this post was submitted on 29 Jan 2025
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Please state in which country your phrase tends to be used, what the phrase is, and what it should be.

Example:

In America, recently came across "back-petal", instead of back-pedal. Also, still hearing "for all intensive purposes" instead of "for all intents and purposes".

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[–] TrueStoryBob@lemmy.world 2 points 22 minutes ago* (last edited 20 minutes ago)

Oh my goodness, someone pointed this out on Tumblr years ago, but it desperately needs repeating:

Dear English Language Fanfic Writers,

  • Wanton: an unrestrained desire, usually of a sexually nature.

  • Wonton: a type of dumpling found in Chinese and East Asian cuisine.

[–] laurathepluralized@lemmy.world 7 points 3 hours ago

In the USA and other English-speaking countries: weary =/= wary.

For example, I'll see someone write something like: "I am weary of the campfire because it is so hot"

You aren't tired of the campfire! You are wary of it!

[–] Tregetour@lemdro.id -5 points 2 hours ago

Capitalizing black mid-setence. It's an absolutely ridiculous convention, and something only the American Left could take seriously.

Sincerely, Everyone else

[–] ThatWeirdGuy1001@lemmy.world 12 points 7 hours ago (2 children)

I don't generally correct people's spelling or pronunciation but something I've noticed occurring more and more lately is people using "loose" when they mean "lose" and it gets under my skin for unknown reasons

[–] Kissaki@feddit.org 1 points 1 hour ago

It's a loose loose situation.

[–] I_Fart_Glitter@lemmy.world 2 points 1 hour ago (1 children)

It's because your skin is too lose, it's easy to get under it.

[–] Scott_of_the_Arctic@lemmy.world 16 points 8 hours ago (1 children)

I ~~could~~ couldn't care less

Hold ~~down~~ the fort

The proof ~~is in the pudding~~ of the pudding is in the eating

~~elon musk~~ Twat

[–] phoenixz@lemmy.ca 1 points 2 hours ago

To add to that

~~twitter~~ twatter

~~x~~ twatter

[–] Usernameblankface@lemmy.world 7 points 8 hours ago* (last edited 7 hours ago) (1 children)

In American English:

I left them know

I'm just leaving you know

No, no, a thousand times no!

You LET them know. You're just LETTING me know.

Also, they were driving and hit the breaks. Their car needed new break pads.

Just letting y'all know, it's BRAKES that stop a vehicle.

If the vehicle breaks, it'll stop, but that's not the system built into the car that makes it stop on purpose at the press of a pedal.

[–] BoxOfFeet@lemmy.world 2 points 3 hours ago

I know how a break petal works, dummy.

[–] cheers@lemmy.world 3 points 7 hours ago (2 children)

Can someone explain DEI and Affirmative action? 99% sure the right is using it wrong, but I live in a red state.

[–] sem@lemmy.blahaj.zone 3 points 3 hours ago

When the right uses it, it means one thing, when the left uses it, it means a different thing. Just like "woke".

DEI is corporate speak for an office or initiative to promote diversity, equity, and inclusion in a workplace. Diversity meaning not everybody there looks, talks, and thinks the same. Equity means that rules, compensation, etc., are fair for everyone, and inclusion means that people have a voice in decisions that affect them. Since historically, marginalized people have been black, female, indigenous, etc, DEI works specifically to correct unfairness towards them.

Since DEI is owned by corporate, there is only so much it can do to further these goals, and sometimes actively works to stall or placate people that have grievances with their workplace.

Affirmative Action is very similar, but usually specific to college admissions, compared to hiring workers.

I'm not an expert on DEI or Affirmative Action so if you want to know more about it try reading here:

https://www.reuters.com/world/us/what-is-dei-practice-trump-is-trying-dismantle-2025-01-30/
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diversity,_equity,_and_inclusion
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Affirmative_action

Best of luck!

[–] GrumpyDuckling@sh.itjust.works 1 points 4 hours ago

DEI is a catch-all term. It could be part of a marketing strategy, or it could be part of company culture. It's generally bullshit virtue signalling in the case of retailers like Target. It's good to have feedback and ideas from different cultures especially in a global marketplace. It includes both people of different races and culture like LGBTQ.

Affirmative action was policies of hiring a certain percentage of poc or women and ignoring white candidates with higher qualifications. It was an attempt to make up for systemic oppression. Places like colleges still try to balance student numbers by race, even limiting races like Asians because they would be over represented.

[–] pyre@lemmy.world 3 points 7 hours ago

I don't do it that much anymore as I learned to enjoy the freedom of using language, but I recently watched a miniminuteman video where he says pause for concern. which kinda makes sense so it's an eggcorn: something that would cause concern would hopefully also make one pause for a moment.

apparently this is a commonly misheard phrase though this was the first time I heard someone say it.

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