Words that people commonly use incorrectly ...

[Kal]

...Also, the word "party" is a noun.........not a verb.

In one profession, it is a verb.

 

[3kids4me]

I didn't read the whole thread (which is probably someone else's pet peeve...lol!) but has imply versus infer been covered?

I also like when the "you're" and the "they're" are used correctly.

I remember participating in a thread like this once before though, and some crabby person jumped on all of us for caring about grammar. However, I maintain that I have the right to care as long as I don't correct the person misusing the words. I do think that misspelled words and poor grammar can really affect things like your job progression in many professions, so I personally would want to know if I had used a word incorrectly.

 

[AwayWeGo]

Word Derivation.

I personally would want to know if I had used a word incorrectly.

-- hotlinked --
Peter Schickele
(discoverer of P.D.Q. Bach)​

As Peter Schickele once said (on radio), "It really bugs me not to know the entomology of a word."

-- Alan Cole, McLean (Fairfax County), Virginia, USA.​

 

[Kal]

...I maintain that I have the right to care as long as I don't correct the person misusing the words. I do think that misspelled words and poor grammar can really affect things like your job progression in many professions, so I personally would want to know if I had used a word incorrectly.

If I receive a written piece from someone (particularily on a business level) and it has incorrect grammar and bad spelling, I consider the author as not credible. I just about always disregard the entire message. I can only assume it will be very difficult for the author to be successful in the business arena.

On a personal level we might just consider the author as intellectually challenged and look for other better qualities.

With verbal communications where a person constantly uses extraneous "connector terms" (e.g. YOU KNOW), I just start counting the "YOU KNOWS" and ignore the actual message. Football players commonly use these bridges to avoid dead air time while they think of the next sentence.

 

[thetimeshareguy]

Being an editor by profession, I enjoyed reading this message thread (though not in its entirety...it's getting long!). I heartily agree with some of the words on people's lists.

This is a bit off spec, but in addition to misused words there are overused words, often ones that don't mean much in the first place.

One of the tops among these is the word "basically" as in "Basically, the problem here is..." or similar. The word adds nothing to the sentence or thought -- it's just a stalling tactic while the speaker or writer ramps up to say something.

The very worst is "absolutely" which I think should simply be banned, especially among folks who work in the news or TV/radio media. I've laughed out loud (or cringed) when some interviewers or their subjects ask a question and the answer, instead of being "yes" is "ABSOLUTELY" over and over. Argh!

So, basically, is that all I have to contribute? Absolutely!

 

[T_R_Oglodyte]

One of the tops among these is the word "basically" as in "Basically, the problem here is..." or similar. The word adds nothing to the sentence or thought -- it's just a stalling tactic while the speaker or writer ramps up to say something.

As I posted earlier in the thread my pet peeve unneeded words are "in order" in the phrase "in order to …" "In order" can always be dropped without changing the mean.

[In order] to see this, look at this very sentence.

The very worst is "absolutely" which I think should simply be banned, especially among folks who work in the news or TV/radio media. I've laughed out loud (or cringed) when some interviewers or their subjects ask a question and the answer, instead of being "yes" is "ABSOLUTELY" over and over. Argh!

When I edited technical reports, I pounced on adverbs that in any way related to amount or degree. "Completely", "nearly", "almost", "mostly", "hardly", … I red-lined those with a requirement that the writer quantify the assertion with appropriate data or information. If the writer couldn't quantify the statement, then I presumed the writer didn't have the evidence to back the statement.

When I made an effort to reduce my use of those adverbs, I found that it not only sharpened my writing and speaking, it made me more cautious about what I exprressed and more aware of situations where I was proceeding to make conclusions lacking adequate information.

 

[AwayWeGo]

I Totally Agree. Absolutely.

When I edited technical reports, I pounced on adverbs that in any way related to amount or degree.

You are totally entirely majorly hugely infinitely exponentially bigtime pretty much correct, sir.

-- Alan Cole, McLean (Fairfax County), Virginia, USA.​

 

[T_R_Oglodyte]

When I edited technical reports, I pounced on adverbs that in any way related to amount or degree. "Completely", "nearly", "almost", "mostly", "hardly", … I red-lined those with a requirement that the writer quantify the assertion with appropriate data or information. If the writer couldn't quantify the statement, then I presumed the writer didn't have the evidence to back the statement.

As an example, I would markup a paragraph such as the one I quoted above:

When I edited technical reports, I pounced on adverbs that in any way related to amount or degree. "Completely", "nearly", "almost", "mostly", "hardly", … I red-lined those with a requirement that the writer quantify the assertion with appropriate data or information. If the writer couldn't quantify the statement, then I presumed the writer didn't have the evidence to back the statement.​

 

[AwayWeGo]

What About Fudge Words & Phrases ?

You know . . .

kind of

sort of

pretty much

mostly

partly

semi- ​

. . . etc.?

-- Alan Cole, McLean (Fairfax County), Virginia, USA.​

 

[PigsDad]

If I receive a written piece from someone (particularily on a business level) and it has incorrect grammar and bad spelling, I consider the author as not credible. I just about always disregard the entire message. I can only assume it will be very difficult for the author to be successful in the business arena.

Wow. You obviously don't deal with people from other countries / cultures. In my job, I have to collaborate with team members in Shangai and Bangalore. If I treated their written communication the way you do, I would have to disregard 80+% of their messages!

Kurt

BTW, "particularily" is correctly spelled "particularly". :rofl:

 

[Kal]

..You obviously don't deal with people from other countries / cultures....

Obviously the expectations for people and cultures from outside the US is a different issue. I'm referring to the day-in and day-out communications with people born and raised in the US.