2021-04-02 ศัพท์ น่าสับสน ชุด – A – a & per

Revision A

(Usage for a please refer to GTK#689830 for detail)

Dictionary.com

ออกเสียง per = ‘PUR’ – unstressed = ‘PER’

Abused, Confused, & Misused Words by Mary Embree

Per = to, for, or by each:

one ticket per person;

= according to:

per our agreement

Not to be confused with:

purr = soft, vibrant sound made by a cat:

She will sit in my lap and purr.

Dictionary.com

USAGE NOTE FOR PER

Per for a or an or for each

occurs chieflyin technical or statistical contexts:

miles per gallon; work-hours per week; feet per second;

gallons of beer per person per year.

It is also commonin sports commentary:

He averaged 16 points per quarter.

Per is sometimes criticizedin business writing

in the sense“according to” and is rare in literary writing.

Merriam-Webster Dictionary

Using Per as a Preposition: Usage Guide

Preposition

Per occurs most frequently in business contexts;

its use outside such contexts is often criticized

but is quite widespread, especially in sense 2.

Its most common and natural nonbusiness uses

always involve figures, usually in relation to price

$150 per performance,

automobiles 32 miles per gallon, 55 miles per hour,

or sports. averages 15 points and 9 rebounds per game

Random House Kernerman Webster's College Dictionary

usage:

per meaning “for each”

occurs chiefly in technical or statistical contexts:

miles per gallon; cost per person.

It is also common in sports commentary:

16 points per quarter.

A or an is often considered more suitable in nontechnical use.

per or as per meaning “according to”

is sometimes criticized and is rare in edited writing.

per-

1. a prefix meaning “through,” “thoroughly,” “utterly,” “very”:

pervert; pervade; perfect.

2.     a prefix used in the names of inorganic acids and their salts that possess the maximum amount of the element specified in the base word:

percarbonic (H₂C₂O₅) acid; potassium permanganate (KMnO₄).

Dictionary of Problem Words in English

a & per

Both a and per are commonly used with

meaning of “each” and “for every.”

Thus, one may write “once a minute” or “once per minute.”

Because per comes from Latin, old-time grammarians insisted

that it should not appear before nounsin English,

but this restriction no longer applied.

The appearance of per is widespread and acceptable in all commercial, economic, and statistical writing.

Using a (or an) for per in a sentence such as

“The yield per acre per year is 200 bushels.”

is not incorrectbut does sound repetitious and overly refined.

In most instances, a is an acceptable substitute for overused per

and is preferable in such expressions as

“once a week,” “50 cents a gallon,” and “Admission is $1 a person.”