Were you wasted when you wrote that?

You might be able to explain this homophonic error from Yahoo! Style as a mere typo:

But, when it appears again, you just have to ask, “Was the writer wasted when she wrote that?”

A trash bag might be better than a sweater

Instead of tying a sweater around the waste, I’d suggest putting the waste in a Hefty trash bag. It’s sturdier and easier to dispose of:

Here’s Ms. Jenner with her waste-enshrouding sweater, courtesy of Yahoo! Style:

I’m no fashion expert — unlike the writers for Style — but it looks like Ms. Jenner’s sweater is wrapped around an area of her body just below her waist. But I’m no fashion expert.

A waste of space

Does cinching in the waste involve a Glad trash bag and a twist tie?

Sometimes I think Yahoo! Shine is a waste of space and reading it is a waste of time.

To think I wasted my time on this

Oy! The sacrifices I make for the readers of Terribly Write. I just wasted three minutes of my time reading an article on Yahoo! Shine. It had something to do with Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge (although the writer must be really chummy with her because she called her “Kate”).

Anyhoo, I spent my time reading the article to spare you from having to waste even a nanosecond of yours. But I will share the best part of the article: The author’s confusion about an area of the anatomy covered by a belt and stuff that gets thrown in the town dump:

Lest you think that is a mere brain fart, a unique never-to-be-repeated mental hiccup, here it is again:

I wonder if the writer was wasted when she wrote this.

Were you wasted when you wrote that?

Maybe the editor for the Yahoo! front page hit the margarita pitcher before composing this blurb:

What a waste of time!

You wasted some time writing this for Yahoo! Shine‘s “The Thread,” and I wasted time reading it.

Please, please, if you’re writing about style, learn the difference between waist and waste. Even if you’re not writing about fashion, learn to proofread. Do you need help proofreading?