Ask Our Grammar "Experts" II, the Sequel

[Ken, Moderator]

Sobriquet has panache.

[Caroline]

Panache is good!

[Caroline]

And now for another question I'm afraid. Do rhetorical questions end with question marks? The question mark below looks correct to me, but I'm not sure.

"....but aren't they fabulous, and don't they just make the perfect birthday card?"

[Ken, Moderator]

It belongs, all right.

[Caroline]

Thank you!

[Stephen]

OK

When I was in grade school I learned the old ditty about the vowels being A,E,I,O,U and sometimes Y and W.

In those simpler times I accepted it as a given. Cause "teacher said" Now I'm curious... when is W a vowel? I'm sure it must be. The Welsh seem to be very fond of W's and they never met a vowel they didn't like.

[Jane]

W's are vowels in Welsh, pronounced oo or uh depending on what word they're in. Except W's are consonants in certain words, like, say, gwyn [which means white].

In school we learnt the old ditty, but the only 'sometimes' was Y.

[Stephen]

Jane wrote: "...Except W's are consonants in certain words, like, say, gwyn [which means white]."

Go on... Gwyn cannna be meanin' white, unless that color be e'en more hoary than I kin tell!

There's a great play by Brian Friel called Translations about the English and their attempt to stamp out the Welsh language. Given the triskaidekaphilic nature of the language, I can almost sympathize with the Brits on this one.

er... My bad. That's Irish that they were trying to eliminate. The language, not the people. Orange you glad I checked that?

[Caroline]

I was just wondering what the plural of still life was,

"He had a wonderful collection of still lifes"
"He had a wonderful collection of still lives".

Both look very odd to me!

[Ruth]

I think it's the first. But I agree, they both look funny.

[Carol]

I looked it up, it is still life, because it is a unit, so a plural would be still lifes, according to the dictionary.

[Caroline]

Hi Ruth and Carol - thank you so much for your help! Still lifes it will be :-)

[Ken, Moderator]

Garner's Modern American Usage says, "What Carol said!" (well, not in so many words, but...).

[Tura]

Stephen wrote: "Jane wrote: "...Except W's are consonants in certain words, like, say, gwyn [which means white]."

Go on... Gwyn cannna be meanin' white, unless that color be e'en more hoary than I kin tell!

The..."

The English did try to stamp out all the Celtic languages. They were very successful with Scottish Gaelic, and also with Irish, noting how far and quickly the use of it fell.

[Stephen]

Caroline wrote: "I was just wondering what the plural of still life was..."

The devil (and his dictionary) is urging me to suggest that we consider adopting "Stills life." After all, commanders in chiefs and standers by seem so perfect. Where is Ambrose Bierce when you need him?

[Caroline]

Newengland - thank you!

Stephen - *____* Yikes!

[Caroline]

Should one say "compared with" or "compared to"?

[Stephen]

This question sounded a bit like the old "Winston tastes good, as a cigarette should" trap so I Googled it.

http://english.stackexchange.com/ques...

Apparently...

To compare to is to point out or imply resemblances between objects regarded as essentially of a different order;

To compare with is mainly to point out differences between objects regarded as essentially of the same order.

Thus, life has been compared to a pilgrimage, to a drama, to a battle; Congress may be compared with the British Parliament. Paris has been compared to ancient Athens; it may be compared with modern London.

Hope that that helps.

Finally... regarding your "screen sobriquet"... How do you do upper case letters? ;-)

[Caroline]

That is fantastically helpful Stephen, thank you!

Finally... regarding your "screen sobriquet"... How do you do upper case letters? ;-)

With difficulty :-/

[Caroline]

Actually I lie, it is getting better. The clinic has unplastered the two fingers it had strapped together, so I am using ten fingers again - I shall go and change my name right now....

Life isn't perfect though (whinge whinge), I'm still wearing a cast on my left hand and it keeps catching on the keyboard and doing strange things.

[Caroline]

All my life I have used the term "I'm sorry" as an expression of sympathy, e.g., "I'm so sorry you've broken your foot!" or "I heard you had a puncture on your way here, I'm sorry". In recent years though people have said to me "Why are you sorry? It isn't your fault".

I find it very hard to stop saying I'm sorry in this context - it just rolls off my tongue automatically. I am curious though. Have I always been wrong is saying I'm sorry in this way, or is it something that has just changed recently? In the olden days (like when I was a youngster), was it okay to say "I'm sorry" as an expression of sympathy?

[Carol]

The original impact of I'm sorry has lost it's meaning over the years, and has , as you say, been relegated to overuse. Someone told me a long time ago saying I'm sorry, like you are using it, was low self esteem. You have no control over the situations and can't control the out come. As you say it has now become a part of you and you say it by rote. I broke myself of it's constant use by asking myself am I really being sympathetic or just wanting to say something. If I want to say something sympathetic , I say ah man that was bad luck you had a puncture on your way here, and leave it at that. It takes consistency to break yourself of the habit. I'm sorry is fewer words to say and we take short cuts to express our thoughts about situations , because we are living in a fast paced world. At least that is my opinion Caroline. Other's will disagree, I am sure, and I mean no disrespect to your opinion and usage of I'm sorry. It is nice to express your thoughts in a situation where you think a response of sympathy is viable.

[Caroline]

Thank you Carol! I found what you had to say incredibly useful. Just what I wanted to know. I will practice voicing an alternative form of sympathy. Many thanks for that!

[Carol]

Caroline wrote: "Thank you Carol! I found what you had to say incredibly useful. Just what I wanted to know. I will practice voicing an alternative form of sympathy. Many thanks for that!"

You are so kind. It is hard to convey thoughts on line without giving offense. Thank you for not taking offense, because no malicious thoughts or snarkiness was intended.

[Joanne]

After my husband died at age 50 from acute leukemia, all I wanted from people was a simple "I'm sorry." I did NOT want to hear "He's in a better place," or "God must have needed him," or any of that stuff.
Sincerity is the key.

[Caroline]

Carol wrote: "Caroline wrote: "Thank you Carol! I found what you had to say incredibly useful. Just what I wanted to know. I will practice voicing an alternative form of sympathy. Many thanks for that!"
..."
Oh no - you were so nice when you said it too :-)

[Caroline]

Joanne wrote: "After my husband died at age 50 from acute leukemia, all I wanted from people was a simple "I'm sorry." I did NOT want to hear "He's in a better place," or "God must have needed him," or any of tha..."

Gosh, that must have been very tough.

It's also good to hear what you say Joanne, about expressing these sentiments, and yes, I totally agree with you - sincerity is always vital, and often the simplest statements are the best.

[Joanne]

Caroline wrote: "Joanne wrote: "After my husband died at age 50 from acute leukemia, all I wanted from people was a simple "I'm sorry." I did NOT want to hear "He's in a better place," or "God must have needed him,..."

Thanks Caroline

[Carol]

Joanne wrote: "Caroline wrote: "Joanne wrote: "After my husband died at age 50 from acute leukemia, all I wanted from people was a simple "I'm sorry." I did NOT want to hear "He's in a better place," or "God must..."

Joanne, I know the pain you felt. I lost my younger sister to acute leukemia also . She was 52. She had had breast cancer, and the side effect of the chemo was luekemia. I didn't want to hear those things either. She was too young. I had wanted her to have a complete mastectomy with radiation, but she opted for a lumpectomy and chemo.

[Joanne]

How terrible Carol, to lose your sister that way. The leukemia ward was a sad place in 1996, all the patients ended up dying. I hope things have improved. My husband was one of fourteen, a brother was a perfect match for BMT. The medical staff told us we had nothing to worry about....

[Cleo]

I've started a Pre-College English course from Saylor University and I have some questions with regard to their answers to certain tests (which I think are incorrect). Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Question 1

A. Grammar Practice:

You are supposed to find the subject and the verb and tell if the verb is action, linking, compound and/or a verb phrase.

1. eg. At three o'clock precisely, I was at Baker Street.

(I put linking which they have as the correct answer because I had no other choice, but I actually think it is a state of being verb. If it was a linking verb doesn't it have to be followed by a predicate nominative or a predicate adjective that refers to the subject?)

2. Thick clouds of smoke curled through the room.

(I put clouds for the subject, but they have clouds of smoke. In reality, "of smoke" is a prepositional phrase describing the subject, isn't it? Or is one a simple subject and the other a complete subject? I'm confused)

Question 2

B. Main Idea and Supporting Sentences Quiz:

I had to tell whether this is a simple, compound, complex, or compound-complex sentence. The answer says "compound-complex" but I think it is "compound".

Sentence:

1. Larger birds such as parrots are good choices for families with older children, because they can be trained and they will interact with humans.

Larger birds such as parrots are good choices for families with older children (independent clause)

they can be trained (independent clause)

they will interact with humans (independent clause)

There is no dependent clause, therefore it cannot be "compound-complex", because a complex sentence needs a dependent clause.

Grammar experts? What do you think?

[MarkB]

Could "Because they can be trained" be considered a dependent clause?

[Ken, Moderator]

I vote yes.

[Cleo]

Mark B wrote: "Could "Because they can be trained" be considered a dependent clause?"

Thanks for the response, Mark. I do believe you're right!

Does no one have an opinion on question 1?

[MarkB]

Cleo,

I think that the subject in Question 1.1 is obviously "I" and the verb is clearly "was" which is the 1st person singular past tense form of "to be", a clear "state of being" verb.

For Question 1.2, "clouds of smoke" may be considered a "nominative absolute phrase" where "clouds" is the clear subject of the sentence and "of smoke" an adjectival phrase that describes the clouds.

Make sense?

[Katherine]

I'm from the UK and am in the process of publishing my first novel , which is called Spellbrooke and it's a fantasy novel. I have some grammar questions:
1) quotation marks: in UK English, should double or single quotation marks be used in sentences? What types of quotation marks should be used when there are quotes within sentences? (British English).
2) should commas, full stops and question marks or any other punctuation be inside or outside speech marks in British English?
3) when should colons be used and when should semicolons be used in a sentence in British English?
4) I have a part in my book which is a letter from one character to another , and other parts which are emails from one character to another. How should these parts of text be places within the main text? And how would I align the text correctly so the reader knows it's an email/ letter and is easy to read as it stands out from the main text?
I've googled all these queries but haven't found an article that explains simply and clearly

[Jane]

Can anyone recommend a good book on stress emphasis in speaking English, written for people whose native tongue is not English? This should be written in a simple manner. Thank you.

[MarkB]

Katherine,

I have suggestions for some, if not all, your questions. I am American and am not expert on any potential differences between "languages" :).

1) Double quotations marks should be used. If there is a quotation within a quotation, single marks should be used.

2) Periods and/or question marks should be inside the quotation if the quotation makes up the entirety of the sentence. If otherwise, they should be outside. Commas that break up a quotation or separate it from the rest of the sentence should be outside.

3) Semi-colons can only be used to separate two independent clauses. Colons can be used to introduce a list or definition, but must be proceeded by an independent clause.

4) I think that this is more a question of style, so I will pass. I don't think that there is any standard for fonts, indentations, notifications, date stamps, etc. As long as you stay consistent, readers should get used to your conventions after a short while.

Hope that this has been helpful.

[Stephen]

Welcome to the group Katherine!

As to including a letter in the text of your prose...
It's customary to just indent the body of the letter. If you feel that that alone is not sufficient, you might choose to use a different font though I'm not certain how well that will work with the various e-readers.

[Stephen]

No One has added anything new to this thread for a bit so I just wanted to stress again how much I miss proofreading since the explosion in popularity of self publishing.

If you haven't yet you may wish to check out this youtube clip https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OonDP...

[Ruth]

lol!

[Carol]

Hehe!

[Cleo]

Mark B wrote: "Cleo,

I think that the subject in Question 1.1 is obviously "I" and the verb is clearly "was" which is the 1st person singular past tense form of "to be", a clear "state of being" verb.

For Ques…"


Thanks, Mark and Newengland for trying to help me out. I really appreciate it!

[Caroline]

Hi, I wonder if I could have some help please?

Is the following sentence correct?

"Hopefully 21 years of inculcation from British culture will arm her against swampy miasmas and crazy Floridians"

Or should that be "inculcation IN British culture", (or something else?)

[Carol]

Hopefully 21 years of immersion IN British culture will arm her ......instead of inculcation maybe? That is my opinion.

[Caroline]

Thank you very much Carol! I will go and change over to your version now....

[Ken, Moderator]

Hardcore grammar types HATE the misuse of hopefully, which is supposed to mean "in a hopeful manner" and not "I hope."

Alas, I think that battle is lost....

[Caroline]

*Runs off to change "hopefully" to "I hope"*

Thank you Newengland, that was most interesting. I've been misusing 'hopefully' forever I think.

[Raj]

Hi,

I am done with my book and also got it corrected by an English Literate, currently planning on self-publication but still have some reservations on it; I would really need help on reading my book and giving me a feedback.
Someone suggested this web site and had written this me “There is also a website called Goodreads.com and they have wonderful groups and support for authors who need beta readers and can answer most questions”
Writing has never been my cup of tea and this is the first time I am doing it, and it is a true story which I had seen while working on work visa in US and I have explained it in detail in this book.
I would sincerely ask for help and also appreciate for the feedback of how to approach Beta readers.

Thank You,
Rajesh

[Ken, Moderator]

Hi Raj,

We're a grammar group, not a book reviewing group. Here we might look at one sentence, but certainly not a manuscript!

That said, there are groups on Goodreads dedicated to self-published authors like you. Here are a few you can check out and join if you like:


Making Connections

https://www.goodreads.com/group/show/...


Indie Book Collective

https://www.goodreads.com/group/show/...


Review Group

https://www.goodreads.com/group/show/...


Genre Specific Review Groups

https://www.goodreads.com/group/show/...


Goodreads Authors/Readers

https://www.goodreads.com/group/show/...


Good luck!