Preferred Word Choice Substitutions

This rule enforces consistent word choice by detecting commonly misused or less preferred terms and suggesting better alternatives. It helps maintain a more professional, accurate, and standardized writing style by replacing informal, obsolete, or incorrect word variants with their preferred counterparts.

The rule is important because:

  • It ensures consistency across all documentation
  • It eliminates outdated or less common word variants
  • It corrects common spelling mistakes and improper word forms
  • It helps maintain a more professional writing style
  • It aligns text with standard English usage

Examples:

Here are some examples of what the rule checks for:

Instead of (incorrect) Use (correct)
cell phone cellphone
orientate orient
preventative preventive
cohabitate cohabit
butt naked buck naked
administrate administer
digitalize digitize

The rule is case-insensitive and will automatically suggest the preferred term when it encounters any of the less preferred variants. It includes hundreds of substitutions, covering various categories like:

  • Spelling variants (e.g., "liquorice" → "licorice")
  • Incorrect formations (e.g., "administrated" → "administered")
  • Informal variants (e.g., "tee-shirt" → "T-shirt")
  • Redundant forms (e.g., "copartner" → "partner")

Rule Source

This rule comes from: https://github.com/mesosphere/dcos-docs-site

Rule Definition

extends: substitution
message: Prefer '%s' over '%s'
ignorecase: true
action:
  name: replace
swap:
  '(?:cell phone|cell-phone)': cellphone
  '(?:cliquey|cliquy)': cliquish
  '(?:pygmean|pygmaen)': pygmy
  '(?:retributional|retributionary)': retributive
  '(?:revokable|revokeable)': revocable
  abolishment: abolition
  accessary: accessory
  accreditate: accredit
  accruement: accrual
  accusee: accused
  acquaintanceship: acquaintance
  acquitment: acquittal
  administrate: administer
  administrated: administered
  administrating: administering
  adulterate: adulterous
  advisatory: advisory
  advocator: advocate
  aggrievance: grievance
  allegator: alleger
  allusory: allusive
  amative: amorous
  amortizement: amortization
  amphiboly: amphibology
  anecdotalist: anecdotist
  anilinctus: anilingus
  anticipative: anticipatory
  antithetic: antithetical
  applicative: applicable
  applicatory: applicable
  applier: applicator
  approbative: approbatory
  arbitrager: arbitrageur
  arsenous: arsenious
  ascendance: ascendancy
  ascendence: ascendancy
  ascendency: ascendancy
  auctorial: authorial
  averral: averment
  barbwire: barbed wire
  benefic: beneficent
  benignant: benign
  bestowment: bestowal
  betrothment: betrothal
  blamableness: blameworthiness
  butt naked: buck naked
  camarade: comrade
  carta blanca: carte blanche
  casualities: casualties
  casuality: casualty
  catch on fire: catch fire
  catholicly: catholically
  cease fire: ceasefire
  channelize: channel
  chaplainship: chaplaincy
  chrysalid: chrysalis
  chrysalids: chrysalises
  cigaret: cigarette
  coemployee: coworker
  cognitional: cognitive
  cohabitate: cohabit
  cohabitor: cohabitant
  collodium: collodion
  collusory: collusive
  commemoratory: commemorative
  commonty: commonage
  communicatory: communicative
  compensative: compensatory
  complacence: complacency
  complicitous: complicit
  computate: compute
  conciliative: conciliatory
  concomitancy: concomitance
  condonance: condonation
  confirmative: confirmatory
  congruency: congruence
  connotate: connote
  consanguineal: consanguine
  conspicuity: conspicuousness
  conspiratorialist: conspirator
  constitutionist: constitutionalist
  contingence: contigency
  contributary: contributory
  contumacity: contumacy
  conversible: convertible
  conveyal: conveyance
  copartner: partner
  copartnership: partnership
  corroboratory: corroborative
  cotemporaneous: contemporaneous
  cotemporary: contemporary
  criminate: incriminate
  culpatory: inculpatory
  cumbrance: encumbrance
  cumulate: accumulate
  curatory: curative
  daredeviltry: daredevilry
  deceptious: deceptive
  defamative: defamatory
  defraudulent: fraudulent
  degeneratory: degenerative
  delimitate: delimit
  delusory: delusive
  denouncement: denunciation
  depositee: depositary
  depreciative: depreciatory
  deprival: deprivation
  derogative: derogatory
  destroyable: destructible
  detoxicate: detoxify
  detractory: detractive
  deviancy: deviance
  deviationist: deviant
  digamy: deuterogamy
  digitalize: digitize
  diminishment: diminution
  diplomatist: diplomat
  disassociate: dissociate
  disciplinatory: disciplinary
  discriminant: discriminating
  disenthrone: dethrone
  disintegratory: disintegrative
  dismission: dismissal
  disorientate: disorient
  disorientated: disoriented
  disquieten: disquiet
  distraite: distrait
  divergency: divergence
  dividable: divisible
  doctrinary: doctrinaire
  documental: documentary
  domesticize: domesticate
  duplicatory: duplicative
  duteous: dutiful
  educationalist: educationist
  educatory: educative
  enigmatas: enigmas
  enlargen: enlarge
  enswathe: swathe
  epical: epic
  erotism: eroticism
  ethician: ethicist
  ex officiis: ex officio
  exculpative: exculpatory
  exigeant: exigent
  exigence: exigency
  exotism: exoticism
  expedience: expediency
  expediential: expedient
  extensible: extendable
  eying: eyeing
  fiefdom: fief
  flagrance: flagrancy
  flatulency: flatulence
  fraudful: fraudulent
  funebrial: funereal
  geographical: geographic
  geometrical: geometric
  gerry-rigged: jury-rigged
  goatherder: goatherd
  gustatorial: gustatory
  habitude: habit
  henceforward: henceforth
  hesitance: hesitancy
  heterogenous: heterogeneous
  hierarchic: hierarchical
  hindermost: hindmost
  honorand: honoree
  hypostasize: hypostatize
  hysteric: hysterical
  idolatrize: idolize
  impanel: empanel
  imperviable: impervious
  importunacy: importunity
  impotency: impotence
  imprimatura: imprimatur
  improprietous: improper
  inalterable: unalterable
  incitation: incitement
  incommunicative: uncommunicative
  inconsistence: inconsistency
  incontrollable: uncontrollable
  incurment: incurrence
  indow: endow
  indue: endue
  inhibitive: inhibitory
  innavigable: unnavigable
  innovational: innovative
  inquisitional: inquisitorial
  insistment: insistence
  insolvable: unsolvable
  instillment: instillation
  instinctual: instinctive
  insuror: insurer
  insurrectional: insurrectionary
  interpretate: interpret
  intervenience: intervention
  ironical: ironic
  jerry-rigged: jury-rigged
  judgmatic: judgmental
  labyrinthian: labyrinthine
  laudative: laudatory
  legitimatization: legitimation
  legitimatize: legitimize
  legitimization: legitimation
  lengthways: lengthwise
  life-sized: life-size
  liquorice: licorice
  lithesome: lithe
  lollipop: lollypop
  loth: loath
  lubricous: lubricious
  maihem: mayhem
  medicinal marijuana: medical marijuana
  meliorate: ameliorate
  minimalize: minimize
  mirk: murk
  mirky: murky
  misdoubt: doubt
  monetarize: monetize
  moveable: movable
  narcism: narcissism
  neglective: neglectful
  negligency: negligence
  neologizer: neologist
  neurologic: neurological
  nicknack: knickknack
  nictate: nictitate
  nonenforceable: unenforceable
  normalcy: normality
  numbedness: numbness
  omittable: omissible
  onomatopoetic: onomatopoeic
  opinioned: opined
  optimum advantage: optimal advantage
  orientate: orient
  outsized: outsize
  oversized: oversize
  overthrowal: overthrow
  pacificist: pacifist
  paederast: pederast
  parachronism: anachronism
  parti-color: parti-colored
  participative: participatory
  party-colored: parti-colored
  pediatrist: pediatrician
  penumbrous: penumbral
  perjorative: pejorative
  permissory: permissive
  permutate: permute
  personation: impersonation
  pharmaceutic: pharmaceutical
  pleuritis: pleurisy
  policy holder: policyholder
  policyowner: policyholder
  politicalize: politicize
  precedency: precedence
  preceptoral: preceptorial
  precipitance: precipitancy
  precipitant: precipitate
  preclusory: preclusive
  precolumbian: pre-Columbian
  prefectoral: prefectorial
  preponderately: preponderantly
  preserval: preservation
  preventative: preventive
  proconsulship: proconsulate
  procreational: procreative
  procurance: procurement
  propelment: propulsion
  propulsory: propulsive
  prosecutive: prosecutory
  protectory: protective
  provocatory: provocative
  pruriency: prurience
  psychal: psychical
  punitory: punitive
  quantitate: quantify
  questionary: questionnaire
  quiescency: quiescence
  rabbin: rabbi
  reasonability: reasonableness
  recidivistic: recidivous
  recriminative: recriminatory
  recruital: recruitment
  recurrency: recurrence
  recusance: recusancy
  recusation: recusal
  recusement: recusal
  redemptory: redemptive
  referrable: referable
  referrible: referable
  refutatory: refutative
  remitment: remittance
  remittal: remission
  renouncement: renunciation
  renunciable: renounceable
  reparatory: reparative
  repudiative: repudiatory
  requitement: requital
  rescindment: rescission
  restoral: restoration
  reticency: reticence
  reviewal: review
  revisal: revision
  revisional: revisionary
  revolute: revolt
  saliency: salience
  salutiferous: salutary
  sensatory: sensory
  sessionary: sessional
  shareowner: shareholder
  sicklily: sickly
  signator: signatory
  slanderize: slander
  societary: societal
  sodomist: sodomite
  solicitate: solicit
  speculatory: speculative
  spiritous: spirituous
  statutorial: statutory
  submergeable: submersible
  submittal: submission
  subtile: subtle
  succuba: succubus
  sufficience: sufficiency
  suppliant: supplicant
  surmisal: surmise
  suspendible: suspendable
  synthetize: synthesize
  systemize: systematize
  tactual: tactile
  tangental: tangential
  tautologous: tautological
  tee-shirt: T-shirt
  thenceforward: thenceforth
  transiency: transience
  transposal: transposition
  unfrequent: infrequent
  unreasonability: unreasonableness
  unrevokable: irrevocable
  unsubstantial: insubstantial
  usurpature: usurpation
  variative: variational
  vegetive: vegetative
  vindicative: vindictive
  vituperous: vituperative
  vociferant: vociferous
  volitive: volitional
  wolverene: wolverine
  wolvish: wolfish
  Zoroastrism: Zoroastrianism