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Pedants' corner

Should of, Would of, Could of.....AAAAARGHHH

9 replies

hellymelly · 30/08/2012 21:17

I see this on virtually every thread above a page or so. It is driving me round the bed. Please tell me I am not alone.

OP posts:
Jux · 30/08/2012 22:40

Drives me nuts. This is what we were told in school, about 50 ahem, years ago.

Drop the could/should/would, and if the sentence still makes sense then it's right:

I could of paid.
I of paid. WRONG.

I could have paid.
I have paid. RIGHT.

It's so easy.

On a brighter note, we have a greengrocer in town with NO stray apostrophes! They sell tomatoes, potatoes, cucumbers, as opposed to tomatoe's, potatoe's and cucumber's. It is wonderful, and quite possibly unique!

hellymelly · 30/08/2012 22:46

It is so easy, you are right. And it crops up in sentences where the author seemingly unaware will then say something like " I have been washing the dog", along with something like "I should of been washing the dog".

OP posts:
Jux · 31/08/2012 18:57

and they say standards in education have not dropped Grin

(Actually, they probably haven't, but the emphasis has changed I think.)

stargirl1701 · 31/08/2012 19:00

You are not alone.

GobblersKnob · 31/08/2012 19:03

Isn't it people used to saying 'should've, could've, would've' but then typing it all wrong?

You can abbreviate like that can't you?

(Not that that makes it right).

First time I have ever posted in here, what I am thinking?

CakeistheAnswer · 31/08/2012 19:09

No, you're not alone. You'd hate my fb feed; it appears that many of the people I know have never attended an English lesson.

Shall we be driven round the bed together? Grin Sounds like fun.

QuickQuickSloe · 31/08/2012 19:13

What am I thinking Gobbler! Tsk!

orangeandlemons · 31/08/2012 19:16

I HATE this. My ds 18 sometimes sends me a text with "could of". It drives me mad. I am ashamed of my own offspring, AND I tell him so

spottyock · 01/09/2012 09:50

It drives me bananas too. It takes all my strength not to correct people.

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