How to pronounce “victuals”

English is full of words that don”t sound like they look. Thought could be written with just 4 letters (three if we still used þ), we replace the first l in colonel with an r, and we don’t pronounce the th in asthma. Victuals is another one of those words. The first time you see this word—if you’ve never heard it spoken—it’s easy to think it’s… Continue reading How to pronounce “victuals”

Why is “fiery” not spelled “firey”?

This is part of the difference between series. Recently, a friend asked on Facebook why fiery is spelled fiery instead of firey. As I was researching the questions, I found the answer fascinating and thought my readers might be interested in knowing, too.

Difference between adverse and averse

This is part of the difference between series. I’ve heard some people confusing the words adverse and averse. Here’s the difference between the two. Adverse Adverse means something like “unfavourable” or “harmful”. The blizzard has created adverse driving conditions. The drive for profits has adversely affected employees’ ability to live comfortably. Averse Averse, on the other hand,… Continue reading Difference between adverse and averse