It’s not the most most mistakes

It’s not the most mistakes you’ll find in a single article on Yahoo!. (I believe that distinction belongs to a writer for Yahoo! Shine, who managed more than 50 mistakes in a single article.) This article from Yahoo! Sports’ “Prep Rally” just contains some completely avoidable errors, like the misspelled Buckley School and the duplicated word:

The words their, there, and they’re are on every list of mistakes that make you look stupid. So, of course, you’ll find a homophonic mistake in this article, too:

This isn’t so bad; it’s just missing the hyphen in Washington-Lee:

But misspelling Rachael Ray? That woman is everywhere! How can you not know how to spell her name?

On the other hand

Considering how egregious most writing mistakes are on Yahoo!, I almost feel bad about pointing out this misplaced apostrophe on Yahoo! omg!:

On the one hand, the writer knew enough to include an apostrophe. On the other hand, the apostrophe isn’t in the correct location; it belongs after the S.

I don’t feel at all bad about pointing out this homophonic horror:

Confusing their, there, and they’re is on every top 10 list of common grammatical errors. So, on the one hand, it’s not surprising the writer would use they’re when the correct word is their. On the other hand, is a ring.

They’re pointing and laughing

Readers are pointing and laughing at this excerpt from Yahoo! Movies:

They’re amused by the writers and their obvious inability to pick the right homophone. They know that they’re is a contraction for they are and that their is a possessive pronoun.

They’re scheduled to appear in court

The writer (and editor, if there was one) should be scheduled to appear in grammar court for a crime against the language:

Their scheduled appearance should happen now! This is no time to delay punishment for an assault on a homophone by Yahoo! Movies.

Next time, say no

I’m feeling sorry for this writer. I imagine this poor guy being told to write a blog post for Yahoo! Answers, and he’s unsure of his writing ability, but he gives it his best effort. So, I feel kinda like a bully pointing out something that could use “improvement.” Like this unnecessary description of a cliché as “common.” That’s the meaning of the word, isn’t it?

And the poor writer probably doesn’t have the benefit of a high school education. It’s almost understandable that he’d write their instead of they’re and your instead of you’re. And why should he know where to put a question mark?

So, the next time he’s asked to write something more complex than a grocery list, I’d advise him to say, “Thanks, but no.”

What are their editors doing?

Hello? Is there anyone at home at Yahoo! Shine? I mean, like a real writer, editor, or proofreader? Anyone? Do you think Shine’s writers are sitting around wondering what their editors are doing? Because they aren’t editing:

Clearly, there’s no one proofreading this article — at least no one who knows when to capitalize a word:

Capitalize letters really do have a purpose. They can signal a proper noun (like Republican) and distinguish it from a common noun (like senator).

Right now, a writer who wants to produce grammatically correct prose has no one to turn to. There’s no one to tell her when her verb doesn’t match her subject, or when words (like password-protected) need a hyphen:

No one’s watching the store; no one who could point out that some mashups just don’t work:

What their editors doing? Do they even have editors?

When they’re wrong, they’re really wrong

The editors at Yahoo! Shine make more than their share of mistakes. And when they’re wrong, they’re really wrong:

Why is it so hard for the editor to choose the correct word instead of the completely wrong word? And how did she make a homophonous error again in the same article?

OK, all she had to do was copy the gosh-darned title of a book. And she can’t even do that right? Gimme a break! (Or in this case, a brake.)

What are you thankful for?

At this time of year, we often reflect on our lives and blessings and proclaim our gratitude for the people and things around us. For me, I’m thankful that I don’t work for a Web site like Yahoo! Shine, where the editorial standards are lower than those you’d find in a high school newspaper.

If you asked people what they’re grateful for, their answers might surprise you:

I’d be grateful for a professional writer who knows how to perform a simple spell-check. This word doesn’t have multiple Ts:

Or a writer who knows that the school is Hofstra University:

And this other school is Temple University. It’s one thing to make a mistake once in a while, but to make mistakes every day? That’s just a common, everyday occurrence on Shine. I’m thankful that I learned at an early age that you need to include little words, like an, in some sentences:

You don’t have to be a psychologist to see that this isn’t right:

You don’t have to be a grammarian to know that an apostrophe is no substitute for a quotation mark and that dinnertime is one word:

If someone suggests that you take a class in grammar, or at least learn to match a verb with its subject, you should be grateful for the advice:

What are you thankful for?

They’re making their own mistakes

Everyone makes mistakes, even hobby bloggers who write about grammar and the mistakes of professional writers. Writers make their own mistakes. But even conscientious writers who proofread their posts err when they’re having a bad day. Let’s just say that’s the case with the writer for Yahoo! omg!:

Of course you know that their is a possessive pronoun and that the writer meant to pound out they’re, a contraction for they are.

Poor Tim Gunn

Poor Tim Gunn! The urbane fashion consultant and TV personality had to suffer through an interview with Joanna Douglas, a Yahoo! Shine staffer. Mr. Gunn’s fans wishing to read the interview will have to suffer through grammatical gaffes, typos, misspellings, and missing words, like this:

Mr. Gunn is a spokesperson for Tide, but he’s not the only one. The writer (who so modestly refers to herself in the royal “we”) also shills for the detergent when she isn’t taking time to make over the English language:

Here’s a novel spelling of vice versa and the somewhat lesser offense of a missing hyphen in the compound adjective loose-fitting:

Who doesn’t know that Labor Day needs capital letters? Oh, yeah — the writer:

This mistake is so common (especially on Yahoo!), that I almost expect it:

The writer, who specializes in fashion and beauty, should know how to spell waistband:

What should we make of this little question?

There’s a hyphen missing here:

a word missing here:

and another missing hyphen:

The writer obviously eschews using a spell-checker:

and can’t proofread her own writing:

Spell-checker? She don’t need no stinkin’ spell-checker. She doesn’t care how the hell you spell separation and putting in an apostrophe where it belongs:

Poor Tim Gunn. This must be an embarrassment to him. If the writer took pride in her work, it would be an embarrassment to her, too.