Wednesday, October 24, 2007

CHEAPER than CHEAPER


One of the best grammar-related multi-boners is this sign for the store CHEAPER than CHEAPER in San Francisco's Richmond District. Here are the errors:

1. The name of the store: CHEAPER than CHEAPER makes no sense. Cheaper Than Cheap is stupid, but it would at least make sense in a way. Why is the second CHEAPER larger than the first CHEAPER?
2. "Smile,your saving" a lot of money. First: let's ignore that it's stupid, why is "Smile,your saving" in quotes? It's not a quote attributed to someone. It's not a saying. Why is only the first part of the statement in quotes? The whole thing is mind-boggling.
3. "Smile,your": A space goes after a comma. Sometimes you will get emails from people who don't know this, but again, when it's the sign for your business -- proofreaders?
4. "Your" should be "You're."

* Credit at least for not using "CHEAPER then CHEAPER." I try to explain to people that saying "I like this better then this" is wrong. They should say "I like this better than this." This is the most common grammatical error I see these days. Almost everyone does it. Wake up, bitches!

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Apostrophe Catastrophe I


My friend Jenny and I were talking about grammar-related concerns recently. People putting apostrophes where they don't belong, or leaving them out when they should be in, etc. The worst is when you see it in signs and things. Are there no proofreaders? Are there no editors? Then a couple days later I was in the supermarket and saw this magazine cover. This is a huge magazine -- schlocky gossip rag garbage -- but huge. You'd think they'd have someone look at stuff before they print it on the cover of an international magazine. (Note: There should be an apostrophe after Julia Roberts: either Roberts' or Roberts's, not Robert's. As it is it's like saying "Reese Witherspoon husband walks out.")

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