Mini-Microsoft Cutting Room Floor

Sunday, December 21, 2008

Grammar galore - New comment on Achieving Senior Level 63 at Microsoft.

Anonymous has left a new comment on your post "Achieving Senior Level 63 at Microsoft":

Grammar nitpicking is fine when it's accurate.

I'm not the original grammarian, but I'll bite.

"a HR manager" is acceptable if HR is meant to convey a spoken "a human resources manager" rather than a spoken "an aich arr manager".

I don't C Y U'd stop there. Y not make it EZ 4 the OP 2 use as few strokes as possible?

Seriously, if he's using an acronym simply to save keystrokes, he can afford to change "a" to "an" in order to remain grammatically correct. It's not that big a sacrifice and despite your assurance that it's "acceptable" I doubt you'd find too many English teachers who'd agree.

"haven't seen nothing yet" is a fairly common construction. "Ain't seen nothing yet" is a more popular variant of the same due to a song with that title and refrain.

"Common" doesn't mean correct. Far more people use the phrase "could care less" than use the one they invariably mean ("couldn't care less.") Does that mean it's okay to say "I could care less" when I mean the exact opposite simply because everyone else gets it wrong?

Saying you "haven't seen nothing" states the exact opposite of what is meant. There's a reason why even user manuals subject to the most lax of proofreading don't come out suggesting that the user "doesn't have to do nothing" once they've hit ENTER.

"Shock and awe awaits" is correct. My best guess is that you think it should be await. I give you the example from http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/awaits "A busy day awaits" as evidence.

So your "evidence" that "await" is wrong is to use an example where "awaits" is correct?

"Shock and awe" are two words. Words. Plural. Unless you're referring to "Operation Shock and Awe" or some special case where the plural noun is understood as a singular term ("rock and roll IS here to stay" for example), then the correct verb should be plural to match case.

You AND I (do) disagree. You and I "does" not "disagrees."

So one legitimate missing punctuation mark, one matter of verbal interpretation, one popular idiom, and one completely correct phrase. Only 1 of the 4 [sic]s were legitimate. You've made 3 mistakes. Therefore, you are an HR manager.

Actually he was 4 for 4.

(Given how poor my grammar is I have deep respect for grammarians and all, but let us let this dog sleep now)

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