posted
I don't get it. Maybe my memory is going, but I could swear that the word "use" used to be a perfectly acceptable one, even without the extra syllables involved in the word "utilize".
Is there a difference that I'm missing between the two? Is there any reason for "utilize" being used so frequently other than the fact that it's longer and sounds more impressive to some people?
The other day, someone at work said that we were going to utilize .NET technologies in our web development. For the life of me, I cannot figure out why we can't just use those technologies, and if there's something extra I'm supposed to do in order to ramp up that use to the level of utilization.
Is it just pomposity? Like pronouncing Missouri "Mizzoura" or something? Is Jon Boy around? If I recall correctly, he's an expert in these sorts of things.
Posts: 12266 | Registered: Jul 2005
| IP: Logged |
posted
Kingy, are you British? What's with the "s"?
And... "optimax"?
Corwin, thanks. I guess that means that most of the uses of "utilize" I keep hearing really are just pomposity, but that there are legitimate uses (or utilizations <grin>).
Posts: 12266 | Registered: Jul 2005
| IP: Logged |
posted
You're welcome, starLisa. I remember there has been another discussion on use/utilize before on Hatrack, but I think the dictionary explanation is a pretty good one.
As for Kingy ( ), he's not British, he just doesn't like the ways of the "colonials". Here though I presume he was just ironically pompous. As for "optimax"... o_O
Posts: 4519 | Registered: Sep 2003
| IP: Logged |
quote:Originally posted by starLisa: Like pronouncing Missouri "Mizzoura" or something?
Being from the great state of "Missour-ee", I can't tell you how much it bothers me when people pronounce it with an "uh" sound. Even my mom does it.
Since when is "i" pronounced "uh"? That's my reasoning behind it, anyway.
I went to Wash U in St. Louis, and my best friend was from there. She told me that what happened was that people with lower class accents used to pronounce Iowa as Ioway, and Florida as Floridy, so Missouri sounded low class to some people, and they hypercorrected it to Missoura. After four years there, I suggested that the correct pronunciation was actually homophonous to "misery". It got laughs from the non-natives...
Posts: 12266 | Registered: Jul 2005
| IP: Logged |
posted
Ha! I went to WashU for two years before taking a year off then transferring here to Indiana University Bloomington.
Posts: 15770 | Registered: Dec 2001
| IP: Logged |
posted
I do think it's a rather pretentious word. As Corwin pointed out, it can have a more specialized meaning than use, but this specific meaning is not always intended. Why use a more-specific word for a less-specific idea? It just seems like an attempt to show off one's impressive vocabulary. Bigger is not always better. Conversely, though, bigger is not always worse. I think it's bad not because it's longer, but because it's often used with the ill-informed idea that it's somehow better.
Posts: 9945 | Registered: Sep 2002
| IP: Logged |
quote:Originally posted by Dan_raven: Whoo Hoo, another Wash U Alumnist.
Anyway, after reading all of this, I feel so used.
I'm just waiting to hear some character on a TV show say, tearfully, "I just feel so... so... utilized!"
Posts: 12266 | Registered: Jul 2005
| IP: Logged |
quote:Originally posted by fugu13: Ha! I went to WashU for two years before taking a year off then transferring here to Indiana University Bloomington.
posted
Sometimes I just get tried of using use over and over again in a paragraph, so I'll use utilize to give myself a break. But there are circumstances in which the nuance/connotation between the two words does make a difference in the message I'm trying to convey. Kinda like choosing between is and exists.
Posts: 8501 | Registered: Jul 2001
| IP: Logged |
quote:Originally posted by starLisa: I'm just waiting to hear some character on a TV show say, tearfully, "I just feel so... so... utilized!"
That's when mothers will begin warning their sons, "Now, you stay away from that girl, anyone can tell she's just a utilizer!"
Posts: 3149 | Registered: Jul 2005
| IP: Logged |
Actually, WashU has far better parties than IU does.
A variety of issues led to me leaving, partly a culture mismatch with the extraordinarily career-oriented set that dominate the campus, partly a general annoyance with the dogmatic English department, partly financial issues.
Of course, I did leave my mark. The student gov't for the past two and a half years (since I left) has been dominated by my proteges .
Posts: 15770 | Registered: Dec 2001
| IP: Logged |
posted
I was far too geeky to have been aware of any parties at Wash U. Maybe the first week of my freshman year, but other than that, zippo.
Granted, I graduated in 1985, and things may have changed.
I did have the dubious distinction of having been the cause of the Hillel Student Board being disbanded by the grownups (at least until the following year, when I was gone), but other than that, I don't think I left any ripples.
Posts: 12266 | Registered: Jul 2005
| IP: Logged |
posted
Heh, that's hilarious. Because of a group I was part of (Stone Soup, we fixed food for the homeless) I had the door code for Hillel (we stored our supplies there, in what was likely a cafeteria area when you were there) -- was it the year of Israel's founding back then, too?
WashU has changed a lot since 1985. The administration has been driving straight ahead for much, much higher rankings, and is right now jockeying for a place in the top ten.
WashU's parties are much better because they are geeky. When the engineering school puts on their Vertigo party, they always do something geeky like put up optical illusions on the walls. Also, WashU's parties are much better because the alcohol policy (well, until the last year or so) was sensible.
Posts: 15770 | Registered: Dec 2001
| IP: Logged |
posted
If by "sensible", you mean that Busch Hall is a solid hint as to why Wash U doesn't give students a hard time for drinking beer, you may have a point. <grin>
We didn't have a Vertigo party when I was there. I dropped out of engineering after three semesters, but I remember that.
Posts: 12266 | Registered: Jul 2005
| IP: Logged |
Thing is, WashU now does give students a hard time for drinking beer. Being able to tell parents they crack down on drinking is apparently valuable enough to the administration as a recruitment/fundraising tool.
They still allow it at some events, but they've imposed far greater regulations on its presence, and are getting RAs to crack down more on drinking in dorms.
Posts: 15770 | Registered: Dec 2001
| IP: Logged |
posted
I took a class a number of years ago entitle "Foundations of Music Education" (upper division class on the Music Ed track).
Every day, my teacher would give us a new rule for grammar and/or spelling - one that was commonly missed in graduate theses. Some were well known to me, others were good to review. Here they are:
#1 Avoid unnecessary terms
#2 Avoid redundancy (I found it ironic that he said this right after the first rule. If you follow #1, then by definition, you're following #2.)
#3 Distinction between "fewer" & "less." If you can count it, you use "fewer." E.g. 'I had 15 people in class yesterday and 12 today. I had fewer people in class today.'
#4 Distinction between "it's" & "its." The apostrophe indicates a contraction of the words "it" and "is," thus you say "it's" only when you are substituting it for "it is."
#5 Aggravate. This word is to be used only when the condition already existed but is now being made worse. One is not "aggravated" by a completely new bit of bad news, for instance, unless they were previously in something of a surly mood.
#6 Distinction between "anxious" & "eager." In order to be anxious, you must have a sense of forboding. E.g. "I am anxious for this test, because I don't think that I will pass, but I'm eager for it to be over with."
#7 Comprise. This word means "include," thus, it is inappropriate to say something "is comprised of 13 parts." Rather, you would say that something "comprises 13 parts."
#8 Distinction between "Criteria" & "Criterion." Criteria is plural, but Criterion is singular. E.g. "The criteria for this assignment comprises adequate research, thoughtful synthesis, and a 30 page paper. Pay attention to each criterion carefully."
#9 Distinction between "Dilemma" and "Predicament." A Dilemma involves 2 conflicting choices, whereas a predicament involves 3 or more.
#10 Distinction between "Lie" vs "Lay." Lay means "to put" while "lie" means "to recline. E.g. "I will lay down my flute before I lie down on the couch."
#11 Distinction between "feel", "think", and "believe." Be careful when using these in scholarly works - their meaning will be taken literally. Use feel when dealing with emotions, use think for speculations (NOT facts), and believe for strong convictions.
#12 Aaaand Finally: Distinction between "Utilize" and "Use." When you are making use of an item for its intended purpose, you are merely "using" it. If you are making use of an item in a creative, unusual way, you are "utilizing" it. "Utilize" should NOT replace "use" willy-nilly. E.g. "I used my pencil to write a note, then utilized the sharp tip of the pencil to pick my teeth."Posts: 1099 | Registered: Apr 2005
| IP: Logged |
posted
This professor also gave us a spelling test one day, of commonly misspelled words. Unfortunately, I can't give this test orally, but see how you WOULD have done!
Occurred (commonly spelled as either ocurred or occured)
Accommodate (number of C's and M's mistaken, often)
Poison (poision most common misspelling)
Raisin (Raison most common misspelling, especially among the French who have a reason. Sorry, bad pun.)
Ecstasy (commonly, an x is used)
Minuscule (the only I missed when I took this test, it is often misspelled with minI instead of minU)
Inoculate (often has wrong number of Ns or Cs)
Consensus (don't know HOW this one is usually misspelled)
Weird (e and i transposed often)
Saxophone (commonly misspelled as saxAphone, even among music majors!!!!)
A cappella (means, to be sung without instrumental accompaniment, often has wrong number of p's, l's or lacks the space between "a" and "cappella"
Millennium (wrong number of l's, n's or spelled with an "a"
Misspell (ironic that this was on a spelling test. Most often spelled as "mispelled")
Posts: 1099 | Registered: Apr 2005
| IP: Logged |
quote:Originally posted by BandoCommando: #3 Distinction between "fewer" & "less." If you can count it, you use "fewer." E.g. 'I had 15 people in class yesterday and 12 today. I had fewer people in class today.'
Am I the only one who often has an urge to correct the "15 items or less" signs at the supermarket? Or does that belong in the OCD thread?
quote:Originally posted by BandoCommando: #7 Comprise. This word means "include," thus, it is inappropriate to say something "is comprised of 13 parts." Rather, you would say that something "comprises 13 parts."
Uh... right. And "contact" should never be used as a verb. That was once the case, but language grows. "Nauseous" now has the alternate meaning of "nauseated" (as in "I feel nauseous"). We contact and we access and we probably even neologize. <grin> The important thing is to be understood.
quote:Originally posted by BandoCommando: #8 Distinction between "Criteria" & "Criterion." Criteria is plural, but Criterion is singular. E.g. "The criteria for this assignment comprises adequate research, thoughtful synthesis, and a 30 page paper. Pay attention to each criterion carefully."
And data/datum. And someone once told me he was an "alumni" of some or other high school (and no, he didn't suffer from MPD).
A friend of mine once had two Opus dolls (from Bloom County). I made a sign that read "Opera", and put it on the shelf where they stood.
quote:Originally posted by BandoCommando: #9 Distinction between "Dilemma" and "Predicament." A Dilemma involves 2 conflicting choices, whereas a predicament involves 3 or more.
Um, not exactly. Dilemma might be limited to two, technically, but predicament needn't involve 3 or more choices.
quote:Originally posted by BandoCommando: #12 Aaaand Finally: Distinction between "Utilize" and "Use." When you are making use of an item for its intended purpose, you are merely "using" it. If you are making use of an item in a creative, unusual way, you are "utilizing" it. "Utilize" should NOT replace "use" willy-nilly. E.g. "I used my pencil to write a note, then utilized the sharp tip of the pencil to pick my teeth."
I'd still use "use" for that.
Posts: 12266 | Registered: Jul 2005
| IP: Logged |
quote:Originally posted by BandoCommando: Occurred (commonly spelled as either ocurred or occured)
General rule: if the last syllable is stressed in a word ending with a vowel and a single consonant, you double the last letter when adding "-ed". Thus: occur/occured, but hammer/hammered. Travel is an oddity, because technically speaking, it should be traveled, but traveled and travelled are both accepted spellings. And programmed ought to be programed, but it never is.
The plural of index should be indices, except when you're working with databases, in which case it's indexes. And since the word "fix" is now a noun ("I applied the fix you suggested to the program, and it's running fine now"), the plural should probably be fices, but that could be misunderstood. I've wondered about prefixes/prefices and suffixes/suffices as well.
Posts: 12266 | Registered: Jul 2005
| IP: Logged |
quote:Originally posted by starLisa: And since the word "fix" is now a noun ("I applied the fix you suggested to the program, and it's running fine now"), the plural should probably be fices, but that could be misunderstood. I've wondered about prefixes/prefices and suffixes/suffices as well.
This is a joke, right?
Posts: 9945 | Registered: Sep 2002
| IP: Logged |
quote:Originally posted by BandoCommando: #3 Distinction between "fewer" & "less." If you can count it, you use "fewer." E.g. 'I had 15 people in class yesterday and 12 today. I had fewer people in class today.'
Am I the only one who often has an urge to correct the "15 items or less" signs at the supermarket? Or does that belong in the OCD thread?
I'm right there with you. I think the Dominicks on Howard uses "fewer".
Posts: 11187 | Registered: Sep 2005
| IP: Logged |
#8 Distinction between "Criteria" & "Criterion." Criteria is plural, but Criterion is singular. E.g. "The criteria for this assignment comprises adequate research, thoughtful synthesis, and a 30 page paper. Pay attention to each criterion carefully."
So, since criteria is plural shouldn't that be "the criteria for this assignment comprise (not comprises) adequate research . . ." ?
quote: This professor also gave us a spelling test one day, of commonly misspelled words. Unfortunately, I can't give this test orally, but see how you WOULD have done!
. . .
Minuscule (the only I missed when I took this test, it is often misspelled with minI instead of minU)
There is actually a variant spelled miniscule in Webster's. But I have to admit -- I never knew that the preferred spelling was minuscule. I learn stuff all the time on Hatrack!
Posts: 3149 | Registered: Jul 2005
| IP: Logged |
quote:Originally posted by Uprooted: [QB] Okay, a one little nitpick:
[QUOTE]Originally posted by BandoCommando:
#8 Distinction between "Criteria" & "Criterion." Criteria is plural, but Criterion is singular. E.g. "The criteria for this assignment comprises adequate research, thoughtful synthesis, and a 30 page paper. Pay attention to each criterion carefully."
So, since criteria is plural shouldn't that be "the criteria for this assignment comprise (not comprises) adequate research . . ." ?
[QUOTE]
You got me there. Sorry, I was coming up with examples on the fly and couldn't think of a good one for criteria/criterion.
quote:Originally posted by starLisa: And since the word "fix" is now a noun ("I applied the fix you suggested to the program, and it's running fine now"), the plural should probably be fices, but that could be misunderstood. I've wondered about prefixes/prefices and suffixes/suffices as well.
This is a joke, right?
Well, obviously not a very good one, but yeah.
Posts: 12266 | Registered: Jul 2005
| IP: Logged |
quote:Originally posted by BandoCommando: #3 Distinction between "fewer" & "less." If you can count it, you use "fewer." E.g. 'I had 15 people in class yesterday and 12 today. I had fewer people in class today.'
Am I the only one who often has an urge to correct the "15 items or less" signs at the supermarket? Or does that belong in the OCD thread?
I'm right there with you. I think the Dominicks on Howard uses "fewer".
The Jewel on Howard doesn't, though.
Posts: 12266 | Registered: Jul 2005
| IP: Logged |
Printer-friendly view of this topic
![[Smile]](smile.gif)
I remember there has been another discussion on use/utilize before on Hatrack, but I think the dictionary explanation is a pretty good one.![[ROFL]](graemlins/rofl.gif)
), he's not British, he just doesn't like the ways of the "colonials". ![[Wink]](wink.gif)
Here though I presume he was just ironically pompous. As for "optimax"... o_O
![[Big Grin]](biggrin.gif)
![[Razz]](tongue.gif)
