possibility and may refers to permission, and insist on maintaining this distinction, although usage of can to refer to permission is pervasive in spoken and very frequent in written English. M-W notes: "Can and may are most frequently interchangeable in senses denoting possibility; because the possibility of one's doing something may (or can) depend on another's acquiescence, they have also become interchangeable in the sense denoting permission. The use of can to ask or grant permission has been common since the 19th century and is well established, although some commentators feel may is more appropriate in formal contexts. May is relatively rare in negative constructions (mayn't is not common); cannot and can't are usual in such contexts." AHD4 echoes this sentiment of formality, noting that only 21% of the Usage Panel accepted can in the example "Can I take another week to submit the application?". For its part, OED labels the use of can for may as "colloquial". comprise – Comprise means "to consist of". A second meaning, "to compose or constitute", as in "comprised of", is sometimes attacked by usage writers. However, it is supported as sense 3 along with a usage note in M-W. AHD5 notes: "Our surveys show that opposition to this usage has abated but has not disappeared. In the 1960s, 53 percent of the Usage Panel found this usage unacceptable; by 1996, the proportion objecting had declined to 35 percent; and by 2011, it had fallen a bit more, to 32 percent." Collins gives a usage note: "The use of of after comprise should be avoided: the library comprises (not of) 500 000 books and manuscripts". Some usage writers further say to use comprise only for exhaustive inclusion. Reuters suggests "Use only when listing all the component parts of a whole". Undisputed usage: The English Wikipedia comprises more than five million articles. Undisputed usage: More than five million articles are comprised in the English Wikipedia. Disputed usage: The English Wikipedia of more than five million articles. Disputed usage: The English Wikipedia is of more than five million articles. Disputed usage: More than five million articles comprise the English Wikipedia. Disputed usage: Diatoms comprise more than 70% of all phytoplankton. Disputed usage: "Those in the industry have mostly scoffed at the young, inexperienced Carter and the rest of the high school pals that comprise the company." Disputed usage: "Both the union and the league are many