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Why don't I remember hearing the term "back-formate" before today? I
like this term. It describes the use of, for example, "utilize" when
"use" is meant and would have been a better choice.
I was just reading a little blurb about this in an editing newsletter.
It talks about other back-formations we're used to, such as
"televise" and "edit." (I didn't know those were back-formations.)
Anyhow I thought this might be a topic I could use in my editing
column in our STC newsletter. To that end, could anyone send me other
examples of back-formations? Even if they're words that are useful
(as I think "televise" and "edit" are), I'd like to know about them.
