Shadow Play #1. Near Moab, Utah, 2013
I was never an English major and am no expert on the topic, but there are a few things that I have been taught over the years about the language that, when violated, make me hear hard, long fingernails being dragged down an old-fashioned blackboard.
To wit:
1) Less vs. Few. Less money, few dollars. Less wheat, few grains. Less stuff, few items. Get it. “Less” is for one big, singular unit of stuff while “few” refers to a number of individual things. So, the checkout counter sign should say, “15 items or fewer.”
2) Regard vs. Regards. “Give my regards to Broadway.” That is how you use “regards.” In regard to the Off Topic blogs, I love them! That is how you use “regard.”
3) Myriad. Myriad = Many. So…You say, “There are myriad reasons for not reading the Off Topic blog entries.” Not, “There are a myriad of reasons…”
4) Is vs. Are. “Is” is for singular nouns and “are” is for plural nouns. Do not say, “There’s two reasons why I don’t like Off Topic blog entries.” Nor would you say, “There’s two cars in the Mike’s Camera parking lot.” Would you actually write it down as, “There is two reasons why I…”? Or, “There is two cars in the Mike’s Camera…”? No! You would say there are two reasons…there are two cars…” Now, when a noun is collective–like crew, couple, team, and so on–it can get complicated. Usage then will depend on whether your intent is to consider the noun as one unit (singular verb), or as various separate elements (plural verb). Example: The Brits often say, “The team are on the field.” (Team as various players–thus, plural verb.) In the USA, we may say, “The team is on the field.” Team as one unit–thus, singular verb.)
5) There/Their, to/too, your/you’re. There must be a way of easily catching their mistakes, right? Pay attention! I, too, slip up when I’m typing too fast. Just proof read your work if you’re too fast on the keyboard.
6) You and I, you and me. Just take out each one and try the sentence to see if it works. For example: “You and me against the world” (You against the world/Me against the world. It works!)
7) Irregardless. It’s not a word. Well, OK, you’ll find it in some dictionaries, but it is still considered nonstandard English.
8) Done vs. finished. A cake in the oven is “done.” People are “finished” when they have completed a task–even eating.
9) Good vs. well. “I am not feeling well is correct”–not, “I am not feeling good.”
I am sure there are many errors that I commit on a regular basis–but I do try to look things up when I have doubts. Always learnin’ dontcha know! What are your pet peeves?
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