Tuesday, July 22, 2003

Loosey Goosey Losers

Okay, if I see one more "loose" (an adjective - not tightly fastened or secured...) in place of "lose" (a verb - to be unable to find, maintain, keep, or win) I just don't know what I will do. It's everywhere - blogs, forums, emails, letters, class papers, presentations. It's starting to make me question my sanity.

Similarly, these words are not the same and should not be used interchangeably:

where, were, we're
there, their, they're
to, too, two

But I would be totally satisfied if everyone on the Internet (and elsewhere) would just master the difference between "loose" and "lose" - the first one is pronounced "loos", the second is "looz". Say it with me.

I'll even give you some examples...

My pants are loose. I must be losing weight. (wishful thinking here on my part)

Don't lose your head, you might need it later. (for hat storage or something)

Be careful not to lose my keys. The fastener on the keychain is loose.

Okay, do you see the difference now? Will you try to get it right in the future? Ack. I realize that I can't make people care about stuff like this. Hmmm. Unless I had children and I could warp them into my own image. Hmmm. Yes, someday this may prove to be a viable solution to my grammatical ranting. Hmmm. Young minds to shape and twist. Just as my dear daddy did to me.

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