The second photo explains why it is shoo-in and not shoe-in. I’m not sure what a shoe-in would be. Maybe a contest entry at a Cinderella ball?
Monday Muddle: shoo, shoe
Category: Monday Muddle
Monday Muddle: parson, person
Sometimes I am asked, “Do people really mix those up?” Yes. All the muddles I share with you have been seen in real life. Usually they are in the middle of a document, and I just add them to my list. Occasionally, I have a photo of them.
Now, to be fair, I’m not completely certain if this store has had previous problems with gangs of clergy that they are trying to avoid, or if they just had trouble with their spelling. Either way, someone may be confused about who is allowed in.
Monday Muddle: opt in, opt-in
I have seen “optin” as one word without a hyphen used as a noun occasionally. It is not yet standard, but I expect it will be one day. If you choose to use this variant, be aware that autocorrect may change it to “option”.
Monday Muddle: meddle, mettle
“To prove one’s mettle” is a common expression. If you have proven your mettle you have come through a difficult situation with grace and aplomb. You might need to prove your mettle if you have neighbours who meddle.
Monday Muddle: metal, medal
A metal detector works by creating an electromagnetic field that causes a reaction in metal objects. That reaction sends a signal to the metal detector that usually turns into some kind of beep so that you know metal has been found. I don’t know what a medal detector is, or what it does, but my guess is that it’s some kind of journalist looking for a story about an athletic event.
Monday Muddle: lapse, laps
Lapse is a singular noun. The plural is lapses. A lapse of time is a length of time, usually used to indicate the amount of time that something happened differently than before, or the space of time between two events. The adjective “time-lapse” is used to describe a video or a series of still photographs in which some of the sequence is removed. This allows a slow process to be viewed more quickly. To time laps is to record how long it takes to move around the track.
Monday Muddle: into, in to
Note: I have seen people suggest that if you can replace “in to” with “in order to”, you need the space. However, “in to” is NOT interchangeable with “in order to”. There are contexts in which “to” can be replaced with “in order to”. But if you have a verb phrase that includes “in” (e.g. gave in) followed by “in order to”, you would need to have the word “in” twice. If we continue with the example of the boy who gave in to peer pressure: “He gave in to avoid being bullied further” MEANS THE SAME AS “He gave in in order to avoid being bullied further.” In both cases, the “to” is the beginning of the infinitive. If you had replaced “in to” with “in order to” the meaning would change. If you say “He gave in order to avoid being bullied further”, it would mean the boy gave something to someone for the purpose of avoiding further bullying. What he gave is not specified, but it was possibly his lunch money, or the answers to his homework. Giving to avoid bullying DOES NOT MEAN THE SAME AS giving in to avoid bullying. He might be giving in to the pressure to take drugs or to steal something. (In those cases, “giving in” is not only not the same as giving, but actually means taking.) So “in to” cannot be replaced by “in order to”, but if the “to” can be, you know you need the space.
I know this is a bit of a brain twister. Please ask any questions you have, and let me know what I need to say more clearly.
Monday Muddle: celery, salary
I’d rather work for a salary than celery. How about you?
Monday Muddle: rein, reign, rain
The expression “free rein” originated with horsemanship, and literally meant that the horse was free from the control of the reins. Use in broader senses followed. “Free reign” became a common substitution, I expect because people weren’t familiar with horsemanship. I’m not sure what “free reign” would really mean. I don’t think royalty pays for the privilege of ruling a kingdom. “Free rain”, well, I think rain is free for everyone.
“To rein in” means to subdue or to control or to limit. “To reign in” would be followed by a place where royals reside and hold power. “To rain in” might be used in a weather report if you are about to say, for example, that precipitation is beginning in a particular place. It is beginning to rain in London.
“To take over the reins” means to take over the leadership of something, but not necessarily the royal throne. “To take over the reigns” would require more than one royal to die or abdicate and leave an empty throne to be filled. “To take over the rains”—I don’t think that’s a thing.
Monday Muddle: cheque, check
If you are American, or if you use some sort of electronic payment system, you may never have to worry about “cheque”. But it’s still good for you to know in case you see it in someone else’s writing.