tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28221839.post2496187913858788226..comments2024-02-12T17:59:33.534-06:00Comments on RAZORED ZEN: PrepositionsCharles Gramlichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02052592247572253641noreply@blogger.comBlogger8125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28221839.post-99829139207658392007-07-15T00:38:00.000-05:002007-07-15T00:38:00.000-05:00Charles, I have 37 scars. One of them is affectio...Charles, I have 37 scars. One of them is affectionately known as the Cherry Cobbler.Wayne Allen Salleehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17199261942617339556noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28221839.post-43352942082032184452007-07-13T11:56:00.000-05:002007-07-13T11:56:00.000-05:00When a sentence ends with a preposition, that's of...When a sentence ends with a preposition, that's often a sign the preposition is part of a phrasal verb—a verb that combines with an adverb or preposition to create a single unit of meaning. For example, "fool" as a verb means one thing, and ""fool around," "fool into," and "fool with" mean something different. <BR/><BR/>Phrasal verbs are quite common in English. I have an 800+ page dictionary of phrasal verbs that contains 7,634 such combinations. (I use it for copyediting; people tend to make up their own phrasal verbs, and the dictionary lets me know what the correct combination is.)<BR/><BR/>Many of the erroneous grammar "rules" people learned in school (such as not splitting infinitives) derive from 18th-century grammarians, who used Latin as the model for English grammar. (Because Latin was obviously superior as a language, they thought.) So they decreed that one shouldn't split infinitives in English because infinitives are one (unsplittable) word in Latin. I believe the "rule" about not ending sentence with a preposition is one of those left-over Latinate things.Shauna Robertshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03871768714926149114noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28221839.post-43780518546958904772007-07-13T08:54:00.000-05:002007-07-13T08:54:00.000-05:00Sounds like a good idea. I like to think it's all ...Sounds like a good idea. I like to think it's all deeply embedded in the back of my brain, but I may have lost a gerund or two.Sidneyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16284680909152676159noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28221839.post-57405800604307143052007-07-13T07:55:00.000-05:002007-07-13T07:55:00.000-05:00Some grammar rules apply only to formal writing, n...Some grammar rules apply only to formal writing, not colloquial conversation.Bernitahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05264585685253812090noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28221839.post-43537966899363064472007-07-13T06:03:00.000-05:002007-07-13T06:03:00.000-05:00I always thought a preposition was something like ...I always thought a preposition was something like "Hey baby wanna go out on a date?"<BR/><BR/>peace<BR/><BR/>TWMthe walking manhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10058913927297370740noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28221839.post-68429953557722488452007-07-13T03:30:00.000-05:002007-07-13T03:30:00.000-05:00I remember when Slater brought him this list of wo...I remember when Slater brought him this list of words that he was supposed to memorize. It was all the prepositions and agonizing for him. So we got out a book and started recognizing the prepositions in sentences rather than attempting to put some long list of words to memory. It seemed to work better that he get a "feel" of where they would be, and it worked.Susan Millerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05566328070072489203noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28221839.post-67816495860312467572007-07-12T23:51:00.000-05:002007-07-12T23:51:00.000-05:00Good work, Charles. This is helpful for my basic w...Good work, Charles. This is helpful for my basic writing class -- three weeks to go for summer classes.Erik Donald Francehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02332500850365598564noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28221839.post-25300865869846424352007-07-12T14:31:00.000-05:002007-07-12T14:31:00.000-05:00Charles: Nice comments about the prepositions. And...Charles: Nice comments about the prepositions. And true. Thanks for the clarifications.<BR/><BR/>I just tagged you with a meme. (ducking) When you get a chance, run over and read my blog. (although I see blogger is slow in posting it for me) Then, do whatever you want to with it!!<BR/><BR/>DonnettaDonnettahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14831771508607746472noreply@blogger.com