All Comments on 'Common Errors Ch. 02'

by velvetpie

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shoeslayershoeslayerabout 14 years ago
Thanks!

Hi there, A great essay! we know the words an what they mean when spoken but writing them is a horse of a different color.

THANKS FOR CLEARING THINGS UP !

SHOESLAYER

WyltEmrysWyltEmrysabout 12 years ago

Just a brief (I promise!) addendum to the discussion on good vs. well. When discussing a person recovering from sickness or a cold, the correct sentence would then be 'I feel well enough to go to work today', an exception to the exception, which causes all the confusion. You might wake up feeling good, or feel good about your chances of getting a promotion, but you feel well enough to undertake a task.

AnonymousAnonymousover 11 years ago
its, lose, & principle

"Its" refers to the noun that preceeds "its," not "follows it."

"Lose" also means to misplace something.

"Principle" also means corpus, as in principle and interest.

Again, see Strunk & White!

AnonymousAnonymousalmost 11 years ago
Bugbear

One of my pet hates is the compliment/complement confusion.

It's easy to remember:

To compl.i.ment is to say n.i.ce things about something or someone.

"It was kind of you to compliment Aunt Gladys' cooking."

To compl.e.ment is to .e.nhance something in some way.

"Those cushions really complement the sofa."

AnonymousAnonymousabout 10 years ago
who cares!!!!

I will go to a university if I want an english lesson. This is a sex site for masterbation!! Losers!!!

SamWarrensSamWarrensover 7 years ago
DITTO!

Correct! I cringe every time I see these words used incorrectly!

AnonymousAnonymousabout 5 years ago
MORE ON GOOD / WELL

"Hey, stud, you did well," is technically correct. But to Literotica readers expecting a more slangy (or even crude) style, the incorrect "Hey. stud, you did good," may resonate better. The yet more incorrect "Hey, stud, you done good," may sound even better. Sometimes incorrect usage establishes itself by prolonged use. Reminds me that Winston Churchill said, "A preposition is not a good word to end a sentence with." ("with" is a preposition.). The correct "A preposition is not a good word with which to end a sentence," sounds stilted.

More on advice / advise.

The c in advice is pronounced with an s sound.

The s in advise is pronounced with a z sound.

Lose.

Does mean to not win. May also mean to not have. As in "Do not lose your erection/purse/sweet attitude."

Past tense is lost. As in "He lost his erection...."

Related is loser / looser.

A cuckold is a loser. Or, He is a loser -- always misplacing things.

The belt is too tight. Make it looser.

Paul in Oklahoma

SweboSweboover 3 years ago

I am thoroughly enjoying and appreciating these explanations of common errors. In my editing days, I found that even long-established and successful writers have trouble with some of these. Kudos!

In response to the prior anonymous comment entitled "More on Good/Well" I want to emphasize that it is perfectly fine in English to end a sentence with a preposition. Proscription against this leaked into English by grammarians who were attempting to align it with Medieval Latin. If you're writing in Medieval Latin, your prepositions go directly in front of (are "pre positioned" before) the noun they modify and therefore can't go at the end a sentence. English, not being Latin, has no such constraints.

For similar reasons when writing in English you are feel free to boldly split your infinitives.

AnonymousAnonymousalmost 3 years ago

Good is used for other senses also:

Tastes good

Sounds good

Looks good

Smells good

AnonymousAnonymousalmost 3 years ago

One of the popular new mistakes that is becoming too popular is the use of the incorrect preposition when comparing two things.

‘Boys are different THAN girls.”

NOT ‘Boys are different to girls.”

Anonymous
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