Mom-casters in your area have devised this system to bring you news and information in the event of a grammar emergency. If this had been a real grammar emergency, you would have been instructed where to tune in your area for the most current instructions.
It's National Grammar Day! In honor of this momentous occasion, I'm sharing what are, in my opinion, the top-three most-aggravating grammar faux pas, in no particular order.
1. Using an apostrophe to make it possessive. Just like there's no apostrophe in hers (something belonging to her), there is no apostrophe in its when you mean "something belonging to it," as in The cat chased its tail. It's (with an apostrophe) means "it is."
2. Using your when you mean you're. This might be the number-one grammar error I see on facebook. Your is a possessive pronoun that means "something belonging to you," as in Your pencil needs to be sharpened. You're means "you are." If you're using these words interchangeably, your grammar skills also need to be sharpened.
3. Using the phrase if I would have known. This is so very wrong. What you are referencing here is something that you wish had happened in the past. Would throws a little future spin on it, and that's not what you mean. You should say if I had known.
(Yes, I know there are four, but I just can't stop without mentioning this last one.)
4. Of is not a helping verb. There is no such construction as would of or should of, no matter how people say it. It's would have, should have, could have.
This concludes this test of the emergency mom-cast system.
Go forth and write correctly.
Be thankful ~
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