Beware of certain homophone-like words that are frequently misused:
Tack is a direction, or change thereof, in sailing, or "a course of action or policy"-- 'we may need to
consider taking a new tack.'
Tact is "adroitness in dealing with others, esp. in delicate situations; intuitive social grace" -- 'this client
requires some tact; he can be difficult.'
Gibe is to mock, tease or taunt -- 'playground gibes often stay with us longer than we like to admit.'
Jibe is to "agree; be in accord" -- 'I've spent an hour trying to make these figures jibe.'
Jive is "jerky lively style of dance esp. popular in the 1950s", or the music corresponding to it, or "talk or
conversation, esp. when misleading or pretentious" -- 'Barbara Billingsly speaking jive is a memorable
comedic moment from the movie Airplane.'
Foliage [FOE-lee-ij] -- the leaves on trees, bushes, etc.
Foilage [FOIL-ij] -- slang for the act of foiling something?? -- 'That was some rad foilage of the baddies by
that Jackie Chan, dude.' This is not officially a word, but is a common mispronunciation of 'foliage',
though feel free to re-purpose it as above in casual interchange!
(All quoted definitions are from The Oxford Desk Dictionary and Thesaurus (Second Edition))
Tack is a direction, or change thereof, in sailing, or "a course of action or policy"-- 'we may need to
consider taking a new tack.'
Tact is "adroitness in dealing with others, esp. in delicate situations; intuitive social grace" -- 'this client
requires some tact; he can be difficult.'
Gibe is to mock, tease or taunt -- 'playground gibes often stay with us longer than we like to admit.'
Jibe is to "agree; be in accord" -- 'I've spent an hour trying to make these figures jibe.'
Jive is "jerky lively style of dance esp. popular in the 1950s", or the music corresponding to it, or "talk or
conversation, esp. when misleading or pretentious" -- 'Barbara Billingsly speaking jive is a memorable
comedic moment from the movie Airplane.'
Foliage [FOE-lee-ij] -- the leaves on trees, bushes, etc.
Foilage [FOIL-ij] -- slang for the act of foiling something?? -- 'That was some rad foilage of the baddies by
that Jackie Chan, dude.' This is not officially a word, but is a common mispronunciation of 'foliage',
though feel free to re-purpose it as above in casual interchange!
(All quoted definitions are from The Oxford Desk Dictionary and Thesaurus (Second Edition))
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