The further (or is it “farther”?) we get from grade-school grammar classes, the harder it is to recall the specific rules we learned. And even when we were in class, did we really understand the nitty-gritty of all of them? English has a lot of grammar rules, but in part because they can be so tricky to decipher, they’re often broken. As language is constantly evolving, the more a rule is broken, the more those broken rules become accepted exceptions over time. Here are several word pairs that have been so often mistaken or confused that the mistakes have become recognized as standard use.
These words come from the same etymological root (the Old English fyrðrian), which explains much of the confusion, but the terms have evolved to describe distance in different ways.
“Farther” specifically describes physical distance, either with an exact measure or in a general sense: “Drive 10 miles farther,” or “We need to go farther.”
“Further” also describes distance, but it concerns time, degree, and metaphorical spaces. For example: “Before we go further in our relationship, let’s discuss kids,” or “The situation has improved further in the last week,” or “I want to further myself in the department.” Consider this last metaphorical example to help you distinguish between “farther” and “further.” “Far” is a literal place in the distance you can walk or travel to. Furthering your career, meanwhile, refers to progress in a figurative sense; you can’t simply plug a destination into your GPS and arrive at a promotion.
Note: Many native English speakers use “further” as an adverb to describe a comparative distance. For example, “He lives further from the gym than his brother does.” It’s not necessarily incorrect, but some grammar sticklers disagree with it.
There’s only one adjective to signify a greater amount: “more.” But there are two adjectives that describe a lesser amount: “fewer” and “less.” It’s easy to confuse these two, because the rule around which to use is somewhat arbitrary.
“Fewer” is paired with nouns that can be counted (“fewer dogs,” “fewer houses,” “fewer books”), while “less” is used with nouns that can’t be counted (“less water,” “less rice,” and “less space”).
It seems like a simple and straightforward distinction, but looking at the etymology of the words in the Oxford English Dictionary (OED) reveals that both “less” and “few” trace back to Old English writings in the 700s CE. “Fewer” (as a comparative form of “few”) didn’t appear until 1340 — which means “less” was employed for the same usage as “fewer” for hundreds of years without any confusion. The specific rule for the distinction between “less” and “fewer” was invented in 1770 by a grammarian named Robert Baker — he suggested his rule would be “not only more elegant … but more strictly proper.”
Of course, there are less-than-elegant exceptions to the “proper” rule. For example, even though money, time, and weight can be counted, the word “less” is typically paired with these concepts (“less than three dollars,” “less than 10 minutes,” and “less than 20 pounds”).
“Literally” has turned into a somewhat controversial word, but its meaning has evolved over time. For example, someone might exclaim, “I literally died,” while sharing shocking news. The listener understands this is a figure of speech. In this context, the word “literally” can mean “taking words in their usual or most basic sense,” but it can also mean “figuratively” or “virtually.” In other words, don’t take someone who says, “I literally died,” literally. While it’s a common pet peeve for grammar sticklers, this usage isn’t new. It was used in metaphors and hyperboles dating back to the 17th century, and both the OED and Merriam-Webster have declared the metaphorical sense of “literally” to be acceptable usage.
Both “since” and “because” are conjunctions, but true grammar students will notice differences between the words. “Because” implies causation (“Because we’re going to the beach, I’ll bring my sunglasses”), while “since” can refer to two things linked by time (“Since she was elected mayor, her approval ratings have dropped”) or causation (“Since it’s Tuesday, we’re having tacos”).
“Because” is typically a stronger word than “since” when discussing causation, but the words can be (and are) used interchangeably. However, “since” can create ambiguity in a sentence. Consider this statement: “Since Diana went to school, she learned about science.” Did Diana learn about science as a result of attending school? Or did her science education simply start when she went to school? It’s a little unclear. However, this sentence would usually have more information around it to give it context, and the risk of confusing readers is pretty low.
