Onomatopoeia is an essential part of everyday speech and writing. Learning resources.
Grammar Workshop: Portmanteau Words
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 apt word to describe this powerful effect. A portmanteau is a suitcase that opens into two compartments, enabling one piece of luggage to do double […]
Confusing Words: Shades of Meaning
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 similar meanings. To choose from some of these tricky words, we must learn the subtle differences between them and select the one […]
Confusing Words: Parts of Speech
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. When presented with a difficult choice of words, ask yourself what part of speech you are looking for. Do you need […]
Confusing Words: Perplexing Prefixes
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 similar-but-different words straight? Let’s take a look at some of the words that writers frequently trip up on and see if […]
Grammar Workshop: Possessives {Part 3}
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 and attention to meaning, the apostrophe can become a powerful tool for achieving the desired emphasis. Joint Possession To […]
Grammar Workshop: Possessives {Part 2}
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 need to use a possessive. Does an of phrase make sense of what you are trying to say? For instance, Fido […]
Grammar Workshop: Possessives {Part 1}
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 questions that we hurl at them. Rest assured, however, that unlike some of the evolving rules of spelling and […]
Grammar Workshop: The Em Dash {Part 3}
We’ve talked about when to use an em dash — and when not to. We’ve also looked at alternatives to using the em dash. Now it’s time to put it all together. Filling Your Toolbox As you can see, a good writer keeps his toolbox full of a variety of options so that he can […]
Grammar Workshop: The Em Dash {Part 2}
Before we start exploring the toolbox, take another look at the possible uses for em dashes mentioned in the previous post. We will take each situation in turn and examine some of the other tools that might work in each case. Em Dash Use and the Alternatives Use an em dash: 1. To precede a […]
Grammar Workshop: The Em Dash {Part 1}
The em dash has been around since the time of Gutenberg, but there is no doubt that its heyday has arrived. It reigns triumphant among punctuation marks, spattered prominently across books, web pages, and more. No one really knows what quirk of the human mind has led to the adoption and ultimate overuse of the […]
Grammar Workshop: Fumblerules
Fumblerules show rather than tell students what not to do. A common example of a fumblerule is the Plan Ahead poster where the d dangles off of the page because someone didn’t! William Safire was a Pulitzer-Prize-winning journalist, author, and syndicated columnist for the New York Times. His wonderful sense of humor was on display […]
