Mispronunciations

“Bouillon” vs. “Bullion”

Common English Blunders, Mispronunciations, Misspellings, Nouns, Versus

I saw each of these words in the past week and wondered about their origins.

Problem:
These two nouns are not synonyms but look so similar that some people will mistakenly use one of the nouns when they should use the other noun.

Explanation:
The noun “bouillon” — spelled B-O-U-I-L-L-O-N — means a clear broth made from straining water in which meat has been cooked. This noun dates back to the mid-sixteen-hundreds and is derived from the French verb that means to boil.

The noun “bullion” — spelled B-U-L-L-I-O-N — means silver or gold considered in mass (for example, in bars) instead of in value. This noun dates back to the mid-thirteen-hundreds and also can trace its origin to the word for boiling or bubbling — as in a melted mass of silver or gold.

For fun, I searched Google for each of the following mistaken phrases (with the quotation marks) and got about the indicated numbers of matches:

  • “chicken bullion” — 18,300 matches
  • “beef bullion” — 14,700 matches
  • “gold bouillon” — 3,510 matches
  • “silver bouillon” — 1,280 matches

I call these “mistaken phrases” because I combined two words that should not go together based on the definitions of bullion and bouillon. These results tell me that Web authors are worse at properly naming their broths than they are at properly naming their masses of gold and silver.

Solution:
Use “bouillon” when referring to broth. Use “bullion” when referring to gold or silver.

“Rebel-rouser”

Mispronunciations, Nouns

I heard this on a radio program this morning.

Problem:
This is a mispronunciation that almost hits the mark.

Explanation:
The talk-show host on the radio program was referring to a politician who had stirred up a crowd of unhappy voters.

The compound noun “rabble-rouser” was what the host should have said.

The noun “rabble” means mob or disorderly crowd.

The noun “rouser” means someone who brings others out of a state of apathy, depression, or sleep.

The host mispronounced “rabble-rouser” as “rebel-rouser” — almost hitting the mark in that rebels can be disorderly, too, but failing to recognize that rebels need not be brought out of apathy because, by definition, rebels are passionate.

For fun, I searched Google for each of the following compound nouns (with the quotation marks) and got about the indicated numbers of matches:

  • “rabble-rouser” — 393,000 matches
  • “rebel-rouser” — 124,000 matches

This tells me that Web authors favor “rabble-rouser” over “rebel-rouser” by a pitiful ratio of 3.17:1.

Solution:
“Rabble-rouser”

“Anecdote” vs. “Antidote”

Common English Blunders, Mispronunciations, Nouns, Versus

I sometimes hear people mispronounce one of these words as if it were equivalent to the other word.

Problem:
These two nouns are not synonyms.

Explanation:
The noun “anecdote” means a short account of an incident as an unpublished narrative.

The noun “antidote” means a medicine for counteracting a poison.

Those who confuse these two nouns probably are distracted by the fact that both nouns have “dote” — D-O-T-E — in them, the fact that both nouns start with A-N, and the fact that both nouns are eight letters long.

The noun “antidote” is constructed from the prefix “anti-“, which means against, and “dote”, whose origin essentially means given. In other words, the roots of “antidote” when assembled mean given against.

The noun “anecdote” is constructed from the prefix “an-“, which means not, and “ecdote”. The “ecdote” part of “anecdote” is a combination of “ec”, which means out, and “dote”, whose origin, as just noted, means given.

So the “ecdote” part of “anecdote” essentially means published. In other words, the roots of “anecdote” when assembled mean not published.

Solution:
Use “anecdote” when referring to a spoken story; use “antidote” when referring to a remedy for poison.