Published on
19 November 2022
by
Eoghan Ryan.
Revised on
8 October 2024.
Gist is a noun meaning ‘essence’ or ‘main idea’. It’s always preceded by the definite article ‘the’ (you can’t say ‘a gist’). In legal contexts, gist is used to refer to the grounds of a legal action.
‘Jist’ is sometimes mistakenly used instead of gist. However, ‘jist’ is not a real word and should be avoided.
Examples: Jist and gist in a sentence
I got the jist of the lecture.
I got the gist of the lecture.
What is the jist of the book?
What is the gist of the book?
A Scribbr Grammar Check can help make sure you’re using words like ‘gist’ correctly in your writing.
Published on
19 November 2022
by
Eoghan Ryan.
Revised on
13 March 2023.
Genuflect (pronounced [jen-yoo-flekt]) is a verb referring to the act of briefly bending down on one knee as a sign of respect or worship (similar to kneeling). It’s a common feature of Christian religious practices and marriage proposals.
‘Genuflect’ is also used metaphorically to describe the behavior of someone who is overly humble or subservient.
Examples: Genuflect in a sentencePatrick didn’t genuflect when he proposed to his fiancée.
The protagonist of the story refused to genuflect before the evil king.
I’m not someone who genuflects for powerful people. I treat everyone equally.
Published on
19 November 2022
by
Eoghan Ryan.
Revised on
25 September 2023.
Kneeled and knelt are two different spellings of the past simple and past participle of the verb ‘kneel’, used to refer to the act of placing one or both knees on the ground. This action is often used as a gesture of respect or worship (similar to ‘genuflecting‘).
The spelling of the past tense varies somewhat between UK and US English:
In UK English, ‘knelt’ is standard (though ‘kneeled’ is still acceptable).
In US English, both ‘knelt’ and ‘kneeled’ are commonly used (‘knelt’ is more popular).
Examples: Kneeled and knelt in a sentenceThe people knelt/kneeled before the queen.
The worshippers knelt/kneeledand prayed every morning.
The mother knelt/kneeledon the floor to play with the child.
NoteVerbs whose past simple and past participle are formed in some way other than by adding the suffix ‘-ed’ are called irregular verbs.
‘Kneel’ can be either regular or irregular; the irregular form is more popular today, especially in UK English. Other verbs that can be either regular or irregular are ‘learnt/learned‘, ‘dreamt/dreamed‘, ‘spelt/spelled‘ and ‘burnt/burned‘.
Published on
19 November 2022
by
Eoghan Ryan.
Revised on
25 September 2023.
Spelt and spelled are two different spellings of the past tense of the verb ‘spell’, used to refer to the act of writing or saying letters in a specific order to form a word.
The spelling tends to vary based on whether you’re using UK or US English:
In UK English, both ‘spelled’ and ‘spelt’ are commonly used.
In US English, ‘spelled’ is standard, and ‘spelt’ is generally not accepted.
Examples: Spelt and spelled in a sentenceMy name can be spelt/spelled many different ways.
The child spelt/spelledthe word for the teacher.
The two dictionaries spelt/spelled the word differently.
I’d heard someone talk about Scribbr, but I wasn’t sure how it was spelt/spelled.
NoteVerbs whose simple past and past participles are formed in some way other than by adding the suffix ‘-ed’ are called irregular verbs.
Published on
18 November 2022
by
Eoghan Ryan.
Revised on
8 October 2024.
Forty (40) is a cardinal number (i.e., a number used to indicate quantity). Like other words for numbers, it can be grammatically classified as a determiner, adjective, noun, or pronoun.
‘Fourty’ is sometimes used instead of forty, but this is incorrect. Although ‘four’ is the correct spelling of 4, ‘fourty’ is not a real word and should be avoided. The same applies when forty is used as part of a larger number (e.g., ‘forty-four’, ‘one-hundred-forty’).
Examples: Forty and fourty in a sentence
The train was delayed by fourty minutes.
The train was delayed by forty minutes.
Fourty is divisible by four.
Forty is divisible by four.
A Scribbr Grammar Check can help make sure you’re using words like ‘forty’ correctly in your writing.
Published on
18 November 2022
by
Eoghan Ryan.
Revised on
8 October 2024.
Regardless is an adverb meaning ‘despite everything’. It’s often used as a transition word at the start of a sentence to change the topic.
‘Irregardless’ is sometimes used instead of regardless. While ‘irregardless’ may be used in informal contexts, it is considered nonstandard and should be avoided in formal or academic writing.
Examples: Irregardless and regardless in a sentenceNonstandard: I might lose, but I’m going to try irregardless.
Standard: I might lose, but I’m going to try regardless.
A Scribbr Grammar Check can help make sure you’re using words like ‘regardless’ correctly in your writing.
Published on
18 November 2022
by
Eoghan Ryan.
Revised on
14 March 2023.
Whoa is an interjection traditionally used to command a horse (and sometimes a person) to slow down or stop. It can also be used to express surprise or shock. As an interjection, whoa is not used in formal or academic writing.
‘Woah’ is more popular in UK English than US English, but it’s not considered an accepted variant of whoa by many dictionaries. In US English, ‘woah’ is still always considered nonstandard.
Published on
14 November 2022
by
Eoghan Ryan.
Revised on
14 March 2023.
Truly is an adverb meaning ‘in a truthful way’, ‘absolutely’, or ‘properly’. It’s the adverbial form of the adjective ‘true’.
‘Truely’ is sometimes mistakenly used instead of truly, but ‘truely’ is not a real word and should be avoided.
Examples: Truely and truly in a sentence
Kala is a truely talented actor.
Kala is a truly talented actor.
The band’s performance was truely awful.
The band’s performance was truly awful.
NoteAdverbs are often formed by adding ‘-ly’ to the end of an adjective. While some adverbs ending with the letter ‘e’ receive the suffix without dropping the ‘e’ (e.g., ‘nice’ becomes ‘nicely’), others, like ‘true’, do not.
Published on
14 November 2022
by
Eoghan Ryan.
Revised on
14 March 2023.
Labelled and labeled are two different spellings of the past tense of the verb ‘label’, referring to the act of attaching a label or identifying marker to something. The verb is also used negatively to refer to the act of assigning someone or something to a specific category.
The spelling tends to vary based on whether you’re using UK or US English:
In US English, ‘labeled’ (one ‘l’) is standard.
In UK English, ‘labelled’ (double ‘l’) is correct.
Examples: Labeled and labelled in a sentenceMany items were labeled/labelledincorrectly.
Even though the two politicians labeled/labelledeach other dangerous, they were quite alike in their beliefs.
All of Niamh’s files were meticulously labeled/labelled.
When you’ve labeled/labelledthe new products, please put them on the shelves.
Published on
10 November 2022
by
Eoghan Ryan.
Revised on
14 March 2023.
Label is a noun referring to a piece of material that identifies or describes an object it’s affixed to. It’s also used as a verb to refer to the act of attaching a label to something or, more negatively, to refer to the act of assigning someone to a specific category.
‘Lable’ is sometimes used instead of label, but this is incorrect. ‘Lable’ is not a real word and should be avoided.
Examples: Label and lable in a sentence
Sara read the lable on the jumper.
Sara read the label on the jumper.
You shouldn’t lable people based on their religious beliefs.
You shouldn’t label people based on their religious beliefs.
