The Ultimate Vampire Resource and Directory

The most common grammatical errors I see
18:50 Aug 29 2009
Times Read: 803

Okay, I'm growing tired of constantly increasing occurrences where I witness people online using incorrect grammar. Some may even consider them spelling errors, but no, they are really grammatical errors. Let me explain the differences between the various misused words online that I have come across. Keep in mind, it may sound okay in speech, but writing it like it sounds, only makes you look less intelligent than you really are.



There, Their, They’re

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The word There refers to something existing, eg: "There is a cake on the table." In a question, you'd ask: "What do you have in your hand there?" There was used to identify a location in the previous example, namely the hand.



Their is a possessive word. Use this when indicating that something belongs to someone or something. "This is their house." "They're pleased that there is a lake on their property."



When in contraction form, they are gets shortened down to they're. When you're thinking of which version to use, think out the whole sentence first. If you use they are, you can then go back and contract it to they're.



Your, You're, Yore, Ur

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The most horribly messed up word, in my opinion. Your, like their, is a possessive word. You use it when saying something belongs to some one or some thing. A good example is: "What do you feel your contribution to Vampire Rave is?" Or even "Give me your coat!"



You're is a contraction of two words 'they' and 'are'. So whenever you sound out a sentence, remember that if you are going to say they are you can shorten it down to they're.



Believe me when I say, I have seen Yore used in sentences incorrectly. Basically yore simply means 'olden times' - nothing at all related to 'you' personally.



Ur is an ancient city in Mesopotamia which now lies in modern day Iraq. It, again, has nothing to do with you. It's merely a form of literal laziness; do NOT use it.



Where, Wear, Ware & Whore

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To ask a location in a question you'd say: "where?" You could ask the question: "The Wares in the warehouse are being taken by whores to where?"



Having clothes on means you're wearing them. It also means to work through something by means of abrasion. "Rough concrete floors wear through shoe-soles quickly."



Wares are products that sellers possess. Hence the name 'Warehouse'. In the days of yore, one would enter a shop and state "Show me your wares!"



Whores are those people who cannot get enough sexual gratification and are often seen parading down shady side-streets.



To, Too & Two

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To is a directive action. A good example is: "Talking to the police, we found out the murderer had killed two other people too."



Of & Have

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A classic example of writing it the way it sounds leads to this mix-up. When speaking we often tend to leave off the 'ha' and are left with 've. So when we say "they could've done that" we are implying "they could have done that." Writing it "they could of done that" is incorrect. Use have then contract it to 've if you wish.



Other examples:

FAIL: "You really shouldn’t of said that."

PASS: "You really shouldn't have (or shouldn't've) said that"

FAIL: "I might of ate a bug."

PASS: "I might have (or might've) eaten a bug."

FAIL: "might of overheard"

PASS: "wouldn't have (or wouldn't've)"



It’s & Its

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Once more a possessive world that gets confused with the other is it's and its. The other is a contraction, but the common error is understandable. Normally we are told that a possessive uses an apostrophe, as in "The dog's water is stale," or "The plane's engine is loud." What we forget is that there are other possessives like its. (eg. his, hers, theirs) Naturally its should be classified with those.



In contraction form it's merely stands for 'it is'.



Than & Then

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Probably the second most abused mix-up between words. These words mean two totally different things.



Use than when you are comparing items. "The ant is smaller than a cat." "Educated people are smarter than the uneducated."



Time is implied when using then. "Back then, we walked more." "It was then that he realized his mistake."



Breath & Breathe

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These two words are often gotten wrong because of the little 'e' at the end of one of them. Simply put, if you breathe air, you'll live long, but without it, you'll gasp your last breath.



Lose & Loose

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If something is loose you better tighten it.

If you lose something you better find it or accept its loss.



Chose & Choose

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If you choose the best, you chose well.



Accept & Except

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You can accept your fate, except if you are unsure of which choice is right.



Affect & Effect

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The disaster had a profoundeffect one the population, which was affected more-so by the poor clean-up effort.



Elicit/Illicit

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One can elicit a response by promoting the use of illicit drugs.



who/whom

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This is often messed up, because of the extra 'm' on the other word. If you use who you're asking a question. To address something to a person, you'd use whom.

"Whom are you addressing the letter to?"

"To whom it may concern..."

"Who is there?"

"Who in tarnation are you?"



who's & whose

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Who's is a contraction of 'who' and 'has' or 'is'.

"Who is (or Who's) going with me?"

"Who's (or who has) given out free food?"

"It was the guy whose turn it was to do the dishes.



Ask & Axe

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This is more in spoken language than written, but I have found it written on a few VR profiles before.

"The question that was asked was if he could borrow an axe to chop down a tree."



Dragged & Drug

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The past tense of drag is dragged, not drug. A drug is a poison, that, when given in small doses, helps cure our ailments to a certain extent.



Drank & Drunk

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The past tense of drink is drank, not drunk. Being drunk is that sensation when you've had too much to drink and you can see straight and feel like puking.