"It is decidedly cold."

To a newspaper reporter no one seems ever to say anything; all "declare." Like "alleged" (which see) the word is tiresome exceedingly.

A defalcation is a cutting off, a subtraction; a default is a failure in duty.

"It was definitely decided." Definitely means precisely, with exactness; definitively means finally, conclusively.

"He delivered an oration," or "delivered a lecture." Say, He made an oration, or gave a lecture.

"He demeaned himself by accepting charity." The word relates, not to meanness, but to demeanor, conduct, behavior. One may demean oneself with dignity and credit.

Usually said of a person of note. Demise means the lapse, as by death, of some authority, distinction or privilege, which passes to another than the one that held it; as the demise of the Crown.

One could as properly call the Christian Church "the Christianity."

"Railroad depot." A depot is a place of deposit; as, a depot of supply for an army.

"The mendicant showed the effects of deprivation." Deprivation refers to the act of depriving, taking away from; privation is the state of destitution, of not having.

Said of a building, or other structure. But the word is from the Latin "lapis", a stone, and cannot properly be used of any but a stone structure.

"I will come directly" means that I will come by the most direct route.

A most disagreeable Americanism, discredited by general (and Presidential) use. "Make the dirt fly." Dirt means filth.

"The custom is distinctly Oriental." Distinctly is plainly; distinctively, in a way to distinguish one thing from others.

Good American, but not good English.

A doubly adverbial form, like "illy."

Not so common as it was a few years ago. Dress means the entire costume.

"The three looked at each other." That is, each looked at the other. But there were more than one other; so we should say they looked at one another, which means that each looked at another. Of two, say each other; of more than two, one another.

Edify means to build; it has, therefore, the sense of uplift, improvement – usually moral, or spiritual.

To one having even an elementary knowledge of Latin grammar this word is no less than disgusting, and the thing meant by it is felt to be altogether too good for the word's inventor.

Say, an empty bottle; but, a vacant house.

Good French, but bad English. Say, employee.

To endorse is to write upon the back of, or to sign the promissory note of another. It is a commercial word, having insufficient dignity for literary use. You may endorse a check, but you approve a policy, or statement.

A corruption of endwise.

"The man is not entitled to draw rations." Say, entitled to rations. Entitled is not to be followed by an infinitive.

Properly, an episode is a narrative that is a subordinate part of another narrative. An occurrence considered by itself is not an episode.

"This is equally as good." Omit as. "He was of the same age, and equally as tall." Say, equally tall.

"My salary is equivalent to yours."

This solecism is common among the best writers of this country and England. "It is essential to go early"; "Irrigation is essential to cultivation of arid lands," and so forth. One thing is essential to another thing only if it is of the essence of it – an important and indispensable part of it, determining its nature; the soul of it.

"An even dozen."

"The president had every confidence in him."

"Every now and then." This is nonsense: there can be no such thing as a now and then, nor, of course, a number of now and thens. Now and then is itself bad enough, reversing as it does the sequence of things, but it is idiomatic and there is no quarreling with it. But "every" is here a corruption of ever, meaning repeatedly, continually.

"Ex-President," "an ex-convict," and the like. Say, former. In England one may say, Mr. Roosevelt, sometime President; though the usage is a trifle archaic.

A heritage from the text-books. "An example in arithmetic." An equally bad word for the same thing is "sum": "Do the sum," for Solve the problem.

"The disease is excessively painful." "The weather is excessively cold." Anything that is painful at all is excessively so. Even a slight degree or small amount of what is disagreeable or injurious is excessive – that is to say, redundant, superfluous, not required.

"The condemned man was executed." He was hanged, or otherwise put to death; it is the sentence that is executed.