I get a word every day from Merriam-Webster — it is free. You might want to sign up for it. I just found this word intriguing — “whelm.” I am sure I have never used the word without a prefix. Here are the three definitions given: to turn (something, such as a dish or vessel) upside down usually to cover …
Birthday Sale
My birthday is next week. They are all big these days! To celebrate, we are having a book sale. Order from the bookstore on margieholdscourt.com. CR: Bad Grammar/Good Punctuation 10 percent off. Discount code: HBDMARGIECR Buy this text in combination with the Workbook or Word Pears, Pares, Pairs 15 percent off. Discount code: HBDMARGIECOMBO Hurry. The sale ends at midnight …
I know we have done this before but… Distinguishing “awhile/a while” need not continue to be an issue. As one word, “awhile” is an adverb; as two words, “a while” is a noun. Each means “for an indefinite period of time.” There are some contexts that demand that it be two words, that is, that call for a noun. …in …
20-Hour Punctuation Class Begins Sunday
Good morning. Just a reminder that I am beginning a 20-hour punctuation class this coming Sunday. The ten two-hour class sessions will meet on Saturdays and/or Sundays and continue into June. This is your chance to pull all of those rules together and better understand how everything goes together. There will be a question-and-answer time in each session to discuss those …
Sentences Joined by “And”
If there are several sentences that have a coordinate conjunction between them — usually this is the word “and” — it is correct to put a comma before the coordinate conjunction, the “and.” There seems to be some discussion that, when there is a string of these sentences, there is no need for the commas. I know of no such rule. This is …
What to Do When Punctuation Is Said
When someone says the word for the punctuation mark, the decision about whether to put the word into the transcript or just the punctuation mark itself is really an editorial decision on the part of the reporter. A person says: “It is the, cap, First, cap, Amendment discussion that is important.” A person is reading from a document and says: “On …
Parentheses
Since parentheses indicate that the material inside the parens is less important than the information around it, we do not use parens to punctuation what is being said in a transcript. When there is a “blurb” inside parentheses, there are standard English rules that cover what needs to be done. If what is inside the parens is a complete grammatical …
Change of Date for Grammar Class
Because of a personal issue that has come up, I am pushing back the start date for the grammar class. We will begin on February 12 and go through April 8. Here are the new dates: February 12, 18, 25 March 4, 5, 12, 19 April 1, 2, 10 Go to margieholdsclass.com for details and registration. Hope to see you in …
This Is Your Chance — a Grammar Class
Good morning. I am fairly sure you have not had the chance to take a grammar class recently. As I have said so often, it is understanding how the language works that lays the foundation for everything else. Knowing the difference between a phrase and a clause, understanding modifiers, being able to find the subject and verb — this knowledge makes …
One More Time: “Affect” and “Effect”
Putting aside the word affect as it is used in the psychiatric world to mean the “an observed emotional response” — …the flat affect of the patient… — the statement “Affect is a verb; effect is a noun” just doesn’t quite cover it. Effect can be a verb. When it is, it means “bring about” or “make happen.” Substitute those words directly. If …