A correct
speaker or writer almost fears to use the word lest he should suggest
the idea of slang, and thus detract from the subject to which the word
might most fitly be applied.
Even the grammatical form of the word is often violated in such
expressions as "Isn't he awful nice?" "That hat of hers is awful
pretty." To say awfully nice and awfully pretty would improve the
grammar, but the gross vulgarism remains.
The word, when properly used, means "inspiring with awe or dread"
often accompanied with reverence, as when Milton says:
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"The trumpet spake not to the armed throng;
And kings sat still with awful eye,
As if they surely knew their sovran Lord was by."
Back up
In the sense of support, this, and the shorter expression back, are
doubtless borrowed from the commercial world. While they may be
tolerated in conversation, they must be regarded as slang.
Bulk
This word is often incorrectly used for most or the greater part; as,
"The bulk of the people opposed the measure." Bulk refers to size, not
to numbers.
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