Commonly Misspelled Idioms - POMA <25

Posted: September 25, 2014

Often the English language offers different ways to spell words that sound the same. Although it's a common problem, it can still reflect poorly on the writer. Avoid these pitfalls when using these five idioms. Maeve Maddox, with Daily Writing Tips, shows us the five most commonly misspelled idioms and explains the correct usage and spelling.

Five Misspelled Idioms

Some idioms are confused in the speaking; others just in the spelling. The following idioms are usually pronounced correctly, but they are often misspelled in writing. 1. waiting with bated breath The word bated in this expression is often misspelled “baited.” For example, “We’re waiting with baited breath to hear if Rosie O’Donnell is officially coming back to daytime screens.” The word bated is from a shortening of the verb abate. “To bate” means “to reduce, to lessen in intensity.” The expression “bated breath” is the only survival of the word in modern English. Read more here. 2. lo and behold People use this to mean something like “and then see what happened.” The idiom is frequently misspelled as “low and behold.” Lo is an old form of “look.” Read more here. Read the entire article, Five Misspelled Idioms, at DailyWritingTips.com.