Monday, January 5, 2015

Renown or renowned?

The misuse of renown and renowned is a common error that makes me cringe.
Example of misuse: “was made into an award-winning TV series starring the renown actor Ian McKellan.”

Renown is a noun meaning fame or high repute, as in "an author of great renown." The adjective, meaning well-known or famous, is renowned. The renowned author . . .

If you can substitute fame, the word is renown. If you can substitute famous, the word is renowned.

Ellis, feeling curmudgeonly

3 comments:

Unknown said...

My dear, you were restrained x

Ellis Vidler said...

And you, my dear, are kind. Today I'll post hummingbird stuff. Nicer and more interesting--I think. :-)

Leslie Ann aka LA said...

Thanks for providing substitute words as a test, that always helps me.

Seriously, you felt curmudgeonly? I thought I was the only one🐼