OH another pet peeve... using LIKE. Ugh! My students will begin explaining definition with "it's like a house..." I interupt them and ask "is it a house, or is it only like a house as in a tent?" It takes longer to rid that habit, but it is sooo worth it.
(yes, my classroom is a trip!)
Me too! Me too!
It must be a rural Australian habit, but my students use the phrases, "I seen it" and "I done it". I look confused and say, "You what it?"
Sometimes it takes a few repeats with the student getting louder each time(I seen it) before they either understand or another student gets annoyed and corrects them.
One child said "I writ it" once; I nearly fell off my chair. Wrote! You wrote it! Then I meet their parents and all becomes clear.
Oh mcaulir, you bring back fond memories. I was in Meandarra which, as you know is not far from there. The joys of learning in a school with only 60 children from Pre-School to Grade Seven. Too bad I was only there for a year. I learned more in that year than I did in all the rest of Primary School.
I must admit that I had to find Meandarra on a map. I've only been here two years. There must have been a nutty punctuation nazi teacher there as well!
I do love being out of the city. Every time I drive into a traffic jam in Brisbane, I'm grateful for living in a small town.
There must have been a nutty punctuation nazi teacher there as well!
Do you mean in Meandarra?
She was the best teacher I've ever had. She was so old fashioned. She wore long skirts, stockings, covered in shoes and blouses that showed barely any skin at all. It was 1988 and she was only in her thirties but she still made sure she kept well covered even in the drought!!
Sox-n-Pats, I called a radio station one time to tell them to relay to their news person that a person cannot die twice. They had announced a person had been sentenced to die for a second time, instead of announcing that a person had been sentenced, for a second time, to die.
I agree with all of the previous posts and I also offer my pet peeve of pet peevs: irregardless.
People use it all the time. However, it means the exact opposite of what the user is actually trying to express.
Oh, and not to mention:
Can I ax you something? = No but you can ASK me anything you would like.
It is so nice to be understood by so many! 
Does "an historic" bother anyone else? I can't stand when newscasters talk about "an historic event"!
It is so nice to be understood by so many!
Does "an historic" bother anyone else? I can't stand when newscasters talk about "an historic event"!
YES!!!!!!!!!!!
They don't say "an hurricane" or "an hernia"! 
When I hear someone say "I axed him" I always respond with "was there much blood?"
I teach high school students, and I take marks off for spelling and grammar errors. Yes. Really. I also give them a second chance, if they want to proofread their work and hand it in again. It amazes me how many students will take the lower mark to avoid more work.
I also do mock job interviews (I'm a Career and Personal Planning teacher) with the students. We spend an entire class discussing appearance. I give huge bonus marks to anyone who shows up for their "interview" dressed appropriately.
Unfortunately, once I've drilled the importance of spelling and grammar into their brains, they love to point out any of MY errors! I have to be careful when I give notes, because any mistake will be pointed out with glee!!
Does "an historic" bother anyone else? I can't stand when newscasters talk about "an historic event"!
This has always annoyed me, "an horrific event" being another that we hear frequently on the news.
I looked up the rule, though, and while usage is open to debate, many people use 'an' before an unpronounced initial 'h', like in honor. In the US where you don't pronounce the 'h' in 'herb', using an would be quite acceptable, whereas here, we do pronounce the 'h' and would always say, "a herb garden".
This is where it gets murky. Many people have learned to use 'an' before an word beginning with 'h' whre the first syllable is unstressed, like 'historic' or 'horrific', which is why they often do it on the news.
It still sounds odd to me, though, and I wouldn't do it.
Bad grammar runs rampant! I was watching the movie, 50 First Dates, last night and one of the main characters used "anyways". It is so accepted as a proper word. The other thing that gets me is the misuse of me/I. 
"Jane and me went to the mall". It should be "Jane and I went to the mall.
I agree with all of the previous posts and I also offer my pet peeve of pet peevs: irregardless.
People use it all the time. However, it means the exact opposite of what the user is actually trying to express.
Oh, and not to mention:
Can I ax you something? = No but you can ASK me anything you would like.
I'm so sorry I didn't see this thread until now! Irregardless is a HUGE pet peeve of mine, but so are all of the others listed in this thread.
I'm not a teacher or anything...(yes, I over-use the ellipsis - sorry Mensch, I get what you mean about people using it in place of punctuation, etc. I don't think I do that!) but I am a bit OCD when it comes to writing. And I certainly feel the need to edit everything I read. Misuse of to, too, and sometimes two. Ugh! Their, there, and they're. Should've vs. Should of.
I love Eats, Shoots and Leaves! Lynne Trusse is hysterical. I so relate to her, except I'm afraid to offend others with my strong opinion of proper grammar/spelling.
I recently received two different e-mails from a would-be vendor telling me she would "defiantly" save our company money on our phone bills. My guess is - and I'm not knocking spelling (okay, well, maybe just a little), but I think she thinks there's an "a" in "definitely", she types too fast, and possibly out of order, and autocorrect gives her DEFIANTLY, not once, but two times!! Spell check can't solve all your problems, people!
I forgot 'irregardless" ICK!!! It doesn't even sound right- and I heard it on the news once- and yes, I did call the station.
indydebi- I also emailed CNN one time when they didn't exactly do their research. It was the story about the first Navy carrier to return from the Gulf a few years ago. They were reporting all day; showing the docks with famiy members all waiting with signs and kids and new babies. But they kept saying how all those Navy wifes and Navy servicemen are so happy, etc. for this homecoming.
I seethed for a while and then emailed them- "If you are going to cover the story, you need to make sure you have all the information. There are MARINES on that ship too! Marines serve on every Navy ship. They handle the money, they guard the brig, they guard the weapons cache... and I'm pretty sure those Marines and their families are happy for the homecoming as well. "
within 10 minutes they changed the scrolling along the bottom of the screen and the wording of their reporters and the anchors to Navy and Marine servicemen, or Sailors and Marines.
HUH! My husband was a Marine- don't be dis'n the Marines! 
That has been the only time my husband has been proud of my ranting about the news. He usually just rolls his eyes and walks away.
AverageMom- I teach 4th grade and I'm ruthless with my editing. I take off points for everything! It's quite a shock in the beginning of the year, but they will not leave my class with bad grammar in their writing or speaking. My students even stand when they ask or answer a question or are being spoken too, and they have to answer in a complete sentence that doesn't begin with "because" or "so"!
Gingoodies- the me/I mix ups bug me as well. I teach my students (and some adults) an easy way to remember- if the sentence is Jane and I/me went to the mall, you just have to take out the "Jane and" part- is the sentence Me went to the mall, or I went to the mall- therefore it's Jane and I. The flip is- Dad took my brother and I/me to the mall. Is it "took I" or 'took me"? So the sentence is Dad took my brother and me to the mall.
I've had adults go "AHHHHHHHHHHHH" when I explain.
It is so nice to be understood by so many!
Does "an historic" bother anyone else? I can't stand when newscasters talk about "an historic event"!
YES!!!!!!!!!!!
They don't say "an hurricane" or "an hernia"!
When I hear someone say "I axed him" I always respond with "was there much blood?"
I can understand why some people say and type this, though because there is something about that "n" sound merging with the breathy "h" that does SOUND right. Otherwise it's a really long "a" sound which feels odd.
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The only rule we generally learn in school regarding an indefinite article preceding the letter 'h', is that words beginning with 'h' are always preceded by 'a' unless the 'h' is silent, in which case they are preceded by 'an'.
But, in actuality, there is an extension to that rule that says that 'an' also appears before a word beginning with 'h' if the first syllable of that word is unstressed, whether or not the 'h' is silent. This is why 'an historic event', 'an hysterical woman' and 'an habitual liar' are all correct. The second syllable of all those words has the emphasis. Whereas in 'a helpful friend', 'a handkerchief' and 'a 'harpsichord' all the words have the emphasis on their first syllable.
I just have to share a story that I think you will all appreciate. About a year ago there was a falling out in our otherwise very tight knit friend group. One of the people involved sent a rather nasty email out that was so full of grammatical errors it was hysterical.
Some of the winning phrases from the email were "an innocent bi standard", "the ultimate in inmaturity", "they should be discussed with themselves". I thought that might give some of you a chuckle considering it was authored by a 33 year old financial planner. I hope he's better with numbers than he is with words!
Here's a simple explanation:
If the singular noun ends with an s, add apostrophe s if the extra syllable is pronounced. If the extra syllable is not pronounced (or if it otherwise looks confusing to add apostrophe s), simply add an apostrophe.
Examples: the dress's hem
(Added syllable is pronounced.)
Lloyd Bridges' son
(Added syllable is not pronounced.)
Some authorities always add an apostrophe only to any word ending with s, regardless of its pronunciation. This is acceptable. Whichever standard you follow, be consistent.
Example: the dress' hem
(Word ends in s, pronunciation does not matter.)
This is from www.englishplus.com
Adding the "es" to the end (Willliamses) would be the plural (more than one member of the Williams family)
So, if I may beg your assistance, would this then be correct? "where do you want me to allocate the charge for Victors and Charles memo pads?"
I have such a hard time knowing what to do with his name. Same with my husband. His first name is Chris. So you say, or englishplus.com says, that whatever I do I should be consistent. I can either say Chris' game, or Chris's game.
Here's a simple explanation:
If the singular noun ends with an s, add apostrophe s if the extra syllable is pronounced. If the extra syllable is not pronounced (or if it otherwise looks confusing to add apostrophe s), simply add an apostrophe.
Examples: the dress's hem
(Added syllable is pronounced.)
Lloyd Bridges' son
(Added syllable is not pronounced.)
Some authorities always add an apostrophe only to any word ending with s, regardless of its pronunciation. This is acceptable. Whichever standard you follow, be consistent.
Example: the dress' hem
(Word ends in s, pronunciation does not matter.)
This is from www.englishplus.com
Adding the "es" to the end (Willliamses) would be the plural (more than one member of the Williams family)
So, if I may beg your assistance, would this then be correct? "where do you want me to allocate the charge for Victors and Charles memo pads?"
I have such a hard time knowing what to do with his name. Same with my husband. His first name is Chris. So you say, or englishplus.com says, that whatever I do I should be consistent. I can either say Chris' game, or Chris's game.
My rule book says that all names ending in 's' get another 's' in this situation, except Jesus.
So; Chris's game, Charles's memo pad, but Jesus' disciples.
Different places will tell you different things. I try not to get too insane about this one.
there is something about that "n" sound merging with the breathy "h" that does SOUND right.
Respectfully disagree ..... I think it sounds ridiculous. Doesn't sound right at all to me.
In England (where I'm from) (or is it from where I come..?) posh people say "An hotel", dropping the 'h', so it's "'otel" (French style). They do this with lots of 'h' words, so, in that instance, the 'h' becomes a vowel sound, and the preceeding 'an' makes sense. One interesting exception I can think of is the word 'herbs', which North Americans tend to pronounce "'erbs", whereas Brits pronounce the 'h', and would be beaten in the streets for pretentiousness if they did otherwise.
Just an observation.
One interesting exception I can think of is the word 'herbs', which North Americans tend to pronounce "'erbs", whereas Brits pronounce the 'h', and would be beaten in the streets for pretentiousness if they did otherwise.
Just an observation.
Ha! Beaten in the streets...
I always find that Martha Stewart sounds pretentious because she pronounces it with the "h". Or maybe it's that she just sounds pretentious! JK - love Martha!
...but Jesus' disciples.
Seriously? Jesus is so special he gets a grammatical rule all to himself?! Now, that's cool!
Now that's funny, Tubbs!
Thanks, mcaulir! I'll never forget that. That is for sure!
Ok, this may have been discussed already, but I just grit my teeth when I read how "krazy kool my decorated kake is". SHEESH!! Just because it SOUNDS like it should start with the letter "K" doesn't mean that it DOES start with the letter "K". Enough alreeady! 
Ok, this may have been discussed already, but I just grit my teeth when I read how "krazy kool my decorated kake is". SHEESH!! Just because it SOUNDS like it should start with the letter "K" doesn't mean that it DOES start with the letter "K". Enough alreeady!
I also dislike deliberately 'wacky' alliteration.
Ok, this may have been discussed already, but I just grit my teeth when I read how "krazy kool my decorated kake is". SHEESH!! Just because it SOUNDS like it should start with the letter "K" doesn't mean that it DOES start with the letter "K". Enough alreeady!
I also dislike deliberately 'wacky' alliteration.
I won't do business with companies that promote illiteracy. I take it WAY too serious.
As a volunteer with our school system back home, I looked over some stats in a meeting (remember, Debi Does Data!) and asked if they noticed anything about the reading levels and the child care classes? No, they couldn't see a correlation.
I pointed out that 80% of the students enrolled in the high school child care classes, meaning their chosen vocation was going to be taking care of our children, were reading at or below at 8th grade level. The blank stares on the administrators and teachers faces forced me to explain, "This means the kids you are training to take care of our children, can't read the directions on a bottle of cough syrup or a bottle of aspirin."
I take illiteracy serious.
I was searching some recipes and came across one that listed "3 tsp" of something.
Uh, 3 tsp = 1 Tbsp. 
Even the 15 year old girls who worked for me last summer knew my mantra of "time is money". I am not paying you to scoop something 3 times in a teaspoon, when you can scoop it once in a tablespoon.
I've "edited" cookbooks before and this is the kind of stuff I'd red flag before it went to print. This drives me up a wall! Please use proper measurements!! (i.e. "one capful" is not a measurement. You're assuming the size of the bottle I'm using.)
And while we're discussing recipes, DON'T use the name brand of something .... use the item description. (i.e. don't say "2 cups of Prego". List is as "2 cups of spaghetti sauce".) The reason is that 50 years from now, Prego may be out of business and my great-granddaughter will have no idea what great-gramma Debi was making because she doesnt' know what Prego is. I've also seen recipes in which the ingredient was a regional item, not available here in Indiana, so not only was it not available, but I had no idea if it was peanut butter or taco sauce.
My Pet Peeve is when People here and other places use codes: CC, DH, BC, RI
My goodness, for a beginner, do you have ANY idea how hard it is to understand instrucations or what anybody is trying to explain. I picked up on BC and RI.. I THINK CC is Cake Central. DH? HD - Health Dpt.
Urrrrggghhh......
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