Can an Exception Prove Anything?

You’re familiar with the phrase: An exception proves the rule.

Maybe so, but the idea is confusing until you understand that the word prove can mean “test”. Or, as my American Heritage Dictionary states: to prove is “to determine the quality by testing".

“Not so!” says Sherlock Holmes through the pen of Arthur Conan Doyle. Sherlock claims that a rule cannot be questioned; it is sacrosanct, unchangeable, unwavering. Therefore, to claim there are “rules” to grammar is to claim there are no exceptions and… ergo… an exception must admit the falsity of the “rule”. Did I lose you? I didn’t lose Sherlock. He knows! And he's a Brit!

Anyone who has studied grammar quickly learns “the exceptions” that accompany almost every “rule”. The conclusion therefore must admit to preferring guidelines to rules.

You’ll find all the guidelines you need in my book, The Anarchist’s Guide to Grammar — the best grammar book you’ll ever enjoy!