Re: Spelling and Grammar in our e-mails

[Bernard Cleyet <anngeorg@PACBELL.NET>]

> Whose "old-fashioned spelling and grammar?" A quick check on the
> Merriam Webster online (<http://www.m-w.com/home.htm>) says "chiefly
> British past and past participle of LEARN"


The last paragraph in the article, "The Unloved American", in the current New
Yorker  includes a quote by Mrs. Trollope (Anthony's mother):  "If the
citizens of the United States ....  are the first and best of the human race,
that nothing is to be learnt, but what they are able to teach, and that
nothing is worth having, which they do not possess."

bc

Mark Sylvester wrote:

> Indeed, many verbs used to form the past tense with 't', even if only a few
> retain it as an option... spoilt, burnt, leant, knelt... Open Shakespeare
> almost anywhere and you'll find some of these. Romeo to Mercutio: "I dreamt
> a dream tonight..." Herb, you can blame your English teachers for
> inculcating a misconception!
>
> Mark
>
> At 08:36 08/03/03 -0500, Vern Lindberg wrote:
> > > ...
> > > While reading his interesting comments, the verb, "learnt"
> > > that he used happened to catch my eye. In my younger days,

cut