As a follow-up to #33, in this installment of Word Knots we’ll focus on a phrase that’s related to #32.

Once again our source for this is installment is The Dictionary of Disagreeable English by Robert Hartwell Fiske (Chicago: Writer’s Digest Books). It’s a great book: Check it out.

From Fiske (excerpted):

Feel badly

Misused for feel bad.

As Fiske writes (excerpted):

The distinction should be maintained between feel bad and feel badly. The former is meant to describe emotional or physical condition; the latter, touch.

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The instances and contexts where feel badly would be correct are very few and far between, so let’s look at examples of the proper form of the more common usage:

I feel bad that we couldn’t go swimming at the beach.

His comments always seem to make her feel bad.

Once again,  word choice is critical, which is why checking your work is an important step toward ensuring that your intended meaning is clear.

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