Continue reading »]]> The English language can present a bit of confusion to people when speaking or writing. Even native English speakers confuse words such as beside vs besides and quite vs. quiet. When looking at quite vs. quiet, it’s generally a spelling error. Beside vs besides can be a spelling error or simply a misspoken term.

Beside means next to as in “The box sits beside the desk.” Besides means otherwise or however such as “Besides, she is too tall for that dress.” When quite and quiet are confused, it is generally due to a spelling error rather than a grammatical error. Sometimes even spell check will get confused between the two words and put the wrong one in a phrase. An example of quite would be “He is quite good at his job.’ An example of the proper use of quiet would be “It sure is quiet in the house with the children outside.”

The differences are obvious when one takes the time to research the meanings. Although the words are often misspelled, the writer generally means something different. A person may write “It is quite in the house with the children playing outside” when they actually mean “It is quiet in the house with the children playing outside.” Quite and quiet are often confused in writing but not in speaking whereas beside and besides are often confused in both writing and speaking.

Continue reading »]]> We all were taught that a noun is a person, place, or thing and the difference between a noun and a pronoun. However there are another two types of nouns that many people aren’t always entirely aware of; count and non count nouns. Count nouns are defined as tangible. Things you can see, count, divide and heard. Non count nouns are not tangible, can have a broad definition, and are regarded as a whole and cannot be multiplied, or divided.

Examples of count nouns include pronouns and objects. He is a count noun, so is she, the car, the cat, the noise and the shirt. These nouns can be shown as plural, usually by adding an S to the end, but otherwise follow normal grammar rules.

Non count nouns are different. They include things that people sense or things with a broad definition, such as anger, education, weather, and fear. There is no way to make these words plural because there is simply no need to.

Some words can be both count and non count nouns depending entirely on the way that it is used. Light is one of these words. In the sentence “Sure, you can turn on the lights,” the word light is used as a plural and is a count noun. However, if you wish to explain that light travels faster than sound then light has become a non count noun.

Continue reading »]]> Plurals and possessives are occasionally difficult to deal with by an inexperienced person. This is mostly so if the possession is from a noun or a plural noun ending in the letter S.

When proper possessives grammar is being used the noun which possesses something will typically end with an S preceded by an apostrophe, as opposed to simply ending with an s like it would if it was merely more than one of the noun. An example can be seen if somebody was to write the sentence “The boy’s tent was blue.”

However, some plural nouns can show possession too. To deal with plural nouns or other possessives ending in S, an apostrophe must be added to the end of the noun, like it would with “Because he was an experienced camper, Chris’ tent was the first to be fully set up.”

Another complicated possession that is a very common mistake is the word “its”. “Its” is an exception to the rule with plurals concerning the apostrophe and many people write “it’s” instead simply because they do not know of the exception. “It’s” is a contraction meaning “it is” and does not show possession at all. Remember, you want to say “The cat ate its food,” not “The cat ate it’s food.”

Continue reading »]]> A phrasal verb is a combination of a verb with another part of speech, most commonly a preposition. English phrasal verbs are common structures in both formal and colloquial usage and serve to greatly extend and even alter the meaning of the base verb.

A good way to think of a phrasal verb is to regard it as a phrase (two or more words) that functions in the grammar of the sentence as a verb.

Examples of phrasal verbs consisting of two words include:
Get back from the sharp knives.
Times are tough, but somehow we’ll get by.
Get into the car.
I really hope he can get over himself soon.
Let’s plan to get together next week.

Sometimes a phrasal verb consists of three words. Examples of these phrasal verbs include:
Please try to get along with your brother’s friends.
That puppy can get away with anything.
I don’t know when I’ll get around to my math homework.

Careful readers will already have noticed that all of the examples given so far use the verb “get.” As can readily be seen from the examples, turning a basic verb into a phrasal verb greatly expands its range of meaning.

Because a single verb can mean so many different things when used in different phrasal verb structures, a phrasal verbs dictionary can be useful, particularly if you are unsure about the precise meaning of a particular phrasal verb. It may not be necessary to invest in a dictionary, however; phrasal verbs lists appear in many places online and also in standard English grammar texts.

Of course, there are thousands of additional verbs that can be combined with other parts of speech. Just a few examples should be sufficient to illustrate this point:
The teacher instructed the students to pair off to review their math facts.
When you see the movie, try not to get carried away.
Jot down a few ideas about the new marketing campaign.

The correct use of phrasal verbs can help you add more variety to your speech and writing.

Continue reading »]]> Commas are probably one of the most confusing things to learn in grammar. It can be very perplexing to decide where and when to insert a comma. Fortunately, following the rules for the use of commas makes this process a little less bewildering. The four main rules for comma use are: commas are always used to separate things in a series, are usually used in front of conjunctions, are used at the end of introductory clauses, and are used to set off parenthetical elements. Examples of each used in a sentence will be used in the subsequent paragraph.

An example of a comma used to separate items in series is in the following sentence, I walked, hopped, skipped, and jumped to get to the bank. An example of a comma being used in front of a conjunction is in the following sentence, I was going to the park, but it rained. An example of incorrect comma conjunction usage is something like commas and and full stops. An example of a comma being used in front of an introductory clause is in this sentence ‘When I got home, I saw my dog running towards me at the door’. An example of a comma being used in a parenthetical element is as followed ‘My sister, the blond one, is right over there’.

Additionally rules for the use of commas are as follows: they are used to separate a city and a state,(ex. Barnwell, South Carolina). They are used to change the meaning of a sentence. An example of this is compared in the following sentence. Dummies, keep right here vs. dummies keep right here. Quoted elements also need a comma to separate them.

It will probably take much practice before one fully masters comma usage. After spending much time reviewing the rules for comma usage, it will probably become second nature to a person.

Continue reading »]]> Many people get adjectives and adverbs confused. Adjectives are words that are used to describe a noun in a sentence, while adverbs are used to modify adverbs, adjectives or verbs. Here is a list of adjectives:

fast
brown
long
short
pink

In the sentence “The dog is brown.”. Brown is the adjective because it described what color the dog is.

There are comparative adjectives and superlative adjectives. Comparative adjectives are used to compare two different nouns or a collective noun. For example, “The dog is older than the cat.”, older is the comparing the age of the cat and the dog. Therefore older would be a comparing adjective.

Superlative adjectives are used to compare three or more different nouns. For example, “The dog is the oldest do in the pound”. The adjective oldest is the superlative adjective because it is comparing the dog with all the other dogs in the pound.

Comparing adjectives by the type of adjective that you have in a sentence is easy. Just look at the ending of the adjective. Usually an adjective that ends with -est is superlative, while and adjective ending with -er is comparative.

Continue reading »]]> Adverbs are parts of speech that modify any other part of speech other than a noun. They can describe how something was done, a place, a time, or a degree. Some adverbs examples include words like quickly, slowly, kindly, very, quite, and endlessly. An adverb can be one of the most confusing parts of speech to learn. Both adjectives and adverbs describe things, so that is why they are commonly confused with each other. Fortunately, there are a few ways people can distinguish adverbs from adjectives. In the subsequent paragraph, they will be discussed.

The first way that a person can distinguish between an adverb and an adjective is look at each one’s definition. The definition of an adjective is a word that describes a noun. An adverb is something that modifies a verb or an adjective. Another way that a person can tell the difference between an adjective and an adverb is take a look at how the word is used in the context of a sentence. Here are two sentences in which the word quick is used as an adjective in one and a adverb in the other. I walked quick vs. I walked quickly. Quick in the first sentence is describing how I walked, while quickly in the second sentence is describing to the extent that I walked.

The easiest way to learn how to tell the difference between those two parts of speech is to make a list of adverbs that are commonly used and then make a list of adjectives. By going over the lists several times, a person will be able to distinguish between these two commonly confused parts of speech.

Continue reading »]]> Pronouns are words that are used in the place of nouns. They fall into several categories including: personal, subjective, objective, possessive, reflexive, and indefinite. The type of pronoun used depends on the noun and the overall context of the sentence. Each pronoun type and its usage will be discussed respectively in this article.

Personal pronouns stand in place of a person or things. Examples of such include: he, she or it. Subjective pronouns are a derivative of the personal ones. They are used when the person or thing is the subject of the sentence. An example of this is in the following sentence, I like to go to the park, but she does not. Objective pronouns are used when the person or thing is the object of the sentence. An example of this is in the sentence, I called her yesterday. Possesive pronouns are words that dictate ownerships. Examples of such include:mine, theirs its, hers, his.

Reflective pronouns dictate that the person or thing is acting on itself. An example of this is in the following sentence, Katie burned herself. Indefinite pronouns refer to a general category or categories of people or things. Anyone and nobody are examples of indefinite pronouns.

A lot of these subtypes are easily confused, so it is best for a person to study over them until he or she fully understands where and when to use them.

Continue reading »]]> The English language is full of words with two meanings. The ones that are spelled the same, but have different origins and may vary in pronunciation, are called homographs. For example, the lead singer of the BAND (musical group) playing on the radio may be wearing a wedding BAND (ring). ‘Band’ is spelled and pronounced the same, but has two unrelated meanings.

Here’s another example of a “same word different meaning” homograph: If I TEAR (rhymes with air) down the road in my sports car, and am stopped by a policeman, I will probably shed a TEAR (rhymes with ear) when he writes me a ticket. This type of homograph is also called by another name: a heteronym. Heteronyms are homographs which differs in origin, meaning, AND pronunciation. A heteronym may look like the same word but the meaning is different. This link [Venn diagram] will help you visualize the relationships between heteronyms and their linguistic cousins.

The sentences below offer examples of more words with two meanings that fall into the heteronym category:

Affect
(uh-FEKT): to influence or change(v) OR (AF-ekt): feeling or emotion(n)
Will a failing report card affect the student’s affect of indifference?

Alternate
(AWL-ter-neyt): switch back and forth(v) OR (AWL-ter-nit): substitute(n)
Mary alternated between giggles and tears when she was chosen as an alternate for the job.

Are
(AHR): plural present tense of “to be” (v) OR (AIR/AHR): 100 square meters;1/100th of a hectare(n)
Are you sure this are is big enough for your herb garden?

Ares
(AIR-eez): Greek god of war(n) OR (AIRS): 100 square meter units—plural(n)
The Greek god Ares would laugh at waging war over 40 ares of land, which is the size of an acre.

Attribute
(A-truh-byoot): quality or characteristic(n) OR (uh-TRIB-yoot): consider as quality resulting from (v)
His intelligence was an attribute he attributed to his parents.

August
(AW-guhst): eighth month of year(n) OR (aw-GUHST): inspiring reverence or admiration(n)
In late August, the august CEO will tour our factory.

Axes
(AK-siz): more than one ax/axe(n) OR (AK-seez): more than one axis(n) ax/axe(n)
The dizzy contestant hurled battle axes from the axes of three spinning balls in order to win a prize.

Bass
(BEYS—sounds like base): a bass voice, singer, or instrument(n) OR (BAS—rhymes with mass):a fish
Tom strummed the bass on the riverbank, while Sue listened and fished for bass.

Bow
(BOU): to bend head or body (v), also front of ship (n) OR (BOH): flexible strip of wood, shoots arrows (n)
She took a bow on the bow on the ship after shooting three arrows from her bow into the ship’s mast.

Bowed
(BOH-d): bent (v) OR (BOU-d): to bend in acknowledgment (v)
The flimsy podium bowed under the sumo wrestler’s weight as he bowed to his cheering fans.

Buffet
(buh-FEY): a self-service meal laid out on table or sideboard (n) OR (BUHF-it): to strike or push repeatedly (v)
I heaped my plate with food from the buffet as I listened to the storm buffet the walls of the diner.

Close
(KLOHZ): to shut(v) OR (KLOHS): near(adj)
If you want to get warm, close the door and sit close to the fireplace.

Combine
(kuhm-BAHYN): join together, unite (v) OR (KOM-bahyn): grain harvesting machine
The farmer and his wife combine quality time with quantity time by working the combine together.

Conduct
(KON-duhkt): behavior (n) OR (kuhn-DUHKT): lead (v)
His conduct is confident as he prepares to conduct the orchestra.

Conflict
(kuhn-FLIKT): come into disagreement (v) OR (KON-flikt): fight or struggle(n)
Our ideas about economics may conflict, but we don’t have to engage in conflict.

Now that you’re more familiar with “same word different meaning” heteronyms, become a heteronym detective. See how many words you can collect in the course of the day. Then submit some of your best sentences to this collection!

Continue reading »]]> The exclamation mark is a device used to distinguish exclamations from statements in written English. An exclamation is a statement of very strong emotion or surprise. For example:

That’s crazy!
You did a great job!
I spent five weeks on that paper and got a C!

It is important to use exclamation marks after sentences that are not questions but begin with question words like ‘how’ and ‘what.’ For example:

How kind of you!
What a day!
How beautiful that sound was!

Without the exclamation mark, the statement may be interpreted as sarcastic. In spoken English, an exclamation is identified by the speaker’s tone of voice. In writing, this distinction is not available; exclamation marks are the punctuation responsible for conveying tone and feeling in written English.

Generally exclamation marks are only used in casual writing; the punctuation does not lend itself to academic writing, which focuses more on facts than personal feelings. In casual applications, exclamation marks are not used with other punctuation marks except in the rare case of the interrobang. An interrobang is the use of a question mark and exclamation mark together. For example:

“You did what?!”
“How dare you?!”
“What on Earth?!”

This combination of punctuations expresses both a direct question and the speaker’s experience of shock.

Exclamation marks have become a popular image on signs. Warning tags often bear the punctuation to bring attention to electric shock hazards. It is also used on signs that instruct the viewer to be alert.