LEND ME YOUR EAR: SOUND DICTATES USAGE IN WHATEVER IS WRITTEN HERE

First, I feel duty-bound to explain to everyone that I have nothing against technology per se. My protests are the result of a lifetime of proven inadequacy in related fields, though my nephew Gus, a retired Navy pilot now working toward a master's in computer science, agrees that even technology has its limitations. To comfort me, he shares a cartoon showing a word processor gone amok. The operator is asking a bystander: "Are we sure this is an improvement over changing a ribbon?"

Often, we feel the same about language. Are we sure "am I not?" and "aren't I?" are improvements over "ain't I?"

Granted that technology has succeeded in making the impossible possible in ways too countless to count, language experts concede that computers in the classroom have failed miserably in teaching writing skills. As Paul Greenberg stated in his Sept. 12 commentary, "Once the integrity of words is lost, everything is." Note that Greenberg writes of the "integrity" of words, not of words employed carelessly, or misleading.

To judge by what we hear and read, repetition of earlier material is still in order, even for a number of faithful readers. In recent months, schoolmen and the media have announced that improvements in English and math are "a long ways off" in view of test scores. Gentle readers, how many ways is one way?

An educator has informed his TV audience that "The child which wants to learn should have their own desk." A child, dear man, is not a "which;" a child is a "who." His desk is a "which" or a "that." Nor is one child's desk "their." How often have we discussed the misuse of plurals with single referents?

The distinction between "leave" and "let," which I have failed to mention for some time, is more timely at this point than it was five minutes ago. A friend called to ask what would please me for Christmas. I replied that I was working on the difference between "leave" and "let," and it would please me to be let alone so I could "leave" my desk by noon.

"So now you have an example!" exclaimed my sharp-witted friend Frances. "Good!"

If this example is unclear to readers, let me explain that "leave" means to abandon, to depart; "let" means to allow. I suggest you store this in your think tank or notebook. The misuse is wide.

Did I surprise anyone by reducing "at this point in time" to "at this point"? Authorities on language banned the redundancy years ago, but widespread use on television turned it into an irresistible cliche, and habit is hard to break.

Mistakes in the use of "where" in instances requiring "that" are also common in both speech and writing. On a talk show last evening, a caller said to the host: "I see where Clinton is sending our troops to Haiti." No one can see where this anti-war president will try to send our boys next, but usage demands that we see "that." Most of us, I believe, are more concerned with "why."

My devotion to prepositions is well-known, but I also know when to omit them. This is especially true of "of." Some time ago I wrote a column titled "Never jump off of," stressing that to jump "off" a roof or "out" a window is more proper than "off of" or "out of," though the act is unacceptable to God. Still, if the state of mankind has you so depressed you are considering drastic action, do go in style. On second thought, why not reconsider and try to reconnect with what is left of the goodness in man.

The verb "connect," meaning to fasten or join together, is often misused even by otherwise knowledgeable writers and speakers. To connect "to" refers to material things, such as pipes, machines, and territorial borders. Words, ideas, and relatives are connected "with." A good ear helps in deciding which to use.

The distinction between "lend" and "loan" is illustrated in our title. Although "loan" is acceptable as a verb, most able writers choose "lend." This too is a matter of ear. I lend my ear, but I make a loan. Or would if I had anything but my ear to lend.

Our publisher, Wally Lage, read me well when he wrote he was glad I decided to make a loan on his ear. As longtime readers know, sound dictates usage in whatever I write, and my ear sounds the trumpet for "lend." But it was Mark Antony who beat me to the title.