pathos. Compare [BATHOS].
patrons should not be used for “customers.” A patron is one who fosters a person or thing; a customer is one who deals regularly at one establishment.
peach: Used in the sense of “beauty,” possibly from the delicate and downy skin of the fruit, is a playful though undesirable expression used commonly by young men and boys, especially in referring to women; as, “Isn’t she a peach!” Lexicographers do not recognize this usage of the word.
peculiarly impressive: A phrase heard sometimes for “singularly” or “strikingly impressive”; but the word is from the Latin peculiaris, “one’s own,” and it is in this respect that the individuality enters the case. What belongs exclusively to a person is peculiarly his; and the sense of remarkable, as from singularity, intensity, or exceptionality, is better expressed by the word of this class best adapted to the case.
pecuniary. Compare [FINANCIAL].
peel should not be confused with peal. The first designates “rind”; the second, “ring.”
pell-mell: This word etymologically implies a crowd and confusion and is not applied to an individual. Thus, “He rushed out pell-mell” should be “He rushed out hastily and excitedly.”
penny: In the plural this word is either pennies or pence. In the one case it means a number of individual coins; in the second case it signifies a specific sum of money.
people: Where individual persons, or a number of such, are intended, this word should be discarded in favor of persons; as, “most persons are of this opinion.” People means persons collectively; as “People say.”
per: This is a Latin preposition, correctly joined only with Latin words; as, per centum, abbreviated per cent.; per diem; per annum. Per head and per person, per year, per day are common commercial locutions; use preferably the English forms a head, a person, a year, a day. If you must use a Latin phrase be sure you use all Latin.