Are you a “looser”?

English is a savagely difficult language to write correctly. But some mistakes are easily rectified.

I have noticed large numbers of people recently using the verb “to loose” (I don’t want to loose you, for example) when the correct word is “to lose”.

The reason for this mistake is obvious: “to choose” – CHEWZE – rhymes with “to lose” – LEWZ – so it is logical to spell them the same way. Unfortunately, logic goes out of the window when it comes to writing English, especially in its British version.

Anyway, remember, the correct spelling is “lose” and not “loose” – the second word rhymes with LOO and is the opposite of “tight”.