The Elements of Style Quotes

“3. Enclose parenthetic expressions between commas.”
― William Strunk, The Elements Of Style

“1. Form the possessive singular of nouns with 's.”
― William Strunk, The Elements Of Style

“This rule is difficult to apply; it is frequently hard to decide whether a single word, such as however, or a brief phrase, is or is not parenthetic. If the interruption to the flow of the sentence is but slight, the writer may safely omit the commas. But whether the interruption be slight or considerable, he must never omit one comma and leave the other. Such punctuation as”
― William Strunk, The Elements Of Style

“To air one's views gratuitously, however, is to imply that the demand for them is brisk, which may not be the case, and which, in any event, may not be relevant to the discussion.”
― Strunk Jr., William, The Elements of Style

“Another segment of society that has constructed a language of its own is business. People in business say that toner cartridges are in short supply, that they have updated the next shipment of these cartridges, and that they will finalize their recommendations at the next meeting of the board. They are speaking a language familiar and dear to them. Its portentous nouns and verbs invest ordinary events with high adventure; executives walk among toner cartridges, caparisoned like knights. We should tolerate them--every person of spirit wants to ride a white horse.”
― William Strunk Jr., The Elements of Style

“Consciously or unconsciously, the reader is dissatisfied with being told only what is not; he wishes to be told what is.”
― Strunk Jr., William, Elements of Style

“The audience, which had at first been indifferent, became more and more interested.”
― William Strunk, The Elements Of Style

“Make definite assertions. Avoid tame, colorless, hesitating, noncommittal language. Use the word not as a means of denial or in antithesis, never as a means of evasion.”
― William Strunk Jr., The Elements of Style

“All writing is communication; creative writing is communication through revelation — it is the Self escaping into the open.”
― E.B. White, The Elements of Style, Fourth Edition

“Unless you are operating such a truck and hence are concerned with the safety of children and illiterates, use inflammable.”
― Jr., William Strunk, The Elements of Style

“In his New Yorker column of July 27, 1957, E. B. White praised the “little book” as a “forty-three-page summation of the case for cleanliness, accuracy, and brevity in the use of English.”
― William Strunk Jr., The Elements of Style

“If every word or device that achieved currency were immediately authenticated, simply on the grounds of popularity, the language would be as chaotic as a ball game with no foul lines”
― William Strunk Jr., The Elements of Style

“But such conclusions as that Napoleon was the greatest of modern generals, or that the climate of California is delightful, however incontestable they may be, are not properly facts../p>”
― Strunk Jr., William, Elements of Style

“As the American poet, Marianne Moore, said: "There is a great deal of poetry in unconscious fastidiousness.”
― William Strunk Jr., The Elements of Style, Annotated and Updated for Present-Day Use

“This book aims to give in brief space the principal requirements of plain English style.”
― William Strunk Jr., The Elements of Style

“William”
― William Strunk, The Elements Of Style

“Start sniffing the air, or glancing at the Trend Machine, and you are as good as dead, although you may make a nice living.”
― William Strunk Jr., The Elements of Style

“Books are good company, in sad times and happy times, for books are people--people who have managed to stay alive by hiding between the covers of a book.”
― E.B. White, The Elements of Style

“The need to make a particular word the subject of the sentence will often, as in these examples, determine which voice is to be used. The habitual use of the active voice, however, makes for forcible writing. This”
― William Strunk Jr., The Elements of Style

“went to her house yesterday (my third attempt to see her), but she had left town.”
― William Strunk Jr., The Elements of Style

“It is permissible to make an emphatic word or expression serve the purpose of a sentence and to punctuate it accordingly: Again and again he called out. No reply.”
― William Strunk Jr., The Elements of Style

“prolixity”
― William Strunk Jr. and E.B. White, The Elements of Style

“Vigorous writing is concise. A sentence should contain no unnecessary words, a paragraph no unnecessary sentences, for the same reason that a drawing should have no unnecessary lines and a machine no unnecessary parts. This requires not that the writer make all sentences short or avoid all detail and treat subjects only in outline, but that every word tell.”
― William Strunk Jr., The Elements of Style

“recalcitrant”
― William Strunk Jr., The Elements of Style

“Note, in the examples above, that when a sentence is made stronger, it usually becomes shorter. Thus, brevity is a by-product of vigor.”
― William Strunk Jr., The Elements of Style

“language”
― William Strunk Jr., The Elements of Style

“But these uses of so (equivalent to accordingly or to so that) are somewhat colloquial and should, as a rule, be avoided in writing. A simple correction, usually serviceable, is to omit the word so and begin the first clause with as or since: I had never been in the place before; so I had difficulty in finding my way about. As I had never been in the place before, I had difficulty in finding my way about.”
― William Strunk Jr., The Elements of Style

“—Never use the passive where you can use the active.”
― William Strunk Jr., The Elements of Style: Classic Edition (2018): With Editor's Notes, New Chapters & Study Guide

“Due to. Incorrectly used for through, because of, or owing to, in adverbial phrases: "He lost the first game, due to carelessness." In correct use related as predicate or as modifier to a particular noun: "This invention is due to Edison;" "losses due to preventable fires.”
― William Strunk Jr., The Elements of Style, Fourth Edition

“Not followed by as when it means, "believe to be." "I consider him thoroughly competent." Compare, "The lecturer considered Cromwell first as soldier and second as administrator," where "considered" means "examined" or "discussed.”
― William Strunk Jr., The Elements of Style, Fourth Edition