Editing Hypercorrection (section)

==Types of overapplied rules==
Studies in [[sociolinguistics]] and [[applied linguistics]] have noted the overapplication of rules of [[phonology]], [[syntax]], or [[morphology (linguistics)|morphology]], resulting either from different rules in varieties of the same language or [[second-language acquisition|second-language learning]]. An example of a common hypercorrection based on application of the rules of a second (i.e., new, foreign) language is the use of ''octopi'' for the [[Plural form of words ending in -us#Octopus|plural of ''octopus'']] in English; this is based on the faulty assumption that ''octopus'' is a [[Latin declension#Second declension (o stems)|second declension]] word of [[Latin in English|Latin origin]] when in fact it is [[Ancient Greek nouns#Third declension|third declension]] and comes from [[Greek and Latin words found in species names|Greek]].<ref>{{Cite AV media |url=https://www.dailymotion.com/video/x2voh0q |title=Ask the editor: octopus |last=Stamper |first=Kory |author-link=Kory Stamper |access-date=29 January 2024 |via=[[Daily Motion]] |website=[[Merriam-Webster]]}}</ref>{{Better source needed|date=September 2024}}

Sociolinguists often note hypercorrection in terms of pronunciation (phonology). For example, [[William Labov]] noted that all of the English speakers he studied in [[New York City]] in the 1960s tended to pronounce words such as ''hard'' as [[Rhotic and non-rhotic accents|rhotic]] (pronouncing the "R" as {{IPAc-en|h|ɑr|d}} rather than {{IPAc-en|h|ɑː|d}}) more often when speaking carefully. Furthermore, [[middle class]] speakers had more rhotic pronunciation than [[working class]] speakers did.

However, lower-middle class speakers had more rhotic pronunciation than upper-middle class speakers. Labov suggested that these lower-middle class speakers were attempting to emulate the pronunciation of upper-middle class speakers, but were actually over-producing the very noticeable R-sound.<ref>{{Cite book |title=Social Stratification of English in New York City |publisher=[[Cambridge University Press]] |year=2006 |isbn=978-0-521-52805-4 |edition=2nd |location=Cambridge |orig-year=1966}}</ref>

A common source of hypercorrection in English speakers' use of the language's morphology and syntax happens in the use of pronouns (see {{crossreference| {{slink||Personal pronouns}})}}.<ref name="MWDEU" />

Hypercorrection can also occur when learners of a new-to-them (second, foreign) language try to avoid applying grammatical rules from their [[native language]] to the new language (a situation known as [[language transfer]]). The effect can occur, for example, when a student of a new language has learned that certain sounds of their original language must usually be replaced by another in the studied language, but has not learned when ''not'' to replace them.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Carey |first=Michael |title=Interlanguage Phonology Sources of L2 Pronunciation 'Errors' |url=http://www.ling.mq.edu.au/speech/phonetics/phonology/interlanguage/pronerrors.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050702041001/http://www.ling.mq.edu.au/speech/phonetics/phonology/interlanguage/pronerrors.html |archive-date=2 July 2005 |website=Phonetics and Phonology |publisher=[[Macquarie University]] Department of Linguistics}}</ref>

In addition, the special case of a pseudo-hypercorrection has been identified where standard usage is at issue, but ''accidentally'', i.e., where a speaker luckily produces a ''correct'' result.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Doomen |first=Jasper |date=2023 |title= The Case of the Pseudo-hypercorrection |journal=[[Insights into Language, Culture and Communication]] |volume=3 |issue=1 |pages=69–71}}</ref>