TOP 10 GRAMMAR GRIPES

10. Subject-Verb Disagreement:

I hear subjects and verbs "argue" in everyday speech uttered by everyday

people and by people who broadcast the news. We need more agreement
in this world! We all know what singular and plural mean. If the subject is
singular, the verb must be, also. Similarly, if the subject is plural, the verb
must be. Use your knowledge to check if you usage is correct. "One"
means one, right? The number one is singular, so you must use a singular
verb such as "is". This applies to the words everyone, anyone, each
person, no one, nobody, and none. The word couple, as in a married
couple, represents a singular entity, so it must have a singular verb, also.
The words data and bacteria are actually plural words, so they must have
plural verbs-really. I'm amazed how many people with advanced science
knowledge don't realize this.

Examples:
Everyone must bring his or her permission slip back. (Not: Everyone must
bring their permission slips back.) ¨
None was home. (NOT: None were home.)
The couple was on vacation. (NOT: The couple were on vacation.)
The data are wrong. (NOT: The data is wrong.)
There are bacteria on everything. (NOT: There's bacteria on everything.)

9. Subject and Object Pronoun Scramble:

The use of "I" as a subject pronoun and "me" as an object pronoun should
be clear to most people. So, line up I, he, she, we, and they as subject
pronouns to use before verbs. Keep me, him, her, us, and them as object
pronouns to use after verbs. It seems the most common error occurs when
people forget their manners and don't let others go first, figuratively
speaking. When talking about yourself and someone else, use the pronoun
for the other person first.

Examples:
She and I went to the concert together. (NOT: Her and I went..., or, worse
yet, Her and me went, or Me and her went....)
Mom gave it to her and me. (The "check" on this is to break out each part
to see if it is right. In this case, Mom gave it to her, and Mom gave it to me
are both correct.) It is NOT correct to say, Mom gave it to she and I.
8. Past Tense Verb Switch Out:

I still rehearse some of the verb "declensions" I learned in high school. I

hope they are still being taught; it would help people to know the right
forms. Let's toss the past participles (used with "have") into this section,
too, to add clarity. Here we go with some declensions of common verbs:

drink drank drunk

sink sank sunk
swim swam swum
run ran run
go went gone
see saw seen

Examples:
I drank all of my milk. (Not: I drunk all of my milk.)
I have drunk 4 glasses of water. (NOT: I have drank.)
I went to the store.
I have already gone to the store. (NOT: I have went....)
I swam ten laps.
I have swum ten laps.

7. It's No Lie: Lie vs. Lay is a Top Tripper-Upper:

This usage error can actually be embarrassing.

Conjugate these:
lie lay lain* lying (*use with have: have lain)-Use this to mean reclining: He
lies around all day. She lay in bed with a fever. I have lain in bed for days. I
am lying on the couch because I don't feel well.
Lay laid laid* laying (*use with have: have laid)-Use this to mean placing
something, and always use an object word with it: I lay the book on the
table. I laid my coat on the chair. I have laid my keys somewhere, and now
I can't find them. I am laying my stuff out on the floor to dry.

6. Contractions vs. Possessives Puzzlers:

The apostrophe in a contraction replaces one or more letters that have

been removed. It's = It is. They're = They are. We use the apostrophe to
show possession when we state a subject's name but not with the pronoun
for that same subject. Avoid making the "apostrophe sprinkling" error on
pronouns --double check what you are really saying. Watch your use of
your and you're. They should be pronounced differently, too.
Examples:
The dog was wagging its tail. (NOT: The dog was wagging it's tail. Check
this error: The dog is wagging it is tail-NOT!)
They're going to the game. (Check it: They are going to the game. NOT:
Their going to the game.)
You're really going to like this. (Check it: You are really going to like this.
NOT: Your really going to like this.)
I want to see your new car. (NOT: I want to see you're new car-which
would check out as, I want to see you are new car.)
Tip: Pronounce your as "yore" and you're as "yoo-er" to help you keep
these two straight.

5. Comma Conundrum:

One of the most common "comma sprinkling" errors I see is the use of a
comma where one is not needed. There should be a comma between two
clauses that can each "stand alone" as separate sentences without the
conjunction (and, but, so, etc.)

Example:
We drove to the mountains, and we stayed in a really cute cabin. (This is
correct because each clause is a separate complete sentence: We drove
to the mountains. We stayed in a really cute cabin.)
There should NOT be a comma between one independent (stand alone)
clause and one dependent (incomplete sentence) clause.
We drove to the mountains, and stayed in a really cute cabin. WRONG
We drove to the mountains and stayed in a really cute cabin. RIGHT

4. May vs. Can Switcheroo:

May is defined as being permitted or allowed and can is defined as being

able to. If someone asks, "Can I go with you?" the correct answer really is,
"I don't know, are you able to?" Enough said. I really wish parents would
teach children to ask, "May I...?" rather than, "Can I?" I don't know why
"May I" has apparently become viewed as stilted or too hard for a child to
say. It actually is easier for young children to pronounce the /m/ sound in
may than the /k/ sound in can.
3. Less vs. Fewer Fritz Out:

This one's simple and used so annoyingly incorrectly in a lot of advertising

these days. Use less for "mass nouns" that represent things that have an
amount that can't be counted and use fewer for "count nouns" that can be
counted.
Examples:
Calories can be counted, so something can be said to have fewer calories.
This beer has fewer calories than our other beers. (NOT: less calories!)
Hair is usually thought of in a mass (when is the last time you counted
strands of hair?) so use the word less for this one.
My daughter has less hair than my son did at this age.

2. When a Guy is Not a Guy:

We're getting close to my top pet peeve on this one. I detest the
expression, "How are you guys tonight?" most especially when I am being
greeted by someone at a nice place (restaurant, hotel, etc.) My response
inside my head is always a simmering, "I'm not a 'guy'." The word you is
just fine all by itself, thank you very much. Try saying, "How are you?" the
next time you greet someone. It truly sounds terrific.

1. Who vs. That Craziness:

Since when is a dog a person and a person an animal or inanimate object?

I know we love our pets and often personify them, but they are not people.
The word who was designed for people, and it needs to stay that way,
unless we are ready to switch places with animals and machines. If I
collected $10 every time I heard or read these two pronouns misused on
television or in magazines, I could pay my mortgage with that money each
month. Watch how often a dog, company, or other non-human is referred
to with the word who and how often a person is assigned the pronoun that.
If you start noticing, you will feel as crazy as I do. I am sorry about that!