_Latter_ applies only to the last of two. If a longer series than two is referred to, say _the last_.
_Lay_, which is a transitive verb, should not be confused with _lie_.
_Lay_ is a verb which expresses causitive action; _lie_ expresses pa.s.sivity. "He _lays_ plans." "He _lies_ down." The past tense of _lay_ is _laid_, that of _lie_ is _lay_.
_Learn_ should not be used in place of _teach_.
_Lengthy_ is a very poor subst.i.tute for _long_, which needs no subst.i.tute.
_Liable_ should not be used for _likely_. _Liable_ means an unpleasant probability. _Likely_ means any probability. _Liable_ is also used to express obligation. He is _liable_ for this debt.
_Like_ must never be used in the sense of _as_. "Do _like_ I do" should be "Do _as_ I do."
_Literally_ implies that a statement to which it is attached is accurately and precisely true. It is frequently misused.
_Loan_ is a noun, not a verb.
_Locate_ should not be used in the sense of _settle_.
_Lot_ or _lots_ should not be used to indicate a _great deal_.
_Love_ expresses affection or, in its biblical sense, earnest benevolence. _Like_ expresses taste. Do not say "I should _love_ to go."
_Lovely_ means "worthy of affection" and, like _elegant_, should never be used as a term of general approbation.
_Luxuriant_ which means "superabundant in growth or production" should not be confounded with _luxurious_ which means "given over to luxury."
Vegetation is _luxuriant_, men are _luxurious_.
_Mad_ means _insane_ and is not a synonym for _angry_.
_Means_ may be either singular or plural.
_Meet_ should not be used in the sense of _meeting_ except in the case of a few special expressions such as "a race meet."
_Mighty_ should not be used in the sense of _very_.
_Mind_ should not be used in the sense of _obey_.
_Minus_ should not be used in the sense of _without_ or _lacking_.
_Most_ should not be used instead of _almost_, as in such expressions as "It rained _most_ every day."
_Must_ should not be used for _had to_ or _was obliged_. In its proper use it refers to the present or future only.
_Necessities_ should be carefully distinguished from _necessaries_.
_Negligence_, which denotes a quality of character should be distinguished from _neglect_ which means "a failure to act."
_Neither_ denotes one of two and should not be used for _none_ or _no one_. As a correlative conjunction it should be followed by _nor_ never by _or_.
_New beginner_. _Beginner_ is enough; all beginners are new.
_News_ is singular in construction.
_Never_ is sometimes used as an emphatic negative but such usage is not good.
_Nice_ should not be used in the sense of _pleasant_ or _agreeable_.
_No how_ should not be used for _anyway_.
_No place_ should be written as _nowhere_.
_None_ should be treated as a singular.
_Not_, like _neither_, must be followed by the correlative _nor_, e. g., "Not for wealth nor for fame did he strive."
_Not_ ... _but_ to express a negative is a double negative and therefore should not be used, e. g., "I have _not_ had _but_ one meal to-day."
_Nothing like_ and _nowhere near_ should not be used for _not nearly_.
_O_ should be used for the vocative and without punctuation.
_Oh_ should be used for the e.j.a.c.u.l.a.t.i.o.n and should be followed by a comma or an exclamation point.
_Obligate_ should not be used for _oblige_.
_Observe_ should not be used for _say_.
_Observation_ should not be used for _observance_.
_Of_ is superfluous in such phrases as _smell of_, _taste of_, _feel of_.
_Off_ should never be used with _of_; one or the other is superfluous.
_Other._ After _no other_ use _than_, not _but_.
_Ought_ must never be used in connection with _had_ or _did_. "You _hadn"t ought_ or _didn"t ought_ to do it" should be "You ought not to have done it."
_Out loud_ should never be used for _aloud_.
_Panacea_ is something that cures all diseases, not an effective remedy for one disease.
_Partake of_ should not be used in the sense of _eat_. It means "to share with others."
_Party_ should never be used for _person_ except in legal doc.u.ments.
_Per_ should be used in connection with other words of Latin form but not with English words. _Per diem_, _per annum_, and the like are correct. _Per day_ or _per year_ are incorrect. It should be _a day_, or _a year_.
_Perpendicular_, which merely means at right angles to something else mentioned, should not be used for _vertical_.