Month: January 2009

“carat” vs. “caret” vs. “carrot” vs. “karat”

Nouns, Versus

I sometimes see two or three of these nouns used interchangeably.

Problem:
Most Americans pronounce these nouns in the same way, but they have distinct meanings.

Explanation:
I confess that I do not make any distinctions in pronunciation of these four nouns, but I am sure that some people do.

My excuse for identical pronunciations is that all four nouns have the emphasis on the first syllable, and this makes it more difficult to pronounce different endings differently.

As noted at Wikipedia, identical pronunciation of these four nouns makes them homophones.

Nobody can pronounce the A-T word “carat” — starting with a “c” — differently than the A-T word “karat” — starting with a “k” — but these two nouns do have different meanings.

Here are the definitions of these four nouns:

  • “carat” — spelled C-A-R-A-T and abbreviated “ct.” — means a unit of mass for precious stones, equal to 200 milligrams. A five-carat diamond has a mass of one gram. The 3,106.75-carat Cullinan diamond, purportedly the largest rough, gem-quality diamond in the world, had a mass of 621.35 grams.
  • “caret” — spelled C-A-R-E-T — means a proofreader’s mark (^) made in written or printed matter to indicate where something is missing. The noun “caret” is the third-person, singular form of the Latin verb “carere”, which means to lack, so there is lacking is the literal meaning of “caret” in Latin.
  • “carrot” — spelled C-A-R-R-O-T — means Daucus carota, the name of a species of plant in the parsley family. The origin of “carrot” can be traced to words that meant “horn” or “head”.
  • “karat” — spelled K-A-R-A-T and abbreviated “kt.” — means a unit of measure for the purity of a gold alloy, equal to 1/24 part. Pure gold is 24-karat gold; an alloy containing 50% gold is 12-karat gold.

There is a tricky part when it comes to the two nouns that end with A-T. Americans and Canadians favor the “c” word to refer to mass and favor the “k” word to refer to gold purity, but English writers elsewhere often use the “c” word — that is, C-A-R-A-T — to refer to mass and to gold purity.

This means that “24-carat ring” — spelled with a “c” instead of a “k” — could refer, especially outside the U.S. and Canada, either to a ring that weighs 24/200 grams or to a ring made of pure gold.

Personally, I would prefer a “24-karat ring” — with a “k” — over a “24-carat ring” — with a “c”. Buyer beware!

Solution:
Use the fact that “carat” (C-A-R-A-T) comes before “karat” (K-A-R-A-T) in the dictionary and the fact that “diamond” comes before “gold” in the dictionary to remember that the “c” word goes with diamonds and that the “k” word goes with gold. Use the “e” in “proofreading” to remember the “e” in “caret” (C-A-R-E-T). Finally, remember that vegetables rot when writing “carrot” (C-A-R-R-O-T).

“‘Spring Awakening’ brakes all the rules …”

Verbs

I saw this headline in a full-page ad.

Problem:
The verb is incorrect.

Explanation:
The full page ad by Broadway Across America appeared in the weekly Houston Press.

The ad was for a stage show titled “Spring Awakening”.

The full headline was “ELECTRIFYING! ‘Spring Awakening’ brakes all the rules and dares to be as bold as it is beautiful.”

It was attributed to the San Francisco Examiner.

A quick search with Google did not find the quotation in the San Francisco Examiner.

But the search did return this article title at chron.com (the website of the Houston Chronicle): “Spring Awakening: a musical that breaks all the rules”.

In other words, the Houston Chronicle used the verb “break” — spelled B-R-E-A-K — which is correct, whereas the Houston Press ad used the verb “brake” — spelled B-R-A-K-E — which is incorrect.

I cannot say with certainty whether the error was typographical or a sign of true ignorance.

But I would lean toward the error being a typo because the two verbs are homophones. A slight bit of distraction while typing will cause the best of us to type one word when we mean to type another word!

Solution:
“‘Spring Awakening’ breaks all the rules …”

“Relay” vs. “Re-lay”

Hyphens, Verbs, Versus

I thought about these two words after my wife this morning talked about removing and replacing some floor tiles.

Problem:
Although the two verbs sound alike, only one of them refers to the process of removing and replacing something.

Explanation:
The verb “relay” — spelled R-E-L-A-Y — means to carry or pass along by or as if by relays.

The verb “re-lay” — spelled R-E-HYPHEN-L-A-Y — means to lay again.

In other words, one can not “relay” — without the hyphen — floor tiles.

Instead, one must “re-lay” — with the hyphen — floor tiles.

However, because the two verbs sound alike, one must have the context of an expression or sentence to determine whether the heard verb is “relay” — without the hyphen — or “re-lay” — with the hyphen.

Solution:
Use the verb “relay” — without the hyphen — when referring to the noun “relay”. Use the verb “re-lay” — with the hyphen — when referring to laying something again.