Lost And Found

Posted on July 28, 2009

Recently I’ve noticed that the word ‘of’ seems to have gotten dropped from the English language. I see a lot of references to “a couple this” and “a couple that” rather than “a couple of this” or “a couple of that”. It seemed strange to me, and when I read it I find it rather jarring. I have to stop and think about what was meant and then realize that they’ve left out a word. Is this just another short cut we take in today’s fast paced world?

But then I realized that the word ‘of’ wasn’t really lost at all. I found it in sentences like this one, “I should of paid more attention in English class.” What they really meant to say was “I should’ve paid more attention in English class.” Do people just not realize what the actual words should be?

So, alas, the word ‘of’ is not really lost. It’s just showing up in the wrong places. I suppose then that I need to call “Lost & Found” and report that it is actually the word ‘have’ or contractions of it that is lost.