Questions about signs and public notices.
9
votes
2answers
783 views
Grammaticality of “Shoreditch station to permanently close”
I recently read an article on BBC titled Bad grammar and the people who hate it. In it, there is a photo of a train station sign which reads as follows.
Friday 9 June 2006
Shoreditch station ...
3
votes
1answer
53 views
$ sign where did it originate? [closed]
This sign is a very interesting one. I do not know where it originated in.
And why do we use it? How does $ sign relate to dollar?
Does it mean money? Sometimes I've seen it with double lines ...
3
votes
2answers
183 views
Meaning of “Irish true”
This is a sign from a pub. I would expect it to read “Irish truth” or “true Irish”. Why is “Irish true” used?
16
votes
3answers
1k views
Meaning of “Be Mr Late Better Than Late Mr”
Not long ago I found on the Internet a lot of different road signs from India.
Here is one of them:
It says: "Be Mr Late Better Than Late Mr". I can't understand the meaning of this phrase. I ...
0
votes
1answer
96 views
Follow the signings?
I saw a road sign today saying: "Follow the alt route signings." It struck me odd. I would expect: "Follow the alt route signs."
Signings is obviously a legitimate word, but it's usually used ...
1
vote
1answer
269 views
When to use articles and when not to? [duplicate]
Possible Duplicate:
Please use other door?
Is "Stick no bills" correct English?
“train approaching”
What's with syntax in newspaper headlines?
Well, I know the basic rules about using ...
10
votes
1answer
208 views
“Road liable to flooding” — is this roadsign grammatically correct?
I passed the roadsign below while driving home late last night, and realised that despite how many times I had seen it, I was still surprised by the choice of words used and unsure if it was actually ...
8
votes
3answers
335 views
Meaning of “before” in this sign
In "US Sign and Safety" I came across the road sign shown in the image below.
Can someone explain what part of speech the word "before" is?
I'm asking because it seems that these two graphs are both ...
17
votes
4answers
1k views
Why do street parking signs say “no stopping or standing”?
I see redundancy here. If one stands a car on the street, isn't it necessary to stop first? It would seem the most logical and efficient use of language for the sign would be "no stopping." Or do ...
9
votes
2answers
244 views
Stop if you feel faint or pain! [duplicate]
Possible Duplicate:
Ellipsis that results in one word serving as both subject and object
I am “adjective” and I am “present continuous” in one sentence
I was using some exercise equipment ...
0
votes
2answers
112 views
Wash Hands to Serve Safe Food?
The other day I saw a sign in a restroom saying:
Wash your hands thoroughly to kill bacteria and serve safe food
It struck me as wrong somehow, since it gave me the immediate humorous mental ...
17
votes
6answers
1k views
“Picking up your litter puts road-workers at risk” — is this strangely-worded road sign grammatically correct?
Yesterday I came across a road-sign (just coming onto the M40 at the Oxford services, if you're interested!) that seemed to read rather strangely. It read:
Picking up your litter puts road-workers ...
3
votes
4answers
759 views
No loitering sign: “Police Take Notice”
I'm a native English speaker and I've never been able to really parse this one. Is it a command aimed at the police? If so, shouldn't it be "police, take notice"? Is this construction used anywhere ...
3
votes
5answers
258 views
Why use “at” in this way?
I always see signs such as
Men at work
or
Children at play
I was wondering why we use "at" in this way. Is it just a formal way of saying Men Working / Children Playing?
Saying "At ...
4
votes
5answers
471 views
Why is “help wanted” phrasing used in job ads?
It's quite typical to see "Help wanted" signs in cases some business has an open position. That can be some temporary position or even a permanent one.
Why is it called "help"? Why not "we're hiring" ...
3
votes
3answers
362 views
“Automatic door—push to open.”
This is the wording on signs I've been seeing quite often recently. It seems to me quite nonsensical; if you have to push the door to open it, it isn't automatic.
Is that the case or is there ...
3
votes
2answers
195 views
Signs in states which say “Only Trash Litters”
In many states I can see signs posted which state
"Only Trash Litters" which I certainly have no problem understanding
and which appear to be correct usage to me. "Trash" can be singular or plural so
...
1
vote
4answers
252 views
“Ice possible” or “Possible ice”?
Which is proper grammar: “Ice possible drive with care” or “possible ice drive with caution”?
11
votes
7answers
2k views
Why do signs read “wet floor”, not “slippery floor”?
Every other time I see a "wet floor" sign the following idea comes to my mind. That sign forces me through unnecessary mental effort to deduce that wet floors can be slippery.
I think it's like ...
1
vote
3answers
538 views
“Train approaching”
Is it correct? It's the message I see right before the metro/subway train shows up.
Shouldn't it be "train is approaching" or "train approaches"?
5
votes
4answers
161 views
What would you write in this case? (a sign in a fitting room)
Once in a fitting room of one clothes store in Taiwan I saw a sign saying something like
Watch your lipstick carefully no to touch the clothes you are trying on.
While the main concern was ...
5
votes
4answers
362 views
Is “litter” correct on waste bins?
I threw some rubbish in a litter bin the other day, when it occurred to me that the receptacle couldn't be a litter bin, because litter is only unwanted things strewn across the road. Anything in a ...
4
votes
2answers
311 views
What is the difference between ‘Hot Corned Beef’ and ‘“Hot” Corned Beef’?
I have seen the phrase '"Hot" Corned Beef' on several convenience store signs in my area. Since corned beef is is usually served warm or hot, am I missing part of the meaning of the sign?
3
votes
4answers
2k views
What word best describes a small store that sells only glasses (spectacles)?
What word would or combination of words would best describe a small store, in which only glasses (spectacles) are sold?
Here are some of my guesses, but I think they are all wrong:
Eye ware
Glass ...
5
votes
1answer
2k views
Is “Stick no bills” correct English?
'Stick no bills' sounds awkward.
Shouldn't it be something like 'Do not stick any bills'?
