Who dat?

I’ve thought of another grammatical instance that is so frequent I’m sure they’ve stopped teaching the proper usage in school.

It’s the difference between “that” and “who.”

Think of it this way: Are you a who or a that? You may be a “that” but I am a “who.” A person who, not a person that.

I learned this from a guy who worked as my reporter when I was the weekend editor at a local newspaper. It used to drive him crazy when writers didn’t use it correctly and he seemed to find it everywhere. That’s what got me on the lookout for it and now I see and hear it everywhere.

People say it incorrectly on TV much of the time, in dramas and comedies, on talk shows and while delivering the news and such. It’s likely wrong in their scripts and on their teleprompters.

It’s disgruntling. And I’d prefer to be gruntled, which I now can be, dictionary-ily speaking, as that word has morphed into meaning the exact opposite of its original meaning, “to grumble.” Putting “dis” in front of gruntle originally was how one intensified the sense of the word, instead of using it to express the opposite meaning, as “dis” is used today.

That and who may seem small to you. It isn’t.

Ask Dr. Seuss.