Quora #4

rogersgeorge on December 26th, 2022

Question:

Why does this sentence “meaningful work and meaningful relationships was far better” use “was” not “were”?
Answer (you already knew this, right?):
Because it’s incorrect! The sentence has a plural subject (work and relationships), so the sentence should have a plural verb, “were.”

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He’s Actually UNinterested

rogersgeorge on December 24th, 2022

I last mentioned this common error eight years ago, so I suppose now could be a good time for a repeat. Do a search in the upper right corner to see it.

  • Disinterested means the outcome of something won’t affect you. You are unbiased.
  • Uninterested means you don’t care about something.
https://www.gocomics.com/theothercoast/2022/12/20

“Bored” should give you a clue about the correct version of -interested. If Rusty had a big smile on his face, it might mean he was buying whatever collar she wanted, hence disinterested in her choice.

I Found Someone Who Can Wait!

rogersgeorge on December 22nd, 2022

Can hardly wait is better than can’t wait. Second panel

https://www.gocomics.com/thebuckets/2022/12/20

Of course, getting the holiday wrong is a separate issue…

“Malaprop” is Right, “Malapropism” is Not

rogersgeorge on December 20th, 2022

And here’s a pile of Frank and Ernest getting it right.

https://www.gocomics.com/frank-and-ernest/2022/12/18

How many malaprops do you see?

Quora #3

rogersgeorge on December 18th, 2022

A definition…

What part of speech is the word “math” in the sentence “I took a math test”?

It’s a noun. We say it’s being used attributively. In other words, it’s a noun used as if it were an adjective.