Happy National Grammar Day!

gary-the-grammar-cactus

I make a living with grammar. Nonetheless, it’s important to keep it in perspective. Remember, there are actually four grammars, listed here from most to least casual:

  1. How people speak
  2. How grammarians codify speech
  3. How people write
  4. How grammarians codify writing

To put it another way, allow me to share a haiku and a lune:

Grammar is a man
Sitting alone, critiquing,
While his neighbors dance

Grammar is a map
Pointing out
Where things ought to be

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