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prizes. This is especially true of words used in connection with prepositions: agree with a person, agree to a proposition, differ from, comply with, confide in a friend, confide a secret to a friend, call on, dissent from, free from, adapted to a thing, adapted for a purpose, die of a disease, die by one's own hand, regard for a person, in regard to this, reconcile to. Some words call impera

tively for others : as 80, either -or, neither. - пох, hardly when, the same that I saw, the same as before, such as, I do not know that I will, different from, other than.

Sometimes the choice lies between an idiomatic and a bookish, or between a simple and a pretentious, expression; here the idiomatic or simple expression is preferable. Get used to (for become accustomed to), go to pieces (for collapse), get out of the way of (for avoid), get up (for rise), go to bed (for retire), make money (for acquire wealth), burn up (for be consumed), — these expressions are not to be avoided.

Again, the choice may lie between a slang expression which rises to the lips only too readily, and a standard expression which requires some effort to recall. Here the choice should fall upon the standard expression; the effort is well spent in calling it to mind. Besides be

ing, in many cases, vulgar in meaning or in implication, slang begets general carelessness in the use of language. It encourages laziness in the user by saving him the trouble of finding exact words for his meaning. It prevents him from increasing his stock of good words.

Especial care is needed in the choice of the words. will and shall, would and should, who, which, and that.

Will and Shall.

45. In the simple future, shall is used in the first person, and will in the second and third persons; thus, “I, or we, shall enjoy reading the book," and "You, he, or they, will enjoy reading the book." In sentences expressing determination, will is used in the first person, and shall in the second and third persons; thus, “I, or we, will obey," and "You, he, or they, shall obey."

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In questions, the same distinction between shall and will as expressing simple futurity or determination is seen in the following: "Shall I, or we?" (simple future, or equivalent to "do you wish me, or us, to?"); "Will I?" (ironical); "Shall you subscribe? subscribe?" (mere information desired); "Will you subscribe?" (I want you to); "Shall he, or they?" (Do you wish him, or them, to?); "Will he or they?" (mere information desired).

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In secondary clauses the reporter uses will, if the speaker used or would have used will; shall if the speaker used or would have used shall. Thus Speaker, "I shall enjoy reading the book"; Reporter, - "He says he shall enjoy reading the book"; Speaker, - "I will not allow it "; Reporter, "He says he will not allow it"; Speaker," You (or they) shall seek in vain for it; Reporter," He says you (or they) shall seek," etc.

Should corresponds to shall, and would to will, following corresponding rules. Thus, in reporting the sentences just given, the correct form would be, "He said he should enjoy reading the book," "He said he would not allow it," "He said you (or they) should seek in

vain for it." In conditional clauses exceptional care is needed, though the same distinctions are maintained.

Who, Which, That.

46. The relative pronoun that is restrictive, and introduces a clause that closely defines, limits, or qualifies the antecedent. A that-clause affects the antecedent as an adjective would affect the antecedent. Who and which are coördinating relatives, and introduce, not a modifying thought, but an additional thought of equal or greater importance. Who is equivalent to a conjunction plus a personal pronoun, and may be translated by the words and he, and they, though he, though they, for he, since they, etc., which words may often be used, with a gain to clearness, instead of who. Which is equivalent to a conjunction plus the word it, this, these, those, and may be translated by the words and this, and it, and these, a fact that, a circumstance that, etc., which words may often be used, with a gain to clearness, instead of which. Who and which are sometimes used restrictively, without loss of clearness, instead of the strictly correct that when the use of that would make a harsh combination, when the word that has already been used in another function in the same sentence, and when the use of that would throw a preposition to the end of the

sentence.

The aid of punctuation may be called in to distinguish restrictive from coördinative who or which. Since a comma is usually inserted before a coördinate relative, the omission of punctuation before who or which will give to the clause a restrictive force.

Summary.

1. Choose words that fit your meaning with exactness. 2. Distinguish degrees of intensity in words.

3. Use idiomatic expressions.

4. Avoid slang.

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Assignments on Choice of Words.

A. In the following choose the word in brackets that best fits the context. Be ready to give reasons. Consult the dictionary or a book of synonyms.

1. It is a necessary condition of life that has desires at all that these desires should be toward life and not away from it; seeing how cheap and easy a thing is destruction on all hands, and how hard it is for race or unit to hold fast in the great struggle for existence. Surely our way is paved with the bones of those who have loved life and movement too little, and lost it before their time. If we could think of death without shrinking, it would only mean that this world was no place for us, and that we should [hasten, make haste, hurry] to be gone to leave room for our betters. And therefore the law of action which would put death out of sight is to be accounted good, as a holy and healthy thing (one word whose meanings have become unduly severed), necessary to the life of men, serving to [hold, bind, knit, keep, draw, pull, join] them together and to advance them in the right. Not only is it right and good thus to cover over and dismiss the thought of our own personal end, to keep in mind and heart always the good things that [shall, will] be done, rather than ourselves who [shall, will] or [shall, will] not have the doing of them; but also to our friends and loved ones we [shall, will] give the most worthy honor and tribute if we never say nor remember that they are dead, but contrariwise that they have lived; that here

by the brotherly force and flow of their action and work may be carried over the gulfs of death and made [everlasting, immortal, eternal, endless, immutable, perpetual] in the true and healthy life which they worthily had and used.

2. Sir Thomas Payton came to me and told me my lord [would, should] fight with me on horseback with single sword; and, said he, "I [will, shall] be his second; where is yours?" I replied that neither his lordship nor myself brought over any great horses with us; that I knew he might much better borrow one than myself; howbeit, as soon as he showed me the place, he [would, should] find me there on horseback or on foot; whereupon both of us riding together upon two geldings to the side of a wood, Payton said he chose that place, and the time, break of day the next morning. I told him I [would, should] fail neither place nor time, though I knew not where to get a better nag than the horse I rode on; "and as for a second, I [will, shall] trust to your nobleness, who, I know, [will, shall] see fair play betwixt us, though you come on his side.”

The lieutenant, though he did not know me, suspected I had some private quarrel, and that I desired this horse to fight on, and thereupon told me, "Sir, whosoever you are, you seem to be a person of worth, and you [will, shall] have the best horse in the stable; and if you have a quarrel and want a second, I offer myself to serve you upon another horse, and if you [will, shall] let me go along with you upon these terms, I [will, shall] ask no pawn of you for the horse." I told him I [would, should] use no second, and I desired him to accept one hundred pieces, which I had then about me, in pawn for the horse, and he [would, should] hear from me shortly again; and that though I did not take his noble offer of coming along with me, I [would, should] evermore rest much obliged to him: whereupon giving him.

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