They Should of Known Better
Someone stop me before I poke out my eyes! Yes, using “of” in place of “have” is another assault upon the English language up with which I shall not put. I see this all the time. I’m starting to think authors should have their knuckles rapped whenever they write something like “I could of done better if I had of known.” Oh, my. I’m not usually violent, but …
Well, let’s not dwell on that. The problem here seems to be that in daily speech many of us do in fact say things like “should of,” “could of,” and “would of” (but I am proud to say the phrase “had of” has never crossed my lips). Actually what we’re saying is “should’ve,” “could’ve,” and “would’ve” (and presumably had’ve), the contractions for “should have,” etc. This fact, unfortunately, is lost on many people, and they persist with “of, of, of.” And I persist in changing “of” to “have” or “’ve.”
Merriam-Webster’s Concise Dictionary of English Usage refers to this use of “of” as “naive use,” but also points out that the use does show up in print, particularly in the speech of “uneducated character(s).” I suppose using “of” in this manner in dialogue or even in narration is fine if it is done deliberately, but I rarely, if ever, see it done deliberately. I see it done accidentally and unthinkingly by people who really should of known better.
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