"That" Web Banner Goof

A quick goof for your weekend enjoyment.

This is a web banner a friend sent me. The most obvious mistake is that "220,000" is missing a comma. The next problem is that the word "that" has randomly been added in. Perhaps they could have worded it, "There have been over 220,000 men, women, and children that have been affected..." Unfortunately, they didn't.

The final major goof is more of a personal preference. The banner lacks the serial comma, which is the optional comma before "and" or "or" in a series of three or more. This is also referred to as an oxford comma, the comma with which the band Vampire Weekend has dedicated a song title.

Ex. of a serial/oxford comma: I would like to thank my parents, Barbara Streisand, and God.

Without the serial comma, that would be a very interesting sentence. Have a great weekend everyone, thank you for reading!

To Reinforce Current Beliefs...

I was buying tab dividers for a binder last week, and when I got home I noticed something that seemed awry...

If you can see it past the flash in my camera, there is a typo that says "reinfored" instead of "reinforced." This is a pretty serious typo, as it was on more than one set of tabs I bought, and I am assuming these 96 cent Wal-Mart bought tab dividers are some of the most commonly purchased ones. It is a sad day for tab dividers everywhere. Happy Thursday everyone!

Based on the evidence, you lose

This document was sent in from a reader whose co-worker just got braces. Aside from some structural issues, there are two main grammar goofs that I see. The first is under the second bullet point, where it says, "Alcohol base mouthwashes." The idea that it says "base" instead of "based" could be a simple typo. However, the hyphen is also missing, as it should say "alcohol-based." So that is goof #1.

Goof #2 is on the very bottom line, where it says "If you loose your trays..." This is a common grammar goof. Loose is if an object is loose, like if a table leg is loose. What should have been used is lose, which is the correct word to use for when something is misplaced, like losing one's trays. Another good way to remember this is that lose is the verb (action word like run, walk ,or  talk), and loose is an adjective (describing word like small, skinny, or yellow).

The final goof I would like to talk about is more of a goof in regards to clarity. The word inevitably is hyphenated, allowing it to continue on more than one line. In standard practice today this is rarely done, as it can be confusing to the reader and takes longer to read. It is much better just go ahead and put the entire word on the next line, so that the text is clearer.

I will be posting a couple more grammar goofs for your enjoyment in the next few days, as some readers and friends have been sending them in. Thank you for reading, and keep 'em coming!