"Comprise" is becoming a weed

Before you read on, use the word "comprise" in a sentence...

I've noticed an accelerating trend of abuse of the word "comprise" lately. It was ok when the word was raped by the fringes, but the poison is penetrating unofficial linguistic authorities, like book publishers and the media.

A Harvard Business School case that I read recently was the latest such instance. Case # 9-701-132 by Giovanni Gavetti is about the story of Ducati motorbikes. The author's first usage goes: "Their typical distribution systems comprised two types of agents". Great, I thought. I'm happy to see Harvard upholding the lexical standard of a word under siege. Perhaps a reader or two will use this model of a sentence to correct an unconscious mistake of their own. I would not expect any less of Harvard.

But then came the sting: "The accessories and apparel business was comprised of three categories". Giovanni..... Why? Harvard, where were you when this happened? Oh look, what's this word gathering dust behind an unwanted pizza crust? It appears to be "composed". You poor homeless thing, why doesn't anyone love you any more? Were you not hip enough?

How did your own sentence do? When A is made up of B and C, then:

• A comprises B and C
• A is composed of B and C
• A consists of B and C
• B and C constitute A

• A is not comprised of B and C, just like
• A doesn't compose B and C
• A isn't consisted of B and C
• B and C aren't constituted of A

If you got your sentence right, treat yourself to a Wheat Thin™. If you didn't, bookmark this page for reference. You don't have to correct anyone else, though that would be wonderful. Just try to get it right yourself.