Two words that are common, acceptable usage irritates
the h--- out of me.
First there is re-visit. To re-visit means to go
back to a place you have previously been to,
like Italy or Japan or the Grand Canyon. Not
anymore! Now it means to go back to an idea,
or a concept, or to reconsider a decision made
at a meeting.
This irritates me so much I sent William Safire
an email asking how can editors allow
that butchery of word usage to occur? His response,
or the email with his name but probably from one of
his assistants, said language constantly evolves, and
meanings of words are expanded or contracted over time.
Okay, I can accept that to a certain extent
but need proof. And there is proof, damn it!
The 1969 Webster's Dictionary defines re-visit
as "to visit again, or a subsequent or second
visit." I agree with that one.
But - the 2004 Merriam-Webster dictionary
adds to the above definition "to consider or
take up again." Word evolution, as explained by
Mr. Safire. Or ignorance on the part of
Merriam when they joined Webster - my preferred opinion.
Dairy irritates me even more. Dairy is a noun,
like milk, butter, and cheese are nouns. They
are types of dairy PRODUCTS! A dairy is a
noun - a location where cows are raised for the
purpose of producing milk and making cheese and butter.
So all the commercials say "can you tolerate dairy"
or "you need four servings of dairy per day."
Even Merriam-Webster doesn't accept this one.
Maybe "can you tolerate milk, cheese and butter" or
"you need four servings of dairy products per day”
to reduce the time in 30 second commercials or
the word count in print ads.
My best option at this junction is to re-visit a dairy
(I visited one years ago) and buy some dairy products,
especially my cheese favorites - Havarti with dill,
but that is probably imported from Denmark, or smoked
Gouda, possibly made in America.
I wonder if the Danes revisit dairy options when they
come up with a new flavor of cheese?
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