Bad Grammar

[toady]

What about those lazy bastards advertising 'Xmas tree' outside their fruit shop on a piece of plyboard.

I've never heard of Xmas, although it sounds like some kind of dry skin condition.
Perhaps Xmas trees are part of the Xmas day celebrations where poor unfortunates suffering from this dreadful affliction meet up and have a moisturiser party.
A hearty Xmas lunch of salad and water, followed by liberal applications of Nivea Creme and oil of Ulay under the Xmas tree.

It's Christmas....for Christs sake, and my message to the tree traders is for goodness sake just write a little smaller. Even if people miss the sign they won't miss the 12ft Douglas Fir sitting outside.







 

[anna]

It's Christmas....for Christs sake,

Exactly!

I've really enjoyed this thread, every time another example is posted it resonates with me, I have been desperately wracking my brain for a rant of my own...

But I have to give it to you Toady, this one is my top peeve yet!

I remember being taught in Sunday School: "The reason for Christmas is Christ, and people forget that, so much so that they cross him right out: Xmas."    I have never used the term Xmas since!

 

[anna]

Ok, so that last post seemed to kill this thread which I was enjoying so.

Here’s another grammatical irritation of mine, to try and resurrect the banter:

“Ya’ll”

Eugh!  :angry:  Please tell me, what’s wrong with the word everyone? I assume ya’ll is used in short for you all. Would anyone ever say "hello you all"? Why not just use all?

Hello ya’ll > Hello you all > Hello all

or better still Hello everyone!    

[Nathan]

Sorry for the delay on this... There has been a lot of good stuff on TV.
Anyway, misused quotations. This winds me up so much, but it really becomes quite funny when you read it properly. Sign writers seem to have a big problem with this sort of stuff. I can't remember specific examples, but it is the kind of thing where you have a sign in front of a video store that says

Three Day Special Event
All DVD's
on "Sale"

Or in front of a dry cleaners

We'll Clean Your Suits
'Til they're "spotless"

Quotation marks are not used to emphasize words. They actually undermine what the person is trying to say. It is as if the DVD store is having a little joke with itself by sneakily suggesting to the public that the DVD's are being sold for a higher price. Or the dry cleaner is hinting that their cleaning won't really get anything clean at all.


Here is a gallery of "Misused" Quotation Marks

[Zooey]

I hate it when people refer to Christmas as Xmas too.  I call it GimmePresentsYouSonsofBitchesMas.

[Rainfall]

that last post just made my day...totally tickled pink.

[RED22]

Just to let everyone know. I suck at quotations, at least I think I do.... :blink:
I put comas and stuff where I would actually pause if I were having an actual conversation. I don't know if that's quite right either. And by the way Zooey I use Xmas too in shorter terms sometimes, well rarely or if I'm sending a text message. I don't even know if quotations were nessecary for Xmas. Well, so anyway, I think that instead of complaining about what you hate why don't you just help those who make the mistakes, fix them.
I think that's way better than.....complaining.... <_<
Yes, yes I'm scolding you all....only cause I love you...  

[Cedric]

how can you love everyone on the goddam forum if you don't know all of them?

and also, who the hell wants to help someone when they can just point a finger and laugh really loud.  

i.e.  
Zooey, Randy and I were sitting on the train going to queens and this lady walks onto the train.  Randy and I were a little bit pasted.  The train started moving and the lady fell.  And as much as i'll profane to say i didn't, Zooey was the only sober one and profanes to say that i did.  so...  supposedly, i pointed and laughed.  guilty, but it was funny as hell.

[Cedric]

some of my pet peeves:

1.  when someone says, "All's I want," "All's i said," and so on and so forth.

2.  when someone pluralizes a word that can't or shouldn't be pluralized.   such as, cheeses, fishes, meats, waters, blah blah blah.
 

[anna]

I hate it when people refer to Christmas as Xmas too.

from my Christmas cracker...

[marke]

Just to let everyone know. I suck at quotations, at least I think I do.... :blink:
I put comas and stuff where I would actually pause if I were having an actual conversation. I don't know if that's quite right either. And by the way Zooey I use Xmas too in shorter terms sometimes, well rarely or if I'm sending a text message. I don't even know if quotations were nessecary for Xmas. Well, so anyway, I think that instead of complaining about what you hate why don't you just help those who make the mistakes, fix them.
I think that's way better than.....complaining.... <_<
Yes, yes I'm scolding you all....only cause I love you...  

Good advice, Red22. Read on:

Just to let everyone know: I suck at quotations--at least I think I do.
I put comas and stuff where I would actually pause if I were having an actual conversation. I don't know if that's quite right, either. By the way, Zooey, I also use Xmas as an abbreviation sometimes; well, rarely, or if I'm sending a text message. I don't even know if quotations were necessary for Xmas. I think that, instead of complaining about what you hate, you should just help those who make the mistakes fix them.
I think that's way better than complaining.
Yes, I'm scolding everyone, but only because I love you.

[geronimo]

....I know I'm rather late joining in the fun, but I really, really hate it when people say, '....for free' meaning, '...at no cost'.
 

[JJHards]

I dont get it.

[Guest_Zooey]

Me neither.  I think 'geronimo' is full of shit.  
 

[JJHards]

I really really hate it when people say..."....I know I'm rather late joining in the fun, but I really, really hate it when people say, '....for free' meaning, '...at no cost'." when they mean, I just as well be talking crap.