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Pam Nelson: The Grammar Guide

 

Archive for June 2009

Number of comments in parentheses

29: Modify your misplaced and dangling modifiers

Misplaced and dangling modifiers can sneak in when writers and editors aren’t paying attention. A couple of readers found such constructions in recent N&O pieces, and I found a couple in one article I was reading on another Web site. Those examples provide the makings for this post. A modifier is a word, a phrase or a clause that changes the meaning of other words by adding description or precision. Modifiers can act as adjectives or as adverbs. This article was originally posted by the Raleigh News & Observer, a subsidiary of The McClatchy Co.; is posted here to[.....]

27: Say it like a native: place name pronunciation

Staff writer Martha Quillin’s story about the pronunciation of Lejeune reminds me of the peculiarities of place name pronunciation. Even if the name of the family was pronounced one way, the name of the Marine base has come to be pronounced another way. Broadcast journalists tended to pronounce the name of the trail where Gov. Mark Sanford of South Carolina was reported to be hiking as Appa-LAY-chian. Most of us here in North Carolina rhyme that third syllable with "latch." Both pronunciations are recognized, but it appears the more people use the short a pronunciation. Merriam-Webster’s online pronunciation guide[.....]

26: What the Grammar Guide is about

A slogan I’ve seen from time to time comes to mind today: Christians aren’t perfect — just forgiven. This article was originally posted by the Raleigh News & Observer, a subsidiary of The McClatchy Co.; is posted here to provide continuity; and is copyright © 2011 The News & Observer Publishing Company, which reserves the right to remove this post.

23: Confusing pairs: gel and jell

When we speak of a group or a team coming together to form a cohesive whole or when we write about an idea becoming a concrete plan of action, we usually use the spelling jell for the verb. However, gel can also mean something has taken definite form. I like to reserve gel, though, for congeled, as when a gelatin sets. The dessert gelled; the plans jelled. Follow this link to a longer treatment of gel vs. jell. This article was originally posted by the Raleigh News & Observer, a subsidiary of The McClatchy Co.; is posted here to[.....]

21: Errors in unexpected places

Sometimes, an error in a public sign surprises me because of the context. I visited Washington late in May and happened to attend an event at the St. Regis, a venerable hotel near the White House. I spotted this sign outside:   I wonder why the sign’s writer made the mistake of using ‘s to make the proper name Astor plural. What is even more surprising is that no one stopped the mistake before the sign went up. This article was originally posted by the Raleigh News & Observer, a subsidiary of The McClatchy Co.; is posted here to[.....]

21: Word watch: reform

Reform has been in the news, both foreign and domestic. In reports about the Iranian election and its violent aftermath, writers have referred to the leading opposition candidate Mir Hussein Moussavi as a reluctant champion of reform. In the debate over health care here at home, advocates and reporters have called the plans for change reform. Over the years, copy editors at The News & Observer have been encouraged to stamp out reform — that is, our editors wanted us to be cautious about using the word in the pages of the newspaper. They were focused on the definition[.....]

15: You may "Twitter" or "Tweet" now

The Associated Press Stylebook has been updated for 2009. The style guide, used by media organizations throughout the country, has a new entry for Twitter, an online system for distributing messages. The AP says that posting a message on Twitter is to Twitter or to Tweet. That has been the common usage for a few years now, so the AP is catching up. The stylebook also has a new entry on text messaging/instant messaging that translates common terms and symbols such as BFF (best friend forever) and NSFW (not safe for work). The stylebook accepts text, texting and texted[.....]

9: Word choice: Bring and take

A reader objected to this usage in Monday’s paper: Stephen Colbert brings his Comedy Central show to Iraq. Indeed, because Colbert was in the United States to start, he must take his show to Iraq. I’ve run across a couple of other instances of bring where I would use take. This article was originally posted by the Raleigh News & Observer, a subsidiary of The McClatchy Co.; is posted here to provide continuity; and is copyright © 2011 The News & Observer Publishing Company, which reserves the right to remove this post.

8: Punctuation particulars: the long dash

Copy editors can be picky. We like accuracy, clarity and consistency. We like to have a good reason for stepping outside the bounds. A recent message from a colleague that referred to the dash as "trite punctuational hyperbole" seemed harsh and rigid to other colleagues. In fact, when I was first hired at The N&O in 1987, we were told to use dashes sparingly. That seems to have changed in the past 10 years or so. Now, our copy can be sprinkled with dashes. I decided to do some research on the use of the dash, also known as[.....]