CORRECT USAGE OF "YOU'RE" AND "YOUR"...... PLEASE READ IF NECESSARY!!

*RANT*

Ok.... I am an ardent admirer of the English language, with all it's ideosyncrasies and subtle rules... and I cannot stand lazyness when it comes to grammar and language...... I am sure you can guess my opinions on "text speak" and how it will eventually, in my opinion, destroy and dilute this beautiful language we have created, developed and refined. I know I cannot halt this forever advancing tide of wanton destruction, but I can try to make a small difference....during my travels within ATS I have noticed that many members constantly get this simple rule of grammar incorrect...!!

Now, we are supposed to be the educated few, the few that are truly capable of looking outside the box, the few that will start the revolution! Let's make sure we can do it effectively, coherently and withougt ridicule by writing articulately and correctly....

You know who you are... and I ask just this... please read the article below... it will teach you the correct usage, (which is really quite simple), and will forever protect you from the obviously deserved ridicule you endure on a daily basis... (Whether you know about it or not)... please don't be lazy with language.... it is simultaneously a devastating weapon and a wonderful tool of expression and communication.....

PerfectAnomoly



How to Use You're and Your


Article Edit Discuss History Wrong! - (In more ways than one!)A frighteningly large percentage of individuals fail to understand how to use the words "you're" and "your." Here is a quick and dirty crash course on this common usage problem.


Edit Steps1Understand the proper usage of the word you need. The best way to do that is to sound it out. There is a replacement test that will tell you for certain which word will fit. Read the sentence with "you are" in place of where the "your/you're" is intended. If it makes sense, then "you're" would be right. If not, then "your" would fit. You could also replace "your" with "my" in the sentence. If it fits, then use "your."

Write You're as a contraction or a combination, of the words you and are. Other examples of contractions include doesn't" for "does not," they're" for "they are," and can't" for "cannot."
"You're a good friend" means "You are a good friend.""I don't know what you're talking about" means "I do not know what you are talking about."3Write your as the possessive form of you, referring to something that a person has, something that belongs to the person in question, or the person you are talking to.
"Is your stomach growling?""Your book is on the table."4 Wrong again!Take a look at some examples. Each of the following examples shows an incorrect use of your/you're, and why it is incorrect.
"I can't read you're handwriting."
Incorrect, because the contraction for "you are" is being used in place of the possessive form of you. I can't read you are handwriting doesn't make sense. It should be replaced with "your"."If your hungry, then you should probably eat something."
Incorrect because there is no possession in question. this passes the replacement test. Rewriting it with "you are" fits. This should be replaced with you're, or you are."I think your very smart."
Again, incorrect. The "very smart" does not belong to the person that you are talking to — this doesn't make any sense. Replace your with you're, or you are.

Tips

English can be complicated, because there's an exception to every rule. Ex.: Keep in mind that the word your will never be followed by the words the, a, or an.
The word your will usually not be followed by an adjective, a word that describes, when that adjective is describing the person that you are talking to. In other words, saying "Your very kind" will almost never be correct. "Your very kind" would be correct if they were describing a noun, as in "Your nice son brought me my coat." Here, your nice is correct because nice is describing the person's son.
Remember that you're is actually a combination of two words and thus fulfills two very important roles in a sentence or clause. Because it includes both a pronoun and a verb, you're will always be the subject and at least part of the verb of any clause in which it appears.
Try replacing "your" or "you’re" with "you are" if you are unsure which to use. If the sentence makes sense, use "you’re." Remember that only "you’re" is a contraction. The apostrophe in "you’re" signifies the omission of the letter “a.” If the sentence does not make sense, you will know to use "your."
For example:
"You’re a good writer!" and "You are a good writer!" "You are" makes sense in this sentence, so you can use "you’re."
"I cannot read you're handwriting.” and "I cannot read you are handwriting." "You are" does not make sense in this sentence, so you should use "your."
Try not to think that proper writing is strictly "academic". It makes you appear more intelligent. More importantly, it eliminates the risk of bad habits "slipping out" in situations in which it is critical to convey propriety, such as writing a college essay or a job résumé.
Just remember "You're not spelling your words correctly," and it all falls into place.

Amen, being a writer myself I cannot understand Text speak and I am a teenager. I try to understand everyone, really I do but it would help if some of these good folks used sentence structure.

You do realize there are people from ALL over the world and all walks of life on here right?

I am a huge grammar Nazi (or so my friends call me that) but I had to learn to let the errors on here go. Not everyone on here is going to use proper English and not everyone is going to spell right. Is it really that big of a deal?

I can still read a thread with bad grammar and spelling...it also doesn't mean the OP is stupid. I know some really smart people who can't spell to save their life. Does that mean they are stupid? No, just means they can't spell.

Is their really a reason to let people know there butchering the english language in they're posts?? LOL

Example of another pet peeve.

reply to post by PerfectAnomoly


I think you're rant was very well written . Oh and while your in a ranting mood . How about a rant regarding the use off "off" & "of" , because i'm sick and tired off seeing these used in the wrong context.

Cheers and good luck in you're crusade

Your absolutely right! Stuff like this gets on you're nerves a lot, does it?
I'll bet this exa.ctly the kind of thing that fueled the riots in London.

reply to post by PerfectAnomoly

By far the thing that bothers me the most is when people use 'to' for 'too' and vice versa. I see that on here more than anything else.

While you are ranting.....you're off base in your criticisms. Could you not have bothered to use spell check when posting? People in glass houses....

reply to post by PerfectAnomoly


I find it annoying but I don't judge people because of it.

Originally posted by PerfectAnomoly
*RANT*

Ok.... I am an ardent admirer of the English language, with all it's ideosyncrasies and subtle rules... and I cannot stand lazyness when it comes to grammar and language...... I am sure you can guess my opinions on "text speak" and how it will eventually, in my opinion, destroy and dilute this beautiful language we have created, developed and refined. I know I cannot halt this forever advancing tide of wanton destruction, but I can try to make a small difference....during my travels within ATS I have noticed that many members constantly get this simple rule of grammar incorrect...!!

Now, we are supposed to be the educated few, the few that are truly capable of looking outside the box, the few that will start the revolution! Let's make sure we can do it effectively, coherently and withougt ridicule by writing articulately and correctly....

You know who you are... and I ask just this... please read the article below... it will teach you the correct usage, (which is really quite simple), and will forever protect you from the obviously deserved ridicule you endure on a daily basis... (Whether you know about it or not)... please don't be lazy with language.... it is simultaneously a devastating weapon and a wonderful tool of expression and communication.....

PerfectAnomoly



How to Use You're and Your


Article Edit Discuss History Wrong! - (In more ways than one!)A frighteningly large percentage of individuals fail to understand how to use the words "you're" and "your." Here is a quick and dirty crash course on this common usage problem.


Edit Steps1Understand the proper usage of the word you need. The best way to do that is to sound it out. There is a replacement test that will tell you for certain which word will fit. Read the sentence with "you are" in place of where the "your/you're" is intended. If it makes sense, then "you're" would be right. If not, then "your" would fit. You could also replace "your" with "my" in the sentence. If it fits, then use "your."

Write You're as a contraction or a combination, of the words you and are. Other examples of contractions include doesn't" for "does not," they're" for "they are," and can't" for "cannot."
"You're a good friend" means "You are a good friend.""I don't know what you're talking about" means "I do not know what you are talking about."3Write your as the possessive form of you, referring to something that a person has, something that belongs to the person in question, or the person you are talking to.
"Is your stomach growling?""Your book is on the table."4 Wrong again!Take a look at some examples. Each of the following examples shows an incorrect use of your/you're, and why it is incorrect.
"I can't read you're handwriting."
Incorrect, because the contraction for "you are" is being used in place of the possessive form of you. I can't read you are handwriting doesn't make sense. It should be replaced with "your"."If your hungry, then you should probably eat something."
Incorrect because there is no possession in question. this passes the replacement test. Rewriting it with "you are" fits. This should be replaced with you're, or you are."I think your very smart."
Again, incorrect. The "very smart" does not belong to the person that you are talking to — this doesn't make any sense. Replace your with you're, or you are.

Tips

English can be complicated, because there's an exception to every rule. Ex.: Keep in mind that the word your will never be followed by the words the, a, or an.
The word your will usually not be followed by an adjective, a word that describes, when that adjective is describing the person that you are talking to. In other words, saying "Your very kind" will almost never be correct. "Your very kind" would be correct if they were describing a noun, as in "Your nice son brought me my coat." Here, your nice is correct because nice is describing the person's son.
Remember that you're is actually a combination of two words and thus fulfills two very important roles in a sentence or clause. Because it includes both a pronoun and a verb, you're will always be the subject and at least part of the verb of any clause in which it appears.
Try replacing "your" or "you’re" with "you are" if you are unsure which to use. If the sentence makes sense, use "you’re." Remember that only "you’re" is a contraction. The apostrophe in "you’re" signifies the omission of the letter “a.” If the sentence does not make sense, you will know to use "your."
For example:
"You’re a good writer!" and "You are a good writer!" "You are" makes sense in this sentence, so you can use "you’re."
"I cannot read you're handwriting.” and "I cannot read you are handwriting." "You are" does not make sense in this sentence, so you should use "your."
Try not to think that proper writing is strictly "academic". It makes you appear more intelligent. More importantly, it eliminates the risk of bad habits "slipping out" in situations in which it is critical to convey propriety, such as writing a college essay or a job résumé.
Just remember "You're not spelling your words correctly," and it all falls into place.

Wow how conceited can one get?

It would have been polite for you to link to the wiki source that you copy and pasted from. Any 'Writer' would have known this, even if it was just wiki how...

reply to post by sonofliberty1776


Mwahahahahahahaha...Brilliant. Bravo.

Oh man, I cant stop laughing.

If you are going to complain about your you're usage you may as well hate on everything, spelling included.

I quite agree with you!

Let's not forget the butchering of weather versus whether... prime examples include "the whether here is quite rainy" or my favourite "I don't know weather or not..."

By the way (and I don't mean to be pedantic) - I think you made a typo at "withougt"

The Oatmeal made a good summary of these and other confusing and often misspelled words: theoatmeal.com...

Originally posted by tpg65
reply to post by PerfectAnomoly

 

I think you're rant was very well written . Oh and while your in a ranting mood . How about a rant regarding the use off "off" & "of" , because i'm sick and tired off seeing these used in the wrong context.

Cheers and good luck in you're crusade

was that a joke?...cause you wrote..."regarding the use off"..which should have been "regarding the use of"...not that I care..but it seems silly you would do the exact same thing you are complaining about...unless you are being sarcastic of course?

reply to post by PerfectAnomoly



Edited for accuracy, errors are boldened

Originally posted by PerfectAnomoly
*RANT*

Ok.... I am an ardent admirer of the English language, with all it's ideosyncrasies and subtle rules... and I cannot stand lazyness when it comes to grammar and language...... I am sure you can guess my opinions on "text speak" and how it will eventually, in my opinion, destroy and dilute this beautiful language we have created, developed and refined. I know I cannot halt this forever advancing tide of wanton destruction, but I can try to make a small difference....During my travels within ATS I have noticed that many members constantly get this simple rule of grammar incorrect...!!

Now, we are supposed to be the educated few, the few that are truly capable of looking outside the box, the few that will start the revolution! Let's make sure we can do it effectively, coherently and withougt (spelling error - without) ridicule by writing articulately and correctly....

You know who you are... and I ask just this... please read the article below... it will teach you the correct usage, (which is really quite simple), (Which one is it? Commas or brackets???) and will forever protect you from the obviously deserved ridicule you endure on a daily basis... (Whether you know about it or not)... please don't be lazy with language.... it is simultaneously a devastating weapon and a wonderful tool of expression and communication.....(This whole section needs to be refined!!! Do you mean 'The ridicule you deserve on a daily basis, whether you know about it or not----OR----Whether you know about it or not please don't be lazy with language....if the former, 'please' requires a capital!!!)

PerfectAnomoly


(Plagiarism has been cut)

"the obviously deserved ridicule you endure on a daily basis"

I say checkmate.


Doesn't taste all that good now does it?

I know this is the rant section and all. But seriously, how many grammar and spelling related threads do we actually need? This is, I'm thinking, the 3rd one I've seen in 2 weeks, and I'm in no way looking for them.

Now, the board does ask you not to use texting "spelling" for posts as it's hard to follow, and quite lame actually. It's lame for everyone, but it's hard to follow for the non English as a first language speaking visitors, which is a large chunk of the site.

With that, most English speaking visitors have issues with simple spelling and grammar, how do you expect people with other languages to make out? English, for those of us born into speaking it, is "easy". It's not. It's actually one of the more complicated languages to learn, specifically for things like the OPs rant.

English is a very nuanced language for those just learning it. Words sound identical, but are spelled differently, and have different meanings depending on usage. At least with french (and Spanish I believe) you have masculine and feminine. But in English, there doesn't seem to be any rhyme or reason to it.

There : that bus is over there by the hobo asking for change
Their : that bus belongs to Meals on Wheels, it is their bus.
They're (they are): those hobos are coming this way, they're coming right for us!

You : You are very bad at spelling
Your : You are bad at grammar and your spelling is poor
You're (you are): You are my hero, you're the wind beneath my wings

Read : You, surprisingly, are able to read!
Read : You actually read that entire book?
Red : Listing to your stupid reptilian conspiracy makes me see red!

Now for me, as an anglophone, that just seems pretty simple, probably because it was drilled into my brain from age 5 on. Grammar? Meh, not so much, my sentence structure, punctuation and grammar are horrible and I would surely fail a basic exam.

But for someone not intimately familiar with English, that's a large stumbling block.

reply to post by gabby2011


I think, maybe, just maybe, it was a joke.

S&F

this is my intelligence test

I love you're rant. Your dead on!

reply to post by Beavers


Haha, lets not take him too seriously. He's having enough trouble pulling the plank out of his own eye let alone being capable of tending to the splinter in yours, or is that you're's?

I share the OP’s abhorrence of poor usage. You have to be aware that a little effort will make your point more credible with a significant part of your audience. For instance, simply pasting the original post text into Microsoft Word would have revealed three errors: it’s used as a possessive (“it’s” means “it is”, “its” means belonging to “it”), ideosyncrasies misspelled, and lazyness misspelled. Not sure about the spelling, though, as I am not familiar with all the British variants.