NOTE: This was not written by me, but was in fact by Nydor of the AEM Travian forums back in April 2008. It has not been edited. I only take the credit of the copy paste. However, I agree with him completely.
Towards Cleaner Posting
In an attempt to keep these forums readable, and partially due to a tongue-in-cheek challenge by Than, our resident forum Goddess, I’ve written a quasi-concise guide to some of the more common grammatical errors and annoyances we see in forum posts. You’ll soon find that we take coherency and literacy fairly seriously here.
Now before you can post your ‘grammar Nazi’ comments, allow me to temper my comments with a couple of further observations. First, we’re not going to jump all over you and ban you for a simple occasional mistake. It happens to all of us. However, you should expect to get some minor ribbing about it, especially if it’s funny. Remember, too, that you can always go back and edit a post if you find a mistake after the fact.
However, if your entire post is to the point of illegibility, then there’s going to be harsher comments issued, especially if you consistently ignore all conventions on spelling, grammar, and literacy. Not only are you going to get snide, hateful comments posted at you, but the next time you need resources, or a defensive bubble…it may just get ignored. To paraphrase the Nursery rhyme, “for want of a coherent sentence, the village was lost”.
Another thing to consider, aside from taking a little pride in yourself, is that there’s a lot of new posts made on here everyday. It just makes it easier on everybody to read them if they’re not written at a 2nd grade level. Do what you can to keep everyone’s eyes from bleeding.
With that in mind, here follows a list of some of the more frequent observations seen. I’ve tried to list them in a rough order of how common that particular mistake is. No, I don’t keep track of the exact number of occurrences for each error. You’d be surprised how often some of them happen, however, once you do start paying attention to them.
If you happen to have a question, feel free to post it. I’ll do my best to answer it. If there’s a grammatical conundrum you’ve been worrying about, ask it. Who knows, you may even get a plausible answer.
Finally, if you find an error in this post, please (with all due mockery) let me know. Without doubt, there's probably some in here. Oh, the irony.
Okay, let’s do this.
**********************************************
Frequent Errors and Items of Immediate Concern
#1) Spelling:
This is a biggie. Nothing spells ‘moron’ faster than consistently misspelling words. Now, that being said, everybody makes occasional mistakes when they are in a hurry, accidentally transpose letters, re-write a sentence, or for endless other reasons. That’s not the content dealt with here. We’re talking rampant misspelling due to carelessness, or just being to lazy to double check, or not wanting to make an effort to look up a word. There’s a simple solution for this. It’s called a spell-checker.
If you’re using Firefox, you’re lucky, because it’s automatically got one built in. See all those words you posted with little red squiggly lines on them? They’re spelled incorrectly. All you have to do is right-click on the underlined work, and you’ll get a list of suggested spellings. Left click the one you want, and you’re off towards forum literacy once again.
If you happen to prefer IE, there’s a great little free add on called ieSpell, that will do the same for you IE users. Click here to get it.
I’m sure there’re other add-ons out there also, and if you use yet a different browser, and need a spell checker, post asking for help in locating one. Trust me, we’ll be glad to help you out.
Alternately, you can always use a word processing program, and type your posts there, then after running a spell check, copy and past into the forum threads, but that’s really annoying and time consuming. You’ll love the browser spell checkers.
Consistently misspell words, and you not only annoy the ever-loving piss out of everybody, but you’re setting yourself up for a reputation as a bumbling idiot, putting yourself at risk of sterilization for the greater good of humanity. Keep the knives away from your nether regions, and use a spell checker.
The so-called leet speak or Net speak is a source of great ire. Drop the occasional leet-ism, and probably nobody’s got a reason to complain. Post entirely in leet, and we come after your family and pets, bearing ill-will.
#2) Punctuation and Capitalization
Punctuation
There’s a reason we use these funny looking little dots (.), spermy looking thingies (,) and even the floating-in-air spermy looking thingy (’). It’s to make your posts easier to read.
Periods are for ending sentences, indicating a full stop. HALT! The concept you were just reading about is done. Go directly to the next one.
Commas, (,), are used to indicate a pause, and a continuation to a connected idea that is part of the same concept, such as items in a long, continuous, connected, separate, but equal, list of items. It may even join two incomplete phrases into a single sentence.
The floating-in-air-spermy looking things are called ‘apostrophes’. They’re used as a substitution to show that something’s missing, or to show possession.
Rule:
Use periods to end sentences, commas to pause for additional, but related, thoughts, and apostrophes for contractions or possession.
Capitalization
This is another highly annoying, yet frequently common error. Again, the occasional missed capital in a single line of text isn’t such an issue. Especially in the games section, you’re as likely to find un-capitalized sentences as not, but consider the context they’re being used in there; a fast paced posting scenario, where your post isn’t going to be read and re-read.
Now, when posting in the more serious forums, if you actually want people to read your question, request for defense, etc., then take the time to write a fully punctuated and capitalized sentence.
Rule:
Grammatically speaking, you begin every sentence with a capital letter. The only other letters capitalized are the pronoun ‘I’, or proper nouns (i.e. the name of something).
Paragraphs
Nothing is harder to read than 1 monstrously long single block of text. Especially when it’s missing capitals and punctuation. Seriously, you might as well have written “Please ignore this post.”
Rule:
This is a coarse rule, and you should consult a proper grammar text for in depth details, but generally you should start a new paragraph in the following instances.
* Every new idea or point.
* To contrast information or ideas.
* When your readers need a pause.
Consider the differences in these two fake posts.
omg I cant beelife this guy fking attake me I need some help now hes going 2 distroy mi village if I dont get sum renforcments ive had problems with him raidin me b4 butt this is the first major attack hes sent at me so if theyre anebodi out their whose got extra troops to send me for help lets git this dumax a surprize hes neva gunna forgit about I no we can kill his troops off if we get enuff reinforcements they’re to defend against his atack so if yore ableto help me send them soon thanx idon’t think he can have that many troops to raid wit since he dont got a very hi pop.
OMG, I can’t believe this guy’s ******** attacking me. I need some help now; he’s going to destroy my village if I don’t get some reinforcements.
I’ve had problems with him raiding me before, but this is the first major attack he’s sent at me. So, if there’s anybody out their who’s got extra troops to send me for help, let’s give this dumb a** a surprise he’s never going to forget about.
I know we can kill his troops off if we get enough reinforcements there to defend against his attack, so if you’re able to help me send them soon, thanks. I don’t think he can have that many troops to raid with since he doesn’t have a very high population.
See how much easier that was to read? Post #1, you just lost your village(s), because I skipped your post. Post #2, we supplied you with enough reinforcements to kill a 20k wheat hammer.
#3) They’re vs. Their vs. There
This probably has to be one of the most common mistakes out there. While they may sound the same, remember that this is a written medium, and different spellings mean completely different things.
‘Their’ is a possessive adjective. This means, like all good adjectives, it has to talk about a noun or pronoun. It’s also (being the rather possessive type) tell you what belongs to what. It does so by coming right before the noun it’s modifying.
‘They’re’ is a contraction of the subject pronoun ‘they’, and ‘are’. It can only be used as the subject of a sentence.
‘There’ is an adverb of location. It tells you, surprisingly enough, where something’s located.
Rules:
Substitute ‘they are’ in the sentence, and see if it makes sense.
Use ‘their’ to show who owns it, and ‘there’ to indicate where it is.
Ex. (good): This is their car. (Meaning: The car belongs to them Maybe, maybe not, but it's grammatically correct, regardless.)
Ex. (bad): This is there car. (Meaning: This is (located at position X) car. )
Ex. (bad): Their leaving for Mexico in 5 minuets. (Meaning. The leaving belonging to them for Mexico in 5 minutes. No, Senor, no ess good Engrish.)
Ex. (good):They’re going to be here any second, so get dressed! (Meaning: They are going to be here soon…Well, you get the gist.)
#4) You’re/Your/Yore
‘You’re’ is a contraction of you are, a personal subjective pronoun, and a form of the ‘to be’ verb. This can only be used as the subject of your sentence.
Rule: When in doubt, substitute ‘you are’, and see if the sentence still makes sense.
Ex. (good): You’re the best, man! (Meaning: You are the best. Perhaps debatable, but accurate, nonetheless)
Ex. (bad): This is you’re chair? (Meaning: This is you are chair? Huh? English, please!)
‘Your’ is a possessive adjective. That means is can’t be the subject (nor object) of a sentence, and can only show ownership of a particular noun (which is the subject or object).
Ex. (good): This is your chair. (Meaning: The chair belongs to you. Flip you for it?)
Ex. (bad): Your stupid. (Meaning: The stupid belongs to you??? Kind of catchy, but wrong.)
‘Yore’ is indeed a word, but an unrelated noun, meaning a type of story, tall tale, fable, legend, myth, rumor, etc.
So, hopefully this grammatical yore has your brain straightened out, so you’re no longer using them incorrectly.
#5) ‘Yours’ vs. ‘Your’s’
WTF, man, I thought we just cleared this up. Unfortunately, not entirely. While you’ve mastered the proper usage of ‘your’ vs. ‘you’re’ vs. ‘yore’, there may yet remain uncertainty about the question of possession! (The doggone girl is mine…)
‘Yours’ is a possessive pronoun. It shows that a given noun belongs to someone, while taking the place of the noun (this giving the weary noun a short break). Unlike the possessive adjective ‘your’, the object being owned doesn’t follow the pronoun. Unlike the possessive adjective, that means it can function as the subject or object of a sentence.
Rule: Don’t ever type ‘your’s’. ‘Nuff said.
Compare the three:
Ex. (good): (Possessive adjective) That is your car. (Meaning: Whose car? Your car. I’d best keep my hands off it, eh?)
Ex. (good): (Possessive pronoun as object). That car is yours. (Meaning: Whom does the car belong to? Oh, you, of course, I should have known.)
Ex. (good): (Possessive pronoun, as subject) Yours is the fairest face of them all. (Meaning: Who has the fairest face? You do. Pardon me while I puke.)
‘Your’s’ is just incorrect usage of the apostrophe. If you’re trying to show possession, you don’t use the apostrophe in this case. Otherwise you’re saying “Your is”
Ex. (bad): This car is your’s. (Meaning: This car is your is. Huh?)
#6) ‘Its’ vs. ‘It’s’
‘Its’ is a possessive pronoun, just like our friend ‘yours’ from above. Like its sibling possessive pronoun, don’t use the apostrophe here to show possession, or again you’ll be making a contraction, meaning “it is”.
Rule: ‘It's’ with an apostrophe means ‘it is’ (or ‘it has’), ‘its’ without an apostrophe means ‘belonging to it’
Ex. (good):Its petals were of the deepest sanguine red. (Meaning: The petals belonging to it (presumable those of a flower) are red. Gotta lay off the Romantic Period literature, soonest.)
Ex. (bad): Its red. (Meaning: Red belongs to it. No! Nothing owns red, fool!)
Ex. (good). It’s red. (Meaning: It is colored red. Sure, since they were obviously out of blue.)
#7) ‘Who’s’ vs. ‘Whose’
‘Who’s’ is a contraction for ‘who is’ or ‘who has’. ‘Whose’ is a possessive pronoun, which surprisingly, shows possession or ownership; that is ‘who owns this?’
Rule: When confused, say ‘who is’. If ‘who is’ doesn’t make sense, it should be ‘whose’.
Ex. (good): Who’s on first? (Meaning: Who is on first? You won’t get a straight answer, but it makes sense.)
Ex. (bad): Who’s car is that? (Meaning: Who is car is it? Uggg..nope.)
Ex. (good): Whose car is it? (Meaning: Who owns the car? Not me, but it’s the right way to say it.)
#Cool ‘Two’ vs. ‘To’ vs. ‘Too’
‘Two’ is a number, for example what you get when you add 1+1.
‘To’ is a preposition that has multiple meanings, but generally shows movement towards, relative position, or relationship.
‘Too’ is an adverb that means ‘besides, also’, or shows an excessive amount.
Ex. (good): I gave it to him.
Ex. (bad): I gave it two him.
Ex. (bad): I ate to much.
Ex. (good): Are you going too?
#9) ‘Know’ vs. ‘No’
‘Know’ is a verb meaning to understand, have knowledge about, or to be familiar with. ‘No’ is the opposite of ‘yes’, i.e. an adverb or interjection used to express a negative state, or to refute something.
Other Items of Confusion.
‘Who’ vs. ‘Whom’
While who and whom are both relative pronouns, ‘who’ is a subjective pronoun, ‘whom is an objective pronoun. You can only use ‘who’ if it’s the subject of a clause, ‘whom’ if it’s the object.
Since that’s totally useless without an in-depth review of grammar, use this quick and dirty rule. Try substituting ‘he’ or ‘him’ in place of ‘who’ or ’whom’. If ‘he’ makes sense, use ‘who’. If ‘him’ makes sense, use ‘whom’.
Ex. (good): Who is that hunka hunka burning love standing there? (He is that hunka…there? Sounds fine.)
Ex. (bad): You gave it to who? (Try: You gave it to he? Nope.)
Ex. (good): You gave it to whom? (Try: You gave it to him? Yes!)
‘Accept’ vs. ‘Except’
‘Accept’ is a verb meaning ‘to receive or agree’. ‘Except’ is a preposition meaning ‘all, but, or other than’.
Ex. (good): Aem rarely accepts a NAP or alliance from other players, except those we think could help us.
‘Then’ vs. ‘Than’
First of all, if you’re not sure who Than is, then you’re in for a rude awakening upon your first forum violation. Than is our resident forum Goddess, and self-styled Head b***h In Charge. Placate her regularly, and you’ll be allowed to continue posting. She keeps this place running smoothly. Don’t disturb her. Begin by applying what you’ve read so far.
In terms of grammar, ‘than’ is a function word used in statements of comparison, statements of preference, or suggests of extra quantities. ‘Then’ is an adverb used to refer to a point in time other than now.
Ex. (good): I’d rather have Than happy, than pissed at me.
Ex. (good): Once Than sees you double post, then you’re toast.
Ex. (good): Than has more posts than anybody on the forums.
‘Affect’ vs. ‘Effect’
‘Affect’ is (mostly) a verb, meaning ‘to influence or change’. Effect is (mostly) a noun meaning ‘result’.
Ex. (good): So, when something affects something, the effect is usually noticeable.
Towards Cleaner Posting
In an attempt to keep these forums readable, and partially due to a tongue-in-cheek challenge by Than, our resident forum Goddess, I’ve written a quasi-concise guide to some of the more common grammatical errors and annoyances we see in forum posts. You’ll soon find that we take coherency and literacy fairly seriously here.
Now before you can post your ‘grammar Nazi’ comments, allow me to temper my comments with a couple of further observations. First, we’re not going to jump all over you and ban you for a simple occasional mistake. It happens to all of us. However, you should expect to get some minor ribbing about it, especially if it’s funny. Remember, too, that you can always go back and edit a post if you find a mistake after the fact.
However, if your entire post is to the point of illegibility, then there’s going to be harsher comments issued, especially if you consistently ignore all conventions on spelling, grammar, and literacy. Not only are you going to get snide, hateful comments posted at you, but the next time you need resources, or a defensive bubble…it may just get ignored. To paraphrase the Nursery rhyme, “for want of a coherent sentence, the village was lost”.
Another thing to consider, aside from taking a little pride in yourself, is that there’s a lot of new posts made on here everyday. It just makes it easier on everybody to read them if they’re not written at a 2nd grade level. Do what you can to keep everyone’s eyes from bleeding.
With that in mind, here follows a list of some of the more frequent observations seen. I’ve tried to list them in a rough order of how common that particular mistake is. No, I don’t keep track of the exact number of occurrences for each error. You’d be surprised how often some of them happen, however, once you do start paying attention to them.
If you happen to have a question, feel free to post it. I’ll do my best to answer it. If there’s a grammatical conundrum you’ve been worrying about, ask it. Who knows, you may even get a plausible answer.
Finally, if you find an error in this post, please (with all due mockery) let me know. Without doubt, there's probably some in here. Oh, the irony.
Okay, let’s do this.
**********************************************
Frequent Errors and Items of Immediate Concern
#1) Spelling:
This is a biggie. Nothing spells ‘moron’ faster than consistently misspelling words. Now, that being said, everybody makes occasional mistakes when they are in a hurry, accidentally transpose letters, re-write a sentence, or for endless other reasons. That’s not the content dealt with here. We’re talking rampant misspelling due to carelessness, or just being to lazy to double check, or not wanting to make an effort to look up a word. There’s a simple solution for this. It’s called a spell-checker.
If you’re using Firefox, you’re lucky, because it’s automatically got one built in. See all those words you posted with little red squiggly lines on them? They’re spelled incorrectly. All you have to do is right-click on the underlined work, and you’ll get a list of suggested spellings. Left click the one you want, and you’re off towards forum literacy once again.
If you happen to prefer IE, there’s a great little free add on called ieSpell, that will do the same for you IE users. Click here to get it.
I’m sure there’re other add-ons out there also, and if you use yet a different browser, and need a spell checker, post asking for help in locating one. Trust me, we’ll be glad to help you out.
Alternately, you can always use a word processing program, and type your posts there, then after running a spell check, copy and past into the forum threads, but that’s really annoying and time consuming. You’ll love the browser spell checkers.
Consistently misspell words, and you not only annoy the ever-loving piss out of everybody, but you’re setting yourself up for a reputation as a bumbling idiot, putting yourself at risk of sterilization for the greater good of humanity. Keep the knives away from your nether regions, and use a spell checker.
The so-called leet speak or Net speak is a source of great ire. Drop the occasional leet-ism, and probably nobody’s got a reason to complain. Post entirely in leet, and we come after your family and pets, bearing ill-will.
#2) Punctuation and Capitalization
Punctuation
There’s a reason we use these funny looking little dots (.), spermy looking thingies (,) and even the floating-in-air spermy looking thingy (’). It’s to make your posts easier to read.
Periods are for ending sentences, indicating a full stop. HALT! The concept you were just reading about is done. Go directly to the next one.
Commas, (,), are used to indicate a pause, and a continuation to a connected idea that is part of the same concept, such as items in a long, continuous, connected, separate, but equal, list of items. It may even join two incomplete phrases into a single sentence.
The floating-in-air-spermy looking things are called ‘apostrophes’. They’re used as a substitution to show that something’s missing, or to show possession.
Rule:
Use periods to end sentences, commas to pause for additional, but related, thoughts, and apostrophes for contractions or possession.
Capitalization
This is another highly annoying, yet frequently common error. Again, the occasional missed capital in a single line of text isn’t such an issue. Especially in the games section, you’re as likely to find un-capitalized sentences as not, but consider the context they’re being used in there; a fast paced posting scenario, where your post isn’t going to be read and re-read.
Now, when posting in the more serious forums, if you actually want people to read your question, request for defense, etc., then take the time to write a fully punctuated and capitalized sentence.
Rule:
Grammatically speaking, you begin every sentence with a capital letter. The only other letters capitalized are the pronoun ‘I’, or proper nouns (i.e. the name of something).
Paragraphs
Nothing is harder to read than 1 monstrously long single block of text. Especially when it’s missing capitals and punctuation. Seriously, you might as well have written “Please ignore this post.”
Rule:
This is a coarse rule, and you should consult a proper grammar text for in depth details, but generally you should start a new paragraph in the following instances.
* Every new idea or point.
* To contrast information or ideas.
* When your readers need a pause.
Consider the differences in these two fake posts.
omg I cant beelife this guy fking attake me I need some help now hes going 2 distroy mi village if I dont get sum renforcments ive had problems with him raidin me b4 butt this is the first major attack hes sent at me so if theyre anebodi out their whose got extra troops to send me for help lets git this dumax a surprize hes neva gunna forgit about I no we can kill his troops off if we get enuff reinforcements they’re to defend against his atack so if yore ableto help me send them soon thanx idon’t think he can have that many troops to raid wit since he dont got a very hi pop.
OMG, I can’t believe this guy’s ******** attacking me. I need some help now; he’s going to destroy my village if I don’t get some reinforcements.
I’ve had problems with him raiding me before, but this is the first major attack he’s sent at me. So, if there’s anybody out their who’s got extra troops to send me for help, let’s give this dumb a** a surprise he’s never going to forget about.
I know we can kill his troops off if we get enough reinforcements there to defend against his attack, so if you’re able to help me send them soon, thanks. I don’t think he can have that many troops to raid with since he doesn’t have a very high population.
See how much easier that was to read? Post #1, you just lost your village(s), because I skipped your post. Post #2, we supplied you with enough reinforcements to kill a 20k wheat hammer.
#3) They’re vs. Their vs. There
This probably has to be one of the most common mistakes out there. While they may sound the same, remember that this is a written medium, and different spellings mean completely different things.
‘Their’ is a possessive adjective. This means, like all good adjectives, it has to talk about a noun or pronoun. It’s also (being the rather possessive type) tell you what belongs to what. It does so by coming right before the noun it’s modifying.
‘They’re’ is a contraction of the subject pronoun ‘they’, and ‘are’. It can only be used as the subject of a sentence.
‘There’ is an adverb of location. It tells you, surprisingly enough, where something’s located.
Rules:
Substitute ‘they are’ in the sentence, and see if it makes sense.
Use ‘their’ to show who owns it, and ‘there’ to indicate where it is.
Ex. (good): This is their car. (Meaning: The car belongs to them Maybe, maybe not, but it's grammatically correct, regardless.)
Ex. (bad): This is there car. (Meaning: This is (located at position X) car. )
Ex. (bad): Their leaving for Mexico in 5 minuets. (Meaning. The leaving belonging to them for Mexico in 5 minutes. No, Senor, no ess good Engrish.)
Ex. (good):They’re going to be here any second, so get dressed! (Meaning: They are going to be here soon…Well, you get the gist.)
#4) You’re/Your/Yore
‘You’re’ is a contraction of you are, a personal subjective pronoun, and a form of the ‘to be’ verb. This can only be used as the subject of your sentence.
Rule: When in doubt, substitute ‘you are’, and see if the sentence still makes sense.
Ex. (good): You’re the best, man! (Meaning: You are the best. Perhaps debatable, but accurate, nonetheless)
Ex. (bad): This is you’re chair? (Meaning: This is you are chair? Huh? English, please!)
‘Your’ is a possessive adjective. That means is can’t be the subject (nor object) of a sentence, and can only show ownership of a particular noun (which is the subject or object).
Ex. (good): This is your chair. (Meaning: The chair belongs to you. Flip you for it?)
Ex. (bad): Your stupid. (Meaning: The stupid belongs to you??? Kind of catchy, but wrong.)
‘Yore’ is indeed a word, but an unrelated noun, meaning a type of story, tall tale, fable, legend, myth, rumor, etc.
So, hopefully this grammatical yore has your brain straightened out, so you’re no longer using them incorrectly.
#5) ‘Yours’ vs. ‘Your’s’
WTF, man, I thought we just cleared this up. Unfortunately, not entirely. While you’ve mastered the proper usage of ‘your’ vs. ‘you’re’ vs. ‘yore’, there may yet remain uncertainty about the question of possession! (The doggone girl is mine…)
‘Yours’ is a possessive pronoun. It shows that a given noun belongs to someone, while taking the place of the noun (this giving the weary noun a short break). Unlike the possessive adjective ‘your’, the object being owned doesn’t follow the pronoun. Unlike the possessive adjective, that means it can function as the subject or object of a sentence.
Rule: Don’t ever type ‘your’s’. ‘Nuff said.
Compare the three:
Ex. (good): (Possessive adjective) That is your car. (Meaning: Whose car? Your car. I’d best keep my hands off it, eh?)
Ex. (good): (Possessive pronoun as object). That car is yours. (Meaning: Whom does the car belong to? Oh, you, of course, I should have known.)
Ex. (good): (Possessive pronoun, as subject) Yours is the fairest face of them all. (Meaning: Who has the fairest face? You do. Pardon me while I puke.)
‘Your’s’ is just incorrect usage of the apostrophe. If you’re trying to show possession, you don’t use the apostrophe in this case. Otherwise you’re saying “Your is”
Ex. (bad): This car is your’s. (Meaning: This car is your is. Huh?)
#6) ‘Its’ vs. ‘It’s’
‘Its’ is a possessive pronoun, just like our friend ‘yours’ from above. Like its sibling possessive pronoun, don’t use the apostrophe here to show possession, or again you’ll be making a contraction, meaning “it is”.
Rule: ‘It's’ with an apostrophe means ‘it is’ (or ‘it has’), ‘its’ without an apostrophe means ‘belonging to it’
Ex. (good):Its petals were of the deepest sanguine red. (Meaning: The petals belonging to it (presumable those of a flower) are red. Gotta lay off the Romantic Period literature, soonest.)
Ex. (bad): Its red. (Meaning: Red belongs to it. No! Nothing owns red, fool!)
Ex. (good). It’s red. (Meaning: It is colored red. Sure, since they were obviously out of blue.)
#7) ‘Who’s’ vs. ‘Whose’
‘Who’s’ is a contraction for ‘who is’ or ‘who has’. ‘Whose’ is a possessive pronoun, which surprisingly, shows possession or ownership; that is ‘who owns this?’
Rule: When confused, say ‘who is’. If ‘who is’ doesn’t make sense, it should be ‘whose’.
Ex. (good): Who’s on first? (Meaning: Who is on first? You won’t get a straight answer, but it makes sense.)
Ex. (bad): Who’s car is that? (Meaning: Who is car is it? Uggg..nope.)
Ex. (good): Whose car is it? (Meaning: Who owns the car? Not me, but it’s the right way to say it.)
#Cool ‘Two’ vs. ‘To’ vs. ‘Too’
‘Two’ is a number, for example what you get when you add 1+1.
‘To’ is a preposition that has multiple meanings, but generally shows movement towards, relative position, or relationship.
‘Too’ is an adverb that means ‘besides, also’, or shows an excessive amount.
Ex. (good): I gave it to him.
Ex. (bad): I gave it two him.
Ex. (bad): I ate to much.
Ex. (good): Are you going too?
#9) ‘Know’ vs. ‘No’
‘Know’ is a verb meaning to understand, have knowledge about, or to be familiar with. ‘No’ is the opposite of ‘yes’, i.e. an adverb or interjection used to express a negative state, or to refute something.
Other Items of Confusion.
‘Who’ vs. ‘Whom’
While who and whom are both relative pronouns, ‘who’ is a subjective pronoun, ‘whom is an objective pronoun. You can only use ‘who’ if it’s the subject of a clause, ‘whom’ if it’s the object.
Since that’s totally useless without an in-depth review of grammar, use this quick and dirty rule. Try substituting ‘he’ or ‘him’ in place of ‘who’ or ’whom’. If ‘he’ makes sense, use ‘who’. If ‘him’ makes sense, use ‘whom’.
Ex. (good): Who is that hunka hunka burning love standing there? (He is that hunka…there? Sounds fine.)
Ex. (bad): You gave it to who? (Try: You gave it to he? Nope.)
Ex. (good): You gave it to whom? (Try: You gave it to him? Yes!)
‘Accept’ vs. ‘Except’
‘Accept’ is a verb meaning ‘to receive or agree’. ‘Except’ is a preposition meaning ‘all, but, or other than’.
Ex. (good): Aem rarely accepts a NAP or alliance from other players, except those we think could help us.
‘Then’ vs. ‘Than’
First of all, if you’re not sure who Than is, then you’re in for a rude awakening upon your first forum violation. Than is our resident forum Goddess, and self-styled Head b***h In Charge. Placate her regularly, and you’ll be allowed to continue posting. She keeps this place running smoothly. Don’t disturb her. Begin by applying what you’ve read so far.
In terms of grammar, ‘than’ is a function word used in statements of comparison, statements of preference, or suggests of extra quantities. ‘Then’ is an adverb used to refer to a point in time other than now.
Ex. (good): I’d rather have Than happy, than pissed at me.
Ex. (good): Once Than sees you double post, then you’re toast.
Ex. (good): Than has more posts than anybody on the forums.
‘Affect’ vs. ‘Effect’
‘Affect’ is (mostly) a verb, meaning ‘to influence or change’. Effect is (mostly) a noun meaning ‘result’.
Ex. (good): So, when something affects something, the effect is usually noticeable.
