------------- My first correspondent this month, Andrew, wrote: One of my members of staff asked me recently the difference between 'effect' and 'affect', and when they should be used. ... I just seem to know which one to use, and couldn't offer a coherent response! As Andrew noted, it's not always obvious which of these words we should use. In fact, it's surprisingly involved as there are multiple meanings for each word. The most common meaning of "affect" is to influence. For example: The new image AFFECTED the size of the file. The new sense of respect AFFECTED him profoundly. The sunlight has AFFECTED the finish of this paint. Another meaning of "affect" is to behave artificially; e.g. He AFFECTED a lisp and pranced about. He tried to AFFECT an air of sophistication but failed. A third (and rather obscure) use of "affect" is found in psychotherapy. It refers to the set of emotions associated with an idea or mental state; e.g. In hysteria, the AFFECT is sometimes entirely dissociated. In this third usage (only), the stress is on the first syllable, so it's pronounced AFF-ect. The most common meaning of "effect" is result. For example: The EFFECT was that the price doubled. That isn't the EFFECT we want. I don't know what the EFFECT of this will be. Another meaning of "effect" is to cause or to produce; e.g. Through shrewd tactics, he EFFECTED a turnaround in sales. Upon taking the job, he EFFECTED sweeping reforms. Hope this helps. -- (c) 2012 Tim North: http://www.scribe.com.au ----------------------------------------------------------------- 2. "A historic" versus "an historic" ----------------------------------------------------------------- On my web site I have a short article that discusses the choice between "a historic" and "an historic": http://www.scribe.com.au/tip-w005.html I argue that "a historic" is more common, but because some regional British accents drop initial "h" sounds ("an 'istoric") both usages are sufficiently popular to be considered correct. My next correspondent, Rob, wrote in to argue his preference for "a historic": ... correct pronunciation of the word "historic" would include the initial "h" (yes, even in England!). Macmillan, Oxford, Collins, etc. clearly indicate the initial "h" should be pronounced. Rob is certainly correct. The standard English described in major dictionaries does recommend pronouncing the initial "h"; thus, the standard form would be "a historic", not "an historic". The editors of those dictionaries would be quick to acknowledge, though, that regional accents often differ greatly from standard English. As English is being used in ever more far-flung locations, more variations appear in pronunciation and usage. The "standard English" spoken on the BBC no longer represents the only way to speak English correctly. Rob continues with a very cogent point about written English: There certainly are plenty of people (most I'd argue) dropping the initial "h" ... but this is for speech only. Consider the following example where letters are inserted to aid pronunciation: "The media are on top of it" When pronounced, many people insert an "r" between "media" and "are" (connected speech). Inserting letters/sounds to help pronunciation does not warrant the writing of these letters, in my opinion. I'm very sympathetic to the point that Rob is making. I suspect that we will both continue to write (and say) "a historic" until the day we die. Our belief that this is correct, though, is not sufficient to say that the other usage is wrong. English is the ultimate democracy. When enough of its users adopt a particular usage that usage becomes acceptable by definition. Some quick online research suggests that around one quarter of people write "an historic". If enough people do this for long enough, this will become an unassailably correct usage. That's just how language evolves. Don't get me wrong, though, I'm not arguing for an "anything goes" approach to language. After all, I make my living teaching "correct" writing practices. Still, some evolution of English is both natural and desirable. Class, discuss. -- (c) 2012 Tim North: http://www.scribe.com.au ----------------------------------------------------------------- Do you know someone who'd like this newsletter? ----------------------------------------------------------------- Do you have a friend or colleague who'd find the Better Writing Skills newsletter interesting? If so, please feel free to send a copy of this issue to them. Alternatively, please tell them they can browse back issues here: http://www.scribe.com.au/newsletter.html Thanks for helping to make this newsletter so successful! ----------------------------------------------------------------- 3. "How many" versus "how much" ----------------------------------------------------------------- My final correspondent, David, asked: Could you just clarify, when does a person use the terms "How much" and when does one use "How many"? First, we need two simple definitions: * "Countable nouns" are things that can be preceded by "a" or "an" and can be made plural. For example, apple (an apple, apples), man (a man, men) and egg (an egg, eggs). * "Uncountable nouns" don't usually get preceded by "a" or "an" and don't usually have a plural form. For example, happiness, petrol, mud, rice and education. Okay, so now it's really simple: 1. We use "how many" if the noun is countable. For example, "How many apples ...". 2. We use "how much" if the noun is uncountable. For example, "How much rice ...". Hope this helps. -- (c) 2012 Tim North: http://www.scribe.com.au ----------------------------------------------------------------- 4. Just for fun ---------------------------------------------------------------- English is hard enough to learn when it's your native language. Spare a thought, then, for everyone who's trying to learn it as a second language. http://www.engrish.com Cheers, Tim. ----------------------------------------------------------------- Would you like more help with your writing? ----------------------------------------------------------------- On my web site, you'll find my range of jargon-free, downloadable e-books that will help you to become a better writer. These e-books will help you with business proposals, report writing, term papers, technical writing, grant writing, creative writing and more. I also run in-house writing-training courses for government and industry. http://www.scribe.com.au ---------------------------------------------------------------- REPRODUCING THIS MATERIAL You're welcome to reproduce the articles from this newsletter that are copyrighted by Tim North, but please don't modify or sell them. Also, please provide a clickable link back to my web site. FUTURE MAILINGS You can prevent (or receive) future mailings by visiting this page: http://www.scribe.com.au/newsletter.html This is a GENUINE service, and you will not receive any unsolicited email as a result. You have my word on it. -----------------------------------------------------------------