Decimate: my 10%'s worth.

[wishfort]

This one gets me going. It's bad enough when applied,say, to the number of workers laid off, as in " the workforce was decimated" as a general indication of wholesale redundancies.

The worst is when it's applied to places as in " the countryside was decimated by Hurricane F*ckwit".

A near relation is the "amount" of people rather than "number".

Sorry, I've had day of marking essays so my teeth are a bit pointy.

[catok]

The amount of people would be less (aagh!), and the number of people would need to be fewer! By 10% perhaps!

[gigglewitch]

I'm loving your pointy teeth, wishfort
I'm with you on the amount/number one, and less/fewer (especially in supermarkets) drives me mad. ok madder than i already am.
LOL @ jura's DH. Sounds just like me.

[policywonk]

Hurricane Fuckwit is here??

[clam]

Bet it doesn't in Asda!

[gigglewitch]

you betcha. asda, tesco, sainsburys, morrisons, all of them grammatically oblivious.
I found grammar and spelling mistakes on Tesco's HUGE poster on the wall beside the main road - I cringed. Surely the management can get someone who can actually write the English language to check their adverts?