• kryptonianCodeMonkey@lemmy.world
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    7 hours ago

    The whole “don’t end sentences with a preposition” rule is not a real rule in English at all. Some pompous asshats like John Dryden claimed it should be a rule in the 17th century because that’s a rule in Latin, and then everyone just repeated the “rule” forever. But notice how English is not Latin and has entirely different grammatical rules? Weird huh? And notice how a phrase like, “That’s a policy I can agree with,” sounds way more natural and easily understood than, “That’s a policy with which I can agree.” Both are technically correct, but the former is generally preferred and much more common phrasing among native speakers despite the supposed rule against it. It’s up there with “i before e except after c”, “never use double negatives”, and “don’t split infinitives” for English rules that everyone has been told that aren’t actually rules at all and that we all break on the reg.

    • m_f@discuss.onlineOPM
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      6 hours ago

      Same with less vs. fewer:

      According to the Merriam-Webster’s Dictionary of English Usage this rule was first introduced in a rather tentative form in 1770, when the grammarian Robert Baker stated that less ‘is most commonly used as speaking of a Number; where I should think Fewer would be better’.

  • Fleur_@hilariouschaos.com
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    7 hours ago

    People who care about grammar, particularly on the internet, live the unfortunate reality of getting upset over something that will never change.

  • Lembot_0002@lemm.ee
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    9 hours ago

    Is it wrong? I see it rather often(I’m not from an English-speaking country, so I have no formal English grammar education)

    • lemmyng@lemmy.ca
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      8 hours ago

      No, it’s not wrong, it’s just that a century ago some prescriptivist cunt put together an arbitrary set of rules in a book and called it “proper” English, and ever since every teacher assumed that the book is the only correct form.

    • otacon239@lemmy.world
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      9 hours ago

      To be technical, he should have said something like “even I’m impressed with your skills.” I don’t think anyone really cares in modern language though. It’s a lot more noticeable with phrases like “Where is he at?”

    • bran_buckler@lemmy.world
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      9 hours ago

      Almost everyone uses them. I guess it’s not “proper”, but unless someone is an English academic, no one knows or cares. Sometimes, using a preposition at the end of a sentence can make it feel awkward or clumsy, though.