XIMR Speakers Club

Grammarian’s Manual
The Grammarian is a person who keeps a tab on the grammatical quality of the
meeting, giving suggestions for better usage of words and conveying new words
through the Word of the Day. Being a grammarian is truly exercising your skills in
listening.

The Main Responsibilities of the Grammarian are:

1. Keep a report of the grammatical errors, word usage errors, pronunciation errors and
faulty sentence construction that takes place during the course of the meeting.
2. Choose a ‘Word of the Day’ for the meeting, convey the word’s complete meaning
and usage and keep a count of the number of times each speaker uses the word.

Report on Grammatical Errors in speech:

The grammarian maintains a report of the various grammatical mistakes made by
speakers during the meeting and the correct usage that one must employ. While doing
so, the grammarian must take utmost care of not highlighting the person who
committed the mistake but only the mistake.

Word of the Day:

This is a word chosen by the Grammarian for usage during the meeting. The word
chosen must preferably align with the Theme of the Meeting. The grammarian must
choose a word that is of good vocabulary quality and that is not used very often by the
Speakers of the Club.

Proforma for Grammarian:

Name Grammatical Errors ‘Word of the Day’ Count

ABCDEFGH Group of Computer (N) 3

Group of Computers (Y)

STUVWXYZ You can do ‘n’ things (N) 1

You can do many/
innumerable things (Y)

How to go about it?

Prior to the Meeting –
 Select a “Word of the Day” for the meeting. It should be a word that will help
members increase their vocabulary - a word that can be incorporated easily into
everyday conversation but it is different from the way people usually express
themselves. An adjective or adverb is suggested since each is more adaptable then a
noun or verb but feel free to select your own special word.
In letters large enough to be seen from the back of the room, print your word, its part of
speech (adjective, adverb, noun, etc.) and a brief definition. Prepare a sentence
showing how the word is used.
Prepare a brief explanation of the duties of the grammarian for the benefit of the guests.

Upon arrival at the Meeting –

Place your visual aid at the front of the room where it can be seen by all.
Get a copy of the Grammarian Form available in this manual on which to make notes.

During the same Meeting –

When introduced prior to Table Topics, announce the “Word of the Day” state its
part of speech, define it, use it in a sentence, and ask that anyone speaking during any
part of the meeting use it.
Briefly explain the role of the grammarian when given the opportunity.
Throughout the meeting, listen to everyone’s misuse of the language (incomplete
sentences, sentences that change direction in midstream, incorrect grammar,
malapropisms, etc.) with a note of who erred. Write down who used the “word of the
day” (or a derivative of it) and note those who used it correctly or incorrectly.
When called on by the general evaluator during the evaluation segment, stand by
your chair and give your report. Try to offer the correct usage in every instance where
there was misuse instead of only explaining what was wrong. Report on creative
language usage and announce who used the “word of the day” (or a derivative of it)
correctly or incorrectly.

After the Meeting –

Give your copy of the Grammarian report with meeting date and general
evaluator’s signature to the Secretary of the club.