"(P)ermissible in English for a preposition to be what you end a sentence with" - Merriam Webster

[Yavin4]

I believe that I am owed a better grade from multiple English teachers. Where do I sue?

It is permissible in English for a preposition to be what you end a sentence with.

The idea that it should be avoided came from writers who were trying to align the language with Latin, but there is no reason to suggest ending a sentence with a preposition is wrong.

Link to tweet

[elleng]

1. LOLOLOL!!!

[hlthe2b]

2. I'd say that quite a few of us are owed a grade correction or two. LOL

[ret5hd]

3. Just think where you would be today...

if you had gotten C’s instead of D’s to show on your Permanent Record.

?si=UAg5B0WSnTGWyXiT

[ms liberty]

4. NOW they tell us? I wasted all that time for no reason!

[Wonder Why]

5. So China bought Merriam-Webster and their trying to hack our language rules? Or have they become "woke".

Although I admit I try to follow the old fashioned AMERICAN way, I have cheated because it's easier. Mea Culpa!

On the other hand, I may appeal to the Oxford Dictionary and ask them to overrule Merriam on the grounds that their opinion is "incompetent, irrelevant and immaterial", actus reus, ad infinitum, and that Merriam acted animus nocendi, non compos mentis, in flagrante delicto, in terrorem, and contra legem. The court should act de novo, a priori, and declare Merriam to be hostis humani generis, et cetera, et cetera, et cetera!

Can I become Donny's new attorney now?

[niyad]

14. Of course not. You are much too intelligent.

[malthaussen]

18. That's Greek to me. :)

[Wonder Why]

20. Well, it is pretty Geeky!

[mitch96]

6. I remember trying to learn this in english class and it would give me a brain cramp...nt

Last edited Fri Feb 16, 2024, 02:36 PM - Edit history (1)

[niyad]

7. " That is something up with which I will not put." attributed to Winston Churchill.

[GiqueCee]

12. That was the first thing that came to my mind, too!

Read years ago that Old Winnie was accosted by a fellow dinner guest for ending a sentence with a preposition, and his reply was, "Ending a sentence with a preposition is something up with which we must not put!"

Gotta love it!

[3catwoman3]

35. There are a few different versions of this quote.

My own favorite is this one - "This is the type of arrant pedantry up with which I will not put.”

There's debate on whether or not this gem is actually from Churchill. I don't care, I love it anyway.

[limbicnuminousity]

8. The countless hours that could have been saved with

So many hours rephrasing essays in school. Next thing they say, they probably won't even require cursive anymore!

The important question though: hard or soft bristles?

[Mr.Bill]

9. An outgoing southern belle from Atlanta

was visiting friends in Boston and they went to a cocktail party. The Atlanta lady wanted to strike up a conversation with this Boston lady and she asked he "Where do y'all come from?" the Boston lady answered "I come from where we don't end our sentence with prepositions."

The Atlanta lady said "Okay, where do y'all come from, bitch?"

[niyad]

13. Thank you for the memory.

[Mr.Bill]

15. Okay.

I guess?

[niyad]

16. I always get a kick out of that story. Just weird that way.

[Thunderbeast]

10. All depends on where yer at...

[Warren_Pointe]

11. I asked the English professor, "Where's the Library at?"

He replied "At this university, we do not end sentences with prepositions."
So I asked, "Where's the Library at, asshole?"

[CTyankee]

17. As a writer, may I offer my solutions?

"Where is the library?"

"Where can I find the Library on this campus?"

"Can you direct me to the Library?"

[TwilightZone]

22. I think, perhaps, that you missed the joke.

[CTyankee]

24. Actually, I was trying to play along with the poster. Some things in writingjust don't seem "right" to me and I seek

alternative phrasing. It sounds more edumacated to my ear (old joke).

[blm]

27. Heheh. How to Write Good.

😏 https://workableweb.com/_pages/tips_how_to_write_good.htm#:~

[Warren_Pointe]

33. At the university of Arkansas

Freshman comp was taught from books called Writing Good Sentences amd Writing Good Prose.

[malthaussen]

19. I'm pretty sedulous about not ending sentences with prepositions...

... although it can be quite awkward at times.

I dunno where I picked up this quirk. Unlike some here, I don't remember it ever being discussed in grammar classes.

-- Mal

[birdographer]

21. OMG

How many times have I contorted a sentence just to avoid ending it with a preposition??? The problem is that we have to be sure everyone is aware of this, or we will continue to be judged for doing it. I guess that's something we have to deal with.

[OilemFirchen]

30. I see where you're coming from. (n/t)

[birdographer]

32. 🤣

[intrepidity]

23. What's a preposition, lol?

I know nouns, verbs, adjectives, pronouns. Then my brain got full, apparently.

[UTUSN]

25. In the early '70s I was geeked out over an advanced grammar course, thinking

I would be on the way to becoming an authority in it. Imagine my surprise when the prof's overview was that we would not be going through "rules" of grammar, that that approach was "Prescriptive," while our modern, (pseudo- ) scientific approach was to be "Descriptive" as a way to arrive at some linguistic "Deep Meaning."

Weeks followed of convoluted diagrams that were contortions of our presumably outdated type of sentence diagramming, in which this-"modifying"--that didn't fit the old Prescriptive rules, supposedly ending with the "real" deep-down meaning being conveyed.

It was an illusion balloon being popped and that course was the end of that interest for me.

Yes, one of the other features in the touchy-feely '70s (notice the correct Prescriptive form of non 's, as in the wrong 70's) was the dictum that we should forget all about "the pyramids" and focus on being touchy-feely. These years one of the very top subjects in my YouTubes is about The Pyramids - plus countless vids of historical "gossip" - the truths about history and biographies and things we were misled about.

[blm]

26. Yay!

[cachukis]

28. Write well.

[Srkdqltr]

29. If someone corrects you about that in a conversation they are not your friend.

And should be avoided in the future.

[Rhiannon12866]

31. Yikes! That's one of the lessons that stuck with me from 7th grade grammar class

Along with diagramming sentences...

[ailsagirl]

34. Churchill's thoughts about this...

When Winston Churchill was chastised for ending a sentence with a preposition, he wittily responded. “This is the type of arrant pedantry up with which I will not put.” Churchill's retort illustrates that attempts to avoid ending a sentence with a preposition can be labored and ludicrous.