[Humour] Could of and Should of: Who is to blame: The Poll
- Thread starter jasetheace
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Thanks. I find education and potential and identifying potential fascinatng, this is the reason for my question. Whilst your daughter did most of the work, her upbringing and the support you gave was obviously a huge enabler.The teachers took the view that, while she was behind, it was within acceptable limits and they felt she'd catch up. We were definitely more concerned than they were.
And thanks for your congratulations, although I'd have to say my daughter really did do most of the work. I'm in awe of what she's achieved. She fried my brain when she showed me her Masters research.
Being super-nosey what does she study/will she study for a Phd? Please do not answer if you do not want to, I appreciate I'm being nosey and this is a public forum.
Really? That's quite unusual imo. People would often pronounce "to", as well as other propositions and auxiliary verbs, with what's known as a weak form.
For you, would both dos and the to be pronounced in the same way in the following sentence?
What do you want to do tomorrow?
jakarta
Well-known member
Yes
I don't mean to be rude but are you quite sure? I'm trying to read it with each "o" in do and to pronounced as an oo (a long u) and it sounds bizarre
Would you also pronounce both haves the same in this sentence:
I have 2 already but I should have bought another.
schmunk
Why oh why oh why?
‘That’s horrid.’
Horrible, thought Susan. The word is 'horrible’. 'Horrid’ is a childish word selected to impress nearby males with one’s fragility, if I’m any judge. She knew it was unkind and counterproductive of her to think like that. She also knew it was probably an accurate observation, which only made it worse.
Terry Pratchett - Hogfather
jakarta
Well-known member
I don't think there can be many ways to pronounce 'have' - if you are lazy the second one becomes 'should've' - rhymes with 'shove'.I don't mean to be rude but are you quite sure? I'm trying to read it with each "o" in do and to pronounced as an oo (a long u) and it sounds bizarre
Would you also pronounce both haves the same in this sentence:
I have 2 already but I should have bought another.
- Aug 7, 2003
- 8,087
“We was”, “I were” are equally annoying as is saying “haitch” instead of “aitch”
And of course “there”, “their” and “they’re”
And of course “there”, “their” and “they’re”
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5Ways Gull
È quello che è
I blame the Americans, they just don't got English grammar
There is have with the a like in apple and the weak form with the a like the final sound in computer. The sound in the latter is known as the schwa and is the most common sound in the English language. It is indeed a "lazy" sound, pronounced with the jaw totally relaxed. It's not lazy to use it though. It's just English. Without weak forms it'd sound like we were speaking Italian.
Hastings gull
Well-known member
- Nov 23, 2013
- 4,652
When I used to mark A Level papers, it was staggering to see that there and their were perpetually being muddled ! It was a very frequent error.
I used to see it all the time in formal reports being prepared for, for example, very senior business people or regulators that had already been reviewed by several members of staff. As soon as I came across any of these I'd stop reading and ping the report back to the author without reading any further. That'll learn 'em.
Meanwhile, I was teaching a 14 year-old Japanese girl today and she was coming out with things like "irreverent", "aesthetics" and "incongruous juxtaposition"
The head of my team (who generally approves my reports) happens to have really strong views on report writing and clarity. My favourite is when I get a report returned to me with a large section crossed out and the comment "reword" written on it with no context.I used to see it all the time in formal reports being prepared for, for example, very senior business people or regulators that had already been reviewed by several members of staff. As soon as I came across any of these I'd stop reading and ping the report back to the author without reading any further. That'll learn 'em.
Given the number of reports I read that have been issued by other companies or teams within my company, this commitment to clear and concise English is clearly not typical of the industry.
I had to explain to somebody once that "all sentences should include two commas" was a nonsensical rule that she should definitely ignore.
Super Steve Earle
Well-known member
Blimey. I'm surprised she even knew 'irrelevant' and 'anaesthetics', let alone misspelt them!Meanwhile, I was teaching a 14 year-old Japanese girl today and she was coming out with things like "irreverent", "aesthetics" and "incongruous juxtaposition"
At "A" level? Blimey!
When my daughter was 5/6 I went to a Parents Evening and was looking through her work. I noticed that she had been graded very highly for a piece of work (a story IIRC) which contained several uncorrected spelling mistakes. I questioned the teacher on why the errors hadn't been corrected and I can still recall her saying that they didn't like to correct spelling errors in case it upset or demotivated the child.
My daughter is 32 later this month and I doubt that much has changed.