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I have two more. I don't think any English speaker really cares about them, but they're fun. One: you "bring" things toward the speaker, and "take" them elsewh
by sowbug 4y ago
I have two more. I don't think any English speaker really cares about them, but they're fun.
One: you "bring" things toward the speaker, and "take" them elsewhere. So "don't forget to bring your umbrella!" is incorrect.
Two: "like" compares, and "as" joins independent clauses. So "I wish I could communicate like tptacek does" should be "I wish I could communicate as tptacek does." A correct use of like might be "You, like tptacek, comment insightfully." A famous example of a controversial misuse of "like" was the 1970s slogan "Nobody can do it like McDonald's can." It should be "... as McDonald's can." When that came out, grammar aficionados lost their minds.
- neogodless 4y agoWho is the speaker in "don't forget to bring your umbrella!"? If it's someone at the destination, would it not be correct? :) Of course, it's often said by someone who's with you, and on their way out, so your assertion makes sense and is often correct!
- sowbug 4y agoYeah, I thought about that case, but I still think the grammar pedants would mark the answer wrong. Not that I was there when they invented the word "bring," but I imagine they decided the specific word for movement toward the speaker was useful to make the statement more precise. I feel like allowing "bring" here just because the speaker happened to be at the destination where the listener was planning to go would let the exception swallow the rule. (To be clear, that's already happened in common English; I'd even venture that "don't forget to take your umbrella" sounds a little bit stiff, even though it's more correct.)