On tonight’s episode of “Talking and Writing Good”…

Shall we go over a couple of money language items, folks?

  • “$2 million dollars” says, literally, “two million dollars dollars.”  What you really want is “$2 million,” which says “two million dollars.”  I suppose you could just write “two million dollars” as well, or “$2,000,000.”
  • “.59¢” means I can buy 100 of them for 59 cents, because they’re each fifty-nine hundredths of a single cent.  If you want the expression that means “59 cents,” go with “$0.59,” “$.59,” or “59¢.”  You can’t use the . and the ¢ together.  Dumbass.  Uh, I mean “for your future reference, ladies and gentlemen.”  (sickly insincere smile)

A bit or five on verbosity?

  • Please think carefully about whether you need to say “on a daily basis.”  Just “daily” is fine.  Do you exercise on a daily basis, or do you exercise daily?  See?
  • “At the present time”?  What, you mean “now”?
  • I loathe the word “utilize.”  I have retreated from my previously hardline stand and allowed that it may have some applicability in discussions of resources and procurement, carrying a connotation of efficiency.  But “use” is just fine in other situations.
  • “Orientate” sounds uneducated, period, and I don’t give a shit if it’s in your dictionary.  I was stunned, then uneasily accepting, then finally appalled when The Right Honourable Margaret Thatcher used it when eulogizing President Reagan.  Despite her considerable oratorical skill, it’s a base backward construction, and it’s obscene.  The word is “orient,” and even the Iron Lady can be wrong.
  • “In a manner so as to.”  Not exactly common, I know, but I actually encountered that in a software specification early in my career.  I’ve never forgotten it.  Cross the first five words out, and the meaning is the same.

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10 thoughts on “On tonight’s episode of “Talking and Writing Good”…”

  1. For some reason, “orient” in British English is a linguistic no-no, apparently offensive to those from the orient (meaning East), and Brtis avoid it strenuously, often replacing it with the clunky and inelegant “orientate.” I agree – it sounds pompous and overdone I tend to laugh out loud when I hear it.

    Reply
  2. You should do a Grammar Wednesday post!

    I had to take a flier off the wall at TCC today. It was from the student government, and it said “Student Government Want’s YOU! Come to meeting’s on Wednesday’s at three in room 202.” I brought the thing to the receptionist, who’s just as persnickity as I am about grammar, and she’s promised me that she’d bring the errors to the faculty coordinator’s attention.

    Reply
  3. Organic Mama, I didn’t know that! Thank you for bringing that to the discussion. I feel so much better about that eulogy now. I just thought she’d blown it.

    Mrs. Chili, I’m actually thinking about how much I might want to standardize my posts. I do bitch about the grammar from time to time, but I don’t know if I’d enjoy it every week. I’ll think about it.

    Greg, I’ll take that under “advisement.”

    Reply
  4. Irregardless….That’s my pet peeve. And your vs. you’re. Oh yeah – one more (at least) – accept vs except.

    Funny one on a blog I read today – a programmer I work with referred to the blackberry that he’s borrowing from the company for his trip to India as a “loner.” I howled….

    Reply
  5. Jenny, on that same note I can’t stand when someone says he’s “five foot, ten inches.”

    Melanie, the whole your/you’re thing is so depressingly common that I just can’t get that worked up about it anymore. I’d be two clicks south of rage whenever I was awake.

    You know, irregardless of how you feel about it. 🙂

    How about people who say/write “in lieu of” when they mean “in light of”? Read literally, that’s often a hilarious mistake.

    Reply

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