Welcome to the October, 2007, edition of Grammar Grouch!
Please be generous and send this blog to your friends, family, co-workers, boss, employees, and someone you knew whenever you were 4.
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Welcome to Fall!
I am eagerly waiting for cool enough temperatures to wear my boots and sweaters. In the meantime, I am barefoot and wearing short sleeves, plus I have an all-new topic for you:
"When" is not "Whenever"
Yes, really. Just like "what" and "whatever", "when" is specific and "whenever" is random. Here are some examples:
"When I became a man, I put away childish things." (Biblical allusion. 1st Corinthians, Chapter 13. Never let it be said that I am not a Grouch of the world!)
Whenever my mom comes over, I clean everything but the stove. (This is true. She likes to have something both to criticize and to clean.)
When dinner is ready, we'll eat.
Please just get to the reports whenever you can.
I hope these examples help. Just try to remember that "whenever I was six" is not correct. The time you were six years old was a specific time and we use "when" for specific times. Right? Right.
I learned that when I was six.
Until next time, happy grammaring!
(c) 2007, Susan K. Morrow
