You are here: Home / grammar

Tag Archives: grammar

Still not surprised

Published on by

In my quest to find quick stuff to post on account of the fact because I have lots to do, I discovered this. (Keep scrolling down.) A surprise to no one Originally published on March 5, 2020  This was fun. I took an online English Grammar Test yesterday. I couldn’t resist. I believe the site in its entirety

Continue reading →

Reference this!

Published on by

All referred to this morning. Chicago Manual of Style and the Websters live on the rolling cart. The others join later editions of Harbrace, and Little Brown, and form, with a few other references the back wall of my desk. It’s interesting to look especially at Harbrace and see the near continual expansion of the

Continue reading →

Guess which one I’ll use!

Published on by

Shined vs. shone The verb shine has two main definitions: (1) to emit light, and (2) to cause to gleam by polishing. In its first sense, shine traditionally becomes shone in the past tense and as a past participle. In its second sense, shine is traditionally inflected shined. So, for example, we might say, “The sun shone brightly while I shined my shoes.”  “In 21st-century writing, however, the distinction

Continue reading →

“Go home”

Published on by

Nothing much happening out in the good old Atlantic today. A good thing. It’s time to start checking out there every once in a while. It is getting on hurricane season. Meanwhile, here on the farm we’ve had 6.5″ of rain this week. Mr. Big Food is not cutting any grass. And the regularly scheduled

Continue reading →

Well

Published on by

From the internet… “This Dean is implying that students are not capable of good writing!” This Dean is implying that students are not capable of good writing well! Sorry. I just couldn’t let that slide. Had the subject been something other than writing… maybe.

Mis-shelved | Things Happen

Published on by

Most recently finished shelves. These are up against the back of the sofa and help define the breakfast “room”. On the left are histories of literatures, books about certain periods, anthologies, and the like. Here’s what happens during the non-book cleaning time of year. I will get a crappy old book, or discover one in

Continue reading →

It’s killing me, too.

Published on by

Originally published on January 28, 2020. One year ago. It is a debate that has torn the nation in two, ripped friends and family apart, and entrenched deep and uncrossable lines throughout the land. Should the Royal Mint have used an Oxford comma on its Brexit 50p piece? Three million coins bearing the slogan “Peace, prosperity

Continue reading →

Kaa. Boom.

Published on by

I swear to God I had never put this together before. E.B. White is E.B. White. Elements of Style Charlotte’s Web Does Miss M know this? She did not. “At this juncture of my life, I would not know this.” Well. She does now. That’ll give her a leg up.

How’s your day going?

Published on by

Today is drudge work Monday. Unfortunately, the sub-category, “1-armed drudge work” is rather small. I can load the dishwasher, dust, tidy up. I can wash & dry clothes but alas I cannot fold. Good thing Mr. Big Food keeps me busy. And there’s more! This small dose of silliness was brought to you by me.

Crappy Old Quote of the Day | Is this true?

Published on by

Grammar, Rules of “[Regarding] a sentence ending with a preposition. The silly “rule” against it was invented by Dryden. I think he disliked it only because you can’t do it in either French or Latin which he thought more “polite” languages than English.” –C.S. Lewis, Letters to an American Lady (24 November 1960) From The

Continue reading →

What I have so far | Bits & Pieces

Published on by

SueK was 100% correct and I was– well, I got drove in the correct spot on my first attempt before SueK corrected me. We’re diagramming this sentence: “While the present century was in its teens, and on one sunshiny morning in June, there drove up to the great iron gate of Miss Pinkerton’s academy for

Continue reading →