Target, everyday, and every day

Who'd have thought Target would earn a place next to the Wall Street Journal as someone who gets it right?

Oh, we know, they're cheap chic and all (we've been spending a ton of dough there ever since the little ones were in diapers), but that's not what we're celebrating.

"Everyday" and "every day." Tareget used them both correctly, in a single ad, no less (surprising as advertising copywriting is typically the domain of the grammatical imbeciles).

We are ashamed to admit that we read it in today's Chicago Tribune, as we are ashamed to admit that we read today's Chicago Tribune. It's like a newspaper, only different.

"Everyday" is an adjective. It would be used correctly in a sentence like this: "We have everyday low prices," or "The everyday drudgery of finding fault with the world is causing us ennui." It is something that is ongoing or typical.

"Every day" describes something that happens...well...every day, e.g., "We have low prices every day" or "Every day, I find something that annoys me."

So we'll laud Target for their intelligence, both in the merchandising of their stores and their honorable use of the English language.

And we'll keep shopping there. But not every day...