Everything’s All Right. Or is it Alright?

Language, as everything else, is constantly changing. But what constitutes a legitimate change? When does something that was previously “wrong” become acceptable?

Back in the Dark Ages, when I was in school, we were taught that already was an adverb that had to do with time. “When I got to the mall (although there were no malls back in those Dark Ages of my school years), Mary was already there.”

This was not to be confused with all ready, which means that everyone was prepared, or someone wa...