Comments on: What’s with this word “into”?

By: Clare Lynch

Clare Lynch — Mon, 21 Jun 2010 11:22:48 +0000

Stuart – let’s start one today! We could align it with a sister campaign designed to halt the increasing use of the phrase “stopping point” in lieu of “station”.

By: Stuart

Stuart — Sun, 20 Jun 2010 18:56:44 +0000

Sorry, I meant to type “relieved”

By: Stuart

Stuart — Sun, 20 Jun 2010 18:55:41 +0000

Is there a national campaign I could join to stop the use of “arrive into”?
If not, how can I start one?

I’ve trawled the internet to see if I’m the only person in the world to be bothered by this (ab)usage – and so was releived to find this blog, but disappointed to see that it’s from 2009.

By: Clare Lynch

Clare Lynch — Mon, 11 May 2009 16:13:44 +0000

Update:

Today I heard an interviewee on Radio 4’s Today programme use the strange phrase “supply into”. Not only did he tell the presenter that his business “supplies into the retail market”, but also that “the supply of credit into the market has dried up”.

In the words of Harry Blamires, author of The Penguin Guide to Plain English, “there is an epidemic of prepositional anarchy around”.

By: Clare Lynch

Clare Lynch — Wed, 06 May 2009 11:50:46 +0000

Yikes, Brad, don’t get me started on people’s tendency to joinseparatewordstogether!

I keep seeing “every day” written as “everyday”. Does it make me very sad that it offends my sensibilities to see the adjective + noun confused with the adjective?

It’s particularly excruciating when such a mistake occurs in ten-foot type in a sign that’s clearly had a lot of money thrown at it!

By: Brad Shorr

Brad Shorr — Wed, 06 May 2009 11:32:32 +0000

Clare, Into and over … what we really need here is parallel construction. Why not, I’m so OUT OF gluten-free? Perhaps making it one word, OUTOF, would be even better. Where are you and your other readers at on this?

By: Clare Lynch

Clare Lynch — Wed, 06 May 2009 08:32:56 +0000

Thanks, real gent. I do I think I should make the quiz harder and more relevant to the topic of the blog. Perhaps make potential posters pass a gruelling apostrophe test before being given the chance to comment?

I am actually planning a post on redundant prepositions, so thank you for bringing that example to my attention. That said, I don’t really mind it in that phrase if it’s being used idiomatically for “what on earth were you thinking, you fool!”

By: real gent

real gent — Wed, 06 May 2009 08:19:44 +0000

i have absolutely no comment to make other than to say that i’m really into your new anti-spam quiz.

could we please have a post about people who say ‘where are you at?’ the redundancy of that fine two-lettered word drives me absolutely potty.

By: Clare Lynch

Clare Lynch — Wed, 06 May 2009 07:45:36 +0000

Arthur – good point, I hadn’t thought of that. And you’re right, you should generally only experiment with the language if you have a full grasp of it- that old rule that it’s ok to break the rules so long as you understand the rules. The same goes for those who go round “reporting into”.

Brad – and of course once you’re no longer “into” those various obsessions, another preposition becomes highly useful.

I am so OVER gluten-free!

By: Brad Shorr

Brad Shorr — Tue, 05 May 2009 21:05:52 +0000

In Chicago, I don’t hear “into” used in these ways very often, perhaps because we don’t have any trains going to Euston. However, in my neck of the woods, everybody is “into” something. They’re into exercise, they’re into jazz, they’re into gluten free. I think this usage is getting us into trouble.