[silversteed]

I chanced upon this statement:

"...saw a car driven by a young guy sporting xxxx sticker on the window..."

Is it the car that sports the sticker, or is it the young guy? A comma could've avoided the confusion, but hey, I did enjoy a subtle laugh imagining the guy sporting the said sticker

[amitoj]

Originally Posted by silversteed

I chanced upon this statement:

"...saw a car driven by a young guy sporting xxxx sticker on the window..."

Or,
"... saw a young guy driving a car sporting xxxxx sticker on the window"

Anyway, the other day i noticed this message from my bank:
"Your transaction is processing"

I was wondering what is my transaction processing? And why??

[TheLizardKing]

Originally Posted by amitoj

I was wondering what is my transaction processing? And why??

Look what I found here. The word process used as an intransitive verb means "to move in a procession"

[carboy]

Originally Posted by amitoj

I was wondering what is my transaction processing?

Is this wrong? I say (or used to say), "My code is compiling" which is pretty common - I always thought it's the same as "My code is in the process of being compiled".

[noopster]

Originally Posted by amitoj

Or,
Anyway, the other day i noticed this message from my bank:
"Your transaction is processing"

Originally Posted by TheLizardKing

Look what I found here. The word process used as an intransitive verb means "to move in a procession"

@LK, that's not the same verb and I guess you know it .

@Amitoj- "Your transaction is processing" is plain dumb wrong. As LK pointed out that usage of "process" is a transitive verb. Meaning the transaction has to be processed.

But an interesting thing here is: it can sometimes be used in this fashion. Look at the example quoted in the link in LK's post:

Your request processed successfully.

Ideally it should be "Your request was processed successfully."

This is explained further down in the same post:

However, it is also fairly common for computer output messages to omit the verb, headline-style; or to use jargon.

So, for all practical purposes "transaction processed" is valid usage

[Thad E Ginathom]

English is so idiomatic (is that the right word?) that, despite the rules of grammar, what is wrong for one verb may be acceptable for another. The code may compile, the kettle may boil, the food may cook, but the transaction may not process.

[tilt]

Originally Posted by AVR

Roadmap for the Gujarat Model:

Attachment 1245209

To be absolutely pedantic, GU is not wrong. Road map (or roadmap) is just that, a road map. The habit of using that term to refer to future plans is from the practice of contracting the phrase "road map to the future" (to indicate the route one takes to get to the intended future).

Originally Posted by TheLizardKing

I can't believe it took me so long to find this thread, self-confessed grammar Nazi that I am. I am subscribing right away, and will post here regularly. I love the English language, and my antennae are always seeking out grammatical mistakes. *SNIP*

Bolding mine. Well, "grammatical mistakes" is an error. It should be "grammar errors" or "mistakes in grammar". For something to be grammatical, it actually has to be correct!

The correct usage would be "The sentence is grammatical" to indicate that there are no grammar errors in the sentence.

Cheers

[Thad E Ginathom]

"grammatical mistakes" is an error. It should be "grammar errors" or "mistakes in grammar". For something to be grammatical, it actually has to be correct!

Oh! So it does! I didn't realise that. Can we say ungrammatical, then?

[noopster]

Originally Posted by tilt

Well, "grammatical mistakes" is an error. It should be "grammar errors" or "mistakes in grammar". For something to be grammatical, it actually has to be correct!

Interesting. I had no idea this was true till today. Thanks!

Did some more research on the term and found this:

"The expression 'grammatical error' sounds, and is, in a sense, paradoxical, for the reason that a form can not be grammatical and erroneous at the same time. One would not say musical discord. . . . Because of the apparent contradiction of terms, the form grammatical error should be avoided and 'error in construction,' or 'error in English,' etc., be used in its stead. Of course one should never say, 'good grammar' or 'bad grammar.'"
-(J. T. Baker, Correct English, Mar. 1, 1901)

But...

"Because grammatical may mean either (1) 'relating to grammar' [grammatical subject] or (2) 'consistent with grammar' [a grammatical sentence], there is nothing wrong with the age-old phrase grammatical error (sense 1). It's as acceptable as the phrases criminal lawyer and logical fallacy."
- (Bryan A. Garner, Garner's Modern American Usage. Oxford Univ. Press, 2009)

Made me feel better knowing it is an age-old phrase that I learnt in school and not some new-age nonsense that crept up on me thanks to the corporate world!

[SS-Traveller]

Originally Posted by tilt

Bolding mine.
...there are no grammar errors in the sentence.

Originally Posted by noopster

Made me feel better knowing it is an age-old phrase that I learnt in school and not some new-age nonsense that crept up on me thanks to the corporate world!

...and now we can take up the discussion of how to boldly use adjectives as verbs, until everyone is bowled over by grammatically correct English!
http://english.stackexchange.com/que...-bolded-a-word

[Thad E Ginathom]

Italicise is a word: nobody would ever say Italic that!

I suppose I must accept that bold is used as a verb. I used to work with type, but I cannot remember if I would have used it, nor can I remember if I ever said embolden.

If Team-BHP allowed other type effects, I would embiggen some words, but, of course, only the cromulent ones

[tilt]

Well, any language keeps evolving. Case in point - the verbification (is that even a word?) of nouns, such as "google that" or "I shall update you" or even splitting infinitives like our own SS-Traveller did (how to boldly use...) or "To boldly go where no man has gone before" etc.

However, not every mistake can be attributed to the evolution of language. Some errors are just that - errors, irrespective of what one might claim.

Cheers

[mallumowgli]

Originally Posted by amitoj

Anyway, the other day i noticed this message from my bank:
"Your transaction is processing"

Vow, this has come up again - I'd posted the same thing 2 pages back, I think.

But, interestingly, I was watching Casino Royale 2-3 days back and heard M saying (dont remember the exact dialogue) "The aircraft is launching today"!!

We can launch an aircraft - but what can an aircraft launch?

I was wondering what is my transaction processing?

I've taken your above sentence, just for reference here to highlight a regular feature of our style of writing (don't feel offended)

I've seen people regularly using a question mark in sentences like the one above. Actually it is not a question - only a statement (You are wondering...)

If it is a question, it must be simply 'What is my transaction processing?'

Your sentence can be better rephrased as

I was wondering what my transaction is processing

Or if you wanted to use a question, then you could have used direct speech as below

'I was wondering, "what is my transaction processing?"'

[Thad E Ginathom]

Originally Posted by naveenroy

... ... ...



Oh yes! It is indeed pirates. Pirateering is an actual verb - though not sure it can be used in this case. Thanks! We'll move this discussion to the A YetiGuide® : How To Post In Proper English

Here it is

I haven't asked Google yet, much less lifted the heavy weight dictionary off the shelf, but I have a suspicion that pirate only became a verb in the context of media. Will have to see if I am right*.

So what is that the sea-going kind do? what is their verb? Hmmm...


*According to G, I'm wrong, and 'pirate,' verb, is what they do at see too. And pirateer is a board game!

[naveenroy]

Originally Posted by Thad E Ginathom

*According to G, I'm wrong, and 'pirate,' verb, is what they do at see too. And pirateer is a board game!

Yes, don't know where I got the idea that "Pirateering" was a word. So it is "Pirates" both for the looters on the sea and the digital world.

See, sea