Culture · 6 pages · 12 min
Why usage can outvote a rule
A pattern speakers share is the grammar, whether or not a handbook allows it.
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From the opening
Usage can outvote a rule because a living language is the pattern its speakers actually share. A handbook ban on a widespread construction is a preference about a register, not a finding that the construction is missing. The opening covers shared patterns are the grammar, latin analogies mis-fit English forms, and house style is not the language.
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Inside
- Shared patterns are the grammar
- Latin analogies mis-fit English forms
- House style is not the language
- One variety does not erase another
- Where the idea stops applying
- A distinction worth keeping
Sources
- Descriptive grammar drawn from shared usage
- Latin-based bans on split infinitives and stranded prepositions