Pedants' Paradise

[vinteuil]

The solution is to translate all place named into Latin, thus obviating the need for the quaintly-named Saxon Genitive.

Think Bognor Regis.

... and Huish Episcopi

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Huish_Episcopi

.

[Serial_Apologist]

... and Huish Episcopi

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Huish_Episcopi

.

That's not the late TV presenter Hughie Green, who was once described by Billy Connolly as Green Huey.

[kernelbogey]

A day or two back I was ordering online from a large international supplier (no, not that one). The town where I live is named with two words, the first of which contains an apostrophe (cf Bishop's Stortford, where I don't live); and so does the name of my house. When registering and therefore recording my address for the first time I found that it would not accept anything other than 'letters, numbers and spaces'. IT folk are responsible for this assault on language and meaning. Ironic, too, considering the ubiquity of @ and the hashtag!

Well the goods arrived today. Not sure what that proves, or disproves. There are serioius proponents of abandoning the apostropher,

[teamsaint]

Well the goods arrived today. Not sure what that proves, or disproves. There are serioius proponents of abandoning the apostropher,

That would be one of these

[ferneyhoughgeliebte]

Pedantic Point: Lats' two recent posts on Pronunciation have been moved to the "Pronunciation Watch" Thread.

[Lat-Literal]

Pedantic Point: Lats' two recent posts on Pronunciation have been moved to the "Pronunciation Watch" Thread.

It's all so confusing these days.

[ferneyhoughgeliebte]

[kernelbogey]

I haven't researched, but I think current US usage might be 'the car span out of control'.

I recently came across a discussion of a more common example of this pattern - which is frustratingly remaining just out of my recall: I hope to post an Edit!

I heard in the last few days the American usage 'he plead' (pronounced pled) where we would say he pleaded [guilty/not guilty].

(This may be the usage that was 'remaiing just out of my recall'.)

[kernelbogey]

Well the goods arrived today. Not sure what that proves, or disproves. There are serioius proponents of abandoning the apostropher,

I meant to write 'abandonding the apostrophe'. But of course we apostrophers may be abandoned, or even banned....

[Andrew353w]

.

... even sadder presumably for those living here -

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Westward_Ho!

.

I was born there! I've have had several "amusing" incidents when completing forms referring to my place of birth. I have, occasionally been "economical with the truth" and put "Bideford" instead.... Well, it's just down the road....

[french frank]

I was born there! I've have had several "amusing" incidents when completing forms referring to my place of birth. I have, occasionally been "economical with the truth" and put "Bideford" instead.... Well, it's just down the road....

In some contexts, it's less complicated to give my surname as 'Smith'

I meant to write 'abandonding the apostrophe'

Did you, kernel?

[vinteuil]

In some contexts, it's less complicated to give my surname as 'Smith'

... indeedy. I was cursed with a double-barrelled name, both bits of which had the least-likely spelling of such names. Fortunately my pa in a fit of damn-my-snobbish-antecedents killed off half the name. But even what I'm left with I have to spell out, and telephones often don't distinguish between f and s

Yep, Smith wd do fine. Tho' when booking restrongs I used to claim to be the Earl of Uxbridge. Which I'm not.

.

[french frank]

But even what I'm left with I have to spell out, and telephones often don't distinguish between f and s

I'm trisyllabic with s's, p's and b's. Annoyingly, I often spell my name wrongly when typing.

[french frank]

BBC's news headline read: "Meat supplier Russell Hume collapses". Not good news, but on investigation, the story wasn't what I was picturing.

[ardcarp]

I heard 'surface' used as a verb today, not as in surfacing a road but along these lines:

"We only surface companies on our website which deliver...blah, blah, blah..."

Is this a new one?