Word or spelling errors which frequently crop up on social media posts (Trivia)

[cb a1]

There's a very interesting and entertaining podcast called 'words unravelled' that I watch on YouTube.
After listening to that and one of the presenter's own channel Robwords, I am far less precious about language now recognising how utterly arbitrary much of what is deemed 'proper' English.

On pronunciation, can anyone provide a rationale for how to pronounce 'ea' in the following list.
Ear
Bear
Beard
Fear
Pear
Hear
Heard
Heart

 

[Purple Train]

There's a very interesting and entertaining podcast called 'words unravelled' that I watch on YouTube.
After listening to that and one of the presenter's own channel Robwords, I am far less precious about language now recognising how utterly arbitrary much of what is deemed 'proper' English.

On pronunciation, can anyone provide a rationale for how to pronounce 'ea' in the following list.
Ear
Bear
Beard
Fear
Pear
Hear
Heard
Heart

Assuming the bolded part was typed correctly, the "ea" in and of itself isn't a phoneme and therefore doesn't really have a pronunciation as such.

 

[GordonT]

A frequent error in my experience is the use of "surly" for "surely" in fact I've just seen it yet again on a random FB post.

Also "born and bread".

One that I noticed today "Give bus driving a wide birth."

 

[contrex]

I used “there” instead of “their” in something I can’t go back and edit yesterday and I still haven’t quite got over it (genuinely ).

I know how you feel. I suffer from a severe compulsion to avoid spelling mistakes, punctuation errors, in fact solecisms of all kinds, and to correct any that I later discover. I really don't like web forums where you can't edit what you've posted. I think this need of mine leads to a rather dry, stiff, or formal writing style (came in handy drafting financial policy documents for my Civil Service job). I do try to 'unbend' but it is tricky sometimes.

 

[RPM]

Sneak peak instead of sneak peek.

 

[jfollows]

I know how you feel. I suffer from a severe compulsion to avoid spelling mistakes, punctuation errors, in fact solecisms of all kinds, and to correct any that I later discover. I really don't like web forums where you can't edit what you've posted. I think this need of mine leads to a rather dry, stiff, or formal writing style (came in handy drafting financial policy documents for my Civil Service job). I do try to 'unbend' but it is tricky sometimes.

I can edit all my earlier posts in this thread, I don’t know if there’s a cut-off but it’s definitely longer than one day.

 

[Calthrop]

I can edit all my earlier posts in this thread, I don’t know if there’s a cut-off but it’s definitely longer than one day.

Looking back at stuff on the "Quizzes and Games" sub-forum, including postings of mine thereon: I find that it's possible for me to edit not-hitherto-picked-up errors of mine there, from literally years back; and at times do just that (I know it's a weird thing to do on my part).

 

[contrex]

I find that it's possible for me to edit not-hitherto-picked-up errors of mine there, from literally years back; and at times do just that (I know it's a weird thing to do on my part).

I simultaneously worry about 'errors' and stand up for 'descriptivist' notions of grammar. I gather that spelling expectations were much more relaxed in previous centuries (e.g. Shakespeare's time) but I still bristle at low and behold, loose my temper, put you're coat on and the like.

 

[GordonT]

I still bristle at low and behold, loose my temper, put you're coat on and the like.

Another word with which folk sometimes get out of their depth is heyday which has a good choice of incorrect options e.g. hay day; hayday, hey day etc.

 

[Thirteen]

Sneak peak instead of sneak peek.

Peek instead of peak gets on my wick!

 

[contrex]

Another word with which folk sometimes get out of their depth is heyday which has a good choice of incorrect options e.g. hay day; hayday, hey day etc.

I've seen 'hay-ho' used where 'heigh-ho' is clearly wanted.

 

[MotCO]

One expression I've never been sure of is 'do something off your own back', or is it 'do something off your own bat'?

 

[Gloster]

One expression I've never been sure of is 'do something off your own back', or is it 'do something off your own bat'?

It is bat and comes originally from cricket. However, it has two related meanings: the logical one from cricket in that you did it by your own efforts, but also that you did something on your own initiative, not after the prompting of others.

 

[GordonT]

One expression I've never been sure of is 'do something off your own back', or is it 'do something off your own bat'?

Bat is the better option as the cricketing idiom appears to be the original phrase with back emerging as a dubious variant of it.

 

[AM9]

I can edit all my earlier posts in this thread, I don’t know if there’s a cut-off but it’s definitely longer than one day.

It's not just errors that you can access, - if another member quotes you, you can't edit the words of your that are within another's post. Every time I make a boob, it's a bit like the speck of cabbage stuck on somebnody's tooth, staring at you like a searchlight.

 

[Railsigns]

It's not just errors that you can access, - if another member quotes you, you can't edit the words of your that are within another's post. Every time I make a boob, it's a bit like the speck of cabbage stuck on somebnody's tooth, staring at you like a searchlight.

Like this, for example?

 

[Gloster]

Like this, for example?

There is a difference between spelling mistakes and wrong use of words on one side, and typos and the like on the other. Some of us are not so good at typing as we were, and some were never more than hunt and peck typists, and are not so good as we would like with proofreading as we would wish.

 

[contrex]

I've just seen a discussion forum post about house selling where someone had told their estate agent to only arrange viewings for people who had mortgage 'offers in principal'.

 

[Gloster]

Loathe when loath is correct.
Also the use of carnage for a bit of property damage: it means great and violent loss of life, not a few fences down and a trampoline on top of the garage. (I once wrote an article which referred to railway goods cranage facilities, but spellcheck changed it to carnage.)

One that I have mentioned several times before: alibi. It is a useful word for a specific defence to an accusation (that you were elsewhere at the time), not any old excuse.

 

[Trackman]

Roumers

 

[Lewisham2221]

Collage instead of college
Rouge instead of rogue

 

[Tester]

I've just seen a discussion forum post about house selling where someone had told their estate agent to only arrange viewings for people who had mortgage 'offers in principal'.

To be fair the seller isn't bothered about the interest part of the mortgage, so long as they get the principal

Related - as a signalling principles tester, it's not unheard of to find myself referred to as a principals tester.

 

[GordonT]

Pedalled vs Peddled

 

[contrex]

People who think aircraft, and in the most recent example I've seen, airships (e.g. at Cardington) live in 'hangers'.

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 24 Jan 2025 ==

Loathe when loath is correct.
Also the use of carnage for a bit of property damage

I still get annoyed about 'decimate' used to mean 'more or less totally destroy', and don't get me started on the meaning-shift with 'literally'!

 

[Mr. SW]

Bare with me.

Err...

 

[AM9]

Loathe when loath is correct.
Also the use of carnage for a bit of property damage: it means great and violent loss of life, not a few fences down and a trampoline on top of the garage. (I once wrote an article which referred to railway goods cranage facilities, but spellcheck changed it to carnage.)

One that I have mentioned several times before: alibi. It is a useful word for a specific defence to an accusation (that you were elsewhere at the time), not any old excuse.

Carnage misuse is a pet hate for me, it's typical trashy tabloid language, and used by some members on RUK. Other sensationalist words include meltdown and chaotic, - there are lenty more.

 

[AlterEgo]

Carnage misuse is a pet hate for me, it's typical trashy tabloid language, and used by some members on RUK. Other sensationalist words include meltdown and chaotic, - there are lenty more.

"Hate" in that context is no less trashy or tabloid than the examples you give.

 

[GordonT]

An "escape goat" for "scapegoat".

 

[AM9]

"Hate" in that context is no less trashy or tabloid than the examples you give.

It's how I feel about the frequent misuse of carnage to describe relatively minor events, - a stage beyond extreme dislike and irritation. Totally different from what @Gloster is describing.

 

[Falcon1200]

Has anyone mentioned using 'commuter' for all rail passengers, no matter how far or how often they are travelling?