Common Grammatical Errors

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valentinebaby
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Re: Common Grammatical Errors

Post by valentinebaby »

nibbles2 wrote:
valentinebaby wrote:
nibbles2 wrote: In fairness most of the world drives on the right hand side of the world, it's only the UK and few of it's former colonies that drive on the left.
Really? Didn't know that. I really need to travel.
Or you can just google it. :lol:
Yeah, if you want to do it the inexpensive, easy way. :P
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nibbles2
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Re: Common Grammatical Errors

Post by nibbles2 »

This is something I've seen a couple of times lately - for all intensive purposes. It should be for all intents and purposes.
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Sundae
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Re: Common Grammatical Errors

Post by Sundae »

nibbles2 wrote:This is something I've seen a couple of times lately - for all intensive purposes. It should be for all intents and purposes.
That's a horrible one.

The one that really gets to me is this one:

They arrived at the query a little after dark.

No...it is:

They arrived at the quarry a little after dark.

Quarry and query mean two completley different things.

Anyways, I came here to rant about comma's. So next post.
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Sundae
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Re: Common Grammatical Errors

Post by Sundae »

Commas, commas, commas...sigh...

It's gotten to the point where I will click on a story and immediately back out if I see an author highly miss-use commas in their writing or don't use them at all. A few mistakes, here and there are fine, but when the comma misplacement or lack of use start changing the meaning of your sentences to something other than what you are trying to actually say...yeah, I'm not sticking for that ride.

And it's sad, because...there really are some great writers out here, but it's like I'm having to read your sentences at least three times to figure out what heck you're trying to say and it really takes the fun out of the reading.

So...I thought, I'd put up some examples of how improper comma use (or lack of use) can change the meaning of your sentences.

*She appeared to be a little old lady. << This states: the person in question appears to be an elderly person.

*She appeared to be a little old, lady.<< This states: a person is telling some OTHER lady that another person appeared to be elderly.


*Work, which requires the pledge, is incomplete without it.

*Work which requires the pledge is incomplete without it.

In the first sentence, the word pledge has a completely different meaning than its use in the second sentence. How?

In the first sentence, the author makes you ask a question: Does work require pledge? (And pledge...just by the use of commas means: dedication or hard-work). So based on the the comma usage in this sentence, does work require pledge? The answer is yes! (again ALL based on the comma usage)...And therefore...

The first sentence essentially means this: Work without pledge (hard-work or dedication) is incomplete.

Now, for the second sentence that has NO comma usage. The sentence converts the word pledge to mean something physical (In American terms...The Pledge Of Allegiance.) Therefore...the second sentence basically states: Without the Pledge (or Pledge Of Allegiance), the work is incomplete. Meaning, you cannot complete your work without having a copy of the Pledge of Allegiance in front of you.

The two below...I stole form the internet, but they give you the gist of how comma's can change the meaning of your sentences. One is crude...but sometimes, you just need the shock value, no?

Taken from the book: "Eats, shoots and leaves."

"A panda enters a cafe' . He orders a sandwich, eats it, and then pulls out a gun & starts shooting. When a waiter demands an explanation for the panda's unusual behavior (fortunately no one was killed), the panda hands him a poorly punctuated wildlife guide booklet. The waiter is asked to look up the description of a panda. It reads: "Panda. Large black-and-white bear-like mammal, native to China. Eats, shoots and leaves."


And lastly, my favorite example. Yeah, blame my gutter mind and yours too.

*'Lets eat out Grandma.

*'Lets eat out, Grandma.

I don't think I need to explain this one, do I?

--

I hope this helps someone. lol
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Re: Common Grammatical Errors

Post by Rowedog »

Common - means widespread, normal, ordinary. Also can mean joint when used for something like, "Common Defense" or "Common Interests".

C'mon - is short for come on.

Do not use the former as a way to say "Come on!", no one will know what you're talking about.

The former is only used for it's original meaning and is pronounced quite differently to c'mon.


Also, aww and awe.

Aww - onomatopoeiac word to denote sympathy or when something is cute or adorable. For example, "Aww, that's so cute!"

Awe - A word to describe wonderment and amazement, but not necessarily joyous. It's usually used to describe something more powerful than you, such as a waterfall or a massive storm. Something that fills you with fearfulness, respect or admiration, but not necessarily something that has you jumping for joy. For example, "The Sistine Chapel is awe-inspiring!"

Neither word will substitute in for one another and make sense. "Awe, that's so cute." What you're really saying there is, "Respectful wonderment, that's so cute."

If you're going to use the word awe it usually cannot be said by itself. "I am filled with awe." Or, "That's awe - inspiring."
I think the only time you could use "Awe," by itself is if you get asked the question, "What are you filled with?" or similar.

I've seen these two used incorrectly a few times and it irks me a little.
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nibbles2
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Re: Common Grammatical Errors

Post by nibbles2 »

Yeah, the Aw/Awe one really annoys me.
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Re: Common Grammatical Errors

Post by Sundae »

Does anyone know the difference between "toward" and "towards?"

Like when you use one versus another? I've always used "towards" in writing, but I'm currently reading a book where the author uses both at various times, and I can't figure out how he distinguishes using one version over the other. I've broken down the sentence, but to me, you could interchange both of those versions and the sentence would still mean the same thing.

I looked it up online and found that both mean the same thing and both are acceptable... that it's probably a regional thing, but I find it odd that an author would switch between using the two at various times and wondered if there is a rule to this word?
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