Sunday, July 11, 2021

English is an Odd Language

English is known for being difficult to master. It’s full of contradictions and, although there are rules, there are lots of exceptions to those rules.

Here's a handful of examples. 

They're in meme format, so if you find one or two particularly interesting, amusing, or infuriating, you can easily copy and paste 'em into social media.





You might have to read that last one twice.


I warmed you up for that one with the previous one.





Snuck in another "lead" vs "lead".



Stuff like this has to be tough on court reporters.





That one might've been American English ... I'm not sure if it applies elsewhere.









The next one should be encouraging ... sort of ...



Many years ago in Miami, I was having a conversation on the difficulties of English with an elderly Cuban man. After I complimented him on his English, he smiled broadly and said, "I can speak eleven languages." 

Impressed, I was about to say, "Wow," when his proud smile turned sly and he said, "Of course, no one can understand me when I speak any of them."

His laughter at his own joke was so infectious, I can still hear it today.


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