tolled/told TOLLED/TOLD Some people imagine that the expression should be “all tolled” as if items were being ticked off to the tolling of a bell, or involved the paying of a toll; but in fact this goes back to an old meaning of "tell": “to count.” You could “tell over” your beads if you were counting them in a rosary. “All told” means “all counted." List of errors file:///C|/Temp/livres/commonerrors/errors/tolled.html03/09/2005 15:40:17 tongue and cheek TONGUE AND CHEEK TONGUE IN CHEEK When people want to show they are kidding or have just knowingly uttered a falsehood, they stick their tongues in their cheeks, so it's "tongue in cheek," not "tongue and cheek." List of errors file:///C|/Temp/livres/commonerrors/errors/tongue.html03/09/2005 15:40:17 toward/towards TOWARD/TOWARDS These two words are interchangeable, but "toward" is more common in the U.S. and "towards" in the U.K. List of errors file:///C|/Temp/livres/commonerrors/errors/toward.html03/09/2005 15:40:17 track home TRACK HOME TRACT HOME Commuters from a tract home may well feel that they are engaged in a rat race, but that does not justify them in describing their housing development as a “track.” “Tract” here means an area of land on which inexpensive and uniform houses have been built. Incidentally, note that the phrase is “digestive tract,” not “digestive track.” List of errors file:///C|/Temp/livres/commonerrors/errors/track.html03/09/2005 15:40:18 tradegy TRADEGY TRAGEDY Not only do people often misspell "tragedy" as "tradegy," they mispronounce it that way too. Just remember that the adjective is "tragic" to recall that it's the G that comes after the A. Also common is the misspelling "tradgedy." List of errors file:///C|/Temp/livres/commonerrors/errors/tradegy.html03/09/2005 15:40:18 troop/troupe TROOP/TROUPE A group of performers is a troupe. Any other group of people, military or otherwise, is a troop. List of errors file:///C|/Temp/livres/commonerrors/errors/troop.html03/09/2005 15:40:18 try and TRY AND TRY TO Although "try and" is common in colloquial speech and will usually pass unremarked there, in writing try to remember to use "try to" instead of "try and." List of errors file:///C|/Temp/livres/commonerrors/errors/try.html03/09/2005 15:40:18 UFO UFO “UFO” stands for “Unidentified Flying Object,” so if you’re sure that silvery disk is an alien spacecraft, there’s no point in calling it a "UFO.” I love the sign in a Seattle bookstore labeling the alien-invasion section: “Incorrectly Identified Flying Objects." List of errors file:///C|/Temp/livres/commonerrors/errors/ufo.html03/09/2005 15:40:19 unconscience UNCONSCIENCE UNCONSCIOUS Do people confuse the unconscious with conscience because the stuff fermenting in one’s unconscious is often stuff that bothers one’s conscience? Whatever the cause, there is no such word as “unconscience.” And while we’re on the subject, Freudian psychology does not use “subconscious” which implies something that is merely not consciously thought of, rather than something that is suppressed though it is used by Jungians. List of errors file:///C|/Temp/livres/commonerrors/errors/unconscience.html03/09/2005 15:40:19 underestimated UNDERESTIMATED Enthusiastic sportscasters often say of a surprisingly talented team that “they cannot be underestimated” when what they mean is “they should not be underestimated.” List of errors file:///C|/Temp/livres/commonerrors/errors/underestimated.html03/09/2005 15:40:19 . counted." List of errors file:///C|/Temp/livres/commonerrors/errors/tolled.html03/09/2005 15:40: 17 tongue and cheek TONGUE AND CHEEK TONGUE IN CHEEK When people want to show they are kidding or. cheek." List of errors file:///C|/Temp/livres/commonerrors/errors/tongue.html03/09/2005 15:40: 17 toward/towards TOWARD/TOWARDS These two words are interchangeable, but "toward" is more. U.K. List of errors file:///C|/Temp/livres/commonerrors/errors/toward.html03/09/2005 15:40: 17 track home TRACK HOME TRACT HOME Commuters from a tract home may well feel that they are engaged