2017-12-06 11:06
Words can be misused in a variety of ways, as illustrated in the following examples, each followed by an explanatory discussion and a revision.
1. A massive diffused bomb sat in the middle o… Read More
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2017-12-05 11:06
When an introductory or attributive phrase ending in a verb precedes one or more complete sentences enclosed in quotation marks to express something written or said, a comma separates the ph… Read More
2017-12-04 11:06
The hyphen’s role as a connector between prefixes and words has diminished significantly over the last few decades—and would be even more inconsequential if writers paid more car… Read More
2017-12-01 17:21
The three words in the headline for this post, and words derived from them—listed and defined below—stem from a common source.
Plan, plain, and plane all derive from the Latin ad… Read More
2017-11-30 22:20
In each sentence, choose the correct word from the pair of similar terms. (If both words possibly can be correct, choose the more plausible one.)
1. If we rise early enough, we can be ______… Read More
2017-11-29 13:54
Jargon has its purposes. In content pertaining to popular culture, when employing slang to engage readers and other consumers of entertaining information, concise and/or colorful slang enliv… Read More
2017-11-28 21:38
In each of the following sentences, lack of an article (a, and, or the) results in a grammatically flawed sentence. Discussion after each example, followed by a revision, identifies the prob… Read More
2017-11-27 22:35
Capitalization is a bewilderingly complex issue, with many rules and exceptions. This post outlines the basic, most common guidelines for capitalization, with examples.
Academic degrees: Low… Read More
2017-11-24 04:07
The Greek prefix syn-, meaning “together,” and two alternative forms combine with many other word elements to form terms pertaining to community or unity. This post lists and bri… Read More
2017-11-23 04:37
Diction is word choice. A word that is suitable in conversation or informal writing may lower the tone of writing intended for a general audience. Assuming that all of the following sentence… Read More
2017-11-22 04:06
One of the most ubiquitous categories of error in written composition is failure to provide a visual clue to readers that two or more words preceding a noun are temporarily functioning as a… Read More
2017-11-21 04:03
My recent post about declining writing standards garnered some thoughtful comments from site visitors, but as I read them I realized that the post had not addressed one cogent point: As one… Read More
2017-11-20 04:00
Errors of faulty parallelism in sentences in which “not only” and “but also” help delineate complementary phrases come in three general categories, as shown, explaine… Read More
2017-11-17 04:57
Cross, a word with a great variety of meanings, is also at the head of an extensive family of words, some of which are listed and defined in this post.
Cross made its way into English circui… Read More
2017-11-16 04:01
Choose the sentence in which the compounds are hyphenated correctly:
1.
a) Sometimes he behaves like a five-year-old child.
b) Sometimes he behaves like a five year old child.
2.
a) Treatmen… Read More
2017-11-15 04:50
Numerous words that describe various types of musical composition are listed and defined below. (Note that in the definitions below, popular denotes not a musical form that is widely enjoyed… Read More
2017-11-14 04:44
In each of the following sentences, the absence of inadvertently omitted words and phrases leads to sentences that, though comprehensible, do not really say what they set out to communicate… Read More
2017-11-13 04:38
In each of the following sentences, a connective symbol is employed in a reference to numbers or numerical values, but the usage is incorrect. Explanation of the error, and a revision of the… Read More
2017-11-10 04:16
A number of words share the inflected ending -ade, which denotes an action or something that performs an action or function. The following comprehensive but not exhaustive list includes defi… Read More
2017-11-09 04:08
In the following sentences, choose the possessive adjective that agrees in number with the noun or pronoun to which it refers.
1. Only one of the children picked up ______ certificate.
a) hi… Read More
2017-11-08 04:04
Proper use of semicolons is sometimes seen as such a challenge that some teachers of composition recommend not using them until one develops a more sophisticated grasp of language, which is… Read More
2017-11-07 04:53
Whether you are learning English as a second language or trying to polish your already adequate grammar and style skills, the seven websites below can help.
1. Memrise
Memrise is an online f… Read More
2017-11-06 16:51
The English language has, well, a number of words that denote specific or approximate quantities that are themselves not numbers. This post lists and defines a dozen of those words.
1. brace… Read More
2017-11-03 18:08
Find, found, and fund could conceivably be related on the basis of the notion of obtaining something, but the words (except in the case of the link between find and one of three broad senses… Read More
2017-11-02 13:14
As a result of the popularity of police drama in U.S. entertainment, many words associated with criminal activity have become common in general usage. Edit the sentences below replacing the… Read More
2017-10-31 21:36
There is something magical about reading books. Whether you like fiction or non-fiction, fantasy or sci-fi, there are many books out there.
Still, it isn’t always easy to make a trip t… Read More
2017-10-30 21:58
In each of the following sentences, repetition of words or phrases or redundant use of similar terms is easily eliminated, as described in the explanations and shown in the revisions that fo… Read More
2017-10-27 19:19
Curiously, a word referring to the handing down of beliefs and customs and one pertaining to a breakdown in fidelity to a political system, which is based on beliefs and customs, though they… Read More
2017-10-25 21:55
When writing sentences in which a comparison is made with not, neither, or “no longer” as the focus of the contrast, be vigilant about achieving logical parallel structure, as di… Read More
2017-10-24 10:41
The word zero has a small but distinctive set of synonyms, which are listed in this post.
Zero is the word for the symbol 0, representing the absence of magnitude or quantity and the value b… Read More
2017-10-23 11:45
English usage is always evolving, but the rate of evolution seems to accelerate all the time, and careful observers will note in a wide variety of content pervasive examples of the relaxatio… Read More
2017-10-20 04:13
Vision and visit both pertain to seeing something, and that’s no coincidence, because they are cognates, both stemming from the Latin verb videre, meaning “see.” A discussi… Read More
2017-10-19 10:13
In each sentence, choose the correct word from the pair of similar terms. (If both words possibly can be correct, choose the more plausible one.)
1. The roll-top desk was made by an exceptio… Read More
2017-10-18 08:42
Dictionary.com’s newest set of entries to its lexicon, and some revised definitions for existing terms, reflect the politically themed discourse that has dominated the media over the p… Read More
2017-10-17 11:30
Numerous DailyWritingTips.com posts have addressed hyphenation of phrasal adjectives such as “long range” when they precede a noun, as in “long-range missile.” But wh… Read More
2017-10-16 16:57
This post discusses two words that because of their disparate meanings are not easily recognized as cognates, as well as a couple of others that are, as a result of disguised spelling, perha… Read More
2017-10-13 22:27
The integral nature and the ubiquity of houses in our culture has given rise to a number of idiomatic expressions that include the word house. This post lists such terms.
1. A house divided… Read More
2017-10-12 23:05
Choose the correct pronoun to fill the blank.
1. Neither Bill nor _______ showed up for the concert.
a) him
b) he
2. The boys brought _______ girls flowers that they’d picked in the me… Read More
2017-10-11 04:05
How should references to amounts of money be styled? The key to answering that question is context.
Casual, isolated references, as well as approximations, are generally spelled out, as in t… Read More
2017-10-10 13:05
As a conjunction, that is often optional. But when two or more corresponding phrases are involved, employ it consistently or omit it altogether, as explained in the discussion and shown in t… Read More
2017-10-09 23:25
A few weeks ago, an acquaintance visited me, and as my visitor exited the parked car, I saw that it was still occupied. My visitor, standing before me, made a reference to “they,&rdquo&hell…Read More
2017-10-06 16:53
It may not surprise you that price and prize are cognates, but two other common words pertaining to value, and additional words derived from them, share their common ancestor.
Price and priz… Read More
2017-10-05 22:53
An introductory adverbial phrase is often set off by a comma, but the comma can be omitted if no misreading will result. Short adverbial phrases do not always need a comma. The following sen… Read More
2017-10-04 04:07
1. A man’s home is his castle: a sentiment that a man should have freedom to do what he wants in his home (originally “An Englishman’s home is his castle”)
2. A woman… Read More
2017-10-03 11:44
Finding the best writing apps for iOS can be challenging. Arguably the best word processor in existence, Microsoft Word, was designed with Windows in mind.
Still, developers have answered t… Read More
2017-10-02 21:22
Many writers seem to assume that all verbs in a sentence must be in the same tense, but the tense for each verb should be appropriate to the context. Here are three examples of sentences in… Read More
2017-09-29 21:57
As Latin scholars may recognize, patron and matron are cognate with the Latin words for “mother” and “father.” However, their senses, and those of inflectional forms… Read More
2017-09-28 11:42
Choose the verb that fills the blank most appropriately.
1. No sooner had the family spread out their picnic, than it _______ to rain.
a) began
b) begun
2. When I saw the look on Zack’… Read More
2017-09-27 00:14
In each of the sentences below, an action or result is described in comparison or contrast to another, but the phrasing that expresses the parallel between the two phenomena is faulty. Discu… Read More
2017-09-25 21:52
A recent post listed and defined words with the Greek prefix hyper– (meaning “above,” “beyond,” or “over”). Here, words based on its antonym, hypo… Read More
2017-09-23 19:14
A recent post listed and defined many words containing the element mit and miss and descended from the Latin verb mittere, meaning “send.” This follow-up offers related words not… Read More
2017-09-21 14:41
Rewrite the following sentences to reflect the vocabulary expected in formal communication.
1. The clinic specializes in the treatment of kids 4-12.
2. He should of known that Jackson could… Read More
2017-09-19 13:32
Writers can employ various categorical strategies to make their writing more active and concise. Here are three simple types of unnecessary wording to keep in mind (and out of one’s wr… Read More
2017-09-18 21:13
Words with the Greek prefix hyper– (meaning “above,” “beyond,” or “over”) are listed and defined in this post. (A subsequent post will focus on word… Read More
2017-09-15 21:37
The words listed and defined in this post all stem from the Latin verb mittere, which means “send.” They have in common the element mit (or miss).
To admit (literally, “se… Read More
2017-09-14 20:24
Correct any pronoun forms that are incorrect in the sentences below.
1. My mother expected my brother and I to do well in school.
2. Mike and me are going to Mexico this summer.
3. Myself an… Read More
2017-09-13 22:11
Poor placement within sentences of words that provide details can hamper comprehension. Take care to avoid the various types of pitfalls demonstrated in the following examples, which are fol… Read More
2017-09-12 22:16
Omission of a lowly comma often alters the intent of a sentence, as demonstrated in the following examples, each followed by discussion and a revision.
1. Customers likely to be the target o… Read More
2017-09-11 21:12
Whether items are listed in line (within a sentence) or vertically, the syntactical structure of the items should be consistent. In the following three examples, discussion and revision illu… Read More
2017-09-08 17:16
This post lists and defines the words derived from the Latin term memor, which means “mindful of.”
Memory means “the power or process of retaining things experienced or lea… Read More
2017-09-07 14:46
Rewrite the following sentences so has to remove all verb errors.
1. If I would have known you were going, I would have gone too.
2. The college freshman had drank six beers before passing o… Read More
2017-09-05 23:04
When verbs serve parallel functions within a sentence, they should be treated with the same inflectional ending (-s/-es, -ed, or -ing) or should both have no inflectional ending at all. In e… Read More
2017-09-04 13:17
What is the correct spelling for words ending with an element derived from the Greek suffix logos, meaning “to speak”? For example, should one refer to an analog, or to an analog… Read More
2017-09-01 12:55
Press and all the words containing it as a root, as well as a few disguised words from the same source word, pertain in some sense to applying force. This post lists many of the words stemmi… Read More
2017-08-31 23:04
Correct the capitalization in the following sentences.
1. Next sunday will be our fifth Anniversary.
2. My best school subjects are History, french, math, and Physics.
3. Sallie bought new c… Read More
2017-08-30 18:33
Writers often unconsciously construct a sentence in which the key information appears at the tail of the sentence. Many, too, take insufficient care to avoid wordiness. All too frequently, r… Read More
2017-08-29 15:08
An in-line list, one located within a sentence rather than formatted vertically below an explanatory phrase, sentence, or paragraph, may present an obstacle to comprehension in the following… Read More
2017-08-28 12:35
Most is a grammatically versatile word employed in references to amounts, quantities, and degree. This post discusses its use as various parts of speech.
Most, deriving from Old English and… Read More
2017-08-24 18:17
In each sentence, choose the correct word from the pair of similar terms. (If both words possibly can be correct, choose the more plausible one.)
1. Do you mean to __________ that I stole yo… Read More
2017-08-23 22:57
Dozens of homonyms, words that sound like other words but are spelled differently, are sometimes confused for their near doppelgängers. This post lists and defines twenty-five frequentl… Read More
2017-08-22 23:53
In each of the following sentences, an associated pair of phrases are not optimally stated and organized to make their relationship clear. The discussion after each statement proposes a solu… Read More
2017-08-21 14:07
As, in time, idiomatic phrases become more isolated from their literal origins, writers are more likely to erroneously substitute a homonym (a word that sounds like another but is spelled di… Read More
2017-08-19 14:42
The word study has a variety of meanings and a small but meaningful array of words based on it. This post lists those definitions and terms.
Study derives from the Latin verb studere, meanin… Read More
2017-08-17 19:49
In each of the following sentences, a lack of punctuation creates a mistaken impression about the relationship of a modifying word or phrase to the idea it modifies. Insert punctuation so th… Read More
2017-08-16 14:07
This post lists a number of words and phrases used in English that are derived from French but are no longer employed with the same idiomatic sense in French (if they ever were). Each term i… Read More
2017-08-15 12:39
Today’s modern writer doesn’t always have time to sit down at his desktop and write. With more and more writers living the digital nomad style, there is a major demand for techn… Read More
2017-08-14 19:04
One of the ways adjectives can be categorized is to determine whether they are coordinate or noncoordinate adjectives. This distinction is important, because it dictates whether two or more… Read More
2017-08-12 13:49
Becoming familiar (or more familiar) with words beginning with over– and under– must include taking into account that these compounds can be both literal and figurative (or only… Read More
2017-08-10 23:00
Writers sometimes erroneously assume that when a statement includes a phrase beginning with who, what, when, where, why, or how (or what or which), it should be treated as an interrogative… Read More
2017-08-09 17:15
The slang senses of many words we use in conversation and in informal writing originated in jargon employed by criminals, often coined to disguise the activities they were describing when th… Read More
2017-08-08 19:31
In each of the following pairs of clauses, an ineffectual presentation of information is strengthened by altering sentence structure through combination. Discussion and revision follow each… Read More
2017-08-07 14:51
A correlative conjunction is a word that correlates with, or is complementary to, another such construction, establishing a connection or a comparison in a sentence. Each of the sentences be… Read More
2017-08-04 04:03
This post discusses a family of words that pertain to balance, impartiality, or uniformity.
The root equi-, which forms without the i when it precedes a vowel, ultimately derives from the La… Read More
2017-08-03 13:03
Each of the following sentences incorrectly establishes a relationship between two things with a setup of “not only” followed by a faultily constructed counterpoint; revise the s… Read More
2017-08-02 13:44
Use of phrasal adjectives, combinations of two or more words that as a grammatical unit provide additional details to nouns, is complicated by standards of usage pertaining to hyphens. This… Read More
2017-08-01 12:50
Every field of endeavor has its vocabulary, and the business world, for better or worse, has contributed significantly to the English language with jargon—an insider language that ofte… Read More
2017-07-31 11:50
In each of the following examples, a complementary comma that provides closure for a parenthetical phrase is missing. Discussion after each sentence explains the problem, and a revision demo… Read More
2017-07-29 04:14
The Latin verb sequi, meaning “follow,” is the source of a diverse array of words pertaining to “going after” in one way or another. This post lists and defines the t… Read More
2017-07-28 04:11
The phrases and expressions listed in this post pertain to lizards and other reptiles, usually with a pejorative or otherwise negative allusion that reflects the dim view many people have of… Read More
2017-07-27 04:09
Each of the following sentences includes a modifying phrase that confuses because it the statement is erroneously constructed or because the phrase is incorrectly located in the sentence. Re… Read More
2017-07-26 04:25
When a list of items in a sentence is not a simple matter of a, b, and c, writers can easily err in erroneously constructing the sentence, mangling the syntax in the mistaken belief that non… Read More
2017-07-25 04:21
Off and on frequently appear as prefixes, but word structure can vary: Should the prefix be hyphenated to the root word, or should the entire word be a closed compound? This post lists examp… Read More
2017-07-24 11:54
Often, an incorrect form of punctuation is deployed to set off the introduction of a saying or a question from the quoted material itself. The following sentences demonstrate various errors… Read More
2017-07-22 04:54
This post discusses the words in which the element hind, pertaining to location or movement in or to the rear, appears.
The adjective hind means “back” or “rear.” Hin… Read More
2017-07-21 04:57
The Greek noun anthropos, meaning “male human being” or “man,” is the root of some familiar and not-so-familiar English words, which are listed and defined below.
The… Read More
2017-07-20 11:53
In each sentence, choose the correct word from the pair of similar terms. (If both words possibly can be correct, choose the more plausible one.)
1. They didn’t realize that they were… Read More
2017-07-19 12:00
When do you capitalize a word or phrase that denotes an academic discipline? This post details the distinctions between these terms as proper nouns and as generic descriptions.
If you’… Read More
2017-07-17 11:59
The three sentences below demonstrate related syntactical errors: a misplaced adjective clause, a misplaced modifier, and a dangling participle, respectively. Discussion following each examp… Read More
2017-07-15 20:54
The Latin verb ducere, meaning “lead,” is the basis of many English words pertaining to action, development, and movement. This post lists and defines these words.
To abduct (lit… Read More
2017-07-14 19:58
Each of the following sentences is muddled because a parenthetical phrase is incorrectly punctuated. Discussion of each example explains the problem, and one or more revisions resolve it.
1… Read More
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