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Calling All Grammar Nazi's

That's the sign for Pound Sterling. My kids want Amazon gift certificates in Pound Sterling rather than the Euro. They can get more.

BTW, I'm so used to that symbol, that I look for it on the phone and have to remember it's the silly "hashtag"
 
Yeah I was just wondering what Americans call '£', if '#' is pound.
Being from the UK, I know '£' as the pound sign. So £20 would be twenty pounds. You could also write 20lbs, but that's an entirely different thing. Isn't the English language wonderful? :)
 
I was taught # was the symbol for number. (e.g. #1) Later I found it used as the pound sign and then hashtag. It seems to be evolving or at the least very versatile. It's becoming so popular with so many uses that I'm surprised it hasn't traded places with the . on the standard keyboard.
 
dynomot said:
Hmm, I know # as "hash", £ is "pound". lb is also "pound", but weight not currency.
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Same. During some phone calls, automated systems ask for the input of a code "followed by hash" referring to the # button on the phone dialer.

Just noticed... this is post #507
 
jefboyardee said:
"Calling All Grammar Nazi's" is incorrect.

"Calling All Grammar Nazis" is correct.

I'm probably not the first to say it, but after twenty pages...
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Well spotted, and ironic, given the thread topic. Misuse of possessive apostrophe is very common though. OP hang your head in shame ;)
 
LV426 said:
Well spotted, and ironic, given the thread topic. Misuse of possessive apostrophe is very common though. OP hang your head in shame ;)
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It is indeed ironic. Whenever anyone spots it, rather than hanging my head in shame, I feel like this:

taking-a-bow_zpsqsvvygtb.jpg
 
So does that mean I actually was the first to cleverly spot this ironic misuse of the possessive apostrophe? After an entire year of contributions by manic proofreaders?
 
No, thankfully you're not the first, but surprisingly few have pointed it out. I think it might be because it's so in-your-face that it's hidden in plain sight. The side effect being that it causes righteous incredulity in those that spot it. As EarlyMon said, it's the gift that keeps on giving.

But props to you for spotting it :)
 
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Okay, here's something I just heard on the news. The weather guy referred to Halloween being next Saturday. As I had learned this ages ago, the upcoming day of the current week, like Halloween in this case, is called this Saturday. The following is called next Saturday.
 
Indeed, this Saturday is Halloween. Although 'next' and 'this' are used interchangeably in context with days without confusion, strictly speaking it should be this when referring to a day in the current week.
 
Has anyone mentioned the phrase "off of" yet? My Wife absolutely can't stand it, but it's grammatically correct (I think), however to me it sounds a little inelegant.

Doesn't this thread make you really think hard about what you're typing? :D
 
Nothing wrong, but you could say "20 percent off your total purchase". It's one of these context dependant things, and down to preference.
 
So I've heard this before "I got this item off of her". Instead of "I got this item from her". Now that's probably a more clear cut case.
 
LV426 said:
So I've heard this before "I got this item off of her". Instead of "I got this item from her". Now that's probably a more clear cut case.
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I see. I agree, that's so wrong but I think it's a regional thing. I remember talking like that when I was a kid but having travelled a bit and acquired an education I think it might be an east coast, US, thing. I remember Bowery Boy movies where they used that phrase a lot.

UPDATE:
So you hear it used in the UK too, huh? Guess that blows my theory.
 
dontpanicbobby said:
I see. I agree, that's so wrong but I think it's a regional thing. I remember talking like that when I was a kid but having travelled a bit and acquired an education I think it might be an east coast, US, thing. I remember Bowery Boy movies where they used that phrase a lot.

UPDATE:
So you hear it used in the UK too, huh? Guess that blows my theory.
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Yes indeed, and I think it's a regional slang phrase, although it might have been imported from the US.
Like I said, most uses of "off of" don't really bother me, but the "of" can be dropped in most cases. Either is usually grammatically correct.
 
One could probably argue that it is more proper English to include the "of" in the aim of complete sentence structure, but it is more efficacious to omit it unless the context requires its presence to avoid confusion.

... not that native English speakers generally try to avoid confusion.
 
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