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Previous Thread Next Thread Print Thread Page 1 of 2 1 2 Possible YART. #7656 10/11/00 10:08 AM Joined: Mar 2000 Posts: 1,004 London, UK shanks OP old hand OP shanks old hand Joined: Mar 2000 Posts: 1,004 London, UK I just visited John Langdon's website, of ambigrams fame, since I had seen them mentioned in a few posts here and there on the Board. While I thoroughly enjoy the notion of ambigrams, and admire the work that John has done, I have one, pernickety, pedantic, nit-picking niggle. On the 'philosophy' page, yin and yang are, more than once, referred to as 'complimentary'. I have spent years correcting letters and booklets in which the word complimentary is used when complementary was meant. Having seen this on John's site as well, I have to ask myself (or any here who might have the answer): has this imprecision proceeded so far as to now be an acceptable part of English, and not one that we should be fighting about any more? Is it no longer a grammatical solecism to talk of two partners complimenting each other, even though they weren't praising each other? cheer the sunshine warrior Copy Link to Clipboard Share Post on Facebook Share Post on Twitter Re: Possible YART. #7657 10/11/00 12:53 PM Joined: Mar 2000 Posts: 6,511 lower upstate New York AnnaStrophic Carpal Tunnel AnnaStrophic Carpal Tunnel Joined: Mar 2000 Posts: 6,511 lower upstate New York I'm with you on this one, shanks, and so is the Usage Panel for the fourth edition of the American Heritage dictionary (2000): Complement and compliment, though quite distinct in meaning, are sometimes confused because they are pronounced the same. As a noun, complement means “something that completes or brings to perfection” (The antique silver was a complement to the beautifully set table); used as a verb it means “to serve as a complement to.” The noun compliment means “an expression or act of courtesy or praise” (They gave us a compliment on our beautifully set table), while the verb means “to pay a compliment to.”     Copy Link to Clipboard Share Post on Facebook Share Post on Twitter Re: Possible YART. #7658 10/11/00 12:57 PM Joined: Mar 2000 Posts: 1,004 London, UK shanks OP old hand OP shanks old hand Joined: Mar 2000 Posts: 1,004 London, UK Goody. I am not alone! In addition, complimentary is often used to refer to something that is free (gratis?). I wonder where that usage came from. cheer the sunshine warrior Copy Link to Clipboard Share Post on Facebook Share Post on Twitter Re: Possible YART. #7659 10/11/00 01:56 PM Joined: Aug 2000 Posts: 2,204 R RhubarbCommando Pooh-Bah RhubarbCommando Pooh-Bah R Joined: Aug 2000 Posts: 2,204 Is it no longer a grammatical solecism to talk of two partners complimenting each other, even though they weren't praising each other? I sincerely hope that it is still a solecism. I also wish that people would sort out the difference between "lose" and "loose." It happens frequently that I receive letters, messages and essays where the writers "loose" their way. Copy Link to Clipboard Share Post on Facebook Share Post on Twitter Re: Possible YART. #7660 10/11/00 02:35 PM Joined: Mar 2000 Posts: 1,004 London, UK shanks OP old hand OP shanks old hand Joined: Mar 2000 Posts: 1,004 London, UK Agree about 'loose' and 'lose'. Do you have any other favourite gripes? I'll try to think of mine and list them. cheer the sunshine warrior Copy Link to Clipboard Share Post on Facebook Share Post on Twitter Re: Possible YART. #7661 10/11/00 03:04 PM Joined: Aug 2000 Posts: 2,204 R RhubarbCommando Pooh-Bah RhubarbCommando Pooh-Bah R Joined: Aug 2000 Posts: 2,204 "Free gift with the compliments of the management" (As a complementary activity to the close of a deal?) Copy Link to Clipboard Share Post on Facebook Share Post on Twitter Re: Possible YART. #7662 10/11/00 08:04 PM Joined: Aug 2000 Posts: 3,409 M Max Quordlepleen Carpal Tunnel Max Quordlepleen Carpal Tunnel M Joined: Aug 2000 Posts: 3,409 Goody. I am not alone! Most definitely not! When reading your post, I remembered an "amnemonic" I used as a child to help me keep "complement" and "compliment" separate in my mind. A "comple-ment" can make something or someone "comple-te" As awful as that is, it worked for me! I won't even start on the whole "loose/lose" thing - hair-pulling is no fun! Then there is the wildly erratic and yet profligate use of the apostrophe, "you're/your" being particularly noxious. Still, when it comes to declining syandards of literacy, I guess that it's just a case of Kay Sara Sara, whoever she is. Copy Link to Clipboard Share Post on Facebook Share Post on Twitter Re: Possible YART. #7663 10/12/00 02:24 PM Joined: Sep 2000 Posts: 4,757 M maverick Carpal Tunnel maverick Carpal Tunnel M Joined: Sep 2000 Posts: 4,757 declining syandards of literacy Thought I'd got the copyright on spilling, Max Copy Link to Clipboard Share Post on Facebook Share Post on Twitter Re: Possible YART. #7664 10/14/00 05:03 AM Joined: Apr 2000 Posts: 3,065 Jakarta B Bingley Carpal Tunnel Bingley Carpal Tunnel B Joined: Apr 2000 Posts: 3,065 Jakarta In reply to: Is it no longer a grammatical solecism to talk of two partners complimenting each other, even though they weren't praising each other? It never was a grammatical solecism. An error in choice of words, definitely, but there's nothing grammatically wrong. Bingley Bingley Copy Link to Clipboard Share Post on Facebook Share Post on Twitter Re: Possible YART. #7665 10/14/00 01:17 PM Joined: Apr 2000 Posts: 10,542 this too shall pass tsuwm Carpal Tunnel tsuwm Carpal Tunnel Joined: Apr 2000 Posts: 10,542 this too shall pass >An error in choice of words, definitely, but there's nothing grammatically wrong. semantics, as opposed to syntax... Copy Link to Clipboard Share Post on Facebook Share Post on Twitter Page 1 of 2 1 2 Moderated by  Jackie  Hop To General Topics ------  Information and announcements  Q&A about words  Wordplay and fun  Words and languages in schools  Miscellany  Weekly Themes  Looking for (writers, speakers,... (Old) Weekly themes. 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