#AtoZ, 2014: X is for X. Is it Better to Be Safe or Sorry?

X is a jack-of-all-trades.  It can be an abbreviation, a noun, a verb, or the first letter of some adjectives.

Xing, pronounced crossing,  is a commonly used abbreviation to alert pedestrians about where to cross the street safely at busy intersections.

But I do think this next fellow has clearly taken advantage of the intended purpose of the pedestrian crossing sign.

Granny and Little Red Riding Hood safely cross the street with a very cunning and ravenous Mr. Wolf.

Other functions of X

X (eks) can be a noun (a letter or symbol)

X marks the spot on a treasure map; the place to dig to find buried treasure
Put an X in the box to indicate your choice for President.

X (eks) can be a verb. verb forms: x’s (plural), x-ed  (past tense)  x-ing (present participle)

X out all those extra adjectives and adverbs!
The editor is x-ing out all my favorite bits of dialogue.

Bob, the typesetting boy for the Alexander-the-Great-o-nopolis Gazette, in Edgar Allan Poe’s story, “X-ing a Paragrab,” had fun x-ing out all the o’s in editor John Smith’s editorial. PoeCalendar.com reviews that story here: “Txld yxu sx. yxu knxw.” This story is definitely good for a laugh!

X can be on adjective: words that start with xanth, xen, xer, and xyl

xanth-yellow. xanthous, xantric
xen- foreign. xenophobic, fear of foreigners or strangers
xer-dry. Xeroxing is a dry copying process, not a wet chemical bath process.
xyl-to do with wood.  Xylophagous bees are wood-boring bees.

You can find more X adjectives here: Grammar.YourDictionary.com

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Your Turn: What do you think? Should Granny and Little Red cross the street with Mr. Wolf?

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Janice Hall Heck, retired educator, blogger, and nitpicky editor of On the Horizon, a bi-monthly community newsletter for Horizons at Woods Landing, Mays Landing, NJ, is quite possibly a grammar geek.

Oh Heck! Another Writing Quirk,  theme for the amazing 2014 A to Z Challenge, suggests ways to improve our writing by avoiding and/or eliminating troublesome bug-a-boos that cramp our writing style.

Look for a list of posts for the #AtoZ, 2014 Challenge (Writing Quirks) here:  #AtoZ: Q is for Quirky Index and a Q Post Round-Up

Meow for now.  =<^ !^>=