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THE WRITE STUFF
Writing & Grammar Blog
 
DIANE HUGHES • NASHVILLE, TN
WRITER, EDITOR, CREATIVE PROFESSIONAL

Wear your mantle but decorate your mantel

5/21/2012

3 Comments

 
how to spell mantel for fireplaceFireplace mantel. That's M - A - N - T - E - L.
This word (mis)usage has become one of my top pet peeves. The shelf over your fireplace? That's a mantel. For years I've been pained by those TV and print commercials touting the craftsmanship of fireplace "mantles" made by members of the Amish community. (No disrespect to the Amish. I just trust they know more about making mantels than spelling them.)

Mantle and mantel are homophones; they sound the same but have different meanings. Let's take a quick at what they mean and attempt to remember the difference with a memory aid.

Mantle refers to either a literal garment or a figurative cloak of authority (like wearing a mantle of leadership). It can also refer to something that covers something else or to the inner core of the Earth found below its crust.

A mantel is the shelf that sits above a fireplace.

I've racked my brain (yes, it's racked, not wracked) trying to devise a memory aid to help writers remember the difference between these two words. Here's what I've come up with:

mantel — el, remember it's elevated above the fireplace.  

mantle — I couldn't think of a very good mnemonic for this one. My suggestion: Imagine you are at a party and  put on your coat to leave early. This should help you to remember that a mantle is (by one definition) a cloak or garment. At any rate, it may be sufficient to simply learn the first one and remember the other meanings all apply to mantle.

Have you been tripped up by these two words? Do you have a better memory aid to share for remembering the difference between them? Are you troubled by other homophones? Share your thoughts in the Comments below.

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3 Comments
Rick Jennings
5/22/2012 02:04:07 am

Hold on to your pet peeve. This example may reflect a much different problem than mere homonym-itis. Perhaps, it’s an indication of Dyslexia.

Despite efforts to improve vocab, or a college degree, the difference of el or le elude me more than ei vs ie. For example, Who could confuse angle for angel? However, written without context, these confuse me. When working crosswords I will fill in with two L’s (or I’s) and later turn one into an E.

It’s no excuse for improper usage (Kinda like, let’s not let the colorblind person select our colors) nor does it lessen the offense. Just sharing a bit of personal perspective. For commercial use, I agree, there should be a higher standard.

P.S. Thanks for the blog. Guess it touched a nerve. lol

Reply
Diane Hughes link
5/22/2012 10:39:37 am

Interesting perspective, Rick. I had not really considered dyslexia as a possible cause for this. Duly noted. I still fear, though, that many people make the mistake simply because they don't realize these are two different words with different meanings. Personally, I'm thrown by tassel. I often have to check that I don't spell it tassle.

Thanks for adding your voice to the conversation!

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Timothy Arek link
9/25/2021 11:22:47 am

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