use of the verb meaning "to have an effect" since the early 1980s. Even in its 2001 survey, 85 percent of the Panel rejected the intransitive use in the sentence These policies are impacting on our ability to achieve success, and 80 percent rejected the transitive use in the sentence The court ruling will impact the education of minority students. ironic – Irony refers to an incongruity between what is expected and what actually occurs, especially if what actually occurs thwarts human wishes or designs. People often misuse ironic, applying it to events and circumstances that are simply coincidental, improbable, or unfortunate. In AHD's 1987 survey, 78 percent of the Usage Panel rejected the use of ironically in the sentence In 1969 Susan moved from Ithaca to California where she met her husband-to-be, who, ironically, also came from upstate New York. By contrast, 73 percent accepted the sentence Ironically, even as the government was fulminating against American policy, American jeans and videocassettes were the hottest items in the stalls of the market, where the incongruity can be seen as an example of human inconsistency. L lay and lie – Lay is a transitive verb, requiring a direct object. Lay and its principal derivatives (laid, laying) are correctly used in these examples: Now I lay me down to sleep. The chicken is laying an egg. Lie is an intransitive verb and cannot take an object. Lie and its principal derivatives (lay, lain, lying) are correctly used in these examples: My mother lies [not lays] down after meals. I fell asleep as soon as I lay [not laid] on the sand. The bills had lain [not laid] there all week. I was lying [not laying] in my nest when she rang.· less – Some argue that less should not be substituted for fewer. Merriam-Webster notes "The traditional view is that less applies to matters of degree, value, or amount and modifies collective nouns, mass nouns, or nouns denoting an abstract whole while fewer applies to matters of number and modifies plural nouns. Less has been used to modify plural nouns since the days of King Alfred and the usage, though roundly decried, appears to be increasing. Less is more likely than fewer to modify plural nouns when distances, sums of money, and a few fixed phrases are involved <less than 100 miles> <an investment of less than $2000> <in 25 words or