Biggest Grammar Pet Peeve - featuring Amanda!

featuring AMANDA from

Long before I became an English teacher and claimed my language nerd status, my biggest grammar pet peeve was cemented. To this day, nothing makes my brain hurt more than seeing people mistake your for you’re or you’re for your. These two words are so different in meaning that no one would make the mistake of switching them, if people bothered to take a second to think about what they are saying.

You’re is a contraction of you and are. You is a pronoun and are is a verb. Together they create the two most important parts of any English sentence: the subject and the verb.

Your is a possessive adjective. Adjectives describe nouns. You all know what nouns are.

I am sure a lot of people think a mistake is harmless. I mean, people still know what you mean, right?

WRONG.

You've been warned.

I found this story on a blog called Grammar Vandal. While I am personally not interested in going around and correcting people’s grammar unless they have asked me to do so, this post caught my attention. Perhaps you will agree. It’s called, “She got what she deserved.” Click the link for the full post. What I am most interested in is here:

This is my new favorite entry on my new favorite Web site, fmylife.com:

"Today, I was flirting via text with a coworker. Things started getting heated, and I wanted to send her a sexy picture. I asked if she had any suggestions. She said, “Your nuts!” She meant, “YOU’RE nuts.” I sent her a photo of my junk. I offended a co-worker with incriminating evidence. FML"

Okay. We know this guy isn’t the sharpest tool in the shed. Anyone knows you don’t send naked pictures to someone you barely know. And I’m going to assume that these two people are over the age of 18, because if not, that’s a different issue altogether. Assuming they both are above the age of consent,

That girl got exactly what she deserved.

She mixed up “your” and “you’re” and thus was blinded with an image of the least attractive part of the male anatomy, an image that will likely stick in her mind for quite a long time.

Unfortunately, the FML link no longer works. But I think you get the idea. If getting pictures of some guy’s man parts interests you, by all means, continue making the your/you’re mistake.

As for me, I will continue using knowing the difference between your and you’re as my unofficial intelligence or “person worthy of my time” test. Crazy and judgemental of me, maybe. But it hasn’t led me astray yet.

It is how I got my boyfriend of five years, after all.

* Many thanks to Amanda for being amazing, helping me out, typing up this hilarious post and creating the spiffy Language Nerd button. She rocks, as always. You need to go check out her blog. Here, here and here.

Did you know?

It's "I feel nauseated."

NOT

"I feel nauseous."

If you didn't, now you know!

Nauseous : Causing nausea; sickening.

Nauseated : To be feeling, or having been caused to feel nausea.

I'm featured!

Today you can find me over at Amanda's blog, On a Book Bender, for her very first Who am I Stalking? feature. Come check out my answers to her bookish/grammar questions!

Don't worry. She's not really stalking me. I think.

Grammar Bit #13.

Semicolons

When do you use them?

When a comma just isn't good enough!

Typically a semicolon is used for a discontinuity or pause.

It sits between two independent clauses (sentences that can stand on their own),

without the use of a conjunction (and, but, or).

EX. I have a date tonight; I cannot run errands.

The semicolon brings together two independent clauses that are related.

If you want to learn the fun way, check THIS out!

Grammar Bit #12.

It's vs. Its

It's = It is.

EX. It's raining outside.

Meaning, It is raining outside.

Its (with no apostrophe) = possession.

EX. I love its cover.

or

I judge a book by its cover.

Meaning, I love the cover, which belongs to a book.

&

I judge a book by the cover that belongs to it.

Grammar Bit #11.

THEN vs THAN

Then refers to time.

Than refers to a difference in comparison.

EXAMPLES (THEN):

It snowed during lunch, then stopped.

I was in better shape then.

Brittany cut in front of me, then Michelle, and then Tina.

EXAMPLES (THAN):

I would rather walk than run.

She had nothing to do other than study.

Rather than wait for the bus, I took my car to work.

He is younger than me.

Grammar Bit #10.

Homophones:

Words that sound the same but differ in meaning.

Common errors:

Except vs. Accept

They're vs. Their

You're vs. Your

Effect vs. Affect

Too vs. To

* Except is to exclude. (Everyone was invited to the party except me.)
   Accept is to agree, receive, consent. (I accept the terms and conditions.)

* They're = They are. (They're going to the movies.)
   Their = possession/ownership. They own. (That is their DVD.)

* You're = You are. (You're going to be late.)
   Your = possession/ownership. You own. (Where are your books?)

* Effect is a noun. (The special effects looked really cool.)
   Affect is a verb. (Losing my wallet affected my good mood.)

* Too is to also. (I like reading books, too.)
   To expresses motion or direction. (I am going to the library.)

Grammar Bit #9.

Prepositions.

* They introduce prepositional phrases and show relationships between nouns and pronouns.

** Here is a list of prepositions.

It is, at times, okay to end a sentence with a preposition.

EX. What did she sit on?

It is okay to end the sentence with the preposition "on" because without it the sentence does not make sense. You could not say What did she sit?

If the sentence does not change when the preposition is removed, it is better to remove it.

EX. That's where she's at.

If you pull apart the contraction "she's" you get "she is," which can sufficiently end the sentence. "At" is unnecessary.

EX (without preposition). That's where she is.

Prepositions can also be unnecessary within a sentence.

EX. He was pushed off of the edge.

The preposition "of" in the above example is unnecessary.  When it is removed, the sentence still makes sense.

EX (without preposition). He was pushed off the edge.

Grammar Bit #8.

Numbers.



Write out single-digit numbers.

EX. One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine.

For 10+, use numerals.

EX. 10, 11, 12, 13…

Don’t mix and match!

Incorrect: I have five socks and 20 shoes.

Correct: I have five socks and twenty shoes.

Grammar Bit #7.

Quotation Marks.

Always put a comma or period inside quotation marks, even for single quotes.

EX. The paper said "Do this," but the teacher said, "Do that."

If a question is inside quotation marks, then a question mark goes inside the quotation marks.

EX. He questioned, "Does she know my name?"

If the question is not within the quote, then the question mark goes outside the quotation marks.

EX. Do you believe in "love at first sight"?

If a quote has a quote within it, use single quotation marks.

EX. She exclaimed, "But Betty said, 'I hate you!'"

Grammar Bit #6.

Trouble with apostrophes?

Use an apostrophe to make a noun possessive.

EX. That is Jill's book.

Meaning, the book belongs to Jill.

If the noun is plural and ends in s, just add an apostrophe.

EX. The writers' books were fun to read.

Meaning, there is more than one writer.


If a name ends in s, add an apostrophe and s.
* This rule varies. Some argue it's perfectly fine to add just an apostrophe, without the s.

EX. That is James's tie.

Grammar Bit #5.

Common spelling mistakes.

It's a lot, not alot.

It's all right, not alright.

It's definitely, not definately.

It's separate, not seperate.

It's weird, not wierd.

It's lose (to express you have lost something), not loose.

It's its (to express possession), not it's (which means it is).



Don't worry, we're all guilty of using one of these at one time or another.

Grammar Bit #4.

Who or Whom?

Use Who if it can be replaced with he, she, they, or we.

EX. Who is reading?
[He] is reading?
[She] is reading?
[They] are reading?
[We] are reading?


Use Whom if it can replaced with him, her, them, or us.

EX. The patient whom I diagnosed was shy.
I diagnosed [him].
I diagnosed [her].
I diagnosed [them].
I diagnosed [us].

One Lovely Blog Award & Grammar Bit #3.

Tina, from Book Couture, passed along the One Lovely Blog Award to my blog. So with this, I send her many, many thanks. And also, I hope, more readers. Her blog’s rather new, but it’s fabulous – check it out!


Here’s how it works:

1. Accept the award, then post it on your blog with the name of the person who has granted the award and his or her blog link.
2. Pass the award to 15 other blogs that you’ve newly discovered.
3. Remember to contact the bloggers to let them know that they have been chosen for this award.

------------------------------------------------
I’m going to hope there’s no repeats listed here, but carefully scanning each blog to see if you’ve previously won the award makes me a little cross-eyed. Some of them are old finds, some new finds. Either way – repeats or no repeats, new or old – these blogs deserve the award!

1. writer, reader, dreamer.
2. would you like some tea?
3. Trisha’s Book Blog.
4. A Tapestry of Words.
5. Bookspeak.
6. Emilie’s Book World.
7. Oh My Books!
8. Pages of my Life.
9. Planet Print.
10. The Paperback Princess.
11. Une Parole.
12. Bibliophilic Monologues.
13. Down the Rabbit Hole.
14. The Book Girl.

------------------------------------------------
And yes, another Grammar Bit!



Lie or Lay?

Lie is to recline.

EX. I lie on the ground.

Lay is to place or put.
An object must always follow lay because it is a transitive verb (requires both a subject and one or more objects).

EX. I lay my book on the coffee table.

News & Grammar Bit #2.

I’ve been passed along the Versatile Blogger Award again! Many thanks to Jill, from Nymfaux, and Danya at A Tapestry of Words! Be sure to check out their blogs.

You can check out my original Versatile Blogger Award post here.


--------------------------------------------------------




In other news, Trisha at Trisha’s Book Blog has started a weekly post, titled Link Your Reviews. It’s a new, collective way to see reviews that you might have missed. If you follow a lot of blogs, you know how difficult it is to keep track of each and every posted review passing through your Blog Updates. So Trisha’s weekly Linky allows any blogger to add any of their reviews so fellow bloggers can stop by, scan the list, and find a review for exactly what they’re looking for.

There’s a few reviews already posted, including one of my own, but Link Your Reviews needs more promotion, so stop by!


--------------------------------------------------------

Lastly, I’ll leave you with a Grammar Bit!




i.e. or e.g.?

i.e. is an abbreviation for the Latin phrase, meaning “that is.”
It follows a statement to indicate that there will be an explanation following.

EX. I read ten books in a week, i.e., five per day.

It is most commonly misused in following a statement to list examples.

EX. I like animals, i.e., dogs, cats, horses…


e.g. is an abbreviation for the Latin phrase, meaning “for example.”
It follows a statement, used in place of the phrase, “for example.”

EX. An eclectic reader enjoys many genres, e.g., YA, Fantasy, and Sci-Fi.

Grammar Bit #1.

As if my blog’s header wasn’t enough of a clue, I’m a total grammar fanatic that avidly promotes the use of proper grammar. As both a writer and reader, I can’t help but fixate on grammar in all its various forms. Without it, our words and stories are jumbled, chaotic messes in need of both direction and organization.

So call me a stickler, but grammar matters.

Every now and then, I’m going to be posting Grammar Bits – short, helpful and/or interesting grammar tidbits. Although I believe in the importance of grammar, I do not believe in the technique of overloading readers with long lists of grammatical errors and ways to fix them. I will not be doing that here. I’d rather have someone take away with them one thing about grammar – and possibly learn from it – than feel as though they can’t be bothered to scour a never ending list.

Also, because Grammar Bit is a new addition to my blog, feedback is most definitely welcome!

---------------------------------------------




A colon (typically) follows a complete sentence.
Note - I say “typically” because there are, of course, other uses for colons – separation between a novel’s title and subtitle, citing biblical passages, etc.

EX. I have one word for you: zombies.


When used incorrectly, a complete sentence does not precede the colon.

EX. I like a lot of books and they are: Twilight, Harry Potter, etc. etc.

“I like a lot of books and they are” is not a complete sentence, and therefore a colon should not be used directly after.