Tip 642: Troublesome Words Seven: In to and Into

From the Writing Workshops: In to and Into

Our friend Chloe Hansen of the Western Electricity Coordinating Council asked, “When do we use ‘in to’ versus ‘into’?”

We can answer that. Or, at least, we can get pretty close.  

It’s not an easy explanation. The two are related, and the difference depends on what you mean. 

Into usually means a change of direction, nature, or interest: 

She steered the boat into the harbor. (Direction: The boat changes direction and moves into the harbor.)

He spun the straw into gold. (Nature: The straw changes into gold.)

They were really into vegetarianism. (Interest: They ate a lot of kohlrabi.)  

In to usually means transfer: 

She turned the report in to her supervisor. (She transferred the report from her control to that of her supervisor.)

We put the sample in to the refrigerator. (We transferred the lab sample from the table to cold storage.) 

The Problem

It’s easy to confuse your reader. This usually involves into and turn:

She turned the report into her supervisor. (POOF! Three pages of paper change into a senior company official.)

He turned his car into a driveway. (POOF! The Corvette becomes gray asphalt. Bummer.)

A Solution

In these cases, don’t use turn: 

She gave the report to her supervisor.

He drove his car into a driveway. 

It ain’t easy. It’s confusing. It’s frustrating. Be careful. Think of how your reader might misunderstand your words.

We love this stuff.