Page:A Desk-Book of Errors in English.djvu/104

 these words. A fondling is a person fondled or caressed; a foundling is a deserted infant whose parents are unknown.

fooling: The use of the word in the sense of "deceiving " has been condemned by certain writers as a "very vulgar vulgarism," but is permissible, having the sanction not only of good literary authority but of modern dictionaries. See Tennyson's "Gareth and Lynette" (st. 127): "Worse than being fool'd of others is to fool one's self."

for and to; These words are often added at the end of a sentence by careless speakers but are redundant. Do not say "Less than you think for"; nor "Where are you going to?"

forget it: When used as the equivalent of "don't talk about it," is a vulgarism that can not be too severely condemned.

fork over: Slang for "hand over," a preferable phrase.

former: This word can refer to only one of two persons or things previously mentioned, never to any one of three or more. Avoid such construction as the following: " Mr. Henley says that had Rosetti and Byron been contemporaries, some of the former's (meaning Rosetti) verses would have caused the latter (meaning Byron) to blush." Here, former refers to Mr. Henley, but the context shows clearly the intention of the writer to refer to Rosetti. 88