grammar

[Sue Blake]

On Fri, May 30, 2003 at 03:45:50PM -0700, Matthew Hunt wrote:
> On Sat, May 31, 2003 at 08:41:38AM +1000, Sue Blake wrote:
> 
> > I'm not sure. His English is otherwise excellent, but it could be
> > his second language, and I'd rather not reveal his identity.
> 
> Maybe it's just a personal quirk.  One of my old roommates, a native
> speaker of English and perfectly bright person, would consistently use
> the word "nevertheless" to mean exactly the opposite of what it should.
> He would say things like, "I was hungry; nevertheless I ate a snack."

ROFL. I knew someone who would start every third sentence with a
superfluous "In one respect..." and never give any hint of another
respect. It's fun to watch people trip over their own pretentious frills.

> > The correctness or otherwise, and national differences, is
> > something we should sort out for its own sake.
> 
> Perhaps it is best just to replace "in case" with another choice of
> phrase.

Like I said, what stops people from using "if" in the first place?
Is there some taboo against two letter words, does it make one
feel less learned, or does "if" make it ambiguous for English
speakers in other countries?

-- 

Regards,
        -*Sue*-