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Pedants' corner

Another one to go "grrr" about!

(148 Posts)
phoenix Fri 18-Sep-20 20:57:24

Evening all, usual good wishes.

Many of us have been annoyed by the misuse of "the proof is in the pudding" but twice today on the radio I've heard of someone being on " tender hooks"

It's tenter hooks!

And no, I don't have the faintest idea why!

Spangler Wed 23-Sep-20 08:26:45

If there's one act of stupidity that really annoys & amuses me it has to be those numpties who paint the road signs, and spell them wrong. You can't blame the spellchecker!

Katek Wed 23-Sep-20 22:37:56

Just heard on news- ‘hiding our light under a bushel’ Also seen on social media today - ‘stepped foot in’ and ‘in portent’.

Aargh!

Callistemon Wed 23-Sep-20 22:41:14

Spangler is the first one shorthand for Beam Me Up (Scotty)?

Bathsheba Thu 24-Sep-20 15:20:09

Katek

Just heard on news- ‘hiding our light under a bushel’ Also seen on social media today - ‘stepped foot in’ and ‘in portent’.

Aargh!

What is wrong with "hiding our light under a bushel"? It is a perfectly correct and well known idiom, dating from the bible, when a 'bushel' was a container which measured dry goods.

3nanny6 Sun 27-Sep-20 00:28:39

Someone made a comment on Gransnet to me saying I hope you are well and you get some rest- bite.

I presume she meant respite, I asked but she did not answer me.

I really do not want some rest-bite.

sodapop Sun 27-Sep-20 08:41:22

I thought " light under a bushel " was ok as well, have I missed something ?

Spangler Sun 27-Sep-20 11:37:19

sodapop

I thought " light under a bushel " was ok as well, have I missed something ?

Don't hide your light under a bushel means:
Do not conceal your talents or abilities. This proverb is taken from the Sermon on the Mount; Jesus is telling believers not to hide their faith.

CraftyGranny Wed 07-Oct-20 17:31:08

When my DS2 was small, he asked me if they used to evaporate children during the war shock

Oopsminty Wed 07-Oct-20 17:40:03

I worked in an office. Orders were placed online or via phone

I ended up with the product and was about to dispatch it when I checked the name and address

MS Wilhelmina Carrington Hyphen Smyth

I've clearly made up the actual name but I was most amused by the - becoming HYPHEN

welbeck Wed 07-Oct-20 18:14:56

certainly nothing wrong with light hidden under a bushel. didn't everyone learn in school or church, it is a standard measure, a sackful of dry goods.
as to the hyphen name, reminds me of the amusing cake decoration instructions. elaborately made cake with the words in beautifully piped lavender running hand, "all this in capitals".
www.boredpanda.com/funny-literal-cake-decorations-fails/?utm_source=google&utm_medium=organic&utm_campaign=organic

Kamiso Wed 07-Oct-20 18:48:24

My friend received a letter addressed to Mrs L. RdoubleYoudoubleEssEdoubleL. *

I used to pray for the petrol light to shine upon me rather than the perpetual light. As petrol lighters were in common use at the time, it made perfect sense to me.

*Russell

MissAdventure Wed 07-Oct-20 19:09:01

My friend whose surname began with a 'C' and was quite simple (the name, not my friend) got a letter addressed to Mrs Coalhole.

phoenix Tue 13-Oct-20 22:43:27

And another one! Paul Burrell on the Diana thingvtonight, "it was a MIND field" aarrgh!

Jane43 Tue 13-Oct-20 22:53:25

Pacific instead of specific. A student of mine once wrote haughty culture instead of horticulture.

sodapop Wed 14-Oct-20 09:05:55

The specific one really grates on me as well Jane43

Witzend Sun 18-Oct-20 08:05:32

Re the Beeb and pronunciation, I often think they tell presenters that it’s now mandatory to drop Ts all over the place, regardless of whether they’d normally do it.
Not sure why else there’d be such an explosion of T-dropping.

Rest bite - I used to see this a lot of a forum for carers of people with dementia. I suppose there was a certain logic to it - the poor things were desperate for a ‘bite’ of rest.
So I couldn’t get as steamed up about it as I normally would.

Lellyjenn Sat 06-Feb-21 13:32:31

Lucca “apparently there’s a railway station (in Fife?) called Drem which was very exposed to wind chill.
School kids who had to wait for a train to school used to say in the Lord’s Prayer “lead us not into Drem station”.

....”but deliver us from Peebles...”...? ?

Savvy Thu 25-Mar-21 20:04:47

I had to telephone my energy supplier today and got their usual recorded message;

'Thank you for calling. ... we have a couple of options for you to choose from.' They then give me four options to choose from. Not quite a couple then.

Option two is really funny, 'press 2 if you are moving into a new home, or out of a new home...' why would I be moving out of a new home, wouldn't I be moving out of an old one?

Suffice to say, I told them they needed to change it.

dahlia Thu 25-Mar-21 20:08:47

I really dislike the use of "v" when describing football matches on television, for example, West Ham v Tottenham. Would "versus" really take too much time?

Roses Thu 25-Mar-21 20:16:54

I got quite exited when I saw a post from Phoenix then I looked at the date. Wish she would come back

Nanna58 Thu 25-Mar-21 20:24:32

I can’t bear ‘ blatantly obvious ‘ when it should be ‘ patently obvious ‘ ???

Oopsadaisy1 Thu 25-Mar-21 22:22:06

GD had an excellent report from her College , the tutor said that because of Covid it was no mean ‘feet’ .

A College tutor........