So many people misuse the apostrophe, I thought perhaps it’s time to throw in a few tips about proper usage for this particular punctuation. When to use an apostrophe: To show possession – my brother’s car, my parents’ house, your dog’s bone To form contractions (indicating missing letters) – don’t, won’t, shouldn’t, could’ve (abbreviation for [...]
No, this isn’t a cookbook for cannibals. This is an example of a major proofreading error: Pasta Cookbook pulped over ‘freshly ground black people’ misprint An Australian publisher is reprinting 7,000 cookbooks over a recipe for pasta with ‘salt and freshly ground black people.’ Penguin Australia’s head of publishing, Bob Sessions, acknowledged the proofreader for [...]
by Sheila Wallace on Thursday, December 17, 2009, 10:25 am
in Grammar Tips
Many people think that choosing to use the indefinite article a or an depends on whether the word that follows starts with a consonant or a vowel. However, many people are wrong. It’s not spelling that matters. What counts is the sound of the word that follows. Use a when followed by a consonant sound, [...]
by Sheila Wallace on Sunday, December 6, 2009, 5:57 pm
in Grammar Tips
The proper use of these verbs creates quite a conundrum for most of us. I often have to look them up just to remind myself of the proper usage. First, let’s define them: Lie¹ – to tell an untruth Lie² – to recline; to rest in a horizontal or recumbent position Lay – to put [...]
by Sheila Wallace on Friday, November 13, 2009, 7:49 am
in Grammar Tips
The serial comma (a.k.a. the Oxford comma or the Harvard comma) is the comma used immediately before the conjunction that precedes the final item in a series of three or more items. In simple sentences, omitting the serial comma may be acceptable; however, ambiguities causing misinterpretations arise in more complex sentence constructions. Its use is [...]