Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
In a related area, mispronunciations, particularly on television, drive me crazy, e.g.:
"sammonella" v. salmonella
Calvary (where Jesus was crucified) v. cavalry (military on horseback)
"libary" v. library
"there's" with a plural -- "there is" needs a singular noun (this, however, is so commonly used, I wonder if it will become accepted)
And of course, the ever-popular your/you're confusion. If someone consistently makes this error, I'm not inclined to take them seriously.
In the case of Calvary/cavalry, some people really cannot hear that distinction.
In terms of formatting, not putting two spaces after a period at the end of a sentence, is a significant error. Usually goes along with not knowing how to use commas, colons, and semi-colons.
Are English teachers not even making sure students get this stuff right anymore?
Many are, but if the importance of these things is not remotely backed up at home consistently and early on, forget it. Students learn far more from their parents than they do from their teachers. You can only do so much when you're being a part-time educator, part-time social worker, part-time parent surrogate, and teaching to federally mandated standardized tests that don't begin to cover maintenance type tasks.
Oopsie: I went back to try to remove it, but it wouldn't let me.
According to the TOS: Copyrighted Material - Instead of copying-and-pasting articles, photos, or other material you find on the Internet, you should be posting links to those articles. Posting a snippet from the article and then the link is the appropriate way to post.
Cellogurl posted the link and then posted the information. As a rule of thumb, we mods usually like no more then 3 sentences but leaving out the last two sentences of this post wouldn't have made sense. I'll take the blame for not editing.
I wouldn't say people who cannot spell (punctuate, etc.) are uneducated. I would say they lack pride in creating a well-crafted written message.
So many errors can be shrugged off as typographical errors; however, there is no excuse for "here" instead of "hear", or "there" instead of "their". These and similar errors communicate simple laziness; even if errors are typos, that communicates that the author was too lazy to proofread.
Yes. It's not about intelligence or education. It's about presentation. If you came to my party dressed in ripped clothes and smelling like garbage, I would be offended/irritated.
I wouldn't say people who cannot spell (punctuate, etc.) are uneducated. I would say they lack pride in creating a well-crafted written message.
So many errors can be shrugged off as typographical errors; however, there is no excuse for "here" instead of "hear", or "there" instead of "their". These and similar errors communicate simple laziness; even if errors are typos, that communicates that the author was too lazy to proofread.
I disagree. My son is learning disabled (APD) and spends hours each night working on his homework. He's not lazy. And he constantly misspells words because his brain works differently than yours. Sometimes things aren't just "simple laziness".
Status:
"more of the good stuff"
(set 7 hours ago)
1,813 posts, read 2,840,578 times
Reputation: 1609
I want to add that advice is a noun and advise is a verb. I am forever seeing people say "I'm looking for advise." No, you're not.
Also, why oh why do people not know the difference between lose and loose? If you lose, you don't win. If something's loose, it's not tight. If you think you're a looser, you have just proven it.
I disagree. My son is learning disabled (APD) and spends hours each night working on his homework. He's not lazy. And he constantly misspells words because his brain works differently than yours. Sometimes things aren't just "simple laziness".
But the people we are talking about are not young boys with auditory problems.
I've been a sales and technical writer for about 10 years now, and I look on the bright side. The inability of some people to spell, punctuate, or write a good sentence is the reason I will always have a job.
But the people we are talking about are not young boys with auditory problems.
Oh really??? This thread was about people who misspell words and the grammar police - or did I misread?? FWIW my son is not a young boy, he is 15 years old. So only adults misspelling count as people in this thread?
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.