fucking grammar, how does it work?

[apiphile]

Learn the Difference Between "Lie" and "Lay"
The main difference between the two words is that lay is a transitive verb, while lie is an intransitive verb.

The important part of that page - though I urge you to read the whole thing so that I stop feeling like my eyeballs are going to explode when I talk to people - is this:

Comments

[ladyhadhafang]

*Claps*

Very well-said, apiphile. Very well-said. :)

[strangecreature]

I'm not convinced I've ever used 'lain' in my life, so I suspect this is something I've frequently screwed up in the past. Thank you!

[apiphile]

Yeah, I may have screwed that up a fair few times myself, but now I am going to use it with ABANDON. Lain lain lain lain slain pain rain ... mmm mmm.

[strangecreature]

The slain in Spain have lain mainly in great pain...?

[apiphile]

'Tis plain!

[origamicage]

lay is something you DO to something, LIE is something you do yourself

that's all I know. Beyond that I get brain hurty.

[apiphile]

Well that *does* cover most situations.

[lin]

Thank you! I have trouble with this, despite my master's in English-as-a-foreign-language and stuff. This is helpful :) (and as such I just bookmarked the fuck out of it for future reference...)

[apiphile]

I figure everyone has their Achilles' heel. I have horrible brainfarts with homophones...

[apiphile]

GUESS WHO DIDN'T HAVE ANY ACTUAL ENGLISH LESSONS BETWEEN 13 AND NEARLY 17? GUESS WHOSE SCHOOL SYSTEM HAS FAIRLY IMPORTANT EXAMS WHEN YOU'RE 16?

... Yeah, I didn't really learn shit from English, and we didn't have any other language classes. :(