"Whenever" and "Seen"

[Daisy and Delilah]

Is it; waiting "on" line or......waiting "in" line?

All of "a" sudden or.....all of "the" sudden?

Somebody mentioned supposeBly as opposed to supposeDly. That one kills me, among others

[Karen]

This thread reminds me somehow of the Robert Burns quote:

O wad some power the giftie gie us
To see oursel's as ithers see us!
It wad frae monie a blunder free us.
And foolish notion;
What airs in dress and gait wad lea'e us,
And ev'n devotion!

In more modern English, it says "Oh, would some Power the gift give us
to see ourselves as others see us!" and I'm sure you can all suss out the meaning of the rest.

I learned by first grade that one would not make friends by correcting one's classmates' grammar - but I did so anyway when it really bugged me, especially my neighbor who pronounced spaghetti as "puzgeddy" ...

My pet peeve are misplaced apostrophes, and when I see them used incorrectly on signage or in an advertisement, I will tell the store employees, especially on handwritten - and therefore easily corrected - signs.

[Lobodeb]

Here's one that bugs me. There, their and they're. They're different words and aren't interchangeble!

Also its and it's. I have to think twice before I type that one.

And, since we're all sharing our pet peeves, here's some that I'm terribly guilty of...(yes, I just ended my sentence with a preposition.)

Affect and effect. What is the proper way to use this? "How will this affect me?"

[CathyBogart]

The one that makes me want to tear out my hair is when people say "woof" instead of "wolf".

[Karen]

Affect and effect. What is the proper way to use this? "How will this affect me?"

From http://www.askoxford.com

To affect something is to change or influence it, To effect something is a rather formal way of saying `to make it happen'. Confusingly, either may produce an 'effect' or result. ('An affect' is a technical term in psychology.)

Correct usage:
The stability of the wall was affected by passing lorries.
The demolition of the wall was effected by the detonation of a charge of dynamite.
The dynamite did not just 'affect' (influence) the demolition of the wall: it caused it.

[kitten645]

I feel like a snob for noticing

Being educated, using it and caring enough to think isn't being a snob!! Be proud!!

That website is a hoot! I am always appalled when I see public signage with misspellings or improper grammar. I'm always very self conscious when writing for public view! I try to make extra sure it's correct.

I saw an interesting comment in a movie about Dorothy Parker. The person said that there are few great writers anymore because writers then treated language like a science. Parceling sentences so they were correctly "formulated". I remember dissecting sentences at school. I doubt it's done today.

[krazyaboutkatz]

"at"....as in "where's it at?" "Where is it?" The "at" is useless, unnecessary and hurts my ears.

This also drives me crazy and I hear it on a daily basis because this is the way my boss talks.

I also don't like it when people say ain't. I think it makes them seem so uneducated. My co-worker says this word a lot.

The word "seen" being misused has also always bothered me.

I've also been guilty about ending sentences with prepositions and I've done this on Pet Talk.

[Pam]

I learned by first grade that one would not make friends by correcting one's classmates' grammar - but I did so anyway when it really bugged me, especially my neighbor who pronounced spaghetti as "puzgeddy" ...

Karen I wish I could do that. I work with a girl who misuses Moot and Mute. She always says that something is a Mute Point. I have to bit my tongue because I want to refer her to the remote control on her TV.

Moot - 1. open to discussion or debate; debatable; doubtful: a moot point.
2. of little or no practical value or meaning; purely academic.

Mute -1. silent; refraining from speech or utterance.
2. not emitting or having sound of any kind.

Another word that really bothers me is nuclear. So many people (our president is included in this) say nucular. That just makes me crazy!

[buckner]

I really only find what people type to be annoying. Sure, some things cause me to cringe when I hear it being said, but I realize that I make some of the same mistakes.

Some of my words are "blended" together, and therefore I appear uneducated about language. But, sit me in front of a computer and I can type it correctly for you, along with a definition and it being used correctly in a sentence. I type with good grammar because it's needed for college papers and such, but I say stuff as if I'm living on a farm. Some letters are said longer and not always in the correct way (ice sounds like a form of a donkey...).

I understand how it can be pet peeves to say stuff incorrectly, but we all make the same mistakes. Most of it is a regional difference - we were brought up realizing we could talk like that and still communicate just fine.

[finn's mom]

I just remembered one that bothers me a lot. When people say "welp" instead of "welt" when referring to a raised mark on their skin, like if a branch slapped them or something like that. "whelp" is to raise a litter. "welt" is a raised mark on the skin.

[Randi]

I remember dissecting sentences at school. I doubt it's done today.

Ah, I bet you're right, and this is probably the root of the problem.

I could't find the text I was looking for, but this one is similar.


Eye halve a spelling chequer

I have a spelling checker.
It came with my pea sea.
It plane lee marks four my revue
Miss steaks aye can knot sea.

Eye ran this poem threw it,
Your sure reel glad two no.
Its vary polished in it's weigh.
My checker tolled me sew.

A checker is a bless sing,
It freeze yew lodes of thyme.
It helps me right awl stiles two reed,
And aides me when I rime.

Each frays come posed up on my screen
eye trussed too bee a joule.
The checker pours o'er every word
To cheque sum spelling rule.

Bee fore a veiling checker's Hour
spelling mite decline,
And if we're lacks oar have a laps,
We wood bee maid too wine.

Butt now bee cause my spelling
Is checked with such grate flair,
Their are no fault's with in my cite,
Of nun eye am a ware.

Now spelling does knot phase me,
It does knot bring a tier.
My pay purrs awl due glad den
With wrapped word's fare as hear.

To rite with care is quite a feet
Of witch won should be proud,
And wee mussed dew the best wee can,
Sew flaw's are knot aloud.

Sow ewe can sea why aye dew prays,
Such soft wear four pea seas,
And why eye brake in two averse
Buy righting too pleas.

-- Sauce Unknown

... and here's a link to some Brtitish slang, I think Killiarn Kitties posted it earlier, but it's worth another look.

http://www.effingpot.com/slang.shtml

What is EFFINGPOT anyway?

In 1992 I took my girlfriend to Florida for our first vacation together. It was great - we stayed in that huge hotel opposite Sea World and had a fabulous time. The only problem we had was when we tried to book tables at restaurants. It was so hard to get people to understand our accents.

The hardest bit was with my name, Etherington. I would spell it over and over but it was never conveyed correctly. One afternoon the concierge gave us the number of a local restaurant and overheard me in terrible trouble trying to get them to understand me, and offered to make the call for us.

I stood there and listened to see what I was doing wrong ...

"Two people"

"Eight o'clock"

"No smoking"

"Etherington, no, Etherington"

"Sure, E - T - H"

"No E, yes E that's right"

"E T H"

"No E, yes E for Edward"

And so it went on, finally we had a reservation.

Anyway we turned up at this nice seafood restaurant on International Drive and told the guy at the desk that we had a reservation for eight o'clock in the name of Etherington.

He quite bluntly told us that we did NOT have a reservation and that they were full. If we would like to come back in an hour then they might be able to seat us then. I told him that actually we DID have a reservation as I had heard it being made for us.

Then he got a bit stroppy and told me again that they were full, they did NOT have a reservation and to go away. Before he got completely nasty to us I asked him just to confirm if they had ANY reservations for eight o'clock. He looked in the book and said that they did actually have one. I asked him if it was for two people in non-smoking and he said that it was was. Then I asked him who it was for and he said.

"Sir I have told you we do not have a reservation for you, this one is for Dr Effingpot!!!". And from that moment on it just stuck!

Edit! Ah, I found what I was looking for. It was Sirrabed who posted this years ago.

"Can you read this??

I cdnuolt blveiee taht I cluod aulaclty uesdnatnrd waht I was rdanieg.
The phaonmneal pweor of the hmuan mnid. Aoccdrnig to a rscheearch at Cmabrigde Uinervtisy, it deosn't mttaer inwaht oredr the ltteers in a wrod are, the olny iprmoatnt tihng is taht the frist and lsat ltteer be in the rghit pclae. The rset can be a taotl mses and you can sitll raed it wouthit a orbelm. Tihs is bcuseae the huamn mnid deos not raed ervey lteter by istlef, but the wrod as a wlohe. Amzanig huh? yaeh and I awlyas thought slpeling was ipmorantt".

[prechrswife]

Also its and it's. I have to think twice before I type that one.

Affect and effect. What is the proper way to use this? "How will this affect me?"

On the its and it's thing, we actually bought a box of Christmas cards the year before last that were beautiful on the outside, and the sentiment inside was good, but it said something along the lines of "...the star of Christmas shines it's light..." We took them back to the store for a refund and purchased different cards. Now, I read the inside very carefully before purchasing any card.

As for affect and effect, the easiest way for me to remember is that "affect" is an "action." They both start with the letter a, so "affect" is a verb. "Effect," then is a noun.

[Lobodeb]

As for affect and effect, the easiest way for me to remember is that "affect" is an "action." They both start with the letter a, so "affect" is a verb. "Effect," then is a noun.

Ok, so "the special effects of the movie affected me in a way I didn't expect."



Is that wright? hehehehe, just kidding.

[Randi]

I have a new question... when do you use "assume" and when do you use "presume"? Oh and surmise?

And a few more...

speak/talk

stamina/perseverance

explain/elucidate

Anyone know?

[Edwina's Secretary]

I have a new question... when do you use "assume" and when do you use "presume"? Oh and surmise?

And a few more...

speak/talk

stamina/perseverance

explain/elucidate

Anyone know?

What fun questions! Let's see what people come up with (without using a dictionary!)

Assume means to come to a conclusion based based on surrounding information.

Presume to me is just about the same thing - only with more emphasis

Surmise - drawing a conclusion - has a certain connotation to me of looking down your nose at the person who does not surmise as your do

Speak/talk - same thing - one just has more letters

Stamina is energy. Again - connotation - lots of energy

Stamina is what I need to have to persevere.

Preseverance - sticks with a task even though it is difficult

Explain/elucidate - mean the same thing - to describe. Elucidate has an air about it of "I will tell you, you poor simpleton, how it really is."