Your single biggest grammar pet peeve?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My grammar peeves have been covered, but a sort of grammar-adjacent peeve I have in is making something possessive when it shouldn't be. Example, "I'm going to stop by Nordstrom's after work." It's just Nordstrom. If they wanted it to be Nordstrom's they would have named it that like Bloomingdale's and Macy's.

Oh yea I said that and victoria secrets for Victoria’s Secret.

But luckily I say I’m going to Nordstrom rack and it fixed it

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I belong to a writing group. I hate it when people comment on grammar and punctuation instead of focusing on the story.

I believe it was Emerson’s cousin who said “nitpicking about grammar is the hobgoblin of a little mind”.

No he said…

A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds, adored by little statesmen and philosophers and divines

That just means if you can’t point to a politician or anyone actually who hasn’t changed his stance on a subject he’s probably dim.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The towels "need washed" or the baby's diaper "needs changed." I understand this is a regionalism but it sounds so uneducated.

It's a PA thing (central and western, specifically). I agree that it's annoying, though I recently learned that particular construction is based on German grammar rules. Given the influence of German immigrants on PA, that's not surprising.

Generations later it’s not really an excuse for people who can’t speak German.

Absolutely. I just think it's interesting where it came from since I just assumed it was some sort of hillbilly/Pennsyltucky thing.

It's very specific to that region then. My grandmother was a German speaker in the midwest. She never said "needs washed."

I grew up in eastern Wisconsin, which is incredibly German, and I associate "this needs washed"/"this needs changed" with Pennsylvania. I don't hear it much when I'm in WI.

I've come across the omission of "to be" in Ireland and the west of Scotland. Could it be connected with Irish verb/infinitive construction at all?

[Anonymous]

Not using “an” before a word starting with a vowel - an apple, not a apple.

[Anonymous]

When a cute photo is on social media and someone comments, “Awe!”

To be in awe of something means you are amazed. When you think something is cute, you mean “Aww.”

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The towels "need washed" or the baby's diaper "needs changed." I understand this is a regionalism but it sounds so uneducated.

It's a PA thing (central and western, specifically). I agree that it's annoying, though I recently learned that particular construction is based on German grammar rules. Given the influence of German immigrants on PA, that's not surprising.

Generations later it’s not really an excuse for people who can’t speak German.

Absolutely. I just think it's interesting where it came from since I just assumed it was some sort of hillbilly/Pennsyltucky thing.

It's very specific to that region then. My grandmother was a German speaker in the midwest. She never said "needs washed."

I grew up in eastern Wisconsin, which is incredibly German, and I associate "this needs washed"/"this needs changed" with Pennsylvania. I don't hear it much when I'm in WI.

I've come across the omission of "to be" in Ireland and the west of Scotland. Could it be connected with Irish verb/infinitive construction at all?

The Appalachians are full of Scot-Irish.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The towels "need washed" or the baby's diaper "needs changed." I understand this is a regionalism but it sounds so uneducated.

It's a PA thing (central and western, specifically). I agree that it's annoying, though I recently learned that particular construction is based on German grammar rules. Given the influence of German immigrants on PA, that's not surprising.

What I have learned most in this thread is that DCUM people are just now learning that we have different regional dialects and don’t all speak exactly the same language.

Generations later it’s not really an excuse for people who can’t speak German.

No, the rest of us just grew up and realized that our "regional dialects" were poor grammar and corrected our errors. If you know better, why do you want to sound uneducated?

+1
I live in an area that says "on accident" and no way am I letting my kids repeat that.
Though I have had a good think about it and we do say "on purpose" and not "by purpose". But on accident just sounds ignorant.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My grammar peeves have been covered, but a sort of grammar-adjacent peeve I have in is making something possessive when it shouldn't be. Example, "I'm going to stop by Nordstrom's after work." It's just Nordstrom. If they wanted it to be Nordstrom's they would have named it that like Bloomingdale's and Macy's.

It’s even worse when people refer to “Aldi’s.” There is no Mr. Aldi!!!! I believe that ALDI is an acronym.

I dislike that too. One of my neighbors always says "Costco's," and it drives me nuts.

I will also add another peeve, which is people who randomly capitalize letters. I work in government and regularly observe this style in letters from constituents. For example, "We must correct this Injustice. Action is required to Stop this interference with our Basic Rights." Why?

[Anonymous]

When people put a qualifier with “unique”, which means one of a kind so it cannot be compared. It is incorrect to say very unique or a little unique or less unique. It’s just unique.

Also forte is pronounced without the e, like fort.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:When people put a qualifier with “unique”, which means one of a kind so it cannot be compared. It is incorrect to say very unique or a little unique or less unique. It’s just unique.

Also forte is pronounced without the e, like fort.

Huh? Tell that to a musician.

[Anonymous]

My DD texts me in all lower case letters. Unless you’re e.e. cummings, don’t do this.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The towels "need washed" or the baby's diaper "needs changed." I understand this is a regionalism but it sounds so uneducated.

It's a PA thing (central and western, specifically). I agree that it's annoying, though I recently learned that particular construction is based on German grammar rules. Given the influence of German immigrants on PA, that's not surprising.

What I have learned most in this thread is that DCUM people are just now learning that we have different regional dialects and don’t all speak exactly the same language.

Generations later it’s not really an excuse for people who can’t speak German.

No, the rest of us just grew up and realized that our "regional dialects" were poor grammar and corrected our errors. If you know better, why do you want to sound uneducated?

Then we should all be speaking British English. Or maybe our English is actually closer to “right” for some arbitrary point in time to decide when evolution should stop? Or maybe we should speak the English of Beowulf?

Language evolves, especially spoken language. There are absolutely rules to written language, but we have the ability to change our language to express ourselves differently. In fact, of European languages, English may be unique in the way you can manipulate it to create complex nuance and subtleties.

Maybe if you were better educated you’d know that and not be so focused on tsk tsking on a list of memorized no-nos.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:When people put a qualifier with “unique”, which means one of a kind so it cannot be compared. It is incorrect to say very unique or a little unique or less unique. It’s just unique.

Also forte is pronounced without the e, like fort.

“Both the one- and two-syllable pronunciations of forte are now considered standard.“

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The towels "need washed" or the baby's diaper "needs changed." I understand this is a regionalism but it sounds so uneducated.

It's a PA thing (central and western, specifically). I agree that it's annoying, though I recently learned that particular construction is based on German grammar rules. Given the influence of German immigrants on PA, that's not surprising.

What I have learned most in this thread is that DCUM people are just now learning that we have different regional dialects and don’t all speak exactly the same language.

Generations later it’s not really an excuse for people who can’t speak German.

No, the rest of us just grew up and realized that our "regional dialects" were poor grammar and corrected our errors. If you know better, why do you want to sound uneducated?

Then we should all be speaking British English. Or maybe our English is actually closer to “right” for some arbitrary point in time to decide when evolution should stop? Or maybe we should speak the English of Beowulf?

Language evolves, especially spoken language. There are absolutely rules to written language, but we have the ability to change our language to express ourselves differently. In fact, of European languages, English may be unique in the way you can manipulate it to create complex nuance and subtleties.

Maybe if you were better educated you’d know that and not be so focused on tsk tsking on a list of memorized no-nos.

Imagine hating yourself so much you won’t even say simple phrases that are dialectically common where you grew up because you’re so desperate to come across as some bland, featureless, non-regional bot.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My grammar peeves have been covered, but a sort of grammar-adjacent peeve I have in is making something possessive when it shouldn't be. Example, "I'm going to stop by Nordstrom's after work." It's just Nordstrom. If they wanted it to be Nordstrom's they would have named it that like Bloomingdale's and Macy's.

It’s even worse when people refer to “Aldi’s.” There is no Mr. Aldi!!!! I believe that ALDI is an acronym.

I dislike that too. One of my neighbors always says "Costco's," and it drives me nuts.

I will also add another peeve, which is people who randomly capitalize letters. I work in government and regularly observe this style in letters from constituents. For example, "We must correct this Injustice. Action is required to Stop this interference with our Basic Rights." Why?

Random capitalization is often used by Trump, so maybe they are Trumpers following his lead.