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.

Likewise. Nowadays it seems one cannot even politely disagree with someone without being accused of bullying. Even when the person you disagree with is demonstrably the one in the wrong.

Urgh, you are so right OP, and I knew immediately what your thread was going to be about! Just had to duck out of a thread in which the verb "have" appears to have been banished into oblivion - "they don’t need to of done it..." (not the exact wording, but you get the drift)... can't bring myself to read any further after something like that! To paraphrase Rex Harrison, "Why can't the English teach their children how to write"? Foreign learners of English really do put our own native speakers to shame.

My husband and I ...

Whilst I dislike it with a passion, I also realise the state of education in some areas is shocking. I have a cousin who thinks she's pretty intelligent. She teaches English in a further education college, but couldn't tell you the difference between of/off, to/too, and there/their/they're if her life depended on it. I cringe when I read her posts.

If you have nothing better to do than correct people’s grammar, then go ahead.

Most of us understand that many posters use text talk due to disabilities, do not have English as their first language, have dyslexia or don’t have the privilege of having a standard education.

Most of us do not have the time or inclination to do so but if you have nothing better to do than to mock those less privileged than you then carry on…I guess.

I think it is extremely rude to correct someone else's grammar on a chat board.

😁

I and my husband...?

Imo educating an adult who you don't know and who hasn't asked to be educated, is rude and arrogant

If you don't appreciate the words used to write the post, move on. Have a cup of tea.

Don't create a thread to express your superiority and the other person's lack.

Noooooo!

Oh yes, songs .... "It's Christmas time for you and I" ..... I just can't ..... 😤

Oh, bugger of, OP. Your been unreasonable.

I'm sick off MN grammer police. You should of got off of the internet and had a glass off wine. That's what myself and partner do, we aren't phased by SPAG errors!

Do you report the errors? There is a dedicated BBC email address to which you can report mistakes. I have contacted them many times. They never thank me, but they do correct the mistakes within an hour! The Times have a similar system.

That was a very long post from someone processing to have much better things to do with their time than engage in discussions about solecisms...

I would expect people to prefer to be educated. I don't want to feel better than anyone else I just want them to know the correct grammar.

I detest people who correct other peoples SPaG mistakes on the internet. And yes,calling for a campaign to correct them is bullying. Very mean girl behaviour imo.

My favourite crossword clue is "Gegs (9,4)"

Good luck 🤞🏻

That’s standard Hiberno-English.

I feel like the “myself”ing is dying. Maybe I’m just being optimistic

That's why it annoys me. We do teach it in primary school, and a shitload more besides. It isn't revisited at secondary because it's not on the curriculum. People post online incorrectly and children see it. They start to accept the nonsense as correct. Everyone is too polite to correct each other. Correction can be polite, but if you do it you're accused of being a bully, or smug, or whatever else.

Language evolves. But we are in a scenario where language is codified and there are clear grammatical rules that are unlikely to officially change. It shouldn't be seen as shameful or rude to correct someone kindly (while answering their actual questions) as that helps us all to be clear communicators.

I think we're all allowed some light relief from the incessant grimness of the news...

But “try and” has been used for centuries - Merriam Webster says:

“Not only do infinitive verbs not require to, but and is a long-established partner in the same position—that is, between a verb and an infinitive following it. The construction has been around since the 13th century, when it mostly occurred with infinitives following begin, take, go, and come. Today it's used with go and come ("Go and ask them," "Come and see"), as well as with other verbs: "Wait and let me finish," "Stop and chat for a while."”

https://www.merriam-webster.com/grammar/were-going-to-explain-the-deal-with-try-and-and-try-to

… and I’m fairly sure that Fowler says it’s ok.

Language is a living organism. It evolves.

Otherwise we’d still be speken Middle English.

Let folk go with the flow.

I literally worked at a literal dictionary for 10 years and I don't care 😂

The show ‘Traitors’ was the worst for it. ‘I am voting for yourself, Roxy’. Arghhh!