Tricky Rules

The noun form of broad is breadth, the noun form of long is length, and the noun form of wide is width. Because of this, some people follow the pattern and say heighth, with a th at the end of the word high. That is not standard English. The correct form is height. Notice the

Jealous means “apprehensive or vengeful out of fear of being replaced by someone else.” It can also mean “watchful,” “anxiously suspicious,” “zealous,” or “expecting complete devotion.” The last is normally applied to God. The noun form is jealousy; the adverb form, jealously. Envy means “to bear a grudge toward someone due to coveting what that

Her’s does not exist. Hers is the correct spelling. Example: That scarf is hers.

Jiggle means “rock or jerk lightly.” Joggle means “to shake slightly” or “move by light jerks.” Juggle means “to catch and toss a number of objects with skill.” Examples: The aftershock made the table jiggle. The movers had to joggle the couch into position. He could juggle ten Indian clubs at a time.

Historical normally means “having taken place in history” or “from the past” or “having to do with history.” Historic means “having significance in history.” It usually refers to an event or person. Historically is the adverb form of both words.