How apostrophes work
Posted by: joe90 on 06 May 2005
Most of you (hopefully) have read the 'PRAT vs Pitch Accurate' thread in the hifi corner.
It is hilarious to watch the various posters slug it out.
Most of all was Adam Meredith's little dig at the beloved Central for putting apostrophes in every plural.
So in the interests of our Beloved Language I would like to be a uptight twat and explain how apostrophes actually work.
DON'TsDon't put an apostrophe in a plural!
E.G. (for example - not i.e. which stands for 'that is')
One dog, two dogs (not dog's)
One 250, two 250s (passively biamped not recommended)
quote:
DOs
(not to be confused with DOS - Disc Operating System)
DO put an apostrophe in a possessive!
e.g.
Adam's sense of humour (the sense of humour belonging to Adam)
the dog's bollocks (if you had two dogs, that would be the 'dogs' bollocks'
If the prpoer noun ends in an 'S' there is no need to dd a second 'S'
e.g. Jesus' cloak
Do put an apostrophe in a contraction!
Cannot - Can't
Do not - Don't
How's that fellas?
Posted on: 07 May 2005 by hungryhalibut
Posted on: 07 May 2005 by long-time-dead
Should "Wit" require capitalisation ?
Pedantly yours............
Posted on: 07 May 2005 by garyi
Fucking hell there are whole web-sites dedicated to this shit.
Lets assume for one minute that you all get the general point of all posts placed on this forum?
Get over it!
I just discovered a key combination in Tiger that will give me the meaning of any word I hover over. Nice.
Posted on: 07 May 2005 by Deane F
Bollocks.
Posted on: 07 May 2005 by TomK
quote:
Originally posted by BigH47:
quote:
We pedants must stick together
Us pedants must stick together.
Howard
Sorry for the typo. Big pedants mustn't stick together.
Posted on: 07 May 2005 by Deane F
quote:
Originally posted by garyi:
Fucking hell there are whole web-sites dedicated to this shit.
Lets assume for one minute that you all get the general point of all posts placed on this forum?
Get over it!
I just discovered a key combination in Tiger that will give me the meaning of any word I hover over. Nice.
Bollocks, and I also quite agree with what garyi is saying here. (Nor do I care for somebody who sees fit to point out my incorrect usage of a comma after "bollocks" in the last sentence.)
Posted on: 07 May 2005 by Steve Toy
Deane,
I agree that so-called "correct" use of apostrophes, or for that matter any other rigid application of grammatical rules, does go against the grain of the phenomena of language usage and change thereof.
I also agree that such rules are "prescriptive and not descriptive" from that Swiss structural linguist Ferdinand de Saussure who wrote about such matters back in 1904.
However, I agree with Adam that the "grocer's apostrophe's" are rather irritating, as users tend to put them in plurals Ss (s' or s's even?) out of sheer ignorance.
To me it is a question of poor style.
It just isn't communicating anything other than a certain pomposity borne out of ignorance if you feel the need to stick on in before an s that denotes a plural.
I guess I derive such irritation from the sheer superfluousness of it.
Posted on: 08 May 2005 by Nime
Is it desirable, or even good manners, to correct another's post?
I often find myself correcting posts which I quote. If only to avoid the mistake being repeated. It seems almost rude to quote another post with a glaring typo, awful spelling or showing poor grammar.
I often feel almost as if I had highlighted the error in red for all to "enjoy". Yet at the same time one fervently desires to quote the post in order to respond to the points made within it, but without embarrassing the OP.
Any thoughts on this particular aspect of forum etiquette?
Posted on: 08 May 2005 by Ade Archer
Some people really do need to get out more!!
Posted on: 08 May 2005 by Guy D
Have just logged in!
It's so nice not to be the only pedant left alive.
However, what about the poor old colon and semicolon (had to check no hypen is correct), now there's punctuation abuse on a national scale.
Guy
Posted on: 08 May 2005 by Derek Wright
quote:
I had highlighted the error in red for all to "enjoy".
You should ask nay demand that the author writes out the correct version 100 times
<g>
Posted on: 08 May 2005 by Deane F
quote:
Originally posted by Nime:
Is it desirable, or even good manners, to correct another's post?
Might I be so bold as to answer Mr Nime's question with a NO, IT IS VERY BAD MANNERS TO CORRECT ANOTHER'S POST.
IN FACT, IT MIGHT ALMOST BE AS BAD AS USING CAPITAL LETTERS FOR AN EMPHATIC ANSWER.
Posted on: 08 May 2005 by Nime
DOGH!
Posted on: 08 May 2005 by Lomo
I don't disagree with the general comments about punctuation but as I get older believe a handy dictionary is very helpful. However most mistakes seem to be caused by bad typing and tardiness in editing.
It is difficult to concentrate on longwinded threads; short and sweet and to the point make for a better presentation.
Thankyou for reading this message..
Posted on: 08 May 2005 by Nime
Age is a great leveller, isn't it? While I have a stack of dictionaries at my elbow I usually cheat and enter any "iffy" words in the Google search box.
Today, I has been mostly learning how to spell embarrassing. How long has it had two "rs"?
Posted on: 08 May 2005 by Berlin Fritz
My secretary makes most of my mistakes, but I suppose I must take responsibility ? Tis a wondferful day for sailing here today on one of Berlin's many flat waters, as it's well Mork & Mindy oot there (I haven't been for simply ages) but it's a good way to hijack such an inordinately unoriginal and boring threaD; INNIT:
Fritz Von Winnie the Pooh himself was quozted as saying "Well I'll be BLUSTERED !!!"
Posted on: 08 May 2005 by Lomo
Well I have just returned from the wilderness, or should I say an abandoned quarry west of here, where I have been furthering my education in 4WDriving.. Ten of us went on a course designed to provide us with the wherewithal to tackle those rather terrifying looking slopes and gullies the bush has to offer.
With correct and patient instruction all's well that ends well.
Certainly beats puctuation threads.
Posted on: 08 May 2005 by charliestumpy
Once upon a time some people as part of their formal education did learn the theoretical correct use of punctuation. I did, but it is in truth not the most important thing to learn. We also learned not to put a comma after e.g. the house-number in an address in case the postal delivery person mistook the redundant comma for a '1' or a '7'. Ian Dury did a nice song about it called 'Comma as muck', or maybe he didn't. Charles's ears are like his children's, but not like his parents'. It's time to admit its limits.
Posted on: 08 May 2005 by Berlin Fritz
The question is "Will Our Mat be watching the Hammers today ?" or is he all mouth, and no trousers ?
Fritz Von We should be told
Posted on: 08 May 2005 by Lomo
Norf and souf
Posted on: 08 May 2005 by Steve2701
quote:
Originally posted by TomK:
quote:
Originally posted by BigH47:
quote:
We pedants must stick together
Us pedants must stick together.
Howard
Sorry for the typo. Big pedants mustn't stick together.
I am now absolutely certain of one thing. I will never have a pedant working for me or go into business with one, as some beleive what they read is absolutely in-correct, when in fact they have failed to read it correctly or actually do not understand what is actually written in the first place.
Posted on: 08 May 2005 by MarkEJ
quote:
Originally posted by Steve2701:
...as some beleive what they read is absolutely in-correct, when...
[cough] I think you meant to say:
...as some bel
ieve what they read is absolutely
incorrect, when...
Posted on: 08 May 2005 by TomK
quote:
I am now absolutely certain of one thing. I will never have a pedant working for me or go into business with one, as some beleive what they read is absolutely in-correct, when in fact they have failed to read it correctly or actually do not understand what is actually written in the first place.
Please explain?
Posted on: 08 May 2005 by J.N.
Standards of grammar, spelling and punctuation are falling.
I work with young people who produce some gems. We had the colour 'Carkey' on a document the other day.
Mobile phone texting encourages lazy grammar and spelling, and most people have the option of using a spell checker on PC generated documents.
I guess the high standards demanded (and corrected!) in the written work I did at school, are sadly a thing of the past?
Another example of society 'dumbing down'? Just compare the old and current versions of the TV programme 'Ask The Family'.
The current moronic pile of shite says it all really.
John.
Posted on: 08 May 2005 by Deane F
quote:
Originally posted by J.N.:
Another example of society 'dumbing down'?
Well I guess these punctuation threads are the forum's valiant attempt to stop the general downhill slide and start "dumbing up".
Personally I wouldn't apply the term "pedant" to a person who corrects other peoples' grammar on the forum when there are a great many facts and proclamations that need closer examination from the detail-freaks...
