English Language - Common Errors

Abuse of the English language
in the United States of America

As a (sometime) professional writer, I believe that language is a tool to be used correctly; not a blunt instrument with which to beat opponents into submission, nor is it an off-road vehicle blundering cross-country in pursuit of some distant goal.

Accordingly, this page will note, comment, and criticize without regard to race, ethnicity, politics, rank or religion. No offense intended. It is not a "free language" and if we use it freely we risk losing all meaning.

APOSTROPHES: There is only one rule: The apostrophe always indicates an abbreviation; NEVER a plural!

The apostrophe always replaces the missing letter(s) of an abbreviation. This confuses many, because in possessives, the original unabbreviated forms are no longer used.

Possessive forms of many words and names once ended in "es" [or some other suffix] which is now obsolete. But the apostrophe now replaces the dropped letters of these archaic possessive forms. For example, where it was once correct to write "Jesuses words - -" we now write, "Jesus' words - - "

"This is yours." NOT: "This is your's." There are no letters missing in the possessive "yours." However - "You're going with us." Because "you're" is the abbreviated form of "you are."

"RVs" not "RV's" which would indicate something belonging to an RV, and begs the question: "RV's what?"

Fabricated words: "Alot" is not English. There is no such word, even in American English.

"Lot" means an undetermined, unspecified, but probably large number of something. Thus; a lot of money; a lot of cows; a lot of mistakes in grammar.

"Hone in" appears even in newspapers that should know better; apparently a misplaced version of "home in" meaning to focus closely on some distant goal. To "hone" is, of course, to sharpen, as with a honing strap or stone, thus one may hone, but you cannot hone "in."

On page 25 of the November 2006 issue of Popular Mechanics I found this sentence: "Antiradar Missiles: Hone in on . . ." when the writer obviously meant "home in" on (radar transmitters.) Unbelievable!

More to come . . .

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