There’s something about the digraph ae that lends it a dignity and an aura. Perhaps it’s the vowel combination’s ubiquity as a plural marker taken directly from Latin (antennae, nebulae, and so on). Maybe it’s the frequency of its appearance in classical nomenclature (maenad, praetor, and the like). Whatever the reason, words in which ae … Read more
As an unabashed proponent of reasonable elegant variation — the moderate use of synonyms to avoid tiring repetition of a specific word throughout a passage — I offer this assortment of terms for a piece of writing: 1. Article: This word, with the diminutive -le as a clue, refers to a small part of a … Read more
Language chauvinists in the United States who believe that English is being polluted by other tongues should pause to consider how few words in our language actually derive from Anglo-Saxon, the predecessor of Modern English. One survey determined that only one-fourth of the words in English come from its linguistic ancestors. That total is exceeded … Read more
Palindromes are words, phrases or number sequences that read the same way in both directions. Palindrome derives from the Greek for ‘running back again’. Both the Greeks and Romans are known to have enjoyed palindromes. The Greeks also published palindromic poetry. Common words that are palindromes include: civic eye level nun pop radar Some famous … Read more
Grammar Possessive of Proper Names Ending in S 20 Rules About Subject-Verb Agreement English Grammar 101: All You Need to Know Congratulations on or for? 7 Classes and Types of Phrases Coordinating vs. Subordinating Conjunctions Homograph Examples When to use “on” and when to use “in” Passed vs Past Apply to, Apply for, and Apply … Read more
You have a right to disagree with my previous post Writing with Speech Recognition Software. For many writers, dictating a book instead of typing it just doesn’t work. Maybe you can dictate faster than typing. But that doesn’t matter much if you can’t think faster than you can type. The speed bottleneck is often in … Read more
The colon can be a tricky punctuation mark. You’ve probably grasped periods, question marks, exclamation points, and commas – but the rules surrounding colons may seem a bit trickier. There are two main ways to use colons: To introduce an item or a series of items. To replace a semi-colon between two independent clauses: the … Read more
Too often I forget to do it. But when I’m pleased or impressed by someone, I need to make a point to write them a note. Some people are embarrassed by strong face-to-face compliments. After all, if a compliment isn’t heartfelt, it may seem mocking instead. But if you think they will be uncomfortable, you … Read more
For centuries, writers and critics have tried to put stories into basic categories. Novelist Kurt Vonnegut described eight of them: Man in Hole, Boy Meets Girl, From Bad to Worse, Which Way is Up?, Creation Story, Old Testament, New Testament, and Cinderella. He argued that stories have beautiful shapes which can be drawn on graph … Read more
To create an anagram, you rearrange the letters of a word or phrase to form a different word or phrase. For example, the word section is an anagram for notices and vice versa. A “perfect” anagram uses all the letters, no more, no less. But sometimes letters are repeated or omitted. Before the modern alphabet … Read more
This post details the function of various symbols that appear the top of a line of type to communicate additional information about the text. Apostrophe The apostrophe signals that, depending on usage, one or more letters are missing or are being added to perform a grammatical function. An apostrophe • marks omission of one or … Read more
The English language includes some words that, originating in the vocabulary of warfare, have been applied to competitive contexts such as sports and business, while others that did not originate in that realm are associated with both the military and other endeavors. Here’s a list of terms pertaining to military units and formations that also … Read more