ArcaMax

What makes these sentences foul?

The garbage dump smells foul the air.

The basketball player fouled out of anger.

The witch stated her foul intentions were justified.

Each sentence includes phrasing that momentarily misleads or confuses the reader. These errors fall into three categories:

Error No. 1: Ambiguous part of speech -- In the first sentence, we encounter "garbage dump smells foul" and assume "smells" is a verb; in fact, it's a noun.

Error No. 2: Obliviousness to set phrases -- In the second sentence, we erroneously assume "fouled out" means the player had to leave the game, not that he committed a foul out of anger.

Error No. 3: The missing "that" -- In the third sentence, we think the witch is stating her foul intentions, when in fact she's stating that they're justified.

Let's face it: Readers are babes wandering through the woods. Innocent and gullible, they faithfully follow the breadcrumbs the writer has dropped to mark the correct path. If the author carelessly spills crumbs on side paths, the reader might pursue them, however briefly, until realizing they've veered off course.

As a writer, you can avoid such crumby distractions by being alert to miscues and ambiguities of wording. See whether you can spot which type or types of error occur in each of these sentences and then reword the sentence to avoid it.

No. 1: When the press secretary saw the reporter, she wanted to tell him off the record.

No. 2: The lawyer brilliantly argued his case should be postponed.

No. 3: The sales clerk gave the slick stranger the brush off the counter.

No. 4: A love for golf courses through his veins.

No. 5: The ticket-taker at the concert admitted two friends weren't paying.

No. 6: His reduced income taxes his lifestyle.

No. 7: The difficulty of biology tests our patience.

Answers:

"Tell him off" is a set phrase. Better: "tell him something off the record." 2. Better: "argued THAT his case" 3. "Brush off" is a set phrase. Better: "She gave the brush off the counter to the slick stranger." 4. "Courses" is a verb and "golf courses" is a set phrase. Better: "His love for golf is in his blood." 5. "admitted THAT" 6. "Taxes" is a verb and "income taxes" is a set phrase. Better: "strains his lifestyle." 7. "biology tests" is a set phrase. Better: "The difficulty of the biology course tests our patience."

========

Rob Kyff, a teacher and writer in West Hartford, Conn., invites your language sightings. His book, "Mark My Words," is available for $9.99 on Amazon.com. Send your reports of misuse and abuse, as well as examples of good writing, via e-mail to Wordguy@aol.com or by regular mail to Rob Kyff, Creators Syndicate, 737 3rd Street, Hermosa Beach, CA 90254.

Copyright 2026 Creators Syndicate Inc.