Grammar Workshop

Onomatopoeia (AH-nuh-mah-tuh-PEE-uh) is a unique and indispensable technique. It translates the sounds of tangible objects in the world around us into phonetic sounds, represented by letters of the … [Read more...] about Onomatopoeia

Wordsmiths love portmanteau words. There is something appealing about taking two words that touch on our meaning and combining them into one that conveys our meaning exactly. Portmanteau is an … [Read more...] about Grammar Workshop: Portmanteau Words

Students have a tough time with certain confusing words. We’ve looked at perplexing prefixes, and pesky parts of speech. In this final installment we will look at: Shades of Meaning Many words have … [Read more...] about Confusing Words: Shades of Meaning

We are looking at confusing words. Last time we covered those pesky prefixes. Let’s take a look at: Parts of Speech Many confusing words can be differentiated by examining their use in the sentence. … [Read more...] about Confusing Words: Parts of Speech

All writers can point to a collection of words and phrases that they find confusing—and each individual writer’s list looks a little bit different. Isn’t there a simple way to keep all of those … [Read more...] about Confusing Words: Perplexing Prefixes

But What About... Not all of the rules of possessive usage are set in stone. Even within the guidelines provided in Part 2, there is still plenty of room for flexibility. When used with due caution … [Read more...] about Grammar Workshop: Possessives {Part 3}

Now that we know how apostrophes ended up showing possession in the English language, it's time to learn a handful of modern rules. Basic Rules of the Possessive Case First make sure that you … [Read more...] about Grammar Workshop: Possessives {Part 2}

Possessives seem like they should be terribly simple to use and understand. Somehow, though, when the writing is in progress, the basic rules that we all know end up riddled with holes from all of the … [Read more...] about Grammar Workshop: Possessives {Part 1}