WRFH/Radio Free Hillsdale 101.7 FM - Grammar Minute: "Based On" vs. "Based Off"

Episode Date: March 7, 2024

Your tower might be based off a shaky foundation--unless it's on the foundation. Nitpick some popular grammar on today's episode of Grammar Minute.

Welcome to the Grammar Minute, where we're saving the English language 60 seconds at a time. I'm Lauren Smith, and a lot of my information about grammar is based off my experience as a novelist. Okay, this isn't exactly a case for the Grammar Hall of Shame buzzer. In fact, based off is fine, but kind of weird if you think about physics. Suppose you say a tower is based off its foundation. What does that even mean? Based on would be clearer. The tower is on the foundation.

And so in the English language, it's more precise to say something is based on the facts rather than based off. That said, based off, though it's a relatively new construction, isn't technically wrong. Dictionaries recognize it, people argue about it. My advice, as always, is to err on the side of the definitely correct, and based on is just that. Definitely correct. That's your Grammar Minute. Visit Thegrammerminut.com for more tips and tricks.