It's "Voila!"

I think this is weird. I do. Maybe it's because I took French in high school and college. Or maybe it's because I read enough to have seen this word in print. But I think this word is in common usage and I don't understand why people are butchering it.

I know you've heard it used in spoken conversation, probably on TV. The word is "Voila!" It is a French word that means, "There!" or "There it is!"

"Voila!" has come into common usage in English and it seems a perfectly good word to me. So what's my rant about this time?

I have read materials written by educated people in which the word was presented as some variation on... Are you ready for this? "Waalaa!" See also, "Whala!"

Are you kidding me with this? This innocent little French word does not deserve such ignorant mutilation!

Let's get it straight: "Voila!" With a V.

Happy Grammaring. (Well, I'm not that happy, but maybe you can be. Pooh.)

Susan K. Morrow
www.SusanKMorrow.com

An Apple, A Bird

Author's note: The following originally appeared in my old "Grammar Grouch" newsletter, dated 1/24/05. Sadly, this is still a major problem. I noticed it twice in the local paper yesterday. --skm

I am noticing an alarming number of "n's" being dropped from the article "an." I hope I don't have to tell you that,

if a word begins with a vowel (a, e, i, o, or u and sometimes h),

the article before it must be "an."

For example, John said, "I got a e-mail about a hour ago." No, this is just wrong. Wrong, wrong, wrong. Sigh.
My request for the New Year is that you help me to fix this strange and irritating problem.

Please, no more "a hour", "a email", "a ex-employee", "a idiot"! Enough already!

Many thanks and I remain

Your Grammar Grouch,

Susan K. Morrow
http://www.susankmorrow.com/