Bye bye hyphen...

Discussion in 'Serious' started by riggs, 20 Sep 2007.

  1. riggs

    riggs ^_^

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    From the BBC;
    Thought I'd post this FAO the spelling/grammar whores amongst us :D
     
  2. kenco_uk

    kenco_uk I unsuccessfully then tried again

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    noes! :(

    Is e-mail now email?
     
  3. steveo_mcg

    steveo_mcg What's a Dremel?

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    i thought email had been eMail or Email for a while now?
     
  4. Veles

    Veles DUR HUR

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    Not that bothered really, always thought it was a bit pointless.
     
  5. cpemma

    cpemma Ecky thump

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    Oxford have only ditched some hyphenated word-groups, hopefully where ambiguity is unlikely.
    There's a difference between a smart arse and a smart-arse. ;)
     
  6. Bungle

    Bungle Rainbow Warrior

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    Was that a punch-line or Punch line:D
     
  7. oddball walking

    oddball walking ...!

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    As long as bit-tech doesn't become bit tech i'm not bothered.
     
  8. E.E.L. Ambiense

    E.E.L. Ambiense Acrylic Heretic

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    lol. Best post of this thread!
     
  9. cpemma

    cpemma Ecky thump

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    A smart arse could be a wise crack, a smart-arse may wise-crack. :duh:
     
  10. specofdust

    specofdust Banned

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    I generally try to be as backward and stuck in the past as I can with English, simply because the new things people want to introduce as generally crap.

    However, this does actually seem like a good cull. While obviously, as pointed out by cpemma, there are some cases where the ol' hyphen is still a neccesity, there are many cases where it has become fairly pointless.
     
  11. supermonkey

    supermonkey Deal with it

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    :clap: Brilliant

    -monkey
     
  12. Bungle

    Bungle Rainbow Warrior

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    Well the old Hyphen won't become obsolete as long as people still smile :)
     
  13. M3G4

    M3G4 talkie walkie

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  14. oddball walking

    oddball walking ...!

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    What about this : ) (less the space :))
     
  15. supermonkey

    supermonkey Deal with it

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    :nono: A hyphen is not the same as a dash.

    -monkey
     
  16. Veles

    Veles DUR HUR

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    :duh:

    Now I see why people find it so difficult to learn English, it's got loads of pointless bits to it.
     
  17. Bungle

    Bungle Rainbow Warrior

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    But where's the nose? Oh noes!!
     
  18. supermonkey

    supermonkey Deal with it

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    My advice is to do what the rest of us English speakers do: ignore the rules and make it up as you go along. :thumb:

    -monkey
     
  19. Bungle

    Bungle Rainbow Warrior

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    Or some fink like dat.:D
     
  20. cpemma

    cpemma Ecky thump

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    No, English grammar has many aids to avoid confusing the reader. Punctuation marks show the rhythm of a sentence - a translation from spoken to written words. But modern thought by the great unwashed writers is "Sod the reader, I know what I mean!"

    OED have decided a "pot bellied pig" is unlikely to cause the reader to imagine a ceramic object; they most certainly have not ditched the hyphen entirely.
     

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