Writers, beware: confused and misused words surround us. We hear them, read them, and have even used them ourselves sometimes. A spellchecker is powerless against them. But we can learn better usage by reading well-written works, developing an interest in words, and staying friends with a dictionary and usage dictionary.
The following story attempts to demonstrate how some commonly confused or misused words should be used. To be ready for them when they come up later, here are the eleven confusables: aggravate, anxious, bemuses, continually, continuously, discomfit, discomfiture, discomfort, nauseated, nauseous, noisome. Explanations about the proper usage of each word are provided after the story.
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Mitch had been nauseated for years—decades even—but he hadn’t realized it. He was clear on the vomiting, dizziness, diarrhea, and hours in the bathroom, but all that time he thought he was nauseous. He had not been causing feelings of sickness or disgust in others; he had just felt sick himself. And now that he knew the difference between the two words, he was also a bit embarrassed.
It’s not that Mitch was continuously sick for years. He could have a few days here and there of normal appetite, a healthy attitude, and the strength and courage required to get some fresh air. However, he continually suffered from panic attacks. He could count on their frequent visits like one could count on rain or wind. He couldn’t quite count on people’s understanding, however.
Mitch is surrounded by people who used the word anxious to mean eager or looking forward to something with excitement. At one time, he would have admitted that such usage frustrated him. But now he knows it hasn’t held him back or beaten him down. That usage just annoys and slightly bemuses him.
“Nothing about being anxious feels good!” he wrote in his journal. He also underlined those words to make up for not speaking that clarification aloud. Mitch had even resented the generally acceptable use of anxiety for feelings of nervousness and uneasiness. Why did anxiety grace others with playful butterflies and nervous energy but tackle him with suffocating fear, loose bowels, and cold sweat?
At least the language foibles of others did not aggravate his condition. No, he only had himself to blame for that—or rather, some of his habitual and problematic thought patterns, poor diet, and infrequent exercise.
Mitch’s almost silent but noisome anxiety attacks created such discomfort that he began regular counselling and hung a tattered old boxing bag from a beam in the basement. Cognitive behavioural therapy helps him reframe and dispute the thinking patterns that have fueled his anxiety. By boxing the heck out of that bag, by pounding away at it until drops of his sweat hit the floor, Mitch gains strength, an outlet for his emotions, and adrenaline-infused confidence. At the end of a session, he gives the bag an extra shove in triumph, imagining anxiety (the foe who had discomfited him for years) toppling in discomfiture, weeping in a bruised and bloody heap on the basement floor.
Just like rain comes and winds shift, that enemy does rise now and again to taunt Mitch. But more days than not, Mitch ascends his basement stairs sweaty and tired, with his heart still pounding with fury and exhilaration. “Today, you lose,” he calls back to that heap on the basement floor. “I’m not nauseated today.”
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Aggravate Aggravate means to make a situation or condition worse. This is not the same as annoy or irritate.
If you know that you shouldn’t use aggravate, but are trying to decide between irritate or annoy, consider the degree of upset. Harry Shaw, in Dictionary of Problem Words and Expressions, explains: “Irritate . . . refers to a milder disturbance or lesser upset” than annoy (Shaw, 64).
Anxious Unfortunately, this word is often used to describe the state of looking forward to something. Instead, it should be used when there is an associated discomfort. Bryan A. Garner writes, “when no sense of uneasiness is attached to the situation, anxious isn’t the best word. In those instances, it displaces a word that might traditionally have been considered its opposite—namely, eager” (Garner, 71).
Bemused Being bemused is not at all like being amused. Bemused has more to do with feeling perplexed or confused.
Continually / Continuously Continually should be used to describe something happening repeatedly, at close intervals, with stops between occurrences. When something persists without stopping, continuously is the better adverb to use.
Discomfit Usually a verb, discomfit is to frustrate, thwart, or even confuse or disconcert.
Discomfiture / Discomfort Both are nouns, but discomfiture is way stronger than discomfort. Discomfiture means an overthrow or defeat. Harry Shaw offers this distinction: “When you suffer discomfiture, you also experience discomfort, but discomfort alone rarely results in discomfiture” (Shaw, 130).
Nauseated / Nauseous Nauseous refers to what causes feelings of sickness, but nauseated describes our feelings of sickness. Shaw provides a great example: “Because the fumes were nauseous, the people became nauseated” (Shaw, 247).
Noisome Noisome is unrelated to noise. Think of it more as a cousin to noxious. It refers to something foul or disgusting.