Thursday, February 26, 2009

What Did You Say?

I consider Peter Mansbridge of CBC News to be the "Voice of Canada".

I was therefore appalled and devastated to hear him use the word "quicker" when he introduced The National at 10 PM (EST) on February 25, 2009.

This word does not exist in the English language! The word, quick, is an adjective, and modifies a noun. To use this word as an adverb, the suffix "ly" must be added. Peter should then have said "more quickly" to express his meaning.

The word, fast, is both an adjective and an adverb, and can have the suffix "er" added. But in this instance, using "more quickly" better suits "The National".

I wonder if Lloyd Robertson would have made the same mistake?

1 comment:

  1. That's funny. One of the most respected and widely referenced online dictionaries in the world recognizes quicker as a word:

    http://dictionary.reference.com/dic?q=quicker&search=search

    --Boyo

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