It’s my birthday! Whee! So obviously I’m not going to be doing any work on my blog. That’s just laughable. Anyway, I managed to sucker convince some of my awesome bloggy friends to step in while I’m off celebrating, so without further ado (this will seem more hilarious in a minute), here is the wondrous Melissa:
When
Jeanne asked for guest posts, I wanted to help, but my muse was uncooperative. Thankfully,
Jeanne stood in. Since I do a grammar series and she’s into etymology, we
decided the topic of idioms might be a good fit.
Idioms
can be a great addition to your writing, but—if you don’t want your readers to
laugh at parts of your story you never intended to be funny—you have to get
them right.
One
frequently flubbed idiom is: without
further adieu.
It's
without further ado, not without further adieu.
Ado (n.) means fuss or delay.
Adieu is an interjection meaning
goodbye.
Which
is correct, one in the same or one and the same?
Answer: one and the same
Ex: Sue’s boyfriend and Tanya’s husband are one
and the same.
Sorry. Couldn’t resist. :P
You’re saying something is the same as something
else. Think of it as describing something with two adjectives. You wouldn’t
say, “Tom is tall in handsome.” You would say, “Tom is tall and handsome.”
And, lastly, my favorite. *grin*
Nip
it in the butt.
While
nipping someone’s butt might stop them from finishing what they’re doing, the
proper saying is nip it in the bud.
Nipping
something in the bud means stopping something before it can grow into something
larger or worse. Though this saying typically used to refer to something
negative, the basic concept is: if you cut off a flower while it’s still in bud
form, it can never bloom.
Thanks
for having me, Jeanne.
I
hope I didn’t scare your followers away.
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Headshot
& Bio:
Melissa Maygrove is a wife, a
mother, a nurse, and a romance writer. She hopes to add ‘published author' to
that list soon.
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Blog:
Grammar
Police Files:
Twitter
(@MelissaMaygrove):
