General Music Chat

http://theoatmeal.com/comics/misspelling

http://theoatmeal.com/comics/misspelling

I get surprised that people miss these BASICS to the degree that they do.


However, they are WRONG about "Alot"

It should be a word.

It is often spoken as a single word, and the modern usage of the phrase "a lot" has changed over time, and no longer applies or makes sense, as TWO WORDS in all situations, and hence... It should be changed into ONE WORD as many phrases before it, have been done, and updated in dictionaries.

I use the word on purpose, to ENCOURAGE it's usage, and to help it to make the dictionaries, so our lives can be simplified, if only in this one small area!

The term "A Lot" is used to mean "a large amount" but it's misuse has caused it to also develop the meaning of "Often"

As in "She gets mad alot!"

That type of phrase, I bet any amount of money, is spoken nearly DAILY by all the college graduates here, but it makes no sense as two words.

She gets mad "A LOT"

"Lot" is not an adjective or adverb.

But we use it as such, when we say - SHE GETS MAD "A LOT"

There are other numerous usage errors with "A LOT" that we use constantly, and we can get TENS OF MILLIONS of English speaking people, to CHANGE their usage, or we can just update the dictionary.

God didn't write the dictionary, after all. We can change it when suitable.

http://theoatmeal.com/comics/misspelling

Color, you have found your higher calling in life. Your life long duty to mankind and Bandmix is to repost everyone's incorrect grammer.

Don't madder to me in any case. I'm Dysoloksix.

I have something for sell. I will sale it for $10.

I have something for sell. I will sale it for $10.

Damn Mexicans!

Who let you in here?


LMAO!

(I love Mexicans btw)

However, they are WRONG about "Alot"

It should be a word.

It is often spoken as a single word,

This happens to a lot of words in different languages. Doesn't mean they should be contracted to a single word.

Japanese was an eye-opener for me when I was learning it. Japanese people speak very quickly, to the point that - for us English natives - things often sound like one word when they are really two or three.

You can certainly make a cast for "alot" being a word though...

4sell

I see this on old cars alot.

This happens to a lot of words in different languages. Doesn't mean they should be contracted to a single word.

Well, once something passes into normal usage, decisions can be made to incorporate it into our dictionaries. etc... somewhat legitimizing the term. Opponents of such a move are generally English Professors or lovers of the language. My problem with that, is... "What is the purpose of language, if not communication?" And if we can communicate more effectively, and more quickly or more succinctly, than why not do that? Writers and poets CAN ALWAYS revert to the past usage, but honestly... there is NO STOPPING popular culture sometimes. I believe in picking and choosing battles. Most of use "a lot" as "alot" and use it as a adjective or adverb, even though it is meant as a noun "Lot" means, a group of something, separated from other things. "I have a "LOT" of bananas, or two "LOTS" of bananas.

But to say: "That happens a LOT"

Is not really proper, considering the definition of the word. What we MEAN is... "That happens "OFTEN"

But it has slipped into common usage now, and it is ALOT easier to change a dictionary, than to get tens of millions of people, to stop improper usage of a term, that is now common.

Japanese was an eye-opener for me when I was learning it. Japanese people speak very quickly, to the point that - for us English natives - things often sound like one word when they are really two or three.

I have had Japanese roommates before, and did the whole shoes-off at the door thing, and learned quite a bit about the culture of Japan, their values, etc... Some of the inner workings of Japan, their values, etc... would be VERY FOREIGN (LOL) to Western thinking.

There was a big movie decades ago (?) I think called "The Gift" and it was about a Japanese couple, who couldn't get pregnant. He had the physical problem. She agrees at his request, to have sex with another man, to bear a child. She does this, and once she gives birth to "their" new son, the husband presents his wife with a "gift". She unwraps it, and knows exactly what it is... A silver knife, beautifully wrapped up. She unwraps it, and takes the knife and kills herself.

She does this, because, though she was doing her husband's bidding, she had nevertheless, brought SHAME on the family, by sleeping with another man. She kills herself. The Japanese respect this decision. It was the "right" thing to do.

This idea would be OFFENSIVE to most Americans.

The husband asked her to do it... maybe HE should have killed himself?

LOL


But back to LANGUAGE... You may have had no purpose in learning a Chinese language, Cantonese or Mandarin, for example, but you are probably aware that it is a TONAL language, and the pitches of the words, like singing almost, going up or down, also determine a word's meaning sometimes. The same word can sometimes have two meanings, depending on how it is "sung" - It's pitch is ascending or descending.

THAT seems VERY VERY difficult to me.

And Japanese is already hard enough.

I'm impressed. How fluent are you?

You can certainly make a cast for "alot" being a word though...

Can?

I thought I did make a case for it?

LOL

JK brother!

I dunno wut allda fuss iz abowt. Az long az ewe gitcher messidge acrost, its all gud ain't it?

I just got scolded by MR'S Hilldenbrach for spelling witch, wich, whitch, which wrong.

I'm impressed. How fluent are you?

I'm not anymore.

Languages... you have to keep using them every day to be fluent. I took Japanese for two semesters in college and I really liked it. I would have continued with it, but my course load was already tough as a CS major. I still remember phrases and words, but I couldn't be functional in Tokyo if I needed to be.

I've always thought it would be cool to spend a couple years in Tokyo as an English teacher and really immerse myself in the language and the culture. I think Japanese culture is pretty cool.

Alot cannot be a word because when spoken it is used to mean a large amount:

batch: (often followed by `of') a large number or amount or extent; "a batch of letters"; "a deal of trouble"; "a lot of money"; "he made a mint ...

Since you wouldn't write "abatch of letters" or "he made amint", you wouldn't write "alot" either.

The other problem of course is that there is a word that is quite similar that has a much different meaning: allot

assign: give out; "We were assigned new uniforms"
accord: allow to have; "grant a privilege"
distribute: administer or bestow, as in small portions; "administer critical remarks to everyone present"; "dole out some money"; "shell out pocket money for the children"; "deal a blow to someone"; "the machine dispenses soft drinks"

I think Japanese culture is pretty cool.

Some of it is cool, and some of it is messed up, at least where Western Thinking is concerned. They value traits like loyalty, above all else, even truth and honesty. And the role of shame is horribly devaluing, as explained above, with the movie "The Gift". It is a funny mix of values though. For example, to cater to American sensibilities I believe, they instituted a law that pubic hair cannot be seen on movies, but you can shave it off completely, and this is acceptable, and they can basically show people screwing on regular TV there, as long as no pubic hair is being shown. I may be getting some of the details wrong, but it is something like that. Men can also basically grope a woman in public, maybe even rub her privates for a minute or two, and because of the sense of "Shame" and "Respect for elders" she will not object or say anything. I'm talking about strangers on a bus, where the woman doesn't even know the man.

Their custom of Bowing though, is one example of something really good. Much more germ free, to have introductions that way.

Especially when you realize that 40% or 60% or whatever it is, of men, DO NOT wash their hands after using the rest room.

Alot cannot be a word because when spoken it is used to mean a large amount:

batch: (often followed by `of') a large number or amount or extent; "a batch of letters"; "a deal of trouble"; "a lot of money"; "he made a mint ...

Since you wouldn't write "abatch of letters" or "he made amint", you wouldn't write "alot" either.

The Eglish language has a multitude of words that have a DUAL MEANING, and are both adjectives and adverbs, or nouns and also verbs, etc... We have thousands of words like this.

All we would be doing is condensing two words into one, so that we CAN give it that DOUBLE MEANING and not have the word police correct us, since "A Lot" -CANNOT- mean "often", though we are probably ALL guilty of using it as such.

It has slipped into common usage, for many years now, and I just say... let's legitmitize it now! Since people use it ALOT!