Quote:
Originally Posted by ApK
Ok...but then by what standard does anyone claim to know "what a word means?" What informs your disagreement?
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The point is that no English dictionary (that I know of) claims to be an authority. If the majority of English users start referring to cats by the word "dogs", the Oxford English Dictionary will duly change the definition. The "vox populi" is the standard, according to all the dictionaries.
I think that this can result in some useful distinctions between words disappearing. If 99% of the people start spelling lose as "loose", that doesn't necessarily require me to follow suit.
On the other hand, some of the old rules seem stupid. English infinitives consist of two words, unless clarity is destroyed, I feel free to split them. I see no reason not to put a preposition at the end of a sentence.