I see grammatical errors: a writer's superpower
We all have our super powers - that kid sees dead people, others see dirt in every corner of my house, and me, well I see (and hear) grammatical errors. They are everywhere - embossed on the side of a box of tea, inked in the newspaper, and when I'm listening in on bus conversations my ears bleed.
It might be genetic, but more likely learned. My parents grew up in that era (aka the olden days) when kids learned grammar, punctuation, and ... wait for it ... spelling! My dad was a stickler for the I vs. me (which many people get mixed up) and my mom - well, I pity the po fool sales clerk who uses the redundant phrase: these ones.
The who/that particularly irks me, and it's there are not there is (or the abbreviated convenience of there's) - people really!
Here's a couple of grammar nerds who took to the road to police the written text and correct people's grammar and punctuation (I hear people love when you do that!). They were chased, banned from a national park and at one place someone threatened to break their
And lest you think I always use perfect grammar and punctuation I remind you that I've never met a comma I didn't splice.
Weird Al Yankovich highlights another one of my pet peeves - the lack of the 'ly' ending.
Which grammar or punctuation error gets your verbs all in a knot?
Hope you have a grammatically correct week.
Comments
Misused apostrophes are so common now it's hardly worth getting one's knickers in a knot.
I also cringe at the word 'healthy' instead of 'healthful', the word 'competency' instead of 'competent', and the verbing of words like 'impact'. Verbing wierds language.
And if we're talking usage, I get all bent out of shape when I see "gender" written on form instead of "sex".
Am I getting old?