Another Expression We Get Wrong

Here’s the quote:

Since then, it has joined the U.S. as a classic exception that proves the rule.

https://messaging-custom-newsletters.nytimes.com/template/oakv2

This in The New York Times, no less! And it says “classic”!!! Do they ever have this wrong!

The problem is the word “prove.” Its (ahem) classical meaning was “to test.” For example, in Malachi, you have

Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be meat in mine house, and prove me now herewith, saith the LORD of hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it.

Malachi 3:10

(This is the only passage in the Bible where God invites us to test Him, but I digress.)

The intent of the expression about proving the rule was to suggest that breaking the rule shows whether the rule was really a rule. If you get into trouble for breaking the rule, it’s a real rule. If you don’t get into trouble, the “rule” is merely a suggestion.

I like pictures in my posts. Here’s the picture that came with the article:

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Last chance to go take the test without seeing the answers!

The last five questions:

1. It was about 3 or 4 feet long, looked like a long piece of linguine (same color, similar width), except if you looked a little carefully, it was actually comprised of connected rhomboid like sections. [this one has two goofs, not counting that the 3 and 4 should be spelled out. Find both.]
2. While China is beginning to assemble its own tunnel-boring machines, it still relies on critical, foreign-made components that its own industries can’t manufacture on its own. [first word should be “Although” or “Whereas,” but I’m looking for a different goof.]
3. Clicking Refresh Catalog in the catalog, updates the usage information.
4. The amount of tabs you have open at any one time has a direct impact on the performance of Chrome, as well as how much RAM the application consumes.
5. Feminism is not a stick with which to beat other women with.

The answers:

1. Using numerals for numbers below ten is normally a faux pas in writing, but that’s not the goof I’m thinking about. They said “comprised of”! It’s “composed of” or even “comprising connected …” For shame! Talk about being pretentious, that’s it! The other goof is a missing hyphen. It should be “rhomboid-like sections.”
2. This one is easy. “industries” is plural, “its” is singular. Make them agree: Use either “industry…its own,” or “industries…their own.”
3. Get rid of the comma. Never separate a subject and verb with one comma. I recommend you make “Refresh Catalog” stand out, too, with a style, quotes, italic, or bold.
4. AAK! They should have “The number of tabs” because you’re counting, not measuring.
5. The sentence has an extra “with” at the end. Get rid of it. In other words, proofread your work. You got that one, didn’t you?

So there you have it. If you teach English know some writers, or just want to annoy your friends, you have permission to print the quiz and hand it out. Then tell them the answers, of course.

Remember, the original test is here. go take it if you haven’t already. What’s the fun of free answers?

1. So, the Rangers are based out of Igloolik.
2. So what does a potential new state of matter for the rest of us?
3.  Indiana law explicitly forbids government employees such as the Governor to conduct politics on state accounts, so it’s credible to argue Pence had no other options.
4. “The Church and State owes them all an apology,” she said.
5. It stands in stark contrast with a pair of current cartoons by fairly mainstream conservative cartoonists that mock Democrats for being obsessed with the Russian connections.

And the answers:

1. They are based in that place. Even based at works, but not out of! Maybe they venture out of Igloolik occasionally…
2. Okay, I usually don’t bother with simple carelessness, but these are professionals! What does a potential new state of matter mean for the rest of us?
3. The reference to the governor is an aside (aka non-restrictive) so it should have commas before and after it. “…employees, such as the governor, to conduct…” but that’s not the main goof! Do you forbid someone to do something, or forbid them from doing it? You could also throw a “that” in front of Pence.
4. Ah, good old subject-verb agreement. You should all have gotten this one. “Church and state” is a plural, so you want the plural verb, “owe.”
5. Cartoonists are people, people. So it’s cartoonists who mock Democrats. “Who” is for people, “that” is for non-people.

Here’s the whole test if you want to take it: this link. Questions 6–10:

1.  It is now hoped that the system could be combined with the use of pheromones that lampreys use to attract mates.
2. This weed includes the most vitamin A than all green leafy vegetables, which prevents cancer, and is abundant in Omega-3 fatty acids, so it effectively prevents heart diseases and stroke.
3. It is more cost-effective by only utilizing more expensive authentication when warranted by the risk.
4. It’s easier to implement than you may have thought.
5. Sensitive personal data including cookies, API keys, and passwords has been leaked by web optimization giant Cloudflare.

…And here are the answers:

1. “It is now hoped” is better than “Hopefully,” but you are better yet to use a real subject. The sentence should start with “We now hope…”
2. Obviously the sentence should have “…the most vitamin A of all…” but it should also be two sentences:  “…fatty acids. It effectively…”
3. “Utilizing” should be “using,” and “only” should be placed so the sentence reads “…by using only more…”
4. Don’t use “may” when you mean “might.” “May” speaks of permission, “might” speaks of possibility. Besides, the sentence might be intended to mean, “It’s easier to implement than you might think.”
5. This one is tricky. “Data” is a plural, so “has” should be “have.” I think it reads better if you make another plural, for example, “Sensitive types of personal data…” Then the obvious plural, “types” still takes “have,” and besides, that list is a list of types.

I hope you find reading about the test edifying, and I hope you go take the test. Tell me if you do, and I’ll add you to my list of testees.

Back in March of 2017 I posted a writing test. If you missed it and are curious, follow this link before you go any farther.

I’d have posted the answers sooner, but someone asked me to send the test to their dad first. Well, Dad never responded, and I got distracted by other things, hence the tardiness.

So here are some of the questions. More in another post.

1. “The technology,” he wrote, “is not limited to only aviation.”
2. Best known of the two is Enrico Fermi, the Italian intellectual giant who escaped from fascist Italy to America after winning a Nobel Prize for his research in nuclear physics.
3. On February 23, 1997, NBC broadcast the film in its three-and-a-half-hour entirety, uncut and uninterrupted by commercials, as per Spielberg’s request.
4. Who do you think you match with?
5. 1856   The Republican Party holds it’s first national meeting.  (© Ducksters.  I wasn’t going to embarrass them, but they put a copyright symbol on it. Used without permission)

And here are the answers.

1. In English you can split an infinitive, but this sentence is better if you don’t. It should be “…only to aviation.”
2. When you’re comparing two things, use “better.” “Best” is for when you have three or more.
3. This one really irritates me. It’s “per” not “as per.” Per means according to, so as per would mean as according to. Nonsense. A good example of being too fancy, which, in writing, I call a pretentiousism.
4. Everybody has trouble with “whom,” especially in questions. Turn the sentence around: Do you think you match with him? The “m” is the give-away. Whom is the object of the preposition; objective case.
5. Arg! I can’t believe a professional writer got this wrong. It’s ITS! no apostrophe in the possessive! His, her, its.

So there’s your dose of self-righteousness for the day. You knew all those, right? If you didn’t before, go take the test.