Versus

“Bouillon” vs. “Bullion”

Common English Blunders, Mispronunciations, Misspellings, Nouns, Versus

I saw each of these words in the past week and wondered about their origins.

Problem:
These two nouns are not synonyms but look so similar that some people will mistakenly use one of the nouns when they should use the other noun.

Explanation:
The noun “bouillon” — spelled B-O-U-I-L-L-O-N — means a clear broth made from straining water in which meat has been cooked. This noun dates back to the mid-sixteen-hundreds and is derived from the French verb that means to boil.

The noun “bullion” — spelled B-U-L-L-I-O-N — means silver or gold considered in mass (for example, in bars) instead of in value. This noun dates back to the mid-thirteen-hundreds and also can trace its origin to the word for boiling or bubbling — as in a melted mass of silver or gold.

For fun, I searched Google for each of the following mistaken phrases (with the quotation marks) and got about the indicated numbers of matches:

  • “chicken bullion” — 18,300 matches
  • “beef bullion” — 14,700 matches
  • “gold bouillon” — 3,510 matches
  • “silver bouillon” — 1,280 matches

I call these “mistaken phrases” because I combined two words that should not go together based on the definitions of bullion and bouillon. These results tell me that Web authors are worse at properly naming their broths than they are at properly naming their masses of gold and silver.

Solution:
Use “bouillon” when referring to broth. Use “bullion” when referring to gold or silver.

“Anecdote” vs. “Antidote”

Common English Blunders, Mispronunciations, Nouns, Versus

I sometimes hear people mispronounce one of these words as if it were equivalent to the other word.

Problem:
These two nouns are not synonyms.

Explanation:
The noun “anecdote” means a short account of an incident as an unpublished narrative.

The noun “antidote” means a medicine for counteracting a poison.

Those who confuse these two nouns probably are distracted by the fact that both nouns have “dote” — D-O-T-E — in them, the fact that both nouns start with A-N, and the fact that both nouns are eight letters long.

The noun “antidote” is constructed from the prefix “anti-“, which means against, and “dote”, whose origin essentially means given. In other words, the roots of “antidote” when assembled mean given against.

The noun “anecdote” is constructed from the prefix “an-“, which means not, and “ecdote”. The “ecdote” part of “anecdote” is a combination of “ec”, which means out, and “dote”, whose origin, as just noted, means given.

So the “ecdote” part of “anecdote” essentially means published. In other words, the roots of “anecdote” when assembled mean not published.

Solution:
Use “anecdote” when referring to a spoken story; use “antidote” when referring to a remedy for poison.

“Restoral” vs. “Restoration”

Nouns, Versus

I saw the noun “restoral” on a plaque this morning and began wondering about these two nouns.

Problem:
The noun “restoral” has fallen out of use by many people.

Explanation:
The plaque honored a team of people who had restored some sort of service to a group of customers.

According to many dictionaries, the noun “restoral” first appeared in the early 1600s, and “restoration” is its only definition, where “restoration” means the act of restoring.

In contrast, the noun “restoration” first appeared around 1350, but the noun “restoration” has a different meaning when capitalized.

In particular, the phrase “the Restoration” with a capital R refers to King Charles the Second’s reestablishment of the monarchy in England.

I believe that this explains why some people favor “restoral” over “restoration” when referring to the act of restoring.

For fun, I searched Google for each of the following words (without the quotation marks) and got about the indicated numbers of matches:

  • “restoration” — 10,700,000 matches
  • “restoral” — 68,500 matches

This tells me that Web authors favor “restoration” over “restoral” by a ratio of 156:1. As I have explained, these two nouns are equivalent when referring to the act of restoring, but you have to choose one of them based on your audience and the likelihood of confusion.

For example, most people understand the noun “restoration” better than the noun “restoral” when they hear each noun — for example, over the telephone.

Solution:
When talking about restoring services and there is no likelihood of confusion with the Restoration with a capital R, use “restoration” in speech and in writing. Avoid using “restoral” in speech. Consider using “restoral” in writing for audiences that will recognize it and when there is likelihood of confusion with the Restoration with a capital R.