Spelling/Grammar pet peeves

[websterhamster 203]

The thing that gets me the most is "of", when used as a phononym for the contraction of "have": could of, would of, should of. It feels like people who write this way never paid attention to language arts in elementary school, or they're writing phonetically. Argh, 'tis very annoying!

[Envy 6,004]

To be honest, I'm more annoyed by people putting too much focus on spelling/grammar errors than I ever am any spelling/grammar errors themselves. I've especially felt this way since one time at another forum. A member asked a question and slightly misspelled a rather obscure hard-to-spell word in their post (I believe it was actually a show-specific term, as well). Another member responded, but instead of answering the question, they rudely pointed out the (I repeat, slight) spelling error and said "I will not respond to your question until you fix that spelling error".

 

So incredibly rude, and the staff didn't even punish the member in any way, shape, or form.

 

Fact of the matter is that I've never even seen an unreadable post in my entire life, and I've read a lot of posts on the internet. Either my reading ability vastly exceeds that of everybody else's (that, I very much doubt), or people are being jerks for absolutely no reason.

 

With that said, there is one thing that always annoys me (but not enough to point it out), and that is when topic titles are not capitalized. I've always felt that topic titles should be capitalized and stuff, because that's proper and makes them look professionally posted. xD Yeah... "professionally", sorry couldn't think of another word.

[sunne 656]

@, 

Oh, I'm right there with you.


When people don't know how to stick with a consistent tense.
"Twilight Sparkle was reading in her library. She grins as she was about to try a new spell. Her horn glows with her magic aura and suddenly there was a duplicate of herself, standing in front of her."
KEEP A CONSISTENT TENSE PEOPLE.

[VanellopeSofia 32]

I just hate hearing people hearing people say, for example:

"Do you want to talk English"

I don't even know if this is wrong or not but I think "Do you want to speak english" sounds infinitly better. Also "Lie-berry" as oppose to "Lie-Brary" when refrencing a library

[Dark Qiviut 22,181]

There's no such word as "alot." There's "a lot" and there's "allot."

That does annoy me a bit myself. I see it too much, and "a lot" isn't all THAT hard to spell, so it baffles me when it gets constantly misspelled.

 

But one incorrect spelling annoys me much more since I first saw it in 2005: "noone." It's spelled "no one," and it's not that hard to spell correctly. But instead of it going away, the mistake is now much more commonplace.

 

Others include "U," "Ur," and "U'r" unless it's in a status update, chatroom, or a Tweet. When there's so little space, I let netspeak slide.

 

———

 

Also, I see WAY too many Americans place the comma or period after the closed quotation mark. In American punctuation, too many do "this", or "this". The comma and period always go inside the quotation mark, "like this," or "like this."

 

Unless you're writing a story where exclamation points, question marks, etc. are required to be placed inside the quotation mark, this peeve doesn't apply.

Edited October 4, 2013 by Dark Qiviut

[Jelly Raindust 35]

 

 

Armor is Armour. Color is Colour.

 

color=American English

colour=British English


Barely
Barley
Hardly

Welcome to teh 'Barley' Community! --recommended for fanfic users. *thumbs up*

[Malinter 3,064]

 

color=American English

colour=British English

 

 

Barely

Barley

Hardly

 

Welcome to teh 'Barley' Community! --recommended for fanfic users. *thumbs up*

 

 

American English, British English.

 

For some reason the scene from Austin Powers where he asks his father to speak "English English" came to mind.

 

I've actually used the term 'billy no-mates' in converstaion beforexD

[Miss Mechanical 88]

I don't mind when people make spelling mistakes, I mean it's not their fault, they didn't do it on purpose.

as long as they don't type lik dis nd make it so hrd 2 reed.

[notdog1996 315]

I don't mind when people make spelling mistakes, I mean it's not their fault, they didn't do it on purpose.

as long as they don't type lik dis nd make it so hrd 2 reed.

 

Well, for me, they don't need to do much to make it hard to read.  Errors with your and their can make me confused a lot.  I'm not a native English speaker so I may be more sensitive to this sort of thing.

 

Also, to respond to the others who talked about this one.  I write color, armor favorite ect.  It just sounds better for me.  I don't know which Canadians say normally but that's how I learned it.  Also, reading colour makes me stop because I don't know how you're supposed to pronounce it.  I guess it's the same but I always think about the french ''ou'' that sounds like ''oo''.  Lastly, I heard about grey and gray.  Which one is said where?

Edited October 4, 2013 by notdog1996

[Kyoshi Frost Wolf 40,378]

I just remembered another one, thanks dad! This one frustrates me so much because it literally makes no sense.

 

Using the word 'nothing' in place of 'anything'. Example: "I haven't done nothing!" With this sentence, you are trying to say you have not done ANYTHING but instead you are confirming the exact OPPOSITE. This is so frustrating to hear because it is just stupid and completely incorrect, simple as that.

 

Also, it reminds of another thing that bothers me, but not AS bad, the lack of the 'ing' sound in words by some people. With my example above, they usually say it like this: "I haven't done nothin!"

 

FAIL. Ugh, that frustrates me a lot. A very lot.

[Brony Number 42 9,970]

Bad grammar grinds my gears more "then" anything else. Making typos is forgivable. But not even knowing the words at all is unforgivable. If you were raised in an English speaking country and went to school, then there is no excuse for not knowing how to write. Know the difference amongst:

your, you're, yore

then, than

their, there

alot (not a word), allot, a lot (as was mentioned in the first post)

too, to

its, it's

 

I also forgive short cuts in text messaging, because it is hard to type on a phone, bc its hrd 4 u 2 type on a phone n the msgs r meant 2 b short. Fine. But if you have a keyboard then have the courtesy to write out your words.

 

I also hate the use of numbers in place of words. I have seen signs on cars "4 sale". What does that mean? Is there a 3 sale and a 5 sale? Or "Left 4 Dead." What an odd title. Is that because there are four characters in the game? Then shouldn't the game be called "Left 4 Alive"?

 

Or how about: 20 items or less. Or less what? Is that like "20 items or else?" I assume they mean: 20 or fewer items.

Edited October 4, 2013 by BronyNumber42

[long gone 8,929]

People using "u", "ur" and other textspeak on the Internet. This is not a cellphone people, this is a computer! Textspeak isn't even necessary anymore, even on phones. How hard is it anyway to type out "you" and "your"?

 

Pretty much everything listed already in this thread too.

[Master Blade the Bearded 112]

The occasional misspelling/grammar mistake is forgivable. It only becomes a problem when it is habitual.

Oh, and on the texting note: No mercy. It is no trouble for me to use correct spelling and grammar while texting, so it can't possibly be that difficult for you. Yes, I know this is a fallacy, but I don't care.

 

"Milk, eggs, and flour." Okay, this is more of a personal pet peeve, because that's supposedly the expected form in the States, but it looks bloody weird to this colonial! "Milk, eggs and flour" is the form I expect -- no comma before the conjunction.

To my understanding, both are correct. Anyway, I would rather have an overuse of commas than an underuse.

Example:

[Silver Letter 1,830]

On one hoof, I don't expect Americans to get English right because it's a foreign language but on the other, I think if you are learning a foreign language and using it, it's best to respect it and use it properly if possible. It means that one should learn the proper way to speak. And many Americans are taught English at a younger age so they should have a lot of time to learn it correctly, despite its foreign nature.

[sunne 656]

Once, I saw someone spell "Married" as.... This is truly horrible...

"Mereyd"
...

REALLY?! I mean, come ON! Mereyd? Do you REALLY think it's spelled MEREYD?

... Humanity disappoints me sometimes.

[Sweet Dreams 1,893]

I hate a simple grammer mistakes. They make you're posts looks really stupid......

And you's now whats really annoying. When people start sentances with conjunctions. But whats worse is when people think would've is short for would of. If I were them, I would of taken a better look at the words.

One word sentances are also stupid.

Idiots.

[decoherence 183]

Busy busy busy day at work. I've been skimming the thread dying to write replies! Finally I have some time to myself, to please forgive the length or this post! (because y'know.... normally my posts are so short and concise!)

 

 

 

When people don't know how to stick with a consistent tense.

 

I often have to watch myself with this. Because my writing is often takes a conversational tone, and in spoken conversation it isn't uncommon to spontaneously 'take the role' of a subject in order to add a kind of expressiveness. For instance "decoherence was walking down the street, not seeing the flower pot plummetting towards him. BAM his head's stove in!" Despite describing an event that happened in the past, switching to present tense lends the story a sense of immediacy. This conversational technique has to be used very carefully and sparingly or it will annoy the crap out of the reader. My example here actually isn't very good ^^;;

 

 

 

When people say "I seen him yesterday" instead of "I saw him yesterday". It drives me bucking crazy

 

I think the difference with spoken grammar is that you can constantly gauge the listener's reaction and clarify or change your phrasing based on that. The rules for grammar in casual conversation are far less important than when you are writing for an unknown audience, imho.

 

 

 

To be honest, I'm more annoyed by people putting too much focus on spelling/grammar errors than I ever am any spelling/grammar errors themselves.

 

I agree with this completely! Unless the grammar is so bad that you think there is a chance you might misinterpret what is being said (in which case, one can politely ask for clarification) don't be a schmuck!! I have dealt with completely broken grammar in emails and help tickets when I was working a tech support job. I can't fix a problem if I don't understand what it is. Quite often the only thing to be done is to call the person and actually have a conversation with them.

 

 

 

Lastly, I heard about grey and gray. Which one is said where?

 

'Gray' is most common in American english, though either spelling is usually acceptable anywhere as long as you are consistent.

 

 

 

Using the word 'nothing' in place of 'anything'. Example: "I haven't done nothing!" With this sentence, you are trying to say you have not done ANYTHING but instead you are confirming the exact OPPOSITE. This is so frustrating to hear because it is just stupid and completely incorrect, simple as that.

 

You chose an interesting example of a double negative -- one that I would consider almost legitimate due to its irony. Think back to the old gangster stereotype, where a seemingly uneducated criminal is implying that he did not commit a crime while actually saying he did. Then, when he got busted, they couldn't get him on lying to the police because "Well I wasn't lyin', copper!"

 

 

 

Also, it reminds of another thing that bothers me, but not AS bad, the lack of the 'ing' sound in words by some people. With my example above, they usually say it like this: "I haven't done nothin!"

 

Well, dropping the 'g' in written form is a stylistic choice used for effect. Dropping the 'g' in spoken form is often part of an accent. If that bothers you, never go to Newfoundland or you will be driven batsh*t crazy!

 

 

 

Or "Left 4 Dead." What an odd title. Is that because there are four characters in the game? Then shouldn't the game be called "Left 4 Alive"?

 

4 Left Alive -- if you're good!

 

 

 

On one hoof, I don't expect Americans to get English right because it's a foreign language but on the other, I think if you are learning a foreign language and using it, it's best to respect it and use it properly if possible. It means that one should learn the proper way to speak. And many Americans are taught English at a younger age so they should have a lot of time to learn it correctly, despite its foreign nature.

 

I don't understand how English is a forgeign language to Americans, unless you're making the point that American english isn't the same as English (the language of England.) I can buy that, but in that case why should Americans care about speaking this foreign English properly? Many of them can't even speak American english properly! (Just as many people in commonwealth nations can't even speak the "Queen's English" properly!)

[Silver Letter 1,830]

 

 

I don't understand how English is a forgeign language to Americans, unless you're making the point that American english isn't the same as English (the language of England.) I can buy that, but in that case why should Americans care about speaking this foreign English properly? Many of them can't even speak American english properly! (Just as many ponies in commonwealth nations can't even speak the "Queen's English" properly!)

It's foreign because it comes from a foreign nation. As for why they should speak it correctly, it shows respect. If you are going to speak a foreign language then you should learn how it is spoken.

[Ihei 711]

FINALLY! It's about time this thread was made!

 

Alright, this mostly occurs on the Internet in roleplays, specifically. When there are new roleplayers, they often have horrid grammar and I try to ignore that. But I HATE it when they don't use periods or at least put the second quotation mark over and over again!

 

Next, when people misuse "there" and "they're." For example, "There in the closet." 

There's a difference! 

 

I hate those acronyms and those texting shortcuts. "U, GTG, BRB, etc." It annoys me somehow, there's really nothing wrong with them but it just.. it just gets on my nerves.

 

And here so ends my rant.

[decoherence 183]

I hate a simple grammer mistakes. They make you're posts looks really stupid......

And you's now whats really annoying. When people start sentances with conjunctions. But whats worse is when people think would've is short for would of. If I were them, I would of taken a better look at the words.

One word sentances are also stupid.

Idiots.

Starting a sentence with a conjunction is pretty well accepted in informal writing. In fact, the most legitimate use of the technique is to imply a kind of informality. I agree that it's annoying when overused. One word sentences are also used for effect, the most common use case being to create impact, which you illustrated nicely. Of course, it has been a long day and it could be that some jokes and whooshing over my head

 

What annoys me is when people inappropriately start a sentence with "Well," or "So,". This is another example of conversational style writing. A good use case for starting with "Well," would be if you were asked "Why is your hair like that!?!?"

 

"Well, the barber had tremors and I'm lucky to still have an ear."

 

I can't think of a good use case for starting a sentence with "So,". With everything I can think of, the "So," is completely superfluous and only stylistic. But like I said, it's been a long day and I'm tired. Can anyone else think of a good usage?

It's foreign because it comes from a foreign nation. As for why they should speak it correctly, it shows respect. If you are going to speak a foreign language then you should learn how it is spoken.

 

Are you saying Americans should speak English as it is spoken in England? How about the rest of the English speaking world? By your standard, English is foreign to any country that isn't England. Do you not expect those countries to get it right, either? Do you make a special exception for the colonies?

 

How well does your average Briton speak English? I think it's kind of unfair to pick on the Americans -- English is one of the most varied languages going, from a geographic standpoint. Newfies don't speak like Kiwis. Canadians don't spell it 'tyre' or have 'boots' on the back of their cars. I'm still not sure I understand. What exactly are they supposed to be respecting? The language? The country?

 

Anyway, I'm exhausted and I think I'm getting a little cranky, so apologies if I bit anyone's head off for no reason! Good night and keep the grammars going! Whatever the heck that means....

Edited October 5, 2013 by decoherence

[Yellow Diamond 7,564]

Has anyone mentioned "comprised of" yet? That is a frequent error one can find even in academic circles. (To elaborate on the error, "comprised of" would be the equivalent to "encompassed of." You can encompass, or comprise, something, but you can't be encompassed of it.) It usually shows up when someone means to say "X is composed of Y."

 

"Couldn't care less" versus "could care less." The two are used interchangeably. If you could care less, however, then you are implying you still have some form of investment in the issue, even though you mean to say you do not.

 

 

 

I can't think of a good use case for starting a sentence with "So,". With everything I can think of, the "So," is completely superfluous and only stylistic. But like I said, it's been a long day and I'm tired. Can anyone else think of a good usage?

 

It can establish a more conversational tone to the discussion, perhaps breaking up an otherwise dense sequence of thought. Otherwise I can't think of an immediate instance where "So" would be necessary to begin a sentence.

[Silver Letter 1,830]

 

 

Are you saying Americans should speak English as it is spoken in England? How about the rest of the English speaking world? By your standard, English is foreign to any country that isn't England. Do you not expect those countries to get it right, either? Do you make a special exception for the colonies?

 

How well does your average Briton speak English? I think it's kind of unfair to pick on the Americans -- English is one of the most varied languages going, from a geographic standpoint. Newfies don't speak like Kiwis. Canadians don't spell it 'tyre' or have 'boots' on the back of their cars. I'm still not sure I understand. What exactly are they supposed to be respecting? The language? The country?

I think that Americans need to remember that they don't own English. It isn't their language so I wouldn't necessarily assume that any American would know it or have a greater grasp of the language. I would not expect the same for any nation. Maybe not even England since it has other languages spoken there as well. I think it is disrespectful to the language when you manipulate it. I wouldn't manipulate Japanese. That would be wrong. It's not my language. I'm speaking the language of a different nation. It's the same with English.

[decoherence 183]

Has anyone mentioned "comprised of" yet? That is a frequent error one can find even in academic circles. (To elaborate on the error, "comprised of" would be the equivalent to "encompassed of." You can encompass, or comprise, something, but you can't be encompassed of it.) It usually shows up when someone means to say "X is composed of Y."

 

Good one! 'Comprised of' is redundant. It's like saying "composed of of."

 

 

 

It can establish a more conversational tone to the discussion, perhaps breaking up an otherwise dense sequence of thought. Otherwise I can't think of an immediate instance where "So" would be necessary to begin a sentence.

 

Yes! It can be used as a more conversational form of 'ergo' or 'hence' if you have been explaining something and want to draw the conclusion or make the 'punchline' for lack of a better word.

 

As I grow more tired, it gets harder for me to make intelligent conversion. So why am I not asleep yet?

I think that Americans need to remember that they don't own English. It isn't their language so I wouldn't necessarily assume that any American would know it or have a greater grasp of the language. I would not expect the same for any nation. Maybe not even England since it has other languages spoken there as well. I think it is disrespectful to the language when you manipulate it. I wouldn't manipulate Japanese. That would be wrong. It's not my language. I'm speaking the language of a different nation. It's the same with English.

 

But English is constantly manipulated and molded to suit specific geographies. If a large group of Japanese left Japan and started their own nation, I would fully expect them to 'bastardize' it to suit whatever differences they felt they had compared to the 'mother' country.

 

I think we'll just have to agree to disagree on this one. Respecting a language strikes me as a romantic notion -- the purpose of a language is to facilitate communication. American english isn't so far removed from English that a Brit can't communicate with an American.

 

However, I can see the point that in changing the spelling of words so they make more phoenetic 'sense,' Americans distance themselves from the origin of the word and thus may lose some appreciation for its nuance or history. But I consider that a practical issue. Maybe we mean the same thing but are just coming at it from different angles?

Edited October 5, 2013 by decoherence

[Azura 1,107]

Some people type out infomation what it should be information. It's just those small things that annoy me.

 

If only everypony had perfect grammar..

[decoherence 183]

Argh! I can't sleep now! Okay, here's the thing about English. It changes, constantly. We don't say "thou art" anymore, we say "you are." We don't write 'auld' anymore, we write 'old.' So what exactly is it the Americans are supposed to be respecting? Whatever iteration of English the Queen happens to speak? And should their English move in lockstep with whatever English the British monarch is using? Or should the Americans be respecting the English 'the rest of us speak' because there is no such language! Like I said before, Newfies don't talk like Kiwis. Canadians don't use the same spelling or even the same words as Brits. And now I'm going off topic in my own thread! ARGH! I feel like I'm getting trolled here.

 

Someone please knock me out with a bat. Cricket or baseball -- I don't care!