A reader asks, Could you comment on Halloween words such as jack-o’-lantern vs jack o’ lantern and Trick-or-treat vs Trick or treat? I’ll add the word Halloween to the list. If all that is wanted is a guide to spelling and hyphenation, here’s how the words are handled in my two main dictionary references: Oxford … Read more
A reader asks about the placement of the phrase, “of course”: Please discuss which of the following is correct: “Of course, the photography was superb.” “The photography was, of course, superb.” “The photography was superb, of course.” Short answer: They are all correct. Although In some contexts, the placement of an adverb or adverbial phrase … Read more
An often-noted difference between English and the Romance languages is that in English, adjectives precede the noun. English-speakers say “the red car,” whereas French-speakers say, “the car red” (la voiture rouge). Nevertheless, English possesses many examples of post-positive adjectives: adjectives that follow the noun. Some of these after-the-noun adjectives belong to set phrases, collocations whose … Read more
Before my use of Facebook, I imagined that, apart from insignificant personal differences, most people I know agreed on matters of true and false, right and wrong, good and evil. No more. Now, I never fail to be astounded by how differently my friends and relatives and I may react to the same morning headlines. … Read more