Pushy Spelling/Grammar People

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  • Monkey_Business
    Monkey_Business Posts: 1,800 Member
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    I create a lot of typos and grammar errors in the forums. I do it on purpose so others can feel a sense of purpose and fulfillment.

    It’s my mission. I have always liked helping others, especially those who feel a void in their life.

    Just one ole man's opinion.................
  • wonkeythemonkey
    wonkeythemonkey Posts: 1
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    I don't usually correct strangers, but I do sometimes correct friends. When a word is misspelled or confused with a similar word, it puts the burden of understanding on the reader instead of the writer. The popular defense is "you know what I meant, so what difference does it make?" The difference is one of courtesy and respecting my time and mental energy.

    Too many people believe that what they MEAN to say or write is more important than what their audience actually reads or hears. If you are the one who seeks to be understood, it is your responsibility to make that happen, not your audience's.
  • leadslinger17
    leadslinger17 Posts: 297 Member
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    If someone is being condescending it is a simple (although rather petty) way to point out that they probably aren't as smart as they think they are. Otherwise, the Internet is informal and I ignore that stuff.
  • murphy612
    murphy612 Posts: 734 Member
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    I rarely see people correcting split infinitives or hanging prepositions, or other more advanced/controversial rules. I rarely see someone point out an incorrectly used semicolon.

    I wish I knew what all of those were :flowerforyou: I hate that my grammar is poor, I don't mind if I'm corrected. However, compared to some posts on here I'm a freakin grammar genius! I never correct people, for fear of it coming back to haunt me :)
  • EmpireBusiness
    EmpireBusiness Posts: 333 Member
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    I suspect people critique the obvious things like "theirs" and "you're" because they are obvious. I don't think they are grammar Nazis out to wreak havoc on those with inferior literary skills. There are different levels of complexity in sentence structure and differentiating "your" and "you're" is ground level. People are correcting the most basic of mistakes because it is so simple that it should not be a mistake and honestly it may be to the benefit of some. If you are working in a job and you write "your" instead of "you're" repeatedly, it will cast a negative impression. By contrast, if you end a sentence with "at", most people aren't even going to bat an eye.

    It comes down to the age old conundrum: If you are with a smelly person, do you tell them that they smell? On one hand you may hurt their feelings and that's not ideal. On the other hand, they may not even know they smell and so by telling them you will actually improve their life because they will take not and remedy the problem. That odorous stench may have been hindering their romantic life and possibly even professional life, since everyone avoids the smelly individual. Do you choose to be passive and polite or risk being rude with the chance of being helpful?
  • Chevy_Quest
    Chevy_Quest Posts: 2,012 Member
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    Making a "stand" here

    Lose / loose

    Makes me foam at the mouth!
  • orangesmartie
    orangesmartie Posts: 1,870 Member
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    My need to correct spelling, grammar and punctuation comes from my OCD. I don't tend to do it on online forums, although I have been known to click quote and type the reply. I generally junk the post before hitting submit. Mainly because I don't want to deal with the hate that comes from such a post. I don't do it to belittle the poster, but to educate. Yes, i appreciate the arrogance in that, which is why i junk the posts.

    My real 'freak' thing is punctuation and I can spot errant apostophes miles away and in shops and pubs I have been known to point out the incorrect usage. Usually it falls out of my mouth without thinking, because seeing it really does set me on edge and will echo through my brain for excessive periods of time. My partner and I can (and have) spent many an hour debating the use of the oxford comma. Unfortunately, I had to concede he was correct.

    Nor do I take text speak seriously.
  • srslybritt
    srslybritt Posts: 1,618 Member
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    If I understand what they mean, I won't correct someone (usually) unless the word they're using means something different. I did recently correct someone who said "bromolated" when they meant "brominated," but their point was still valid. I just wanted others to be able to search for what the person was claiming and be able to find the information.

    Regardless, it's pretty clear if someone's correcting you just to be an a*hole or if they're doing it because they want to help you learn something. Context is really important. Generally, a stranger correcting you online is the former.
  • Escloflowne
    Escloflowne Posts: 2,038 Member
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    I don't correct stuff usually. I do, however, judge people based upon the way they write.

    ^That.

    And I judge them based upon the way they look too.

    And on the way they judge other people too.
  • wonderwoman234
    wonderwoman234 Posts: 551 Member
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    I'd just like to point out that we use different parts of the brain to develop sentence structure, grammar usage, and spelling. I know many excellent writers, who do it for a living, who are terrible spellers. I also know successful business people who appear quite bright but can't write a sentence to save their life. I think I write and spell well, but I don't always use the proper punctuation. But I think I'm wicked smaht, anyway.....

    There are different types of intelligence, too. Someone who seems like a dimwit behind the keyboard could actually be the mastermind behind a complex identity theft scheme or a brilliant mechanic who can pull apart your car engine and put it back together easily. That type of intelligence is just as valuable as knowing how to spell or being the perfect, error-free typist.

    Haters 'gon hate......or something to that effect (or is it affect)?
  • Andy__Dane
    Andy__Dane Posts: 46 Member
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    Making a "stand" here

    Lose / loose

    Makes me foam at the mouth!

    That one really gets to me as well, along with brought/bought.
  • NikiaSue
    NikiaSue Posts: 259 Member
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    They're, There, Their, it'll be ok
  • sheenarama
    sheenarama Posts: 733 Member
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    Grammar Nazis are the worse!!!
  • PhearlessPhreaks
    PhearlessPhreaks Posts: 890 Member
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    I don't correct stuff usually. I do, however, judge people based upon the way they write.
    lucille-is-judging-you-gif-arrested-development-21743891-500-2891.gif

    This.

    Everyone makes mistakes, myself included, and I think for the most part those who always write using proper grammar, spelling and punctuation generally see our mistakes and edit to correct them. Sometimes, we don't even notice an error, and that' doesn't bother me in an otherwise intelligent and readable post. When something is written with numerous errors, it says one of two things: either the poster does not know or does not care about how they write and what it says of them.
  • EmpireBusiness
    EmpireBusiness Posts: 333 Member
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    Grammar Nazis are the worse!!!

    I think real Nazis were the worst, but I'm fickle like that.
  • dancingj2
    dancingj2 Posts: 4,572 Member
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    Somehow it does not seem polite to point out someone's spelling or grammatical errors in a public forum. I know I make my own share of errors myself and really do not want them all pointed out. However if I am responding by quoting what someone has written, I will correct any issues I see in the section I quote.
  • 47Jacqueline
    47Jacqueline Posts: 6,993 Member
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    I don't correct stuff usually. I do, however, judge people based upon the way they write.

    This. And I hate most gifs people post.
  • EmpireBusiness
    EmpireBusiness Posts: 333 Member
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    I would like to declare that I do not obey the laws of any language, nor accept judgement from those on how I use it, when their own dictionaries have debased themselves to the point of adding words like "turducken", "selfie" and "catfish"(from the TV show).
    http://www.merriam-webster.com/new-words/2014-update.htm
  • EmpireBusiness
    EmpireBusiness Posts: 333 Member
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    I don't correct stuff usually. I do, however, judge people based upon the way they write.

    This. And I hate most gifs people post.

    tumblr_n1h1joU0ZQ1rjl5l0o2_500.gif

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