I can't stand it any more. I've held my tongue for too long. I'm going to burst. Listen up, people. We have grammar rules for a reason. These rules are in place because there are right ways and wrong ways to write, to punctuate, to verbalize, etc.For the love of God and all that is holy, please familiarize yourselves with these rules and then USE them. It's not that hard. To help you get started, I've listed some of the most common grammar mistakes that make me crazy. I've even included proper examples of each, for those of you who learn better that way.
LOSE/LOOSE
Don't lose your keys.
Don't let the dog loose.
ADVICE/ADVISE
She gave me good advice.
I advise you to use proper grammar.
THAN/THEN
Sally is taller than Doug.
We'll get dinner then we'll go to the store.
THEIR/THERE/THEY'RE
Their house is for sale.
There goes the neighborhood.
They're moving next door to you!
YOUR/YOU'RE
Your mom is beautiful.
You're going to love this pie!
A LOT/ALOT
People misuse this word a lot! (It's two words people!)
AFFECT/EFFECT
How will that food affect your diet?
What are the side effects of that medicine?
*Easy way to remember: affect is a verb, effect is a noun. (We all know what verbs and nouns are, right?)
TOWARD/TOWARDS
He is going toward the light!
(No final "s" on toward, forward, backward, etc.)
COULD OF/COULD HAVE
He could have gotten a bigger refund.
("Could of" is always improper grammar.)
BRING/TAKE
"Bring" implies movement toward you, i.e. Please bring me the salt.
"Take" implies movement away from you, i.e. Please take the salt to dad.
ITS/IT'S
The mouse ate its cheese happily.
It's going to rain.
(The apostrophe is the most misused punctuation mark in the world. Note the sign above.)
If you need additional grammar lessons, go here. It's a wealth of information. However, from what I read, most people out there need this instead. And, sadly, most people who use poor grammar could care less, which makes them look like the poor, uneducated souls they truly are.
Feel free to comment and share your most frustrating grammar mistakes. Unless of course, the thing that frustrates you most of all is the person who points out your grammar mistakes. ahem..........
10 comments:
Thank you and amen!
Are you sure that you aren't an English teacher?
Poor grammar and spelling drive me crazy too. I keep my mouth shut though, except when it comes to my kids. I am always correcting them. One day they'll thank me, right?
It must be the day for grammar rules. Check out my friend Darcy's post for today.
www.lifewithmy3boybarians.com/
YES YES YES! Thank you! My husband calls me the Apostrophe Nazi because my frustration with their abuse has reached a point where I will literally pull a pen out of my purse and edit apostrophe errors on signs and flyers in public places. In the 10years I've been teaching, I hope the one thing my students learned was how to respect the apostrophe.
like I don'ts evens knows wear to starts. some are more blesseds then others.
yous guys and yours ocd with grammar! haha...so, was that 'flair' because i abused the grammar rule???
honestly, i am just too lazy to check my spelling. :) i should have spelled it to lazy two check..haha..oh well! have fun!
I was going to post something very messed up, but I just can't bring myself to do it... I agree, pet peeve of mine, too.
I couldn't agree more! Except I do have one confession to make...
I improperly use affect/effect because I never knew the proper way to use them. But now that someone can tell me how...I think I will be able to use them correctly from now on!
Have you read this book:
http://www.amazon.com/Eats-Shoots-Leaves-Tolerance-Punctuation/dp/1592402038/ref=sr_1_6?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1212708297&sr=1-6
I'm so bummed that I've fallen behind on your blog. This is my favorite post to date! My mom, known to her friends as 'the walking dictionary', passed along her intolerance for poor grammar and spelling to me. You could do an entire post on apostrophes alone. Honestly, why do people feel the need to insert apostrophes where they just don't belong. The difference between possessives, contractions, and plurals is not that hard, is it? Hence, your frustration with Latte's. Aaaargh! I just have one little question though.... Is it "could care less" or "couldn't care less"? :)
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