Alison Young - package and postage...grrr

[BetLynch]

The less & fewer thing drives me absolutely batty & they all do it! I have to bite my tongue not to correct people generally, but these people are professional presenters. It's their job to talk so they should be able to do so properly. For the life of me I don't know why someone in QVC can't sit them down & teach them the difference.

(For those of you still in the dark about the difference... Fewer needs to be used when there are not as many items, less is for when there is not as much of an item. For example you can have less than half the day's stock still available, but you have fewer than one hundred items left. I hope that makes sense...)

:45: Ah, I see what you mean. Thanks Bunny

 

[Mad Granny Sue]

Can I join as well? I can't stand it when presenters (especially the NN woman) talk about laying on the bed. Are they chickens and have they never heard of transitive verbs??

Should that not have been "May I join in as well" or is it now acceptable to use the word can, instead of may? I was always taught that to say can means that you are asking if you are capable of, not asking permission.

Please don't think I am being pedantic or trying to be clever, it's just that this was always drummed into me by my Mum and I taught the same to my children. My grandchildren don't get what they are asking for until they say may, so if I am being very old fashioned I need to know!

 

[Topaz]

Alison Young - package and postage...grr

The less & fewer thing drives me absolutely batty & they all do it! I have to bite my tongue not to correct people generally, but these people are professional presenters. It's their job to talk so they should be able to do so properly. For the life of me I don't know why someone in QVC can't sit them down & teach them the difference.

(For those of you still in the dark about the difference... Fewer needs to be used when there are not as many items, less is for when there is not as much of an item. For example you can have less than half the day's stock still available, but you have fewer than one hundred items left. I hope that makes sense...)

Now I know why they say English is one of the most difficult languages!!

 

[Stacey]

Now I know why they say English is one of the most difficult languages!!

PMSL but so true

 

[helena]

Can I join as well? I can't stand it when presenters (especially the NN woman) talk about laying on the bed. Are they chickens and have they never heard of transitive verbs??

There are quite a few men who guest on these computer, camera type shows that pronounce the letter H as HAITCH. It's wrong, it's AITCH. Even Keeley from Elemis who should know as she is supposed to "serve the most prestigious clientele" even says it [as in P Haitch Balance]. It is very sloppy grammar and it does my head in!!!!!
BTW I aint no noos reader meself, posh or anyfink but please, if yer on the telly, speak proper fer Gords sake!

 

[Calvin]

I'm from Northern Ireland and the pronunciation of aitch/haitch is a bit controversial. Protestant children are taught to say 'aitch' while Catholic children are taught to say 'haitch'. It has been used for generations to distinguish which community the speaker comes from.

 

[Topaz]

Alison Young - package and postage...grr

PMSL but so true

Forgive my ignorance, but what does PMSL stand for? I've seen it on another post and have absolutely no idea.

 

[Miriam]

Piss MySelf Laughing.

 

[Topaz]

Alision Young - package and postage...grrr

Piss MySelf Laughing.

I won't forget that one in a hurry. Think I need a glossary of all these!!

 

[logfire]

Now I know why they say English is one of the most difficult languages!!

Can't believe I'm sat here reading this !!! Tee hee . :60:

 

[logfire]

I'm from Northern Ireland and the pronunciation of aitch/haitch is a bit controversial. Protestant children are taught to say 'aitch' while Catholic children are taught to say 'haitch'. It has been used for generations to distinguish which community the speaker comes from.

Yeah but no but yeah but . . .I 'av 'ad this argument with people who say it is 'dialect' . No it ain't . It's wrong . And it's creeping in gradually everywhere so it will be accepted soon .

 

[vampyre]

Arrrggg, now I want to know what the 'misuse' is. I have a compulsive need to look up everything I dont understand on Google - there must be some medical term for it.

I'm not very good at English grammar so dont notice many of the mistakes people make but one thing I dislike is incorrect spelling of peoples names. It somehow seems disrespectful. Having said that I have done it a few times on here, not intentially but maybe due to my 'puter speed, what I type doesnt always appear on screen and some of the letters that I have typed, dont appear! So apologies to anyone whose 'Monica' I have spelled incorrectly

Bet

I don't like it when names are incorrect either and agree that it is disrespectful. Mind you, some adults carry on as if my name is made of 19 random consonants and beyond their ability instead of 5 simple letters that children get right first go.

Less and fewer also gets me, but the one that drives me crazy is when politicians, celebs or so called commentators refer to a fulsome apology. Fulsome means fake, not sincere and expansive, as all these clever people seem to think it means.(Although by accident I suppose they're correct, it is often the case that the apology is fake)

Also a wee gripe is mixing up "your" and "you're". I was taught so few grammatical rules that I cling tenaciously to what little I do know. :64:

 

[jacqualina]

Arrrggg, now I want to know what the 'misuse' is. I have a compulsive need to look up everything I dont understand on Google - there must be some medical term for it.

Bet

Less is used with uncountable nouns (i.e water, rice, music) and fewer is used with countable ones (i.e. votes, potatoes, sweets etc.). So the person with the fewest votes goes out, not (as so many tv commentators constantly say) the least votes.

 

[SusieJ]

"Also a wee gripe is mixing up "your" and "you're". I was taught so few grammatical rules that I cling tenaciously to what little I do know."

You could also add - there/their, its/it's, separate, etc .......!!

 

[jacqualina]

Should that not have been "May I join in as well" or is it now acceptable to use the word can, instead of may? I was always taught that to say can means that you are asking if you are capable of, not asking permission.

Please don't think I am being pedantic or trying to be clever, it's just that this was always drummed into me by my Mum and I taught the same to my children. My grandchildren don't get what they are asking for until they say may, so if I am being very old fashioned I need to know!

Sounds just like my father MGS! However, I was taught that now (at least in the EFL world) the two are both acceptable. I didn't like it at first, but I've completely got used to it and we must remember that language is constantly evolving.

The use of haitch and aithch is another matter though. Haitch is completely wrong and really annoys me (although I know nothing of N. Irish dialect so could't comment about the use there).

There are so many, it's a real shame that grammar is no longer taught in schools. My really good EFL pupils end up with much better grammar than you hear from many Brits and they can't understand why they get it wrong!

 

[helena]

Haitch seems to have got through as acceptable nowadays and even the teachers and parents at the school where I work use it too. The pupils cannot even see the difference when I try to correct them. My daughters are convent educated [with nuns] and never pronounced Haitch. I'm from C of E and my father was very strict on our speech, we never said Haitch. What I'm bothered with is even though they continuosly pronounce the H, they are quite happy to still say 'ouse, 'ome, 'orrible so what's going on?

 

[helena]

I'm from Northern Ireland and the pronunciation of aitch/haitch is a bit controversial. Protestant children are taught to say 'aitch' while Catholic children are taught to say 'haitch'. It has been used for generations to distinguish which community the speaker comes from.

Yeah, yeah, whatever!