Pedants' Paradise

[Don Petter]

One that I've heard of that I like is from a newspaper during the war: "Americans thrust bottles up Italians"

and of course the ubiquitous Sun's "Stick it up yer junta"

OK - I'm just a saddo.....

I still remember a favourite from the Guardian in the sixties: 'One-legged Tibetan Passes L-test'

[gurnemanz]

Or the wartime: "Churchill flies back to front"

[jean]

I will lift up mine eyes unto the hills, from whence cometh my help

And in the final stanza of Gray's Ode on the Death of a Favourite Cat, Drowned in a Tub of Gold Fishes

From hence, ye beauties, undeceived,
Know, one false step is ne’er retrieved,
And be with caution bold.
Not all that tempts your wandering eyes
And heedless hearts, is lawful prize;
Nor all that glisters, gold.

[ardcarp]

Apparently, when je suis charlie appeared on the front page of The Sun, some wag commented that it was the first use of a foreign word in that journal since Up Yours Delors

[mercia]

apologies for derailing the conversation about "sexed down" - its annoying when people do that isn't it.

[ferneyhoughgeliebte]

"Sexed Down" sounds like the trendy new name of a duvet manufacturers.

[LeMartinPecheur]

"Sexed Down" sounds like the trendy new name of a duvet manufacturers.

[Old Grumpy]

From today's Indy:

http://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/gadgets-and-tech/news/wikipedia-editor-has-made-some-47000-corrections-to-online-database-10024355.html?origin=internalSearch

Give the man a medal!!

[jean]

Certainly not - he's being very silly.

[gurnemanz]

Certainly not - he's being very silly.

Do you mean silly to object to the usage or silly to spend his time correcting it on Wiki?

[Eine Alpensinfonie]

From today's Indy:

http://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/gadgets-and-tech/news/wikipedia-editor-has-made-some-47000-corrections-to-online-database-10024355.html?origin=internalSearch

Give the man a medal!!

Agreed. Good for him.

"Comprised of" is in the same league as "PIN number".

[vinteuil]

Agreed. Good for him.

"Comprised of" is in the same league as "PIN number".

... but you're happy with the River Avon?

[ahinton]

Agreed. Good for him.

"Comprised of" is in the same league as "PIN number".

Yes - well, you see, the thing is is that...

[jean]

Do you mean silly to object to the usage or silly to spend his time correcting it on Wiki?

Both - the second because the first.

The Estate Agent's favourite 'the accommodation comprises of' instead of simply 'comprises' is reprehensible of course, but the passive 'is cormpised of' has an honourable history.

The OED's first ctation of the active in this sense is this:

1794 W. Paley View Evidences Christianity I. i. ix. 212 The propositions which comprise the several heads of our testimony.

The heads are, therefore, comprised of the propositions.

(They were talking about this just now on R4.)

[ferneyhoughgeliebte]

... but you're happy with the River Avon?

Not to mention Pendle Hill.