Sometimes this column delves into the differences between words we're often disinclined to use because we're uncertain about their accuracy. Underlined words in the following sentences below are troublesome ones.  If they are incorrect, do you know the correct parenthetical replacement?

1.         "Fed up with the crime in his neighborhood, the homeowner decided to take a (stance / stand) by forming a group neighborhood watch."

2.         "With subtle deftness and (sleight of hand / slight of hand), the chief executive of the transport company increased its profits over 300 percent."

3.         "Debbie's lifelong dream was to take a (sojourn / journey) to India, then travel to Italy and Greece for at least another year's stay."

4.         "While in Italy, Debbie planned an (intensive / intense) study of the country's art and architecture."

5.         "If (worst comes to worst / worse comes to worse), we’ll announce an early closing of the school before the ice storm makes the roads unsafe."

6.         "His supervisor wants him to devise a different (method / methodology) of disposing of sensitive documents."

Answers:

• Sentence #1 needs the word "stand" to indicate the strong will of the homeowner whereas the word "stance" merely indicates a certain position on an issue that doesn't require a courageous or militant-like position. If you stand against something, you mean business. If you don't care that a distant uncle has decided to stay a month longer than you anticipated (because you have a live-and-let-live lifestyle), you have a stance. Corrected, then, the sentence should read this way:  "Fed up with the crime in his neighborhood, the homeowner decided to take a stand by forming a group neighborhood watch."

• Sentence #2 reveals the misuse of "slight" because it's pronounced the same as "sleight," a somewhat obscure word meaning cleverness. Corrected, then, the sentence should read this way: "With subtle deftness and sleight of hand, the chief executive of the transport company increased its profits over 300 percent."

• Sentence #3 reveals a common confusion between a pair of words that suggest they have a common meaning given that they share common spelling characteristics. Because the sentence indicates Debbie is not staying in one place (one of the primary meanings of "sojourn") the correct usage is "journey." Corrected, the sentence should read this way: "Debbie's lifelong dream was to take a journey to India, then travel to Italy and Greece for at least another year's stay."

• Sentence #4 reveals yet another frequent error in usage because of similar spelling characteristics.  For something to be intensive, that something must come from an outside element (e.g., "An intensive storm when we least expected it caused massive flooding"; "The physician decided to place the patient in intensive care"). To be intense is to put forth a strong or passionate effort; thus, "intense" is the correct word choice in this sentence.

• In addition to it containing a trite expression, the fifth sentence contains the incorrect choice of “if worse comes to worse.”  Corrected, it should read this way: "If worst comes to worst, we’ll announce an early closing of the school before the ice storm makes the roads unsafe."

• The word pairs in the sixth sentence appear similar, but they're actually dissimilar. One means a process or manner or technique, the other a study of one of these. To put it another way, the employer is asking the employee to devise a method of disposing of sensitive documents, not a study of a method of disposal: "His supervisor wants him to devise a different method of disposing of sensitive documents."

 As always, I welcome suggestions from students, staff, and faculty for these monthly columns and shall try to use their contributions in future columns. Should you have a topic you’d like discussed here, please write me at jmiller@ccccd.edu . You may also telephone me at 972.881.5981. Students wishing improved writing skills will find useful links to a dozen or so English grammar sites at http://iws.ccccd.edu/jmiller/jmiller.htm .