nauseous vs. nauseated

Natalie Cole recounts her battle with hepatitis C in the new issue of People. “I couldn’t get out of bed for three weeks,” she said. “I was nauseous every day.”

While we’re very glad she’s overcome the virus and don’t want to appear insensitive, there is a linguistic point worth raising here.

Nauseous means “causing nausea.” Nauseated means “feeling or suffering from nausea.” If you were sick to your stomach for three weeks, you should say, “I was nauseated every day.”

Here at Grammar Guard, we seek out nauseous word choices. Certain mistakes make us feel nauseated.