Say it strangely

Language police often defend sentences nobody would voluntarily remember.

“Think differently” is grammatically sound. It also lands with the soft thud of a council leaflet. “Think different” creates a tiny snag. The reader notices, supplies the missing logic and moves on with the phrase still attached.

The point is bigger than deliberate bad grammar. Predictable language lets the mind coast. “Quality solutions for modern life” may be correct in every possible respect except usefulness. It has been assembled from words that decline to leave fingerprints.

A strange phrase earns attention by violating a pattern without destroying sense. “Refreshes the parts other beers cannot reach” stretches anatomy and claims a benefit in one movement. “A Mars a day helps you work, rest and play” turns a confection into a suspiciously complete welfare programme.

Then the copy industry learns the trick and produces weirdness by quota. Verbs become nouns. Nouns are assaulted. Every brand starts “reimagining” toothbrushes, pensions and bin bags. Surprise industrialised at scale becomes another predictable tone.

The best offences are legible before they are admired. The audience should receive the meaning during the stumble, rather than wait for a strategist to explain why the missing adverb expresses challenger energy.

On the shortlisted page, one line reads “Bank bravely”. Another reads “Make money less money-ish”. A third simply says the transfer arrives today. Nobody has circled that one yet.