---
title: >
  en-semantic
date: 2004-09-14 01:31
status: published
description: >
  Writing English correctly is difficult. (By the way, for non-hacker types, the title implies that semantic English is a distinct dialect of English.)

tags: being right, English

links:
  - url: http://www.designbyfire.com/000158.html
    title: >
      When I grow up, I want to be an interface designer (Design by Fire)
    description: >
      The article that inspired this entry (note: quality of content is not determined by quality of English)
    rel: related
    type: text/html

---

<p>
I don't like being wrong. I like it even less when everyone else is wrong and I can't (or shouldn't) tell them, for reasons of etiquette. I suppose I'm just finicky, which is why I spend quite a bit of time reviewing my own websites, <a href="/" title="Mooquackwhatnot">Here</a> and <a href="http://www.thetwaddle.co.uk/" title="El Twad">There</a>, enjoying their majesty. Or something.
</p>
<p>
It's OK when I don't know that a rule is being broken, or that something is just wrong. Unfortunately, I'm also just a little bit curious, so I eventually learn the rules, and then notice when things disobey them.
</p>
<p>
...which brings me to the semantics of the English language. Read the following:
</p>
<ul>
<li>
<q>Practise</q> is the verb; <q>practice</q> is the noun - think <q>advise/advice</q>.</li>
<li>A does not <em>comprise of</em> B and C; A <em>comprises</em> B and C.</li>
<li>
<q>There's</q> means <q>there is</q> and thus <em>cannot</em> refer to several items - it makes as much sense as <q>several items is...</q>; <q>there are</q> refers to several items (<q>several items are...</q>).</li>
<li>
<q>Theirs</q> means <q>the item that belongs to them</q>; <q>there's</q> means <q>there is</q>.</li>
<li>
<q>They is</q> and <q>their is</q> are wrong; <q>there is</q> is right.</li>
<li>
<q>Must of</q>, as in <q>It must of been cold.</q>, is wrong; <q>must have</q>, as in <q>It must have been cold.</q> is right.</li>
</ul>
<p>
And the classics:
</p>
<ul>
<li>
<q>There</q> refers to a place; <q>their</q> means <q>belonging to them</q>; <q>they're</q> means <q>they are</q>.</li>
<li>
<q>Your</q> means <q>belonging to you</q>; <q>you're</q> means <q>you are</q>.</li>
<li>
<q>Its</q> is used like <q>his</q> and <q>hers</q>; <q>it's</q> means <q>it is</q> or <q>it has</q>.</li>
</ul>
<p>
While we're on the topic, some abbreviations:
</p>
<ul>
<li>
<q>Etc.</q> is pronounced <q>et cetera</q>, not <q>ek cetera</q>, and is <em>not</em> spelt <q>ect.</q>.</li>
<li>
<q>1 gram</q> is abbreviated to <q>1 g</q>, <em>not</em> <q>1 gm</q>; <q>2 grams</q> is abbreviated to <q>2 g</q>, <em>not</em> <q>2 gms</q> - <q>s</q> is never added to <abbr title="Système Internationale d'Unités">SI</abbr> units' abbreviations when pluralising them.</li>
</ul>
<p>
(By the way, feel free to report any cock-ups in the above to <a href="/greg">me</a>.)
</p>
<p>
What prompted all this? Well, it was <a href="http://www.designbyfire.com/000158.html" title="When I grow up, I want to be an interface designer (Design by Fire)">Andrei's use of <q>Practice, practice, practice</q> as a headline</a>. ...trouble is, it's actually valid to use nouns like that. But we all know he meant <q>Practise, practise, practise</q>, right?
</p>
<p>
Remember that just because one can speak English effectively doesn't mean one can write English effectively.
</p>