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Author Archives: Elizabeth Danziger
Hyphens Are Word Glue
Hyphenation is a slippery topic in today’s grammar. Words, like email, that were hyphenated just a few years ago are often not hyphenated now. Phrases like web site are still in transition — some people hyphenate while others do not. Continue reading
Posted in Choosing Words Carefully, Proofreading
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Avoiding Death by Email
When I teach “Email Best Practices,” the first principle does not refer to directly to email. Rather, it suggests that people determine whether email is the best medium for their message. In many cases, the phone is a better option. … Continue reading
Posted in Emailing Effectively
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Ecclesiastes vs. Orwell
The December 2011 issue of National Geographic contains a fascinating article by Adam Nicolson about the genesis of the King James Bible. (A link to the article appears at the end of this post.) While the history surrounding the document … Continue reading
Posted in Choosing Words Carefully, Writing Clearly
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Avoiding Email Disasters
“Act in haste; repent at leisure” is the operative proverb for email today. How often have you sent an email flying off into cyberspace, only to realize too late that it: Was going to the wrong person Conveyed a negative … Continue reading
Posted in Emailing Effectively
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Punctuation Changes Lives
I wish I could offer attribution to these two punctuation parables but alas I received them unsigned. Nevertheless, they illustrate the important function that punctuation plays in telling the reader how to parse the words on the page. Punctuation both … Continue reading
Posted in Proofreading, Uncategorized, Writing Clearly
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Sample Mentor Sentences: Creating Visual Images
Sometimes it’s easier to learn by looking at examples of jobs well done. Here are a few sentences that illustrate a principle we teach in the Worktalk writing trainings: Create visual images. Abstractions do not move people the way images … Continue reading
Posted in Choosing Words Carefully, Writing Clearly
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Whither the Apostrophe?
On October 22, 2011, Henry Hitchings, author of the upcoming book, The Language Wars: A History of Proper English, wrote a column in The Wall Street Journal titled “Is This the Future of Punctuation?”. In it, he proposes that English … Continue reading
Posted in Uncategorized, Writing Clearly
Tagged apostrophe, comma, grammar, punctuation, semicolon, writing
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Penultimate vs. Ultimate, Plethora vs. Large number, Plus a Few Greek and Latin Plurals
In the word penultimate, the prefix pen means almost. Thus, penultimate means “almost ultimate,” specifically, next to last. Ultimate is the last; it often has the positive connotation of also being the best. “I was in the penultimate place in … Continue reading
Posted in Choosing Words Carefully, Writing Clearly
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You Can Lead a Horse to Water… plus Lie/Lay, Rise/Raise and Sit/Set
I saw a bumper sticker recently that said, “You can lead a horse to water but a pencil must be lead.” This would be funny if it were not incorrect. The past tense and the past participle of lead is … Continue reading
Enormousness/Enormity, Amount/Number, Fewer/Less
Here are a few more pairs of commonly confused words. You will make fewer, lesser mistakes if you learn them well. Enormousness vs. Enormity Enormousness always refers to something that is a huge size. The enormousness of the elephant amazed … Continue reading
Posted in Choosing Words Carefully, Writing Clearly
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