Confession: I’m no grammarian. And I’m no grammar police.
Seriously, I corrected someone once, and it was at that point that I realized that nobody likes their grammar corrected right there on the spot. Nobody.
But there are certain things that, when I hear them, I want to correct them. In the moment, I tell myself, “Don’t be a nerd. Don’t be that guy. It’s not worth it.” So indulge me, for just a minute. Maybe you’ve heard some of these. Maybe you’ve uttered them.
Misspoken words & phrases
- It may be the fastest way to get your caffeine, but it’s not expresso. It’s espresso.
- The phrase isn’t “flush out an idea.” It’s “flesh out an idea.” Unless, of course, it’s a bad idea…and you can flush those down the tube.
- Feeling trapped? You’ll never be able to “exscape,” because that’s not a word. However, you may be able to “escape.”
- “I could care less.” Yes, you probably could. And you’d probably get to where you “couldn’t care less.”
- You can’t walk “acrossed” the parking lot. You walk “across” it. Or you have “crossed” it.
- There is no such thing as a Chester drawer. Many companies produce “chest of drawers,” though.
- “For all intents and purposes,” you should never say, “For all intensive purposes,” unless you’re trying to illustrate a point of what not to say.
- Supposedly never, ever has a “b” in it (ala, “supposebly”).
- The word nuclear only has one “u.” It never has two. Even if you’re my 7th grade science teacher (seriously, she said “nucular” every single time)
- You can be doing “especially” well, or offering “exceptional” service, but it’s just not possible to be “exspecially” happy about things.
- Ever said “a-whole-nother”? All you’re doing is splitting “another” apart by adding an entire word in the middle. Don’t do it. Don’t make “a-whole-nother” word like that.
What phrases bother you?
Are you the “grammar” police? Say it ain’t so!