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Preposition: Difference between revisions
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{{ | {{a|plainenglish| | ||
[[File:Major Oak.JPG|450px|thumb|center|Sherwood Forest, yesterday]] | |||
}}A {{tag|preposition}} is a word, like [[with]] or [[to]] or [[of]], with which one should not end of a sentence — ''if you’re speaking {{tag|Latin}}''. Since (if you’re smart) you’re not, you may put your preposition wherever you damn well please. Like the pendant’s aversion to [[split infinitive]]s, this is a bogus grammatical rule to boldly be dismissive of. | |||
Prepositions do the important but prosaic job of putting {{tag|noun}}s and {{tag|pronoun}}s in relation to each other — “the cat sat '''[[on]]''' the mat” — so you have your work cut out if you want to put one at the end a sentence. But, by all means, try to. | Prepositions do the important but prosaic job of putting {{tag|noun}}s and {{tag|pronoun}}s in relation to each other — “the cat sat '''[[on]]''' the mat” — so you have your work cut out if you want to put one at the end a sentence. But, by all means, try to. | ||
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===How to deal with a preposition pedant=== | ===How to deal with a preposition pedant=== | ||
From an etiquette perspective, there is only one way of dealing with a preposition pedant, and it is as | From an etiquette perspective, there is only one way of dealing with a preposition pedant, and it is as set out in the following dramatisation: | ||
:''SCENE: Sherwood Forest, Nottinghamshire. An INNOCENT tourist, whom we expect hails from the Mid-West, accosts a local rambler. Little beknown to him, the rambler is a PEDANT.'' | :''SCENE: Sherwood Forest, Nottinghamshire. An INNOCENT tourist, whom we expect hails from the Mid-West, accosts a local rambler. Little beknown to him, the rambler is a PEDANT.'' | ||
:'''Innocent''': Say: where’s this Robin Hood at? | :'''Innocent''': Say: where’s this Robin Hood at? | ||
:'''Pedant''': You know, you really shouldn’t put a preposition at the end of a sentence. | :'''Pedant''': You know, you really shouldn’t put a preposition at the end of a sentence. | ||
:'''Innocent''': All right, then. ''(clears throat)'' Say: where’s this Robin Hood at, ''asshole''? | :'''Innocent''': All right, then. ''(clears throat)'' Say: where’s this Robin Hood at, ''asshole''? | ||