RE: USAGE- Wisdom Tooth

["Darren Barefoot" <darren -dot- barefoot -at- capeclear -dot- com>]

Er...to supply an alternate perspective, I found the following pedantic
discussion of "impacted" in my American Heritage Dictionary of the
English Language (hardly a definitive source, but that's what was
handy):

Usage Note: Each generation of critics seems to select one particular
usage to stand as the emblem of what they view as linguistic crassness.
Thirty years ago it was the use of contact as a verb, but opposition to
that form has more or less disappeared, and attention now focuses on the
verbal use of impact meaning "have an effect, affect." Eighty-four
percent of the Usage Panel disapproves of the construction to impact on,
as in the phrase social pathologies, common to the inner city, that
impact heavily on such a community; and fully 95 percent disapproves of
the use of impact as a transitive verb in the sentence Companies have
used disposable techniques that have a potential for impacting our
health. But even these figures do not reflect the degree of distaste
with which critics view the usage: in their comments some Panelists
labeled the usage as "bureaucratic,""pretentious,""vile," and "a
vulgarism.". It may be that the particular pretentiousness associated
with the verbal use of impact is caused by its derivation from an
already questionable metaphoric use of the noun impact, as in phrases
such as the political impact of the decision or the impact of the
program on the community, in which no more is usually meant than might
have been expressed by effects or consequences. But though impact may
have begun life a generation ago as an inflated substitute for "affect
significantly," it has by now become so common in corporate and
institutional contexts that younger speakers appear to regard it as
wholly standard and straightforward usage. Within a few years,
accordingly, the usage is likely to be no more objectionable than
contact is now, since it will no longer betray any particular
pretentiousness on the part of those who use it.

Thanks. DB.

> -----Original Message-----
> From: bounce-techwr-l-65243 -at- lists -dot- raycomm -dot- com 
> [mailto:bounce-techwr-l-65243 -at- lists -dot- raycomm -dot- com] On Behalf Of 
> KMcLauchlan -at- chrysalis-its -dot- com
> Sent: 17 December 2001 16:01
> To: TECHWR-L
> Subject: FW: USAGE- Wisdom Tooth
> 
> 
> 
> OPINION
> In the realm of English usage, I guess I'm a 
> hopeless revanchist.
> 
> I picture all those shareholders being restrained 
> under increasing, painful pressure, doomed to 
> erupt eventually in an excruciating and messy way... 
> probably smelly, too.  "Impacted", indeed.
> 
> The first time I heard the words "asteroid" and 
> "impacted" in the same sentence, I wondered what 
> the heck an asteroid was doing, struggling to 
> get OUT of a tight space.
> 


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