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Ending a sentence with ‘at’
Posted: 29 November 2008 06:01 AM   [ Ignore ]
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I found a sentence in a definition posted on this site.  The look up was for ‘pragmatic’ within the definition I found this sentence.

Yes he was perhaps pragmatic with regard to having an understanding of ministering to people where they were at.


I have seen a more prevalent misusage of ‘at’ appearing at the end of a sentence in recent years.  Are the editors of this site promoting ending a sentence with a preposition unnecessarily?  This is, for me, one of the most annoying grammar shifts in current American English.
The sentence should read…Yes, he was perhaps pragmatic with regard to having an understanding of ministering to people where they were.

Gratefully,
TenFeet2Hands

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Posted: 29 November 2008 08:01 AM   [ Ignore ]   [ # 1 ]
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The Yankees are free people..no rules,no order..reveling in chaos..and so is their language.
Best, follow the British artful,patient,logical and methodical folk.
Yup..It’s a clumsy way to end it, an addition by design, it appears to me.

And an excellent advice which you will find useful (I found it so much so!).
When you find sentences that are awkwardly formed or are in anyway twisted, its good to leave them alone as they are. Trust your intuition:if it says it’s wrong, it’s wrong. And above all don’t you be carried away it.

I think “wherever they were” should do the job!

Yes, he was perhaps pragmatic with regard to having an understanding of ministering to people where they were.
could be rendered better as
Yes, wherever people are, he pragmatically serves them.
The simpler,the better
Now only a pragmatic would do so, if he hasn’t enough cares of his own..an officious fool, so to speak

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Posted: 02 December 2008 12:39 PM   [ Ignore ]   [ # 2 ]
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YourDictionary.com has the exclusive rights to Webster’s New World College Dictionary. While we find it to be the most useful and authoritative dictionary, there are occasionally mistakes. We carefully collect and track these issues and correct them after verification. I’ve added them to my list for editorial review.

Thank you for your help!

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http://www.YourDictionary.com - The Web’s Best Dictionary

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Posted: 02 December 2008 12:49 PM   [ Ignore ]   [ # 3 ]
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Proper ladies wear ‘ats.

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