Sometimes the issues with English conventions and usage in these forums feels like an itch I can’t scratch because I don’t want to be a jerk and tell people their spelling sucks. So I decided to scratch that itch here by showcasing a few common errors on these forums in the hopes that a few of my fellow homebrewing enthusiasts will notice the next time they use the wrong “your.” Please feel free to add to this list.
Lose ≠ Loose. Your loose grip on spelling will make me lose my mind.
Your = belongs to you, You’re = you are. You’re unfortunate if your K-12 education didn’t teach you this rule.
Pallet = the wooden shipping platform that gets carried by a fork lift. Palate = a person’s appreciation of taste and flavor, among other things.
There’s = there is, There’re = there are. There’re many reasons why you should learn proper English contractions, but there’s always one dummy who forgets how to contract.
I was an English major and have written plenty of legal documents as a lawyer. When its appropriate my grammar can be perfect. Here I don’t want to bother with all that. If people understand what I’m saying its all good, and life is certainly too short for others’ grammar to bother me.
If anything I’m surprised, given the percentage of posts probably written under the influence, by how solid the communication is here. The grammar is not always perfect but its always easy to understand.
I’m an English teacher, and I agree with Pete. For the most part, the level of communication on this forum is very good. I almost never have a hard time understanding what posters are saying.
Also, as an English teacher, I know that one can turn people off very quickly by pointing out their minor mistakes. I never correct anyone’s grammar unless he or she asks me to.
You’ll be hard-pressed to find any errors in any of my writing. Some laziness, perhaps, such as the lack of a proper subject in this very sentence. But that’s about it. Also note: I write a hell of a lot more fancy than I speak in real life. My speech is chock-full of “yeah”, “uh-huh”, “nope”, and swear words.
To Denny and Drew: my favorite curse words start with s— and b----. My real favorite that I use at least once a month is “son of a mother ------- wh—”. I’ve always wanted to tell you guys that.
I think this is a forum about homebrewing. If there is a proper English forum you may want to seek it out and discuss your grievances. I for one could care less if someone doesn’t practice proper English during informal conversation. You may call it what you will, but I would bet you a round of beer that you wouldn’t correct someone at a bar. What’s the point of doing it here?
I would say (and I know that I’m in the minority on this by a wide margin) that the ongoing trend of “it doesn’t matter, as long as I get the point across” only leads to lower expectations of everyone all the time. It doesn’t take much more time to just try a little and make things much better. Must we always lower the bar?
(I know, I’m just a grumpy old man and should accept it and shut up)
I get it, but sometimes it just not worth it. People in my office can’t compose a proper English sentence in business communication so perhaps my expectations have been lowered.
That said, I do my best. And I restructure my sentences to avoid the dreaded apostrophe.
If you want to get heated, let’s argue about how to pronounce “Pliny.”
It’s informal conversation, and to me that gives anyone a little wiggle room. You point out an author that doesn’t need an editor and I will point out a unicorn.
I agree. ‘Conversational’ should be the name of the game here. I tend to read and reread my posts at least 3 times for spelling and grammar, but even then I sometimes have to go back and edit a post. Some sloppiness irritates me here but it is rare. Sometimes I can’t even discern what a post is attempting to say.
I will agree that there are plenty of people that couldn’t find a coherent sentence with two hands and a flashlight, but in the end if I understand what the person is saying, it’s not worth being a grammar nazi.
