Bobnik

Ah. Language pedants.


I've come home.

However, I do think that conciously used l337 is as much an accent as "tomatuh". Moderation is the key, as in all things.

In "Startide Rising" by David Brin, there are genetically enhanced dolphins who use pronunciation amongst themselves that few humans could understand, let alone pronounce, yet stick strictly to the rules of syntax and grammar. There is no point here, just a concept I thought interesting.

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The gods are not fickle. But they have been known to change their minds.

I am the Mad Scientist who runs the clone vats that produce Qpid's Liberation Army. We will take over the world before Microsoft does. Join the Revolution!

TIO

Damn. I never did get the hang of spelling that.
:P

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Strewth

Stiltzkin

Whoa crap. I was nodding my head in agreement with the first paragraph, but you stunned me with the second paragraph. I also do this. I read somewhere that in British grammar, punctuation does belong outside quotation marks. I don't know. Guess you and I think alike, as far as this stuff goes.

Oh and...

Interesting comments. (rule of TFP: if you find something interesting, post about it and let that person know!) I generally love dolphins to begin with. Is Startide Rising a movie? Book? Both. I should look into this... .

As far as my usage of single-quotation marks and double-quotation marks, I always use double-quotation marks and if a nested quote exists within this quote, I will use the single quote. Here is an example:

"My friend said '... and you should learn to speak up', trying to make a point about my introvertedness."

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The most important thing in this world is love.

DrJekyll

Stiltzkin, perfect quote there.

angela146

This post withdrawn by the author because she realized that it was way too harsh.

Sorry Stiltzkin

Cynthetiq

OUCH!

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I don't care if you are black, white, purple, green, Chinese, Japanese, Korean, hippie, cop, bum, admin, user, English, Irish, French, Catholic, Protestant, Jewish, Buddhist, Muslim, indian, cowboy, tall, short, fat, skinny, emo, punk, mod, rocker, straight, gay, lesbian, jock, nerd, geek, Democrat, Republican, Libertarian, Independent, driver, pedestrian, or bicyclist, either you're an asshole or you're not.

angela146

Perhaps I spanked a little too hard.

TIO

According to Dictionary.com, www.oed.com, www.m-w.com, and the Macquarie Concise, you're wrong. You're and your both rhyme with oar, and their, they're and there all rhyme with heir. I've also never heard anyone outside the states try to make those words sound different. Context is invariably enough to work out the meaning.

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Strewth

BentNotTwisted

Yet another reason I enjoy this site. Posters make a concious effort to use their best grammar possible. It may be a bit anal, but it's much easier to read correct grammar than... not correct grammer.

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IS THAT IT ???!!!
Do you even know what 'it' is?

When the last man dies for just words that he said... We Shall Be Free

DrJekyll

Woohoo! I've been vindicated! (about acronyms and apostrophes)

http://www.askoxford.com/asktheexper...spelling/pizza

ReggErving

Who cares, idiots are going to be idiots.

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...sitting on your bed with a samauri pose.

tj2001cobra

One of my biggest irritations is the incorrect usage of "lose" and "loose".

It seems as though people hard a hard time knowing when they "loose" a game or "loose" their car keys.

I am guilty of mis-typing things, so I dont have much room to talk, but for some reason people using those two words wrong really bothers me.

Cynthetiq

i was at Lowes and they had misused YOUR, which should have been YOU'RE.

pretty lame.

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I don't care if you are black, white, purple, green, Chinese, Japanese, Korean, hippie, cop, bum, admin, user, English, Irish, French, Catholic, Protestant, Jewish, Buddhist, Muslim, indian, cowboy, tall, short, fat, skinny, emo, punk, mod, rocker, straight, gay, lesbian, jock, nerd, geek, Democrat, Republican, Libertarian, Independent, driver, pedestrian, or bicyclist, either you're an asshole or you're not.

Stiltzkin

I never got to read the comment you posted. I'd be interested to hear what you have to say, regardless of its nature. Spank away. Feel free to e-mail me at the_stiltzkin@yahoo.com

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The most important thing in this world is love.

em1014

I saw a sign a couple of days ago for a hotel while heading up the mtn. It read: "Ya'll love the view".

yournamehere

That's my biggest pet peeve concerning grammar - I hardly ever see the word "lose" used correctly. 8 out of 10 times I see people use "loose" (incorrectly) instead. Is it being taught that way now, or isn't anyone paying attention?

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If you want to avoid 95% of internet spelling errors:
"If your ridiculous pants are too loose, you're definitely going to lose them. Tell your two loser friends over there that they're going to lose theirs, too."
It won't hurt your fashion sense, either.

j8ear

Us (or is it we? )ESL folks work VERY VERY hard to apply the rules we learned with this crazy, non-sensical, exception for everything, language.

They say English is one of the most difficult languages to learn. Speaking from experience...I CONCUR.

Thanks for the lessons though, I've found them extremely enlightening.

The use of the "non-word" irregardless really fires me up.

I was also going to add something about karma...i.e. good or bad karma. I always thought that Karma was always good. That there is no such thing as bad karma. Alas, as I clarify this with a Hindu collegue of mine she assures me that both exist. Schooled again



-bear

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It's alot easier to ask for forgiveness then it is to ask for permission.

Unsung

I love this thread.

Regarding punctuation within or outside of quotation marks: American usage calls for the punctuation to be inside, while folk in the UK put it outside.

Parentheses, however, have their punctuation outside, for the most part, unless common sense puts it inside. Actually (which is pronounced "egg-jelly" by some English people), if your phrase inhabiting parentheses needs punctuation inside the parentheses, it may be that it's not really a parenthetical phrase at all and might as happily live outside the parentheses or perhaps make its own tidy little paragraph.

Orionath and I went to a little tavern that had wonderful fish and chips and the most abysmally incorrect menu I have ever seen. They reversed their possessives and plurals ("Captain Blighs onion ring's," and suchlike that.); it was enough to make a word processor/proofreader/editor type (c'est moi) apoplectic. Orionath persuaded me not to say anything to the witress, not even the mildest remark or a sweet request to visit with the manager and offer free proofreading services. Probably I was not capable of a mild remark, and he was wise. I wanted a menu as a souvenir. He also discouraged that. I don't know why.

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It's the quiet little people who make all the difference.
Well, okay. The big noisy people, too.

Unsung

Ha! I made up that word, "witress." I shall not edit it out, as I like it very much.

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It's the quiet little people who make all the difference.
Well, okay. The big noisy people, too.

Double D

Hey bear, getting schooled again is not a bad thing!
For example, the way to remember the correct usage of *us* vs *we* in your sentence above, is to take out the *ESL folks* and say the sentence, Us work very hard... or We work very hard..?

I am a bit of a language nazi, though I do make typos--and my sentence structures are not always the best.

My personal pet peeve phrase is *very unique.*
Please, dear lord, drop the very!

mystmarimatt

hear hear to this post! i've always been annoyed when people don't use these ords properly!...ok, i have nothing else of value to contribute, i'm tired.

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Words of Wisdom:

If you could really get to know someone and know that they weren't lying to you, then you would know the world was real. Because you could agree on things, you could compare notes. That must be why people get married or make Art. So they'll be able to really know something and not go insane.

Fremen

I wish this thread had a rating option. I would give it 5 thumbs up.

(don't ask where the extra thumbs came from)

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Google

ssander9

Well there you go, it's your pedastal to stand on not theirs. You're very nice to point these things out.

Seriously, I do agree with you and I have been at times a little too lazy to use these words properly. I appologize for any discomfort this may have caused you. I will try to do better in the future and refrain from such usage of said words.

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I never said you had to.

TIO

Here's one that a lot of people have been (mis)using a lot lately:

Penultimate means second last, people. Second last! It is not a fancy way of saying 'ultimate.'

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Strewth

battlemouth

i find it funny that people dont know how to use their own language properly, then again i sometimes fall victim to substituting your for you're. meh

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like a bullet through a flock of doves

uncle phil

battlemouth, i feel your pain...

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"We were wrong, terribly wrong. (We) should not have tried to fight a guerrilla war with conventional military tactics against a foe willing to absorb enormous casualties...in a country lacking the fundamental political stability necessary to conduct effective military and pacification operations. It could not be done and it was not done."
- Robert S. McNamara
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"We will take our napalm and flame throwers out of the land that scarcely knows the use of matches...
We will leave you your small joys and smaller troubles."
- Eugene McCarthy in "Vietnam Message"
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never wrestle with a pig.
you both get dirty;
the pig likes it.

glophead

is it "your welcome" or "you're welcome?"

uncle phil

you're welcome...

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"We were wrong, terribly wrong. (We) should not have tried to fight a guerrilla war with conventional military tactics against a foe willing to absorb enormous casualties...in a country lacking the fundamental political stability necessary to conduct effective military and pacification operations. It could not be done and it was not done."
- Robert S. McNamara
-----------------------------------------
"We will take our napalm and flame throwers out of the land that scarcely knows the use of matches...
We will leave you your small joys and smaller troubles."
- Eugene McCarthy in "Vietnam Message"
-----------------------------------------
never wrestle with a pig.
you both get dirty;
the pig likes it.

Cynthetiq

take out the contraction...you ARE welcome

__________________
I don't care if you are black, white, purple, green, Chinese, Japanese, Korean, hippie, cop, bum, admin, user, English, Irish, French, Catholic, Protestant, Jewish, Buddhist, Muslim, indian, cowboy, tall, short, fat, skinny, emo, punk, mod, rocker, straight, gay, lesbian, jock, nerd, geek, Democrat, Republican, Libertarian, Independent, driver, pedestrian, or bicyclist, either you're an asshole or you're not.