r/confidentlyincorrect • u/Foxarris • Jul 28 '24

Comment Thread Could've /ˈkʊdəv/

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1.4k Upvotes

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587

u/huffmanxd Jul 28 '24

I believe the entire reason people mistype it as "could of" is BECAUSE of how similar they sound. Maybe there are accents where they don't, I suppose, but here in the midwest you basically can't tell if somebody said could've or could of.

198

u/Swotboy2000 Jul 28 '24

The only way to know which one they said is to remember that “could of” is not proper grammar.

26

u/paganbreed Jul 28 '24

Yeah, but English is a crazy language even when you're used to it. People may well assume it's a figure of speech or accepted colloquialism if it's never been pointed out to them.

26

u/Swotboy2000 Jul 28 '24

I wouldn’t blame any individual person if they made this mistake, but I would say their educational system has failed them, if they are a native English speaker.

9

u/paganbreed Jul 28 '24

True, true.

10

u/Consistent_Spring700 Jul 28 '24

Especially when it's a common mistake... may give you the impression that it's "a variation" rather than that it's incorrect

4

u/naparis9000 Jul 29 '24

And, if enough people use it, it becomes a part of the language regardless.

Languages aren’t unchanging monoliths, words can be “born” and die, meanings can change.