Pedants' Paradise

[Nick Armstrong]

Shops that drop apostrophes tend to be the ones with annoying piped music: Currys, Morrisons and even Waterstones.

Classic stuff in the recent 'Fast Show' resurrection shows, in the 'Swiss Toni' sketches..

[Serial_Apologist]

On yesterday's Today, someone made an admittance that they had been wrong.

[vinteuil]

On yesterday's Today, someone made an admittance that they had been wrong.

... an old use. OED has - "the action of admitting the truth (of a tenet), either from conviction or for argument's sake".
1589 Puttenham Eng. Poesie This figure is much vsed by our English pleaders... which they call to confesse and auoid... I call it the figure of admittance.
1635 J Swan Spec. Mundi v. §2 (1643) 165 We fall into other absurdities upon the admittance of this tenet.

[Serial_Apologist]

... an old use. OED has - "the action of admitting the truth (of a tenet), either from conviction or for argument's sake".
1589 Puttenham Eng. Poesie This figure is much vsed by our English pleaders... which they call to confesse and auoid... I call it the figure of admittance.
1635 J Swan Spec. Mundi v. §2 (1643) 165 We fall into other absurdities upon the admittance of this tenet.

Oh really? Got that wrong then; thanks vints

[vinteuil]

Oh really? Got that wrong then; thanks vints

... o no, I think you were right! - it's a usage most wd call "obsolete".

[Richard Tarleton]

More apostrophe's - a sign in a local hairdresser informs passer's-by that "Appointments are not alway's necessary"

[Serial_Apologist]

More apostrophe's - a sign in a local hairdresser informs passer's-by that "Appointments are not alway's necessary"

The ways of Al, eh?

[Eine Alpensinfonie]

More apostrophe's

[Serial_Apologist]

Deliberate, I'm sure.

[mercia]

on Swiss Tonis's other sign I'm surprised he doesn't offer warranty's.

[Richard Tarleton]

Deliberate, I'm sure.

Thanks S_A, and greengrocer's to you Alpen. I thought passer's-by should have given the game away

[ardcarp]

Does one...or should I say Juan.... (a) abdicate the throne or (b) abdicate from the throne?

[Pabmusic]

Does one...or should I say Juan.... (a) abdicate the throne or (b) abdicate from the throne?

I think abdicate means relinquish rather than resign. Certainly that seems to be how it's used. Therefore, I'd say abdicate the throne is better than abdicate 'from' the throne.

But.

'Abdicate' means (at least in present usage) to give up the throne. So 'abdicate the throne' would be a tautology. Abdicate is all that's needed.

[gurnemanz]

SOED defines "abdicate" in modern usage as:
- verb trans. Give up (a right, responsibility, trust, office, or dignity) either formally or by default.
- verb intrans. Renounce sovereignty.
As Pab says, the intransitive verb says it all, because it only refers to a throne. It is not necessary to add an object unless referring to something else.

[ardcarp]

It was used (obviously wrongly) on R4 this morning in its 'abdicate the throne' form.