Writing "Try"

LAST DAY TO ENTER THE CONTEST

It's quite difficult for me to turn off the editor in my head (known informally as the condition "ed head"). When I read or hear the phrase "try and" instead of the correct "try to", a shudder shakes my spine. Bad grammar grates my nerves like nails scraped on a chalk board. Why should we not "try and"? Well, we can, but only if we really mean two different actions and punctuate the sentence correctly.

Consider what the writer or speaker really means when asking someone to "Try and get there on time". I think the phrase requests someone to be on time. If the conjunction "and" is connecting two verbs, "try" and "get", what else is to be "tried"?

In the case of "try to walk without crutches" connected to "be careful of the curb", the correct shortened construction would be "Try, and be careful". In this case, the conjunction connects two independent clauses and usually needs a comma. Incidentally, in all these examples, the subject of each clause is understood to be "you", even though it is not written or spoken.

When you're tempted to use "try to" or "try and", expand the sentence to its whole meaning to determine which word to use after the verb "try". Try it; you'll like it!

Reference from The American Heritage Dictionary:

USAGE NOTE The phrase try and is commonly used as a substitute for try to, as in Could you try and make less noise? A number of grammarians have labeled the construction incorrect. To be sure, the usage is associated with informal style and strikes an inappropriately conversational note in formal writing. Sixty-five percent of the Usage Panel rejects the use in writing of the sentence Why don't you try and see if you can work the problem out between yourselves?

via Answers.com