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In the following paragraph, is the word 'sprinkles' used correctly or should I go with a better suggestion?

We were standing there close to the kitchen sink and apparently this lady came and opened the tap, which caused sprinkles get all over Mikes clothes.

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This question is vague, and doesn't meet our critique guidelines. Please consider editing this question to meet those and we'd be happy to consider reopening. – Neil Fein♦ Apr 2 '12 at 3:23
@NeilFein- What do you mean the question is vague. The question clearly states what is being asked. Maybe, I am new to the site, but could you specify what kind of improvement needs to be made. – Noah Apr 2 '12 at 3:27
I mean what I said: It's vague. This is the second time you've had a critique question closed here, and both times you've been directed to the critique guidelines. If you have questions about those, please feel free to ping any moderator in chat by typing @ before any of our names. – Neil Fein♦ Apr 2 '12 at 3:46
@NeilFein (in the interests of helping someone new to Writers.SE and the whole English language) Would this rewrite of the question meet the guidelines? -- I was explaining the following event where water sprinkles got on someone's clothes, and wrote it this way. [quoted sentence] I think I wrote it incorrectly, but I can't figure out why. Is this correctly written in English? And if not, where did I go wrong? -- Note that to me, his question comes off as a question on grammar, not a critique request (except for the last sentence, of course). You can't google up a critique, after all. – Patches Apr 3 '12 at 1:40
@Patches - Thanks! Grammar questions are more on-topic on English.SE than here. We could certainly inquire if they'd take the question. If it's to be a critique question here, I'd ask for a bit more context and a longer quote. – Neil Fein♦ Apr 3 '12 at 5:26
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closed as off topic by Neil Fein♦ Apr 2 '12 at 3:22

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1 Answer

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There are a number of issues with your sentence.

A rephrased suggestion would be:

We were standing close to the kitchen sink when this lady came and opened the tap, which splashed water all over Mike's clothes.

Please note:

  • Spelling correction on clothes (instead of cloths)
  • You can use sprayed instead of splashed
  • If "this lady" is named then using her name would likely be more appropriate
  • If you would like to use the word sprinkle then you should use it more as a verb than a noun (IE "...the water sprinkled onto Mike's clothes...")
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