Grammar pet peeves!

[mantysk8coach]

I think the worst example I've encountered though was at a closeout (dollar type) store back in 2000 when they were selling Millennium puzzles, with the big word across them - Millennium - spelled incorrectly! I mean, I understand that a few years before that, probably not a lot of people knew how to spell it. But if you were in charge of designing a puzzle, with the word on it, wouldn't you think to just maybe look it up?

That's funny!

That reminds me of the t-shirt my dad bought me. He was in Washington DC for work right around the time that George Bush took office. He bought me an innauguration (sp?) t-shirt that had the names of the new president and vice president and their picture. Except the vice presidents last name was spelled "Chenney". Of course my dad didn't even notice until I pointed it out to him.

 

[rparmfamily]

I think the internet and texting has "dumbed down" America. I was never a great speller but I can hardly understand some of the posts on another military board I visit. Most of the girls on that board are young and the spelling is horrible! I like to read their posts to my DH and we both just shake our heads!

 

[dvcmommy]

* And advice and advise. ("If you want my advice, I would advise you to google it".)

That is one of my big pet peeves....I also have major issues with accept and except

Everyone accepts the changes except you.

By the way, exceptable is not a word!

 

[MsLeFever]

"Literally". Should only be used when it really truly happened.

A local law firm has the following line in their radio ad:
"We redefine the word 'thorough'"
hmmm....if I was their client I'd rather have them be thorough the way it has always been defined!

 

[Eeyores Butterfly]

I have to agree with the comment on outside influences. I am teaching 6th grade reading for summer school. Their assignment today was to write a story about what happens after the book ends (We're reading Canyons by Gary Paulsen and it ends on a bit of a cliff hanger). The students wrote and edited their rough drafts today. Several students asked me to read their stories, and I was appalled by the misuse of grammar, capitalization, punctuation, and spelling. Perhaps I am misremembering (is that a word?) my own middle school experience, but I don't recall my writing being that bad when I was their age. Some of them were very creative and have the making of good wrtiers if they could just get their mechanics under control.

 

[goofinoff]

Thought of another one my MIL says. "Unthaw" Doesn't that mean freeze? "I need to unthaw some chicken for dinner tonight." You're having frozen chicken for dinner?

My mother used to say "Stripe-ed" instead of striped. "I have a blue and whited stripe-ed shirt." I used to correct her all the time. Now she says it right.

 

[Golf4food]

Using THEN instead of the word THAN in sentences like "I like Target more then I like Wal-mart" or "I spell worse then a redneck". The word is THAN, people. THAN. Not then. Than. You like Target more than you like Wal-mart. Now then, let's move on to something else.

 

[MM27]

I have to agree with the comment on outside influences. I am teaching 6th grade reading for summer school. Their assignment today was to write a story about what happens after the book ends (We're reading Canyons by Gary Paulsen and it ends on a bit of a cliff hanger). The students wrote and edited their rough drafts today. Several students asked me to read their stories, and I was appalled by the misuse of grammar, capitalization, punctuation, and spelling. Perhaps I am misremembering (is that a word?) my own middle school experience, but I don't recall my writing being that bad when I was their age. Some of them were very creative and have the making of good wrtiers if they could just get their mechanics under control.

I contribute that to the fact that many school districts have done away with spelling programs. When I started teaching we had a spelling book. Every week we did the skills during the week and had the test at the end of the week. The next year they did away with that and brought in a new program. No structured spelling, no phonics. It lasted a year. So now eight years later, we have gone through 5 different programs and I can tell you that the kids are worse spellers than they were with the original program. The kids that spell well are the ones that read a lot.

 

[Alaska Catdog]

Thought of another one my MIL says. "Unthaw" Doesn't that mean freeze? "I need to unthaw some chicken for dinner tonight." You're having frozen chicken for dinner?

When my husbands asks me to "dethaw" the chicken I just leave it in the freezer and then he has to take me out to dinner. I know how to thaw a chicken too but it doesn't get me taken out to dinner.

 

[Ride Junkie]

Gaack! WHY did I open this thread?? I think I’m getting hives…

All my favorites are in here: misuse of apostrophes, run-on sentences, misspellings, overuse of commas and quotation marks. ‘Your’ instead of ‘you’re’ is a BIG one! Did we not learn that in 3rd grade?

I have coworkers who say, “We’re going to go peruse the situation.” No, you peruse a contract. You assess a situation. But they’re very nice people, so I would never correct them.

Also, if you’re in bumper-to-bumper traffic, you’re not necessarily in gridlock. If I understand correctly, gridlock is when traffic blocks an intersection so cross traffic can’t get through (grid + lock).

 

[pooh6890]

Yes, when you "toe the line" you are "falling in line" or conforming. When you tow a line, you're just pulling a rope with nothing on the end of it. It makes no sense.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toe_the_line

Thanks.....I learned something new today.......

 

[goofinoff]

When my husbands asks me to "dethaw" the chicken I just leave it in the freezer and then he has to take me out to dinner. I know how to thaw a chicken too but it doesn't get me taken out to dinner.