Commonly Confused Words - Peddle, Pedal and Petal
Uncovering the differences between peddle, pedal and petal
With examples from The X Files
Spare time seems to be rare for me these days, but when I am able to sit down and relax, I will sometimes pick up a book that is filled with word puzzles and games. I am reminded of those puzzles as I sit down to write about the differences between the words, peddle, pedal, and petal. Puzzles like the ones where we need to change one letter to create a new word, or the ones where we add letters to an existing word and rearrange those letters to create new ones are just a few that come to mind.
Take the words pedal and petal, for example. Pedal is defined as "a foot-operated lever" that controls the speed of various mechanisms.
"Something's wrong," Mulder shouted as he jammed his foot on the brake pedal once again. He swerved slightly to keep the car on the road, and fear crept up as he realized they were going to have to go downhill. "The brakes won't work!"
Drop the "D" and replace it with a "T" and you have a petal, which is a "colored segment of the corolla of a flower."
"They're beautiful," Scully said softly. She stroked the silky petals of the flowers between her fingers and wondered who sent them.
Peddle, on the other hand, is a verb that is generally used to describe the method used to push or sell objects, goods, and wares.
Mulder cursed his luck when he and Scully turned the corner and found themselves facing down a drug peddler with a nasty attitude.
So what's the best way to keep track of which word to use? Try using this suggestion from Vocabulary.com:
Remember that pedal is related to foot through the Latin pēs and that someone who peddles goods goes from door to door. If you don't want either of those, then you can choose the flower's petal.
Petal vs Pedal vs Peddle... vs Back-Pedal?
And since we're on the subject, there has also been some confusion for "back-pedal," a term that's used to refer to someone backing away, or retreating from a statement or position. It is sometimes mistakenly spelled, back-peddle, which is not correct due to the fact that peddle refers to selling, not to movement.
It was quite obvious that Skinner was furious and Mulder found himself back-pedalling to clear things up. "That's not what I meant," he said in a rush.
The way I always remember the correct way to spell back-pedal is that the letter A is in both words - back and pedal.
With examples from The X Files
Spare time seems to be rare for me these days, but when I am able to sit down and relax, I will sometimes pick up a book that is filled with word puzzles and games. I am reminded of those puzzles as I sit down to write about the differences between the words, peddle, pedal, and petal. Puzzles like the ones where we need to change one letter to create a new word, or the ones where we add letters to an existing word and rearrange those letters to create new ones are just a few that come to mind.
Take the words pedal and petal, for example. Pedal is defined as "a foot-operated lever" that controls the speed of various mechanisms.
"Something's wrong," Mulder shouted as he jammed his foot on the brake pedal once again. He swerved slightly to keep the car on the road, and fear crept up as he realized they were going to have to go downhill. "The brakes won't work!"
Drop the "D" and replace it with a "T" and you have a petal, which is a "colored segment of the corolla of a flower."
"They're beautiful," Scully said softly. She stroked the silky petals of the flowers between her fingers and wondered who sent them.
Peddle, on the other hand, is a verb that is generally used to describe the method used to push or sell objects, goods, and wares.
Mulder cursed his luck when he and Scully turned the corner and found themselves facing down a drug peddler with a nasty attitude.
So what's the best way to keep track of which word to use? Try using this suggestion from Vocabulary.com:
Remember that pedal is related to foot through the Latin pēs and that someone who peddles goods goes from door to door. If you don't want either of those, then you can choose the flower's petal.
Petal vs Pedal vs Peddle... vs Back-Pedal?
And since we're on the subject, there has also been some confusion for "back-pedal," a term that's used to refer to someone backing away, or retreating from a statement or position. It is sometimes mistakenly spelled, back-peddle, which is not correct due to the fact that peddle refers to selling, not to movement.
It was quite obvious that Skinner was furious and Mulder found himself back-pedalling to clear things up. "That's not what I meant," he said in a rush.
The way I always remember the correct way to spell back-pedal is that the letter A is in both words - back and pedal.