The A's & B's of "muse"

Being Amused is to be entertained or diverted in a happy, pleasant way. It is also when someone or something has caused you to laugh or smile.

Being Bemused on the other hand is to be confused, lost in thought or preoccupied.

Be careful when using CONTRONYMS!!!!

What is a contronym you ask? A word that, depending on the context in which it is used, has opposite or contradictory meanings.

 Let’s have a look at a few just for fun:

CONSULT: to offer advice OR to obtain it

BOLT: to secure, OR to flee

TRANSPARENT: invisible OR obvious

ROCK: an immovable mass OR a shaking or unsettling movement

FINE: exceptional/excellent OR good enough/acceptable

FIRST DEGREE: most severe (murder) or least severe (burns)

Be sure to craft your sentences with the appropriate context so readers know EXACTLY what you mean. You may need someone to oversee (monitor) your writing, so you don’t oversee (fail to monitor) your habitual errors...

Tricky eh?

The Grammar Continuum

At CYA, we are continually searching for interesting grammar tidbits to share with our readers to make sure they look good on paper! If we were to continuously do this, we would be exhausted!

Continual refers to  something of regular or frequent occurrence, while continuous is something that does not stop; a very important distinction in certain circumstances. Think about it!

How unique IS it?

Here is a phrase-misuse that you may have made and most certainly have heard or seen.

The word "unique" means one of a kind, incomparable, like no other thing in the world. That is a pretty amazing thing to be, so why do people feel compelled to try and enhance the word ? Very unique, totally unique and quite unique are statements that  may actually put the uniqueness in question. Somewhat unique, another oft-used expression, definitely means that what is being referred to is NOT unique at all.

Uniquely Yours,
The CYA Team

Are you persuasive.....or convincing?

There is a subtle yet interesting distinction between these two words. They are often used interchangeably, even though that may not grammatically correct.


PERSUADE: to motivate a person to do something
CONVINCE: to lead someone, by argument or evidence to understand or believe something


I convinced my husband that a kitchen renovation was a great idea and then I persuaded him to start dismantling the cabinets the following weekend.


PS I may have used bribery or blackmail to achieve this result, but that is fodder for another blog!