Slashdot Mirror


'Daylight Savings' Is Grammatically Incorrect (qz.com)

A reader shares a report: We talk about time like it's money, and that may explain why we say "Daylight Savings Time," capitalizing the concept to emphasize its awesomeness. After all, who wouldn't want to be able to save hours like cash? The phrase "Daylight Savings Time," though commonly used in Australia, Canada, and the US, is technically incorrect. Time and Date, a website devoted to all things chronological, posits that the plural "savings" became popular because it's used in everyday contexts, like "savings account." The grammatically correct usage is "daylight saving time." The expression is singular and not capitalized, according to the US Government Publishing Office style guide. The GPO provides the guidance, "d.s.t., daylight saving (no 's') time."

2 of 312 comments (clear)

  1. Re:I bet... by cayenne8 · · Score: 4, Informative

    I'll bet you're fun at parties.

    There, fixed that for you.

    ;)

    --
    Light travels faster than sound. This is why some people appear bright until you hear them speak.........
  2. Not a grammatical error by bipbop · · Score: 3, Informative

    The plural attributive construction is well established as standard, and has been on the rise for the past 70 to 80 odd years. It's standard everywhere, but is somewhat more common in British English than American English. If the OP were interested, they could read about this topic in A Comprehensive Grammar of the English Language (Quirk et al 1985), where it is covered starting on page 1333, although somehow I doubt they're interested.