Mangling the english language (Page 2): Right....blame it on the teachers. If you are concerned as to what teachers (I am a retired biology teacher!) are doing....then get your carcass...

leftyD500 Loc: Ocala, Florida

chase4 wrote:

We (that would be you and I) probably have no idea... (show quote)

Right....blame it on the teachers. If you are concerned as to what teachers (I am a retired biology teacher!) are doing....then get your carcass in the schools and observe what they are teaching. I cannot begin to tell you how many times I, in class, would INSTRUCT my students about the usage of "their, there, and they're," or "which and witch," or "break and brake," or "grate and great!" This is just a partial list, the actual list is much too long to post on here. But, guess what...it mostly went for naught! An old former colleague of mine, coined a great saying in response to all the "GURUS....THE EXPERTS" who have not been in a classroom for decades that would come into our schools to tell us how to be more effective teachers, that phrase being "NOTHING IS GOING TO WORK UNTIL THE STUDENTS DO!!"

Effjayess Loc: NE,Pennsylvania

Corolyn wrote:

Whenever I see a word used incorrectly it makes me... (show quote)

What drives me absolutely crazy is: people who manage to fit the word"like" between every other word in a conversation. And the other is people who start every sentence with " yeah no" when I think they are trying to say " as I've said before" I can't stand it grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr.

Sweet Willie Loc: Texas

What is worse is when you know the language and have nothing intelligent to say.
Sweet Willie

DJ Mills Loc: Idaho

Corolyn wrote:

Whenever I see a word used incorrectly it makes me... (show quote)

I'm with you. May I add "less" and "fewer" to the list? Example: Broadcasters have forgotten "fewer" and say things like, "There are less fans in the stadium today," or "we will have less rain showers this week."
DJM

tradio Loc: Oxford, Ohio

Sounds like another "Big Shot" using words to communicate

dennisallard Loc: Southern Maine

I'm glad somebody decided to vent on that subject. One that annoys me is when somebody writes "I should of..." instead of "I should have..." But what I see on UHH is nothing compared to Facebook. That site makes my eyes burn.

PRETENDER Loc: Micanopy,Florida

English never was my favorite subject. i do listen with more intensity when a person sounds like they might know what they speaking of.

taz Loc: Alabama

Bangee5 wrote:

I try to be careful with MY spelling and MY use of... (show quote)

Finally.... thoughts about what is truly important in life. The state of the heart, not proper pronunciation/grammar is what makes the person. However, some people are easier on the soul to listen to

Florida2117 Loc: Melbourne, FL

Double negatives such as "Don't do nothing" are things I don't like. You don't know if they want you to do something or not.

clanmack Loc: Asheville, NC

Corolyn wrote:

Whenever I see a word used incorrectly it makes me... (show quote)

My bugaboo is using "that" in place of "than" in comparative sentences, e.g. "He is better that I am at using the English language." Jsut bceusae t bgus us desno't maen we are agrornat!

jerryc41 Loc: Catskill Mts of NY

Corolyn wrote:

Whenever I see a word used incorrectly it makes me... (show quote)

It can be frustrating, especially when it is written by someone who should know better. When I see bad spelling and grammar on a web site, it weakens my confidence in that site.

As for our educational system, that is largely a product of the public. Parents complain and demand certain things, and the Boards of Education give in. Every school turns out students who graduate from top universities and go on the do great things. They also turn out students who don't make it through graduation and go from one low-paying job to another.

You've heard about leading a horse to water, right? Our kids can get a free education that was better than what was available to royalty a few hundred years ago, yet they would rather have fun than learn.

We are all responsible for our actions.

nikon_jon Loc: Northeast Arkansas

Corolyn wrote:

Whenever I see a word used incorrectly it makes me... (show quote)

I have a few too (also). One I find particularly annoying is "Camera for sell" instead of sale. It is not my intention to flagellate anyone here, but the quality of education just isn't there like it was when I was young.

I have noticed that many mispronunciations, or is that mispronounciations, haha, come from the fact that people are not taught to actually LOOK at a word so they can see all the components and pronounce it correctly.

And, my last rant, look at the news media. My local TV station now pretty much blocks my emails because I have frequently reminded them about mispronunciation and misuse. One reporter asked me what the big deal was. I told him that since he had been to college and people assume that since he is in the public eye he is doing it right, when in fact he is doing it wrong, they think that is the way to do it.

Example; we had a news anchor who says "the helicopter was 'hoovering' over a spot, instead of hovering. Mmmm, flying vacuum sweeper, eh?

jerryc41 Loc: Catskill Mts of NY

dennisallard wrote:

I'm glad somebody decided to vent on that subject. One that annoys me is when somebody writes "I should of..." instead of "I should have..." But what I see on UHH is nothing compared to Facebook. That site makes my eyes burn.

You have to realize, too, that when people make entries online, they're not presenting a doctoral dissertation. It's just a quick comment to get a thought across. Many people here are using smartphones and tablets, so typing can be a challenge.

I'm using a keyboard, so my mistakes have no excuse. :oops:

PNagy Loc: Missouri City, Texas

"My paricular bugbear: "Loose" instead of "Lose".

Bangee, yes is does matter because those two words have completely different meaning. If I were an employer looking at a CV of a potential employee and I saw a mistake like that, they wouldn't get the job. I demand a certain standard of literacy."

In your penultimate statement there is both singular and plural reference to a singular noun -potential employee-.

PNagy Loc: Missouri City, Texas

Effjayess wrote:

What drives me absolutely crazy is: people who manage to fit the word"like" between every other word in a conversation. And the other is people who start every sentence with " yeah no" when I think they are trying to say " as I've said before" I can't stand it grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr.

How about "you know.?" If I know, I do not need millions of reminders. A related one is, "know what I'm sayin'?" Are those who sprinkle this into every line accustomed to being misunderstood?