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MANOEUVRE
manoeuvre
mantelpiece
(not
mantle-)
mantelshelf
(not
mantle-)
margarine
(not
margerine)
marihuana/marijuana
Both
spellings
are
correct.
marriage
marvel
marvelled, marvelling
marvellous
masterful
or
masterly?
MASTERFUL
=
dominating
MASTERLY
-
very
skilful
mathematics

(not
mathmatics)
mating
or
matting?
mate
+ ing =
mating
mat + ing =
matting
See
ADDING ENDINGS
(i) +
(ii).
matrix
(singular) matrices
or
matrixes (plural)
See
FOREIGN
PLURALS.
may
See CAN OR
MAY?.
may
or
might?
(i)
Use
may/might

in a
present context
and
might
in
a
past context:
If
I
receive
a
written
invitation,
I
MAY/MIGHT
accept,
(still possible)
134
MEDITTERANEAN
If
I had
received
a
written invitation,
I
MIGHT
HAVE
accepted,
(possibility over now)
If

I
don't
hurry,
I
MAY/MIGHT
miss
the
bus.
(possibility exists)
If
I
hadn't hurried,
I
MIGHT
HAVE
missed
the
bus.
(risk
now
over)
(ii)
Convert
'may'
to
'might'
when changing direct
speech
to
indirect

or
reported speech:
'MAY
I
come
in?'
she
asked.
She
asked
if she
MIGHT
come
in.
'You
MAY be
lucky,'
she
said.
She
said that
I
MIGHT
be
lucky.
(iii)
There
is a
slight
difference

between
the
meaning
of
'may'
and
'might'
in the
present
tense
when
they
are
used
in the
sense
of
'asking
permission':
MAY
I
suggest that
we
adjourn
the
meeting?
(agreement assured)
MIGHT
I
suggest that

we
adjourn
the
meeting?
(suggestion more tentative)
me
See
I/ME/MYSELF.
meant
(not
ment,
not
mean't)
medal
or
meddle?
MEDAL
= a
small metal disc given
as an
honour
to
MEDDLE
= to
interfere
mediaeval/medieval
Both
spellings
are
correct.

medicine
(not
medecine) medicinal
mediocre
Mediterranean
135
medium
(singular) media
or
mediums (plural)
Note, however, that
the two
plurals
differ
in
meaning.
The
MEDIA
hounded
him to his
death.
(=
radio,
television, newspaper journalists)
She
consulted
a
dozen
MEDIUMS
in the

hope
of
making
contact with
her
dead husband.
(=
people
through
whom
the
spirits
of the
dead
are
said
to
communicate)
mediums
See
MEDIUM.
meet,
meet
up,
meet
up
with,
or
meet
with?

British English distinguishes
between
the first and
last
of
these:
You
MEET
a
person.
You
MEET
WITH
an
accident.
Avoid
using
'meet
up'
and
'meet
up
with'.
They
are
clumsy
expressions.
When shall
we
meet

up?
When shall
we
meet?
We
met up
with friends
in
town.
We
met
friends
in
town.
memento
(singular) mementoes
or
mementos (plural)
See
PLURALS
(iv).
memorandum
(singular) memoranda
or
memorandums
(plural)
See
FOREIGN
PLURALS.
memory

(singular) memories (plural)
See
PLURALS
(iii).
ment
Wrong spelling.
See
MEANT.
mention
mentioned, mentioning
136
MEDIUM
MILAGE/MILEAGE
Mesdames
(i)
Plural
of
French Madame.
(ii)
Used
as a
plural title before
a
number
of
ladies'
names:
Mesdames
Smith, Green, Brown
and

Kelly
won
prizes.
Always
used with
an
initial capital letter.
message
messenger
(not messanger)
metaphor
(not
metaphore)
A
metaphor
is a
compressed comparison:
He
wolfed
his
food,
(note
the
apparent identification
with
a
wolf's eating habits)
Compare
SIMILE.
meteorology

(six
syllables)
meter
or
metre?
Use
these exemplar sentences
as a
guide:
Put
these coins
in the
parking
METER.
You'll need
a
METRE
of
material
to
make
a
skirt.
Sonnets
are
always written
in
iambic
METRE.
might

See MAY OR
MIGHT?.
might
of
This
is an
incorrect construction.
See
COULD
OF.
milage/mileage
Both spellings
are
correct.
137
milieu
(singular) milieus
or
milieux (plural)
See
FOREIGN PLURALS.
militate
or
mitigate?
To
MILITATE
(against) comes from
the
Latin verb
meaning

'to
serve
as a
soldier'
and it has the
combative sense
of
having
a
powerful influence
on
something.
Despite
his
excellent qualifications,
his
youthful
criminal record
MILITATED
against
his
appointment
as
school bursar.
To
MITIGATE
comes
from
the
Latin adjective

meaning
'mild'
and it
means
to
moderate,
to
make
less
severe.
Don't condemn
the
young
man too
harshly. There
are
MITIGATING
circumstances.
millennium
(singular) millennia
or
millenniums (plural)
(not -n-)
See
FOREIGN PLURALS.
millepede/millipede
Both
spellings
are
correct.

mimic
mimicked, mimicking
See
SOFT
c
AND
SOFT
G.
miniature
minuscule
(not
miniscule)
minute
(not
minuit)
miracle
miscellaneous
miscellany
138
MILIEU
MOPING
OR
MOPPING?
mischief
See
EI/IE
SPELLING RULE.
mischievous
(not
mischievious,

as it is
often mispronounced)
misplace
See
DISPLACE
OR
MISPLACE?.
misrelated
participles
See
PARTICIPLES.
misspell
mis +
spell
misspelled/misspelt
Both
spellings
are
correct.
mistletoe
moccasin
modern
(not
modren)
moment
(not
momment)
momentary
or
momentous?

MOMENTARY
=
lasting
for
only
a
very short time
MOMENTOUS
= of
great significance
monastery
(singular) monasteries (plural)
(not
monastry/monastries)
See
PLURALS (iii).
mongoose
(singular) mongooses (plural)
(not
mongeese)
monotonous
moping
or
mopping?
mope
+ ing =
moping
mop + ing =
mopping
See

ADDING
ENDINGS
(i) +
(ii).
139