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A word, like | {{a|plainenglish| | ||
[[File:Major Oak.JPG|450px|thumb|center|Sherwood Forest — where this Robin Hood is at —yesterday]] | |||
}}A {{tag|preposition}} is a word, like “with” or “to” or “[[of]]”, with which you should not end a sentence — ''if you’re speaking {{tag|Latin}}''. Since you won’t be, you may put your preposition ''wherever you damn well please''. Like the pendant’s aversion to the [[split infinitive]], the stricture that “one should not end a sentence with a preposition” 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”; “the [[sub-custodian]] droned on '''about''' [[gross negligence]]” and so on — so you have your work cut out if you want to put one at the end a sentence anyway. But, by all means, try to. | |||
Whether or not they end sentences with them, [[mediocre lawyer|lawyer]]s can still have plenty of fun with prepositions. The easiest upgrade is to substitute ''normal'' prepositions with [[compound preposition|''compound'']] ones, cobbled together out of {{tag|noun}}s, {{tag|conjunction}}s and the other [[tiring]] flotsam and jetsam of the English language. | |||
One can also deploy misplaced prepositions to catch out [[humble|humble-bragger]]s and, at the same time, shame them as [[preposition pedant]]s, using the handy cut-out-and-keep guide below. | |||
“I say! You’ve made it into the [[Legal 500]] as a globally recognised [[subject matter expert]] on [[LIBOR]] remediation! ''Again''! Now ''that'' is some recognition you can truly, humbly, be proud of!” | |||
===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 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.'' | |||
:'''Innocent''': Say: where’s this Robin Hood at? | |||
:'''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''? | |||
'' | |||