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Leading Question. A leading question is not necessarily an important one; it is one that is so framed as to suggest, or lead to, the answer desired. Few others than lawyers use the term correctly.

Lease. To say of a man that he leases certain premises leaves it doubtful whether he is lessor or lessee. Being ambiguous, the word should be used with caution.

Leave for Go away. “He left yesterday.” Leave is a transitive verb; name the place of departure.

Leave for Let. “Leave it alone.” By this many persons mean, not that it is to be left in solitude, but that it is to be untouched, or unmolested.

Lengthways for Lengthwise.

Lengthy. Usually said in disparagement of some wearisome discourse. It is no better than breadthy, or thicknessy.

Leniency for Lenity. The words are synonymous, but the latter is the better.

Less for Fewer. “The regiment had less than five hundred men.” Less relates to quantity, fewer, to number.

Limited for Small, Inadequate, etc. “The army’s operations were confined to a limited area.” “We had a limited supply of food.” A large area and an adequate supply would also be limited. Everything that we know about is limited.

Liable for Likely. “Man is liable to err.” Man is not liable to err, but to error. Liable should be followed, not by an infinitive, but by a preposition.

Like for As, or As if. “The matter is now like it was.” “The house looked like it would fall.”

Likely for Probably. “He will likely be elected.” If likely is thought the better word (and in most cases it is) put it this way: “It is likely that he will be elected,” or, “He is likely to be elected.”

Line for Kind, or Class. “This line of goods.” Leave the word to “salesladies” and “salesgentlemen.” “That line of business.” Say, that business.

Literally for Figuratively. “The stream was literally alive with fish.” “His eloquence literally swept the audience from its feet.” It is bad enough to exaggerate, but to affirm the truth of the exaggeration is intolerable.

Loan for Lend. “I loaned him ten dollars.” We lend, but the act of lending, or, less literally, the thing lent, is a loan.

Locate. “After many removals the family located at Smithville.” Some dictionaries give locate as an intransitive verb having that meaning, but–well, dictionaries are funny.

Lots, or a Lot, for Much, or Many. “Lots of things.” “A lot of talk.”

Love for Like. “I love to travel.” “I love apples.” Keep the stronger word for a stronger feeling.

Lunch for Luncheon. But do not use luncheon as a verb.

Mad for Angry. An Americanism of lessening prevalence. It is probable that anger is a kind of madness (insanity), but that is not what the misusers of the word mad mean to affirm.

Maintain for Contend. “The senator maintained that the tariff was iniquitous.” He maintained it only if he proved it.

Majority for Plurality. Concerning votes cast in an election, a majority is more than half the total; a plurality is the excess of one candidate’s votes over another’s. Commonly the votes compared are those for the successful candidate and those for his most nearly successful competitor.

Make for Earn. “He makes fifty dollars a month by manual labor.”

Mansion for Dwelling, or House. Usually mere hyperbole, a lamentable fault of our national literature. Even our presidents, before Roosevelt, called their dwelling the Executive Mansion.

Masculine for Male. See Feminine.

Mend for Repair. “They mended the road.” To mend is to repair, but to repair is not always to mend. A stocking is mended, a road repaired.

Meet for Meeting. This belongs to the language of sport, which persons of sense do not write–nor read.

Militate. “Negligence militates against success.” If “militate” meant anything it would mean fight, but there is no such word.

Mind for Obey. This is a reasonless extension of one legitimate meaning of mind, namely, to heed, to give attention.

Minus for Lacking, or Without. “After the battle he was minus an ear.” It is better in serious composition to avoid such alien words as have vernacular equivalents.