Which are the most popular abuses of the English language?

Answer 1

Abuses in English are often in writing--torturous language that is difficult to read, with confusing reasoning. Other times, it is the use of common or misused cliches or metaphors. In speech, it is the misuse of words that causes unintended meanings. People do sometimes purposely use it incorrectly to make a point, like Yogi Berra's "things are more like they are now than they have ever been before," or "it's deja vu all over again."

A fun book to read is Anguished English by Richard Lederer. Another is Word Play, that came out in the 1980s, which describes how people use language. There is an annual contest for worst opening sentence of a book, too.

Answer 2

There are many commonly misused words. Examples include accept and except, affect and effect, and allusion and illusion.