English spelling is quite frankly a nightmare for many people. Just a point of curiosity: I am not aware of any other culture where spelling bee competitions are held among the younger generation, which goes to show how random English words can be. If spelling were easier, such competitions would surely be less entertaining. The truth is that becoming a good speller takes time and certainly patience! The obscurity of English spelling is most likely attributed to the fact that the English language is a “melting pot” of many different languages combined, constructed largely from the influences of Romance languages with Anglo-Saxon roots including French, Italian, Spanish, and German. This has undoubtedly resulted in the plethora of English spelling rules that can be tough to remember. You know, those rules that have been drilled into us in grade school, like: “You put the ‘i’ before ‘e’ except after ‘c’” – such as in the words receive and deceive.
Even more compelling is the existence of words that sound the same when spoken aloud but are spelled differently depending on context to express different meanings – these words are known as homophones. The following five spelling distinctions can be useful to keep in mind to avoid using the unintended words when writing something important, or just to write grammatically as much as possible! It should be noted that there are many other homophones in English, but these are just ten to start with.
1. Their, There, They’re
Their = Possessive pronoun; refers to a third party (e.g. them).
I went to their house in the evening.
There = Noun; a location.
My friend wanted to go to New York, but he could not travel there because of the snow storm.
They’re = Contraction of they + are.
They’re going to purchase a house in Hawaii next month.
2. Too, To
Too = Adverb; in addition; also.
I am interested in singing, too!
To = Preposition; to express a direction or destination.
They wanted to go to the movies after dinner.
3. Affect, Effect
Affect = Verb; to produce a change in something else.
The rain affected the size of the crops.
Effect = Noun; something that is produced by a cause.
The criticism of his musical performance had a devastating effect on his confidence.
4. Passed, Past
Passed = Adjective; to successfully pass something.
My friend passed the test with flying colors.
Past = Adjective; something that existed before the present time.
I have experienced many great memories in the past.
5. Capital, Capitol
Capital = Noun; refers to the city/town representing the head of a state; money or property.
The capital of California is Sacramento.
Capitol = Noun; a building.
I visited the state capitol in Washington D.C. during the summer.
Definitions refereced by: Dictionary.com
Thursday, February 11, 2010
Tuesday, February 2, 2010
Keeping up with the (digital) Joneses: The Nuances of Online Lingo
Tweets. Followers. Friend Requests. Become a fan.
Do these expressions sound vaguely or incredibly familiar? Why, in this day and age with a growing surge of popularity in online social networking, I sure hope so! People of all ages seem to be captivated by this technological trend that has undeniably gripped most of our free time, or what we also call down time. The phenomenon of people flocking to post their thoughts of the day and relish in celeb tweets on Twitter (I admit that I am a recovering Twitter-er), or updating their Facebook statuses has intrigued me for one reason in particular - the evolving nature of the meaning, significance, and association of language.
As a friendly but somewhat introverted person, I naturally find myself to prefer jumping on the bandwagon with these online social networking sites to communicate with friends and family. And to keep up with the rapid revamping of online interaction, I find myself noticing little nuances in the evolving use of language. One thing that I find to be “trending” is to “verbify” nouns, or in other words, using nouns to function as verbs. I have overheard phrases over and over again from random bystanders, such as: Just facebook me later, Feel free to friend me , I enjoy tweeting , and even Google it. Somehow, through subconscious processing I suppose, it is the norm to correctly infer what each of these phrases mean. Facebook you later? Sure, I'll post something on your wall or send you a message on Facebook later to confirm our plans. Yes, I'll add you as a friend. To "tweet" refers to posting a short message in Twitter-land. As for “Google it”? It is inferred to mean: search for something on the popular search engine Google. Or, at least resort to some type of search engine out there.
How we perceive and understand these terms reflects the necessity of understanding the newest changes in technology culture, of connecting the most appropriate meaning to the always evolving entity of language. Case in point – when I hear the word “friend”, I immediately (not always willingly) think of “Facebook friend”, most of whom I only see in-person once a month! So in my personal experience, the term “friends” has become associated with the people who I have "confirmed" with a simple click of a blue button, stating to everyone that I have a new pal in the land of Facebook... although I do have friends outside of cyberspace, and ironically spend more time with them :) Certainly no problem with that, but wouldn't you agree that it sure would be nice if “friending” someone in real life was as simple as a click of a button and finding out about their likes/dislikes in an instant!
The “webscape” of online social mingling is full of new terminology just waiting to emerge, and as someone who is still learning to grasp the complexities of technology, I am willing to try my hand at tweeting, friending, and googling my way to new ways of understanding language.
Do these expressions sound vaguely or incredibly familiar? Why, in this day and age with a growing surge of popularity in online social networking, I sure hope so! People of all ages seem to be captivated by this technological trend that has undeniably gripped most of our free time, or what we also call down time. The phenomenon of people flocking to post their thoughts of the day and relish in celeb tweets on Twitter (I admit that I am a recovering Twitter-er), or updating their Facebook statuses has intrigued me for one reason in particular - the evolving nature of the meaning, significance, and association of language.
As a friendly but somewhat introverted person, I naturally find myself to prefer jumping on the bandwagon with these online social networking sites to communicate with friends and family. And to keep up with the rapid revamping of online interaction, I find myself noticing little nuances in the evolving use of language. One thing that I find to be “trending” is to “verbify” nouns, or in other words, using nouns to function as verbs. I have overheard phrases over and over again from random bystanders, such as: Just facebook me later, Feel free to friend me , I enjoy tweeting , and even Google it. Somehow, through subconscious processing I suppose, it is the norm to correctly infer what each of these phrases mean. Facebook you later? Sure, I'll post something on your wall or send you a message on Facebook later to confirm our plans. Yes, I'll add you as a friend. To "tweet" refers to posting a short message in Twitter-land. As for “Google it”? It is inferred to mean: search for something on the popular search engine Google. Or, at least resort to some type of search engine out there.
How we perceive and understand these terms reflects the necessity of understanding the newest changes in technology culture, of connecting the most appropriate meaning to the always evolving entity of language. Case in point – when I hear the word “friend”, I immediately (not always willingly) think of “Facebook friend”, most of whom I only see in-person once a month! So in my personal experience, the term “friends” has become associated with the people who I have "confirmed" with a simple click of a blue button, stating to everyone that I have a new pal in the land of Facebook... although I do have friends outside of cyberspace, and ironically spend more time with them :) Certainly no problem with that, but wouldn't you agree that it sure would be nice if “friending” someone in real life was as simple as a click of a button and finding out about their likes/dislikes in an instant!
The “webscape” of online social mingling is full of new terminology just waiting to emerge, and as someone who is still learning to grasp the complexities of technology, I am willing to try my hand at tweeting, friending, and googling my way to new ways of understanding language.
Monday, February 1, 2010
Finding the Right Words
Hello. Welcome to my blog!
I am a recent post-graduate and studied the very fascinating field of Linguistics as a university student. I am beginning this online writing adventure as a little project to try my hand at freelance blogging and most importantly because of my passion for all things language related.
My first few blogs might venture in very different directions, as language and communication itself spans every imaginable aspect of our lives, from online social networking, TV shows, languages in education, verbal and non-verbal communication, and language in the media. My goal in each of my posts is to educate and entertain the curious-minded, and ultimately to find the niche which suits my interests and writing style the best. Thanks for reading!
I am a recent post-graduate and studied the very fascinating field of Linguistics as a university student. I am beginning this online writing adventure as a little project to try my hand at freelance blogging and most importantly because of my passion for all things language related.
My first few blogs might venture in very different directions, as language and communication itself spans every imaginable aspect of our lives, from online social networking, TV shows, languages in education, verbal and non-verbal communication, and language in the media. My goal in each of my posts is to educate and entertain the curious-minded, and ultimately to find the niche which suits my interests and writing style the best. Thanks for reading!
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