LAS LENGUAS INGLESA Y ESPAÑOLA de Delfín Carbonell

I regularly receive the Modern Language Association newsletter The Source from the MLA Style Center, which I peruse diligently. In the issue of 29 January 2026, an article titled “A Common Mistake: Should of in Place of Should Have” caught my attention. It opens with the statement: “You may have seen people write should of , but that is grammatically incorrect.” I do not generally encounter such usage, nor do I associate with people who write in that manner. Indeed, contrary to the claim, I cannot recall ever hearing anyone say should of in place of should have . I may be living on the fringes of present-day English, but I find the assertion surprising nonetheless. The author, Laura Kiernan, suggests that “the mistake probably comes from the fact that should’ve sounds similar to should of when spoken.” Try as I might, however, I cannot hear should’ve as resembling should of . While the explanation is plausible, pointing out this “mistake” strikes me as somewhat unnecessary for ...

Sigo recibiendo comunicaciones del MLA , la asociación norteamericana de lenguas modernas, que son interesantes e instructivas. Un ejemplo: Erika Suffern, en su artículo Adverbs to avoid , nos dice, por ejemplo, que siempre es mejor emplear el verbo apropiado en vez de un adverbio: She strolls es mejor que she walks slowly . Nos recomienda que evitemos adverbios como very, truly, really, actually y extremely . Nos da como ejemplos: A really important meeting no lo es más si escribimos an important meeting . An extremely brilliant person nos impresionaría igual si fuera sólo brilliant . A truly perfect evening no es mejor que a perfect evening. Para very calm , trata de emplear serene, tranquil, hushed ... Siempre encontraremos verbos adecuados. De esto yo también he escrito en mi libro donde explico que esas reglas rezan para el español también, Acertijo, Riddle : ¿Por qué es Modern Language Association en vez de Modern Languages Association?