Non- - none

Beware the confusion of the pronoun none (with an '-e' and no hyphen) with the prefix non- (with an '-e', and best, if not always, written with ahyphen.

• The prefix non-, pronounced with a vowel like 'on' and 'gone', IPA: /nɒn/, has the generally negative sense: 'not [doing]', 'failing to do' or 'lacking in [some quality, etc]'.

Etymological note: non is the Latin for 'not'.

There was also a Saint Non (or Nonn or Nonita) in the fifth century. She was the mother of Saint David of Wales.

• The pronoun none, pronounced to rhyme with 'one', 'son' and 'sun' IPA: /nʌn/, means 'not one', and sometimes simply 'no-one', 'nobody'.

Etymological note: none is a widespread word, occurring in many Germanic languages, formed from a negative 'n-; ('ne' in Old English) and some form of 'one'.

Problems with these two, the prefix and the pronoun, come mostly in writing a compound word with none rather than non-.

Don't write such forms as none aggression pact, none standard, none-commissioned officer and none alcoholic drink.

Use non-aggression [pact], non-standard, non-commissioned [officer] and non-alcoholic [drink].