To boldly go to the most famous grammar mistake of all time.

[Najos]

Probably the biggest one I notice in everyday speech is was/were. In a hypothetical situation it should always be were, but almost everyone uses was instead. It doesn't really bother me, but I do notice it a lot. Especially in songs. I know there's at least one Beatles song that uses was instead of were. Can't seem to remember it right now.

 

[bmf185]

I'm so tempted to bust out the Grammar Nazi Picture..

Do it, I'd love to see it.

Homework: Tell me what is wrong with the above sentence =P.

Do it; I'd love to see it.

One can almost hear the semicolon in "a man chooses; a slave obeys."

I am a grammar Nazi myself, but something so trivial as the split infinitive is hardly worth bringing up when there are still people who don't know the difference between "your" as a possessive and "you're" as a contraction.

However, correct usage of "who" and "whom" turns me on a little.

 

[bmf185]

Also, using 'a' when 'an' is appropriate, like 'an horrendous mistake' spoken as 'a horrendous mistake'. The first one is correct, the second one is not. It's not that hard to remember, and easy enough to correct.

Wait, what? 'An horrendous mistake' is supposed to be correct? I highly doubt that. The 'h' is definitely prounounced, so it should be 'a horrendous mistake'. Unless of course you have the Cockney accent...

Oh, and I agree with the OP. I find split infinitives to sound a bit strange when used improperly.

I will never agree that "an" should come before a word that begins with H. It isn't a vowel, and I can't think of a word that starts with H where the H is silent. Don't do it; it sounds stupid.

Probably the biggest one I notice in everyday speech is was/were. In a hypothetical situation it should always be were, but almost everyone uses was instead. It doesn't really bother me, but I do notice it a lot. Especially in songs. I know there's at least one Beatles song that uses was instead of were. Can't seem to remember it right now.

Yes. Conditional + past subjunctive (which is easy in English) = happiness. For example: I would buy eight tons of ice cream if I were rich.

Balls, a song just came on and the first line is "if I was a simple man..."

Damnit.

On another note, I recently congratulated someone I had just met for using the adverb in "I am doing so poorly." It was refreshing to hear.

 

[EeveeElectro]

I'm sure it's meant to be that way.

Jeez, the day I stop concentrating on a movie because of the grammar mistakes is the day I want someone to smack me round the head with a pan.

 

[jackbomb9]

Also, using 'a' when 'an' is appropriate, like 'an horrendous mistake' spoken as 'a horrendous mistake'. The first one is correct, the second one is not. It's not that hard to remember, and easy enough to correct.

Wait, what? 'An horrendous mistake' is supposed to be correct? I highly doubt that. The 'h' is definitely prounounced, so it should be 'a horrendous mistake'. Unless of course you have the Cockney accent...

No, you still pronounce the 'h'. The rule is that if there is a vowel after an 'h' at the beginning of a word, 'an' is correct, rather than 'a'. Technically, 'an hole' is also correct, but you're right, that sounds more than a little weird. This is one of those rules with lots of exceptions.

Yes! Grammar Nazi's unite! I have a bit of a pet peeve for split infinitives too, ever since I found out what they were.

Greengrocer's apostrophe on the loose.

Oh, it's been picked up already. I just can't be bothered changing it on account of 'fuelling the grammar fire' for the thread.

Also, using 'a' when 'an' is appropriate, like 'an horrendous mistake' spoken as 'a horrendous mistake'. The first one is correct, the second one is not. It's not that hard to remember, and easy enough to correct.

"An" is used to prevent unintended elisions caused by having a bunch of vowel sounds next to each other. If you pronounce the H, there is absolutely no reason to say "an" before it -- and, since writing "an" but saying "a" would be downright stupid, so you shouldn't write it, either.

-- Alex

I think the reason the rule was made was because 'h' is more of a breath than a sound, so was regarded as such. Obviously it isn't so much like that now, but the rule still exists.

 

[crudus]

You do have to admit "To boldly go where..." rolls off the tongue more than "to go boldly where...". To quickly answer (I am not doing that out of spite. What are you are talking about?) your original question: I hate it when people say "then" rather then "than". (what irony?)

I'm so tempted to bust out the Grammar Nazi Picture..

Homework: Tell me what is wrong with the above sentence =P.

ooo! OoO!oOO!! Teacher pick me!!

There are two periods at the end of the sentence.

 

[vampirekid.13]

that is interesting i am quite proud of my spelling and grammar in real life (im lazy on the net) and never knew about that rule, im going to have to watch out for it from now on so i dont do that anymore.

 

[AdamAK]

No, you still pronounce the 'h'. The rule is that if there is a vowel after an 'h' at the beginning of a word, 'an' is correct, rather than 'a'. Technically, 'an hole' is also correct, but you're right, that sounds more than a little weird. This is one of those rules with lots of exceptions.

Never heard of that rule. Where did you get that from? The rule I have always heard and read about is that the first letter of the following word is the one that matters. In most ( if not all ) cases the 'h' is clearly pronounced and should be preceded by an 'a'. ( <-- See what I did there? )

 

[Alex_P]

No, you still pronounce the 'h'. The rule is that if there is a vowel after an 'h' at the beginning of a word, 'an' is correct, rather than 'a'. Technically, 'an hole' is also correct, but you're right, that sounds more than a little weird. This is one of those rules with lots of exceptions.

...

I think the reason the rule was made was because 'h' is more of a breath than a sound, so was regarded as such. Obviously it isn't so much like that now, but the rule still exists.

But that's just not how language works! The rules in the grammar book are supposed to reflect the standards of literate speakers, not the other way around.

The one and only practical and historic purpose of "an" is to remove awkward glottal stops. Try saying "a hour". It's like you're gagging. We don't want that, so we use "an hour".

Write it how you say it: "an hour", "an RPG", "a one-legged bird". With my American-the-way-it's-spoken-on-TV accent, I also say "a historic", so that's how I write it.

-- Alex

 

[Z of the Na'vi]

School is out for the summer, so I don't have to spel gud if I dnt wnt 2.

 

[Trivun]

Talking about Grammar, here's the only thing I can say:

Spoiler: Awesomeness Abound...

 

[Jharry5]

I've taken English to degree level, and this is the first time I've heard about the split infinitive rule (I'm not sure whether that says more about my listening skills or the UK education system). That sort of thing has never bothered me before. I'm pretty sure that Yahtzee does the 'Press 'X' to not die' thing on purpose...

My own personal grammar peeves are things like confusing 'their/they're/there' and 'where/were'. As long as someone can be understood in everyday conversation, I don't think we all need to speak grammatically perfect.

 

[Sneaklemming]

Wow great observation

 

[TheMatt]

You're and your.

If one more 12 yr old says "your a fag" I might freak out.

Is it my fag? Why do I posses this fag?

 

[xChevelle24]

I'm so tempted to bust out the Grammar Nazi Picture..

Do it, I'd love to see it.

Homework: Tell me what is wrong with the above sentence =P.

1. Please do.

2. I believe it should be: "Do it; I'd love to see it." Am I correct?

 

[Skeleon]

@OP: I really like this construction and I don't feel like it's wrong. That's how I write/speak English, though, mainly by feeling, not based on specific rules.
So I might simply be okay with it because I'm used to it.

 

[McClaud]

Isn't the split infinitive rule a stylistic choice and not an actual rule? Like the rule about not ending a sentence with a preposition. It's not incorrect, it just sounds weird in most cases.

And what's with the Escapist reducing my English spacing [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Double-spaced_sentences] to single spaces?

Nope. They aren't stylistic choices. I'm not sure where one could find proof of the no preposition rule, but I know split infinitives are mentioned in The Elements of Style.

Now to speak to the whole thread. Look, I didn't make this thread to be a jerk, and I almost didn't make it. My grammar is not perfect, but I was simply pointing out a trend I noticed. To me, it is important to have consistent grammar rules by which we communicate, in order to optimize understanding. Of course there are exceptions, like poetry, but I just don't want our communal grasp of the importance of language to slip, mmmkay?

i have that book

So do I, having gone to college at first to be a mass communications major. I find it incredibly boring and emphasizing the more stubborn side of English grammar.

To me, it is important to have consistent grammar rules by which we communicate, in order to optimize understanding. Of course there are exceptions, like poetry, but I just don't want our communal grasp of the importance of language to slip, mmmkay?

The problem being that most people have a problem understanding proper grammar. If a growing majority of people don't use proper grammar and can understand each other, than those that cannot need to learn to change their rules.

That's how this has worked, works and always will work. You cannot force the majority to obey the lesser significant rules of the minority.

 

[rainman2203]

I took a linguistics class not too long ago and if memory serves something become acceptable, (and therefore permissible) in a language when: 1. It is widely used (it is in Star Trek...), 2. People will understand what you are saying. That's how languages evolve, and why we are no longer speaking ye olde English.

That said, I'm sure English has some snooty rules to go around it. English really is the most anal-retentive language out there.

 

[Alex_P]

That said, I'm sure English has some snooty rules to go around it. English really is the most anal-retentive language out there.

But it's not! It's wildly promiscuous. It's just that a bunch of dead people hated that promiscuity and tried to cage it with tons of bullshit rules that good writers have never actually followed.

Just because some jerky academic or stylebook writer says it once doesn't make it any kind of rule.

-- Alex

 

[Alex_P]

Here's what the author of Elephants of Style (a Washington Post copy editor) has to say about the whole thing [http://www.theslot.com/split.html]:

A lot of editors waste a lot of time and energy making editing changes that, if you'll excuse the disgusting imagery, do nothing but shove a rod up the backside of good, conversational writing.

Perhaps the best example of this is the un-splitting fetish. ... Somebody somewhere made up this "rule" because infinitives were never split in Latin. Of course they weren't: In Latin, infinitives are single words.
...
To review: Infinitives and other verb phrases should be written the way they sound best. Good writers are good judges of this; when in doubt, leave it alone.

-- Alex