National Grammar Day: Do You Commit Word Crimes? Plus Sources for Grammar Help

March 04, 2022
Read 19 other hilarious grammar memes at The Frangipani Creative


Today is National Grammar Day! And why is that a special day, you ask? Because evidently, it's necessary to remind people to check their grammar.


 

Do you have any pet peeves about grammar mistakes people make? This catchy parody by Weird Al lists some prevalent word crimes that drive him crazy. He is a little brutal, but he makes up for the insults by giving viewers a couple grammar lessons.   

Is it correct to say, "I could care less?"
Are you doing good or doing well?
Can you use "quotes" too often?

Surprisingly, Weird Al did not mention my biggest pet peeve for grammar in his parody: using that instead of who. For example:

An employee that goes above and beyond should be recognized.

INCORRECT. It should be:

An employee who goes above and beyond should be recognized.

The Grammarly app doesn't even find it for correction; it has become common.

Our English has become lazy. There are several words that we pronunciate correctly but with for the wrong reason. We even say some words by just a sound instead of the word, such as saying "teh" instead of saying "to."

One of my crimes isn't misspelling or using a word incorrectly, but rather how I pronounce it: espresso – not expresso.

Two Ideal Grammar Helps for Writers


I keep grammar helpers close at hand to save time as a writer. The most useful is Grammarly, a tool I use daily. It is a free download and works right within Microsoft Word. (The free version is quite basic; I recommend a subscription for writers and students.)


Besides directing me to correctly place commas, Grammarly catches all my typed sentences with two spaces after periods. Breaking the two-space habit is hard – I remember in high school typing class when I would get marked down on timed tests if there was only one space after a period!


Another is Google. I have a Google Mini at my desk and use it frequently as a thesaurus. It saves time from leaving Microsoft Word and going to a browser to look up a word. Google can even send the answer right to your phone.


More Sources for Grammar Help


Grammarly

I have already mentioned my love for Grammarly. Grammarly's blog is a source for all types of Grammarly wisdom. If reading their blog isn't enough for you, sign up for their mailing list to get tips right to your mailbox.

Grammar Girl Podcast

Grammar Girl is Mignon Fogarty, the founder of the Quick and Dirty Tips network. Her podcast can be found wherever you like to listen to podcasts.

Grammarist

Grammarist is a blog to help with grammar, usage, spelling, style, and other resources. Grammarist states that they reach a "diverse audience primarily in the U.S., the U.K., Canada, and Australia, in that order."  

Daily Writing Tips

This grammar blog publishes a new article daily with topics ranging from grammar to punctuation, spelling to usage, and vocabulary. For business writing tips, check here first. Find what you need from their category list on the main page.

If you have a grammar pet peeve you want to get off your chest, post it here in the comments or tag #musesofamom along with #nationalgrammarday on Twitter.


Looking for grammar errors in this post? If you find one – let Grammarly know. 

1 comment:

  1. Sorry- I will ALWAYS add two spaces after a period. That is not a grammar issue per se, it's a practice started long ago- and was drilled into me as I wrote a plethora of theses.

    ReplyDelete

Powered by Blogger.