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They provide the wrong rationale for good/well Larry Send a noteboard - 26/04/2012 02:55:10 AM
Cracked really has some great stuff.


"Good" is usually an adjective (minus the few times that it can become a substantive) and in a sentence such as "I'm good," good modifies I, with "am" being a state-of-being verb that cannot be modified in such a construction. The adverb "well" should be used when the state of condition is dynamic or the verb is an action verb, such as "I am doing well" or "She did well on her test."

Perhaps there are other exceptions to this usage, but I did not see this discussed in the article.

Oh, and "one" can also be used as a singular, unisex pronoun, although that can lead to stiff, archaic speech on occasion.

As for "hopefully," it seems to be a vestigial remnant of a subjunctive clause. I was reminded of the Spanish "ojalá," which is a marker for the present subjunctive to be used. Naturally, we tend to put the main phrase in the future indicative. Hopefully in the future we will see the return of a stronger English subjunctive, but I doubt it
Illusions fall like the husk of a fruit, one after another, and the fruit is experience. - Narrator, Sylvie

Je suis méchant.
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An article on grammar that makes me want to start a slow movie clap. TaskmasterJack - 26/04/2012 12:26:21 AM 706 Views
I love cracked. nossy - 26/04/2012 01:51:06 AM 318 Views
I almost completely agree with them. Tom - 26/04/2012 02:38:06 AM 439 Views
I only had a problem with that last one too LadyLorraine - 26/04/2012 03:14:39 AM 345 Views
Misusing "Literally" is one of the few grammar issues that actually bothers me. Gher - 26/04/2012 05:18:21 AM 362 Views
I'm with you on all points. Furthermore, misuse of "literally" isn't a grammar issue at all. Tim - 26/04/2012 07:07:11 PM 358 Views
Oh no, I can't use "themself". Tom - 27/04/2012 01:54:15 PM 298 Views
I never did get that fuss about "literally". Legolas - 26/04/2012 08:12:14 PM 402 Views
Your example is slightly different from e.g. "My blood was literally boiling". *NM* Tim - 27/04/2012 02:13:05 PM 147 Views
I used the article's example. But I don't see why your example is any different in that regard. *NM* Legolas - 27/04/2012 07:03:03 PM 129 Views
One's an exaggeration of something that's otherwise true. *NM* Tim - 27/04/2012 07:37:14 PM 124 Views
Yeah, literally in hyperbole doesn't bother me. But I also don't mind when people mock its usage. *NM* TaskmasterJack - 27/04/2012 08:21:05 PM 131 Views
You clearly need to watch more English football coverage, Sky in particular. snoopcester - 28/04/2012 02:01:11 PM 380 Views
It's all about usage. Dannymac - 27/04/2012 04:13:52 PM 319 Views
They provide the wrong rationale for good/well Larry - 26/04/2012 02:55:10 AM 466 Views
Hopefully you be right... hm, I don't know about that one. Legolas - 26/04/2012 08:22:05 PM 311 Views
Sometimes, I do actually use that construction when speaking to others near me Larry - 26/04/2012 09:10:02 PM 320 Views
If I'm not mistaken, the Future Indicative evolved from and replaced some of the Subjunctive. Dan - 27/04/2012 09:44:33 PM 403 Views
There was never an optative in recorded Latin or later Romance languages. Tom - 27/04/2012 09:58:11 PM 320 Views
It's not Ojala which makes me think there's a connection between the Conditional and Optative Dan - 28/04/2012 04:28:35 AM 365 Views
No, the conditional form has no relation to the optative Tom - 28/04/2012 02:23:00 PM 363 Views
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