DEAR RICHARD: I am curious about an advertisement on TV that proclaims, “Only pay for
what you need” Is that correct, or should it say, “Pay for only what you need.” –Mary Jane Mott,
San Carlos
The commercial you identify is for Liberty Mutual Insurance and it is aired so frequently
and ubiquitously that, to me, it is like water torture.
The placement of “only” is one of the trickiest procedures in English usage. The most
famous example of its vagaries is the song title “I Only Have Eyes for You.” Formalists argue
that the “only” is mislocated in this title and that the statement misleadingly implies “I have eyes
— but no ears, noses, or mouths — for you,” rather than “I have eyes for you only.” They insist
that “only” — like “hardly,” “nearly,” “almost,” “scarcely,” “even,” and “just” — must appear
right before the word modified, as in “I Have Eyes for Only You.”
In reality, no intelligent listener or reader misinterprets the song line “I only have eyes for
you.” In general, though, when equally natural placements of “only” are available, you should
locate the adjective or adverb immediately before the noun or verb it modifies. For example,
after hearing or reading the sentence “He only died yesterday” you might well ask, “Only died?
What could be worse?” Repositioning the “only” to read “He died only yesterday” makes life
easier for your listeners and readers.
Take my word for it: God only knows. Oops, I mean, “Only God knows.”
DEAR RICHARD: When I was a boy growing up, I would ask a question such as “Where’s the
butter at?” My mother would say, “It’s behind the ‘at.’” To this day I still remember her
correcting me. Is it improper to use “at” to end a question? –William E. Lynn, Scripps Ranch
Your mother probably wagged her finger at “Where’s the butter at?” because the sentence
ends with a preposition, but that is a totally bogus rule. The greatest writers in English have
freely employed terminal prepositions. Why? Because the construction is a natural and graceful
part of our English idiom. Here are examples from the masters:
Still, I would caution you about “Where’s the butter at?” because the word “at” is gratuitous.
“Where’s the butter?” will do just fine.
This past Saturday, I had a terrific time at the San Diego Book Festival, sponsored by
KPBS and held at USD.
KPBS’s Heather Milne reports, “We are very proud of the community experience we
created at the KPBS San Diego Book Festival. An estimated 8,000 people attended the event,
and more than 1,800 listened to headlining authors and panel discussions with authors from
genres stretching from romance to science fiction and everything in between.”
At my author’s table in the Writers’ Block (a punderful title!), I was glued to my chair for
four hours because so many of you U-T readers and KPBS listeners showed up to chat and have
me sign and inscribe my books for them. Thank you all for lifting me to paradise.
DEAR RICHARD: I enjoyed your recent profile of a book lover. One aspect you did not mention
is the shelf of books you’ve bought but haven't read yet. I try hard to burn it down faster than it
builds up, but I’m rarely successful. I turned 45 last year, and my midlife crisis came from the
realization that there are likely books on that shelf that I will never have read when I die. And
even if I do read all these books, there are still many others that I’d like to read that I won’t. This,
more than anything else, has made me confront the finitude of life and realize the importance of
making the most out of the limited time that I have left. –Alex Dow, Cardiff
***
On Saturday, September 13, 11 am, at the Coronado Public Library, 640 Orange Avenue,
I’ll be performing “Pirates of the Sea,” a hilarious and informative celebration of National Talk
Like a Pirate Day. Admission is free and worth every penny. I’d love to meet you there.