PX EliezerPremium
join:2008-08-09
Hutt River
kudos:12 Reviews:
 ·voip.ms
·callwithus
·Callcentric
·Vitelity VOIP
·Optimum Voice
·Gizmo5
1 edit | reply to B
Re: netTalk tk6000 said by B:Nah! Even 30 years ago that would have been a stupid, unrealistic, and excessively obscure rule. I suspect it was made up by patronizing grammarians with too much time on their hands. Everyone can "remember" how to "keep this pair straight" by... knowing what the damn words mean! I respectfully disagree.
As I said, we all make errors in daily usage, but to see basic errors in legal documents, and in articles in major newspapers, is indicative of the slow death of the language.
This carelessness has already resulted in loss of the rather different meanings of "infer" and "imply".
The process is currently occurring with regard to "wary" and "weary".
Language evolves. Telefacsimile became telefax and then simply fax. (Moderator: That's our VoIP connection  )
However, in that case, there was no loss of precision or clarity.
I agree with the following comment which was recently posted on a site (not "sight") related to education in Ireland:
"...Sometimes I cringe when I see that the best paid teachers in Europe write "to" when they mean "too"; "their" when they mean "there" and vice versa; "click" when they mean "clique" and so on.
To me, that doesn't seem like someone's typing in a hurry and doesn't bother dotting the i's and crossing the t's. That seems like many teachers don't know the difference, and that's both worrying and embarrassing..." |
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BPremium,MVM
join:2000-10-28 | Err, ironically for two people patting their own backs for being precise with language, I'm not sure where we disagree.
I'm not contradicting anything you've said. My only issue was with the rather ponderous and questionable "substitute main or rule" technique of trying to keep straight the distinction between the words "principal" and "principle".
I'm saying the right way to honor that distinction isn't by memorizing silly mnemonics, but by memorizing the meaning of the words one is choosing to use...
-- B
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In a realm outside causality and function |
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PX EliezerPremium
join:2008-08-09
Hutt River
kudos:12 Reviews:
·voip.ms
·callwithus
·Callcentric
·Vitelity VOIP
·Optimum Voice
·Gizmo5
| said by B:I'm saying the right way to honor that distinction isn't by memorizing silly mnemonics, but by memorizing the meaning of the words one is choosing to use... -- B Agreed.
Well said. |
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