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The Official Spelling, Grammer, And Syntax Thread.


Dr. Atkins

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I've noticed that few people on this forum can write in sentences that even begin to approach passable English. Perhaps we can use this thread to note and correct common errors, and ask questions of the more knowledgable members. I'm sure Geiseric and gaia, amongst others, could be of great help here. Honestly, 50% of the posts on here make no sense at all, so hopefully this message goes through.

I'll start with some of the problems I saw in a single thread earlier. You might notice that the particularly boneheaded ones come from a single individual. I'm actually not bored enough to dig up all of his errors, but others might want to for a good laugh.

-"Biost" should be spelled as "biased". Bias is a noun, and biased is the adjective for things which posses the quality of bias.
-"Times past" should be "times passed", as in times that have passed by. Passed is the past-tense of pass (great sentence, n'est-ce pas?)
-"Schnanagins" should be spelled "shenanigans". Not that the spelling of a word like this really matters... honest and benign mistake here.
-Their indicates posession. There tends to refer to a place. They're is a contraction of "they" and "are".

That's it for now. Please feed this thread!
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Its the internet...

the only point is for people to get their point across. As long as someone is able to be understood I dont really care too much.

The only thing which bothers me is when people dont space out their ideas, and type everything in one big sentence. What reads easier? This or the same thing below all jumbled up?

I type in decent english myself, just because I think it looks better and is easier to read, but I'm sure you have posts that are a wall of incoherent text too.



Its the internet... the only point is for people to get their point across. As long as someone is able to be understood I dont really care too much.The only thing which bothers me is when people dont space out their ideas, and type everything in one big sentence. What reads easier? This or the same thing below all jumbled up? I type in decent english myself, just because I think it looks better and is easier to read, but I'm sure you have posts that are a wall of incoherent text too. Edited by PhishPhood
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QUOTE (Dr. Atkins @ Jan 21 2008, 10:20 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>
Re: am I being serious?

Does the pope crap in the woods!?!?


I honestly would not be surprised. tongue.gif

How about the spelling of that oh-so-loveable word we all tend to use?

Defenately (No.)
Defanately (Nuh Uh.)
Defunitely (Nice try, Sparky)

Definitely (Oh Yeah baby!)

De-finite-ly.
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Now I have, in the past, had my own rants in regard to this point.

However I would not pick out peoples misuse of the their,there & they're thing or spelling mistakes.
Please try to remember that not everyone's first language is English.

The point is to get a message or question across. Language is the art of communication not snobbery.

However anyone who uses l33t or text speech should be taken out and shot. (Unless it's for comedic value of course)

JD
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I generally get called out for my English snobbery, but I've defended myself so many times that I may have convinced myself that it's well within reason to be a grammar Nazi. haha...
Usually, my friends that get fed up with my constant correcting them freak out when they're in a class that requires in-class essays. I always tell them, if you practice proper English when blogging, MySpacing, e-mailing, and basically any sort of communication, the writing process will be much more smooth when it's called into academic action.
In a forum like this though, where the topic is a multinational past-time, I'm sure there are a lot of people who don't natively speak English. My rant is really just directed at native English speakers. Oh, and at college students. If you've given up on education, bye all menes fill frea two buchor the Englesh langwedge at yore leazure. And, I'd like to substitute curly fries please.
I really have no problem with people that were raised speaking English completely not getting it. The main thing that bugs me is when I meet people in college that say "Oh, I want to be an elementary school teacher," and then they find me on MySpace and it's "omg i did'nt knoe you had a myspace page how come you never aded me thats so messd up(.)" It doesn't bug me that they don't get it; it bugs me that with this "no child left behind" junk seeping into college ethics, this person might actually graduate and enter the education field. Would you want that person teaching your kid's 5th grade class?

/rant.

Wow, did I really just write all that? haha...
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Actually, I really intended this thread more as a means to point out goofy and amusing Engrish. Of course, foreigners with English as a second language should be exempt from ridicule, unless they write something particularly amazing.

I'm surprised it took someone so long to find the Easter Egg in the thread title! Edited by Dr. Atkins
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QUOTE (Johnny_D @ Jan 22 2008, 09:00 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>
Now I have, in the past, had my own rants in regard to this point.

However I would not pick out peoples misuse of the their,there & they're thing or spelling mistakes.
Please try to remember that not everyone's first language is English.

The point is to get a message or question across. Language is the art of communication not snobbery.

However anyone who uses l33t or text speech should be taken out and shot. (Unless it's for comedic value of course)

JD


1 f0r 0n3 th1nk y0u 4r3 wr0ng 4nd sh0uld b3 m0r3 c0ns1d3r4t3 t0 th3 f33l1ngs 0f th0s3 th4t ch00s3 t0 typ3 1n th3 c0mpl1c4t3d f0rm 0f "1337 Sp34k"

Wh4t n0w JD???

ULT1M4T3 1337n3ss!
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Anyone know any goodbad movies with poor English? The only one I can think of, other than old Jackie Chan movies, is Hercules in New York with Arnold Strong (Schwarzenegger's early screen name). You can YouTube the highlights.

"Fine chariot, but where is your horses?"
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QUOTE (Dr. Atkins @ Jan 22 2008, 06:32 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>
QUOTE (.cOLt.45. @ Jan 22 2008, 12:12 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>
1 f0r 0n3 th1nk y0u 4r3 wr0ng 4nd sh0uld b3 m0r3 c0ns1d3r4t3 t0 th3 f33l1ngs 0f th0s3 th4t ch00s3 t0 typ3 1n th3 c0mpl1c4t3d f0rm 0f "1337 Sp34k"

Wh4t n0w JD???

ULT1M4T3 1337n3ss!


Are you fluent, or just using a 1337 translator?


Haha yeah right i'd spend the time to type that out.
Translator FTW wink.gif
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QUOTE (.cOLt.45. @ Jan 22 2008, 05:39 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>
QUOTE (Dr. Atkins @ Jan 22 2008, 06:32 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>
QUOTE (.cOLt.45. @ Jan 22 2008, 12:12 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>
1 f0r 0n3 th1nk y0u 4r3 wr0ng 4nd sh0uld b3 m0r3 c0ns1d3r4t3 t0 th3 f33l1ngs 0f th0s3 th4t ch00s3 t0 typ3 1n th3 c0mpl1c4t3d f0rm 0f "1337 Sp34k"

Wh4t n0w JD???

ULT1M4T3 1337n3ss!


Are you fluent, or just using a 1337 translator?


Haha yeah right i'd spend the time to type that out.
Translator FTW wink.gif


What now? I wonder just how far I can shove my bantank up your ass? wink.gif

JD - Plain English.
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QUOTE (Dr. Atkins @ Jan 22 2008, 09:35 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>
Anyone know any goodbad movies with poor English? The only one I can think of, other than old Jackie Chan movies, is Hercules in New York with Arnold Strong (Schwarzenegger's early screen name). You can YouTube the highlights.

"Fine chariot, but where is your horses?"


Check out a movie called "Everything is Illuminated." One of the main characters is played by Eugene Hutz from Gogol Bordello (awesome band), and his English is hilarious. He really does talk like his character in that movie. Also co-stars Elijah Wood, and was directed by Liev Schrieber who played Cotton Weary in the Scream films and Keppler on CSI last season, when Grissom was out.
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Dr. Atkins:
You missed a bunch of grammatical mistakes that are commonly seen over the internet. You'd have more if you were gung-ho about it.

Plus, instead of posting obvious mistakes, you can just link to a grammar website and be like, "I don't like poor internet grammar, go here and fix yourself [link]" Since we don't need to re-type what's already on the internet, amirite.
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