half-instructed

Updated: May 24, 2025

Why must we say "nice woman," "clever woman," "beautiful woman," etc. The only answer to this is that the latter phraseology is a caprice of fashion into which plain-spoken people were driven by the affectations of the shabby-genteel and half-instructed persons who have ruined two good words for us by misapplication.

Mrs. John M. E. W. Sherwood - Manners and Social Usages