Are you a true word nerd? Test yourself with these 3 quizzes by Bryan Garner
Photo of Bryan Garner by Winn Fuqua Photography.
The “Bryan Garner on Words” column is a perennial favorite of ABA Journal readers. In 2018, Garner wrote three quizzes to test readers’ knowledge of word usage and pronunciation. Can you pass all three and prove yourself a true snoot?
Our shifting meanings: Test your knowledge of modern usage
“In each question that follows, one choice is a misusage that wouldn’t pass muster with a good copy editor. See whether you can recognize the traditionally correct forms.”
How do you say it? Try this quiz to evaluate your pronunciation skills
“Over time, words can change in spelling, meaning and pronunciation. In this quiz, choose the pronunciation favored in the late 19th century through the 20th.”
Law review editors missed a few, so we have this usage skills quiz for you
“Law review editors do their best to comply with prevailing literary usage. In this quiz, the language hasn’t yet come close to accepting the ‘incorrect’ choices as standard written English.”
Bryan A. Garner, editor-in-chief of Black’s Law Dictionary and author of many books on advocacy and legal drafting, is the distinguished research professor of law at Southern Methodist University. His most recent book is Nino and Me: My Unusual Friendship with Justice Antonin Scalia. Follow on Twitter @bryanagarner.
