This sort of error, which MAGGIE spotted earlier this week, always irks me a little bit when I see it because it's a really silly mistake. But more than irking me...it makes me giggle. Whenever I see a martial/marital screw-up, for some reason it always makes me think of this guy...
Wouldn't it be fun if we could have Marvin the Martian go after the silly people who confuse their "marital" with their "martial"? I think Marvin here would love to talk to these folks about that "extra-martial" affair. Doesn't that sound like some sort of tryst between aliens or something?
It's only a little mistake--both because the print is small and also because the writer only screwed up one measly letter in the word--but it's definitely a homonym snafu. The writer should have written "sewn," not "sown." We're not talking about wild oats here--we're talking about a dress. *sigh*
I've got baseball on the brain--big surprise, right? I've been spending so much time reading up on (and fretting about) the Phillies and their injuries that I've spent absolutely no time so far studying for my fantasy draft on Sunday. I'm only in one fantasy league this year due to time constraints (I'm generally in 2 or 3 leagues), and I haven't even looked at any of my fantasy baseball magazines yet, aside from staring at their covers and thinking "This cover would look so much better if it included Joe Mauer."
As nerdy as it sounds, this weekend I'll be doing two things: writing (as usual) and studying my fantasy baseball magazines, trying to remember that it's a good idea to pick my players based on stats and projections as opposed to picking them based on who's cute (the days of picking Jeff Francoeur in, like, the sixth round because he has a nice smile are over). This is my fourth year doing fantasy baseball, and this year I actually want to win the league...I've come in second twice in previous years, but second place is the first loser, and dammit, this year my team of BILFs will not be a loser team!
In honor of my desperate need to study up on fantasy baseball and in honor of baseball season being right around the corner, today's post is, of course, a baseball-themed error, brought to us by the lovely MARIE C. Thanks, MARIE, for finding this one!
"Episode beings"? That sounds like some kind of wacky extraterrestrials, doesn't it? But no, it's just the result of what happens when some silly writer transposes a few letters in a word...
Apparently Renee Zellweger and Bradley Cooper broke up recently. Is Renee making that face in the picture because she just knew the silly gossip websites would screw up the spelling of her name?
Just what I've always wanted--my very own senior citizen*! And at a 10% discount, too! Woo-hoo!
Although the funniest aspect of this sign is that it makes it appear that this business actually has senior citizens for sale, my inner grammar/spelling geek needs to point out that "cigarettes" is misspelled and that "citizen" should be plural. And I'm sure it goes without saying that "10% off senior citizen 65 or older" should be reworded so that it sounds less awkward...but of course I'll say it anyway. ;)
Thanks to MICHAEL for spotting this sign!
Also, I'm starting to get a bit low on funny grammar pictures...if you've got any that you'd like to share with me, please email them to thegrammarphile@yahoo.com.
* Actually, what I really want is my very own hot baseball player, but I hear they're pretty busy now through October.
Happy St. Patty's Day, you wild and crazy kids! I hope you enjoy a Guinness or a lovely pint of green beer. But whatever you do, don't drink with the guy who posted this message on Yahoo Answers. He seems like an idiot. An idiot who can't write too well and has no sense of punctuation, although he clearly has plenty of enthusiasm for using punctuation marks.
I had half a mind to answer his question ("Is it food color or what?") with a cryptic "Or what" and just let him guess what else might make that beer green. But I didn't...it's one thing to be snarky on my own website, but quite another to be snarky on someone else's website, you know?
I get that you're not responsible for buttons and buckles...but are you responsible for the creation of this wacky sign?
I know it doesn't qualify as a special spot or stain, but could you please clean up your misspelling and your butchering of et cetera (or etc)? Much appreciated!
Oh my darling, oh my darling, oh my darling screwily-placed apostrophe... *sigh* Unless those fresh clementines actually possess a $5.99 bag, that apostrophe has no business being there!
Thanks to MICHAEL for this picture!
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By the way, I've been writing a lot lately. Seriously--a lot. Check out my articles here or click the links below:
I get how you could recall deli meat, but I have no idea how you'd be able to recall deli meet. That sounds kinda complicated. It's probably even more complicated than, say, using the right word so you don't make a homonym error...
"Cellery"...hmmm, it doesn't quite sound like a vegetable to me. It sounds like some sort of mischievous activity that prisoners engage in while they're in jail. "Harry, bring your taser...those damn convicts are engaging in cellery again!"
$7.99 for my choice of any of those misspelled foods? That's quite the bargain!
I'm also curious as to what a "cutlet" is made of--is it made of the same stuff that an actual cutlet (no quotes) is made of? Or is a "cutlet" just imitation cutlet? Hmmm...
Oh, and meat balls sounds infinitely more gross than meatballs. I'll eat the latter, but not the former...meat, keep your balls to yourself, please!
There aren't any grammar or spelling errors in this little blurb. But what it lacks in errors it makes up for in innuendo... I'm sure many folks would agree that what you put in your mouth can boost your bedroom performance! ;)
The Grammarphile is a former on-air personality who realized all too quickly that good grammar and radio don't really mix. She now lives in the suburbs of Philadelphia, works in public relations, and can't get enough of her beloved Phillies. In what little free time she has, she enjoys giggling at instances of crappy writing, being the reigning queen of Boggle, and working on her novels-in-progress. She's a slave to fashion, has a serious weakness for attractive baseball players, is experiencing a severe case of Lost withdrawal, and is counting down the days until she gets to see Muse in concert again. The Grammarphile is too snarky for her own damn good, delightfully eccentric, and just a teensy bit evil. You've been warned.
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