The complexity of rules about those little dashes that separate many words for various reasons causes so much misunderstanding that many writers just leave them out of the recipe or spill them randomly into the mixing bowl. But your compositional cuisine need not be so undisciplined. The rules may seem complicated at first, but soon … Read more
The object of the hyphen in the compound modifier should normally be clarification. Adjectives in a compound modifier sometimes precede two nouns. In the phrase small-jet engine, the hyphen tells us the engine isn’t small for a jet, but the jet itself is probably one of those bijou executive models. Adjectives can also describe other … Read more
Some people consider italics and boldface type — and quotation marks, when they’re used other than as dialogue markers — to be just so many noisy bells and whistles. They often are, when they’re misused, but when they’re employed correctly and strategically, they send strong signals. The following rules apply primarily for books and magazines. … Read more
Let’s say, for the sake of argument, that you’re explaining something in writing — such as which punctuation marks to use to signal a break in thought — and you want to make it clear to your readers (many of whom may never have realized that there are distinctions to be made). How would you … Read more
This is a guest post by Eva R. Marienchild. I just sent a colleague back his “Away” e-mail—you know, the ones you post when you’ll be out of your office for a while. It had a comma where a semicolon should have been in the last sentence. To wit: “We will respond to your emails … Read more
Aika asks: how do I properly sequence “‘s and punctuation marks? As I can’t think of any example of beginning a quotation with a disembodied ‘s, I’ll offer this guideline from the Chicago Manual of Style: . . . A term enclosed in quotation marks . . . should never be made into a possessive. … Read more
After a lifetime of being wishy-washy about the serial comma, I’ve reached a decision: I’m going to use it all the time. Such a momentous decision is, of course, a deeply personal matter. The pros and cons are widely, frequently, and hotly debated. Here is some information that may enable you to make the decision … Read more
Writers like to sprinkle their work with subordinate clauses because they add variety to sentence structure. A reading diet too heavy with simple sentences or even compound sentences becomes wearisome quickly. Subordinate clauses—also known as dependent clauses—used skillfully can add complexity and artfulness to writing. A subordinate clause can either precede or follow its main … Read more
Writers have three different dashes at their disposal: the hyphen, the en dash, and the em dash. Most of us are familiar with hyphens and their uses. They’re used to form compound modifiers (such as in “a well-attended event”). We also use them to break a word that falls at the end of a line. … Read more
This is a guest post by Steven Pittsley. If you want to write for Daily Writing Tips check the guidelines here. Although often taken for granted, the question mark can be used for more than ending a direct question. Really? Yes. The question mark was first seen in the eighth century when it was called … Read more
Most of us were taught to place a comma before a sentence-ending “too”: We’re going shopping, out to dinner, and then to a movie, too. But is that comma really necessary? “Too” in this context means “also,” but you’re not likely to see the sentence written like this: We’re going shopping, out to dinner, and … Read more
Ron Milan wants to use a comma to separate two short clauses: I wrote a sentence:“Experts teach, peers comfort.” Word creates an error unless I write“Experts teach and peers comfort.”or“Experts teach; peers comfort.” (semi colon versus comma). However, I like the shorter pause by a comma. Any rules on this? Punctuation exists to help … Read more