Speaking of errors, here’s one for the epic fail list.
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| Picture from Yahoo News. |
Their error was apparently corrected PDQ, but in this day of digital cameras and the Internet, such glories last forever.
As an editor, this is just the kind of thing I love to spot. Signage is replete with errors. For example, I’ve ridden through a town called Lesslie, but the residents couldn’t seem to decide if it’s spelled with one S or two. Every sign was different. Or the radio commercial that asked, “Does a traffic tie-ups get you down?” How’s that for subject-verb agreement?
Yeesh.
I even found an error in my paperback edition of Gone with the Wind. I marked it. Ha!
What are your favorite grammar faux pas?
4 thoughts on “Why the World Needs Editors”
"Its" for "it's" and vice versa. Or the need many people have to use an apostrophe for plural words rather than possessive ones. "Sofa's for sale today!" These are very common and make me want to go right up and mark them. Actually, some guys are going around doing this! Check it out: http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=129086941.
On the apostrophe note – the iPhone continually wants to chage "its" for "it's" and other such irritating "corrections." Makes me wonder about those programmers.
Kelley, that is hilarious. I may have to blog about that next!
Suzanne, that is nuts about the iphone wanting to change its to it's all the time. That is something, like you said, that the programmers should be able to fix.
I also can't stand it when I get a letter addressed to the Becton's. I guess that would make sense if it said "Becton's House" or "Becton's Mailbox," but I'm assuming the thing was meant for me or my husband. Not something we own.
Hope the editing is going well! I make so many writing faux paus! But the one I have gotten good at not making is forgetting to us commas. In fact, I probably overuse them!
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