Apostrophe crimes

[jdaw1]

Would it be worth making a special team-skinny-fries request?

Tricky. Too many layers: ‘skinny’ must bind to ‘fries’ more tightly than the pair does to ‘team’, which must bind more tightly to the pair than to ‘special’. Obviously the correct answer is a re-word, but failing that, the punctuation is tricky.

[DRT]

Would it be worth making a special team-skinny-fries request?

Tricky. Too many layers: ‘skinny’ must bind to ‘fries’ more tightly than the pair does to ‘team’, which must bind more tightly to the pair than to ‘special’. Obviously the correct answer is a re-word, but failing that, the punctuation is tricky.

"A special order of skinny fries for the team" requires no such complexity.

[jdaw1]

corked bottles becoming the responsibility of the cork producers insurance company.

[Glenn E.]

I have apparently purged most of the memory in self defense, but I saw a sign on the road that managed to make multiple errors with a single misplaced apostrophe.

As I recall the word in question ended in 's' and so appeared to need to have the apostrophe after the 's' for plural possessive. The problem being twofold: a) this was one of those other words that ends in 's' that needs to have an apostrophe and an 's' added, and b) in the usage on the sign the word was neither plural nor possessive.

I really wish I could remember the whole sign. It was spectacularly bad.

[jdaw1]

Can it be found on Google’s streetview?

[Glenn E.]

Can it be found on Google’s streetview?

Likely not. It was the same type of sign as is most often used for political purposes (i.e. non-permanent). Roughly 11 x 17 and stuck in the ground by its wire frame.

[jdaw1]

This punctuation criticism went wrong.

[PhilW]

This punctuation criticism went wrong.

Please clarify the accusation. I would expect "some people's keyboards" as appears currently written (it may have been corrected?) for the keyboards of some people; by comparison "some people's faiths" (the faiths of some people) vs "some peoples' faiths" (the faiths of some peoples) both being different and valid.

[jdaw1]

Please clarify the accusation.

Their was an error.

[jdaw1]

A shop near East Croydon station, 13th March 2016.

[PhilW]

Their was an error.

Ah, their was indeed. I was too apostrophe-focused.
The "2016 Timeless Collection"... oh dear.

[CaliforniaBrad]

While not specifically relating to punctuation, this seems to fit the thread:



Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalkz. U

[jdaw1]

He did play for the Charleston RiverDogs, so maybe.

Or maybe not.

[Alex Bridgeman]

Probably typed on an Apple and autocorrected

[jdaw1]

The QVVV has no chance of being at it's best at 21.

[jdaw1]

This first exhibition in Portugal of influential New York-based British artist Liam Gillick (1964, Aylesbury, UK) results from a series of site visits to the Serralves Museum of Contemporary Art made since 2013. The subsequent exhibition takes the form of a year-long presentation and reflects Gillick’s long-standing engagement with questions of process, participation, collectivity and decision-making, and of which his varied approach to language and the language of space are an expression.

[flash_uk]

This first exhibition in Portugal of influential New York-based British artist Liam Gillick (1964, Aylesbury, UK) results from a series of site visits to the Serralves Museum of Contemporary Art made since 2013. The subsequent exhibition takes the form of a year-long presentation and reflects Gillick’s long-standing engagement with questions of process, participation, collectivity and decision-making, and of which his varied approach to language and the language of space are an expression.

I've re-read this a couple of times and can't find the problem. Can you enlighten me?

[Glenn E.]

This first exhibition in Portugal of influential New York-based British artist Liam Gillick (1964, Aylesbury, UK) results from a series of site visits to the Serralves Museum of Contemporary Art made since 2013. The subsequent exhibition takes the form of a year-long presentation and reflects Gillick’s long-standing engagement with questions of process, participation, collectivity and decision-making, and of which his varied approach to language and the language of space are an expression.

I've re-read this a couple of times and can't find the problem. Can you enlighten me?

I believe the apostrophe before the 'n' is wrong. I'm not a true linguist so do not know the correct names, but both should be a straight apostrophe and not a curled apostrophe. At the very least they should both be the comma-style curled apostrophe, not the upside down one, as the letter 'n' is not being encapsulated by them. Both represent a missing letter.

Close enough?

[flash_uk]

Ah, yes.

[jdaw1]

I believe the apostrophe before the 'n' is wrong. I'm not a true linguist so do not know the correct names, but both should be a straight apostrophe and not a curled apostrophe. At the very least they should both be the comma-style curled apostrophe, not the upside down one, as the letter 'n' is not being encapsulated by them. Both represent a missing letter.

Close enough?

Both should be right single apostrophes, also known as ‘9’s. For the reason you say.

Separately, “engagement with questions of process, participation, collectivity and decision-making”, in this context and perhaps in others, is pretentious nonsense. Which our Artist-in-Residence might think good. Or at least might wish that we participants, collectively and decisively whilst following due process, engage with its questions.

[jdaw1]

a bit 'assassins creed' and you had to murder someone

[DRT]

Presumably if the salad had been properly washed in a product designed to kill bacteria and remove their toxins then the consumers would have been fine. So the morale of the story (apart from don't eat leaves) is that salad should be washed in vodka or gin before being eaten.

[Alex Bridgeman]

Presumably if the salad had been properly washed in a product designed to kill bacteria and remove their toxins then the consumers would have been fine. So the morale of the story (apart from don't eat leaves) is that salad should be washed in vodka or gin before being eaten.

Guilty as charged.

[DRT]

Presumably if the salad had been properly washed in a product designed to kill bacteria and remove their toxins then the consumers would have been fine. So the morale of the story (apart from don't eat leaves) is that salad should be washed in vodka or gin before being eaten.

Guilty as charged.

To be fair, I am told that the salad was in good spirits before being eaten

[jdaw1]

There is (or, more accurately, hopefully will be) a list of banks, called the ‘Preliminary List’. Would you say that a bank is on the Preliminary List, or in the Preliminary List?

[PhilW]

There is (or, more accurately, hopefully will be) a list of banks, called the ‘Preliminary List’. Would you say that a bank is on the Preliminary List, or in the Preliminary List?

on

[John Owlett]

He's got them on the list -- he's got them on the list;
And they'll none of them be missed -- they''ll none of them be missed.

[Alex Bridgeman]

On

[DRT]

Is it correct to say "on the list" or "in the list"?

Question

Is it correct to say "on the list" or "in the list"? -V. Chan, Hong Kong

Answer

Thank you for this interesting question.

In almost all contexts, it is customary and correct to say on the list (or on my list, on their list, etc.). Here are some representative example sentences:

Examples with on

Your name is the first one on the list.
Her novel is on the list of recommended readings.
China is high on my list of places to go.
She is on the short list for the Nobel Prize.

However, as you have probably noticed, sometimes in the list is used as well. Most often, in the list is used after some form of the word include, as in the examples shown below.

Examples with in

We were included in the guest list.
Included in the list of available cars we find midsize cars, pickup trucks, and minivans.
Both publishers and artists are included in the list.
For inclusion in the list, all information needs to be submitted by August 10th.

This is because include has a strong tendency to be used with the preposition in, as in the expressions, "You are included in our thoughts and prayers," and "It's included in the price." Except after include, I recommend that you use on the list.

I hope this helps to answer your question.

[jdaw1]

Quiz: Do you know this weird punctuation?

[John Owlett]

The only places where I have ever seen the interrobang used are articles about the interrobang.

[jdaw1]

The only places where I have ever seen the interrobang used are articles about the interrobang.

Good observation, also true of me.

[PhilW]

The only places where I have ever seen the interrobang used are articles about the interrobang.

Good observation, also true of me.

I can't believe that neither of you have ever used an interrobang?!

[flash_uk]

The only places where I have ever seen the interrobang used are articles about the interrobang.

Good observation, also true of me.

I can't believe that neither of you have ever used an interrobang?!

Ho ho!

[Glenn E.]

Quiz: Do you know this weird punctuation?

UK-restricted website which claims to be a game.

[jdaw1]

Ho ho!

‽

[flash_uk]

Come on, read the response!

[jdaw1]

Oleksiak tied with Manuel to take the gold, setting a new Olympic record of 52.70 seconds and making history as the first athlete born in the 21st Century to win an Olympic gold medal in any sport.

Penelope "Penny" Oleksiak (born June 13, 2000)

Sigh.

[jdaw1]

[DRT]

Obey yours host’ confidences

[jdaw1]

Obey yours host’ confidences

The missing ‘s’ is regretted.

[jdaw1]

I doubt that it's producers find this

[DRT]

Grrrr.

[DRT]

I strongly suspect the reference to wealth is meant to be plural...

Screen Shot 2016-10-17 at 20.10.12.png (123.89 KiB) Viewed 43015 times

[Alex Bridgeman]

I strongly suspect the reference to wealth is meant to be plural...

Or it could be a well educated democrat saying precisely what it reads as saying.

But I suspect that you're right.

[jdaw1]

The embarrassment. The humiliation. The shame.

Just shame. And more shame. And backup shame in case the first and second bottles of shame showed insufficiently well.

There are eight copies of Version Zero of the book (which, mitigatingly, exists so that errors can be found). I did not have the wit to have anybody else check the back cover. And I didn’t even find the error — it was my elder daughter.

With error boxed:


The embarrassment. The humiliation. The shame. And more.

[DRT]

I am very pleased to own one of the eight copies. Once this becomes a best seller and you have won the Booker Prize my copy might be worth the same as a Penny Black with Queen Victoria's head upside down!

[Old Bridge]

I am very pleased to own one of the eight copies. Once this becomes a best seller and you have won the Booker Prize my copy might be worth the same as a Penny Black with Queen Victoria's head upside down!

Is there such a stamp?

Four Annas, though.
http://www.thetimes.co.uk/tto/news/uk/a ... 663150.ece

[Old Bridge]

I say as Bluebottle: Not a sausage!

[DRT]

RSVP me....I'll be there if I'm still sucking my share of earths air.