Last time, we drew the line between the descriptivists and the prescriptivists. Now it’s time to decide which side is right and which side is sleeping on the couch.
Prescriptivism says that language is governed by rules. Descriptivism says language is defined by usage.
It is important to know the eight parts of speech to craft intelligent, and intelligible, sentences. You use them all the time, but if you forget the difference between an adjective and adverb, you wind up coining new usages and infuriating copy editors.
We already did a post about commonly confused words. This list deals specifically with homophones that are easily mistaken. Homophones are words that sound the same, but are spelled differently and have different meanings. (No wonder English is the hardest language to learn!) These sets of homophones can trick even the most talented of writers.
1. [...]
Tired of following grammar “rules” that don’t make any sense? It will probably astound you to know that these rules you think you have to follow aren’t even real rules. They’re myths; legends passed on from generation to generation of confused writers. You don’t have to be a victim anymore.
Myth 1: You should never split [...]
We’ve all been there: It’s 3 a.m. and you’re tossing and turning, asking yourself, “What are transitive verbs?” Sleep well, little ones, for I am about to tell you.
Transitive verbs are those that take an object. Intransitive verbs, by a cruel twist of fate, are verbs that don’t take an object. But wait! There’s more.
Objects [...]
We’ve already explained that sometimes there are excellent reasons to use passive voice . Let us be clear once again that the use of passive voice is NOT a grammatical error, no matter what your professor says. It is a matter of both style and clarity — there are several reasons, however, to avoid [...]
An infinitive begins with “to,” followed by a verb or verb phrase, such as “to walk,” “to go,” or “to explode.” A split infinitive occurs when an adjective is inserted between “to” and the verb.
Ellipses are used to indicate missing text. They can be either three or four dots, depending on their usage.
The colon is one of the most powerful punctuation marks we have. It signifies that what comes after is what you’ve been waiting for. It is the harbinger of the payload, a sign that says “information here” in big red letters.
It also shares a name with a body part that one doesn’t discuss in polite [...]
