I'm going to tell you something, but you have to promise to keep it a secret, okay?
I was reviewing an article when I spotted the word "your". There it was, just sitting there, minding its own business. No big deal, right? I use the word all the time.
However, it should have been "you're". I mentally slapped myself. I rarely make this kind of mistake, even in a draft. As an online writing instructor, I am always on the lookout for slip ups. I have to. It comes with the territory, you know?
I was more aggravated than I should have been (hadn't had chocolate yet that day). This particular error is one of my pet peeves, so I was surprised my typing fingers and thinking brain hadn't connected. Anyway, I've moved on and have attributed the incident to the lack of chocolate.
It reminded me of the portion of my lessons where I talk about homonyms and homophones. Do you know what they are? You might not recognize the terms; I am sure, however, that you are acquainted with the the definitions.
Here's a hint. Take clues from the Greek and Latin roots.
phone means sound. And so…
Homophones are words that sound alike but have a different meaning and spelling.
to, too, and two, their, there, and they’re, your and you’re
Homonyms are words that are spelled the same and sound alike but have different meanings, like this:
The cart is full.
We will cart the boxes into the house.
We swam in the pool.
They played a game of pool at the party.
See? I knew you knew what they were!
In honor of my chocolate deficient grammar mishap, thought I would share a few helpful links:
What grammar gaffe gets your goat?
Happy writing,
Karen
Photo credit: Stock Exchange
