the subjunctive mood
The U.S. Olympic Track and Field teams have demonstrated a slippery grasp of batons and grammar. In less than an hour, both the men’s and the women’s 4×100 relay teams dropped batons in preliminary heats, destroying their chances of challenging the Jamaicans.
Mechelle Lewis talked to the press about teammate Lauryn Williams’ bobble. “I [...]

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eager vs. anxious
Celebrities continue to kiss grammar goodbye when they go on KIIS FM to philosophize with Ryan Seacrest.
Kobe Bryant recently described interest in the U.S. men’s basketball team competing in Beijing. “Everybody’s kind of anxious to see if we’re gonna be able to get back on top,” he said.
This suggests that fans are nervous [...]

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masterly vs. masterful
Want to sound like a sophisticated arm-chair commentator of the Beijing Olympics?

Mind the difference between masterly and masterful, a common description of Olympic performances.
Traditionally, masterful has described a powerful, even bullying, superior, while masterly has described the skill of a master of a profession or trade. A flawless gymnast is “masterly.” An austere [...]

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avoiding ‘of our own’
Gymnatics coach Bela Karolyi can’t stop complaining about the allegedly under-age Chinese gymnasts.

“This is a joke,” he said. “We are people who have had children of our own, so we know what a 16-year-old should look like. They should not look like they are 7 and maybe still in diapers.”
In typical Bela-speak, [...]

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singular pronouns
Jason Lezak’s anchor leg in yesterday’s 4×100 freestyle relay stunned viewers. “There’s never been [an anchor swim like that] in my memory — not running down somebody who holds the world record, who’s on their game,” American head coach Eddie Reese said. “That was incredible.”
Here’s the deal. Somebody is singular, so every reference to [...]

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