In this grammar-challenged, typo-filled world, those of us who try to hold the line can become discouraged. We wonder if… Read more »
Monthly Archives: October 2006
Deep-seated notions
A reader’s question led me to examine the term deep-seated, referring to an idea or a belief that is firmly… Read more »
Say it ain’t so, Jack
James Kilpatrick, in his column published in The N&O on Monday, surrenders on “everyone.” He gives up the fight against… Read more »
They who?
This sentence from an Associated Press story on Page 1A Wednesday illustrates a pronoun antecedent problem. The government still could… Read more »
When a sea change happens
Today’s story Conflict hits home in N.C. politics contains a quote with an interesting idiom: sea change. Here is the… Read more »
Disinterested parties
Many writers and editors distinguish between disinterested and uninterested. To be disinterested means to be impartial, the Associated Press Stylebook… Read more »
Tricky issues of agreement
Subject-verb agreement has some tricky rules. Here is one: The indefinite pronouns each, every, either, neither, one, another and much… Read more »
Riding off on a tangent
Stumbling over one word in today’s paper sent me off on a strange short trip on the Internet. The word… Read more »
Heads up
Headlines need to be accurate, attract attention and give readers a preview of the story. Good headlines also draw on… Read more »
Profanity vs. vulgarity
A letter writer took the newspaper to task recently for publishing a comic strip that used a coarse term for… Read more »