Page:A Desk-Book of Errors in English.djvu/149

 to gullible persons, perhaps on account of the reputed gullibility of the British soldier.

lonely, solitary: These two words must not be confounded, for their meaning is not exactly the same, although the Latin solitarius is derived from solus, alone. Solitary indicates no more than absence of life or society; lonely suggests the idea of being forsaken or isolated. A solitary person is not of necessity lonely, even though he take a solitary walk in a lonely place. A man is not lonely if he is good company to himself.

look: In the intransitive sense of "seem," this verb should be followed by an adjective, not an adverb. Thus, "he looks kind (not kindly)." It is otherwise in the sense of "exercising the sense of sight." Here the adverb is used to the exclusion of the adjective. "He looks kindly (not kind) upon the fallen foe." Actions are qualified by adverbs, but adjectives qualify what one is or seems to be.

lot or lots: A slipshod colloquialism for "great many"; as, "We sold a lot of tickets"; "He has lots of friends"; to be avoided, as are all other vague, ill-assigned expressions, as tending to indistinctness of thought and debasement of language. Compare HEAP.

love. Compare.

lovelily: To the general exclusion of this word, lovely is now made to do duty both as adverb and adjective. 133