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Related: Culture Forums, Support ForumsWhat spelling/grammar errors really irritate you?
Apostrophe misuse used to top my list with the inability to use the correct version of a word that rhymes with "hair," starts with "th," and has three variants, but those days are behind me now, so seeing some moron write "my shoe's are over their" doesn't irritate me so much as it makes me roll my eyes.
Now, I'm finding that dropping the last half of "though" and pretending that it's the same word is slowly driving me mad. Given a sentence like, "I love snickerdoodle's tho there kinda boring..."
The Velveteen Ocelot
(115,683 posts)You use an apostrophe to indicate possessive, not plural! Drives me nuts.
A few more:
"I could care less." NO. You couldn't care less. If you could care less, it implies you do care. You are trying to say you don't care at all; that is, you couldn't care less.
"Your" instead of "you're." "Your" is the possessive of "you." "You're" is the contraction of "you are." They are not interchangeable.
Same goes for their/they're/there and it's/its.
"Bated breath" is correct; "baited breath" is wrong.
Misuse of lay/lie. Lay is a transitive verb; lie is intransitive.
Loose instead of lose.
Phenomena as a singular noun is wrong - phenomena is plural; phenomenon is singular.
Kudos is singular - there's no such thing as a kudo (kudos is Greek for praise or honor).
There are a lot more but I can't think of them all right now.
laconicsax
(14,860 posts)While an apostrophe usually indicates possession (except for when it's a contraction), its absence can indicate it too.
UnrepentantLiberal
(11,700 posts)I can see saying it, but writing it?
Then again, I'm sure my posts are littered with grammatical errors.
eppur_se_muova
(36,261 posts)As in "I *could* care less, but it's hard to see how".
I'm pretty sure this is thoroughly Jewish.
RebelOne
(30,947 posts)You lie down, you do not lay down. You lay down an object.
GoCubsGo
(32,081 posts)I like to post this in reply:
http://www.angryflower.com/aposter.html
pokerfan
(27,677 posts)loose/lose, it's/its, they're/their/there
blessing in the skies
blimp on the radar
tournament birth
tournament buy
chomping at the bit
deep-seeded belief
diamond dozen
doggy dog world
for all intensive purposes
give free reign
i could care less
in the mist of
lame mans terms
mute point
never seizes to amaze me
nip it in the butt
off the beat and path
once and a while
pedal to the medal
peak ones interest
reap what you sew
reek havoc
ring his neck
road to hoe
slight of hand
statue of limitations
taken for granite
throws of passion
without further adieu
wreck havoc
blessing in disguise
blip on the radar
tournament berth
tournament bye
champing at the bit
deep-seated belief
dime a dozen
dog-eat-dog world
for all intents and purposes
give free rein
I couldn't care less
in the midst of
layman's terms
moot point
never ceases to amaze me
nip it in the bud
off the beaten path
once in a while
pedal to the metal
pique ones interest
reap what you sow
wreak havoc
wring his neck
row to hoe
sleight of hand
statute of limitations
taken for granted
throes of passion
without further ado
wreak havoc
Look what you made me do!
I was hoping someone would challenge me but you got them all.
limpyhobbler
(8,244 posts)The Velveteen Ocelot
(115,683 posts)A blimp would appear as a blip on the radar only if it had a transponder.
EastTennesseeDem
(2,675 posts)laconicsax
(14,860 posts)Angry Dragon
(36,693 posts)there, their
laconicsax
(14,860 posts)grasswire
(50,130 posts)It's laundromat.
And to say "The problem is, is that Newt blows..." is an excessive "is" (The most educated people seem to do this regularly!)
The proper word is "affect": "The debate was affected by the poor sound system." Impacted is wrong.
pink-o
(4,056 posts)You mostly see it in fictional narration, because unless it's that pretentious, existential crap, most narration is written in past tense. So you get a writer who gives you this tripe:
'He had had a very bad day.'
OMG, get a freakin' EDITOR.
SCantiGOP
(13,869 posts)Young Frankenstein, when his fiance first arrives, she asks Igor, "What is it that you do do?" Which, since Mel Brooks is still about 14, gives everyone the chance to stop and stare at each other because they had just managed to say Doo Doo in a movie!
enuegii
(664 posts)It's perfectly good English, though I would hesitate to use it in formal writing.
Opinions vary, I suppose.
Prayer
Whatever happens. Whatever
what is is is what
I want. Only that. But that.
--Galway Kinnell
pinniped
(6,335 posts)Incorrect usage:
The Cooper's Hawk was preening it's feathers.
Correct usage:
The Cooper's Hawk was preening its feathers.
--------
People also think that by adding an apostrophe, the word becomes plural.
Move those stinking cars over there.
Move those stinking car's over there.
laconicsax
(14,860 posts)"Move those stinking cars over there" would become "Move tho'se 'stinking car's over there"
"Seven sensational slideshows" would become "'Seven 'sen'sational 'slide'show's"
After a while, you 'stop noticing the apo'strophe's.
pinniped
(6,335 posts)Using the pipe symbol (|) would give it extreme character. This character will be known as super apostrophe.
Move those stinking car|s over there!
What would you use in this instance:
Ss should receive an apostrophe.
or
S's should receive an apostrophe.
Of course, one could just reword it.
The letter "s" should just get an apostrophe.
Lasher
(27,581 posts)We could call them quotes. I haven't thought of a use for them yet.
TexasTowelie
(112,165 posts)I went to McDonald's several months ago and they were trying to encourage the various soccer teams to stop by after the game. The sign promised the kids that they would have a good time--win or loose!
I pointed the mistake out to the manager, but it was never changed. What a wonderful example for the next generation of recruits at McDonalds.
REP
(21,691 posts)Especially the ones I make, because I know I know better!
This is really a usage problem, but using "infer" for "imply" (and vice versa) bugs the living crap out of me.
HERVEPA
(6,107 posts)per all dictionaries, including OED, "infer" can be used for both meanings.
"Imply" of course has only the one meaning.
dimbear
(6,271 posts)apart from the hip young moderns.
limpyhobbler
(8,244 posts)Also whoever whomever whoever said imply/infer, I agree that's an issue.
UrbScotty
(23,980 posts)tjwmason
(14,819 posts)It appears to be almost entirely an American use, as I've never come across it over here - a moment's pause reveals that it's a precise inversion of the meaning of the intended phrase.
Bad use of apostrophes definitely. The irony being that it is the most clearly and simply defined piece of punctuation; grammarians can argue for hours over the position or appropriateness of a comma or semi-colon, but the apostrophe is easily determined.
rucky
(35,211 posts)muriel_volestrangler
(101,311 posts)but I'm not convinced.
UnrepentantLiberal
(11,700 posts)where to use commas and periods. But some people sprinkle them like rose petals.
Why use paragraphs when stream of consciousness is so much more fun?
laconicsax
(14,860 posts)UnrepentantLiberal
(11,700 posts)laconicsax
(14,860 posts)I remember learning where to use commas and periods in elementary school.
UnrepentantLiberal
(11,700 posts)Pornography and serial comma usage must be stopped.
Populist_Prole
(5,364 posts)By blaming their bad spelling on typographical errors....as if we wouldn't know the difference.
laconicsax
(14,860 posts)LeftishBrit
(41,205 posts)laconicsax
(14,860 posts)Usually, people see my name and say another, less common name that starts with the same letter.
surrealAmerican
(11,360 posts)... especially when I see them in print ("are" instead of "our", or "women" instead of "woman" are particularly annoying), the ones that bother me the most are my own.
muriel_volestrangler
(101,311 posts)Aarrggh.
Aaaaaarrrrrrrrggggggghhh.
AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRRRRRRGGGGGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHHH.
raccoon
(31,110 posts)Adsos Letter
(19,459 posts)Shrek
(3,979 posts)What does that even mean?
Also the use of jive for jibe, and the use of proscribe for prescribe (that one's irritating because incorrect usage pretty much inverts the meaning of whatever is being said).
HopeHoops
(47,675 posts)Swede
(33,236 posts)Well,almost never.
no_hypocrisy
(46,094 posts)Iggo
(47,552 posts)For example: Just between he and I.
Makes me want to take hostages, it does.
yellerpup
(12,253 posts)When you put on your apparel for the day you are wearing clothes, not cloths. Also, the term shoo in - not shoe in.
1gobluedem
(6,664 posts)Apostrophes used for plural is right up there along with they're/their/there, hear/here, your/you're, random capitalization (i.e. "my Mother said..." Mother is not a proper noun when used in this context. It should be "my mother said..." However, "Mother said to me..." is correct because now it's a name/title), and I/me. So many people use that last one incorrectly. Easy way to tell what's correct; take out "[name] and." Would one say "Would you like to go for a walk with I?" No? Then why do people say "Would you like to go for a walk with Bob and I?" Makes me nuts.
cyberswede
(26,117 posts)For instance, people trying too hard to speak correctly often say something like "If you have questions, please contact Jane or I." argh!
Iggo
(47,552 posts)MadrasT
(7,237 posts)OMG OMG I want to scream every time I see that one...
"JUST WAIT UNTIL THEY DECLARE MARSHALL LAW!!!!!"
Apostrophe misuse is a biggie for me, too, especially confusion between "your" and "you're".
bigwillq
(72,790 posts)If it's something professional, resume, newspaper article, school assignment, I feel not spell checking shows a lack of professionalism.
But I am not going to freak out because someone misspelled something on an on-line site, on a text message, or in a situation like that.
There's more important things to worry about, imo, than a word misspelled.
geardaddy
(24,926 posts)The incorrect use of the past perfect, e.g., "I should have went to the store."
Here's another, i.e. and e.g. are NOT interchangeable! Gah!
rrneck
(17,671 posts)Yea = yay
Prolly for probably.
what is that? I read it as yaw
rrneck
(17,671 posts)Yaw comes close to "y'all" for a guy like me.
"Yaw gonna go t'town t'day?"
Kali
(55,007 posts)when it is used for "you" I get it (and use it sometimes), but yeah is YEAH
yea is some kind of British thing or other furrin' speak, pronounced yay
yay! is a cheer
ya used in place of yeah chokes in the reading and mental pronunciation
and that reminds me "he he" - what is that? it should be heh heh or hee hee
rrneck
(17,671 posts)will be the death of the English language (as he posts from an android phone)
Harumph harumph
laconicsax
(14,860 posts)Even long, complicated ones with lots of HTML tags like this one: http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=214&topic_id=298595&mesg_id=298889
People just use mobiles as an excuse for their inability to spell.
rrneck
(17,671 posts)Its not so bad but its slow. I post in the religion forum less because replies run longer there. And selecting text is a real pain.
I don't mind bad spelling so much as intentional contractions and texting shorthand.
Stuff like "r", "u", and "kthxby" annoy me.
laconicsax
(14,860 posts)cyberswede
(26,117 posts)No, it needs to be swept. This one REALLY bugs me, and I hear versions of this with all kinds of verbs all the time.
Glorfindel
(9,729 posts)"tow the line" instead of "toe the line"
"reign in spending" instead of "rein in spending" (why not RAIN it in?)
the confusion of "principle" for "principal"
Iggo
(47,552 posts)He also taught me "You pay a toll to get to the Capitol."
It helped.
Kali
(55,007 posts)at least at the moment those are the most irritating. I'm sure my writing drives people nuts too. I tend to leave off a lot of capitalization and use / as a shortcut too often.
PassingFair
(22,434 posts)Doesn't bother ME so much, but it drives my daughter CRAZY.
I sometimes take pictures of menu foods that are missing the "ed"
and send them to her.
I'm kind of annoying.
treestar
(82,383 posts)It is easy to determine. It is or the possessive?
pokerfan
(27,677 posts)A common error is to write it's for its, or vice versa. The first is a contraction, meaning "it is." The second is a possessive.
It's a wise dog that scratches its own fleas.
http://www.keck.ucsf.edu/~craig/The_Elements_of_Style.html
treestar
(82,383 posts)Would an "is" go there? If not, it's its. If yes, it's it's.
KansDem
(28,498 posts)Example:
"I go 'What are you doing?" and he goes "Working on my book report."
Also past-tense:
"I went "What did you do?" and he went "Nothing."
Like little ice-picks in my ears!
Much worse...'like"
"I'm like, "What are you doing?" and he's like, "Working on my book report."
But for some reason, "to go" in place of "to say" irritates me more...
sibelian
(7,804 posts)ARG.
siligut
(12,272 posts)Sometimes a subject line isn't a full sentence. If it is a question or an exclamation, I know what to use, but otherwise I might have trouble. Also, how about using an ellipsis? Is it "..." or is it ". . ."? I have seen both.
grasswire
(50,130 posts)I hear that all the time!
How can a diner GET food? Will he/she go to the walk-in cooler and shove the cook out of the way?
Or this: "I'll do the ham and eggs." Really?
grasswire
(50,130 posts)I'll cop to that. And I love the work.
I love it, too.
hunter
(38,311 posts)Other than that, fuck, write whatever you want, grunt and wave your hands, throw bullshit, spell things however you want, abuse unique, I can probably figure it out.
Just don't say "my head literally exploded" 'cause you wouldn't be able to say that if it had.
laconicsax
(14,860 posts)Initech
(100,068 posts)That one bugs the crap out of me.
UnrepentantLiberal
(11,700 posts)Initech
(100,068 posts)That we finally had a president who could pronounce the word "nuclear" correctly. But that video...
Wait Wut
(8,492 posts)"I went to the store to pick up some stuff for the pie's"
I corrected it and put it back on the counter. I also correct his FB posts. It's actually working. He spends a bit more time thinking of how words work and less time making me nuts.
I can't imagine what it must be like to live with me. He told me I'm no different than my cat. I thanked him.
Now, something I do often is type as I think, so I end up with many sentence fragments and/or run-on sentences. The conversation in my head doesn't always translate as grammatically correct. I will also use commas as I see fit and not necessarily where they should/shouldn't be. I will pause in my sentences wherever I damned well please.
cherokeeprogressive
(24,853 posts)As a teacher, sometimes it was necessary to leave memos to staff in their mailboxes. No one left a note without having another teacher proofread it lest they get it back covered in red ink.
Wait Wut
(8,492 posts)One of my closest friends is a teacher. It's fun to watch her, after a few drinks, correct the grammar of men that hit on her. Their expressions are priceless!
RebelOne
(30,947 posts)that really tick me off.
The most offensive is the use of it's and its. It's is a contraction of it is. Its is a possessive pronoun. No one seems to know the difference.
Also, I deplore the use of apostrophes in plural nouns.
treestar
(82,383 posts)eppur_se_muova
(36,261 posts)The start of a slippery slope with "had of" as its inevitable end.
riderinthestorm
(23,272 posts)A point is "moot"!!!
mrs_p
(3,014 posts)jobycom
(49,038 posts)There's a point where the spelling or grammar becomes unreadable, and that's when it bothers me. Until then, I'm okay. As the son of a man who can barely read and the father of a brilliant dyslexic who can barely write, I've learned not to judge.
The thing that makes it unreadable to me is lack of punctuation. People skip commas or even periods, and it comes out a jumble mess that's it for me can't read it why do they bother jack?
kimi
(2,441 posts)my own little pet peeve - and I may be alone in this, but oh well.
When someone refers to another as "The person THAT did thus-and-such" instead of "The person WHO did thus-and-such". Am I alone in this? It just gets to me. I'm not a grammar scholar by any means, but a "THAT" IMO refers to an object, a "WHO" refers to a person.
It just bugs me, I don't know why - and I see it all the time.
Edit: Maybe it's proper, but I don't like it. Boo hiss.
Digit
(6,163 posts)When it comes to someone who committed suicide.
I hear it on TV all the time and it drives me nuts.
cherokeeprogressive
(24,853 posts)Your sig pic makes me gag...
you may be happy to know that a language professor I know predicts the death of capital letters due to email and texting. ten years, tops.
renie408
(9,854 posts)Inchworm
(22,110 posts)so... each time I use the word I change it up a bit.
Definitly, definitely, definitley, etc.. one is bound to be correct. 25% chance.
Iggo
(47,552 posts)Last edited Wed Jan 25, 2012, 11:32 AM - Edit history (1)
You just add letters to either end.
Thusly: de-finite-ly
hobbit709
(41,694 posts)WolverineDG
(22,298 posts)pintobean
(18,101 posts)is a piss-poor substitute for earned respect.
I think their public corrections should be viewed as personal attacks.
Have you seen this in H&M?
http://www.democraticunderground.com/124035008
laconicsax
(14,860 posts)hobbit709
(41,694 posts)I'm not the one with the authoritarian streak in H&M
laconicsax
(14,860 posts)Laura PourMeADrink
(42,770 posts)laundry_queen
(8,646 posts)its/it's
lose/loose
etc
However, I know I make many mistakes. English may be my first language, and I do have several university level English courses, but the first grammar I learned was French grammar. I was in French Immersion school and for nearly all of elementary school, the focus was on learning to speak French, learn French grammar, conjugate verbs and so on. In high school, the only reason I got high marks in English was because I read so much that I absorbed grammar. If it *sounds* right to me, I'll use it (although sometimes that's not reliable, with the French background I've been known to make hilarious errors). I have no concept of grammar rules or what the terms are. Please don't ask me to define a dangling participle.
jcboon
(296 posts)Lede for lead as in lead sentence in a newspaper story. I worked for newspapers for 20 years and no one ever used "lede" It's fictional newspaper history and it's an irritant.
blueamy66
(6,795 posts)Last edited Thu Jan 26, 2012, 02:03 PM - Edit history (1)
They pounded English into us.
I write perfectly. I proofread all of my boss' important e-mails.