Grammer

[jagwheels]

Just an observation but I am impressed with members correct use of language on PL. When I receive an email from my daughter I sometimes have to resort to google for interpretation

[josef k]

I think there should be a comma after observation.



Sorry, couldn't resist.

[Robert]

I think there should be 2 a's in grammar. Sorry...

[Devil]

Anyway, it's grammar, not grammer!

[Rita Sherry]

I think there should be a comma after observation.



Sorry, couldn't resist.

Not before a "but" Josef - at least that was what I was taught i.e. but is a conjunction

Rita

[LouiseCastricum]

and..... isn't it Google in stead of google?

[aphrodite]

and..... isn't it Google in stead of google?

and (also a conjunction word) shouldn’t in stead be 'instead'

[TLR]

Goodness me, you lot don't take any prisoners, do you?

[Robert]

Goodness me, you lot don't take any prisoners, do you?

I think that's grammatically correct.

[Dominic]

Best fred eva.

[Lofos-5]

Q: What should you say to comfort a grammar nerd?





A: “There, their, they’re.”

[Lofos-5]

the-difference-grammar.jpg (34.38 KiB) Viewed 8813 times

[PaphosAL]

And, I'd just like to mention this.

But, booger it, I forgot what I was going to say...

However, this thread has made very interesting reading!

AL

[Devil]

You may care to enlighten yourself by reading the Merriam-Webster Dictionary's view on this topic: https://www.merriam-webster.com/words-a ... ences-with

But (starting my sentence!) Merriam-Webster cannot be an authority on the English language, because it is American. Partridge, who is the English authority, states for 'and':

In general, avoid beginning a sentence with and: its use is justified only when a very effective addition is desired or when an arresting accumulation is to be concluded.

By extension, this dictum is applicable to other conjunctions.

Devil dixit

[Devil]

Enter "is it OK to use and at the beginning of a sentence" into Google and you will find that almost without exception, every single site says that it is; with the general proviso that you should not go overboard in the use of a preposition in this way.

Just goes to show that Google is not faultless. And is never a preposition; it is a conjunction!

[Dominic]

It became acceptable to start a sentence with "And" some time ago. It is not a new thing. If you don't like it, I am afraid you will have to invent a time machine.

[jagwheels]

I should have posted a smiley after my post but it has encouraged some interesting responses

All languages evolve & change over time but if you could abolish some words or saying's which ones would you ban?

To get you started, here's some that would make my list:

Blue sky thinking
Capacity building
Framework agreements
Going forward
Place shaping
Stakeholders
Strategic partners/priorities
Transformational
Value-added
Worklessness

[Cactuslil]

Why is it necessary for young people to start to answer a question with”so”? I find that extremely irritating as well.

We should rename this section “old farts blog”

[Devil]

You don't have to look far. Just perusing the Sunday Mail and Sunday Times over lunchtime I came across the examples below. In two of these instances, the word 'And' was used at the start of a paragraph.

The first two examples are acceptable but I'm adamant that you cannot start a new paragraph with and. It is not only bad grammar, it is senseless. A new paragraph is meant as a break in thought; And conjoins a plurality of thoughts. Of course, newspapers, like the ones quoted, are not the paragons of grammatical virtue. They lower themselves to populist levels.

[Dominic]

Indeed. Imagine if we still spoke and thought like this?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aT6cB6vMWYU