tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18587935.post114140433858134715..comments2024-03-27T11:26:52.574-04:00Comments on Litbrit: The Adverb is Dead; Long Live the Adjective!Deborah Newellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02527317477388626268noreply@blogger.comBlogger6125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18587935.post-1141829800261358752006-03-08T09:56:00.000-05:002006-03-08T09:56:00.000-05:00keda, I know what you mean. I don't care for burg...keda, I know what you mean. I don't care for burglarize myself--it sounds a lot like the ridiculous "colorize" and "sizings" used in the fashion industry.<BR/><BR/>Actually, though, it's an old-ish word (1871). Here's a link to a terrific source for information about word origins (in this case, burglarize:<BR/><BR/>http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?search=burglarize&searchmode=none<BR/><BR/>I agree with the authors that "burgle" is a hideous back-formation verb. Same thing goes for "swindle".<BR/><BR/>One has to wonder why, when there are so many perfectly clear and useful words available, people resort to using buzzwords in formal or standard English? I'm all for slang, colloquialisms, and interesting new constructs <I>used within the context of informal speech</I>. But newsreaders should not be saying "should have went". Aaaargh!Deborah Newellhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02527317477388626268noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18587935.post-1141808220295020452006-03-08T03:57:00.000-05:002006-03-08T03:57:00.000-05:00loving it!sorry but though its slightly at a tange...loving it!<BR/><BR/>sorry but though its slightly at a tangent... i recently heard parkinson (you know our beloved old 'parky'?) whilst interviewing peggy mitchell -who's real name i've sadly forgotten- use the 'word' BURGULARIZED. <BR/>whats wrong the old common or garden burgled? or even robbed.<BR/>is it the same sort of thing as maybe racialism as opposed to racism?<BR/>am i or have i missed something?<BR/>please help. i realise i lost vital brain power whilst pregnant, but as i'm now trying to remedy that talking and writing bad aint gonna help me now innit?kedahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05996009634057410650noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18587935.post-1141408513080191212006-03-03T12:55:00.000-05:002006-03-03T12:55:00.000-05:00i ascribe the dumbing down of the written and spok...<I>i ascribe the dumbing down of the written and spoken word to the absence of classic literature in core classes these days. without homer, sophocles, shakespeare, shelly, keats, yeats, marlowe, et al being taught how can we expect more from ourselves?</I><BR/><BR/>Couldn't agree more, Stephen. The best way to learn spelling, grammar--all facets of the English language, in fact--is to read it <I>as written by the masters</I>.<BR/><BR/>Loved your response to the producer!Deborah Newellhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02527317477388626268noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18587935.post-1141408104993015472006-03-03T12:48:00.000-05:002006-03-03T12:48:00.000-05:00brava, mia cara! my favorite examples of knowing ...brava, mia cara! my favorite examples of knowing the rules before breaking them are the sonnets of e.e. cummings. (i don't eschew caps to honor him, i'm merely a lazy git) i also despise the verbing of nouns. to parent? yuck. i do, however, recognise and cherish the vitality and dynamic nature of our native tongue. i ascribe the dumbing down of the written and spoken word to the absence of classic literature in core classes these days. without homer, sophocles, shakespeare, shelly, keats, yeats, marlowe, et al being taught how can we expect more from ourselves? although i recently had my hackles raised talking with a producer about a potential live gig. . .<BR/>me:<BR/>where's this gig in l.a. at?<BR/><BR/>producer snot:<BR/>it's where we don't end with prepositions.<BR/><BR/>me:<BR/>ok, where's this gig in l.a. at . . . motherfucker?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18587935.post-1141406486680489462006-03-03T12:21:00.000-05:002006-03-03T12:21:00.000-05:00Tart, are you saying I'm not allowed to write abou...Tart, are you saying I'm not allowed to write about my disdain for this ongoing pandemic of bad grammar because other people have already done so? Well, they haven't written about <I>my</I> disdain, only their own, right?<BR/><BR/>Hell, methinks it's one of those things we should ALL be hammering into the ether at every opportunity. Repetition, repetition, etc.<BR/><BR/>Now, you've really got my attention with <I>snuck</I>. My OED doesn't have it, but yeah, it's an old OED. As I understood it, the past, and past participle, of sneak were <I>sneaked</I>.<BR/><BR/>I sneak chocolate into my diet at every opportunity.<BR/><BR/>I sneaked into the kitchen last night and ate all the chocolate chips.<BR/><BR/>Hardly a day has passed that I haven't sneaked around the house, looking for chocolate about which I might have forgotten.<BR/><BR/>(All true statements, sadly...)Deborah Newellhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02527317477388626268noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18587935.post-1141405466188920962006-03-03T12:04:00.000-05:002006-03-03T12:04:00.000-05:00I. Loved. This. Post.It was so original!*duckin...I. Loved. This. Post.<BR/><BR/>It was so original!<BR/><BR/>*ducking*<BR/><BR/>Anyway, I'm fighting the war against the adverb-adjective switch by telling people that I'm doing "well" when they ask me how I am, which is usually a lie anyways but we all know they don't want the dirty truth. Especially when I'm doing just FABULOUSLY, because then they'd ask why, and that might make them feel BADLY about their own lives.<BR/><BR/>I do have one question: what is the grammatical error in your second example at the top of the post? Is 'snuck' wrong? Should it be 'sneaked'? My OED says that 'snuck' is a past participle of 'sneak.' But I must admist that even that term confuses me.<BR/><BR/>Much of my grammatical prowess is due to a dangerously powerful intuition. Rowr.somewaterytarthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11146023703829418496noreply@blogger.com