I could write about many more than 10 words that make bloggers seem dumb, but let's keep it simple to start. 🙂
I recently heard a CNN broadcaster use the word ‘orientate', and she was NOT discussing a map, or its orientation.
Grrr… How VERY wrong.
Incorrect word and grammar usage frequently frazzles my brain (and others with average English language skills) to the extent that we lose the overall message while we ponder how the speaker or writer managed to graduate from grade school, let alone university.
Note: My grade school comment does NOT apply to those who blog in English as a second language.
I admire you!
However, it IS worth your time to learn the lessons below. 🙂
As for all you native English speakers – here's a review…
- Irregardless – NOT a word, despite the fact that some dictionaries include it, for the following reasons:
- Containing the suffix ‘less', regardless already means ‘without regard'.
- Adding the negative prefix ‘irr' to regardless, is therefore redundant.
- Moreover, ‘irr' nullifies the existing ‘less', making it a double negative.
- Ergo, ‘irregardless' actually means ‘with regard', yet those using it typically mean to say (write) regardless.
- Orientate – The word is ‘orient'. The only time ‘orientate' or ‘orientated' is acceptable is when referring to the orientation of a map to its compass points – BUT ‘orient' will suffice and simplicity always works best.
- Ironical – Use ‘ironic'.
- Conversate – Use ‘converse'. We don't conversate, we converse.
- Lie vs. Lay – Instructing your dog to ‘lay down' is going to confuse him as he wonders ‘lay WHAT down?'. The correct phrase is ‘lie down'. Lie means ‘to recline', whereas ‘lay' means ‘to place'.
- It's / Its – Apostrophes seem to pose problems for many bloggers. ‘Its going to rain' is wrong. It's is the contraction for ‘it is', therefore ‘it's going to rain' is correct. ‘Its' on the other hand is possessive pronoun, indicating that ‘it' owns something, e.g. ‘its name'. By the way, never use Its'.
- There / Their / They're – They are over ‘there' at the river and ‘they're' getting ready to go canoeing.
- Than / Then – Than is a conjunction used in comparisons. That hamburger was more than I could eat. Then is an adverb usually denoting time. They are coming at Christmas, we'll see them then. Then can also mean in addition or in that case. If you plan to ski, then you'll have to buy tickets.
- Your / You're – Your is possessive – that's your hat. You're is the contraction for ‘you are'.
- Accept / Except – Accept is a verb that means “to receive, admit, regard as true, say yes.” His application to Stanford was accepted. Except is a preposition that means “excluding.” I know everyone here except the fellow standing in the corner. I can't accept this gift.
OK, go ahead, find all the bloopers on my blog and I'll correct them. 🙂
Did you find this post informative and useful? Do you have pet peeves about grammar and word usage? If so, please share it with others! If you have a comment, question or suggestion, please post it below!
Cheers,
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Gee! Hope I’m not making the same mistakes, though English is my second or even third language. Anyway, good to know all these things. Thank you!
Nice post. I nglish speakers making these mistakes. One that I see very often is the use of effect when they really mean affect
For some reason my previous comment was deleted in part, but the idea is there 🙂
Hi Alex,
Yes, when I see people using those words improperly it affects my view of their intelligence. 🙂
Cheers,
Ros
A very common misuse of words I hear from news broadcasters is real instead or really. Real is an adjective, as in a real Rolex watch not a fake, and really, an adverb, as in a really fast car.
Good advice. I notice a good number posing as a MARKETING GURU or authority, who will write things like ” If your like most people…” or “your in luck!” (instead of you’re) This is obviously shocking to see in sales pages and associated emails. I think everyone is in so much rush that they fail to bother about it too much. Everything is quantity over quality for many. Or is it just poor education?
Let’s face it, everyone makes the odd typo or spells something wrong, that’s forgivable. But consistent poor grammer is an embarrassment, and makes you question the credentials of the author. Do I want this chap teaching me how to make a living?
Sorry for the typo in my last post — it should have said “in a homily” not “us a homily”.
Ros,
I have to agree with you-specifically with the “your/you’re” error. I am amazed at how many adults & teenagers just run with this error in their writing eg. Your my favorite friend.
What insults me as a reader, are those “wealthy” gurus, who sell all kinds of information products etc. and their sales letters have so many grammatical errors BECAUSE they are too cheap or REALLY don’t make enough money to hire a good proof reader, for crying out loud!
Ahhhgggrrr!
Hi Ros,
I compulsively reply to emails that use bad grammar and I correct it for them. I’m pretty sure the recipient won’t be appreciative but I do it anyway. One of the most common is “very” unique. The misuse of lay and lie kills me. Also, further and farther. It’s as though the word farther doesn’t exist. What about that Ford commercial that tells people to “Go Further”. I can’t take it any more. The pronoun “we” is another that has fallen into obscurity.
One of your respondents used the word “irregardless”. I don’t know if he were being ironic or just missed your list of murdered words. And the commonly misused “was” and “were”. I wish I were going, not was.
Now I might be totally wrong on this point but shouldn’t the title name in the above comments say: So and so “said” not “says”? I’m just saying! 😉
That’s it for now. Thanks for the opportunity to vent!
Peter
Thanks for the smiles, Peter.
Yup, your examples are all pet peeves of mine as well.
Right now though, the worst is using the word ‘got’ to mean ‘have’. It’s become so much a part of the language that they are actually using it in commercials and I cringe every time I hear it. Sounds SO clumsy and uneducated!
Cheers,
Ros
Is this an intentional joke?
“One of your respondents used the word “irregardless”. I don’t know if he were being ironic or just missed your list of murdered words. And the commonly misused “was” and “were”. I wish I were going, not was.”
I started cracking up with the misuse of “were” in the first sentence, but with the subsequent criticism of “was” and “were” misuse, I started choking! :-}
Paul
I’d just like to remind folks that there ain’t no sich word as “alright,” and there ain’t no sich word as “snuck,” and there ain’t no sich word as “sich.”
Thanks for the reminder, Brett! LOL!!
I am glad you wrote this article…and everything/every word that you wrote makes me grit my teeth also. I recently got a job doing very interesting things but there is one word the employers have ‘coined’ which REALLY irritates me! The employees all seem to think nothing of it but the word is ‘notate.’ They all use it as a verb, as in ‘make a note of,’and it drives me CRAZY! Every time someone asks me ‘did you notate that’, I want to correct them SO MUCH! i KNOW IT’S A SMALL MATTER BUT IT DRIVES ME BONKERS!
Thank you for letting me vent, that felt GREAT!
NOTATE? Are you serious? I’d be bonkers too! Frothing at the mouth.
Tell ’em what you think and KNOW. 🙂
Cheers,
Ros
As a young Mexican American in the early fifties I had a hard time learning the English language.
So many rules and words that have the same meaning but are different.
For example, foot is it a measure or an appendage? You are right, or is it a direction?
There are many more examples but I think you and your readers are smart enough to know what I’ve been through.
Paul
Hi Paul,
I hear you. My dad was Polish and he had an extensive list of strange English synonyms.
Thanks for sharing.
Cheers,
Ros
Two words that I and others have fun with are SHALL and MUST.
Must = a requirement that is absolute. With no ands ifs or buts.
Must be of correct age to get your drivers license.
Shall = is either pass tense or future tense.
We shall rewrite the agenda in the near future.
I am amazed at how many professionals like property managers, doctors, and many others that misuse these two words. Along with the way they write letters and notices.
My mother told the story that when her mother was dying, she (the dying one) became agitated and tried to get out of bed. Mom told her, “Lay down, mother!” To which my grandmother replied, “Chickens lay eggs, people lie down.” Though I don’t think those were her dying words, in certain family circles we claimed that they were. How’s that for a lifelong grammarian?
But I do think that’s a great way to remember lay vs. lie.
Many things influence the writting styles we see today. Personality type is one of them. Carl Yung and Meyers Briggs Personality theory give much insight. Guardian and Idealist Personality types seem to be the most annoyed by such petty errors in English Rules. J type Guardians and J type Idealists are instructors at most schools. These types seem most annoyed at petty things. ENTP’s and INTP’s are rational types that are annoyed at such errors. Neurology is another part of the equation. Writting and language are complex proccess that take place in the brain. Many people assume this skill set takes place with in the mind. The reasons are countless as to why people write in the manner that they do. The real question is, why does it matter so much to the people on this blog?
The point of communications in general is to convey a message from
one contact to another, period. English is a “standard set of rules” that seeks to use words from many languages and incorporate it into one over all system. This is in part why English seems so hard and confusing for most people. I wonder if it is the writting that bothers people here or is it the breaking of rules and traditions that seem bother so many?
Why does it matter to you how others write? To me it is a waste of time. If the message written or spoken conveys the intent of the writter or speaker why should it matter how it is structured? Texting would illustrate this idea perfectly. How many people use “Correct English” in Text messages? Many people do not bother. Why? Because of time and because of simplicity. Grammar and structure is not as important as most people think. Why? Because, you can still proccess the information, the brain fills in the missing parts. Example:
If I writ n a wy u dont like dosnt mean its wrong. Just different. Grammar and structor was disregarded in the above illustration yet the message was still understood. We are who ever we choose to be not what others one us to be. Just something to ponder.
I could insert a bunch of squiggles and pictures, and some people would probably be able to decipher my meaning. But most wouldn’t. We have a set of agreed-upon rules for grammar, spelling, and so forth, in an effort to find uniformity, so that communication is (A) easier to perform, and (B) easier to understand.
Your sample of this above is a perfect example. It *can* be deciphered by some. Many others will disregard it completely because it looks like gibberish. So, yes, by the rules of grammar and spelling, it most definitely *is* wrong. You may not care, just as you may not care about a speed limit on a certain road, but that does not change reality.
If you wish to reach the maximum audience possible, then it behooves you to pay heed to the rules that govern the printed word.
Hi Ros,
In your next article on this subject, will you please include the incredible misuse of the pronouns myself, yourself, itself, etc.? It has become so commonplace to misuse these that it seems to be accepted. I hear it so often I want to scream!!!
Thanks for your always great articles!
Hi Maria,
So perhaps you’d like to write that article for us? 🙂
Cheers,
Ros
Ros
Orientate is commonly used in the UK in place of orient. See the Oxford Dictionary online to verify if you wish. To use orient instead of orientate in the UK would make you sound odd.
Hi Lauren,
Thanks for the info! Learn something new every day! 🙂
Cheers,
Ros
One thing that was not written about in your article is spinners. I have looked at a few of them. To rewrite an article it may take you 1/2hr., with a spinner it may take you a lot longer and most of the time it may still be garbage.
Now people english is getting bad due to use of 140 characters. We furgot to spill.(forgot,spell)
Good Day, Mike
PS: I have both of your Super Affiliate Handbooks.
I clicked out of a site in disgust last week after a short period of time. The page was full of broken English, grammar issues and misspellings. I could even tell the nationality of the person and could hear their accent as I was reading. It was kind of funny. Just because people can understand you when you talk and you can get your point across, it’s not the same when you write. People have a tendency to not be very forgiving when reading content on a blog/website. There are so many people just throwing up websites/blogs to make money that they don’t even take the time to care about the presentation. If your English isn’t good or you know you have a problem, at least do a spell-check and have someone proof it for you. Take some pride in what you’re putting out there for the world to see.
Hi Gloria,
Thanks for sharing and I couldn’t agree more. Filling the web up with trash – like the stuff I see showing up in the spam comments section on this blog – makes me furious. It’s such a waste of time for everyone.
Cheers,
Ros
Hi Ros, I’m new to you and to your website but couldn’t resist chiming in here on the subject of “orientate.” I’m wondering if that broadcaster was perhaps British because . . .
“The Oxford English Dictionary and the Merriam-Webster Dictionary list “orient” and “orientate” as verbs meaning the same thing. Which one you choose to use really just comes down to local preference. To a UK reader, “orient” may well sound non-standard, whereas “orientate” may sound clumsy to a US reader. Other parts of the world will have their own preferences. The key thing to remember is that both forms of the verb are generally acceptable.” http://www.dailywritingtips.com/do-you-orient-yourself-or-orientate-yourself/
Personally, I always use “orient” since I’m American but in England “orientate” is standard.
Hi Joy,
Thanks kindly for the information about ‘orientate’. I obviously had no idea. Strange too, considering I’m Canadian and we usually take the British path when it comes to language. 🙂
Cheers,
Ros
What’s the deal with WhiteSmoke? Your links aren’t working and when I searched it on Google I found lots of warnings about WhiteSmoke being a malware program. Also my antivirus program blockes the website whitesmoke.com.
Hello Markku,
Thanks for alerting me to the problem with Whitesmoke. They are listed as ‘temporarily closed’ on the ShareaSale network. I wish I had an alternative to share with you.
Cheers,
Ros
I have a few.
One is the misuse of the word “so.” It is abused to a ridiculous extent. Saying, “I am so excited.” If you’re excited, you’re excited. Saying “I so want to go to Disney World.” Huh? Or perhaps “That is so not cool.”
Another quickie. Supposably instead of supposedly.
One more. Anxious vs eager. Misused a lot! Anxious=bad. Eager=good. I was anxious about going inside the haunted house. I was eager to get the project started.
Hi, I have always been amazed at native speakers having trouble writing and speaking properly in their own mother tongue. If you can’t write in your own language, what CAN you do? Many of the people who speak English as their mother tongue can’t speak any other language either, and they expect everyone else to speak English. I know of a few who are even outraged if the foreign person has an accent. Ignorance and arrogance – a really bad combination. I think your post will be useful even for English teachers to show their pupils what the most common mistakes are out there.
I was just catching up on some reading and found your post. Rosalind, you are speaking straight to my grammar obsession. My kids would laugh, since they hear my grammar corrections every day. Here’s a few more to add to your list:
Complement vs. Compliment. Having run a wedding ecommerce site for the last year, this one drives me absolutely crazy. You can’t even begin to imagine how many times I’ve had to correct product descriptions that talked about how a certain wedding favor “complimented” the theme, or how one color “complimented” another.
Good vs. Well. It’s the old adverb vs. adjective battle here. I’ll never forget the time my son’s 1st grade teacher told me he was doing “real good” with his reading. No thanks to her!
Adverbs in general. Where have they gone? Uh oh, I’m starting to sound like my mother, so I’d better stop my rant. Guess I’d better work on building up my blog so that I can vent there instead.
Thanks for the reassurance that I’m not the only one out there who cares about the English language!
Sharyn
I, like many people, still get confused with affect and effect. I think we could all use a brush up course on that one.
Ah yes definitely agree with this article. I would like to add these:
•Would of instead of would have and every other word similar
•looser or loose instead of loser/lose
I have found many people writing ‘sell’ instead of ‘sale’. Or vice versa. i.e. I haven’t had many sells lately, but I would really like to sale something.