Here are some of those tricky little words in the wedding industry.  Sometimes, they are not used correctly.  And, sometimes, they are just spelled incorrectly.

• Fiance vs. Fiancee — The word, “Fiance” refers to a male, who is engaged to be married, and the word, “Fiancee” refers to a female engaged to be married.  The two words are not interchangeable.  An easy way to remember this — The lady gets an extra “e” in Fiancee because she gets an engagement ring.

• Dessert vs. Desert — Every now and then, I see this word misspelled on a menu card.  A “desert” describes a hot, sandy place.  It also means “barren and dull.”  Desert is also a verb.  It means to abandon someone.  Dessert is the sweet meal that we get after lunch or dinner.  An easy way to remember this — We use the second “s” to “save our appetite” for cake.

• Prelude vs. Interlude — The Prelude Music describes the music played prior to the start of the ceremony.  This music is played while the wedding guests arrive for the ceremony.  The Interlude Music is played during a non-speaking transition within the ceremony.  For example, interlude music is played during the unity candle ceremony.  An easy way to remember this — Prelude is the “pre” ceremony music.

• Stationery vs. Stationary — The word, “Stationery” refers to paper, envelopes and/or writing materials.  Therefore, the word “stationery” should be used when referring to wedding invitations, thank you notes or menu cards.  The word, “Stationary” means immobile or remaining in one place.  An easy way to remember this — Stationery has an “e” because it includes envelopes.

• RSVP — The acronym RSVP stands for a French phrase, “répondez, s’il vous plaît,” which means “please reply.”  So, your invitation response card probably shouldn’t say, “Please RSVP” because it sounds repetitive (and it sounds like you are begging).

• Aisle vs. Isle — An aisle is a passage way between two sections — Wedding Aisle.  An isle is an island.  So, unless you are planning a destination wedding on an island, you should only use the word “aisle” when discussing your wedding ceremony.

• Maid-of-Honor vs. Matron-of-Honor — The maid of honor is not married and the matron of honor is married.

• Maids-of-Honor, Mothers-in-Law, Fathers-in-Law — When you are talking about more than one, the plural goes on the person (maid, matron, mother, father, etc) and not the descriptive.  So, Maid-of-Honors is incorrect.

Okay, I hope this helps.  Can you think of some of the other tricky words in the wedding industry?

Love and Soul Always, Kawania