English teacher: how to use lose and loose

Time for another little lesson from the English teacher!

Several people have asked me to address the use of the words lose and loose. These words are easy to mix up, and I frequently see them used incorrectly.

First, the definitions of the two words.

Lose is a verb meaning to misplace or to come to be without something.

Examples:

• Did you lose your cell phone?
• I think she's about to lose a tooth.
• It's so sad to hear about a child's losing his mother.

Loose is almost always used as an adjective meaning free, not restrained, not fitting tightly.

Examples:

• I have lots of loose change in my purse
• You have a loose tooth!
• Those pants are really loose on you.

If you're a real stickler, you might also like to know that the word loose can also be used as a verb meaning to free, to unfetter, or to unfasten. This is a fairly old-fashioned use of the word, but it's still correct.

• He will loose the captives.

I think that most writing mistakes with these words come about because of the way the words are pronounced. Lose is one of those English words that breaks all kinds of pronunciation rules. Lose looks as if it should rhyme with nose or hose, doesn't it? It doesn't seem possible that the sound of "oo" could be present in a word that has one "o" and a silent "e." So writers often throw in another "o." That's understandable. But words that have "oo" plus an "se" are pronounced with a hard "s" sound, not a "z" sound, such as moose, goose, noose, and caboose--just like the word loose, NOT lose.

Perhaps the best way to remember to use the word lose is to connect it with two words that are almost never misspelled: loser and lost. I'll bet you've never read about the TV show The Biggest Looser, do you? Nope. Everyone seems to know that the word is loser. And no one ever writes of being hopelessly loost; lost is a word over which no one struggles. So if you find it difficult to remember that the verb you want is lose rather than loose, just remember that you don't want to be a loser. The right word is just the root of the word loser: lose. Or remember this: You'd be lost without the right word. Lose is the root of lost.

So here's a little quiz for you. Fill in the blanks with lose or loose:

1. I need to _______ 10 pounds.
2. These jeans are so tight, and they're supposed to be really _______ on me!
3. Let go of me! Turn me _______.
4. I'm afraid I'll _______ my way in the dark.

If you answered 1. lose; 2. loose; 3. loose; and 4. lose; you've got it!

Please let me know if you have any questions about English grammar or if there's a particular point you'd like for me to address in one of these little lessons. I want these to be a blessing to you. Leave me a comment if there's a particular point of grammar you'd like for me to address. Feel free to email me (RichellaP (at) gmail (dot) com) if you have a specific question. I'd be happy to help if I can!

A room for living

A few weeks ago I revealed my new blue dining room. Today I'd like to show you around one of the most-used rooms in my home: the living room.

Here's the closest I can get to a full-room shot:

To be honest, this is the trickiest room I've ever tried to furnish and decorate. It's large and full of light and has lots of nice features, but it also has three doorways to other rooms, two walls of built-ins, and one wall of French doors and windows. The only unbroken wall is way down at the end of the room, far from the fireplace and the television. How do you do space-planning for a room like this? I'll show you what I've done.

First, here's a look from the front door. You can see straight ahead into the living room.

Stepping into the living room, you can see the one unbroken wall to the left and the seating area to the right.

The back wall holds most of my collection of crosses. This collection started many years ago with an Easter gift from my husband. Since then, I've been given many different crosses by friends and members of my family. I've also collected special crosses from different places I've visited. I have crosses from Brazil, Canada, England, and France, as well as from lots of different cities in the United States. I love the constant reminders of Jesus as well as the beautiful works of art that people have made in His honor. My husband jokes that we should also be well-protected against vampires. He's so funny.

You can also see that I've created a little reading corner back there--a "thoughtful spot," as I like to call it.

Now for the rest of the room.

I've anchored the seating area with a rug. This is the "Medallion Kirman" from the Original Karastan collection. I love the colors. (By the way, I have no connection with Karastan rugs; I'm simply a big fan of them. If you're interested in buying a Karastan, you should know that two months of the year {May and October, I think} are special sale months for the company--they put all their rugs on sale half-price! I have several Karastan rugs, and I've bought them all for half-price or below half-price. Your retailer may offer special discounts in addition to the half-price sale.)

The living room is right next to the dining room, where the rug is Karastan's "Floral Kirman." Can you tell that the colors in the two rugs are identical?

The other end of the room includes the fireplace and the TV. I'm grateful that these are side-by-side. When we're not using the TV, we close the cabinet. The Flemish floral over the fireplace is pretty much a permanent fixture. I love the way the painting echoes the colors of the rug. And the little blue accent table by the club chair harks to the blue in the dining room.

The fourth side of the room is filled with built-in lighted bookcases. These are much like the lighted cupboards in the dining room.

Here you can see into the dining room on the left.

Looking the other way, you can see the dining room on the right and the kitchen straight ahead.

One of my favorite features is the way the bookcases are built into the walls and the doorways are framed out to make the walls look very thick. See?

In case you're wondering whether we really live in our "living room," I'll give you a peek under the coffee table.

A stepper, some hand weights, a foam roller, and a weighted ball. Not very pretty, but very handy for getting in a little exercise while watching TV!

Here's another look at the room in the late-afternoon light. I love the way the sunlight is filtered by the matchstick blinds and comes pouring in through the transoms.

Hope you enjoyed the tour! I'm joining these great parties:

Room by Room at Cottage and Vine

Wow Us Wednesday at Savvy Southern Style

Roomspiration Link-Up Party at View Along the Way

Open House at No Minimalist Here
Show Us Your Living Rooms at Kelly's Korner

To make you smile

My dear friend Darcy hosts a "Sweet Shot Tuesday" party each week. I'm joining her today to share this amazing shot captured by my 14-year-old son.

I never would have believed you could get a praying mantis to smile for the camera. Maybe I should try looking at the world through a child's eyes more often.