What do you call those tiny pictures we all use in texts and chats? Do you opt for the Japanese-inspired “emoji” or the English-focused “emojis”?
The debate between these two pluralizations of emoji has been raging for almost as long as emojis have existed. To quote Bustle writer Lucia Peters, the answer to this question is both “incredibly simple and unexpectedly complicated.”
It’s always adorable when children attempt to write letters or caption illustrations, but can’t quite get the wording right. What’s even more adorable is when children write something they didn’t intend to write at all. Whether the culprit is bad handwriting or simply not sounding out a word correctly, ensure that you are encouraging your child to write by being supportive of all attempts.
A coordinating conjunction is a word that joins two elements of equal grammatical rank and syntactic importance. They can join two verbs, two nouns, two adjectives, two phrases, or two independent clauses. The seven coordinating conjunctions are for, and, nor, but, or, yet, and so.
The best way to remember the seven coordinating conjunctions is by using the acronym FANBOYS:
Guest Post By Akmal Akbarov at EnglishClubPro.com
Have you ever wondered about the difference between “I used to cook every morning,” where we don’t add –ing to the verb ‘cook,’ and “I am used to cooking every morning”?
If you’re confused about the difference, I am going to explain everything in detail. I am sure you will be able to get the hang of it. 🙂
Let’s go!
Guest post by David Dotson of Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library
Dolly Parton has taught me lots of lessons over the past 16 years:
Be proud of who you are.
To reach your goals you may have to step around people or step over people, but never step on people.
Count your blessings more often than you count your money.
Yet the greatest gift she gave me was the gift of reading.
Is poor writing an indicator that you will be less successful in your career?
Kyle Wiens, CEO at iFixit, suggested as much in a July 20, 2012 article (“I Won’t Hire People Who Use Poor Grammar. Here’s Why.”) which appeared in Harvard Business Review’s blog network.
Yesterday, in honor of National Grammar Day, Harvard Business Review posted another article (“Grammar Should Be Everyone’s Business”) written by Grammarly CEO Brad Hoover.
Supposed to is part of a modal verb phrase meaning expected to or required to. Although suppose to crops up frequently in casual speech and writing, it should not be used in that sense. Suppose (without the d) should only be used as the present tense of the verb meaning to assume (something to be true).
To be supposed to is a common phrase that functions the same way a modal verb does.
Not feeling the holiday spirit yet? Hectic days at work and evenings spent shopping may leave you low on holiday cheer, but the feelings of generosity, gratitude, and closeness to your loved ones are what truly make the holidays special. If music, movies, and weather aren’t getting you in the mood of the season, try reading a good book. Sit down with a holiday classic or enjoy a new read to celebrate the holidays, both religious and secular, that come at this time of year.
Close your eyes. Can you picture the significant women in your life? The images of women whom you interacted with during your lifetime are vivid, but what about those who lived in generations past? Even when no physical traces survive, we can still envision them. How so? Notice how Emily Dickinson gave a glimpse of her physical appearance: “I had no portrait, now, but am small, like the Wren, and my Hair is bold, like the Chestnut Bur – and my eyes, like the Sherry in the Glass, that the Guest leaves – Would this do just as well?” Can you see her in her words?
Guest post from Matthew Quinn
It’s been said that everybody has got a book in them, but in these days of the big publishers consolidating, the small presses overwhelmed with submissions, and truly vast offerings available via self-publishing platforms like Kindle Direct and Smashwords, it’s more important than ever that people’s work stand out.
So here are some tips to make your NaNoWriMo project pop:
Oh, Valentine’s Day—the holiday of love and romance! Or, at least, it’s supposed to be. For me, as a strong introvert with generalized anxiety, holidays are pretty much like those “Mystery Gifts” you bought at dollar stores as a kid. Expectations for awesomeness bloom in your head, only to wither away under a hodgepodge of mediocrity. It’s not all bad, though. Here are a few things that introverts feel on Valentine’s Day and some thoughts on what to do about it.
We’ve all heard the bad grammar horror stories: gory rumors of a brilliant job candidate missing out on an opportunity because of a misplaced comma or frighteningly funny-not-funny tales of a political candidate mangling a perfectly good one-liner (making it mean even less than it did originally).
Then, of course, there’s the seemingly never-ending barrage of listicles recounting the 10 Most Hilarious Grammar Mistakes You Have To See Before You Die or waxing lyrical about #Grammarfails That Only Grammar Lovers Will Understand.
The notion of honor varies greatly from one culture to another. Ideas about what it means to have it, how to obtain it, and how to preserve are studied by sociologists and anthropologists. But here we’ll be studying how to spell it. Here’s the deal: you can write honor in your college paper, or honour in your university test, and in both cases you’d be correct. But some might frown if you do it the other way around, because there is a slight difference between the two spellings that has nothing to do with the meaning of the word itself: Honor is the preferred spelling in American English and is pronounced ˈä-nər; Honour is the preferred spelling in British English and is pronounced /ˈɒnə/.
If you’re chatting online or playing an MMO, afk lets your friends know that you are stepping away from the keyboard.
Afk means away from keyboard, a phrase that lets others know that you won’t be at your computer for a while.
During the holiday season, students and everyday readers alike love to settle down with a good book, getting nice and cozy to escape the rush. Ideally this literary refuge takes place by a warm fireside, while the snow falls outside. While that might not always be possible, there are a few staples of holiday literature which are guaranteed to put readers in the mood for Christmas while providing some literary value.
What is your opinion of this controversial topic? What role do you think educators play in grammar and writing education?
Share your thoughts in the comments.
If you are interested in more, check out last week’s poll.
You know what fool is? It’s a naive person, someone who lacks good judgment. As you can imagine, a fool would be easily tricked by a clever ruse. Proof is an adjective that means “able to withstand, or invulnerable.” When you combine the two terms, you get foolproof. This adjective means “involving no risk or harm, or never-failing.” In other words, something foolproof would still work even if a fool were operating it.
May 1 is Mother Goose Day, established in 1987 by Gloria T. Delamar upon the publication of her book, Mother Goose; From Nursery to Literature.
The day is a time for reflecting on fairy tales, acting them out, making and wearing Mother Goose costumes, or reading fairy tales aloud. It also could be a time to consider how much these stories have influenced modern writing.
This Thanksgiving, Grammarly embarked on a quest to find the most delicious pumpkin pie recipe on the web. We discovered some complicated concoctions from celebrity chefs, some simple secrets from popular brands like Libby’s and Bisquick, and some interesting instructions from online recipe sites.
It was too difficult for us to decide on the “best” pumpkin pie recipe, but we did notice a few trends that we wanted to share with you in preparation for the season of holiday sweets and festive treats.
