Today’s two grammar tips:
- You don’t “pour” over information, you “pore” over it. The verb “pore,” with the meaning “examine closely,” may derive from two Old English words, a verb, spyrian, meaning “to investigate, examine,” and a noun, spor, meaning “a trace, vestige.” I think of it as getting down into the very pores of a subject.
- Some words in the English language are so overused that we don’t notice that they are incorrect or don’t even exist. A perfect example is “irregardless.” There is no such word as “irregardless” because “regardless” already means “without regard.” The -ir prefix is redundant. How about “irrespective”? It means “without respect for.” “Regardless” has the idea of ignoring something to which you should have paid attention, while “irrespective” is dismissing something to which you had no need to pay attention. (Subtle, huh? Chime in if you have a better way to explain “irrespective.”)
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