All these verbs have two things in common: They begin with the letter “L” and confuse the bejeezus out of many people.
I’ve never considered myself a grammar nazi, but I suspect there are those who’d (not without good reason) disagree with that self-assessment. As a writer, I’m more attuned to words, spelling, and grammar than the average bear, but it’s my gift, and the use of language to communicate ideas has always fascinated me. I’m fortunate enough to have been born with a facility and passion for writing, and so I suspect that means I should be honest about my prejudice. Poor spelling and grammar is a huge turnoff for me, because I’ve always taken it as a sign of being poorly educated. That’s not universally true, of course, but it’s my prejudice and I’ll cling to what bits of it make sense to me.
I’ve never had much use for grammar rules, perhaps because through my years of writing I’ve internalized so many of them that they’re second nature and don’t even feel like rules. Even I have to admit that the rules surrounding the usage of “lay” and “lie” confuse me. Sure, I could study them, internalize them, and make them my own, and to some degree I suppose I have, but I couldn’t regurgitate them to save my life. Nor do I particular want to.
I’ve managed to cobble together my own style by staying largely within the lines when it comes to grammatical rules, and some of the rules I know and live by are ones I’m probably not even aware of. The ones that I struggle with, and there are a few, I generally try to avoid. I rarely put myself in a situation where I’d have to use “lay” or “lie,” much less have to try and decipher the rules to ensure I’m using them correctly. Readers can pick apart my writing for “rules violations”- and some have- but I’m fortunate to have readers kind enough to gently nudge me in the right direction when necessary. This is what I get for working without a net (and very early in the morning) or an editor.
A little advice from someone who takes his writing seriously- if you find yourself having to worry about whether or not you’re being grammatically correct, you can probably find another way to say it. English is good like that, so like anything else in life, why do it the hard way when there’s an easier path?
Maybe sumday u 2 can rite reel gud two!!
