Brought for bought?

[ScathingContempt]

This drives me mad! But I see it in posts that are otherwise completely literate and often wonderfully eloquent. I wondered if it might be a typo of predictive text, but surely then you'd see 'bought' for 'brought' occasionally, or 'though'/' thought'/'through' mixed up sometimes.

I don't know if people make the error verbally because I don't hear well enough to pick up the difference (either that or no one I speak to makes the mistake!).

It's becoming increasingly common to read and I really have to fight the urge to correct the poster.

What do you think? Do these people actually think the word is' brought' or is it down to predictive text?

[BringMeTea]

I find it's general ignorance of the correct usage OP. (See also lend and borrow).

[BringMeTea]

Or should I have said 'use'?

[campion]

Oh yes, I'm afraid they do it verbally as well.

My technician at work (a treasure in many respects) says 'brought' every single time, without fail. I have to work out which one it should be and wince each and every time, eleven years on!

Along with 'he's took', 'we seen' and 'they done', I'm left marvelling at how the finer points of English just pass some people by.

[ScathingContempt]

Interesting that you say 11 years on, campion. I have only seen it written down in recent years and I've been on the internet for over 11 years.

I can accept things like 'he's took' and 'we was' when they're verbal, if they're part of a regional dialect because I come from an area that has a very distinctive dialect. But written down, unless you're aiming to get your dialect across, I don't like them.

To me, the bought/brought confusion is different because they're completely different fucking words! It's not like one is the past tense of another or something! I do not understand how people can confuse them!

I'm not a complete grammar pedant, I'm not perfect myself, but it baffles me how some people are so ignorant.