I cant help it but correct people's grammar when they talk in incorrect english. Is that weird or normal?

Question

I correct peoples English all the time. Whether it is on TV or movies or my family. Sometimes I cant help but correct my friends' english. Is there something wrong that I have to do this?

Answer 1

This is COMPLETELY NORMAL. I do it too. It is totally unacceptable to tolerate bad English, especially when we go to other countries that expect us to enounicate perfectly. People have to learn somewhere.

Answer 2

I guess you are a true lover of pure English language, thus (!)... you could be a teacher as you were advised here;). However, you need to know that even teachers don't correct all mistakes of their students. I teach English myself in Poland so I'm really used to mistakes like "Do she live in England?" or "There are five persons in the picture". You should understand though, that the point of talking is to communicate. If everything your family or friends say to you is clear and understood by you. There's really no point in correcting them every single time. Frankly speaking, they may start to get pissed when you correct them too often. I know it can be annoying when people make sooo many mistakes but you just have to live with this.
Oh yeah, life's tough...;)

Answer 3

You're the person I need!!!.

I know, some people don't like to be corrected, and some even get angry.

I think you shouldn't correct people unless they ask you to, or unless their mistake is so bad that it might cause a problem.

Your family is something different. If you have children you should correct them. You want your family to speak correct English.

I keep asking people to correct my English (it's not my native language) and very few do it. They don't understand that if I'm not corrected I'll think I said it right.

Oh.. well...
.

Answer 4

As long as you do this in a respectful manner, I see no problem with correcting people's mistakes. However, you must keep in mind that English is not the native language of some people, so it can be pretty hard for them to speak absolutely correctly.

Answer 5

I'm sure you will be correcting my grammar when you read this, but oh well. you probably just like things to be correct. if you do this ALL the time to friends and family, and possibly strangers, then you have a social problem. people will not speak correctly if they are just conversing with people they are familiar or comfortable with. it can and will get annoying if they are being corrected constantly.
if you must be around people who speak correctly, win the lottery, become a millionaire, and converse with the rich and famous.

Answer 6

You forgot the apostrophe in can't. You should have used the word speak instead of talk. English is spelled with a capital E.

You should stop correcting the English of others until you can ask questions without grammar errors.

Answer 7

I used to do it, as well. I still do it sometimes, but not as frequently as what was once the case.

I think it's all right to do it, so long as you are polite, and don't treat the person in a condescending fashion. Grammar (especially English grammar) is fairly complex, and even the best of us are prone to make solecisms.

Answer 8

I do the same thing so I don't think it's weird. Just keep in mind the person's feelings. Some people do not like it and it can cause problems. Be polite about it and if they get upset apologize and explain it's just something in your nature.

Answer 9

Yeah, it's wrong. It's condescending and arrogant. Even though I know that's not what you mean, I'm telling you to stop doing that. I can do that also, but I usually try to bite my tongue, or if I mention it, act like it's no big deal.
Because it's not a big deal.
I hope you don't think you are better because you can pick out obvious mistakes.

Answer 10

You have to be careful of this - it can make you come off as if you think that you are better than them, which won't win you any friends. Sometimes it is best to just let people be themselves - think less of how they speak, and more of what they are saying, if they are people you care about.