As well as is a common phrase that means “in addition to.” It functions as either a preposition or a conjunction and is used to join two parts of a sentence together. Typically, as well as adds emphasis to the part of the sentence that precedes it. Some synonyms for as well as are “plus,” “besides,” and “along with.”
As well as exampleDieting for weight loss requires planning as well as self-discipline.
As well as being beautiful to look at, the guitar played like a dream.
The manifesto went into the proposed tax changes, as well as explaining how they would be paid for.
The placebo effect refers to a phenomenon whereby patients experience an improvement in their physical ailment after taking a non-treatment, called a placebo.
The treatment contains no active ingredients, meaning that any improvement experienced by the patient is caused by their expectation or belief that the “treatment” is doing them some good.
Placebo effect exampleAs a life-long sufferer from back pain, you are invited to take part in a double-blind trial of a new treatment. It is a preventative treatment, and you take one pill three times per day, as instructed, and record your pain levels in a journal. At the end of the month-long trial, your journal shows that the medication appears to be having a positive effect, as there is a clear improvement in the levels of chronic pain.
When you report your findings to the researchers, you (and they) discover that your treatment was, in fact, nothing more than a sugar pill rather than the new drug. The improvement you perceived was due to the placebo effect.
In double-blind medical trials, where the experimental design includes both control and treatment groups, the placebo effect is often seen in the control group.
Bear with me is a way of asking someone to be patient with you. It can stand on its own, if the reason for patience is already known. More typically it will be followed by a subordinating conjunction (e.g., “while” or “as”) introducing the reason you are asking for patience.
Bear with me in a sentence exampleBear with me; I’m just dealing with a customer.
I see the problem with your account; can you bear with me while I see if I can fix it?
We have had hundreds of applications, so please bear with us as we work through them.
Eponymous is an adjective that describes a thing or person (e.g., a creator, inventor, discoverer, or founder) after which something is named. It can also describe the actual thing that has been named after that something or someone.
In the literary world, works that are named after their main character or protagonist can be described as eponymous (e.g., Huckleberry Finn).
Eponymous in a sentence examplesSilas Marner is the eponymous hero of George Eliot’s brooding masterpiece.
In light of Bob Dylan’s renown as a songwriter, it is interesting that his eponymous first album included only one original composition.
The Elizabethan era in English history coincides with the reign of the eponymous Queen Elizabeth I.
The Doppler effect is named after the eponymous physicist who first explained it, Charles Doppler.
Ad nauseam is an adverb that comes from Latin and means “to the point of sickness/nausea.”
Usually, ad nauseam is used as a hyperbole; typically, it is used to say that something is repeated or carries on to an excessive degree, but not actually to the point of sickness or nausea.
Ad nauseam in a sentence examplesBy the end of the election campaign, the same issues had been debated ad nauseam by both sides.
My toddler can sing the same song ad nauseam without appearing to tire.
The teacher went on ad nauseam about the importance of revision and good study habits.
NoteAlthough ad nauseam is a loanword, it has been used in English for so long that it is not necessary to use italics when writing it. This also applies to other Latin words and phrases, like mea culpa or vice versa.
Verbiage is a noun which describes the tendency to use more words than necessary or overly technical words. Usually, it is used with negative connotations.
Recency bias is the tendency of recent events to receive more weight in our thinking when we make decisions about a future course of action. Because they are recent, some events loom large in our consciousness as we consider likely future outcomes.
Recency bias exampleRecency bias can be seen in people’s attitude to flying. Although airplanes remain one of the safest forms of transport, news reports of an air disaster can affect people’s willingness to fly, or how anxious they are when flying.
The recency of the event makes flying seem less safe.
Our brains are more likely to recall recent events than past ones, and these can override our ability to analyze clearly.
The Pygmalion effect describes how high expectations of someone tend to lead to better performance, while lower expectations have the opposite effect.
The Pygmalion effect was originally identified by psychologists Robert Rosenthal and Lenore Jacobson in classroom settings. But it is also applied to studies in business, sport, and management.
Pygmalion effect exampleA teacher has high expectations of one particular student, Adil, and low expectations of another, Sean. Adil is given challenging tasks because the teacher believes they can succeed at them. When Adil faces challenges, the teacher is quick to give them support and advice.
Sean, on the other hand, is given more basic tasks, and the teacher doesn’t give them the attention they need when they struggle with these tasks. As a result, Adil makes significant improvement, while Sean’s improvement is much less marked.
The teacher’s high expectations affected the way they worked with each student, which had a knock-on effect on the progress they made.
The Pygmalion effect is also called the Rosenthal effect after one of the researchers in the original study.
Cognitive bias describes the way we tend to act irrationally because our ability to process information objectively is limited. It isn’t inherently bad, but it can affect how we perceive things.
It can also cloud our judgment about people or situations and how risky a set of circumstances might be.
Cognitive bias exampleOne common example of cognitive bias is the assumption that older employees are less adaptable to new technologies compared to their younger counterparts. This bias can influence managers’ decisions.
As a result, the older employee might be offered fewer opportunities for training, development, or career advancement. This might cause the worker to suffer from age-related workplace discrimination.
No one is immune to cognitive bias, so academics and researchers have to be aware of its possible effect on their research. Otherwise, cognitive bias might undermine their work.
You might see the phrase per our conversation in an email, letter, or note, and you might not know exactly what it means. You might also see the variation “as per our conversation,” which has the same meaning.
“Per” is a preposition, and here it means “according to” (e.g., “according to our conversation last week”), but it can also mean “as we agreed” or “just to clarify.” In American English, it is commonly used in newspapers to mean “according to” (e.g., “per a source familiar with the meeting”).
Per our conversation can be a useful way to remind someone about or clarify an agreement. It is worth bearing in mind that the phrase is quite formal and will look out of place in more informal settings.
It is useful to have a range of different ways of communicating the meaning of per our conversation in situations where that exact phrase would be out of place. Below are some suggestions for you to use.
