Fix means to make fast, but its incorrect use in the sense of mend, repair, arrange, is so common that the _________________________________________________________________

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word when properly used sounds strange, if not strained. "To fix up the room," "to fix up the accounts," "to fix up matters with my creditors," "to fix the rascals who betrayed me," are examples illustrating the looseness with which the word is used.

Round, Square

When a thing is round or square it cannot be rounder or squarer. These adjectives do not admit of comparative and superlative forms. But we may say more nearly round or less nearly square.

States, Says

"He states he is going fishing to-morrow." States is too formal a word, and should be used only of some important assertion. "He says he is going," etc.

Stop, Stay

To stop is to cease moving. "At what hotel do you stop" should be "At what hotel do you stay." "When you come to the city stay with me," not stop with me.

Subtile, Subtle

Subtile means thin, fine, rare, delicate; subtle means sly, artful, cunning, elusive. "More subtile web Arachne cannot spin." "He had to contend with a subtle foe." _________________________________________________________________

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Summons

He was summonsed to appear before the judge" should be "He was summoned to appear," etc.

Tasty

Often used in colloquial speech when tasteful would be better. Tastily for tastefully is still worse.

Team

Properly this word relates only to the horses, and does not include the carriage.

Those kind, These sort

"It is unpleasant to have to associate with those kind of people." "These sort of sheep are the most profitable." Kind and sort are nouns of the singular number; these and those are plural, and, according to the laws of grammar, the adjective and noun must agree in number. The corrected sentences will read: "It is unpleasant to have to associate with this kind of people." "This sort of sheep is the most profitable." The fault arises by associating in the mind the adjectives these and those with the nouns sheep and people, which nouns are more prominent in the mind than the nouns kind and sort. If the ear is not satisfied, the sentences may readily be recast; as, "It is unpleasant to have to associate with people of that kind." "Sheep of this sort are the most profitable." _________________________________________________________________

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Transpire, Happen

This word, from trans, across, through, and spirare, to breathe, means, physiologically, to pass off in the form of vapor or insensible perspiration, or, botanically, to evaporate from living cells. Its general meaning is to become known, to escape from secrecy.

It is frequently employed in the sense of to occur, to come to pass, but this use is condemned by the best critics in England and America. "The proceedings of the secret session of the council soon transpired." This sentence illustrates the true meaning of the word.

Make, Manufacture

These words may, in some cases, be used interchangeably, but make has much the wider range of meanings. The following story, related by Eli Perkins, will illustrate this fact:

I was talking one day with Mr. Depew, President of the New York Central Railroad, about demand and supply. I said the price of any commodity is always controlled by the demand and supply.

"Not always, Eli," said Depew; "demand and supply don't always govern prices. Business tact sometimes governs them."