# I swiftly herewith consign to the pit, the ignorant clowns who misconstrue "its" **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [July 11, 2012, 5:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-swiftly-herewith-consign-to-the-pit-the-ignorant-clowns-who-misconstrue-its/627871 "2012-07-11T05:44:38Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 10
**Author:** ![greenslime1951](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e9bcb4/32.png) [@greenslime1951](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/greenslime1951)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2012, 5:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-swiftly-herewith-consign-to-the-pit-the-ignorant-clowns-who-misconstrue-its/627871/181 "2012-07-13T17:09:44Z")
> [@Inner\_Stickler](#): > > Geeze, Patty, it’s aneurysm. Have you no respect for decency and order?! > > Can we get a mod to fix the thread title, by the way? That extraneous comma is giving me the vapors. It’s not extraneous, since it separates lines of verse. ---
**Author:** ![greenslime1951](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e9bcb4/32.png) [@greenslime1951](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/greenslime1951)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2012, 5:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-swiftly-herewith-consign-to-the-pit-the-ignorant-clowns-who-misconstrue-its/627871/182 "2012-07-13T17:12:31Z")
> [@gamerunknown](#): > > I was wondering when Gaudere’s law would rear its head. OK, Lynne Truss. Mea maxima culpa. You _do_ realize, don’t you, the difference between a typo and a mistake made out of ignorance, and that _nobody_ seriously objects to the former? ---
**Author:** ![Kenm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/bc79bd/32.png) [@Kenm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kenm)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2012, 5:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-swiftly-herewith-consign-to-the-pit-the-ignorant-clowns-who-misconstrue-its/627871/183 "2012-07-13T17:17:48Z")
> [@Inner\_Stickler](#): > > You’re a moron. Oh yeah? Ha ha ha ha ha ha ---
**Author:** ![greenslime1951](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e9bcb4/32.png) [@greenslime1951](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/greenslime1951)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2012, 5:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-swiftly-herewith-consign-to-the-pit-the-ignorant-clowns-who-misconstrue-its/627871/184 "2012-07-13T17:18:49Z")
> [@jsgoddess](#): > > Bear and bear are different words. Sow and sow are different words. Lead and lead are different words. Wind and wind are different words. > > And, frankly, cant and wont would hardly cause problems for most Americans since they are not words the majority of people bother to use in the first place. > > Specialized language use can muck about with apostrophes all they want. This thread wasn’t bitching about some typesetter’s misuse of an eliding apostrophe in Shakespeare. If you’ll recall (I know, it was so long ago), the discussion had veered to whether apostrophes were necessary at all. I submitted that if they served to differentiate one word from another (pairs of words that had entirely different meanings with and without the apostrophe), then they were necessary. If you have read very much at all, you know that the use of an apostrophe to indicate a contraction–not just something like “can’t” or “they’re,” but also the omission of a syllable—is not just a “specialized use” but a very, very common tool. Aside from its use in plays, poems, and the like, it’s often used to indicate vernacular speech. Without it, the tone and flavor of such speech can’t be captured (using it was part of Samuel Clemens’ genius). ---
**Author:** ![Bosstone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/22d042/32.png) [@Bosstone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosstone)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2012, 5:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-swiftly-herewith-consign-to-the-pit-the-ignorant-clowns-who-misconstrue-its/627871/185 "2012-07-13T17:24:21Z")
> [@greenslime1951](#): > > Well, considering that “wont” and “won’t” are different words, “cant” and can’t" are different words, “shed” and “she’d” are different words, and “ill” and “I’ll” are different words, it’s probably too late. The first two pairs are contrasting nouns with auxiliary verbs and the second two pairs (let me pause for a second while I take some joy in that construction) are contrasting a noun and an adjective with pronoun/model contractions. I think there’s little danger of getting them confused within context. ---
**Author:** ![Inner\_Stickler](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/inner_stickler/32/318_2.png) [@Inner\_Stickler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Inner_Stickler)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2012, 5:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-swiftly-herewith-consign-to-the-pit-the-ignorant-clowns-who-misconstrue-its/627871/186 "2012-07-13T17:27:24Z")
> [@greenslime1951](#): > > It’s not extraneous, since it separates lines of verse. Dipshit, you use a slash, not a comma. ---
**Author:** ![billfish678](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7bcc69/32.png) [@billfish678](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/billfish678)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2012, 5:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-swiftly-herewith-consign-to-the-pit-the-ignorant-clowns-who-misconstrue-its/627871/187 "2012-07-13T17:37:27Z")
> [@greenslime1951](#): > > Apostrophes serve another function not yet mentioned, which is to denote proper meter in the lines of poems and plays. Caliban: “And my profit on’t is, I know how to curse.” Impossible to write it properly without the apostrophe. And how many poems and plays are you reading here that are fucked up because there was apostrophe misused or unused? Though I guess if you have to read EVERYTHING here to yourself out loud to understand it I guess that might be a problem. ---
**Author:** ![Linear\_Crack](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/8e7dd6/32.png) [@Linear\_Crack](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Linear_Crack)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2012, 6:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-swiftly-herewith-consign-to-the-pit-the-ignorant-clowns-who-misconstrue-its/627871/188 "2012-07-13T18:13:08Z")
This thread use to be funner. ---
**Author:** ![PoorYorick](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ecccb3/32.png) [@PoorYorick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PoorYorick)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2012, 6:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-swiftly-herewith-consign-to-the-pit-the-ignorant-clowns-who-misconstrue-its/627871/189 "2012-07-13T18:32:09Z")
> [@lance\_strongarm](#): > > In my world, there are fewer mistakes in communication. I’ve accepted that the word “fewer” is going the way of the dodo and now just sigh when I see “Now with less calories!” or “Ten or less items.” But misuse of “literally”? I won’t go down without a fight. ---
**Author:** ![Inner\_Stickler](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/inner_stickler/32/318_2.png) [@Inner\_Stickler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Inner_Stickler)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2012, 6:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-swiftly-herewith-consign-to-the-pit-the-ignorant-clowns-who-misconstrue-its/627871/190 "2012-07-13T18:36:25Z")
Yes, I get all huffy when people misuse incredible, too. ---
**Author:** ![Bosstone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/22d042/32.png) [@Bosstone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosstone)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2012, 6:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-swiftly-herewith-consign-to-the-pit-the-ignorant-clowns-who-misconstrue-its/627871/191 "2012-07-13T18:43:54Z")
> [@Inner\_Stickler](#): > > Yes, I get all huffy when people misuse incredible, too. And terrific. ---
**Author:** ![Drunky\_Smurf](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/drunky_smurf/32/449_2.png) [@Drunky\_Smurf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Drunky_Smurf)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2012, 6:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-swiftly-herewith-consign-to-the-pit-the-ignorant-clowns-who-misconstrue-its/627871/192 "2012-07-13T18:50:09Z")
> [@Inner\_Stickler](#): > > You’re a moron. Bzzt! Wrongo-dongo! Its supposed to be “Your a moron” ---
**Author:** ![california\_jobcase](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/9d8465/32.png) [@california\_jobcase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/california_jobcase)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2012, 6:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-swiftly-herewith-consign-to-the-pit-the-ignorant-clowns-who-misconstrue-its/627871/193 "2012-07-13T18:59:24Z")
I don’t like it when people use usage to sound fancy when they should use use. ---
**Author:** ![greenslime1951](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e9bcb4/32.png) [@greenslime1951](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/greenslime1951)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2012, 7:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-swiftly-herewith-consign-to-the-pit-the-ignorant-clowns-who-misconstrue-its/627871/194 "2012-07-13T19:10:28Z")
> [@Bosstone](#): > > And terrific. And “awesome” only to mean something really, really good. ---
**Author:** ![greenslime1951](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e9bcb4/32.png) [@greenslime1951](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/greenslime1951)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2012, 7:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-swiftly-herewith-consign-to-the-pit-the-ignorant-clowns-who-misconstrue-its/627871/195 "2012-07-13T19:14:38Z")
> [@billfish678](#): > > And how many poems and plays are you reading here that are fucked up because there was apostrophe misused or unused? > > Though I guess if you have to read EVERYTHING here to yourself out loud to understand it I guess that might be a problem. Cool the rage, billfish. My argument was not restricted to the posts on this thread. As far as how many poems and plays in general have been fucked up for that reason–thousands, and the number of times, millions. And try to control your urge to make snarky comments like that–it just makes you look stupid and degrades whatever point you were feebly trying to make. ---
**Author:** ![greenslime1951](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e9bcb4/32.png) [@greenslime1951](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/greenslime1951)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2012, 7:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-swiftly-herewith-consign-to-the-pit-the-ignorant-clowns-who-misconstrue-its/627871/196 "2012-07-13T19:17:40Z")
> [@Linear\_Crack](#): > > This thread use to be funner. Until them that do’nt think propurr English speling and usige matters, an’ started name call’in to coverup there feelings of inferiorness. Us grammer Notzees git peepul SO upsetful! ---
**Author:** ![Inner\_Stickler](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/inner_stickler/32/318_2.png) [@Inner\_Stickler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Inner_Stickler)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2012, 7:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-swiftly-herewith-consign-to-the-pit-the-ignorant-clowns-who-misconstrue-its/627871/197 "2012-07-13T19:19:16Z")
No, what makes you look stupid is when you complain about improper use of the language while misusing misconstrues. Unless you are actually pitting people who look at the word its and mistake it for a word with a different meaning. ---
**Author:** ![billfish678](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7bcc69/32.png) [@billfish678](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/billfish678)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2012, 7:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-swiftly-herewith-consign-to-the-pit-the-ignorant-clowns-who-misconstrue-its/627871/198 "2012-07-13T19:31:46Z")
> [@greenslime1951](#): > > And try to control your urge to make snarky comments like that–it just makes you look stupid and degrades whatever point you were feebly trying to make. Why not snark? You expect us to take your complaint (much less your arguements) seriously? I have plenty of things in my life in the real world to be proud of or thankful for. I don’t need a reputation on the interconnected series of tubes for being smart or (gawd help me even more) for having perfect grammar and spelling, to pull out an existential “hail mary” to feel good about myself. Your mileage may vary. ---
**Author:** ![lance\_strongarm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/87869e/32.png) [@lance\_strongarm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lance_strongarm)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2012, 7:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-swiftly-herewith-consign-to-the-pit-the-ignorant-clowns-who-misconstrue-its/627871/199 "2012-07-13T19:35:51Z")
> [@PoorYorick](#): > > I’ve accepted that the word “fewer” is going the way of the dodo and now just sigh when I see “Now with less calories!” or “Ten or less items.” But misuse of “literally”? I won’t go down without a fight. What could go wrong with using literally to mean its exact opposite? ---
**Author:** ![lance\_strongarm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/87869e/32.png) [@lance\_strongarm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lance_strongarm)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2012, 7:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-swiftly-herewith-consign-to-the-pit-the-ignorant-clowns-who-misconstrue-its/627871/200 "2012-07-13T19:38:21Z")
> [@Patty\_O\_Furniture](#): > > Whatever you do, don’t look at [this picture](http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_Z8zHNSdjl8A/SQ9MueDUT6I/AAAAAAAABYs/7XwGaM1qAyk/s1600-h/sign_devil.jpg) or you’ll have an aneurism. Awesome. I like “High Fullutent” and “Sport’s Nut’s” (apostrophes _sic_). Any worshipers at the altar of description may not laugh though - anything goes, after all. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-swiftly-herewith-consign-to-the-pit-the-ignorant-clowns-who-misconstrue-its/627871.md?page=9) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-swiftly-herewith-consign-to-the-pit-the-ignorant-clowns-who-misconstrue-its/627871.md?page=11)