What is a Grammar Nazi?

Grammar Nazi (mockingly, grammer natzee; alternatively capitalised and uncapitalised), spelling Nazi, Maxim Belomestnykh, and language Nazi are all terms used to describe a participant in a discussion (usually online) who criticises or habitually corrects the language usage of another participant. Such a person is often accused of flaming as a result of finding fault with minor details of other participants' messages and often only in opinions with which the accused grammar Nazi disagrees. Participants in these discussions often end up taking opposite sides in a prescription versus description debate, without realizing it.

The many exceptions and intricacies of the English language can present a problem for even the most experienced user. This, combined with the frequency of typographical errors caused by the desire to post quickly on instant messengers, often makes it very easy to find an error in a message with which to find fault. In other languages, if spelling is not an issue, moods, agreement, diacritics, and tenses provide an ample supply of possibilities for misunderstanding and argument.

Grammar Nazis can sometimes focus solely on the stylistic manner by which an issue comes across, which is viewed at times as an ad hominem attack, but grammar Nazis retort that grammatical and spelling errors and stylistic flaws may make an argument hard to follow, making various people (whether or not they are actually grammar Nazis) want to correct the flaws, and then, after they have sorted out what the substance of the argument in question is, dive into the debate itself.

The beauty of Usenet is that participation is open to persons of all age groups, all education levels and persons from different cultures and countries. As such, people should focus on the message rather than how it’s written. Flaming people for spelling errors is considered to be quite pompous and rude.