Common Grammatical Errors Among Filipinos
Pietro E Reyes, III
Since it is not my native tounge, my English needs a lot of work. At the
risk of drawing flames, I am posting an example of the most common
grammatical errors I often encounter among the Filipino's spoken and
written English (including mine). My intention in this post is to bring
to the attention of fellow Filipinos common grammatical errors which he
may not even be aware of. There are many others and I hope they can be
identifed and brought to our (and my) attention as a thread.
I start thusly:
Taken cared of (incorrect)
instead of
Taken care of (correct)
Tikbalang
Pietro E Reyes, III of <per...@ix.netcom.com>
Date: Sat, 08 Feb 1997 20:50:56 -0500
Message-ID: <32FD2D...@ix.netcom.com> wrote
Yeah and that problem is very familiar. BTW...the word instead must be
properly written to - in stead of. It should be split into two words.
My argument only is how come that we are too meticulous of minding this
errors when English is not our primary language. Besides, writing in
internet has no purpose but exchanging of ideas. We are not rewarded to
post any informative message anyway and even no guarrantee that it will be
read, proofread, edit, and be paid. We get nothing here except of enjoying
the beauty of the internet.
That we can read someone's messages from around the globe regardless of
its nonsense, less colorful, little witty, bitter, and wacky. That we can
express ourselves by posting our grievances, lonelinness, sadness, and
kindness. That we can do spanking someones cyberbutt, barking someones
cybernames, stomping someones cyberfeet, and pulling someones cyberlegs.
This is all for entertainment and writing in bad English, pardon me, can
be exceptional as long as the content of the message is worthy to read of.
Well, if someone writes in Good English then that is an extra ordinary and
deserves to be given a merit. The question only is which part of this
section does the commendation? Or, is that mean that those wannabe writers
who can not write in good English must be ban? Yuk! that scares me.
titser
Titser: Can you identify any more grammatical errors and wrong
spellings?
Pietro E Reyes, III wrote:
>
> Since it is not my native tounge, my English needs a lot of work. At
======(correct spelling is TONGUE)
the
> risk of drawing flames, I am posting an example of the most common
> grammatical errors I often encounter among the Filipino's spoken and
> written English (including mine). My intention in this post is to bring
> to the attention of fellow Filipinos common grammatical errors which he
===(they?)
> may not even be aware of. There are many others and I hope they can be
> identifed and brought to our (and my) attention as a thread.
===========(correct spelling is IDENTIFIED)
>
> I start thusly: (Isn't there a more appropriate word?)
======
Ed V Pascual
P. Reyes wrote:
> My intention in this post is to bring
> Taken cared of (incorrect) instead of Taken care of (correct).
So since you know you are not an English major, why be anal about it. Most
Americans can't speak their own language anyway.
Let's not deal with another inferiority complex, take a grip and go on
with your life. Let's concentrate with the what we have to contribute to
American culture and not on our "errors". Time will correct all this
"errors" as we learn the language. I think we all get A's for effort in
communicating in a second language. Chill.
Ed
Pietro E Reyes, III
> >
> > instead of
> >
> > Taken care of (correct)
Well done! Congratulations for a fairly thorough job.
Now, let me answer your question.
I've been spelling tongue as tounge not realizing that I was spelling it
wrong all this time. Also, poor transition between the first and second
sentence. Filipinos and he, consistency in the use of pronoun - good!
Identified was a typo but an error nevertheless. I believe you missed
the phrase "to our (and my) attention" which could have been simply put
as "to our attention" since our is an all inclusive term. Thusly could
have been eliminated altogether. Good!
Now, back to my original question: Do you remember any other grammatical
errors commonly made by Filipinos?
Observation: I find it rather curious that we become so sensitive and
react so negatively about being corrected or even just by the
possibility of it. It is almost as though we have convinced ourselves
that we are always right and that we can never commit a mistake.
Cheers!
titser
We should correct people on their English grammar to show or teach
them the proper way but not to belittle or make fun of them.
Moreover, correct grammar and spelling should not be a prerequisite
for posting in SCF. Paano yung mga English dropouts o mga bata na
dipa napag-aralan ang mga standard written rules ng English language.
Furthermore, kung ang pinag-uusapan natin ay correct writing, bakit
hindi rin natin correct-kin ang pagsusulat ng Tagalog na sarili nating
wikang pambansa? Say no to FOBonics and TAGALOnics.
The Kalogian
In <32FDD9...@ix.netcom.com> "Pietro E Reyes, III"
<per...@ix.netcom.com> writes:
>Well done! Congratulations for a fairly thorough job.
>
>Now, let me answer your question.
>
>I've been spelling tongue as tounge not realizing that I was spelling
it
>wrong all this time. Also, poor transition between the first and
second
>sentence. Filipinos and he, consistency in the use of pronoun - good!
>Identified was a typo but an error nevertheless. I believe you missed
>the phrase "to our (and my) attention" which could have been simply
put
>as "to our attention" since our is an all inclusive term. Thusly could
>have been eliminated altogether. Good!
>
>Now, back to my original question: Do you remember any other
grammatical
>errors commonly made by Filipinos?
>
>Observation: I find it rather curious that we become so sensitive and
>react so negatively about being corrected or even just by the
>possibility of it. It is almost as though we have convinced ourselves
>that we are always right and that we can never commit a mistake.
>
>Cheers!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Before perfecting our Filipino English, how about perfecting
out Filipino Tagalog grammar?
Say, the basic that most of us still don't know:
When to use "r" or "d" such as in "rin" and "din",
"roon" - "doon", etc.
The "at saka" - "at" is good enough. "saka" also mean "at".
So, "at saka" is to much ... Is this similar to ebonic "no
nothing"?
What else .... anybody?
FB/
TooFarGone
In article <32FD2D...@ix.netcom.com>, Pietro E Reyes, III
<per...@ix.netcom.com> says...
>
>Since it is not my native tounge, my English needs a lot of work. At
>risk of drawing flames, I am posting an example of the most common
>grammatical errors I often encounter among the Filipino's spoken and
>written English (including mine). My intention in this post is to
bring
>to the attention of fellow Filipinos common grammatical errors which
he
>
>I start thusly:
>
>
>
>instead of
>
>Taken care of (correct)
How about: She GREW thin. (she didn't grow at all, simply put, she
shrank!)
Pietro E Reyes, III
There are a number of things I find untrue in your posted reply and I'd
like to address your comments item by item:
titser wrote:
> We should correct people on their English grammar to show or teach
> them the proper way but not to belittle or make fun of them.
I'm pleased to know that people still need to be corrected on and taught
proper English grammar. I thought I made the intention of my post clear
and explicit enough by using the exact words (grammatical mistakes and
all) which I quote below:
" My intention in this post is to bring to the attention
of fellow Filipinos common grammatical errors which he may
not even be aware of. There are many others and I hope they
can be identifed and brought to our (and my) attention as a
thread."
I even pointed out that I, first and foremost, needed work on my
English. This statement belittles and makes fun of no one besides
possibly myself. But even that, I don't think it does.
I have re-read this more than once and I am still unable to find the
offending phrase(s) which, according to you, "belittle or make fun of
them."
Please Note: I HAVE NEVER CORRECTED ANYONE'S GRAMMAR OR SPELLING IN
THIS NEWSGROUP. IT IS NOT MY PLACE TO DO SO NOR IS IT
ANYONE ELSE'S.
Having said that, I still feel that this is the venue for pointing out
certain shortcomings that we, as a group, have and upon which we can
take some action to correct and improve on. I cannot accept that we
ought to claim our shortcomings as an "ethnic trait" and that we should
live with it and that we do it because we are Filipinos and it enhances
our "Filipino-ness" -- these are all escapist responses. By doing
nothing about it and accepting it as the status quo, we propagate the
shortcomings and the errors.
Notice that we're only talking grammar, at this point. We haven't talked
about other even more fundamental qualities or shortcomings as a people.
And that's the other thing. We like to talk about our strengths and
virtues as a people. Why then turn a blind eye on our shortcomings. Are
we embarassed? Do we think that by not talking about it or by pretending
that it doesn't exist - that we no longer have such shortcomings - that
it'll go away? If we think so, then maybe it is this attitude and state
of mind that we ought to examine first. But not yet in this thread.
Don't worry, I'll tackle that too sometime in the very near future.
I feel that there are Filipinos out there who, like myself,
(1) will take my intention for what it is as I have stated,
and will not read into it, any other motive or agenda except
to bring to the consciousness of others, errors which fellow
Filipinos, including myself, are unaware of. Having said this,
the "belittling and making fun of" aspect, is a conclusion
which is largely self-imposed and probably arises from having
very little respect for the openness and desire of Filipinos
to better themselves.
(2) recognize that my English, both spoken and written, is not
perfect and therefore can certainly be improved.
(3) are unaware of certain grammatical errors which, unless
brought to my attention, I will continue to repeat those
same errors, over and over again.
(4) prefer to take steps to improve in whatever way I can, such
as in my English, instead of:
(a) engendering a false pride in personal mediocrity
and staying in a state of blissful ignorance.
(b) protecting one's ego by attacking anyone who comes
points out a shortcoming or error, no matter how
common or repeated it is.
> Moreover, correct grammar and spelling should not be a prerequisite
> for posting in SCF.
Correct grammar and spelling were never prerequisites for posting and
they never ought to be. Never was this requirement even implied in my
post. This is another conclusion that has been drawn based on one's
paranoia.
> Paano yung mga English dropouts o mga bata na
> dipa napag-aralan ang mga standard written rules ng English language.
I don't understand your point here. If you are saying that English
dropouts or mga bata na hindi sanay sa Ingles are being discouraged from
posting, this is another conclusion based on not what I've posted but
rather based on, again, one's paranoia.
> Furthermore, kung ang pinag-uusapan natin ay correct writing, bakit
> hindi rin natin correct-kin ang pagsusulat ng Tagalog na sarili nating
> wikang pambansa? Say no to FOBonics and TAGALOnics.
Because the commonly used language in SCF is English. And yes, let's
also identify common errors in Pilipino committed by Filipinos. Let's
not overlook that. Let's not be blissfully ignorant of errors where they
exist. Let's bring them into the general consciousness so that people
can take action on them if they care to do so.
People like myself who (1) recognize and accept that we make mistakes
and wish to have the opportunity to be able to correct our shortcomings
welcome this sort of thing. Exempt from this sort of thing, of course,
are those who have either (2) achieved perfection, or (3) refuse to
admit that they commit errors and (4) know that they commit errors but
refuse to do anything about it. EACH AND EVERY REPLY TO MY ORIGINAL POST
FALLS INTO ONE OF THESE CATEGORIES. Can you identify to which yours
belongs?
Once before, I referred to pronunciation among Filipinos (which drew its
fair share of flames). On this post, I referred to our grammar. The high
thermal response to this post of mine on grammar, I find, suggests
referring to even more fundamental "traits" that I, should address
sometime in a future post.
Finally, despite the flames I have received from all my previous posts
pointing out shortcomings I share with others, if I have brought into
ONE -- even just ONE -- Filipino's consciousness that "TAKEN CARED OF"
is the incorrect phrase for "TAKEN CARE OF", and that he remembers this
the next time he incorporates this phrase in a report he submits to his
boss, then the flames would have been worth it.
Pete T.
Pietro E Reyes, III wrote:
>
> risk of drawing flames, I am posting an example of the most common
> grammatical errors I often encounter among the Filipino's spoken and
> to the attention of fellow Filipinos common grammatical errors which he
> may not even be aware of. There are many others and I hope they can be
> identifed and brought to our (and my) attention as a thread.
My favorite one is "Close the light."
antonqui
In article <32FDD9...@ix.netcom.com> "Pietro E Reyes, III"
<per...@ix.netcom.com> wrote:
>>
>>titser wrote:
>>
>>Titser: Can you identify any more grammatical errors and wrong
>>spellings?
>>
>>
>> Since it is not my native tounge, my English needs a lot of
>>work.
>>
>>At the risk of drawing flames, I am posting an example of the
>>most common grammatical errors I often encounter among the
>>Filipino's spoken and written English (including mine). My
>>intention in this post is to bring to the attention of fellow
>>Filipinos common grammatical errors which he
>>
>>may not even be aware of. There are many others and I hope they
>>can be identifed and brought to our (and my) attention as a
>>thread.
>>
>> I start thusly: (Isn't there a more appropriate word?)
>> ======
>>
>>
>>instead of
>>
>>Taken care of (correct)
>
>
>Now, let me answer your question.
>
>I've been spelling tongue as tounge not realizing that I was
>spelling it wrong all this time. Also, poor transition between
>the first and second sentence. Filipinos and he, consistency in
>the use of pronoun - good!
>Identified was a typo but an error nevertheless. I believe you
>been simply put as "to our attention" since our is an all
>inclusive term. Thusly could have been eliminated altogether.
>Good!
>
>Now, back to my original question: Do you remember any other
>grammatical errors commonly made by Filipinos?
>
>Observation: I find it rather curious that we become so
>sensitive and react so negatively about being corrected or even
>just by the possibility of it. It is almost as though we have
>convinced ourselves that we are always right and that we can
>never commit a mistake.
>
>Cheers!
See this is the point, Pietro. Some posters (this includes me)
are not even aware that what they compose is grammatically
correct/incorrect. So the question is, "How do we know if we are
writing correct/incorrect English?". Sure, one may simply advise
another that he/she should go to an English grammar school or
read a book about the subject as a remedy. But is it really that
important? Heck, I'm not even sure if this simple post is
grammatically error free! What about non-English speaking people
like my middle-aged aunt and uncle, for example, who have plenty
of creative ideas?
BTW, another thing I observe is the use of the word,
'informations'.
...how about some comments from non-Filipinos?
-antonqui
-------------------==== Posted via Deja News ====-----------------------
http://www.dejanews.com/ Search, Read, Post to Usenet
titser
titser wrote:
> >
> > Observation: I find it rather curious that we become so sensitive and
> > react so negatively about being corrected or even just by the
> > possibility of it. It is almost as though we have convinced ourselves
> > that we are always right and that we can never commit a mistake.
> >
> > Cheers!
>
> We should correct people on their English grammar to show or teach
> them the proper way but not to belittle or make fun of them.
> dipa napag-aralan ang mga standard written rules ng English language.
> hindi rin natin correct-kin ang pagsusulat ng Tagalog na sarili nating
> wikang pambansa? Say no to FOBonics and TAGALOnics.
paranoya ba ito?
titser
Pietro E Reyes, III wrote:
I cannot accept that we
> ought to claim our shortcomings as an "ethnic trait" and that we should
> live with it and that we do it because we are Filipinos and it enhances
> our "Filipino-ness" -- these are all escapist responses. By doing
> nothing about it and accepting it as the status quo, we propagate the
> shortcomings and the errors.
titser=============
Who are the people saying that we "ought to claim our shortcomings as
an 'ethnic trait'? Or, is this only a general observation?
What are these supposed "certain shortcomings that we, as a group,
have" besides "Filipino grammar"?
What is this "Filipino-ness" that you don't want to be "enhance[d]"
with "certain shortcomings"?
titser
antonqui wrote:
>
What about non-English speaking people
> like my middle-aged aunt and uncle, for example, who have plenty
> of creative ideas?
Excellent point. It's the communication of ideas that really matters
most. Substance over form. If people understand each other and are
having fun communicating to each other, who cares much about grammar
and spelling. There are some who write with perfect grammar and
spelling, but they are still difficult to comprehend. Ever read some
legalese or a technical piece of writing filled with jargon?
Rhett Valino Pascual
>Pietro E Reyes, III wrote:
>> react so negatively about being corrected or even just by the
>> possibility of it. It is almost as though we have convinced ourselves
>> that we are always right and that we can never commit a mistake.
I think that this really stems from the idea that by correcting someone's
grammar, we are insinuating that this person is uneducated. For a
filipino, this is something which is so insulting that we have to respond.
I remember feeling embarassed when i was corrected by a friend of mine in
11th grade. I prnounced utensils as "yu'-ten-sils" just as I learned in
the philippines. I was quite embarassed by the correction. I also find
that when I am extremely nervous, my filipino accent comes back. When I
speak, I sound uneducated to my ears. With time, I have grown to accept
some of my mistakes. However, it took me neraly ten years to do so.
How important is speaking english fluently? When my family went to deal
with the philippine embassy in Los Angeles, this subject came up. The
receptionists at the embassy were rather snotty and bitchy. When my
mother tried to speak to them in tagalog, (kasi di ba tagalog naman ang
lengua natin?) they basically treated her like she was unimportant.
Knowing that illusions can impress people, I took over the conversation.
First, I spoke in perfect english. Then, I spoke in perfect Tagalog. The
receptionist's eyes bugged so much it was hilarious. We got the necessary
paperwork done quite quickly after that. I guess to them, I was an
important and educated person. Hahahahha. We at scf know better than
that don't we??? hehehehhe.
>Furthermore, kung ang pinag-uusapan natin ay correct writing, bakit
>hindi rin natin correct-kin ang pagsusulat ng Tagalog na sarili nating
>wikang pambansa? Say no to FOBonics and TAGALOnics.
As everyone in this illustrious newsgroup knows, I write a lot. But, did
you know that I'm not really that fluent in tagalog? What i would give to
write tagalog which my mother speaks. there are nuances and variations of
emotions which capture the world of the province where she lived. There
are hints of the life experiences she had whenever i hear her speak
tagalog. what I would give to be able to write poems in tagalog. i wish
i could think in the language and capture the essence of what it is to be
filipino. in one way, i share sirDibos' hilaw-pinoy name.
It was an intersting point that when we hear soemone from europe speak
stilted english, we think of them as being exotic. however, when we hear
asians struggle with the english language, we only see primitiveness. i
never understood why this was so.
REtongBalagtasWannaBe
--
Szu-Wen Huang
titser (tit...@chalkboard.com) wrote:
[...]
: Excellent point. It's the communication of ideas that really matters
: most. Substance over form.
I agree.
: If people understand each other and are
: having fun communicating to each other, who cares much about grammar
: and spelling.
I disagree. Correct grammar and spelling do not disable communication.
While substance is better than form, substance *and* form would be
even better. Note that poor grammar or spelling can directly cause
misunderstanding, which invalidates your "if people understand each
other".
: There are some who write with perfect grammar and
: spelling, but they are still difficult to comprehend. Ever read some
: legalese or a technical piece of writing filled with jargon?
Correct grammar and spelling does not equal to jargon.
Chris Espino
: like to address your comments item by item:
: of fellow Filipinos common grammatical errors which he may
: not even be aware of. There are many others and I hope they
: can be identifed and brought to our (and my) attention as a
: thread."
: offending phrase(s) which, according to you, "belittle or make fun of
: them."
- too much words that I skipped ---
"my intention in this post is to bring to the attention ..." that's just too
wordy, you have "intention/attention" and "to/to" I don't think you're rhyming
either. a thesaurus usually helps ...
it's just like the post-card,
but it doesn't taste like cardboard.
titser
Rhett Valino Pascual wrote:
>
> >Pietro E Reyes, III wrote:
> >> Observation: I find it rather curious that we become so sensitive and
> >> react so negatively about being corrected or even just by the
> >> possibility of it. It is almost as though we have convinced ourselves
> >> that we are always right and that we can never commit a mistake.
>
> I think that this really stems from the idea that by correcting someone's
> grammar, we are insinuating that this person is uneducated. For a
> filipino, this is something which is so insulting that we have to respond.
>
> It was an intersting point that when we hear soemone from europe speak
> stilted english, we think of them as being exotic. however, when we hear
> asians struggle with the english language, we only see primitiveness. i
> never understood why this was so.
>
> REtongBalagtasWannaBe
> --
Understanding accents and incorrect grammars sometimes depends on the
hearer or reader's state of mind and attitude towards the speaker or
writer. Some language research confirm that some people tune out
certain speakers with accents, like immigrants from Third World
countries, while they listen intently to speakers with another
particular accent, like French. Recent immigrants are often
discriminated in employment and education because of some peoples
attitude towards their accent or grammar. There are instances where
bad accent or grammar are used as a pretext to fire or not promote
someone even though there was really no sufficient or legitimate
reason. There was a case where some Filipino security guards were
fired supposedly because of their accents, but in reality, their
accents did not affect their job performance and their employers just
wanted to replace them with white security guards. As someone pointed
out recently in SCF, if you are a customer with money and you want to
buy something, the seller or storeowner will most likely try to
understand you.
Rafael Teodoro
"Pete T." <pit...@ibm.net> writes:
>Pietro E Reyes, III wrote:
>>
>> Since it is not my native tounge, my English needs a lot of work. At the
>> risk of drawing flames, I am posting an example of the most common
>> grammatical errors I often encounter among the Filipino's spoken and
>> written English (including mine). My intention in this post is to bring
>> to the attention of fellow Filipinos common grammatical errors which he
>> may not even be aware of. There are many others and I hope they can be
>> identifed and brought to our (and my) attention as a thread.
>My favorite one is "Close the light."
D'ohh!! I still use this term every once in a while, and get the weirdest
looks from my non-Pinoy friends. Same with "Open the light"! We used to
call sneakers "rubber shoes"....I can only laugh now when I think about
what my new American classmates were thinking about when I was bragging
about my new Reebok Rubber Shoes
RBT
Conrad Gonzalez
In article <330038...@paaralan.com>, tit...@paaralan.com says...
>Understanding accents and incorrect grammars sometimes depends on the
>hearer or reader's state of mind and attitude towards the speaker or
My American wife thinks that my accent is "cute." My kids say that I have a
crisp accent and they constantly correct me. Nevertheless, they love me just
the same...:-) Happy Valentine!
--
Conrad Gonzalez
Hanover, VA
"The Peenoy Redneck"
"From the sticks of Virginia"
Via Dungo
Here's my 2-cents worth:
First off, I think Pete (the originator of this discussion) had
well-meaning intentions when he solicited our input. At the risk of
inviting opposition, I'd like to defend Pete since I didn't
think he had any plans to "belittle" or "make fun of" other
Filipinos by pointing out some of our most common
grammatical errors. :) (there, I've said it)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
-----------------------
I'm proud to be a Filipino because among all the oriental
cultures, we seem to be the most fluent in both written and spoken
English. (If you don't believe me, drop by the chinese/vietnamese
etc.. newsgroups and see how many postings are in English).
Grammatically, Filipinos are not as bad as other non-native
English speakers.
IDIOMATICALLY, we could use a lot of improvement.
(BTW, I believe this was Pete's original intention - "to improve
ourselves")
Some examples:
1) "You be the one"
I hear a lot of older Filipino immigrants resort to this awkward
phrase. I usually hear this remark in response to questions like
"Who's going to drive?" or "Who's gonna call ----"?
2) Until now,....
Nothing wrong here grammatically. However, when used in the
wrong context, as I've observed some Filipinos tend to do (including
me!!), it can connote the wrong meaning. For example,
"Until now, we still don't have the funds we need for the church"
The speaker actually meant to say "Up to now, we still..."
I think some Filipinos don't realize that the word "Until" is usually
a preface for a situation that just changed (such as the funds becoming
available in the above example).
3) "Are you going down"? --> this is my favorite
In other words, if you all were inside a car that had just pulled
up to the store, you may be asked "Bababa ka ba?" or, in
English: "Are you going down"? A better alternative might
be "Are you going in the store with me"?
I'm out of ideas for now - I hope I don't get flamed that much.
I get the impression that no matter how careful you are in this
newsgroup - you're bound to offend, insult, or just plain upset
somebody, albeit accidentally.
T.M. Bong
I frequently make grammatical errors myself but could not
pass this opportunity to share my experience(true story).
This mistake is not common but I feel that it is funny
enough to post.
While in a department store, I overheard some kababayans
talking about returning some items. The phrase that they
used to inquire for directions were....."Where's the
returnation department?". Most of the time, I will not
be phased by this but this time I had to go out of the
store and laugh my ass off.
Bong Reyes :-)
Tara J. Orlanes
does anyone here have problems with their personal pronouns (thirs person)?
because i do-- bad one at that (and i am and english literature major as
well)
i always make a mistake with subject pronouns he/she, object pronouns him/her
and possessive pronouns his/her.
i always use them interchangably and it confuses some of the people i speak
to.
my close friends are used to it so they correct me automatically
but i was just wondering if this is because in tagalog (or cebuano as i am
from cebu) we dont have gender markers for those pronouns.
just wondering...
tara
Johnny Thor
Via Dungo <WGX...@prodigy.com> wrote in article
<5drd09$9...@usenetp1.news.prodigy.com>...
>
> I'm out of ideas for now - I hope I don't get flamed that much.
> I get the impression that no matter how careful you are in this
> newsgroup - you're bound to offend, insult, or just plain upset
> somebody, albeit accidentally.
>
How about:
Host saying goodbye to party guests: "Thank you for going!"
JT
adelle ignacio
Tara J. Orlanes wrote:
>
> does anyone here have problems with their personal pronouns (thirs person)?
> because i do-- bad one at that (and i am and english literature major as
> well)
>
> i always make a mistake with subject pronouns he/she, object pronouns him/her
> and possessive pronouns his/her.
>
> i always use them interchangably and it confuses some of the people i
hahahaha....excuse me<smile> but you're definitely not the only one...a
good friend of mine came here during his early teens and went to high
school here in the states...he's very smart!!! graduated valedictorian
in high school and didn't lack any merits when he graduated from the
university too. Very successful in his chosen career and STILL
automatically say He when he meant She, or She when he meant He :-) not
as often though as my mom who's been here for over 20 years and me for
that matter, hahahaha it must be something in our adobo :-)
Current Occupant
adelle ignacio <a.ig...@internetMCI.com> wrote:
>Tara J. Orlanes wrote:
>>
>> i always make a mistake with subject pronouns he/she, object pronouns him/her
>> and possessive pronouns his/her.
>>
>
>automatically say He when he meant She, or She when he meant He :-) not
>as often though as my mom who's been here for over 20 years and me for
>that matter, hahahaha it must be something in our adobo :-)
I believe is because Tagalog pronouns are not gender-specific. He and
she translate to the same Tagalog word. Or, should I say, Filipino.
Not sure, but this is probably true for the other dialects as well.
xe...@audiophile.com
another one which i often hear fr my parents is 'irregardless' instead
of regardless without the 'ir' i always correct them but they insist on
using the incorrect word anyway. age discrimination. just cause im
younger they refuse to believe anythng i tell them.
William Petrie
In article <3301FB...@geocities.com>, "T.M. Bong" <bon...@geocities.com>
wrote:
You mean " most of the time I WOULD not be phased" ? :)
Bill
William Petrie
In article <3512135646...@iis.forthnet.gr>, tar...@iis.forthnet.gr wrote:
>does anyone here have problems with their personal pronouns (thirs person)?
>because i do-- bad one at that (and i am and english literature major as
>well)
>
>and possessive pronouns his/her.
>
>to.
>my close friends are used to it so they correct me automatically
>
>but i was just wondering if this is because in tagalog (or cebuano as i am
>from cebu) we dont have gender markers for those pronouns.
>
>just wondering...
>
>tara
That's probably the reason. If you are still thinking in Tagalog and just
translating as you go, I suspect it's easy to make that error. Maybe you can
try to practice word association from siya to either filipino or filipina and
then to he or she.
Bill
Johnny Thor
Tell your parents that if they don't listen to you that you will dump them
in a nursing home come their later years. That will always work!
JT
xe...@audiophile.com wrote in article <33023F...@audiophile.com>...
Gavino Victor
sometimes, in an effort to be grammatically correct, we confuse the
indicative for the subjunctive:
incorrect: may he lives
correct: may he live
as an aside, I have also noticed that many Filipinos tend to
substitute an "f" sound for what should be a "p" sound
example: the word shepherd, is often pronounced incorrectly as
"sheferd"; "popular" becomes "fofular", etc
Victor
T.M. Bong
William Petrie wrote:
>
> You mean " most of the time I WOULD not be phased" ? :)
>
> Bill
thanks for the correction.
Bong
Pedro Penduko
Gavino Victor <gav...@ERE.UMontreal.CA> wrote in article
<gavinov....@mistral.ERE.UMontreal.CA>...
Este, Victor, shepherd is pronounced 'sheferd'. Fwede bi!
--
Pedro Penduko
^ ________^
^ ^
^ " Subukan pamu, para mabalu ! "
Pietro E Reyes, III
JenQNY wrote:
>
> Here are a few errors I've noticed-
>
> 1) "equipments" instead of "equipment"
>
> (incorrect) We're getting some new equipments.
> (correct) We're getting some new equipment. (plural)
> (correct) We're getting a new piece of equipment. (singular)
> --- snip----
Also,
plural form of luggage is luggage also
plural form of baggage is baggage also
plural form of furniture is furniture also
distinctions between singular and plural are ...
pieces of luggage, pieces of baggage, pieces of furniture
Ma Eleanor V Tipa
--
Shouldn't that be "fazed" instead of "phased"?
Just asking.
Eleanor
fr...@ix.netcom.com
>
> I'm out of ideas for now - I hope I don't get flamed that much.
> I get the impression that no matter how careful you are in this
> newsgroup - you're bound to offend, insult, or just plain upset
> somebody, albeit accidentally.
How about this:
Go-go home na ba tayo?
--
Fred Natividad
Berwyn, IL
Magandang araw po sa inyo! (Have a nice day!)
Pietro E Reyes, III
Ma Eleanor V Tipa wrote:
>
> Shouldn't that be "fazed" instead of "phased"?
> Just asking.
>
Hmmmmmm... Let's look in the dictionary:
phased - to adjust so as to be in a synchronized condition
to conduct or carry out by planned phases
to introduce in stages
fazed - to disturb the composure of;
synonyms include disconcert, daunt
Looks like Eleanor's correct on fazed!
Pietro E Reyes, III
Chris Espino wrote:
>
> Pietro E Reyes, III <per...@ix.netcom.com> wrote:
> : There are a number of things I find untrue in your posted reply and I'd
> : like to address your comments item by item:
> : of fellow Filipinos common grammatical errors which he may
> : not even be aware of. There are many others and I hope they
> : can be identifed and brought to our (and my) attention as a
> : thread."
> : offending phrase(s) which, according to you, "belittle or make fun of
> : them."
>
> - too much words that I skipped ---
>
> "my intention in this post is to bring to the attention ..." that's just too
> wordy, you have "intention/attention" and "to/to" I don't think you're rhyming
> either. a thesaurus usually helps ...
>
> it's just like the post-card,
> but it doesn't taste like cardboard.
>
>
I don't understand what you're trying to say here. Would you care to
clarify?
T. Tinio
: as an aside, I have also noticed that many Filipinos tend to
: substitute an "f" sound for what should be a "p" sound
:
: example: the word shepherd, is often pronounced incorrectly as
: "sheferd"
Papaano ang hirap-hirap ng ingles. Kung gaanong karami ang rules ganon din
karami ang exceptions. Turo sa amin, ang pag-pronounce ng PH ay pareho ng
F. Tignan ang diksyonaryo, lahat ng salitang nagsisimula sa PH -- ang
pronounciation ay F. Napunta ang PH sa gitna ng SHEPHERD, akala tuloy F pa
rin. Gotcha!
--
vvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvv
bRAMŽS
bra...@intergate.bc.ca
vvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvv
"Insanity is doing same things over and over again
expecting a different result." --- Rita Mae Brown
"Insanity is doing same things over and over again
expecting a different resutl." --- Rita Mae Brown
Gavino Victor
" Pedro Penduko" <pen...@deserafin.com> writes:
>Gavino Victor <gav...@ERE.UMontreal.CA> wrote in article
><gavinov....@mistral.ERE.UMontreal.CA>...
>>
>> as an aside, I have also noticed that many Filipinos tend to
>> substitute an "f" sound for what should be a "p" sound
>>
>> example: the word shepherd, is often pronounced incorrectly as
>> "sheferd"; "popular" becomes "fofular", etc
>>
>Este, Victor, shepherd is pronounced 'sheferd'. Fwede bi!
>--
>Pedro Penduko
> ^ ________^
I had to do a double take on this one.
I consulted the Webster's dictionary just to be sure
and it gives the pronunciation of "shepherd" as:
shep.erd
Please do check me on this one. But if I am correct,
then this is one more thing that some of us Filipinos need
to learn that "ph" is not necessarily always pronounced "f".
Victor
T.M. Bong
Ma Eleanor V Tipa wrote:
> Shouldn't that be "fazed" instead of "phased"?
> Just asking.
>
> Eleanor
Ay!! mali na naman ano? Buwisit na ingles talaga ito. So
many rules.
Bong Reyes ;-)
BigSis1013
Bong Reyes wrote:
>Ay!! mali na naman ano? Buwisit na ingles talaga ito. So
>many rules.
Yes, there are. It just takes practice to make as few mistakes as
possible. Question: where do most of the mistakes occur, in written
English or spoken English? True, spelling doesn't come into play when the
language is being spoken, but has much importance where writing in the
language is concerned. (I before E, except after C, with few
exceptions... etc., etc.)
The Kalogian
In <5dttld$4...@ns2.southeast.net> wpe...@southeast.net (William
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I still like the use those Filipino pronouns. It gives me a little
room for evasive maneuvers - (of who really I was talking).
I still see some flaws in English too. Here's one - they left (or
forgot?) "you" undefined in terms of gender. They're running out
of words too, hence they use "you" both ways, singular and plural.
FB/
It is an interesting point that when we hear
someone from Europe speak stilted English, we
think of them as being exotic. However, when
we hear Asians struggle with the English language,
we only see primitiveness. I never understood
why this was so.
- REtongBalagtasWannaBe
On Common Grammatical Errors Among Filipinos
The Kalogian
In <fredn-13029...@chi-il9-18.ix.netcom.com>
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I can obviously see you're really running out of ideas.
Hang on there ... step aside, watch on sideline. Wait
'til someone bulls, then hop on. ('Mind you, it's Rodeo
time in Houston. Cowboys from North/South, East/West of
Houston and even from as far down as Mexico, after weeks
along the trails on their wagon and horses, are now
congregating here for the annual occasion. Yeeeea...haww!
Go Texan! Hey, where's my boots? Where did someone parked
my horse?)
FB/
Pietro E Reyes, III
I heard these phrases only once - so these may not be all that common:
But how did it became?
Did you thank you?
Sometimes, I always...
a...@digicron.com
other common mistakes:
incorrect: fill up (fill up the form)
correct : fill in
on the phone:
for a while (sandali lang)
better: hold on
Pietro E Reyes, III
The use of lose and loose being interchanged:
lose - nawala, present tense of lost
as in: the possibility of losing something
the possibility that we can lose
the possibility that we have already lost
loose - maluwag, as in nuts and bolts of an engine or a brain.
as adjective in: there is a loose bolt in my brain
as verb in: let us loosen the bolt
the bolt has been loosened
loosening the bolt is difficult
T. Tinio
Often seen on cargo trucks:
Manila to any point IN Luzon.
sometimes,
Manila to any point OF Luzon.
Who's right?
Pietro E Reyes, III
T. Tinio wrote:
>
> Often seen on cargo trucks:
>
> Manila to any point IN Luzon.
>
> sometimes,
>
> Manila to any point OF Luzon.
>
> Who's right?
My money's on: Manila to any point IN Luzon
Pietro E Reyes, III
Differentiating the use of It's and Its
It's - the contraction(?) of It is. The apostrophe is used in this
instance.
Its - possessive of it -- no apostrophe.
I guess the rule here is: no apostrophe unless it's the contraction of
"It is". If it isn't necessary to use a contraction(?), avoid it na lang
para walang mistake! It's better to use its long form.
Ed V Pascual
What about this phrase:
The man was fired out.
Diba mali? I notice a lot of people use this phrase.
The man was fired. I believe is the proper way.
Leave the "out" because fired means he's out any way so why say
fired out = out out. HEHEHEHEHE
Pietro E Reyes, III
more easier - incorrect; can't use two comparatives together;
pwedeng single comparative - easier
or - much easier
or - much more easily
well verse - incorrect;
should be - well versed
avail of this benefit - not quite correct; avail is a reflexive verb
and therefore needs an object
pwedeng - avail myself of this benefit
avail ourselves of this benefit
Pedro Penduko
How about 'tis? pareho din ang gamit!
--
Pedro Penduko
^ ________^
^ " Subukan pamu, para mabalu ! "
Pietro E Reyes, III <per...@ix.netcom.com> wrote in article
<3307D5...@ix.netcom.com>...
Gavino Victor
"T. Tinio" <bra...@intergate.bc.ca> writes:
>~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
>Papaano ang hirap-hirap ng ingles. Kung gaanong karami ang rules ganon din
>karami ang exceptions. Turo sa amin, ang pag-pronounce ng PH ay pareho ng
>F. Tignan ang diksyonaryo, lahat ng salitang nagsisimula sa PH -- ang
>pronounciation ay F. Napunta ang PH sa gitna ng SHEPHERD, akala tuloy F pa
>rin. Gotcha!
Totoo nga iyan sa Ingles - kailan memoryahin (ipasaulo?) ang mga
exceptions. But you know, my children are starting to want to learn
Tagalog and all of a sudden, I realize that Tagalog too has a lot
of exceptions that one learns painlessly while growing up with the
language. Sentence construction na lang - if you follow the rules,
you will sound like a textbook (and totally different from the
average Pinoy).
Victor
Drang2
Pietro E. Reyes, III said last week, Feb.9, 1997.....
-Once before, I referred to pronunciation among Filipinos -(which drew its
-fair share of flames). On this post, I referred to our -grammar. The high
-thermal response to this post of mine on grammar, I find, -suggests
-referring to even more fundamental "traits" that I, should -address
-sometime in a future post.
-Finally, despite the flames I have received from all my -previous posts
-pointing out shortcomings I share with others, if I have -brought into
-ONE -- even just ONE -- Filipino's consciousness that -"TAKEN CARED OF"
-is the incorrect phrase for "TAKEN CARE OF", and that he -remembers this
-the next time he incorporates this phrase in a report he -submits to his
-boss, then the flames would have been worth it.
You can correct my English anytime!!! I was born and raised in
Chicago, attended the great Chicago public school system, and placed out
of freshman English at University of Illinois at Champaign-Urbana because
of my SAT score.
(They don't do that anymore, probably because of students like me!)
Guess what. I had to drop an advanced English literature class during my
third year in high school or I was going to get an "F"!!! (that class was
a bitch!!! Not the teacher.)
Take it as constructive criticism. Hell, my parents still correct me!!
So don't forget to close the lights in the C.R. after you're
finished. I hope that everything is taken cared of.
Drang2
On 14 Feb 97--Gavino Victor <gav...@ERE.UMontreal.CA> wrote in article
<gavinov....@mistral.ERE.UMontreal.CA>...
:
: as an aside, I have also noticed that many Filipinos tend to
: substitute an "f" sound for what should be a "p" sound
:
: example: the word shepherd, is often pronounced incorrectly as
: "sheferd"
Papaano ang hirap-hirap ng ingles. Kung gaanong karami ang rules ganon din
karami ang exceptions. Turo sa amin, ang pag-pronounce ng PH ay pareho ng
F. Tignan ang diksyonaryo, lahat ng salitang nagsisimula sa PH -- ang
pronounciation ay F. Napunta ang PH sa gitna ng SHEPHERD, akala tuloy F
pa
rin. Gotcha!
--
I don't understand Tagalog that well, but if I understood it correctly,
what you said was really funny!!!
---Angelo Dimalanta
Two experiences I'd like to forward, as a Filipino born in Chicago.
1. White people saying to me, "You speak such good English with no accent.
Where did you learn how to speak it so well?".
2. Filipinos saying to me, "How come you don't know how to speak Tagalog
(Pilipino)?". (Somebody please translate that into Tagalog for me.
Thanks!!)
Drang2
> written English (including mine). My intention in this post is to bring
> to the attention of fellow Filipinos common grammatical errors which he
> may not even be aware of. There are many others and I hope they can be
> identifed and brought to our (and my) attention as a thread.
My favorite one is "Close the light."
...and open the light.
Angelo
Gene Alcantara
In article <01bc1ce4$503c94c0$e393...@NEPO.idx.com>, " Pedro Penduko" (pen...@deserafin.com) writes:
>--
>Gene,
>My sincerest condolences.
>--
>Pedro Penduko
> ^ ________^
> ^ ^
> ^ " Subukan pamu, para mabalu ! "
>
Pedro,
Thank you for your message.
Best wishes.
Gene
Romeo Arenzana
Tama ba pare yung "overspeeding"? Hindi ba redundant? Pag nahuli ka sa
speeding eh sumobra ka na sa limit!
At saka bakit yung "hours" sa atin e pronounced "ars"? Dito eh "ours"?
William Petrie
>
> You can correct my English anytime!!! I was born and raised in
>Chicago, attended the great Chicago public school system, and placed out
>of freshman English at University of Illinois at Champaign-Urbana because
>of my SAT score.
>(They don't do that anymore, probably because of students like me!)
>Guess what. I had to drop an advanced English literature class during my
>third year in high school or I was going to get an "F"!!! (that class was
>a bitch!!! Not the teacher.)
>Take it as constructive criticism. Hell, my parents still correct me!!
> So don't forget to close the lights in the C.R. after you're
>finished. I hope that everything is taken cared of.
>
What time are you going to "take your lunch?"
Bill
Albert Yan
It should be "Manila to any point _ON_ Luzon", as in, "on the island of
Luzon". The truck starts out IN Manila, but travels to any place ON the
island.
Albert
Jun B.
On 17 Feb 1997 22:26:32 GMT, dra...@aol.com (Drang2) wrote:
>2. Filipinos saying to me, "How come you don't know how to speak Tagalog
>(Pilipino)?". (Somebody please translate that into Tagalog for me.
>Thanks!!)
It's "Bakit hindi ka marunong mag-tagalog?" Literally, the English
translation of this Tagalog question is "Why do you not know
Tagalog?". But them a one-to-one translation hardly does either
language justice, anyway. They mean the same, and that's what's
important.
Jun B.
On Tue, 18 Feb 1997 00:36:34 -0800, Romeo Arenzana
<aren...@ix.netcom.com> wrote:
>At saka bakit yung "hours" sa atin e pronounced "ars"? Dito eh "ours"?
Kasi, sa Pilipino, ang lahat ng vowels ay binibigkas natin. Kaya ang
"hours" ay nagiging "a-wars".
In fact, binibigkas natin normally sa Pilipino ang lahat ng mga letra,
'di ba? As an interesting experiment, ipasubok mo sa isang bagong
salta ipasabi ang "Vaughan" at "Strachan".
Jun B.
Pietro E Reyes, III
William Petrie wrote:
> What time are you going to "take your lunch?"
>
> Bill
What time are you going to take your lunch break would be okay...
wouldn't it?
Current Occupant
"Pietro E Reyes, III" <per...@ix.netcom.com> wrote:
>What time are you going to take your lunch break would be okay...
>wouldn't it?
Better: What time are you going out to lunch?
Just me - no sigs
Johnny Thor
Even betterer and shorter: "When's your lunch?
JT
Current Occupant <*si...@pacbell.net*> wrote in article
<330a72b9...@news.pacbell.net>...
Gavino Victor
fbl...@ix.netcom.com(The Kalogian) writes:
> FB/
>
> It is an interesting point that when we hear
> someone from Europe speak stilted English, we
> think of them as being exotic. However, when
> we hear Asians struggle with the English language,
> we only see primitiveness. I never understood
> why this was so.
Good point. It shouldn't be so. However, based on my limited contact
with Europeans both here and in Europe, as well as on my day to day
interaction with French Canadians, I would say that when they speak
stilted heavily accented English, they also communicate a sense of
wanting to do better. We Filipinos, on the other hand, generally
make fun of ourselves in our struggle with this difficult language.
We also tend to flaunt our mistakes. Consider the ancient
Ricky Belmonte jokes, and now the Erap collection. I'd like to
know how other Asians see us in our attempts to make sense out
of this English language.
Victor
Drang2
> So don't forget to close the lights in the C.R. after you're
>finished. I hope that everything is taken cared of.
>
What time are you going to "take your lunch?"
Bill
I don't take lunch, but I take dinner at pibe pipty pibe ebry day.
One day, my uncle (who went to the University of Michigan 1948-52 and
stayed in the states) asked me how I was doing in my "P-6" class. I said
what is P-6????? He said you know....., porce, newtons, e=mc2.
OHHHHHHHH. PHYSICS!!!!
He hit me in the arm and laughed.
I couldn't believe I didn't understand him, after all these years, you'd
think I'd understand the Filipino accent!!!
Angelo
Drang2
Timang
dra...@aol.com (Drang2) wrote
on 17 Feb 1997 22:26:32 GMT:
>1. White people saying to me, "You speak such good English with no
accent.
> Where did you learn how to speak it so well?".
i, too, had similar experiences but was born and lived in the Philippines
for 20 yrs before i came to the US. i always answer them with: "I left my
accent at the airport."
fbl...@ix.netcom.com(The Kalogian) wrote
on 9 Feb 1997 19:51:51 GMT
> When to use "r" or "d" such as in "rin" and "din",
> "roon" - "doon", etc.
>
> The "at saka" - "at" is good enough. "saka" also mean "at".
> So, "at saka" is to much ... Is this similar to ebonic "no
> nothing"?
i believe "rin" is used when the preceding word ends with a vowel and
"din" when it ends with a consonant. i also believe that "at saka" is
correct and that it means "and also". "at" meaning "and" and "saka"
meaning "also".
to add to the cause, heres' one i am guilty of:
1. use of "things", "stuff", "thingy" instead of the proper or correct
word when i am scrambling for words.
Van C. Bagnol
William Petrie (William Petrie (wpe...@southeast.net)) wrote:
: In article <3301FB...@geocities.com>, "T.M. Bong" <bon...@geocities.com>
: wrote:
: ><...> "Where's the
: >returnation department?". Most of the time, I will not
: >be phased by this but this time I had to go out of the
: >store and laugh my ass off.
: >Bong Reyes :-)
: You mean " most of the time I WOULD not be phased" ? :)
: Bill
Maybe it's a phase he's going through. It doesn't faze me. :-)
Van ("meeting you phase to faze")
--
Van Bagnol / v...@crl.com / Teatro ng Tanan / Windsurfing / Parachuting
Hawksbill Capital Management / (707) 575-7077 / (707) 575-8334 fax
"Parang lumalakad ako sa loob ng panaginip"
"An Error is not a Mistake...until you refuse to correct it."
Junjie Noguera
On 19 Feb 97 14:27:37 GMT, gav...@ERE.UMontreal.CA (Gavino Victor)
wrote:
In my opinion, it has something to do with our pride as Filipinos. We
usually pride ourselves in being intelligent, good English speakers,
and good communicators (or at least, that's how I see it.) I believe
there is nothing wrong with that. However, since we place ourselves
in this pedestal, when we see some other Filipino who does not meet
this criteria, e.g. they speak broken English, mis-pronounce words,
etc., we feel being dragged down from that pedestal. Some would react
as if it is funny, making of the incident but others feel resentment
and poke fun at the person or sometimes even humiliate him.
I remember while I was in the university, my classes involved a lot of
presentations. Since this was in the Bay Area, naturally there were a
lot students from different countries. During presentations, I would
not mind hearing people talking in exotic accents and broken English
to the point that I had to reconstruct what the people were saying in
my mind just so that I would understand their point (heck, my
instructors were the same anyway) but when it came to another Pinoy
doing a presentation in a not so perfect English, I would cringe in my
seat at every mistake he makes.
Junjie Noguera
Pietro E Reyes, III
Since we're on the subject of GRAMMATICAL ERRORS...
RULES FOR WRITING GOOD
Reprinted from: The Leaflet (Fall 1979),
the journal of the New England Association of Teachers of English,
identifying contentious issues in grammar, vocabulary, punctuation,
and discourse
1.Every pronoun should agree with their antecedent.
2.People like you and I should have no problems with grammatical case.
3.Verbs in any essay has to agree with their subject.
4.It isn't good to be someone whom people realize confuse who and
whom.
5.Nobody should never use double negatives.
6.A writer should not shift your point of view.
7.When writing, participles ought not to be dangled.
8.Join clauses good, like a good writer should.
9.Do not write run-on sentences, it is bad style.
10.Sentence fragments. Watch our for them.
11.In letters themes reports and the like use commas
to separate items in a list.
12.If teachers have ever told you that you don't put a
comma before that, they were right.
13.Its essential to use apostrophe's properly.
14.You shouldn't abbrev.
15.Always check to see if you have anything out.
16.Take care to never seriously and purposely split infinitives.
17.Never idly use a preposition to end a sentence with, because
that is the kind of thing up with which no right-minded person
will put.
18.In my own personal opinion I myself think that authors when
they are writing should not persuade themselves that it is all
right to use too many unnecessary words; the reason for this is
because you should express yourself concisely.
Additional Rules For Writing Good
1.Avoid alliteration. Always.
2.Prepositions are not words to end sentences with.
3.Avoid cliches like the plague. (They're old hat.)
4.Employ the vernacular.
5.Eschew ampersands & abbreviations, etc.
6.Parenthetical remarks (however relevant) are unnecessary.
7.It is wrong to ever split an infinitive.
8.Contractions aren't necessary
9.Foreign words and phrases are not apropos.
10.One should never generalize.
11.Eliminate quotations. As Ralph Waldo Emerson
once said: "I hate quotations. Tell me what you know."
12.Comparisons are as bad as cliches.
13.Don't be redundant; don't use more words than necessary;
it's highly superfluous.
14.Profanity sucks.
15.Be more or less specific.
16.Understatement is always best.
17.Exaggeration is a billion times worse than understatement.
18.One-word sentences? Eliminate.
19.Analogies in writing are like feathers on a snake.
20.The passive voice is to be avoided.
21.Go around the barn at high noon to avoid colloquialisms.
22.Even if a mixed metaphor sings, it should be derailed.
23.Who needs rhetorical questions?
R.V. Mendoza
This essay is from the Humor Break website:
--------------------------------------------
Let's face it -- English is a crazy language. There is no egg in
eggplant nor ham in hamburger; neither apple nor pine in pineapple.
English
muffins weren't invented in England or French fries in France.
Sweetmeats are candies while sweetbreads, which aren't sweet, are meat.
We take English for granted. But if we explore its paradoxes, we
find that quicksand can work slowly, boxing rings are square and a
guinea
pig is neither from Guinea nor is it a pig.
And why is it that writers write but fingers don't fing, grocers
don't groce and hammers don't ham? If the plural of tooth is teeth, why
isn't the plural of booth beeth? One goose, 2 geese. So one moose, 2
meese?
One index, 2 indices?
Doesn't it seem crazy that you can make amends but not one amend,
that you comb through annals of history but not a single annal? If you
have a bunch of odds and ends and get rid of all but one of them, what
do
you call it?
If teachers taught, why didn't preacher praught? If a vegetarian
eats vegetables, what does a humanitarian eat? If you wrote a letter,
perhaps you bote your tongue?
Sometimes I think all the English speakers should be committed to
an asylum for the verbally insane. In what language do people recite at
a play and play at a recital? Ship by truck and send cargo by ship?
Have noses that run and feet that smell? Park on driveways and drive on
parkways?
How can a slim chance and a fat chance be the same, while a wise man
and wise guy are opposites? How can overlook and oversee be opposites,
while quite a lot and quite a few are alike? How can the weather be hot
as
hell one day and cold as hell another.
Have you noticed that we talk about certain things only when they
are absent? Have you ever seen a horseful carriage (as compared to a
horseless one) or a strapful gown (as opposed to a strapless)? Met
a sung hero ("unsung") or experienced requited ("unrequited) love?
Have you ever run into someone who was combobulated, gruntled, ruly or
peccable?
And where are all those people who ARE spring chickens or who would
ACTUALLY hurt a fly?
You have to marvel at the unique lunacy of a language in which your
house can burn up as it burns down, in which you fill in a form by
filling
it out and in which an alarm clock goes off by going on.
English was invented by people, not computers, and it reflects the
creativity of the human race (which, of course, isn't a race at all).
That is why, when the stars are out, they are visible, but when the
lights are out, they are invisible. And why, when I wind up my watch,
I start it, but when I wind up this essay, I end it.
Gavino Victor
rvme...@loop.com (R.V. Mendoza) writes:
>This essay is from the Humor Break website:
>--------------------------------------------
>Let's face it -- English is a crazy language. There is no egg in
------deleted-------
you had me rolling on the floor. thanks for making my day.
here's another one along similar lines (less elegantly said):
take the 'f' in enough and the 'i' in women plus
the 'sh' in nation and you have 'ghoti' - the
aquatic animal
Victor
Tara J. Orlanes
gav...@ERE.UMontreal.CA wrote:
>you had me rolling on the floor. thanks for making my day.
>here's another one along similar lines (less elegantly said):
>take the 'f' in enough and the 'i' in women plus
>the 'sh' in nation and you have 'ghoti' - the
>aquatic animal
>Victor
yes i remember this .. fish right?
on the same note heres what i found in my linguistic book:
I take you already know
of tough and bough and cough and dough?
others may stumble but not you
on hicough, thorough, lough and through.
Well done! and now you wish perhaps,
to learn of less familiar traps?
Beware of heard, a dreadful word,
that looks like beard and sounds like bird.
And dead: its said like bed, not bead-
for goodness sake dont call it "deed".
Watch out for meat and great and threat
(they rhyme wiht suite and straight and debt).
(from Hints on Pronunciation for foreigners by T.S. W.-- dunno who tsw is )
tarhata
Mark Vivino
In article <351213564...@iis.forthnet.gr>, tar...@iis.forthnet.gr
(Tara J. Orlanes) wrote:
> on the same note heres what i found in my linguistic book:
>
> I take you already know
> of tough and bough and cough and dough?
> others may stumble but not you
> on hicough, thorough, lough and through.
> Well done! and now you wish perhaps,
> to learn of less familiar traps?
> Beware of heard, a dreadful word,
> that looks like beard and sounds like bird.
> And dead: its said like bed, not bead-
> for goodness sake dont call it "deed".
> Watch out for meat and great and threat
> (they rhyme wiht suite and straight and debt).
>
> (from Hints on Pronunciation for foreigners by T.S. W.-- dunno who tsw is
)
And so many Filipinos wonder why English speakers have a difficult time
learning Tagalog. You see how messed up we are from the poem. English
speaking people fully expect a language to be composed of nonsense.
markjas...@gmail.com
scottk...@gmail.com
> I frequently make grammatical errors myself but could not
> pass this opportunity to share my experience(true story).
> This mistake is not common but I feel that it is funny
> enough to post.
>
> While in a department store, I overheard some kababayans
> talking about returning some items. The phrase that they
> used to inquire for directions were....."Where's the
> be phased by this but this time I had to go out of the
> store and laugh my ass off.
>
> Bong Reyes :-)
roseanne...@gmail.com
> In article <32FDD9...@ix.netcom.com> "Pietro E Reyes, III"
> <per...@ix.netcom.com> wrote:
> >>
> >>titser wrote:
> >>
> >>Titser: Can you identify any more grammatical errors and wrong
> >>spellings?
> >>Pietro E Reyes, III wrote:
> >>
> >>work.
> >> ======(correct spelling is TONGUE)
> >>
> >>At the risk of drawing flames, I am posting an example of the
> >>most common grammatical errors I often encounter among the
> >>Filipino's spoken and written English (including mine). My
> >>Filipinos common grammatical errors which he
> >>may not even be aware of. There are many others and I hope they
> >>can be identifed and brought to our (and my) attention as a
> >>thread.
> >>
> >> I start thusly: (Isn't there a more appropriate word?)
> >> ======
> >>
> >>Taken cared of (incorrect)
> >>
> >>instead of
> >>
> >>Taken care of (correct)
> >
> >Well done! Congratulations for a fairly thorough job.
> >
> >Now, let me answer your question.
> >
> >I've been spelling tongue as tounge not realizing that I was
> >spelling it wrong all this time. Also, poor transition between
> >the first and second sentence. Filipinos and he, consistency in
> >the use of pronoun - good!
> >Identified was a typo but an error nevertheless. I believe you
> >missed the phrase "to our (and my) attention" which could have
> >been simply put as "to our attention" since our is an all
> >inclusive term. Thusly could have been eliminated altogether.
> >Good!
> >
> >Now, back to my original question: Do you remember any other
> >grammatical errors commonly made by Filipinos?
> >
> >Observation: I find it rather curious that we become so
> >sensitive and react so negatively about being corrected or even
> >just by the possibility of it. It is almost as though we have
> >convinced ourselves that we are always right and that we can
> >never commit a mistake.
> >
> >Cheers!
>
> See this is the point, Pietro. Some posters (this includes me)
> are not even aware that what they compose is grammatically
> correct/incorrect. So the question is, "How do we know if we are
> writing correct/incorrect English?". Sure, one may simply advise
> another that he/she should go to an English grammar school or
> read a book about the subject as a remedy. But is it really that
> important? Heck, I'm not even sure if this simple post is
> grammatically error free! What about non-English speaking people
> like my middle-aged aunt and uncle, for example, who have plenty
> of creative ideas?
>
> BTW, another thing I observe is the use of the word,
> 'informations'.
>
> ...how about some comments from non-Filipinos?
>
> -antonqui
>
> -------------------==== Posted via Deja News ====-----------------------
> http://www.dejanews.com/ Search, Read, Post to Usenet
Eight years later, here I am, a non-Filipino, and I have something to add. Filipinos seem to use "already" a lot when it doesn't quite fit. For example, I often hear Filipino friends use "already" when they mean "just" as in "I just finished the book." They would say, "I already finished the book." Or for another example, "I already went to the Philippines for many years," when you wouldn't use "already" for a repeated action.