Solecisms - part two

Crisis. This is a decisive event or turning-point. Many of the economic and political troubles wrongly described as crises are really persistent difficulties, sagas or affairs.

Critique is a noun. If you want a verb, try criticise.

Decimate means to destroy a proportion (originally a tenth) of a group of people or things, not to destroy them all or nearly all.

Disinterested means impartial; uninterested means bored.

Enormity means a crime, sin or monstrous wickedness. It does not mean immensity.

Free is an adjective or an adverb, so you cannot have or do anything for free. Either you have it free or you have it for nothing.

Garner means store, not gather.

Hobson's choice is not the lesser of two evils; it is no choice at all.

Homosexual: since this word comes from the Greek word homos (same), not the Latin word homo (man), it applies as much to women as to men. It is therefore as daft to write homosexuals and lesbians as to write people and women.

Populace. This is a term for the common people, not a synonym for the population.

Pristine means original or former; it does not mean clean.

Underprivileged. Since a privilege is a special favour or advantage, it is by definition not something to which everyone is entitled. So underprivileged, by implying the right to privileges for all, is not just ugly jargon but also nonsense.

Part one here. These are just selections from the longer list at the Style Guide of the Economist.com.