Brand-new, not bran-new. Although the latter adjective is much used, it is evidently a corruption of the former. An article in its newness may be bright like a brand of fire, or the brand of the manufacturer may remain intact, but there is certainly no bran about it.
Breeches—brĭtch´ez, not as spelled.
Bretzel, not pretzel. A brittle German cake.
Brilliant. A diamond of the finest cut, with its faces and facets so arranged as to secure the greatest degree of brilliancy—whence the name. The name to many conveys the idea of paste, or imitation. A rose diamond may be just as pure, but its depth does not permit it to be made a brilliant of without a much greater loss of substance.
Brougham—brōōm or brōō´am, not brō´am nor brow´am. A kind of carriage.
Burst, Burst and Bursting, not bust, busted and busting.
C.
Calculate is often inappropriately used in lieu of believe, suppose, expect, etc., as in the following sentences: "I calculate you are my friend;" "I calculate the report is true." Still worse than this passive misuse is that active one of using the word in some such sense as this: "Doctor, I know that you are a man of great intelligence and I have unlimited confidence in your honor and ability; but I must say that I think the course of treatment pursued by you during this epidemic, is calculated to increase the mortality among your patients." How inconsistent with the encomium is the dreadful accusation just following! As if the Doctor had sat down and calculated how he could cause injury rather than benefit. Calculate means to ascertain by means of figures or to study what means must be used to secure a certain result. A person may make a speech, write a book, or do anything else calculated to do good, or more rarely, evil, but the intention to accomplish the object spoken of must be present, before the word can be properly used.
Calliope—kal-lī´o-pe, not kal´li-ōpe.
Calvary, not cavalry, when the place of our Saviour's crucifixion is meant.