Of of of of of of of of of of

[BrickBiscuit]

That's the approximate number of rogue 'of's I have seen on Mumsnet posts today alone. 'Should of', 'would of', even an 'I of' somewhere. It is spread by repetition. Should we counter by correcting every instance we can, and enforce the correct use of 'have' by repetition?

Incidentally, my title is an old crossword clue. Do solve it if you like.

YABU: no, we should leave the 'of' people unchallenged;
YANBU: yes, let's have a campaign to correct each and every instance of the error.

Try not to start your sentences with ‘and.’

And did those feet. . . . in ancient times, walk upon England's mountains.. . .

That worked out ok didn't it?

Fora.

Note to everyone: I'm not digging at the member who made the comment, and I mean no offence. I am just sad enough to have found it amusing. Please forgive me

You missed the irony. The poster was making a joke.

But the 'of' error is now creeping into professional settings.

lol

Things like this drive me mad too. As does misusing “less” and “fewer” and saying something like “She gave it to Nancy and I.” But I doubt people will respond well to being corrected.

What about ‘gotten’ 😬

I’d be embarrassed to be making that error as an adult. 😣

Have we had hence why yet?
🤣

Oh Lord, don't.

It's not a word.

Fewer mistakes.

Repetition is the power of good routine.

Husband and my I

I do care about them. I just don't think it's very kind or inclusive to pick on people's SPAG on a forum.

I’ve also heard “boughtten” used as a past tense for bought! I should have boughtten it. 😬

I just watched The Traitors UK and that was driving me bonkers. I thought it must be a UK thing like "I was just stood there waiting". Mixing up tenses does seem to be a UK thing so I thought that the substition of "you" for "yourself" must be standard there as well. Almost every player said the same phrase. Why add an extra syllable ? Just for fun?
I love this thread.

( I have probably made 500 mistakes in this post. My apologies.)

Fewer mistakes.

I disagree. I’d rather have someone point it out rather than look like a dimwit.

Yes, totally agree. And Oasis need to record that song with the lyric ‘take that smile from off of your face’ - aargh! - but I doubt they will!

"Axe" (often spelled "aks" or "ax") is not a recent slang deviation of "ask," but
a valid, 1,000-year-old English pronunciation originating from Old English acsian. This linguistic shift, known as metathesis, was commonly used in the Middle English period, appeared in the first English Bible in 1535, and was spoken by speakers like Chaucer, only later becoming marginalized.

Old English Origins: The verb for "ask" was originally ascian or acsian. In Old English, acsian was common, particularly in the Wessex (Southern) dialect.

Literary Usage: In the 14th century, Geoffrey Chaucer used "ax" in The Canterbury Tales.
The Bible: The 1535 Coverdale Bible (the first complete English translation) used the phrase, "Axe and it shall be given you" in Matthew 7:7.
Shift in Prominence: As the dialect around London became standardized, "ask" became the dominant form, while "ax" was preserved in regional dialects (such as in New England and the Southern US).
Evolution and Dialect: In the US, the use of "ax" was common among early Southern white settlers and later became a prominent feature of African American Vernacular English (AAVE).
Metathesis: This phenomenon is a standard linguistic process where sounds are swapped, similar to how "waps" became "wasp".
"Axe" has consistently existed in English, often reflecting regional and historical shifts rather than a modern error.

"Ill gotten" is in the OED. First used in the 16th century.

I think it depends on accent. When I say it out loud they are exactly the same. But I do know that when written it is "should have" not "should of".

When I read it written down as "should have" I read the "a" sound in my head.

If I read "should've" it sounds like "should of" (the o sound), but I know if I had to write that out it would be "should have".

I can't hear "should've" with an "a"sound but I would never write down "should of" if that makes sense?

Well, you didn’t need to use “rather” twice in that sentence, for a start.

Also, there’s a difference between not having perfect grammar and being a dimwit.

Yes, but right after that, we agree to correct lose/loose and your/you're. 🙄

@redskyAtNigh it clearly wasn't