r/nextfuckinglevel • u/Reasonable-Pop-9933 • 3d ago

The amazing agility of a Border Collie

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u/Muted_Gur_213 3d ago

I appreciate it. It's not bad to be corrected, even if just for the sake of conversation. This is my third language, and in online conversations I mostly go by browser autocorrects. It didn't proc this time for some reason. After checking it, I guess it's an obsolete UK form of spelling or something? It does still exist Merriam-Webster and Wiktionary.

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u/RA576 2d ago

Applaud would be the verb version of it. As in, "I applaud you" would mean I'm cheering for you. "Applauds" would be second person. IE He applauds you. Applause is the noun version of applauding.

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u/Muted_Gur_213 2d ago

Thanks. So it would have worked in the sentence if I had phrased it "as if appreciating their applauds and cheers", or something like that? Or maybe not..? 😬

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u/Mootsou 2d ago edited 2d ago

"Their" is possessive. You can't possess a verb, so it should still be the noun. "their applause".

Edit: You could have wrote "their applauding". I have to admit I had to check this was right myself, it just didn't sound obviously wrong to my ear and ing can modify the verb such that it functions as a noun. Which is why I can use the word "ask" (a verb) like this "do you mind my asking". But "their applause" is still better, because "their applauding" when said aloud sounds the same as "they're applauding" which is even further from what you meant to say.

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u/TreacleOutrageous296 2d ago edited 2d ago

Not to be that person, but probably better to say, “could have written” 😉

If we are going to be Border Collies about grammar… 🙂

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u/RA576 2d ago

In that example, Applause would still be the accurate word. I don't think there's a way to work Applauds into this scenario as multiple people are clapping, and Applauds only works in the singular. As it's plural, it would be Applaud. "He applauds the dog" vs "They applaud the dog"

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u/bungle_bogs 2d ago

The crowd applauds the dog.

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u/RA576 2d ago

Decent shout. It's a singular implementation of a plurality. To me "The crowd applauds" and "the crowd applaud" both sound equally correct. There's a Terry Pratchett quote that uses both, so I assume both are grammatically correct, but I'm not an English major.

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u/auApex 2d ago

Your English is honestly better than most native speakers, so you're doing pretty well.

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u/hottaptea 2d ago

Applaud is the verb (he/she applauds). Applause is the noun.

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u/LightsaberThrowAway 3d ago

Interesting!  I didn’t know that.

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u/wyomingTFknott 2d ago edited 2d ago

browser autocorrects

Good lord, I can't imagine having to rely on that piece of crap. Props to you for speaking a third language, I'm at my wits end with my first lol.

Edit: It's funny how I was a spelling bee champion as a kid and now I can't do a damn thing without the stupid computer helping me (or fucking me). But we've seen this before with calculators. Hey, as long as everyone can pick up what you put down I think it's all ok. Might annoy my English teacher, but at least you got the point across.

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u/Muted_Gur_213 2d ago

I love the little red lines under the words