From the Blog Jar: "I have one grammatical pet-peeve..."

Actually, I have at least two grammatical pet-peeves.

First, alright. "Alright" drives me up the wall. Any dictionary will tell you that "alright" is the incorrect spelling of "all right." All right. Two words.

Eventually the masses will force a change upon the dictionary, causing "all right" to become obsolete and "alright" to be the norm. Anything is possible. After all, I saw "thru" used last week in an online news article, and no, it wasn't for "drive-thru" either.

*shudder*

Anyway, until "alright" becomes all right, I will continue to spread the word. ALL RIGHT?!


Next, everyday vs. every day. Two different styles. One is an adverb, one is an adjective. And they are NOT interchangeable.

First, the adverb. An adverb modifies a verb or another adverb. Example: "I really seriously do not like this." This person seriously DOES not like. See? The "seriously" goes with a verb. Also, the "really" modifies the "seriously," and since we have already established that "seriously" is an adverb, we can say that "really" is an adverb, too, because it is modifying another adverb.

"I wear these shoes every day." How do you wear them? Every day. You're explaining how you wear them, or when you wear them... you're explaining a VERB. To wear. Because of this, "every day" is an adverb. Actually, 2 adverbs stuck together. Which day? Every day. What about the day? That's when I wear my shoes.

Every Day = adverb.


Now, the adjective. An adjective describes a noun or pronoun. The tall man, the green grass, the everyday shoes.

This time, "every day" becomes "everyday." You're not describing the VERB of wearing them any more; now you are describing the NOUN--the shoes. "These are my everyday shoes. I wear them every day."


I know, English is a strange and untamed beast. But I have a whip and a 3-legged stool, so it is my job to take control of it.


I am the lion tamer.

I am the tiger trainer.

I am...
...the English Tutor.


(A little dramatic? Sorry :)