Adding suffixes to words creates spelling problems for some of us. Here is a spelling rule to remember: Words that… Read more »
Posts By: Pam Nelson
I before E except …
English spelling confounds many people, native and second-language speakers alike. We rely on computer spell-checkers to help us, but we… Read more »
Is it dove or dived?
The word “dove” as the past tense of “dive” always looks odd to me. I am more likely to use… Read more »
A matter of style: dos and don’ts
A headline in Saturday’s Home & Garden section prompts this note about style. The headline Chi do’s and don’ts falls… Read more »
Cotton is nigh
The verb in this sentence from a 1A story today delights me: But newer neighbors do not cotton to Williams’… Read more »
Those pesky apostrophes
This sign is at the intersection of N.C. 42 and N.C. 96 South, north of Selma. (My husband spotted the… Read more »
Apostrophe in the wrong place
My son spotted this billboard along Interstate 95 between Smithfield and Fayetteville. He took this photo while I was driving… Read more »
Jive talking
Oooh, now that my headline has infected your brain with a bad Bee Gees song (a redundancy?), let’s talk about… Read more »
Reticence is golden
The words “reticent” and “reticence” are sometimes misused. To be reticent is to be disinclined to speak. You may think… Read more »
Come again?
As a headline writer, I am sympathetic to those whose mistakes are printed in 42 point type for all the… Read more »