Memo to the Serious Eats Team
To: everydamnbody@seriouseats.com
From: copydesk@seriouseats.com
Subject: Style Bites: "doughnut" vs. "donut"
Dear Serious Eats Team,
The difference between "doughnut" and "donut" is UGH. And you're gonna hear a lot of "UGH" if I continue to catch you spelling it "donut" under my watch.
Perhaps I have failed to mention, in my role as de facto copy chief of Serious Eats, that our official house dictionary is Merriam-Webster's 11th Edition.
Web lists "doughnut" as the first entry in its definition of this circular and singularly delicious treat. Although "donut" is the second entry, and therefore recognized as a legitimate spelling, it remains a bastardized variant in my eyes.
As John T. Edge says in his book Donuts [UGH!], "donut" appeared in the 1920s, when "the New York–based Doughnut Machine Corporation set its eyes upon foreign markets." To help foster proper pronunciation in different languages, the company introduced the marketing-friendly spelling.
Going forward, please avoid using "donut," "do-nut," "dough-nut" or anything that deviates from "doughnut."
I will add this to the style guide, posthaste.
Your resident curmudgeon,
Adam
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