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When referring to a person who has completed something, whether it be a job, political office, or marriage/relationship should you use the term “ex-” or “former”?

This is a pet peeve of mine, as I often hear people use “ex” when they should use “former”. Usually, “ex-”, which is a prefix, is used if the person left the position in question under less than stellar conditions. For example, if a politician has been forced to leave office before the end of his or her term because of some shady or illegal dealings, it would be correct to call that person the “ex-mayor” or “ex-congressman”, etc. Usually, the end of a marriage or relationship is not on such good terms, which is why the person is called your “ex-”.

However, if the person’s tenure is just over, then the proper term should be “former”. “Former” just says that the term or condition is over, period. The situation ended because it was supposed to, not because of any negative circumstances.

Many people use “ex-” and “former” interchangeably; but there really is a difference.

Contact the writing and editing specialists at Writing It Right For You if you have any questions about the correct grammar for your project. We’ll be glad to help!

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School House Rock

So, these two terms are relatively simple to use.  Proper placement is EVERYTHING here.

Of course, the definition is most important.  To define each of these equally confusing terms, let’s turn to Webster.

‘Its’ is an adjective.  The term ‘its’ is used to explain something relating to itself.  Here is an example of ‘its’ being used properly.  “The dog placed its final paw print into the flower bed.”

Now, the term ‘it’s’ is a conjunction, you all remember School House Rock:  Conjunction Junction (sings) “what’s your function.” Sure you do, but if you’re in denial, a conjunction is the act of combining, in this case words.  It is and/or it has.  For example, “it’s a shame she didn’t think to eat before the wedding, look at that stain!”

Possession is nine tenths of the law.

“It Matters How You Say It!”

If you need writing or editing assistance with the very confusing English language rules, contact the professionals at Writing It Right For You. We’re here to help because “It Matters How You Say It”!

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These terms right here, are 100% interchangeable.  It doesn’t actually matter which is used.  Now, your professor/client/general reader may look at you funny if you use ‘all right’ only because it’s outdated.

Here’s an interesting tidbit, according to the “word people” at Webster, the one-word spelling of alright came about 75 YEARS after the original two-word spelling.

Let’s break down each term, starting with the original:

‘All right’ is an adverb that is used to show a continuing conversation.  This is also used as an interjection (fancy interruption in dialogue) in a sentence.  “All right, we can ride one more time.”

Alright can be used as an adverb OR adjective.  Actually, both the single and two word spelling can be used in many different ways.

Something mediocre, “the food was alright/all right, not too bad.”

Something agreeable, “whatever you choose is all right/alright.”

Something or someone’s well being, “The doctor just said they’ll be all right/alright.”

So whichever term you choose is in fact, all right….or alright.

“It Matters How You Say It!”

If you need writing or editing assistance with the very confusing English language rules, contact the professionals at Writing It Right For You. We’re here to help because “It Matters How You Say It”!

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Who or Whom?

No, this is not an owl impression.  These are two words so controversially similar, they’ve sparked debate among the most esteemed of writers and educators.

Both of these words serve as pronouns (words that can be substituted for nouns or noun phrases defined by context).

*Who – What or which person or persons. “Who was that man running down the street?”

*Whom – Objective of who to be used the object of a verb when asking a question or relative, which is a word making reference to another with context.  “With whom did you speak to when you last called here?”

Who can also be used as a function word to introduce a relative, “my father, who is a lawyer, never reacted badly to stress”. There is another version of who, that like whom, can be used when asking a question.  “Whoever broke the vase is in big trouble.”

Whom fun fact:  Did you know writers the world over for a long time (1870 to present day), thought that usage of the word whom would disappear as it’s mostly familiar in Shakespearean and, even older, a biblical turn of phrase.  However, this debate is still ongoing.

“It Matters How You Say It!”

If you need writing or editing assistance with the very confusing English language rules, contact the professionals at Writing It Right For You. We’re here to help because “It Matters How You Say It”!

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Further or Farther?

Further and farther could not be closer if they were the same word.  Although these words are interchangeable, they do hold different meanings.

Further means to explain something to a degree or extent and can be used to modify a sentence.  ”I was further annoyed by his constant questions.”  Further can also be used to show something in addition to another, here’s an example:

“Further, I do not feel as if he can handle the demands of the task.”

Farther is used to explain a distance or more advanced point.  For instance, “frustrated, he got no farther than chapter 2.”  Now, to show or explain a distance, “he completely forgot his car was parked on the farther side of the parking lot.”

The rule of thumb:

*  Only as adverbs (word describing the verb in a sentence) when used to explain spatial or metaphorical distance, can one stand in for the other.

*  When there is no mention of actual distance FURTHER is used.

These words look alike, sound alike, and can be used collectively.  Funnily enough, both of these words are from the same Etymology (origin) only two centuries apart.  Further is derived from 12th century Middle English.  Farther comes from the Middle English language of the 14th century.

How much closer do they need to be to confuse us 21st century writers?!

If you need writing or editing assistance with the very confusing English language rules, contact the professionals at Writing It Right For You. We’re here to help because “It Matters How You Say It”!

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To dangle or not to dangle!

A very common English grammar error, and one of my favorites because the result of the error is often very funny, is the “dangling modifier”. A modifier is a word or phrase that changes the meaning of another word. Adjectives and adverbs are modifiers.

A house. A big house. A big green house.

He ate the sandwich. He ate the sandwich quickly. He ate the sandwich very quickly.

Can you find the adjectives and adverbs in the above sentences? Can you identify the words that the adjectives and adverbs modify?

OK, the above examples were pretty easy. People usually get in trouble with modifiers when the words are put in the wrong place in the sentence. Because the modifier is not modifying the right word, it seems to “dangle”.

Incorrect: Running for the subway, my purse fell in the mud. Your purse was running to catch the subway? No wonder it fell in the mud!

Correct: Running for the subway, I dropped my purse in the mud. Now the sentence makes sense, because the word I is what is being described by the phrase “running for the subway”.

Can you find and correct the dangling modifier in this sentence?

Incorrect: After quickly changing into my hospital gown, the nurse told me to take a deep breath.

Correct: ____________________________________________________

Contact the professional writers and editors at Writing It Right For You for help undangling your modifiers!

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Defining “adjective” and “adverb” is much easier than remembering the correct usage for these parts of speech.

An adjective is a part of speech that modifies, defines or changes a noun.
* The dress is red. The dress is red and long. The dress is red, long and fancy. In each case, the noun being modified is “dress”; and “red”, “long” and “fancy” describe or modify dress. Can you see the different dresses in your imagination? With each sentence, the dress “looks” different because of the different adjectives used to describe it.

An adverb is a part of speech that modifies, defines, or changes a verb. Usually, an adverb ends with the suffix “-ly”, but not always.

• The girl ran quickly. The adverb quickly describes how the girl ran.
• The man stood still. Here the adverb still describes how the man stood, but the adverb in this case does not end in “-ly”.

Of course, there are more rules (and the usual exceptions to the rules) for using adjectives and adverbs. There will be more examples in future posts. If you are not quite sure that your writing properly uses these words, make sure to contact the professional writers and editors at Writing It Right For You for assistance.

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Affect and effect are two of the most confused words in the English language. The simple rule is:
* affect spelled with an “a” is usually a verb that shows some kind of action. The simple definition of affect is “to influence” or “to make happen”. How will eating chocolate cake for every meal affect my weight?
* effect spelled with an “e” is usually a noun that names something. The simple definition of effect is “a result”. The effect of my choice of chocolate cake for every meal was a big change in my weight.

The two words seem to sound alike, but actually there is a slight difference in pronunciation between “uh-fect” (affect) and “eh-fect” (effect).

Use the verb affect when you are describing how one thing has an impact upon another thing.

Use the noun effect when you are showing the result of an action or feeling.

Since this is the English language we’re talking about, there are some exceptions to this grammar rule. In psychology, affect can be used differently; and effect can sometimes be use as a verb.

If you need writing or editing assistance with the very confusing English language rules, contact the professionals at Writing It Right For You. We’re here to help because “It Matters How You Say It”!

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