GrammarBlog

Mocking Poor Grammar
Since 2007

A noun that is formed from a verb and which describes an action. In English it ends in -ing, eg 'the baking of bread' and 'Smoking damages your health'.

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7 Comments »

1. I know - I sent them an email the first time I saw it.

   Comment by Josephus Flavius — 20th November, 2008 @ 9:53 pm

2. I’m reading the critically-acclaimed “Cloud Atlas” by David Mitchell, and because I’m enjoying it, I was willing to forgive the first dangling participle I encountered, assuming it would be a one-off. The second one not twenty pages later gave me some cause for concern, so I read more warily. The third had me howling with laughter and reaching gleefully for the blue pencil.

   Here it is, on page 101. Luisa Rey is driving across the bridge towards a nuclear plant when Mitchell flings out this classic whopper:

   “Crossing the long, long bridge, the Swanneke B plant emerges from behind the older, greyer cooling towers of Swanneke A.”

   They don’t come much better than this, do they?

   Cate
   hurricanecate at yahoodotcalm

   Comment by Anonymous — 20th November, 2008 @ 10:26 pm

3. I’m so happy that I’m not the only one who noticed this. I was mentioning it to a friend only a few days ago. It really is appalling.

   Comment by evolution — 21st November, 2008 @ 8:56 am

4. Only in Whole Foods, do I see the word “fewer” used correctly, as in, “15 items or fewer.”

   Comment by Kathleen — 21st November, 2008 @ 7:00 pm

5. While I don’t like it either, I actually do not find it so egregious. I mean, I don’t think what they’re trying to say is “We have a smaller countable number of commercials than other networks.” I would imagine it’s more along the lines of “The time given over to advertising—i.e., the ‘commercials’ part of our programming—is less.”

   Perhaps a fine distinction, and if I were writing or editing this, I’d go with “fewer.” But I’m not prepared to label “less commercials” a disastrous error.

   Comment by The Big Quiz Thing — 26th November, 2008 @ 12:31 am

6. re: “15 items or fewer”

   Wegman’s Markets uses this same phrase.

   Comment by Andy — 1st December, 2008 @ 1:26 am

7. I think they do it because it flows better and takes a micro-second less air time to say. Advertisers never cared much for proper English.

   Comment by tim maguire — 5th December, 2008 @ 9:51 pm

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