I work with some people who are lovely but display epic scales of ignorance.
Two people I know didn't realise that bought and brought were two different words.

But the classic came from one person I work with. This person is quite a lot younger than me.
I was talking to my class about the eclipse in 1999, I asked my lovely assistant if they remembered it, 'not sure' came the reply, 'I wonder if you saw it at school', I said. 'Ah no, you couldn't have done as it was in August I think'.
'Oh yeah, and the middle of the night wasn't it, my mum wouldn't let me stay up'.
( Mrs Entity is in hiding., Thu 30 Aug 2012, 22:45, 8 replies)

They might have got it mixed up with a lunar eclipse.
That said, I remember the eclipse well. Even though I lived far enough north for it only to be a partial eclipse, the coverage was great enough for the middle of the day to become dark as late evening in a matter of seconds.
( The Mock TurtIe ™ --- Thinks you are a cunt, on, Thu 30 Aug 2012, 22:51, closed)

She could have thought you were referring to a lunar eclipse
Which would have taken place at night.

Edit: Damn.
( MatJ LOOK, Thu 30 Aug 2012, 22:52, closed)

Or at least, it would have been observable at night.

( The Mock TurtIe ™ --- Thinks you are a cunt, on, Thu 30 Aug 2012, 22:56, closed)

I always thought my grasp of English was fairly remedial until all this web 2.0 shit came along.
My colleagues still manage to surprise me as well.
( Slippery Mick ‏, Thu 30 Aug 2012, 22:58, closed)

I would have taken the 'lunar eclipse' defence
had I not just explained solar eclipses to the class.
( Mrs Entity is in hiding., Fri 31 Aug 2012, 0:15, closed)

I was perfectly fine with brought and bought until someone on here once made a big deal about it...
And then I became paranoid I might do it wrong, so of course now I bloody well do. Same with pronunciation. I know vinyl is pronounced one way and not the other, but because I stress that I have to get it right I can never remember which way. I've taken to just saying them both one after the other. Vin-l vine-l.
( vix0r was not Matthew on, Fri 31 Aug 2012, 12:19, closed)

But bought and brought are two different words
which mean different things, not a difference in pronunciation.
( Mrs Entity is in hiding., Fri 31 Aug 2012, 22:16, closed)

I remember this eclipse.
I stood on a hill in Wales with my parents and watched it.

Then we explained to my mum that the moon wasn't making a shadow on the sun.
(MrChimp previously Monsieur, Fri 31 Aug 2012, 20:17, closed)