My husband and I would like to speak to you for a moment about the misuse of compound words as verbs - words such as backup, logon and setup.
You have, for example, seen back up and backup used interchangeably to mean the same thing. We have come to believe that, for many, the decision to use one form or the other is as much a product of guesswork as of grammar.
Rule of thumb
If it’s a verb, make it two words. If it’s an adjective (or noun), make it one.
For example
Back up (v) | Back up the carriage, Philip. We observed a parking space in front of that chip shop. |
Backup (adj) | Bring Us Our backup sceptre. We believe the batteries in this one have expired. |
Log on (v) | Power up your system before you log on. |
Logon (adj) | The system features a quick and easy logon routine. |
Log out (v) | Manually log out of the system before you sign off. |
Logout (adj) | The logout process is described in detail in Appendix A. |
Set up (v) | Please set up a separate account for each RRSP product. |
Setup (adj) | Complete the setup procedure before running the system. |
Sign on (v) | Sign on to the system to display the main menu. |
Signon (adj) | The system prompts you for a name and password during the signon process. |
Stand by (v) | Stand by your man. Show all the world you love him. |
Standby (adj) | The system functions in standby mode under certain conditions. |
Back to Contents.
No comments:
Post a Comment