The Word Guy with Rob Kyff

This Column Is Just Dessert

Pop quiz! See whether you can select the correct word in each context:

1. At the end of the novel, the cruel villain got his just (deserts, desserts).
2. The two armadas engaged in a fierce (naval, navel) battle.
3. The threat of icebergs caused the ship to (shear, sheer) off course.
4. When the mayor announced the curfew, a loud (hew, hue) and cry arose from the crowd.
5. The stern teacher insisted that his students (toe, tow) the line.
6. The prosecutor portrayed the defendant as an (arrant, errant) liar.
7. Your figures don't seem to (gibe, jibe) with mine.
8. Tom's (principle, principal) concern was the enormous cost of the project.
9. Sally's friends considered her to be very (straight-laced, strait-laced).
10. Henry placed the golf trophy on his fireplace (mantel, mantle). ----

Answers:
1. deserts -- One meaning of "desert" is something deserved or merited. "Dessert" means sweet food eaten after a meal.
2. naval -- "Naval" means relating to ships or the Navy. "Navel" means the belly button.
3. sheer -- "Shear" means to cut through something as if with a sharp instrument. "Sheer" means to deviate from a course, swerve.
4. hue -- "Hew" means to cut down or shape. Today, "hue" means color, but an old meaning of "hue" -- outcry, uproar -- survives in the phrase "hue and cry."
5. toe (unless the teacher was ordering them to pull a rope) -- "Toe the line" means to adhere conscientiously to the rules. "Tow the line" means to haul a rope.
6. arrant -- "Arrant" means complete, thoroughgoing. "Errant" means roving, straying, wandering.
7. jibe -- "Jibe" means to be consistent with or in accord with. "Gibe" means a derisive remark or taunt.
8. principal -- "Principal" means chief or most important. "Principle" means a rule or standard. 9. strait-laced -- "Straight" means not bent, level, direct. "Strait" means tight, confining. 10. mantel -- A "mantel" is a shelf or other structure over or around a fireplace. A "mantle" is a cloak or something that covers, envelops or conceals.