I Like How You Used The Wrong Word

"I like how you painted your car red and green for Christmas."

Who knows what's wrong with that sentence?

The answer is that "how" should be replaced with "that".

Currently, people will say "I like how" synonymously with "I like that". This is wrong. They mean different things. And although I understand that language changes and evolves, this is a personal peeve.

"How" relates to the method or technique with which something is done. If you say that you like how somebody painted their car, that means that you like the brushwork or the pattern used or the evenness of the coats. You like some specific aspect of it.

"That" is factual. It acknowledges the existence, but nothing else. If you say that you like that somebody painted their car, it means that you like the fact that the car is painted in general.

Now, I am not saying that there is never a reason to say "I like how". There are definitely proper instances of its use. However, I am saying that it is definitely overused and often used incorrectly.

Words and phrases are tools for a writer. Sure, you can use the handle of a crescent wrench to pound a nail, but there's no reason to do that when you own a perfectly good hammer.