daily communication

This is an extract from the online newsletter from local news radio 938Live:

The poet Carl Sanburg once said, "I never made a mistake in grammar but one in my life and as soon as I done it I seen it." For some, writing is an act of faith and a matter of spontaneous expression, the rules for which have been imbibed over years of reading good models of writing. For others, however, giving a piece of writing robust flesh requires mastery of grammar and control of vocabulary as the backbone for ideas.

Of the pitfalls in writing is the misuse of lexical items. Often the confusion arises because of mispronunciation. How often have we seen someone spell "deadline" as "dateline" for that reason? Alternatively, there are some who use words in the wrong context. For example, "spoilt" can be used for a watch but not for an escalator. We normally say that the escalator is "out of order" or that it has "malfunctioned". Similarly, you cannot "borrow" a phone; instead you can "use" someone's phone. Likewise, you take your child out for the weekend but not "bring" him out.

There are occasions when genuine errors arise because of translation from one language to another. I have often heard people use "outlook" when they wish to refer to someone's appearance. "Outlook" on the other hand is used to refer to prospect as in this sentence, "The outlook is gloomy." Some people who are doing a little clearing up say that they are packing their desks. Don't get me wrong. These people are not intending to move to another country. What they mean to say is they are tidying up. I suspect that "pack" is again a transliteration.

Haters of language may think of it as a system of pitfalls to trip them up but in the end, good grammar and vocabulary aid logical understanding.

~ by Asha Kumaran , Division of Communication & Media Management, TP