When a compound noun is made plural, it is the “main” noun in the combination that gets the plural. …one sister-in-law…two sisters-in-law …one attorney general…two attorneys general The good times are almost here!! CSR English review is Saturday; Good Grammar begins this Sunday. REGISTER NOW. Happy punctuating! Margie
Prepositional Phrases
When a short prepositional phrase is a simple adverb, it is never punctuated based on essential/nonessential. When it is an adverb, it usually takes no punctuation since adverbs get to wander around in the sentence. …On Monday we visited her in the hospital. …We visited her in the hospital on Monday. …We visited her on Monday in the hospital. There …
Grammar Class
The 15-hour grammar class begins this Sunday at 4:30 Pacific time. Register now! http://www.ccr.edu/index.php/component/content/article/43-loocs/443-cre302-good-grammar-finally Happy punctuating! Margie
Punctuate the Fragment the Same As…
Punctuate a fragment that stands for a complete thought the same way you would punctuate the complete thought that it stands for. …Q Where was he?…A At the beach. He was alone.…A He was at the beach. He was alone.Punctuation for the word “correct?” falls into this category. It is punctuated the same as “is that correct?” It takes a …
“If” Clause
When the “if” clause at the end of the sentence is a modifier for a word in the main clause, there is no comma. …I will go if I can scrape the money together. …She will call if she gets there before 9:00. When the “if” clause is not directly related to the content of the sentence — …
“Sometime/Some Time”
Often the grammar of the sentence determines the one-word/two-word difference for the word sometime. If it is the object of a preposition, it has to be two words. …for some time… …at some time… In these expressions, the word time is the main noun. You cannot say “ago” or “back” by themselves. So you need two words. …some time …
“Different From” or “Different Than”
The word “than” always involves a comparison form — either an “er” on a word or the words “more” or “less.” It can only compare. …larger than that… …louder than I thought… …wiser than I… …more comfortable than that one… …more appropriate than what he said… …more suitable than what she chose… Since “different” has no comparison form, it has …
Upcoming CSR/RPR English Prep Class
Need to brush up on English for an upcoming exam? Here is a five-hour review class, covering all of the salient points of grammar and punctuation with plenty of practice material — the first two Saturdays of May. More information and registration here: http://www.ccr.edu/index.php/component/content/article/43-loocs/437-cre301-csrrpr-english-review Happy punctuating! Margie
Spotting Dependent Clauses, Part 2
Though there are some nuances I am omitting here, picking out a dependent clause is about finding the subject and verb and then checking for a word out in the front that goes with that subject and verb. The thing that makes this a bit easier is that there are really a limited number of words that start dependent clauses: …
Spotting Dependent Clauses, Part 1…
The difference between a dependent clause and a prepositional phrase is that the clause has a subject and a verb. …We will meet after dinner. (phrase) …We will meet after we eat. (clause) …I have not seen him since Friday. (phrase) …I have not seen him since we met in Barcelona. (clause) The difference between a dependent clause and an …
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