Stay up to date with notifications from The Independent

Notifications can be managed in browser preferences.

Mea culpa: Don’t put the word ‘basis’ on a pedestal

Questions of style and usage in last week’s Independent

John Rentoul
Saturday 09 November 2019 20:38 GMT
Comments
Extinction Rebellion... they’re all individuals!
Extinction Rebellion... they’re all individuals!

I became sensitised to the word “basis” this week. A harmless enough word, from the Greek for pedestal or base, but it does give rise to some reader-unfriendly constructions.

We wrote last week, for instance, about an insurance website that “claims to check the markets on a daily basis to ensure its prices remain competitive”. We could have said “check the markets daily” or “every day”.

Then we reported that, instead of pursuing a group action against the Metropolitan Police, Extinction Rebellion would “support people on an individual basis” if they sought compensation for false imprisonment. I think “support individuals” says the same thing more elegantly.

Join our commenting forum

Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies

Comments

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in