Grammar Archives

26 Golden Rules for Writing Well

September 16, 2009 by Roy Johnson

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1. Don’t abbrev.

2. Check to see if you any words out.

3. Be carefully to use adjectives and adverbs correct.

4. About sentence fragments.

5. When dangling, don’t use participles.

6. Don’t use no double negatives.

7. Each pronoun agrees with their antecedent.

8. Just between you and I, case is important.

9. Join clauses good, like a conjunction should.

10. Don’t use commas, that aren’t necessary.

11. Its important to use apostrophe’s right.

12. It’s better not to unnecessarily split an infinitive.

13. Never leave a transitive verb just lay there without an object.

14. Only Proper Nouns should be capitalized. also a sentence should
begin with a capital letter and end with a full stop

15. Use hyphens in compound-words, not just in any two-word phrase.

16. In letters compositions reports and things like that we use commas
to keep a string of items apart.

17. Watch out for irregular verbs that have creeped into our language.

18. Verbs has to agree with their subjects.

19. Avoid unnecessary redundancy.

20. A writer mustn’t shift your point of view.

21. Don’t write a run-on sentence you’ve got to punctuate it.

22. A preposition isn’t a good thing to end a sentence with.

23. Avoid cliches like the plague.

24. 1 final thing is to never start a sentence with a number.

25. Always check your work for accuracy and completeness.

[ANON.]

Writing well is often a matter of checking small details such as those illustrated by the notes above. Give yourself a bonus point if you spotted why the grammatically correct statement in number 25 is relevant. If you didn’t – look again at the page title.

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A-Z of Grammar and Punctuation

July 17, 2009 by Roy Johnson

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Most people are a bit frightened of grammar and punctuation – with some reason, because both can be very complex issues. Fortunately, anybody who can speak their own language is already in possession of all the tools they need for using it correctly. This isn’t to say that we don’t need a little help from time to time. And that’s where guides like this one come in useful. John Seely starts off with a brief overview of English sentence structure, and how the parts relate to each other. He explains all the main elements of speech, and uses everyday examples as illustrations. Then it’s on to the main substance of the book, which starts at abbreviations and runs via main clause to who’s/whose and will/shall. In between, he covers all the main issues which crop up time and again as problems for everyday users of English.

How do you punctuate lists of terms? How can you avoid the split infinitive? What is the rule for using apostrophes? What is the difference between can and may? What’s the correct way to show speech in writing? Is between you and me correct English? Answer: yes it is.

He uses a minimum of jargon, and makes all his explanations as succinct as possible. I particularly liked one visual feature of this book. Longer topics, such as paragraphs and prefixes are given their own shaded boxes, and somehow this makes both the topic and its surrounding items easier to read.

This book will be ideal if you want a reference offering quick simple explanations, but you could also use it as an introduction to a more in-depth study of the subject.

This is a new series from OUP – a pocketbook guides on the basics of writing and language skills. They’re small, cheap, cheerful, and compact, yet authoritative – the sort of thing which I imagine would be ideal for students or the average person-in-the-street who wants to take on the first principles of improving their language skills.

Buy the book at Amazon UK

Buy the book at Amazon US

John Seely, Oxford A—Z of Grammar and Punctuation, Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2nd edition 2009, pp.192, ISBN: 0199564671

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Abbreviations

August 27, 2009 by Roy Johnson

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Abbreviations – definition

Abbreviations are letters or shortened words which are used instead of the full word.

Examples

Abbreviation	Full expression	Latin term
e.g.	for example	exempli gratia
i.e.	that is	id est
N.B.	please note	nota bene
Mr	Mister	—
US	United States	—

Use

Abbreviations are used to save space – or to avoid repeating common terms.

They are often used in dictionaries, encyclopedias, and bibliographies.

Some organisations abbreviate their titles to the initial capital letters of their names.

Abbreviations are very useful when taking notes.

Many traditional abbreviations are shortened forms of words from Latin.

NB! Don’t use abbreviations in formal writing. Write out the word(s) in full.

Notice that a full stop is placed after an abbreviation, but not when the full word is used.

Sometimes the full stop may be omitted in order to avoid double punctuation.

Never begin a sentence with an abbreviation. Either spell out the word, or re-arrange the words in the sentence.

Companies and organisations often drop the full stops from their abbreviated titles.

ICI – Imperial Chemicals Industry
BBC – British Broadcasting Corporation
WHO – World Health Organisation

Some abbreviations are spoken as if they were complete words: for instance, NATO (‘NayTow’).

Others are spelled out. For instance VIP [very important person] is usually spoken as three separate letters – “Vee-Eye-Pea”.

Abbreviations are very useful when taking notes, but you should not use them in the main text of any formal writing.

If you wish to use any of these expressions, they should be written out in full. That is, don’t use e.g., but write out for example.

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Accent – how to understand it

August 27, 2009 by Roy Johnson

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Accent – definition

Accent refers to a speaker’s style of pronunciation.

It may signal the regional or social identity of the speaker.

Accent does not refer to the content of what is being said.

Examples

Class accent

Received Pronunciation [RP] is a form of speech used by (for instance) many BBC newsreaders and members of the Royal Family.

It is based on social class, not on the geographic origins of the speaker.

Regional Accent

A Geordie accent is the regional speech style used by speakers in the North East of England.

A Cockney accent is the indigenous speech style used by people in the London area.

‘Book’ might be pronounced as ‘Bewk’ in northern England, but ‘Back’ in southern England.

Similarly, the term ‘car’ might be pronounced as ‘kaar’ and ‘caw’ in these two regions.

Use

Every geographical area has its own characteristic and recognisable style of speech which is used by a group.

Everybody speaks with an accent. Those people who speak with received pronunciation [RP] are merely using the minority speech style of prestige.

It is quite common for a person to speak Standard English with a regional accent.

NB! Accent is not the same thing as dialect.

The term dialect refers to grammar and vocabulary as well as pronunciation. That is, it describes the content of speech.

Fewer than two percent [yes! – 2%] of the UK population speak Received Pronunciation (RP).

Perhaps this statistic is surprising when we consider what prestige it has held historically and currently.

RP was once itself a regional accent – that of the East Midlands. It acquired its status because East Midlands speakers converged on London as it became a centre for merchants. In other words, London became the power base and the financial centre, and the East Midlands accent became the spoken standard.

This prestige accent developed alongside the regional accent of the London area. The co-existence of these two accents still exists today.

The Cockney accent is spoken in the East End of London by many original Londoners, whilst RP is spoken by many politicians and by upper-class people who live and work in the same area.

The Cockney accent is a regional accent, and RP is class-based.

Many regional speakers feel uncomfortable about their accent. This perpetuates the deference and prestige given to RP.

Recent studies have shown that RP speakers will often be chosen for jobs, despite the superior skills of regional-speaking competitors.

Some presenters on radio and television are employed even though they have strong regional accents. However, they tend to be used on programmes which are not very prestigious, such as weather forecasts, arts programs, and regional news bulletins.

Accent can still be a very powerful indicator of status, and it is often an emotive item in social interaction.

Speech varies subtly between individuals using the same accent. Because of this, a broad description is all that can be achieved. This applies to the classification of other accents too.

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Acronyms

April 21, 2011 by Roy Johnson

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Acronyms – definition

An acronym is an abbreviation created from the initial letters of a phrase or name.

Examples

BBC	British Broadcasting Corporation
IBM	International Business Machines
NATO	North Atlantic Treaty Organisation

Use

These acronyms are useful, because they save you the trouble of writing out the name in full every time you wish to refer to it.

Some acronyms, like those above, are very well known, and can be used without too much problem in most written communication.

However, any which are not so well know should always be named in full the first time they are used, and the acronym shown immediately afterwards in brackets. Here’s an example.

The committee elected four new members to the Corporate Affairs Steering Group (CASG) who will report immediately before the annual general meeting (AGM) at the end of July.

Some abbreviations are spoken as if they were complete words: for instance, NATO (“NayTow”). and International Criminal Police Organization (“Inter-Pol”)

Others are spelled out. For instance Very Important Person is (VIP) usually spoken as three separate letters “Vee-Eye-Pea”.

There is no need to put full stops between the letters of an acronym.

The plural of an acronym is shown by adding the letter s – as in compact disks (CDs)

There is no need to use an apostrophe, which should be reserved for cases showing possession – as in ‘the CD’s jewel case was broken’.

Most acronyms are formed by the use of capital letters, but where a normally pronounceable word is formed, they often include lower case letters as well – as in (Radar) – radio detecting and ranging.

Acronyms are particularly useful when taking notes, but you should remember to make a record of the full name of any new instances.

AIDS	acquired immune deficiency syndrome
ASBO	Anti-Social Behaviour Order
BBC	British Broadcasting Corporation
CD	Compact Disc
FAQ	frequently asked questions
Gestapo	Geheime Staatspolizei (secret state police)
Interpol	International Criminal Police Organization
Laser	Light Amplification by Stimulated Emission of Radiation
NATO	North Atlantic Treaty Organization
Radar	radio detection and ranging
Scuba	self-contained underwater breathing apparatus
SQL	Structured Query Language
WHO	World Health Organisation

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Adjectives – how to use them

August 29, 2009 by Roy Johnson

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Adjectives – definition

Adjectives modify nouns or pronouns. They can be placed before the noun, or refer back to it.

In most sentences in English, adjectives precede the noun.

Examples

big – brown – long – heavy – bright

This is a long brown pencil box.
He was wearing a heavy black overcoat.
It turned out to be a bright sunny day.

Use

Most adjectives are words which describe the object to which they are attached.

Inexperienced writers often pile up adjectives, believing they will be more effective [‘the fierce and ugly old black shepherd dog’]. Experienced writers use fewer, with care.

NB! Adjectives are describing words.

Adjectives can also be made from verbs:

He was the driving force in a prosperous company.

These adjectives are formed from the verbs to dive and to prosper.

Adjectives can also be made from nouns:

Let’s sit on that grass verge, not in the car park.

Adjectives can either be used in a single form, as in ‘the red ball’ or, in multiple form, as in ‘a big shiny yellow beach ball’.

There is a rule of sequence here which requires the following order:

Size — texture — colour — type

The next version of this statement is not a normal English sentence, because it does not follow the descriptive rule of word-order:

The yellow big beach shiny ball.

However, both poetry and advertising deliberately break the rules to make an impact on the reader or listener.

Placing an adjective after the noun it describes often has a poetic effect:

these roses, heavy with dew

When an adjective is formed out of proper noun, it retains the capital letter:

He became a British subject.
It happened during the Victorian period.

If the adjective is formed from a common noun, then no capital is required:

She bought a table cover.

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Adverbs – how to use them

August 29, 2009 by Roy Johnson

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Adverbs – definition

Adverbs usually modify a verb.

Adverbs describe how, where, why, or when an action was done.

Adverbs can also modify an adjective, or another adverb.

It can either precede or follow the word it qualifies.

Many adverbs end in —ly.

Examples

gently – slowly – greatly

Use

The adverb may follow the verb, as in

He broke the news as gently as possible.

Or it may precede the verb, as in

She slowly handed him the important document.

NB! Adverbs can sometimes change the meaning of the word they modify.

There are three main classes of adverb. Those which describe, those which indicate, and those which show number or amount.

describe – well, greatly, usefully, prettily

indicate – there, here, then

number – once, secondly, very much

The following examples show adverbs in context:

describe – He has greatly improved his recent coursework grades.

indicate – Here they noticed a small red spot on the ceiling.

number – Once he started he couldn’t stop.

It is interesting to observe that in English the majority of adverbs end with the suffix -ly, whereas in French they end with the suffix -ment. For example: doucement, lentement, heureusement.

The ending -ly derives from the Anglo-Saxon word ‘lich’ meaning ‘body’. For instance, a lych gate in a churchyard is one through which the body is brought for burial.

The French suffix -ment derives from ‘mind’, and it is arguable that the French traditionally have seen themselves as philosophers, where the English have been more practical. Is there a link here?

Adverbs can occasionally modify a preposition or a conjunction.

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Alliteration – how to understand it

August 30, 2009 by Roy Johnson

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Alliteration – definition

Alliteration is a figure of speech featuring the repetition of consonant sounds.

These are the hard sounds of letters such as B, D, K, P, and T – as distinct from the softer vowel sounds of letters such as A, E, I, O, and U.

The repeated sound is often (but not always) at the beginning of words.

Examples

She sells sea shells on the sea shore

‘Tinker, tailor, soldier, sailor’

Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled pepper

Use

Alliteration is used for emphasis or stylistic effect

It is featured heavily in children’s rhymes and popular poetry.

It is also used in the lyrics of popular songs, and in advertising.

NB! Alliteration is the repetition of consonant sounds, whereas assonance is the repetition of vowel sounds.

Alliteration is used a great deal (along with assonance) in children’s rhymes, because it emphasises rhythm and makes memorising easier.

Baa baa blacksheep

Have you any wool?

Yes sir, no sir.

Three bags full.

The same effect is used in advertising, so that slogans will stick in people’s minds:

Snap, crackle and pop

[Notice that this example also makes use of assonance and onomatopoeia.]

Alliteration is used much more in poetry than in prose. It is also used in song lyrics, football chants, and advertising jingles.

Alliteration also has a long and distinguished history. Middle English poetry was written in a verse form which featured the repetition of consonants within the line:

In a somer season, whan soft was the sonne

I shope me in shroudes, as I a shepe were

[PIERS PLOWMAN]

Take care not to use alliteration where it is not appropriate — in formal writing for instance. In such cases, it can have a distracting and irritating effect.

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Apostrophes – how to use them

August 30, 2009 by Roy Johnson

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Apostrophes – definition

Apostrophes are shown by a raised comma — like this ( ‘ ).

Apostrophes are used to show possession and to punctuate contractions.

Examples

Possession– My mother’s house – The girl’s bicycle

The house belongs to my mother – The bicycle belongs to the girl

Contractions– There’s nobody here – Where’s Freddy?

There is nobody here – Where is Freddy?

Use

We can write The tail of the dog or The dog’s tail. This is possession – when something belongs to someone or something.

We can also write It is a lovely day or It’s a lovely day. This is contraction – when two words are merged. The apostrophe is used to denote the missing letter.

NB! Many people have problems with the apostrophe. [You’re not alone.] Read on!

Possession

When the possessor is single we indicate possession by using an apostrophe followed by the letter s:

The man’s coat
my sister’s hat

When the possessors are plural, the apostrophe is placed after the final s:

The girls’ bicycles
my cousins’ parents

When names end with the letter ‘s’, either use is acceptable:

James’ wife or
James’s wife

[It is often said that the choice between the two should be made on how the word is pronounced.]

The apostrophe is never used with possessive pronouns:

his – hers – its – ours – yours – theirs

But it is used with one: One must do one’s best.

Note that the apostrophe is not required where a word has been formed by omitting its first part:

bus – not – ‘bus [from omnibus]

phone – not – ‘phone [from telephone]

No apostrophe is required in the plural form of numbers and dates:

in the 1920s
the roaring twenties

Contractions

In formal writing we would write She has always loved him, but when speaking we would probably say She’s always loved him. The apostrophe is used to indicate the missing letters (or sounds).

I’m (I am) He’s (He is) You’re (You are)

Notice the difference between it’s (it is) and its (belonging to it).

NB! There is no such thing as its’

The use of contractions tends to make writing less formal.

It is just possible that the apostrophe will be the next linguistic feature to disappear from common use.

It causes lots of problems, and in most cases the context would make the meaning clear even if it were missing.

It is in fact a relic from the days when English was an inflected language. This may be a reason for the problems, and it would form some justification for its disappearance.

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Apostrophes in essays

August 22, 2009 by Roy Johnson

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1. Apostrophes in essays (‘) have two functions. They indicate both the possessive case and contractions. This might seem simple, but apostrophes cause a lot of problems.

The Possessive Case

2. We can say either ‘the whiskers of the cat’, or ‘the cat’s whiskers’. This is the possessive case, when something belongs to somebody or something else.

3. When the possessor is single we indicate possession by using an apostrophe followed by the letter ‘s’:

The man’s coat my sister’s hat.

4. When the possessors are plural, the apostrophe is placed after the final ‘s’:

The girls’ bicycles my cousins’ parents.

5. When names end with the letter ‘s’, either use is acceptable:

James’ wife or James’s wife.

(It is often said that the choice between the two should be made on how the word is pronounced.)

6. The apostrophe is never used with possessive pronouns:

his, hers, its ours, yours, theirs

But it is used with ‘one’: One must do one’s best.

7. Many shops and business concerns these days omit the apostrophe from their titles:

Barclays Bank Coopers Wines

8. Note that the apostrophe is not required where a word has been formed by omitting its first part:

bus – NOT – ‘bus

phone – NOT – ‘phone

9. No apostrophe is required in the plural form of numbers and dates:

in the 1920s the roaring twenties

10. The possessive of classical names ending in es is often formed by the apostrophe alone:

Demosthenes’ speeches
Sophocles’ plays
Xerxes’ campaigns

11. French names ending in an unpronounced s or x follow the normal rule, taking an apostrophe and an s:

Rabelais’s comedy Malraux’s novels

Contractions

12. In formal prose we would write ‘She has told him’, but when speaking we would say ‘She’s told him’. The apostrophe is used to indicate the missing letters.

I am (I’m) He is (he’s) You are (You’re)

13. Note the difference between it’s (it is) and its (belonging to it).

14. There is no such thing as its’.

15. It’s may also be a contraction of it has

“It’s been a pleasure meeting you”

16. You should avoid the use of contractions in essays and formal writing.

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a checklist for professional writing skills

pocket guide to the basics of English language

free pages from our English Language software program

Abbreviations – definition

Examples

Use

free pages from our English Language software program

Accent – definition

Examples

Use

free pages from our English Language software program

Acronyms – definition

Examples

Use

free pages from our English Language software program

Adjectives – definition

Examples

Use

free pages from our English Language software program

Adverbs – definition

Examples

Use

free pages from our English Language software program

Alliteration – definition

Examples

Use

free pages from our English Language software program

Apostrophes – definition

Examples

Use

sample from HTML program and PDF book

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