Copyright: Copyright 1992 by Wintertree Software Inc.
Citation: Grammar Expert


Shareware Notice
Grammar Expert

 Online Help for the English Language

 Version 1.00

 Copyright 1992 by Wintertree Software Inc.

 Grammar Expert is a shareware program and is provided at no charge to the user for evaluation. Feel free to share it with your friends, but please do not give it away altered or as part of another system. If you find Grammar Expert useful and want to continue using it, you must make a registration payment of $30.00 (US) to Wintertree Software Inc. The $30.00 registration fee will licence one copy of Grammar Expert for use on any one computer at any one time.

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 3. A free copy of Wintertree Software's Guide to Frequently Confused Words, an addition to Grammar Expert that contains quick, online definitions of words people frequently confuse.

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 Table of Contents

 Grammar Expert contains information on the following topics:

 Sentences  -- collections of words used to express ideas.

 Parts of speech  -- the role each word plays in a sentence.

 Punctuation  -- a set of marks placed in sentences  to separate or clarify intent or meaning: . , ; ! ? "

 Mechanics of writing  -- the correct ways to express things like abbreviations,  numbers, and dates.

 Writing style  -- the application of grammatical rules to express ideas effectively.

 See also:

 Detailed table of contents


 Detailed Table of Contents

 Sentences

 Clauses

 Dependent Clauses

 Independent Clauses

 Objects

 Paragraphs

 Phrases

 Predicates

 Subjects

 Parts of Speech

 Adjectives

 Comparative Adjectives

 Good vs. Well

 Superlative Adjectives

 Adverbs

 Comparative Adverbs

 Superlative Adverbs

 Articles

 Conjunctions

 Interjections

 Nouns

 Plural Nouns

 Possessive Nouns

 Proper Nouns

 Prepositions

 Pronouns

 Pronoun Case

 Pronouns following Comparisons

 Compound Pronouns

 Its vs. It's

 Plural Pronouns

 Possessive Pronouns

 Yourself and Myself

 That vs. Which

 Pronouns following the Verb "To Be"

 Whose vs. "Of Which"

 Who vs. Whom

 Pronoun Gender

 Verbs

 Active and Passive Verbs

 Lay vs. Lie

 Subject and Verb Agreement

 Verb Agreement with Collective Subjects

 Verb Agreement with Compound Subjects

 Verb Agreement with "ics" Words

 Verb Agreement with Indefinite Subjects

 Verb Agreement with Measured Subjects

 Distinguishing the Subject

 Verb Agreement with Problem Subjects

 Verb Tense

 Split Infinitives

 Participles

 Punctuation

 Apostrophes

 Colons

 Commas

 Separating Adjectives

 Preventing Ambiguity

 Isolating Conjunctive Adverbs

 Separating Dependent and Independent Clauses

 Isolating Descriptive Clauses

 Separating Independent Clauses

 Joining Interdependent Clauses

 Isolating Introductory Phrases

 Separating Items in a Series

 Substituting for Omitted Words

 Isolating Parenthetical Phrases

 Comma-Splice Error

 Dashes

 Ellipses

 Exclamations

 Parentheses

 Periods

 Question Marks

 Quotation Marks

 Semicolons

 Slashes

 Mechanics of Writing

 Abbreviations

 Acronyms

 Contractions

 Abbreviating Dates and Times

 Initialisms

 Abbreviations for Latin Phrases

 Abbreviations for Measures

 Abbreviating Organization Names

 Plural Abbreviations

 Possessive Abbreviations

 Abbreviating Degrees and Titles

 Capitalization

 Dates and Times

 Hyphenating Words

 Hyphenating Adverbs and Adjectives

 Hyphenating Compound Adjectives

 Hyphenating Compound Nouns

 Breaking Long Words

 Hyphenating Numbers

 Hyphenating Prefixes

 Lists

 Numbers

 Titles

 Writing Style

 Active Voice

 Clarity and Directness

 Avoiding Ambiguity

 Explicit Subjects

 Chosing Words

 Effective Sentences

 Sentence Beginnings

 Sentence Endings

 Sentence Length

 Writing Letters

 Letter Format

 Complimentary Closing

 Salutations

 Sample Letter: Accepting an Offer

 Sample Letter: Congratulations

 Sample Letter: Declining an Offer

 Sample Letter: Demanding an Obligation

 Sample Letter: Requesting Information

 Sample Letter: Reminder of an Obligation

 Sample Letter: Sympathy

 Organized Writing

 Writing to Inform

 Writing to Persuade

 Writing Effective Paragraphs

 Reviewing


 Comparative adjectives

 The comparative forms of adjectives compare whatever is described with one other thing. Comparatives are formed by adding the suffix "er" or the words "more" or "less."

 Use the suffix "er" when the adjective has one syllable:  "quicker," "darker," "louder."

 Precede the adjective  by "more" or "less" when it has two or more syllables:  "more lucky," "more handsome," "less harmonious."

 Mixing the two forms is redundant (and incorrect). Use "quicker" instead of "more quicker," for example.

 Some comparative adjectives have irregular forms:

 worse

 inner

 See also:

 Adjectives


 Good vs. well

 Many writers are unsure of the distinction between "good" and "well."

 "Good" is an adjective,  so it normally modifies a noun.  "Well" is an adverb, so it normally modifies a verb  or an adjective.

   My car is running good.

  -- "Running" is a verb.

   My car is running well.

   The new product has sold good in the first quarter.

  -- "Sold" is a verb.

   The new product has sold well in the first quarter.

   The new product has had good sales in the first quarter.

  -- "Sales" is a noun.

 These guidelines also apply to the adjective "bad" and the adverb  "badly."

   We did bad in the product-evaluation tests.

  -- "Did" is a verb.

   We did badly in the product-evaluation tests.

 See also:

 Adjectives and Adverbs


 Superlative adjectives

 The superlative forms of adjectives  compare whatever is described with at least two other things. Superlative adjectives  state which thing in a collection of things possesses the least or most of some characteristic.

 Form superlatives by adding the suffix "est" or the words "most" or "least."

 Use the suffix "est" when the adjective has one syllable:  "quickest," "darkest," "loudest."

 Precede the adjective  by "most" or "least" when it has two or more syllables:  "most lucky," "most handsome," "least harmonious."

 Mixing the two forms is redundant (and incorrect). Use "quickest" instead of "most quickest," for example.

 Some superlative adjectives have irregular forms:

 worst

 innermost

 See also:

 Adjectives


 Comparative adverbs

 Use "more" or "less" when the modifier is an adverb: "more quickly," "more darkly," "less loudly."

 See also:

 Adverbs


 Superlative adverbs

 Use "most" or "least" when the modifier is an adverb: "most quickly," "most darkly," "least loudly."

 See also:

 Adverbs


Abbreviations (Definition)
 Abbreviations

 An abbreviation is a short form for one or more words.


Acronyms (Definition)
 Acronyms

 An acronym is a word formed from the first letters of a group of words -- for example, "DOS" (Disk Operating System). An acronym is a kind of abbreviation.


Active verbs (Definition)
 Active verbs

 An active verb is a word that expresses action, such as "run," "writing," and "flew."


Active voice (Definition)
 Active voice

 The active voice is a style of writing that uses explicit subjects and active verbs.


Adjectives (Definition)
 Adjectives

 An adjective is a word that describes a noun. Example adjectives include "red," "happy," and "broken."


Adverbs (Definition)
 Adverbs

 An adverb is a word that describes a verb or an adjective. Example adverbs include "quickly," "dark," and "thoroughly."


Ambiguity (Definition)
 Ambiguity

 Ambiguity in writing is a statement that can be interpreted with more than one meaning. An example of an ambiguous sentence is:

  Yesterday, I wrote to the person asking for help.


Apostrophes) (Definition)
 Apostrophes

 The apostrophe (') is a kind of punctuation. The apostrophe is used to mark the place where letters were omitted in a contraction (e.g., "can't") and indicate possession (e.g., "Beth's").


Articles (Definition)
 Articles

 An article is a kind of adjective that serves to identify which noun is being referred to. Common articles include "a," "an," and "the."


Capitals (Definition)
 Capitals

 A capital is a large (upper-case) alphabetic letter.


Clauses (Definition)
 Clauses

 A clause is a structural part of a sentence. A clause contains a subject and a predicate.


Collective subjects (Definition)
 Collective subjects

 A collective subject is a noun forming a group or collection. Example collective subjects include "crowd," "team," and "staff."


Colons (Definition)
 Colons

 A colon (:) is a punctuating mark used to introduce lists and elaborations. It is also used to separate the parts of a time reference.


Commas (Definition)
 Commas

 The comma (,) is a punctuating mark used for many purposes in English grammar. Its chief role is as a separator.


Comparisons (Definition)
 Comparisons

 A comparison is statement showing the similarities and differences between two or more things.


Comparative modifiers (Definition)
 Comparative modifiers

 A comparative modifier is an adjective or adverb that describes by showing the relationship between two or more things. Example comparative modifiers include "most," "best," and "less."


Complimentary closings (Definition)
 Complimentary closings

 The complimentary closing is the "Yours truly" part of a letter.


Compound adjectives (Definition)
 Compound adjectives

 A compound adjective is two or more adjectives applied to one noun.


Compound nouns (Definition)
 Compound nouns

 Compound nouns are words formed from two or more nouns, such as "father-in-law" and "has-been."


Compound pronouns (Definition)
 Compound pronouns

 A compound pronoun is a phrase that stands for more than one noun. A compound pronoun usually consists of two pronouns or a pronoun and a noun. Example compound pronouns include "she and I" and "Jim and me."


Compound subjects (Definition)
 Compound subjects

 Compound subjects have two or more parts joined by a conjunction (e.g., "x and y") or expressed in a list (e.g., "x, y, and z").


Conjunctions (Definition)
 Conjunctions

 A conjunction is a word that forms a relationship between two other ideas. Example conjunctions include "and," "or," and "but."


Conjunctive adverbs (Definition)
 Conjunctive adverbs

 A conjunctive adverb that both forms a relation and qualifies two other ideas. Example conjunctive adverbs include "therefore," "however," and "moreover."


Consonants (Definition)
 Consonants

 A consonant is a letter which isn't a vowel. The following letters are consonants:

 B, C, D, F, G, H, J, K, L, M, N,

 P, Q, R, S, T, V, W, X, Y, Z


Contractions (Definition)
 Contractions

 A contraction is a kind of abbreviation formed by eliminating some of the letters in a word. The omitted letters are denoted using an apostrophe. Example contractions include "it's," "wasn't," and "she'd."


Dashes (Definition)
 Dashes

 A dash (--) is a kind of punctuation used to both separate and emphasize the separated material.


Defining clauses (Definition)
 Defining clauses

 A defining clause makes the noun to which it refers more specific.  A defining clause may also limit or alter the noun in some way:

  She wore the dress that she wore last week.

  -- "That she wore last week" is a defining clause which specifies which dress.

  All cars parked in the loading zone must be moved immediately.

  -- "[That are] parked in the loading zone" is a defining clause that limits "cars."

 Defining clauses can be introduced with either "that" or "which":

  She wore the dress which she wore last week.

  All cars that are parked in the loading zone must be moved immediately.


Dependent clauses (Definition)
 Dependent clauses

 A dependent clause is an optional part of a sentence that supports the independent clause. The role of the dependent clause is to elaborate on the subject in the independent clause.


Descriptive clauses (Definition)
 Descriptive clauses

 A descriptive clause describes and provides information about the noun to which it refers. Descriptive clauses are isolated from the rest of the sentence with commas. Descriptive clauses are always introduced by "which":

  GEM, which runs on both the Atari ST and IBM PC, provides a graphical interface.

  The reference section, which is located in an appendix, lists several books you may consult for further information.

  The shipment, which arrived only yesterday, was incomplete.


Direct objects (Definition)
 Direct objects

 The direct object is the thing directly acted on by the subject.


Ellipses (Definition)
 Ellipses

 The ellipsis (...) is a kind of punctuation used to mark the omission of words or ideas.


Exclamation marks (Definition)
 Exclamation marks

 The exclamation mark (!) is a kind of punctuation used to add emphasis to a sentence or part of a sentence.


Future tense (Definition)
 Future tense

 Future tense is a verb form that describes an action yet to take place -- i.e., an action that will take place in the future. Example future-tense verbs include "will run," "will be," and "will know."


Gender (Definition)
 Gender

 Gender refers to the sex -- male or female -- of a person referred to in a sentence. Gender is especially important with pronouns, such as "his," "her," "he," and "she."


Hyphens (Definition)
 Hyphens

 A hyphen (-) is a kind of punctuation used to separate words and parts of words. Examples of hyphenation include "semi-professional," "bright-red," and "brother-in-law."


Indefinite pronouns (Definition)
 Indefinite pronouns

 Indefinite pronouns stand for nonspecific nouns:

 everybody

 anyone

 none


Indefinite subjects (Definition)
 Indefinite subjects

 An indefinite subject is a subject formed from a nonspecific pronoun, such as "everybody" and "anyone."


Infinitive verb (Definition)
 Infinitive verb

 An infinitive verb is a phrase formed from the preposition "to" and a verb. Example infinitive verbs include "to walk," "to be," and "to have."


Independent clauses (Definition)
 Independent clauses

 An independent clause is a clause that can stand on its own as a complete sentence. In the following sentence,

  Everyone wanted to leave, but I didn't.

 "Everyone wanted to leave" is the independent clause.


Indirect objects (Definition)
 Indirect objects

 The indirect object is referred to by the subject but not directly acted on by the subject. In the following sentence:

  I told you I wanted a strawberry milkshake.

 "You" is the indirect object.


Initialisms (Definition)
 Initialisms

 An initialism is a kind of abbreviation formed from the first letter of a group of words. Example initialisms include "RCMP," "USA," and "CIA."


Interdependent clauses (Definition)
 Interdependent clauses

 Interdependent clauses are two or more dependent clauses that rely on each other to form a complete thought.


Introductory phrases (Definition)
 Introductory phrases

 An introductory phrase introduces the main part of a sentence.

  In spite of this, he amassed a considerable fortune.

  -- "In spite of this" is the introductory phrase


Italics (Definition)
 Italics

 Italics are a typographical mark used to emphasize or set off words. The are also used to denote titles of major works.


Letter salutations (Definition)
 Letter salutations

 The salutation is the "Dear ..." part of a letter.


Lists (Definition)
 Lists

 A list is an enumeration of a set of things:

  Three people attended: Mary, John, and Leslie.


Modifiers (Definition)
 Modifiers

 A modifier is a word that changes or qualifies another word. Adjectives and adverbs are modifiers.


Nominative case (Definition)
 Nominative case

 The nominative case is a form of pronoun used to refer to the person speaking.

  I wanted to see you.

  -- "I" is the nominative-case pronoun.


Nouns (Definition)
 Nouns

 A noun is a word for a person, place, or thing. Example nouns include "car," "Sam," and "neighborhood."


Objects (Definition)
 Objects

 The object is the thing acted on by the subject:

  Jill sent me the report.

  -- "Me" is the object.


Organized writing (Definition)
 Organized writing

 Organized writing is the method of presenting ideas to the reader in a logical, consistent, and expected way.


Paragraphs (Definition)
 Paragraphs

 A paragraph is a collection of one or more sentences all devoted to the presentation of a single idea.


Parentheses (Definition)
 Parentheses

 Parentheses -- ( ) -- are a form of punctuation used to isolate some words from the surrounding words:

  The letter (which I received only yesterday) contained her resignation.


Passive verbs (Definition)
 Passive verbs

 A passive verb is a word that describes a condition or state of being. Example passive verbs include "is," "are," and "be."


Passive voice (Definition)
 Passive voice

 The passive voice is a style of writing that uses indirect subjects and passive verbs.


Past tense (Definition)
 Past tense

 The past tense is a form of verb that describes action occurring in a previous time. Example past-tense verbs include "ran," "had," and "did."


Periods (Definition)
 Periods

 The period (.) is a kind of punctuation used to end sentences and mark some kinds of abbreviation.


Phrases (Definition)
 Phrases

 A phrase is a collection of words that modifies or connects. A phrase contains neither a subject nor a verb.


Plurals (Definition)
 Plurals

 Plural: more than one.


Plural Nouns (Definition)
 Plural Nouns

 A plural noun represents two or more things:

 cars

 people

 feet


Plural pronouns (Definition)
 Plural pronouns

 A plural pronoun stands for a plural noun:

 they

 them

 us


Possessives (Definition)
 Possessives

 A possessive is word describing possession or ownership.


Possessive nouns (Definition)
 Possessive nouns

 A possessive noun is a word that refers to a thing that possesses or owns something. Example possessive nouns include "Vicki's," "dog's," and "Canada's."


Possessive pronouns (Definition)
 Possessive pronouns

 A possessive pronoun is a word that stands for a noun which owns or possesses. Example possessive pronouns include "my," "hers," and "its."


Predicates (Definition)
 Predicates

 A predicate expresses action about or the condition of the subject of a sentence or clause. The predicate is the verb or verb phrase which connects the subject to the object.


Prefix (Definition)
 Prefix

 A prefix is a small set of letters joined to the front of a word. Example prefixes include "pre," "semi," and "un."


Prepositions (Definition)
 Prepositions

 Prepositions link the object of a sentence or clause to the noun or verb named before it. The preposition defines the relationship between a noun or verb and an object.

 Common prepositions include "to," "for," and "on."


Present tense (Definition)
 Present tense

 The present tense is a form of verb that describes an action occurring now. Example present-tense verbs include "run," "is," and "have."


Pronouns (Definition)
 Pronouns

 A pronoun is a word that stands for a noun. Example pronouns include "I," "her," and "it."


Pronoun case (Definition)
 Pronoun case

 Pronoun case refers to the different forms a pronoun can take based on its role. There are three pronoun cases: nominative, objective, and possessive. The nominative case is used for the person speaking. The objective case is used for the person spoken about. The possessive case is used for the person spoken to.


Proper nouns (Definition)
 Proper nouns

 A proper noun is the name of a person, place, or thing. Example proper nouns include "Sally," "Vancouver," and "Ford Fairlane."


Punctuation (Definition)
 Punctuation

 Punctuation is the set of marks used to both separate and join the structural parts of a sentence.


Question marks (Definition)
 Question marks

 The question mark (?) is a kind of punctuation used to denote a sentence as a question.


Quotation Marks (Definition)
 Quotation Marks

 The quotation mark (") is a kind of punctuation used to indicate words that were written or spoken by someone.


Quotes (Definition)
 Quotes

 A quote or quotation is a collection of words written or spoken by someone. Quotes are surrounded by quotation marks.


Semicolons (Definition)
 Semicolons

 The semicolon (;) is a kind of punctuation used to separate two independent clauses in a sentence. The semicolon acts like a weak period.


Sentences (Definition)
 Sentences

 A sentence is a collection of words containing a subject, predicate, and object. A sentence expresses a single idea.


Singular (Definition)
 Singular

 Singular: one, single.


Slashes (Definition)
 Slashes

 A slash (/) is a kind of punctuation used to indicate alternatives, as in "and/or."


Subjects (Definition)
 Subjects

 The subject is the thing about which a sentence or clause is written.


Suffix (Definition)
 Suffix

 A suffix is a collection of characters joined to the end of a word. Example suffixes include "ment," "ing," and "ful."


Superlative modifiers (Definition)
 Superlative modifiers

 A superlative modifier indicates which of several things exhibits the greatest degree of some characteristic. Example superlative modifiers include "most," "least," and "best."


Syllables (Definition)
 Syllables

 A syllable is a part of a word. A syllable forms one step in the rhythm of pronunciation.


Titles (Definition)
 Titles

 A title is the name given to a person (e.g., Dr. Smith) or a work (e.g., The Grapes of Wrath.


Verbs (Definition)
 Verbs

 A verb is a word that describes an action or a condition. Example verbs include "run," "is," and "saw."


Verb tense (Definition)
 Verb tense

 Verb tense describes the changes made to a verb to indicate an action occurring over time. There are three basic tenses in English:

  Past tense (e.g., ran, was, had)

  Present tense (e.g., run, am, have)

  Future tense (e.g., will run, will be, will have)


Verb "to be" (Definition)
 Verb "to be"

 The verb "to be" assigns a condition to the subject. Forms of the verb "to be" are: "is,"  "are,"  "was,"  "were,"  "being," and "been."


Vowel (Definition)
 Vowel

 A vowel is a letter which isn't a consonant. The following letters are vowels:

 A, E, I, O, U

 'Y' is sometimes treated as a vowel in words like "quickly" and "rhythm."


Wordiness (Definition)
 Wordiness

 Wordiness is the overuse of words -- using two words where one will do, for example.


 Mechanics of writing

 The "mechanics of writing" refers to the presentation of facts in writing. A related topic is writing style.

 Capitalization:  The use of capital letters over small letters.  Correct usage is often confusing, particularly when capital letters are used within a sentence.

 Abbreviations:  Shortened forms of words or word groups. Examples: "e.g.," "Mr.,", "FBI."

 Dates and times: The correct ways to express dates and times.

 Numbers:  Should you write "10" or "ten?" What about numbers that appear at the beginning of a sentence?

 Titles:  Names of works, such as books, articles, films, and songs.

 Lists:  Expressing lists or series of items.

 Hyphenation:  How to join words with hyphens,  and how to split a long word at the end of a line.


 Abbreviations

 Abbreviations are convenient shortcuts. Abbreviations are appropriate where brevity is desirable, such as classified advertising, tables and charts, and informal letters. Use abbreviations sparingly, since they may obscure the meaning.

 Abbreviations can be used for

 Degrees and titles:  Mr., Dr.

 Units of measure:  ft, C

 Names of organizations:  NBC, ABL

 Time and date references:  a.m., B.C.

 Common Latin phrases:  vs., e.g.

 Abbreviations can be plural  (Drs., ICBMs) and possessive  (FBI's, VP's).


Acronyms
 Abbreviations: Acronyms

 Acronyms are abbreviations  formed from the first letter (or few letters) of a collection of words. Unlike initialisms,  acronyms are pronounced as words:

 SALT 	Strategic Arms Limitation Treaty

 MADD 	Mothers Against Drunk Driving

 DOS 	Disk Operating System

 GEM 	Graphical Environment Manager

 The letters in acronyms are not normally separated by periods.

 In some cases, more than one letter may be extracted from a word to form an acronym. Some words may not be included in the acronym:

 RADAR 	RAdio Detection And Ranging

 GREP 	Globally search for Regular Expressions and Print

 See also:

 Abbreviations

 Initialisms

 Contractions


Contraction abbreviations
 Abbreviations: Contractions

 Contractions are a kind of abbreviation. Contractions are words shortened by omitting letters. An apostrophe  is used to show that some of the letters are omitted. Common contractions include:

 cannot 	can't

 would not 	wouldn't

 will not 	won't

 of the clock 	o'clock

 let us 	let's

 I have 	I've

 she would 	she'd

 he will 	he'll

 she is 	she's

 it is 	it's

 Contractions are appropriate only in informal writing.

 See also:

 It's vs. its

 Abbreviations

 Acronyms

 Initialisms


 Abbreviating time and date references

 The abbreviations for morning and afternoon can be written "A.M." and "P.M." or "a.m." and "p.m." Note the placement of periods:

 9:45 A.M.

 7:15 p.m.

 three thirty P.M.

 The abbreviation B.C. (Before Christ) always follows a year or century to which it refers:

 400 B.C.

 the fifth century B.C.

 The abbreviation A.D. (Anno Domini, the year of our Lord) precedes specific years but follows centuries:

 A.D. 1976

 the 20th century A.D.

 See also:

 Abbreviations

 Dates and times


Initialisms
 Abbreviations: Initialisms

 Initialisms are abbreviations formed from the first letters of a collection of words. Unlike acronyms, initialisms are pronounced by reciting each letter individually:

 ICBM 	Inter-Continental Ballistic Missile

 RCMP 	Royal Canadian Mounted Police

 FCC 	Federal Communications Commission

 CPU 	Central Processing Unit

 The letters in commonly used initialisms are normally not separated by periods.  However, initialisms introduced in a written work usually are separated by periods:

  They are under investigation by the FBI.

  Last month, our cost to complete was fifty thousand dollars. This month, our C.T.C. is sixty thousand.

 See also:

 Abbreviations

 Acronyms


 Abbreviations of Latin phrases

 Several Latin words and phrases  are commonly abbreviated.  These are shown in the following chart. Note the placement of periods:

 c. 	-- about (in reference to dates)

 ca. 	-- about (in reference to dates)

 cf. 	-- compare, compare with

 e.g. 	-- for example

 et al 	-- and others (people)

 etc. 	-- and so on

 ibid. 	-- in the same place as the preceding reference

 i.e. 	-- that is, in other words

 loc. cit. 	-- in the place cited

 N.B. 	-- note well

 op. cit. 	 -- in the work cited

 q.v. 	-- see also

 viz. 	-- that is

 vs. 	-- versus, opposed to, against, compared with

 See also:

 Abbreviations


 Abbreviations for measures

 Abbreviations  for units of measure are written in small letters and are terminated with a period.

 Abbreviations for measures are usually written the same way for singular  and plural  units. The abbreviation for "pound" is the only exception:

 feet: 	1 ft. 	20 ft.

 gallons: 	1 gal. 	20 gal.

 hours: 	1 hr. 	20 hr.

 inches: 	1 in. 	20 in.

 kilometers: 	1 km. 	20 km.

 litres: 	1 l. 	20 l.

 miles: 	1 mi. 	20 mi.

 minutes: 	1 min. 	20 min.

 months: 	1 mo. 	20 mo.

 pounds: 	1 lb. 	20 lbs.

 seconds: 	1 sec. 	20 sec.

 years: 	1 yr. 	20 yr.

 A shorthand notation exists for inches and feet:

 inches: 	1" 	20"

 feet: 	1' 	20'

 A similar notation is sometimes used for minutes and seconds:

 minutes: 	1' 	20'

 seconds: 	1" 	20"

 See also:

 Abbreviations


 Abbreviating organization names

 Abbreviations  for organizations, companies, and institutions are usually initialisms. They are normally written without periods:

 NBC

 NFL

 RCMP

 UN

 UNESCO

 See also:

 Abbreviations

 Initialisms

 Acronyms


 Plural abbreviations

 The plural  forms of abbreviations can be written in two ways: followed by "s" or followed by "'s." Using the "s" form may avoid confusion, since the "'s" form is also used for possessive abbreviations:

 ICBMs 	or 	ICBM's

 IOUs 	or 	IOU's

 CPUs 	or 	CPU's

 D.A.s 	or 	D.A.'s

 Personal titles have special plural abbreviations:

 Dr. 	Drs.

 Mr. 	Messrs.

 Mrs. 	Mmes.

 Ms. 	Ms.

 Rev. 	Revs.

 See also:

 Abbreviations

 Possessive abbreviations

 Abbreviating degrees and titles


 Possessive abbreviations

 The possessive  forms of abbreviations are normally written like other possessive nouns:  they are followed by "'s":

 NFL's rules

 NATO's policies

 FBI's most-wanted list

 See also:

 Abbreviations

 Initialisms

 Acronyms

 Possessive nouns


 Abbreviating degrees and titles

 Titles are always abbreviated  when they precede a person's name:

 Mr. Jones

 Mrs. Jones

 Ms. Jones

 Dr. Jones

 Rev. Jones

 Degrees are always abbreviated when the follow a person's name. The degree is separated from the name by a comma.  Other titles, such as "Mr." and "Mrs.," are omitted when a degree is written:

 Fred Jones, Ph.D.

 Katherine Jones, M.D.

 Jasper Jones, B.A.

 Degrees and titles not associated with a named person are spelled out:

  I called the doctor, but she was out.

  He asked me to refer to him as "mister."

  I received my Doctor of Philosophy degree in 1967.

 See also:

 Abbreviations

 Plural abbreviations


 Capitalization

 Always capitalize the first word of a sentence.

 Always capitalize the first word of a quoted sentence,  but only if the sentence  is quoted  in its entirety:

  The announcement proclaimed, "We have revolutionized photography."

  The company announced they had "revolutionized" photography.

  She said, "If John doesn't go, I won't go."

  She said she wouldn't go if John doesn't go.

 The word following a colon is normally not capitalized. It is capitalized, however, if it begins a complete sentence:

  His meal was simple: rice, bread, and water.

  Three people are coming: Norm, Beth, and Harold.

  -- Capitalized only because the word following the colon  is a proper noun

  Restoring files: Enter the "restore" command to retrieve saved files.

  Restoring files: "restore" command.

 Capitalize the first letter of each item in an enumerated list:

  To recover from serious errors
1. Insert the backup floppy disk in drive A:
2. Reboot

 Capitalize the first letter of proper nouns:

 John Smith 	Tuesday 	General Motors

 California 	North Pole 	Honda Accord

 Republican Party 	Geiger counter 	Microsoft

 Capitalize the first letter of an adjective formed from a proper noun:

 American

 Napoleonic

 English

 Capitalize letters used as words:

 C-sharp 	U-bolt 	T-bar

 X-ray 	G-string 	A-bomb

 Capitalize titles of works:

 Poltergeist

 Capitalize words that are substitutes for the names of specific individuals. Don't capitalize words that are terms for relationships:

  This is the spot where Father and I went fishing.

  This is the spot where my father and I went fishing.

  I'll have to check with Skipper first.

  I was given the shirt by Aunt Karen.

  My aunt gave me the shirt.

 See also:

 Lists

 Titles of works


 Dates and times

 The preferred way to write a date is "25 July 1991." The month separates the two sets of numbers, making commas  unnecessary.

 The year may be omitted when it is obvious from the context or is the current year: 25 July.

 Alternatively, dates may be written "July 25, 1991."

 Times are usually written with the "hour:minute" notation, as in "10:30." The time can be followed by the abbreviation "A.M." or "P.M." (or "a.m." or "p.m.") to remove ambiguity where necessary:

  The call was placed at 10:30 p.m.

  Our next meeting will be held on 10 September 1991 at 2:30.

  -- "P.M." is implied by the context.

 Times on the hour or half-hour can be spelled out. In this case, don't use A.M. or P.M. -- indicate morning or evening explicitly:

 ten thirty in the evening

 nine o'clock in the morning

 4:57 p.m.

 Decades can be written as figures or spelled out, optionally with an apostrophe  to show the omission of the century:

 the 60s

 the sixties

 the 1960s

 the 60's

 the '60s

 Centuries can also be written as figures or spelled out:

 the early 1900s

 the late 20th century

 the late twentieth century

 Don't precede month names with "the month of," unless there is ambiguity between a month name and another word in the sentence:

  Wanda's birthday is in April.

  April's birthday is in the month of April.

 See also:

 Abbreviating dates and times


 Hyphenating words

 A hyphen  is used to separate words and parts of words.  Related topics:

 Hyphenating compound adjectives: How to tell whether to write "the bright red firetruck" or "the bright-red firetruck."

 Hyphenating adverbs and adjectives: How to tell whether to write "a brightly colored dress" or "a brightly-colored dress."

 Hyphenating compound nouns: How to tell whether to write "brother in law" or "brother-in-law."

 Hyphenating numbers: How to tell whether to write "twenty two" or "twenty-two."

 Hyphenating prefixes: How to tell whether to write "self indulgent" or "self-indulgent."

 Breaking long words at the end of a line: How to tell whether to write "mec-hanics" or "mech-anics."


 Hyphenating adverbs and adjectives

 Don't hyphenate adverbs that modify adjectives.

 Incorrect:

 a fast-moving train

 a brightly-colored dress

 a hastily-prepared memo

 Correct:

 a fast moving train

 a brightly colored dress

 a hastily prepared memo

 See also:

 Hyphenation

 Hyphenating compound adjectives

 Adverbs

 Adjectives


 Hyphenating compound adjectives

 The first adjective  in a compound adjective  modifies the second.

 Hyphenate  two or more adjectives  that precede a noun.  Don't hyphenate adjectives  that follow a noun:

 the bright-red firetruck

 the firetruck that is bright red

 a forward-looking study

 a study that is forward looking

 a two-month-old baby

 a baby that is two months old

 a forty-hour week

 a week forty hours long

 The last part of a compound adjective common to two or more compound adjectives  that modify the same noun  can be suspended with a hyphen:

 the late- to middle-Renaissance period

 middle- and senior-level management

 red- and green-colored paper

 See also:

 Hyphenation

 Hyphenating adverbs and adjectives


 Hyphenating compound nouns

 Hyphens  are used to separate compound nouns. Because the English language is evolving, new compounds are being formed constantly. Consult a dictionary to determine the correct form.

 See also:

 Hyphenation


 Hyphenation: Breaking long words

 When a word must be broken at the end of a line, use a hyphen  to show the word is continued. Words are always broken at syllable boundaries, so single-syllable words are never broken. Use a dictionary to determine where the syllables  occur.

 See also:

 Hyphenation


 Hyphenating numbers

 Use a hyphen  to separate fractions and two-word spelled-out numbers under one hundred:

 five hundred forty-seven

 one-half

 twenty-two

 one and three-fifths

 See also:

 Numbers


 Hyphenating prefixes

 The prefixes "self," "quasi," and "ex" are usually separated from the stem word with hyphens:

 self-indulgent

 quasi-intelligent

 ex-wife

 Use a hyphen  when a prefix precedes a capitalized  word:

 pro-Communist

 anti-Leftist

 trans-Atlantic

 Use a hyphen  when a prefix precedes a number:

 pre-1970s

 post-60s

 Use a hyphen  when a prefix results in a doubled vowel:

 co-operate

 cohabitate

 pre-empt

 precooked

 anti-inflationary

 antidepressant

 See also:

 Capitalization

 Numbers


 Lists

 Lists  can take several forms. The simplest list  is a series of items, separated by commas:

  We have three animals in our little "zoo": a dog, a cat, and a mouse.

 This type of list  is usually introduced by a colon  or dash.

 Vertical lists  indicate each item with a number or mark:

 We have three animals in our little "zoo":
1. a dog;
2. a cat;
3. a mouse.

 We have three animals in our little "zoo" --
- a dog;
- a cat;
- a mouse.

 If the list  items are complete sentences, punctuate  the introduction as a sentence  as well:

 We have three animals in our little "zoo."
1. Rover, the dog, loves to play catch outside.
2. Fluffy, the cat, sleeps most of the time.
3. Squeaky, the mouse, loves to eat cheese.

 For lists  of people including a pronoun,  place the pronoun  at the end of the list:

  Frank, Linda, and I went to school together.


 Numbers

 In general writing, spell out numbers with fewer than two words. Write other numbers as figures:

 five

 nineteen

 123

 twenty-six

 three million

 Numbers expressed as figures should not start a sentence. Rewrite the sentence  or spell the number out.

   1,200 pencil sharpeners have been sold in the past two days.

   In the past two days, 1,200 pencil sharpeners have been sold.

   Twelve hundred pencil sharpeners have been sold in the past two days.

 Use a hyphen  to separate spelled-out two-word numbers under 100, even when they are part of a larger number:

 twenty-eight

 thirty-four thousand

 four thousand ninety-two

 Don't use "and" in spelled-out numbers unless the smallest part of the number is less than ten:

  one hundred twenty-five

  one hundred and six

  four thousand three hundred thirty one

  four thousand three hundred and five

 Use "one" instead of "a" in spelled-out numbers:

  one hundred boats

  one million hamburgers

 See also:

 Hyphenating numbers


 Titles

 Capitalize  the titles of works using the following rules:

 1. Capitalize  the first letter of the first word.

 2. Capitalize  all other words in the title except articles , conjunctions, and prepositions.

 Examples:

  A Boy and a Dream

  The Tale of the Lonesome Moose

  Platinum and other Precious Metals

 Italicize  or underline the names of books (but not chapters), magazines (but not magazine articles), newspapers, comic strips, films, plays, paintings, statues, record albums (but not songs), large musical works such as operas and symphonies, television shows, and names of ships and other craft.

 Place in quotation marks  the names of book chapters, magazine articles, poems, essays, unpublished manuscripts, songs, and episodes of television shows.

 Treat the names of man-made objects such as buildings and parks as proper nouns.

 See also:

 Capitalization


 Plurals

 Plural nouns  refer to more than one thing.

 A noun  is plural  even if it is only fractionally greater than one:

 one-and-a-half pies

 The plural  of most nouns is formed by adding the suffix  "s." Nouns ending in "s," "z," "x," "ch," or "sh" are made plural  by adding the suffix  "es":

 dog 	dogs

 horse 	horses

 thought 	thoughts

 pickle 	pickles

 waltz 	waltzes

 match 	matches

 Make nouns  ending in "y" plural  by changing the "y" to "ies," unless the "y" was preceded by a vowel,  in which case use just the suffix  "s":

 duty 	duties

 frailty 	frailties

 key 	keys

 quality 	qualities

 play 	plays

 Nouns  ending in "o" are often made plural  by adding the suffix  "es" (there are exceptions, though -- check the dictionary to be sure):

 echo 	echoes

 tomato 	tomatoes

 potato 	potatoes

 zero 	zeroes or zeros

 radio 	radios

 Certain nouns  are made plural  by adding the suffix  "en":

 ox 	oxen

 brother 	bretheren

 child 	children

 Some nouns  are made plural by changing their vowels:

 foot 	feet

 goose 	geese

 louse 	lice

 man 	men

 tooth 	teeth

 woman 	women

 The names of hunted animals have the same forms in the singular  and plural:

 quail

 deer

 moose

 fish

 trout

 salmon

 Nouns  of foreign origin have various exceptional plural  forms:

 antenna 	antennae

 bacterium 	bacteria

 cactus 	cacti

 cello 	celli

 concerto 	concerti

 criterion 	criteria

 curriculum 	curricula

 datum 	data

 focus 	foci

 formula 	formulae

 larva 	larvae

 medium 	media

 memorandum 	memoranda

 phenomenon 	phenomena

 referendum 	referenda

 syllabus 	syllabi

 vertebra 	vertebrae

 virtuoso 	virtuosi

 To make compound nouns plural,  make the most significant part plural  using the rules listed above (the most significant part is the part described by the rest of the compound):

 arm-chairs

 foot-stools

 attorneys-general

 major-generals

 brothers-in-law

 hangers-on

 maids-of-honor

 See also:

 Nouns

 Hyphenating compound nouns


 Possessives

 Possessive nouns  own or possess. What they possess can be other nouns  ("the car's windshield") or qualities ("the mind's eye," "a moment's notice").

 The quality of possession is usually assigned to a noun  using the apostrophe.

 For singular nouns, form the possessive  by adding the suffix  "'s." This applies whether the singular noun  ends in "s" or not:

 Jerry's truck

 at year's end

 Gus's clothing

 the business's concerns

 the cat's pyjamas

 There are some exceptions to this rule:

 Achilles' heel

 Jesus' word

 goodness' sake

 The suffix  "'s" can be used even if the noun  is an inanimate object.

 the car's radiator

 the house's roof

 my computer's keyboard

 Some people prefer to denote possession of inanimate objects using "of":

 the radiator of the car

 the roof of the house

 the keyboard of my computer

 For plural nouns,  form the possessive  by adding a single apostrophe  as a suffix:

 the girls' picnic

 secretaries' day

 the boys' coats

 the people's choice

 the men's room

 When two or more nouns  jointly possess something, apply the possessive  form to the last noun  only:

 John and Mary's house

 Barnes and Noble's products

 Thomas and Son's Hardware

 When two or more nouns individually possess something similar, apply the possessive  form to all nouns:

 John's and Mary's birth certificates

 When a compound noun  possesses, place the "'s" at the end:

 my mother-in-law's house

 the attorney-general's office

 Use "of" to denote possession when the name of the possessor is long or awkward.

 Awkward:

 the First National Bank of New York's assets

 Joe's brother's doctor's cousin

 the maids-of-honor's dresses

 my brothers-in-law's homes

 Better:

 the assets of the First National Bank of New York

 the cousin of the doctor of Joe's brother

 the dresses of the maids-of-honor

 the homes of my brothers-in-law

 See also:

 Nouns

 Possessive pronouns


 Proper nouns

 Proper nouns are the names of specific people, places, and things. Proper nouns  are normally capitalized:

 John Smith

 The United States of America

 the Empire State Building

 Florida

 SupraModem 2400

 See also:

 Nouns

 Capitalization


 Parts of speech

 Each word in a sentence plays a role.

 Adjectives  -- descriptive words that enhance the meanings of nouns:  quick, tall, red, happy.

 Adverbs  -- descriptive words that enhance the meanings of verbs  and adjectives:  happily, quickly, brightly, fast.

 Articles  -- Simple adjectives  that describe "which one": the, a, an.

 Conjunctions  -- words that join one part of a sentence  to another: and, but.

 Interjections  -- words that express emotions: ouch, damn, oh.

 Nouns  -- words for people, places, and things: tree, Denver, idea, John.

 Prepositions  -- words that form relationships between other words and the rest of a sentence: to, for, with, in.

 Pronouns  -- words that stand for nouns:  she, it, his, I.

 Verbs  -- words that describe actions or conditions: run, build, sleep, is.


 Adjectives

 Adjectives are descriptive words. They can make sentences more interesting by adding color and detail. They can make sentences  more exact by qualifying things and actions.

 Adjectives always modify nouns. .

 Comparative adjectives  describe by comparing with something else. Example comparative adjectives include "warmer," "more quickly," and "less difficult."

 Superlative adjectives  describe by comparing with two or more other things. Superlative adjectives state which thing possesses the most or least of some characteristic. Example superlative adjectives are "warmest," "most quickly," and "least difficult."


 Adverbs

 Adverbs modify verbs, adjectives,  or other adverbs.

 Related topics:

 Comparative adverbs  form part of a comparison with one other thing:

 more quickly

 less loudly

 Superlative adverbs  form part of a comparison with two or more other things:

 most quickly

 least loudly

 Split infinitives:  Adverbs inserted between "to" and an infinitive verb .


 Articles

 Articles are simple adjectives .

 Articles always precede nouns,  and identify which noun  is referred to.

 "A" or "an" are indefinite articles. They refer to any noun :

 a house

 an apple

 a possibility

 "The" is a definite article. It refers to one specific noun :

 the house

 the apple

 the possibility

 "A" precedes nouns  that begin with a consonant  sound. "An" precedes nouns  that begin with a vowel sound. Note that the first letter of a noun  need not be a vowel  or consonant for these rules to apply:

 a box

 a unit

 a university

 a union

 an item

 an hour

 an heir

 an honor

 See also:

 Adjectives


 Conjunctions

 A conjunction is a joining word that links related words, phrases,  and clauses.

 Common conjunctions:

 and 	after 	although 	as

 because 	before 	but 	how

 if 	nor 	once 	or

 since 	so 	that 	though

 till 	unless 	until 	what

 when 	where 	whether 	while

 why

 Do not use "and who," "and which," or "and that" in a sentence  unless there is a preceding "who," "which," or "that":

   The man I met yesterday and who gave me his theater tickets called this morning.

   The man who I met yesterday and who gave me his theater tickets called this morning.

 Don't follow "come," "go," or "try" with "and." Use the preposition  "to" instead:

   I'll try and call you next week.

   I'll try to call you next week.

 Always use "or" after "either":

  Either Elaine or Carol will meet you at the airport.

 Always use "nor" after "neither":

  Neither Elaine nor Carol are ready, so I will pick you up at the airport.

 Generally, use "or" after "not." If the items are closely related, substitute "nor" for "or":

  This weather is not fit for skating or swimming.

  This weather is not fit for man nor beast.

  The tornado had not damaged the house or the car.

  He could not rely on friend nor relative.


 Interjections

 Interjections express strong emotions or exclamations:

 oh

 whew

 damn


 Nouns

 Nouns represent objects, such as people, places, and things. Nouns can also represent ideas, such as hunger, emotions, or laws. Nouns for classes of people, places and things are called common nouns. Nouns that are the specific names of people, places, and things are proper nouns.

 Nouns have the quality of number. A noun representing one object (or less than one, in the case of a part) is singular,  while a noun representing more than one is plural.

 For example, "the tree" refers to a single tree, so "tree" is singular. "The top of the tree" refers to part of a single tree, so "top of the tree" is singular.   "The trees" refers to two or more trees, so "trees" is plural.

 Nouns also have the quality of ownership. Nouns having this quality are called possessives.  For example, the noun "John" is possessive  in the sentence,  "We wrapped John's shirt."

 See also:

 Proper nouns

 Plural nouns

 Possessive nouns


 Prepositions

 Prepositions link the object  of a sentence  or clause  to the noun  or verb  named before it.

 A preposition defines the relationship between a noun  or verb  and an object . Prepositions normally appear before the object :

  I gave the book to Joan.

  -- Preposition "to" links object  "Joan" to noun  "book"

  We were surprised by the storm.

  -- Preposition "by" links object  "storm" to verb  "surprised"

 Common prepositions include

 above 	about 	across 	after

 against 	along 	among 	around

 at 	before 	behind 	below

 beneath 	beside 	between 	beyond

 by 	down 	during 	except

 for 	from 	in 	inside

 into 	like 	near 	of

 off 	on 	since 	to

 toward 	through 	under 	until

 up 	upon 	with 	within

 Usually, the object  follows the preposition. A preposition appearing at the end of a sentence sometimes sounds awkward because we expect to find an object:

   This is the present we bought the wrapping paper for.

   We bought the wrapping paper for this present.

 Another danger in placing the preposition at the end of a sentence  lies in separating the preposition from the object  with too many words:

   She gave me the newspaper she had walked over two miles to the store for.

   She gave me the newspaper for which she had walked over two miles to the store.

 Chose the preposition appropriate for the verb and object:

 accompanied by a person

 accompanied with a thing

 accused of a wrong

 accused by a person

 in accordance to a rule

 in accordance with a person

 agree to (or about an idea)

 agree with a person

 correspond to an object

 correspond with a person

 differ from a person or thing

 differ with a person

 part from a person

 part with a thing

 Be careful of suspended prepositions separated by conjunctions . The suspended preposition must be appropriate for each verb :

   I am proud and pleased for you.

  -- Preposition "for" is incorrect with "proud"

   I am proud of and pleased for you.


 Pronouns

 Pronouns are words that stand for and take the place of nouns.

 Related topics:

 Compound pronouns:  How to tell whether to write "he and I" or "he and me."

 Who or whom:  How to tell whether to write "to who I was speaking" or "to whom I was speaking."

 That or which:  How to tell whether to write "the sweater that I wore" or "the sweater which I wore."

 Whose or of-which:  How to tell whether to write "the car whose tires are bald" or "the car of which the tires are bald."

 It's or its:  How to tell whether to write "the cat ate its dinner" or "the cat ate it's dinner."

 You or yourself:  How to tell whether to write "a person like you" or "a person like yourself."

 Pronouns in comparisons:  How to tell whether to write "she likes him as much as I" or "she likes him as much as me."

 Pronouns following 'to be':  How to tell whether to write "It was I who called" or "It was me who called."

 Plural pronouns:  Pronouns that stand for multiple things.

 Pronoun gender:  Pronouns that stand for male or female people.


 Verbs

 Verbs describe actions or states of being. Example verbs are "run," "be," and "look."

 Topics related to verbs:

 Verb tense: Time distinctions between verbs. Examples: "ran," "run," and "will run."

 Subject and verb agreement:  How to tell whether to write "Snowstorms is the leading cause of employee lateness" or "Snowstorms are the leading cause of employee lateness."

 Active and passive verbs: The distinction between verbs that describe action and verbs that describe states of being.

 Split infinitive:  An adverb  inserted between "to" and an infinitive verb  ("to boldly go...")

 Participles:  The "ed" and "ing" verb forms: "walked," "walking," "looked," "looking," "heard," "hearing."


 Pronoun case

 Pronouns  have different forms based on their function within a sentence.  Pronoun case refers to the different forms a pronoun  can take.

 There are three pronoun cases: nominative, objective, and possessive. The nominative case is used for the person speaking. The objective case is used for the person spoken about. The possessive case is used for the person spoken to.

 Nominative 	Objective 	Possessive

 he 	him 	his

 I 	me 	mine, my

 it 	it 	its

 she 	her 	hers

 they 	them 	their, theirs

 we 	us 	our, ours

 who 	whom 	whose

 whoever 	whomever 	whosever

 you 	you 	your, yours

 Use the nominative case when the pronoun  is the subject  of a sentence  or a clause:

  I wrote the letter.

  -- "I" is the subject pronoun.

 Use the possessive case to modify a preceding or following noun:

  My car is in the shop.

  -- "My" is the pronoun

  That car of mine is in the shop.

  -- "Mine" is the pronoun

 Use the objective case when the pronoun  is a direct object, indirect object, or the object  of a preposition:

  Yesterday she told me.

  -- "Me" is the object.

  She told me about what happened.

  -- "Me" is the object.

  It was told to me by her.

  -- "Me" is the object  of the preposition  "to."

 See also:

 Pronouns

 Objects


 Pronouns following comparisons

 Sentences involving comparisons  often contain implied verbs.  The missing verbs sometimes make it difficult to tell which pronoun case is correct. For example, which of the following sentences  is correct?

  He can't type as quickly as I.

  He can't type as quickly as me.

 To determine which is correct, fill in the implied verbs:

   He can't type as quickly as I can.

   He can't type as quickly as me can.

 The first sentence  is clearly correct. More examples follow.

   She is taller than him.

   She is taller than he (is).

   We have a smaller yard than them.

   We have a smaller yard than they (do).

   I want a hat like him.

   I want a hat like his.

 Sometimes leaving the verb  implied makes a sentence  ambiguous, as in the following example:

   She likes him better than me.

 This sentence  can be interpreted in two ways:

  She likes him better than I do.

  She likes him more than she likes me.

 See also:

 Pronouns

 Pronoun case


 Compound pronouns

 Compound pronouns involve a pronoun  and a noun  or another pronoun.

 Unlike nouns,  the case of pronouns changes based on their function. This is especially confusing with compound pronouns. For example, in the following sentences,  the case of the pronoun  "I" changes to "me":

  Jim and I sat with her.

  Jim and me sat with her.

  She sat with Jim and I.

  She sat with Jim and me.

 To determine which is correct, remove all parts of the compound except the pronoun  in question, then read back the sentence  to make sure it is still correct. Let's try this on the first pair of example sentences:

   I sat with her.

   Me sat with her.

 "Me sat with her" is clearly wrong, and "I sat with her" is correct. Now let's check the second pair of sentences:

   She sat with I.

   She sat with me.

 The correct case is "me," not "I."

 See also:

 Pronouns

 Pronoun case


 It's or its

 One of the most confusing aspects of English for many people is the distinction between "its" and "it's."

 "It's" (with the apostrophe ) is a contraction  for "it is":

  It's a beautiful day.

  It's hard to tell what you're thinking.

  I looked in the cupboard but it's not there.

 "Its" (without the apostrophe ) is the possessive  form of the pronoun  "it":

  The dog had chewed through its leash.

  We admired both the finish of the piano and its rich tone.

  The award was presented to the club and its president.

 One way to remember the distinction is to associate "its" with other possessive pronouns ending in "s": his, hers, and theirs.

 See also:

 Pronouns

 Possessive pronouns

 Contractions


 Plural pronouns

 Pronouns,  like nouns, have singular  and plural  forms. Plural pronouns  take the place of plural nouns.  Singular pronouns  take the place of singular nouns.

   The mob of customers shouted their objections.

  -- The plural pronoun "their" refers to the singular  collective noun  "mob."

   The mob of customers shouted its objections.

   The customers shouted their objections.

 Pronoun  agreement is especially confusing when indefinite pronouns such as "everyone," "everybody," "anyone," and "anybody" are used.

 Treat "everyone" and "everybody" as plural pronouns:

  Does everyone have their tickets ready?

  I told everybody to stay in their seats.

 Singular indefinite pronouns,  such as "anyone," "anybody," "a person," "someone," and "somebody" present problems because there are no singular  gender-indefinite personal pronouns in English.

 See also:

 Pronoun gender


 Possessive pronouns

 Like possessive nouns,  a possessive pronoun owns or possesses.  The manner in which possession is indicated varies with the type of pronoun:  personal or indefinite.

 Personal pronouns (e.g., I, he, and her) change case  to show possession:

 I: my or mine

 us: our or ours

 you: your or yours

 he: his

 she: hers

 it: its

 them: their

 The possessive form of the pronoun "it" (its) is often mistakenly written "it's." It's" is a contraction  for "it is."

 Indefinite pronouns  are made possessive by adding "'s":

  To everyone's surprise, he arrived on time.

  Please let me know if anyone's schedule changes.

 When an indefinite pronoun followed by "else" is made possessive, apply the "'s" to the "else":

  He hasn't sold anyone else's products in his store for ten years.

  Margaret's clothes are unpacked, but everyone else's are still in the suitcases.

 See also:

 Pronouns

 It's or its


Pronouns: You or yourself
 You or yourself

 Use pronouns  ending in "self" only when the pronoun  refers to the subject:

  He brings shame on himself.

  -- "He" is the subject;  "himself" refers to "he."

  His deeds bring shame on him.

  -- "Deeds" is the subject.

  His generosity speaks for itself.

  -- "Generosity" is the subject; "itself" refers to "generosity."

 Don't use the "self" form of pronouns  after a comparison.

   A good worker like yourself is an inspiration to all employees.

   A good worker like you is an inspiration to all employees.

 See also:

 Pronouns


 That or which

 Use "which" with either the defining clause or the descriptive clause.

 Use "that" only with a defining clause.

 Examples:

  The movie that I saw last night was enjoyable.

  -- "That I saw last night" is a defining clause; "which I saw last night" could also be used here.

  The movie, which I saw last night, was enjoyable.

  -- "Which I saw last night" is a descriptive clause.

  She ate the apple which was in the bowl.

  -- "Which was in the bowl" is a defining clause; it defines which specific apple.

  She ate the apple, which was in the bowl.

  -- "Which was in the bowl" is a descriptive clause; it describes the location of the apple but doesn't specify which apple. Note the use of the comma.

 See also:

 Pronouns

 Clauses


Pronouns following 'to be'
 Pronouns following "to be"

 When a pronoun  follows a form of the verb "to be," use the nominative case ("I," "you," "she," "he," "it," "we," "they," and "who").

   It was me who called yesterday.

   It was I who called yesterday.

   This is her.

   This is she.

 See also:

 Pronouns

 Active and passive verbs

 Pronoun case


Whose or 'of which'
 Whose or "of which"

 "Whose" can be used to avoid awkward "of which" references:

  Our club, of which the membership is 350, is devoted to dog breeding.

 Better:

  Our club, whose membership is 350, is devoted to dog breeding.

 "Whose" can also be used in reference to inanimate objects:

  The dandelion, whose cheerful yellow flower brightens many lawns in spring, is considered a weed.


 Who or whom

 Use "who" when the pronoun is the subject of a verb:

  People who live in glass houses shouldn't throw stones.

  -- "Who" is the subject  of the verb "live."

 Use "whom" when the pronoun is the object of a verb  or the object  of a preposition:

  She asked to whom I was referring.

  -- "Whom" is the object  of the preposition  "to."

 See also:

 Pronouns

 Verbs

 Objects


 Pronoun gender

 Pronouns  in English are distinguished based on the gender  of the person to which the pronoun  refers:

  Bill sprained his ankle.

  -- "His" is the male pronoun

  Mary lost her book.

  -- "Her" is the female pronoun

 English does not have a singular gender -independent personal pronoun. Traditionally, the singular pronoun "he" has been used to refer to both sexes, but this is now regarded as sexist:

   Anyone who wants lunch must present his ticket at the counter.

 This problem can be removed in two ways.

 The first method is to use "he or she" or "he/she" in place of "he":

   Anyone who wants lunch must present his or her ticket at the counter.

 The second method is to use a plural indefinite pronoun in place of the singular:

   All people who want lunch must present their tickets at the counter.

 The third method is to rewrite the sentence to eliminate indefinite pronouns  entirely:

   If you want lunch, present your ticket at the counter.

 Note that the following sentence is incorrect, because the plural pronoun  "their" is inconsistent with the singular indefinite pronoun "everyone":

   Everyone who wants lunch must present their tickets at the counter.

 When using pronouns  to stand for compound subjects  whose individual parts are of mixed gender,  use at least one pronoun  of each gender:

  Either Jim or Helen will bring his car or her car.

  Either Jim will bring his car or Helen will bring hers.

 See also:

 Pronouns


 Punctuation

 Punctuation is the marks and symbols we use to group and separate ideas and change meaning in a sentence:

 , --   The comma

 . --   The period

 ; --   The semicolon

 ' --   The apostrophe

 " --   The quotation mark

 ? --   The question mark

 ! --   The exclamation mark

 : --   The colon

 -- --  The dash

 ( ) -- Parentheses

 ... -- The Ellipsis

 / --   The slash


 Apostrophes

 The apostrophe has two main uses: forming possessive nouns, and taking the place of omitted letters in contractions.

 One use of the apostrophe that often causes confusion is the distinction between it's and its.

 See also:

 Possessive nouns

 Contractions

 It's vs. its


 Colons

 The colon introduces lists,  elaborations of ideas, and quotations.  It is also used in expressing times and in letter salutations.

 The colon is always preceded by an independent clause  and never by a dependent clause.

   You will need to bring: a toothbrush, a bathrobe, and slippers.

   You will need to bring a toothbrush, a bathrobe, and slippers.

   You will need to bring several things: a toothbrush, a bathrobe, and slippers.

   A first-aid kit is essential in: the home, car, and office.

   A first-aid kit is essential in the home, car, and office.

   A first-aid kit is essential in many places: the home, car, and office.

   My boss likes to say that: "When all you have is a hammer, everything looks like a nail."

   My boss likes to say: "When all you have is a hammer, everything looks like a nail."

   My boss likes to say that "When all you have is a hammer, everything looks like a nail."

 Colons can be used to elaborate on a thought. Examples:

  Our choice is clear: We must sell the division.

  She handed me the letter from Jim: It was postmarked Tuesday.

  One word describes how I feel: sorry.

 The word following a colon may or may not be capitalized.

 Typically, the word is capitalized if it is the beginning of an independent clause, and otherwise not (see the preceding examples).

 See also:

 Lists

 Expressing times

 Quotation marks


 Commas

 Use commas

 to separate items in a series (e.g., "one, two, and three");

 to separate series of adjectives (e.g., "the bright, red ruby");

 to separate independent clauses joined by conjunctions (e.g., "I wrote the letter, but I'm not proud of it");

 to separate dependent clauses from independent clauses (e.g., "Although I asked her several times, she refused to reply");

 to isolate introductory phrases (e.g., "The battle lost, he resigned");

 to isolate descriptive clauses (e.g., "The concert, which was sold out, was excellent");

 to isolate conjunctive adverbs (e.g., "Thus, the contract was renegotiated");

 to isolate parenthetical phrases (e.g., "He tried, but not very hard, to raise the funds");

 to join interdependent clauses (e.g., "The faster the printer, the higher the cost");

 to substitute for omitted words (e.g., "Bill ate seven cobs; John, six");

 to prevent confusion and ambiguity (e.g., "If you want to, go to Jane's house")

 See also:

 Quotation marks


 Comma: Separating adjectives

 Use commas to separate two or more adjectives that would otherwise be ambiguous or confusing. If the adjectives can be joined with "and" without altering the meaning or seeming awkward, separate them with commas:

  He lifted the heavy, black hammer.

  He doesn't get along with her quick, ambitious nature.

  I still prefer my old manual typewriter.

 Compound adjectives  must be joined by hyphens  to prevent ambiguity.

 See also:

 Commas

 Adjectives

 Hyphenating compound adjectives


 Comma: Preventing ambiguity

 Use a comma wherever necessary to avoid ambiguity,  even if this means breaking other rules.

   Whatever you do do it well.

   Whatever you do, do it well.

   He introduced me to a woman with a pronounced chin named Janet.

   He introduced me to a woman with a pronounced chin, named Janet.

   To John David was a legend.

   To John, David was a legend.

 See also:

 Commas


 Comma: Isolating conjunctive adverbs

 Use commas to isolate conjunctive adverbs :

  I am forced, therefore, to resign.

  Moreover, the quality of the goods has been steadily degrading.

  He did try to make amends, however.

 See also:

 Commas


 Comma: Separating dependent and independent clauses

 Use commas to separate dependent clauses from independent clauses:

  If I work overtime, I will have the document ready.

  Because the nail was lost, the kingdom was lost.

  I will call the airline, if you will pick up the tickets.

 See also:

 Commas

 Dependent clauses

 Independent clauses


 Comma: Isolating descriptive clauses

 Use commas to separate descriptive clauses from the rest of the sentence:

  The meal, which was excellent, was eaten in silence.

  The memo, addressed to all staff, announced the bad news.

  The memo written by John Smith, vice-president of marketing, was distributed to all employees.

 See also:

 Commas

 Descriptive clauses


 Comma: Separating independent clauses

 Use commas to separate two or more independent clauses  which are joined by conjunctions:

  Three houses have been sold, and one is still for sale.

  The memo was written in Fred's usual style, but I understood it anyway.

 If the conjunction  is omitted, a comma-splice error will result, unless the independent clause is short and parallel. Examples of acceptable usage:

  I came, I saw, I conquered.

  I have asked you to improve your quality, I have asked you to show up on time, I have asked you not to take long lunches.

 See also:

 Commas

 Conjunctions

 Comma-splice errors

 Independent clauses


 Comma: Joining interdependent clauses

 Interdependent clauses are two clauses that rely on each other to complete a thought. Each interdependent clause is usually a dependent clause.

 Use a comma to join two interdependent clauses:

  The longer he stayed, the more angry he got.

  The harder I try, the less I accomplish.

  The sharper the grape, the sweeter the wine.

 See also:

 Commas

 Clauses


 Comma: Isolating introductory phrases

 Use a comma to separate introductory phrases from the main part of a sentence:

  For example, the penguin lives in Antarctica.

  Having thought the matter over, I have decided to accept your offer.

  In December, the company's assets were frozen.

  In this case, insert a new floppy diskette in the drive.

 See also:

 Commas

 Phrases


 Comma: Separating items in a series

 Use commas to separate three or more items in a series. Place the comma after each item, even after the item that precedes the final conjunction:

  Three people came: Terry, Tad, and Todd.

  Computers are widely used for desktop publishing, word processing, and spreadsheet applications.

  Two people came: Terry and Todd.

  -- Note that no comma is used.

 See also:

 Commas

 Conjunctions


 Comma: Substituting for omitted words

 Use commas in place of omitted words. This is frequently done to eliminate repetition:

  Jim sold three boxes; Sandy, twelve; Lucy, eight; and Kim, five.

  The first report was mediocre, the second, good, and the third, excellent.

  In my day, literature was considered essential, mathematics, compulsory, and athletics, a mere pastime.

 See also:

 Commas


 Comma: Isolating parenthetical phrases

 Use commas to separate parenthetical phrases, or asides, from the main part of a sentence:

  The most important, and yet the least interesting, evidence was presented first.

  The penguin, one of my favorite birds, lives in Antarctica.

  Last, but not least, is the award for "best of show."

 See also:

 Commas


 Comma: Splice error

 A comma-splice error results from joining two or more independent clauses  with a comma.

   I wrote the memo yesterday, I wanted you to see it before you left.

   I had lunch with him today, he seemed tense.

   He tried to cut the grass, the lawnmower was broken.

 Comma-splice errors can be corrected in three ways: by adding a conjunction,  by making each independent clause a separate sentence,  or by changing the commas to semicolons.

   I wrote the memo yesterday, because I wanted you to see it before you left.

  -- Conjunction  "because" added

   I had lunch with him today. He seemed tense.

  -- Each independent clause  changed to a sentence.

   He tried to cut the grass; the lawnmower was broken.

  -- Comma changed to semicolon.

 See also:

 Commas

 Semicolons

 Conjunctions

 Independent clauses


 Dashes

 The dash isolates parenthetical words and phrases. It is sometimes used in place of parentheses or commas. Dashes are normally used to call attention to the parenthetical idea. Compare the emphasis in the following examples:

  The project (which had been behind schedule) was cancelled.

  The project, which had been behind schedule, was cancelled.

  The project -- which had been behind schedule -- was cancelled.

 Dashes are more emphatic than commas and parentheses. The dash can sometimes be used in place of a comma to add emphasis:

  I told her I wanted the summary today -- not tomorrow.

  Investing in my venture offers short-term tax advantages today -- and long-term benefits tomorrow.

 Dashes can also be used in place of colons, usually with greater emphasis:

  Several items were missing -- money, jewelery, and credit cards.

  I expect three things from employees -- commitment, sincerity, and quality.

  We left the room in silence -- none of us could bear to watch her.

 See also:

 Commas

 Parentheses

 Colons


 Ellipses

 Use the ellipsis (...) to mark omitted words, breaks in thought, and pauses:

  The report described our marketing strategy as "old fashioned and...obsolete."

  My wagon was packed with my favorite toys, my teddy bear was secured under my arm, and I was heading out the door when... my mother announced the cookies were ready.

  "Hmm..." he thought. "Something's not right about this place...."

 The ellipsis is not normally used when the omitted words appear at the beginning or end of the quoted material. When the ellipsis is used at the end of a sentence,  it is followed by a period:

  The last thing he remembered was a sharp pain at the back of his head....

 See also:

 Periods


 Exclamations

 The exclamation mark or point expresses strong emotions:

  He told me the show ended tomorrow!

  When I got there, the building was completely deserted!

  Do not destroy your original diskette!


 Parentheses

 Use parentheses to isolate nonessential or incidental words and phrases. Unlike commas and dashes, parentheses distract attention from the enclosed material, making it less important:

  Press the "enter" key (located on the keyboard) to execute the command.

  Ottawa (population 300,000) is the capital of Canada.

  My supervisor (Ellen) told me to do it this way.

 When a sentence  is entirely enclosed in parentheses, the punctuation which ends the sentence appears inside the parentheses. If any part of the sentence  appears outside the parentheses, place the ending punctuation outside the parentheses:

  One denizen of Antarctica is the penguin. (The penguin is my favorite bird.)

  One denizen of Antarctica is the penguin (my favorite bird).

 Always place parentheses before commas or other punctuation:

  One denizen of Antarctica is the penguin (my favorite bird), known for its distinctive black and white "tuxedo."

  Enter the following command (without the quotes): "logout"

 See also:

 Punctuation

 Commas

 Dashes


 Periods

 The period marks the end of a sentence. The period is also used to indicate certain kinds of abbreviations:

  The fiscal summary is included at the end of the report.

  Company president John F. Smith has been a member of this organization for over twenty years.

  The meeting started at 8:00 a.m. and lasted until noon.

 When the last word of a sentence  is an abbreviation  requiring periods, use one period to end both the abbreviation and the sentence:

  The meeting started at 8:00 a.m.

 See also:

 Abbreviations

 Sentences

 Quotation marks


 Questions

 Question marks terminate sentences  that are direct questions:

  Why did you return the merchandise?

  When will you pay this invoice?

 Don't use question marks with indirect questions:

  I asked her why she returned the merchandise.

  I asked when will the invoice be paid.

 See also:

 Quotation marks


 Quotes

 Quotation marks indicate direct quotations, which are words written or spoken by someone. Material contained in quotation marks must be the exact words spoken or written. If a complete sentence is quoted, the first word is capitalized; otherwise, it is not:

  Richard told me he had "never been to university or any other jail."

  Anne was fond of saying, "If it's not broken, break it first."

  "Love" was a word we never spoke aloud.

 Periods and commas always go inside quotation marks.  Colons and semicolons always go outside:

  "I've had enough," he said.

  She asked how I had enjoyed my "vacation."

  Gwen told me to bring "just a couple of things": food enough for six, a record player, and all my records.

 Question marks go inside quotation marks if the question is part of the quotation. If the quotation is part of the question, place the question mark outside the quotation marks:

  He asked, "When will supper be ready?"

  -- Question is part of the quotation

  Did he tell you about his "little adventure"?

  -- Quotation is part of the question

 When a quotation itself contains a quotation, surround the inner quotation with single quotation marks:

  Helen said, "Remember what Dad told us: 'Be kind to dumb animals.'"

 Quotation marks are also used with the titles of short works.

 See also:

 Periods

 Commas

 Colons

 Semicolons

 Question marks

 Titles


 Semicolons

 Use the semicolon to separate independent clauses.  The semicolon acts like a weak period:

  Herbert joined the company as a clerk in 1935; three years later, he was president.

 Use a semicolon in place of a period when the two independent clauses  are closely related.

 When items in a series or list  contain commas, the semicolon can be used as a separator:

  The meeting was attended by Janice Clarkson, Accounting; Earl Thomas, Corporate Services; Ralph McBride, Engineering; and Margaret Thurlow, Payroll.

 See also:

 Independent clauses

 Periods

 Lists


 Slashes

 The slash is normally used in legal writing to indicate an alternative, such as "and/or." These constructions are not generally used in formal writing.


 Sentences

 A sentence is a collection of words arranged to make a complete thought. Each sentence has a subject, which the sentence is about, and a predicate, which is an action or state relating to the subject. A sentence must express a complete thought. A sentence must make sense on its own:

   When he was in school.

   I knew him when he was in school.

   Christopher's father.

   The man who came to the door was Christopher's father.

 Sentences are constructed from clauses. A sentence may have exactly one clause, or it may consist of several.

 Sentences may be grouped to form paragraphs.

 See also:

 Subjects

 Predicates

 Clauses

 Paragraphs


 Clauses

 A clause is a major part of a sentence. A clause contains a subject  and a predicate. There are two main types of clauses.

 Independent clauses are complete thoughts and can stand alone as sentences.

 Dependent clauses support independent clauses but cannot stand alone.

 See also:

 Sentences

 Subjects

 Predicates

 Independent clauses

 Dependent clauses


 Dependent clauses

 A dependent clause  cannot stand by itself. Dependent clauses  are usually introduced by conjunctions:

  Because we were tired, we went to bed early.

  -- "Because we were tired" is the dependent clause.

 To be complete, a sentence  must contain an independent clause;  the dependent clause  is optional.

 A sentence  may contain several dependent clauses,  usually separated by commas:

  Because we were tired, and had nothing to do, we went to bed early.

  -- Both "because we were tired" and "and had nothing to do" are dependent clauses.

 In sentences  containing more than one clause, , the subject of each clause  should be the same or at least closely related:

   I met Sandra at the party and the music was very loud.

 This problem can be corrected by rewriting to use two sentences  or by rewriting so the same subject  is used throughout:

   I met Sandra at the party. The music at the party was very loud.

  -- Two sentences  are preferable since two distinct ideas are being expressed

   I met Sandra at the party and I thought the music was very loud.

 See also:

 Clauses

 Independent clauses

 Sentences

 Subjects

 Conjunctions

 Commas


 Independent clauses

 An independent clause  can stand alone as a complete sentence:

  We went to bed early because we were tired.

  -- "We went to bed early" is the independent clause.

  I received your letter and opened it immediately.

  -- "I received your letter" is the independent clause.

 A sentence  may contain several independent clauses,  joined by commas and conjunctions  or semicolons:

  We went to bed early, yet we were not tired.

  I wanted to mow the lawn, but the lawnmower was broken.

  I called her yesterday; she was not at home.

 A sentence  may contain an independent clause  and one or more dependent clauses:

  We went to bed early because it was dark.

  I received your letter, opened it, but didn't read it.

  The wind howled through a mouse-sized hole in the door on the night of the great flood.

 See also:

 Sentences

 Clauses

 Dependent clauses

 Commas

 Semicolons

 Conjunctions


 Objects

 The object is the thing acted on by the subject, the thing on which the subject acts, or the condition of the subject:

  John kicked the ball.

  -- "Ball" is the object (the subject John acts on the object)

  The ball hit John.

  -- "Ball" is the object (the object acts on the subject  John)

  John is happy.

  -- "Happy" is the object (the object is the condition of the subject  John)

 See also:

 Subjects


 Paragraphs

 A paragraph is a collection of sentences, all of which contribute to a single theme. Each paragraph should have one -- and only one -- point to make.

 See also:

 Sentences

 Writing effective paragraphs.


 Phrases

 A phrase is a collection of words that modifies or connects. A phrase does not contain both a subject  and a verb:

 by the time

 we will have

 he had not

 See also:

 Subjects

 Clauses

 Verbs


 Predicates

 The predicate expresses action about or the condition of the subject  of a sentence  or clause.  The predicate contains a verb, object,  and modifiers such as adjectives  and adverbs:

  I read the report yesterday.

  -- The predicate is "read the report yesterday."

  The black bear reared up on its hind paws.

  -- The predicate is "reared up on its hind paws."

  Because we were tired, we went to bed.

  -- The predicate of the independent clause is "went to bed." The predicate of the dependent clause  is "were tired."

 See also:

 Sentences

 Subjects

 Clauses

 Objects

 Verbs

 Adjectives

 Adverbs


 Subject

 The subject is the person, place, thing, or idea about which a sentence  or clause  is written:

  We went to bed.

  -- "We" is the subject.

  She wore the dress that she wore last week.

  -- "She" is the subject.

  I don't like the new policies.

  -- "I" is the subject.

 The subject of a sentence  is contained in the sentence's independent clause.

 See also:

 Sentences

 Clauses


 Active and passive verbs

 Verbs  have an active and passive quality. Active verbs  "do":

 run

 write

 inspect

 prepare

 Passive verbs  describe states of being and suggest no action:

 be

 am

 is

 are

 was

 were

 being

 been

 Sentences  written with passive verbs become passive sentences.

 See also:

 Writing Style

 Verbs


 Lay vs. lie

 The distinction between "lay" and "lie" is subtle and sometimes confusing. "Lay" and "lie" are both verbs, but of different form.

 "Lay" is always used as an action applied to some object. "Lay" describes the action of placing something down.

 "Lie" describes the condition of being placed down.

 Examples:

  I lay the cards on the table.

  -- "Lay" is an action applied to "cards."

  The cards lie on the table.

  -- "Lie" describes the condition of "cards."

 The past-tense  form of "lay" is "laid." The past-tense form of "lie" is "lay." This also causes confusion because of the similarity of spelling with the present tense  "lay."

   I lie the cards on the table.

   The cards laid on the table.

   I laid the cards on the table.

  -- "Laid" is the past-tense form of "lay." "Laid" describes an action applied to "cards."

   The cards lay on the table.

  -- "Lay" is the past-tense form of "lie." "Lay" describes the condition of "cards."

 See also:

 Verbs

 Verb tense


 Subject and verb agreement

 The subject  of a sentence  or clause  must agree in number with the verb  associated with it. For example, the following sentence  is incorrect:

   The shipment were delivered to your warehouse.

 The subject,  "shipment," is a singular noun,  and the verb, "were," refers to a plural noun.  The singular verb "was" must be substituted for "were" to correct the sentence:

   The shipment was delivered to your warehouse.

 Most problems with subject  and verb agreement involve the choice between "is" or "are" and "was" or "were." Other verbs  may be incorrectly used as well. The rules for subject  and verb  agreement are simple:

 1. Use the singular  form of the verb  when the subject  is a singular noun. "Is" and "was" are singular verbs.

 2. Use the plural  form of the verb  when the subject  is a plural noun. "Are" and "were" are plural verbs.

 See also:

 Distinguishing the subject

 Verb agreement with compound subjects

 Verb agreement with collective subjects

 Verb agreement with measured subjects

 Verb agreement with words ending in 'ics'

 Verb agreement with indefinite subjects

 Verb agreement with problem subjects

 Sentences

 Clauses

 Subjects

 Verbs


 Subject and verb agreement: Collective subjects

 When the subject  of a sentence or clause  is a collective noun, such as "crowd" or "group," the subject is in fact singular,  since it refers to a single unit comprising several things. Use the singular form of the verb  in this case.

   A group of anxious reporters were blocking the exit.

  -- The collective subject  "group" is singular.

   A group of anxious reporters was blocking the exit.

   Management are opposed to this approach.

  -- "Management" is the singular collective subject.

   Management is opposed to this approach.

   The box of trophies were reported stolen.

  -- "Box" is the singular  collective subject.

   The box of trophies was reported stolen.

 When individual members of a collective subject are identified, treat the subject  as plural :

  Several members of the audience were noisy.

  The audience was quiet.

 See also:

 Subjects

 Verbs


 Subject and verb agreement: Compound subjects

 Compound subjects  joined by "and" are normally treated like plural subjects,  even if the individual parts are singular:

  Your ticket and itinerary are ready.

  That behavior and attitude are no longer tolerated.

  Both John and Mary are going.

 When the conjunction  joining two parts of a compound subject  is "or" or "nor," the verb  must agree with the part closest to it:

  Either the chairman or the members cancel the motion.

  -- The verb  "cancel" is closest to the plural  "members."

  Either the members or the chairman cancels the motion.

  -- The verb  "cancels" is closest to the singular  "chairman."

  Neither the cow, the pig, nor the chickens have been fed today.

  -- The verb  "have" is closest to the plural  "chickens."

  Neither the chickens, the pig, nor the cow has been fed today.

  -- The verb  "has" is closest to the singular  "cow."

  Neither Fred nor Sam was here today.

  -- The verb  "was" is associated with the singular  "Sam."

 When the subject contains the word "either," use the singular form of the verb.

   Either Bill or Barb are going.

   Either Bill or Barb is going.

   Either of us are going.

   Either of us is going.

   Either person are capable.

   Either person is capable.

 See also:

 Subjects

 Conjunctions

 Verbs


 Subject and verb agreement: Words ending in "ics"

 Words ending in "ics," such as "statistics," "mathematics," "graphics," "physics," and "politics," are normally treated as singular  collective nouns. When the word is preceded by an article (e.g., "a," "an," or "the") or a preposition  (e.g., "of"), or modified by an adjective, treat it as a plural noun.

   Mathematics are my best subject.

   Mathematics is my best subject.

   The graphics for your book design is ready.

  -- "The" is an article.

   The graphics for your book design are ready.

   The physics of planetary motion is beyond my grasp.

   The physics of planetary motion are beyond my grasp.

 See also:

 Nouns

 Articles

 Prepositions

 Adjectives

 Verbs


 Subject and verb agreement: Indefinite subjects

 When the subject is an indefinite word such as "all," "most," or "some," the word referred to by the subject  determines whether the verb is singular  or plural. If the referenced word is plural  use the plural verb  form.

   Most of the cars is on sale.

  -- The indefinite subject  "most" refers to the plural  "cars."

   Most of the cars are on sale.

   Most of the car were damaged.

  -- "Most" refers to the singular  "car."

   Most of the car was damaged.

   None of the cars was damaged.

   None of the cars were damaged.

   The majority of students has passed.

   The majority of students have passed.

   Thirty-three percent of our customers wants better service.

   Thirty-three percent of our customers want better service.

 When the subject is "one" in a phrase  like "one of the," the noun referred to by "one" is always plural,  so the verb  is plural.

   One of the toasters is broken.

   One of the toasters are broken.

   She is one of the people who works in my office.

   She is one of the people who work in my office.

 See also:

 Subjects

 Verbs

 Nouns


 Subject and verb agreement: Measured subjects

 A singular subject quantified by a measurement is treated as a singular,  so use the singular  form of the verb.

   Eight feet of electrical cord are required.

  -- "Cord" is the singular subject.

   Eight feet of electrical cord is required.

   The purchase price were three million dollars.

  -- "Price" is the subject.

   The purchase price was three million dollars.

 If the subject is plural,  and the measurement specifies the number or quantity, use the plural  form of the verb.

   Forty boxes of popcorn was sold.

  -- "Boxes" is the plural subject.

   Forty boxes of popcorn were sold.

   Three million dollars was raised for the homeless.

  -- "Dollars" is the plural subject.

   Three million dollars were raised for the homeless.

 Treat the fractional part of a singular subject as singular:

  Three-quarters of the pie is gone.

 Treat the fractional part of a collection consisting of more than one as plural :

  Three-quarters of the pies are gone.

 See also:

 Subjects

 Verbs


 Subject and verb agreement: Distinguishing subjects

 The subject  is the "who" or "what" about which the sentence  or clause is written. Distinguishing the subject  of a sentence  or clause is important to knowing which form of verb  to use.

   The main reason the report was delivered late are the people in the copy room.

  -- "Reason" is the subject,  not "people."

   The main reason the report was delivered late is the people in the copy room.

   Snowstorms is the leading cause of employee lateness this month.

  -- "Snowstorms" is the subject,  not "cause."

   Snowstorms are the leading cause of employee lateness this month.

   The interest we receive from our investments are a major source of income.

  -- "Interest" is the subject,  not "investments."

   The interest we receive from our investments is a major source of income.

   Which one of the folders are being kept?

  -- "One" is the subject,  not "folders."

   Which one of the folders is being kept?

   There was three men waiting to see me when I returned.

  -- "Men" is the plural subject.

   There were three men waiting to see me when I returned.

 See also:

 Subjects

 Verbs


Problem subjects
 Subject and verb agreement: Problem subjects

 Certain subjects  cause confusion because they seem singular  but are really plural,  or vice versa.

 Nouns  which denote pairs are always treated as plural , and so take plural verbs :

   The scissors is in the drawer.

   The scissors are in the drawer.

   My pants is in the wash.

   My pants are in the wash.

 Similar words for pairs:

 reins 	scales

 shears 	spectacles

 tongs 	trousers

 tweezers 	pliers

 The pronoun  "you" is treated as plural,  even if it refers to a single person:

   You is sitting in my chair.

   You are sitting in my chair.

 See also:

 Subjects

 Verbs

 Pronouns


 Verb tense

 Verb  tense indicates when an action or state occurs over time. Verbs  can be expressed in three tenses: past, present, and future:

  They agreed with the proposal.

  -- "Agreed" is the past-tense verb

  They agree with the proposal.

  -- Present tense

  They will agree with the proposal.

  -- Future tense

 Sentences  containing more than one clause  sometimes present a problem, since each clause  contains its own verb. Normally, all verbs  in a sentence are in the same tense. Exceptions exist, however.

 When the verb  in the independent clause  is in the past tense, the verb  in a dependent clause is also usually in the past tense:

  They said they agreed with the proposal.

  -- Both "said" and "agreed" are past-tense verbs

  He informed me he had written the letter weeks ago.

  -- Both "informed" and "had written" are past-tense verbs

 When the verb  in the independent clause is in the future tense, the verb  in a dependent clause is usually in the present tense. This is true because the independent clause verb places the time of the remainder of the sentence in the future:

  They will say they agree with the proposal.

  -- "Will say" is in the future tense, but "agree" is in the present tense

 When the verb  in the independent clause  is in the present tense, the verb  in a dependent clause can be in any tense, depending on the time ordering of actions:

  We need a new projector because the one was have was broken.

  -- "Need" is a present-tense verb, and "was" is past-tense

  We need a new projector because the one we have is broken.

  -- Both "need" and "is" are present-tense verbs

  We need a new projector because the one we have will break soon.

  -- "Will break" is a future-tense verb

 See also:

 Clauses

 Verbs


 Split infinitives

 A split infinitive is an adverb  inserted between the word "to" and an infinitive verb:

  I decided to quickly leave.

 The split infinitive is considered weak by some people. The word "to" and the infinitive verb  really form a single unit. Inserting an adverb  between them makes them separate, so they lose their association.  Moving the adverb  following the infinitive verb  may be preferable:

  I decided to leave quickly.

 Note that moving the adverb  ahead of the word "to" results in ambiguity:

   I decided quickly to leave.

  -- Does "quickly" apply to "decided" or to "leave"?

 Don't substitute "and" for "to" when forming infinitive verbs.

   I will try and come if I have time.

   I will try to come if I have time.

 See also:

 Adverbs

 Verbs


 Participles

 Participles are verb  forms that usually end in "ed" ( past tense ) or "ing" ( present tense ).

 A participle at the beginning of a sentence must have a noun  or pronoun subject  or a "dangling participle" results:

   Having opened the window, the room was noticeable cooler.

  -- The subject  of the participle "having" is missing, so the participle "dangles"

   Noticing their poor performance, the stocks were sold.

   While skiing yesterday, my nose was frostbitten.

 Correct these sentences  by providing subjects  for the participles:

   Peter having opened the window, the room was noticeably cooler.

   Noticing their poor performance, Wayne sold the stocks.

   While I was skiing yesterday, my nose was frostbitten.

 The gerund also ends in "ing," but is really a verb transformed to a noun:

  Her skating is excellent.

  -- "Skating" is the gerund

 See also:

 Subjects

 Verbs


 Writing style

 "Writing style" refers to the qualities that distinguish interesting, effective, and clear writing from dull, ineffective writing. Topics:

 Organized writing: Organizing what you want to say to get your point across to the reader.

 Writing clearly and directly: Chosing words and organizing thoughts to communicate clearly to the reader.

 Using the active voice:  Chosing active verbs  to make sentences interesting. Also, help on rewriting passive sentences to use the active voice.

 Using words accurately: Avoiding common word-choice errors. DEBUG!!!!!

 Writing effective sentences:  Organizing sentences  for maximum clarity.

 Writing effective paragraphs: Organizing paragraphs to elaborate on a single, cohesive topic.

 Writing letters: How to organize and write letters effectively. This topic includes sample letters for a variety of situations.


 Active voice

 In the active voice, the subject  does the acting. In the passive voice, the subject is acted on.

 Using the active voice means chosing active verbs over passive verbs.  Passive verbs describe conditions and states of being.  Active verbs describe actions. Passive verbs  are flat, lifeless, and abstract. Active verbs  suggest action -- things moving and doing. Active-voice writing grabs the reader's interest. Compare the following sentences:

 Passive:

   The decision was made by the committee to ban smoking in public areas.

   This study report will be written by our firm in September.

   The game was won by the Toronto Maple Leafs.

 Active:

   The committee decided to ban smoking in public places.

   Our firm will write the study report in September.

   The Toronto Maple Leafs won the game.

 To change passive sentences  to active sentences,  start by looking for passive verbs:

 be 	is 	was

 were 	been 	are

 am 	isn't 	wasn't

 weren't 	aren't

 If the sentence subject, is implied, make it explicit:

 Implicit:

  The invoice will be paid on the 30th.

  -- Who will pay the invoice?

 Explicit:

  The invoice will be paid by our accounting department on the 30th.

 Next, eliminate the passive verbs  by reorganizing the sentence.

 Move the subject  to the beginning of the sentence:

  Our accounting department will pay the invoice on the 30th.

 More passive examples:

   The meeting was chaired by Dr. Smith.

   It is desired that this topic be added to the meeting agenda.

   The discrepancy was reported on 15 July.

 Rewritten in the active voice:

   Dr. Smith chaired the meeting.

   I would like you to add this topic to the meeting agenda.

   I reported the discrepancy on 15 July.

 See also:

 Subjects

 Explicit subjects

 Verbs

 Effective sentence beginnings


 Clarity and directness

 Effective writing is always clear and direct. Writing clearly and effectively takes practice and concentration. Remember that we write to communicate.

 Following three guidelines will make your writing clearer and more direct:

 State the subject:  Make sure every sentence  has an explicit subject.

 Use simple,direct words: Chose the right words.

 Avoid ambiguities: Watch out for words and phrases that can be interpreted in more than one way.


Clarity and directness: Avoiding ambiguity
 Avoiding ambiguity

 Watch out for words and phrases that the reader can interpret in more than one way.

 The word "only" can often be placed nearly anywhere in a sentence,  and so is frequently misplaced:

  Only I wanted an ice-cream cone.

  I only wanted an ice-cream cone.

  I wanted only an ice-cream cone.

 Each example sentence  above has a different meaning, depending on the placement of "only." To avoid ambiguity, place "only" close to the word it modifies.

 Generally, placing modifiers close to the words they modify avoids other kinds of ambiguity as well:

   We sent a letter to the president requesting advice.

  -- What is requesting advice: the letter or the president?

   He introduced me to a man with a large moustache named George.

  -- What is named George: the man or the moustache?

 Reorganizing these sentences to place the modifiers  close to the terms they modify removes the ambiguity:

   We sent a letter requesting advice to the president.

   He introduced me to a man named George with a large moustache.


 Clarity and directness: Explicit subjects

 Every sentence  should contain a subject,  represented as a noun  or pronoun.  Omitting the subject makes it difficult for the reader to tell who or what is involved. Business writing is especially vulnerable to this problem -- it is sometimes easier to omit the subject than to accept or delegate responsibility for an action:

  The report will be prepared before the next meeting.

 The reader cannot tell who will write the report. The writer may be accepting responsibility, may be directing the reader to do it, or may be reporting that some third party is responsible. Here is the same sentence  with subjects  added:

  I will prepare the report before the next meeting.

  You will prepare the report before the next meeting.

  Sheila will prepare the report before the next meeting.

 Notice that adding a subject  changed the sentence  to the active voice.

 Sometimes writers omit the subject to make their writing more "tactful" by not pointing a finger of blame at a specific individual:

  This invoice must be paid by the 14th or legal action will be taken.

 The subjects  of both clauses are implied. The reader cannot tell who must pay the invoice, or who will take legal action. Rewriting makes the request courteous, clearer, and more direct:

  We have written you several times about this unpaid invoice, Mrs. Nelson. Please pay the invoice by the 14th. If we do not receive payment by the 14th, we will engage a collection agency to obtain payment.

 See also:

 Subjects

 Writing in the active voice


 Clarity and directness: Chosing words

 Effective writing uses clear, plain, direct words. Remember that the goal of writing is to communicate, not to impress. Do not be lured into believing that only traditional, flowery words and phrases such as "notwithstanding," "at your earliest possible convenience," and "in compliance with your request" are necessary. Clear writing makes the best impression.

 The table below lists some common overblown words and phrases and their simpler equivalents.

 Come to the conclusion --> conclude

 Do not hesitate --> please

 Give consideration to --> consider

 Earliest possible convenience --> soon

 Give thought to --> think

 Implement --> make

 In compliance with your request --> as you requested

 In a position to --> can

 It would appear --> it appears

 The reason is that --> because

 The reason is because --> because

 Make an adjustment --> adjust

 Place an order --> order

 Raise an objection --> object

 Utilize --> use

 There are hundreds of similar phrases and words.

 Another key to writing clearly is this: Don't translate verbs  into nouns. Watch out for words ending in "tion," "ment," and "ful":

   Construction of the building lasted two years.

   New funding is required for establishment of this service.

   Several employees are resentful of the new supervisor.

 Rewrite to change these nouns  back to verbs:

   We constructed the building in two years.

   We require new funding to establish this service.

   Several employees resent the new supervisor.

 See also:

 Nouns

 Verbs


 Effective sentences

 Build effective sentences  using these principles:

 Begin the sentence  with the subject.

 Put the most important information at the end of the sentence.

 Keep the sentence length  moderate.


 Effective sentences: Sentence beginnings

 Effective sentences  begin with the subject.  The reader learns immediately what the sentence is about. The writer also benefits, because stating the subject  forces you to keep your thoughts focused. Sentences  organized with the subject at the beginning tend to use the active voice.

 Avoid beginning a sentence  with "there is" or "it is." They immediately place the sentence in the passive voice and obscure the real subject .

 Weak:

   It is probable that the document will be deliverd by Friday.

   There is a job vacancy in our department.

   There are four stewards working on the shop floor.

 Better:

   We will probably deliver the document by Friday.

   Our department has a job vacancy.

   Four stewards work on the shop floor.

 See also:

 Subjects

 Writing in the active voice


 Effective sentences: Sentence endings

 Place the most important information at the end of a sentence.

 This increases the reader's expectations and makes the information more memorable.


 Effective sentences: Sentence length

 Keep the sentence length moderate. The meaning of "moderate" varies with the intended audience:

 Primary school: 3 - 6 words

 Grade school: 5 - 10 words

 Casual writing: 10 - 20 words

 Technical or highly advanced writing: 20+ words

 These numbers are averages. If you aim for "casual" writing, some of your sentences  may be seven words long, some may be 24 words long, but most will be ten to twenty words.

 Varying the sentence length also makes the writing more interesting.


 Writing letters

 Like most written work, an effective letter has an introduction, a body, and a conclusion.

 The introduction should briefly state the purpose of the letter. The introduction may be a single sentence  or a short paragraph:

  I would like to know the status of my order.

  This letter is in reply to your letter of 14 April seeking employment with Acme Ball Bearings. Your resume has been forwarded to the manager of the quality control department.

 The body elaborates on the introduction by providing facts. Use one paragraph  per topic:

  I sent my order to you on 20 June 1991. I have not yet received the merchandise. Your ad advised me to "allow 6 weeks for delivery," and six weeks have now passed.

  Your qualifications meet the job requirements. Should we require an interview, we will contact you by telephone. In any event, we will retain your resume for six months.

 The conclusion states what action is required of the recipient. In long letters, the conclusion may also summarize the facts presented in the body:

  Please let me know when I can expect to receive my merchandise.

  We will write you by 30 April to inform you of our decision.

 See also:

 Letter format

 Salutations

 Complimentary closing

 You can also view some sample letters:

 Request for information

 Accepting an offer

 Declining an offer

 Reminding of an obligation

 Demanding an obligation

 Congratulations

 Sympathy


 Writing letters: Letter format

 The specific format of a letter is not as important as its content. There are many styles of letter format; feel free to pick your own, provided it isn't too unusual.

 A letter should contain the sender's name and address so the recipient knows how to return the letter. If you don't use letterhead or personal stationery, place your name and address on the letter like this:

 John Smith

 123 Main St.

 Anytown

 99999

 A letter should also contain the recipient's name and address so the recipient can tell the letter was directed to the right person. Include the recipient's title:

 Mary Jones

 Manager

 Acme Ball Bearings

 456 Industry St.

 Anytown

 99999

 A letter should contain the date so the recipient knows when it was written.

 You should sign each letter. A signature is something like a written handshake: it conveys trust and sincerity.

 See also:

 Writing letters

 Dates and times

 Salutations

 Complimentary closing


 Writing letters: Complimentary closing

 The complimentary closing introduces your signature. There are several complimentary closings in common use:

 Yours truly

 Yours very truly

 Sincerely

 Sincerely yours

 Respectfully yours

 Notice that only the first word is capitalized.

 In modern letter writing, the complimentary closing is sometimes omitted.


 Writing letters: Salutations

 Salutations are the "Dear ..." terms that usually begin letters. The salutation you chose will depend on how well you know the recipient, whether you know the recipient's gender, and whether you know a female recipient's marital status.

 If you are on friendly terms with the recipient, address them by their first name:

 Dear John:

 Dear Mary:

 If you know the recipient's name, but are on formal terms with them, address them by title and last name:

 Dear Mr. Jones:

 Dear Dr. Smith:

 Addressing a letter to a female recipient with whom you are on formal terms can be problematical. If you know her marital status, and you know she prefers to be addressed as "Mrs." or "Miss," address her that way. Otherwise, the safest approach is "Ms.":

 Dear Mrs. Johnson:

 Dear Miss Brown:

 Dear Ms. Green:

 Addressing a letter to an individual whose gender you don't know is also a problem. If you know their first name or initial, use it:

 Dear Pat White:

 Dear C. Kent:

 If you know only their last name, use an ambiguous title:

 Dear Mr./Ms. Clark:

 You can use several approaches in addressing letters to unknown people in companies and organizations:

 To whom it may concern:

 To the Manager of Accounts Payable:

 To the sweepstakes coordinator:

 Dear Nabisco:


 Writing letters: Accepting an offer

 This letter accepts an offer made previously.

 Dear ...:

 I am pleased to accept your offer for the quality-control supervisor position in your firm.

 As you requested, I am enclosing the signed offer and conflict-of-interest agreement.

 I would like to change my starting date to one week after the date on which we agreed. I have not taken a vacation this year, and plan to spend a week relaxing with my family after leaving my current position. Please let me know if this cannot be done.

 Thank you for making the offer. I am looking forward to my new position. Please reply as soon as possible regarding the change to my starting date.

 Sincerely,

 . . .


 Writing letters: Congratulations

 This letter offers congratulations to the recipient.

 Dear ...:

 Congratulations on receiving the "Sales Professional of the Year" award! The award committee has made an excellent choice.

 Over the past five years, I have become increasingly impressed with your enthusiasm and commitment for your company and product line. Your dedication and effort have been a source of inspiration to me and the entire purchasing department.

 Your award is well deserved. I wish you the best of luck in the coming sales year.

 Yours truly,

 . . .


 Writing letters: Declining an offer

 This letter declines an offer made previously.

 Dear ...:

 Thank you for offering me the position of quality-control supervisor with your firm. I must decline your offer, unfortunately.

 At the time I sent my application to your firm, I also sent it to several other firms. Two other firms have also made an offer for employment, and I plan to accept one of them.

 Thank you again for making the offer. Good luck in your search for someone to fill the position.

 Yours truly,

 . . .


 Writing letters: Demanding an obligation

 This letter demands that an unmet obligation be satisfied. Given its tone, this letter would probably be sent following several reminders and telephone calls.

 Dear ...:

 Please pay invoice 12345 immediately or we will take legal action against your firm.

 We sent the invoice to your firm on 20 June -- 30 days ago. The invoice was clearly marked "Due on Receipt." I have written letters to you requesting payment on 2 July, 15 July, and 18 July. I telephoned you on 10 July and 18 July. We have not yet received payment.

 This is the last time I will attempt to contact you. Unless you pay this invoice, further contact will be through our attorneys.

 I remind you: Pay the invoice immediately or we will take legal action.

 Yours,

 . . .


 Writing letters: Requesting information

 This letter asks the recipient to provide information.

 Dear ...:

 Please provide me with a copy of your magazine's submission guidelines.

 I am a freelance writer and have been previously published in several magazines. I have an idea for an article I think may be suitable for your magazine. I want to ensure it meets your guidelines before I submit it.

 Thank you for taking the time to provide the guidelines.

 Yours truly,

 . . .


 Writing letters: Reminder of an obligation

 This letter reminds the recipient of an unmet obligation.

 Dear ...:

 I am writing to remind you about invoice 12345, which has not yet been paid.

 In our telephone conversation on 20 June, you said you would pay the invoice by 30 June. We have not received your cheque.

 We have done business together for the past five years. I would like my firm to continue doing business with yours.

 Please pay the invoice immediately.

 Sincerely,

 . . .


 Writing letters: Sympathy

 This letter offers sympathy to the recipient.

 Dear ...:

 I was saddened to hear of your father's death. Please allow me to offer my sincere condolences.

 Although I did not know your father, I recall the several occasions when you had spoken of him warmly.

 Again, my sympathy for your loss.

 With condolences,

 . . .


 Organized writing

 Effective writing presents ideas to the reader in a well-organized manner. Complex ideas are presented slowly and carefully, building from simple ideas the reader already knows. In many ways, effective writing "sells" ideas to the reader -- the reader must be convinced to accept your ideas or point of view.

 There are two standard approaches to writing organization:

 Writing to inform: Explaining to, describing for, or instructing the reader.

 Writing to persuade: Convincing the reader of your point of view.


 Organized writing: Writing to inform

 When writing to inform, explain, or describe, organize your writing as follows:

 1. Define your subject: State what you are writing about in the introduction. Give the reader an overview of your theme.

 2. Divide your subject into parts, and discuss each part thoroughly. If necessary, further divide the parts into subparts. Keep dividing until you can cover each simple idea in one paragraph.

 Describe the simple ideas first. Describe the complex ideas in terms of the simple ideas. Show the relationship between each part and the entire subject.

 3. Provide examples to clarify generalizations.

 4. Briefly summarize what you have said.

 See also:

 Paragraphs


 Organized writing: Writing to persuade

 When writing to convince the reader of something, there are two approaches: a logical appeal and an emotional appeal. The choice of approach depends on what you are trying to persuade the reader to do. Convincing the reader to donate to a charity may require an emotional appeal, while convincing the reader to purchase a product may require a logical appeal.

 Both approaches can be used together. An appeal for a donation, for example, could describe the hunger of children to appeal to the reader's emotions, and explain how donated money will be used to build farms and schools to appeal to the reader's logic.

 Organize your writing as follows when using a logical appeal:

 1. Introduce your topic and state your position.

 2. Consider the evidence that supports your view. Describe each point of evidence in a separate paragraph. At this point, just describe the evidence objectively.

 3. Objectively consider the evidence contrary to your view. Describe each point of evidence in a separate paragraph.

 4. Compare and contrast the evidence. Show how the evidence supports your point of view. Don't be afraid to concede some points in favor of the contrary view -- this adds credibility to your argument.

 5. Conclude in favor of your view.

 When writing an emotional appeal, use the following organization:

 1. Introduce your topic and state your position.

 2. Explain why accepting your view will make the reader feel better. Describe each benefit to the reader in a separate paragraph.

 3. Conclude that the benefits you have described merit the reader's accepting your position.

 See also:

 Paragraphs


 Writing effective paragraphs

 A paragraph is a collection of sentences  relating to a single topic.

 Each topic should have its own paragraph. Each paragraph should describe one topic.

 There are two effective approaches to organizing sentences  within paragraphs. In the first approach, the first sentence  states the paragraph's central idea, and the remaining sentences  elaborate on it. This organization is appropriate in writing that explains or provides information:

  A logo is a symbol or stylized lettering that captures the essence of who you are and what you offer. The best logos are simple but powerful. Recall the Texaco star, the handwritten look of the word Kellog's on cereal boxes, or the spinning globe of AT&T.

 In the second approach, the last sentence states the paragraph's central idea. The preceding sentences  build up to the last sentence, possibly by justifying or explaining the last sentence's point of view. This approach is appropriate in writing that seeks to convince or justify:

  Of the thousands of visitors who attend a show, only a small number are ready buyers, the people who are ready to buy now or in the near future.  One of the toughest problems facing you is to conserve your energy so you don't burn out before the end of the show. You must learn how to pick out from the crowds passing your booth those visitors who are potential buyers of your product and not just "lookers."

 See also:

 Paragraphs

 Sentences


 Reviewing

 Before releasing something you have written, review it critically to eliminate common errors and weaknesses. Effective, correct writing is not a guarantee of success, but weak, error-ridden writing is almost certainly a guarantee of failure.

 First, make sure your writing is well organized. Check your writing from the reader's point of view. Are complex ideas carefully presented? Are paragraphs  and sentences organized effectively? Are new terms explained before they are used? Does each paragraph  discuss only one topic?

 Next, ensure your writing is free from spelling errors and common punctuation errors. Use a spelling-checker program, even if your spelling is good. Look up in a dictionary each word the spelling checker reports -- don't rely on your memory, and don't assume the spelling checker has made a mistake. Consider all punctuation, especially commas, critically. Rewrite sentences  containing more than two or three clauses  separated by commas. It is better to use too few commas than too many -- when in doubt, leave it out.

 Check your writing for use of the passive voice. Reducing or eliminating the passive verbs in your writing will go a long toward improving your writing.

 Look for inconsistencies in your writing that may confuse the reader. Ensure that the same terms are used throughout your writing. Don't, for example, refer to "shareholders" in one place and "stockholders" in another. It is better to use a single term repeatedly than to continually introduce new terms. If your writing contains references to pages, chapters, sections, figures, or tables, make sure the references are correct. Finally, watch for wordy phrases that can be shortened or simplified. Say what you have to say in the fewest possible words. Watch for redundant phrases, such as "repeat again," "join together," and "final conclusion." Grammar-checking programs are helpful here.

 See also:

 Paragraphs

 Sentences

 Punctuation

 Clauses

 Organizing your writing

 Writing in the active voice

 Chosing words