General Chat

Absolutely spot on Gwynne - it is bad spelling and grammar caused through laziness or carelessness that are a problem. Caused by inability or disability they are not a problem at all. I also hate it when children try to impress their friends by speaking lazily because they think it sounds cool. Mine speak well at home and I expect it. But sometimes when I overhear my son with his friends I think he's forgotten that the alphabet contains t and h! Apparently they are not fashionable any more. Angela

Yes, it really does, if we have lax spelling and non existent grammar then we are loosing our own developed heritage. Maybe our forebears couldn't spell or write their names, but we can. Cherryxx

Hi did anyone read my message on spelling on Page 2 from Cambridge University?? Betty

Nice, pleasant replies. Thank you all. Very best wishes Happy days

I prefer to see correct spelling and grammer as without it sentences don't make seance (now that's wrong! - sp). However my spelling is attrousious and I hate that. I was diaganose with dyslexia a few years ago but I don't like that to be used as an excuse for poor spelling. I had a hotmatch contact me last week who picked up on my spelling of a place name and stated 'It's XXXXXXX, I live here'. I did find it awfully rude but simply appologised for the typeing error instead of speaking my mind.

Nice to hear from you Lunar. So long as you do your best, nobody will mind. Very best wishes and happy days.

You have to be careful, making comments about spelling. Mine is terrible sometimes and spot on others depending on how bothered I am, how much of a hurry I am in. I however have never had a problem with spelling. You have to be careful making complaints about it as there is such a problem as dyslexia and you have to understand that alot of people suffer from this and it does affect spelling! Therefore I would say as long as you understand what is being said just go with it! If you do not understand what someone is saying perhaps pm them and ask so as not to embarass them on the boards! :o)

Well said Mags....Being dylexic ( is that right) myself, I,m ok with reading but not on a white background.. so sometimes I,ll miss read something. As for spelling. Someone once told me to try using a dictionary (my mother), this was such an insult , because I think they are spelt right,because they look right to me. I understand what it says.

Spelling, punctuation, and grammar do matter, and it annoys me when I see people who I had considered to be well-educated falling into the slovenly habit of ignoring any or all three. I understand that the most recent language is Creole, which was formed in one generation: the next generation (still mainly uneducated) gave it grammar and syntax. That shows the importance of grammar. As has been pointed out in earlier threads, without correct punctuation, the meaning of a sentence could be completely lost. To discover the importance of spelling, try reading the excellent 'Fearsum Enjin', by that Scottish writer whose name has completely escaped me for the moment. The deliberate bad spelling is so cleverly done that it is not as bad as it could be, yet is still a monster to read. Rob

Hello Betty. I did read your post, and it does make interesting reading. However, as an ex-english teacher, I do think that there's more to the issue of spelling and grammar than just the way our brains function. We live in a society where how we present ourselves matters. Of course, we need to be sensitive to others' talents and difficulties. 'Correct' spelling is a recently modern phenomenon with the spread of literacy, and there are those who have linguistic difficulties as well as those who are gifted. Even so, I think, as Gwynne expressed so eloquently, that there is a difference between those who are slopppy with their use of language and those who have genuine difficulties. There's also the issue of context - what is appropriate or acceptable in one situation may not be so in another.It seems to me that, while the English language is fluid and developing constantly and always has been, the pace of change these days is faster than is comfortable for most people. There is also a developing atittude today of 'like it or lump it - this is how I am and if you don't like it, tough!' which often borders on the offensive.

er... just seen this... *runs off to hide again * :((

Late reply me from me as I,m not normally a nite howl. A lot of thought has gone into the replies. Well done everybody. Happy days

Aww... Em - come out, come out, wherever you are!! There's no need to hide! :-)

Em - no need to hide hon have read all the replys and people seem to all have an understanding of others who have problems spelling. In fact looks like most do. Thank god for spell check to back GR doesn't have it here or am I missing something. To be honest I have my word program up at all times and if I'm not sure about a word I skip over to word program and spell check it. Okay there my secrets out. lol

I try to do without a spell checker on here, as i am adament (sp) that if i keep trying, my memory will come back...I feel that once i give in the props and aids so to speak, i have given in.

Anybody who has ever found a mistranscribed ancestor living in a mistranscribed town and born in a mistranscribed village will know how important spelling (and writing legibly) is. Of course, some people have disabilities which make this harder. But that doesn't mean we should say it doesn't matter. nell

I regularly get e-mails from a friend who never uses punctuation, and often have to read them a few times to try to figure out what she means. No full stops, no commas, just one long sentence of utter gibberish sometimes! Typos do not really bother me, but writing in 'text-speak' irritates the life out of me!

So if someone replies adamantly that spelling is important spells a word wrong in their post should we tell them? Julie xxx

Hi Julie, If it's me, yes please. I hate it when I go back to a thread and see that I have mistyped or misspelt. My main problem is not hitting the keys hard enough (CTS) so I sometimes leave out letters. Gwynne

Think i had better hide too after reading one reply,i said if you dont like the way i spell and write dont read,but i too have a problem.i know the word,it just gets lost between brain cells to fingers,so should i stop,Harry advise please for the sake of others should i stop posting on here,please,