1. Use there when referring to a place, whether concrete ("over there by the building") or more abstract ("it must be difficult to live there").
* There is an antique store on Camden Avenue.
* The science textbooks are over there on the floor.
* There are many documents that are used in investigations
2. Use their to indicate possession. It is a possessive adjective and indicates that a particular noun belongs to them.
* My friends have lost their tickets.
* Their things were strewn about the office haphazardly.
3. Remember that they're is a contraction of the words they and are. It can never be used as a modifier, only as a subject (who or what does the action) and verb (the action itself).
* Hurry up! They're closing the mall at 6 tonight!
* I'm glad that they're so nice to new students here.
4. Test your usage. When you use any of these three words, get in the habit of asking yourself these questions:
* If you wrote there, will the sentence still make sense if you replace it with here? If so, you're using it correctly.
* If you chose their, will the sentence still make sense if you replace it with our? If so, you've chosen the correct word.
* If you used they're, will the sentence still make sense if you replace it with they are? If so, you're on the right track!
Good lesson.
It's so funny that you posted this Dale. I just added a Flair button to my Facebook collection that comments on the difference.
I think I learned them (and other homoyms) early because it was like a puzzle to figure which one to use... I like puzzles.
I dislike memorizing things by rote though. I am a poor speller ( :-* love that spell check :-*) so a lot of common words like 'terrific' and 'anonymous' and dozens of others I have to look up every single time I use them. I'm so glad folks don't correct me all the time on here or all my posts would be in red :-[ :D ;D
Thanks for this post, Dale. When I was teaching elementary students, this was an ongoing issue, and it is surprising how many adults still make the same mistakes. I'm hoping my fourth graders who are now productive adults in the world (supposedly) will remember and choose the correct wording. It makes me cringe when I see incorrect usage choices on public posters, billboards, and TV ads.
Thanks for the post, Dale...It's good to read you again! :laugh:
Dale,
How nice to have you back. I assume that school is out where you live.??
I also enjoyed the lesson. Now, if you have a lesson to replace my brain matter with,
that would be a good-thing...........LOL>
It is so much fun getting older!
Always have something to talk about, I just forget who I told what too..........
God bless
Judy
It's hard to convince many that possessive pronouns do NOT need an apostrophe: his, hers, ours, theirs, yours, its. If in doubt, substitute the word "is" for the apostrophe in your sentence and see if it makes sense.
"Its" gets me pretty often. Once I had to write an employee handbook. On the final proofreading, I took it into my mind that I had it all wrong... I did "find & replace" every single " its " with " it's " then printed 30 copies of that 300 page book. I felt like a dunce, but don't think anyone else ever noticed it! (Maybe they didn't read it ???) 8)
And another series of words . . .
Sometimes there's too much information for the two of us to process.
:D :D :D
1. If you can substitute the word with "it is" or "it has" then you want the contraction "it's."
*
o It's a nice day
o It's been a nice day.
2. If you can replace the word with "his" or "her" and it makes sense, then you want the possessive "its."
3. That's it! Now you'll never make this common mistake again!
* "Its" and "it's" are two different words with two different uses. It's (it is) always easy to figure out its (his) correct use.
* Remember that simple sentence and you can't make that common error again.
* Another way to think of it is this: "hers" and "his" don't have apostrophes, right? So why would "its"?
Welcome back Dale. Good to see you.
David
Another series that really bugs me when I hear or see it misused is:
see, saw seen
I see the moon.
I saw the moon.
I have seen the moon.
Many times seen is misused.
Myrna
Yes, "I seen it" is incorrect. (and a pet-peeve of mine)
Glad you've returned from your hiatus, Dale!
"I seen" ....is definitely one of my pet peeves.
I also cringe at "thru" instead of "through" and "donut" instead of doughnut.
I don't see this written, but I hear it quite a bit: "Where you at?" which prompts me to ask "Where's the verb?"
Yeah, that's a tricky one, Indygal. "Where you at" probably could be "Where are you at". If you say it fast enough, and without too much pronunciation, it all runs together. Not really a contraction for Where + are, is there... Where're? Ha!
I'm guilty of both "thru" and "donut". Faster to type that way. Plus, a lot of doughnut stores are spelled "donut"... Dunkin' Donuts, for example.
" idea " pronounced as " ideal " bugs me
" agin " instead of "against" like 'Don't lean up agin the table or I'll smack this skillet up agin your head.'
I suppose those are just part of having a country accent or growing up in a certain locality, colloquialisms.
I notice that sometimes I say things in a way that I would never write them, so I know I probably manage to use a lot of poor grammar that I don't even know about ;) Ha! And I probably won't thank you for telling me about it either, but it's fun to list them on the Forum.
My mother had a reply for any sentence like "Where is it at?" She would always say, "Just before the at?" "Where is it?" is a complete sentence without the "at".
That's right, Wilma. Sentences shouldn't end with a preposition.
QuoteMy mother had a reply for any sentence like "Where is it at?" She would always say, "Just before the at?"
That's one of my responses to the kids at school. Drives them bonkers, especially the ones that don't understand.
One of the other phrases I catch them on is
Can I and
May I. When they say the
Can and mean the
May, they'll hear from me, "Only if you're able." One student, a junior next year, never did catch on. ;D
Wilma I bet you are loving this thread. I picture you with a big smile on your face. Thinking there is some hope for the world after all.
David
Joanna, I figger yer either fer it or agin it (don't be smackin' me upside the head for that, either!) ;) I do catch myself saying "I'm fixin' to....." and "I reckon...." :)
Tobina, it's hard for me to understand how "Where you at?" is a faster or better way of asking "Where are you?" It's the same number of syllables, and no pronunciation issues to speak of .... oh well.
For the longest time, it bothered me when someone would say "idear," "warsh" and "yeller" instead of "idea," "wash" and "yellow," but I found out it's actually a derivation of Scots-Irish that was spoken in the Appalachians and was considered correct pronunciation. Go figger..... ;D
I say wanna and gonna a lot, but I rarely write them unless it's intentional.
David, yes, I am loving this. It is compulsive with me that everything is correct, spelling, grammar, etc. I just cannot help but notice when a wrong word is used or a word is mispelled. But what really irritates me is when a word is mispelled on a big sign or on TV. I try to overlook it because nobody is perfect, not even me. But I am close.
Mom, may I and can I were one of the things my mother drilled into us.
Now you all might think that my mother was educated and maybe a teacher or such? She had a seventh grade education, then had to quit to help with the babies at home. She was born in Oklahoma and lived her first 18 years there. Not that being born in Oklahoma has anything to do with it. I do think that maybe the education there wasn't quite what it was in Kansas. Her perseverence in teaching us to speak correctly was so we wouldn't seem trashy. And because Daddy's family was educated. His sisters were teachers and most of the family got to go to high school. Mother didn't want us to seem any less educated than our cousins were. "Were" isn't necessary at the end of that sentence, is it? See how badly I have slipped since I married my Elk County hillbilly.
From my childhood when cartoons were great and we learned something from them. This is from the school house rock cartoons that used to run between all the Saturday cartoons when I was a kid.
http://www.schoolhouserock.tv/Grammar.html
Conjunction Junction, what's your function?
Hooking up words and phrases and clauses.
Conjunction Junction, how's that function?
I got three favorite cars
That get most of my job done.
Conjunction Junction, what's their function?
I got "and", "but", and "or",
They'll get you pretty far.
[spoken] "And":
That's an additive, like "this and that".
"But":
That's sort of the opposite,
"Not this but that".
And then there's "or":
O-R, when you have a choice like
"This or that".
"And", "but", and "or",
Get you pretty far.
[sung] Conjunction Junction, what's your function?
Hooking up two boxcars and making 'em run right.
Milk and honey, bread and butter, peas and rice.
Hey that's nice!
Dirty but happy, digging and scratching,
Losing your shoe and a button or two.
He's poor but honest, sad but true,
Boo-hoo-hoo-hoo-hoo!
Conjunction Junction, what's your function?
Hooking up two cars to one
When you say something like this choice:
"Either now or later"
Or no choice:
"Neither now nor ever"
Hey that's clever!
Eat this or that, grow thin or fat,
Never mind, I wouldn't do that,
I'm fat enough now!
Conjunction Junction, what's your function?
Hooking up phrases and clauses that balance, like:
Out of the frying pan and into the fire.
He cut loose the sandbags,
But the balloon wouldn't go any higher.
Let's go up to the mountains,
Or down to the seas.
You should always say "thank you",
Or at least say "please".
Conjunction Junction, what's your function?
Hooking up words and phrases and clauses
In complex sentences like:
[spoken] In the mornings, when I'm usually wide awake, I love to take a walk through the gardens and down by the lake, where I often see a duck and a drake, and I wonder, as I walk by, just what they'd say if they could speak, although I know that's an absurd thought.
Conjunction Junction, what's your function?
Hooking up cars and making 'em function.
Conjunction Junction, how's that function?
I like tying up words and phrases and clauses.
Conjunction Junction, watch that function.
I'm going to get you there if you're very careful.
Conjunction Junction, what's your function?
I'm going to get you there if you're very careful.
Conjunction Junction, what's your function?
I'm going to get you there if you're very careful.
The video link for those of you my age.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mkO87mkgcNo
Also, check out the other school house rock series at:
http://www.schoolhouserock.tv/index.html
QuoteBut what really irritates me is when a word is misspelled on a big sign or on TV
Jim noticed a newspaper headline:
Court puts the breaks on Chrysler sale. We're certain the writer meant
brakes.
Oh well. :)
Here is one for you grammar officionadoes. (I hope that is spelled right. I can't find it in my dictionary.)
I typed a letter to a friend today in which I stated, "I feel as if --------". I have seen this stated as, "I feel like -----". Which is grammatically correct?
Quote from: Wilma on June 09, 2009, 08:27:18 PM
Here is one for you grammar officionadoes. (I hope that is spelled right. I can't find it in my dictionary.)
aficionado
Websters New World Dictionary, Second College Edition, 1986
Wilma, I think that both are correct; as if would describe an idea, whereas like would be used as an actual description, (my stomach felt like a rock). Not a pretty example but ample I hope. ;)
Either is acceptable in casual speech and/or writing. However, I was taught that "like" is used when no verb is present in the group of words that follows. "As if" is used when the next set of words includes a verb. Strict grammarians can have a heyday with such peculiarities, but this one is usually considered correct either way.
I walked like a model.
I walked as if I were a model.
Thank you, Flint. Now let me see if I remember without looking again. Aficianado. Missed it. Aficionado. I wonder how long I can remember it.
There once were rule books on such matters.
They're no longer in print.
Their pages are ignored, I'm afraid.
It's a sign of the times that a book rests quietly
with its pages unopened.
I once acquired a Kansas City Star rule book. It was a very well done soft cover bound publication about a quarter inch thick and gave all of the publisher's "do's" and "don'ts" for writing.
The only thing I can recall from that rule book is that it was unacceptable to use "KS" as an abbreviation for Kansas. The publisher wanted "Kans."
It was, however, acceptable to use "Mo" for Missouri.
Most book publishers nowadays seem to say they follow the Chicago Manual of Style, 15th edition, (955 pages), which does allow for using "KS" provided a zip code follows or when using without a zip code in a bibliography showing where a book was published.
Most publishers still provide their own few pages of exceptions to that Manual.
Newspaper publishers shun the use of postal abbreviations in story text.
They're OK in advertising, or addresses.
But the abbreviation for Kansas is still "Kan." No "s" on it.
Here's the list of proper state abbreviations, but remember, this is only for news story purposes. Using postal abbreviations is quite common for informal writing.
Ala.
Ariz.
Calif.
Colo.
Conn.
Del.
Fla.
Ga.
Ill.
Ind.
Kan.
Ky
La..
Md.
Mass.
Mich.
Minn.
Miss.
Mo.
Mont.
Neb.
Nev.
N.C.
N.H.
N.J.
N.M.
N.Y.
N.D.
Okla.
Ore.
Pa.
R.I.
S.C.
S.D.
Tenn.
Vt.
Wash.
W.Va.
Wis.
Wyo.
There are no proper abbreviations for Alaska, Hawaii, Idaho, Iowa, Maine, Ohio, Texas or Utah. Use the two-letter postal abbreviations only with full addresses, including ZIP code.