More Howlers from the Crumbling Media

Here's a new list of additions to the hall of infamy in the castle of bad grammar. 

 

"...had they of been able to...[or]...if they'd of..."

 

Again, the confusion between use of the participle had with the preposition of. Have had thus becomes had of--which is meaningless. Drop the of and simply say "had they been able to" or "if they had."    

 

"...the good thing is, is that it is what it is..."

 

The redundancy of is/is here, sounds obvious, but I actually heard a television newscaster use this phrase in a sentence. This tautology of "it is what it is" explains nothing, and seems a poor way to summarize the self-evidency of any assertion or principle.        

  

"...as best as I can..."

 

In comparisons, you can't use a superlative in degrees of difference. The principle becomes obvious if you try to subsitute another superlative in place of best. Like, for instance, as funniest as, or as prettiest as, or as stupidest as. As best as isn't English. Don't use it!

  

"...a mute point..."

 

Misuse of the word moot. This mistaken mispronunciation tends to suggest that the speaker doesn't know the real definition of either word--mute or moot. 

  

"...it's just simplier..."

 

One television newscaster let this one slip by in a rush. She meant "more simply" or "easier" and somehow confused the two constructions.   

  

"...for my breakfastses..."

 

For a while, I thought that maybe I was just hearing people pronounce breakfasts wrongly, but I realize now that some people seem to think the plural of breakfast is breakfasts-es. Really uneducated people pronounce breakfast "breakfus" (as if it had no "t"), and then call plural breakfasts "breakfusses". Sounds loony, yes?