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.Training Reference.
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A
few of the common errors in writing that hinder good communication
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| Some
people believe that we should never use the word "ain't" in the
English language. It is, however, a legitimate and valid word ––
if it is used in the right place. It is a contraction for "am not." |
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The
sentence, "I ain't going to school today," is therefore correct.
It means, "I am not going to school today." It can be used
only for the first person singular (I). It can not be used with "we,"
"they," "you," "thou," "he," "she,"
or any proper noun. |
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| Advice
is a noun, something that you give. It is a thing. Say, "Please
give me some advice." |
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Advise
is a verb, something that you do. It is some action. Say, "Please advise
me." |
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| As
verbs, they differ. To affect some thing
is to have some influence upon it. To effect
some action is to cause it to happen. |
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As
nouns, they also differ. Affect is like
affection, related to emotion. Effect is
a result. |
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| One
is a single word; the other includes two words. "Apart" means
two things are separate or away from each other. A "part"
means one thing is a portion or an element of another. |
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A
wall is usually seen as a "part" of a house, for example, while
a fence is seen as "apart" from the house. |
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| The
word "data" is a plural noun, like "facts." Do not
use it as a singular noun (like fact) or as a collective (like
water). Right: "There are many data
in that report." |
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If
you want the singular of data (one bit of information) then use
the word, "datum." Right: "I need only one datum
from that report." This is very seldom used nowadays. |
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| End
of thinking creatively (E.T.C.). |
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Avoid
using "etc." |
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| "Fewer"
is used for counting while "less" is
used for measuring. You can say Kwaku has fewer litres of fuel than
Kwame, if litres are discrete things, or you can say Kwaku has less fuel
than Kwame, because you measure fuel, not count it. |
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You
can say that Akua has fewer shillings than
Efua, or you can say that Akua has less money
than Efua. (You can not say that Efua has less shillings or that
Kwaku has less litres). Money is measured while coins and bills
are counted. |
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Grocery store managers
display their illiteracy when they put up signs in the express lanes saying
ten items or less instead of ten items or fewer.
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| A
forum is a place being used for communication within a group or collection
of persons. Historically it was a physical gathering place, but metaphorically
it could be in a newspaper or on the internet. |
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More
than one "forum" is not "forums." They are "fora."
The word has a latin origin so we do not make the plural by adding the
letter "s." The word "fora" refers to several places for discussion.
Few people use the word "fora" any more. |
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| In
general, "s" is not used to indicate plural for words that are borrowed
from Latin. The singular (one) should end in "um" while
the plural (more than one) should end in "a." Examples
include: stadium, stadia; medium, media; datum; data. (The word
"media" means more than one medium of communication; ie newspapers,
radio and TV). |
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| Hippopotomonstrousquipedalianism: |
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Generally, do not
use long words.
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| Do
not use "hopefully" unless you state exactly who is doing the hoping.
Say: "They stood hopefully in the rain waiting for the rock star to
appear." |
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Do
not say: "Hopefully the bear will stay out of the village," or "Hopefully
I will come in time." Say "We hope that the bear will stay
out of the village," and "I hope that I will come in time." |
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Generally, avoid
all "...fully" words if you do not
specify who is doing the action.
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| There
is no such word as "inspite." |
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Make
sure you use the two words separately, "in" and "spite." |
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| When
you make a statement, then immediately ask if it is not true, you can use
"isn't it" only if the question used
the verb "to be" (ie "is" or one of its forms), the original
question was positive, and if the subject of the sentence is third person
singular (it). It is correct to say, for example, "It is
coming, isn't it?" |
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In
many other languages, "isn't it" can be used without having to modify
it to relate it to the original question. In English, you must make
it consistent (with both the subject and the verb) –– and negative.
Thus: "He is coming; isn't he?" "I am coming; ain't I?"
"You are coming; aren't you?" "He ate the food: didn't he?"
"You will bring the gift; won't you?" "You will not do
that; will you?" |
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| Be
careful when you use the word "kindly." It is used to begin
a request that the listener or reader do something or refrain from doing
something. It is polite and appropriate to use it on public notices,
posters or broadcasts. |
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It
is rude to use it when talking to a single person. It implies that the
listener is in an inferior class or is your servant and you are annoyed
with him or her. When asking an individual to do something, it is
best to use the word, "Please." |
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| The
two words, "loose" and "lose,"
look similar, especially to those who speak English as a second language.
It is easy to mix them up. |
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The
word, "loose," means something is not
tight or securely fastened down. It might easily fall apart or fall
off. The word "lose," in contrast,
means to have something go away and become lost. |
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Do not use the phrase
"a number of" to indicate
an unknown number of
something.
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Instead, use the
word "several."
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| The
word "obfuscation" means to write or speak in such a way as to look
as if you are saying something, but reveal very little. Using the
passive voice is a common way to say less than people want to read or hear.
In the passive voice you say, "The orange was eaten." |
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That
way you hide the subject and so do not reveal who ate the orange.
If you use the active voice, you must reveal the subject. "Aziz ate
the orange." The active voice is simpler, and it always identifies
the subject, ie who did the action. Nothing is hidden. |
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Always use the active
voice in writing or speaking.
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| English
is not a logical language. We would think, if we are logical, that
we should put a full stop, as the end of s a sentence, after the closing
set of quotation marks. Not so. We first put the full stop
(period) to end a sentence, then we put the closing quotation marks. |
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The
same with a comma. When we use quotation marks, the second set of marks
are put after the comma, not before, as we might logically assume. |
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For other punctuation
marks, they go inside the quotations if they refer to the content of the
quotation, or outside the quotation marks if they refer to the sentence
as a whole.
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| To
revert means to degenerate to an earlier condition. Say, "They
reverted to barbarism." |
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It
does not mean to reply, as in "reply to a message." Say, "Please
reply to this email message." |
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| A
slash (/) can be used as "either or" when the choice is between
"and" and "or." Say: "She is bringing chocolates
and/or wine." |
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Do
not use the slash, however to make the same statement about nowns (do
not say chocolates/wine) or in other places where the two concepts
are interchangeable. |
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| Substantive
and Substantial: |
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| Substantial
refers to a large amount. Enough or more than enough for the purpose. |
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Substantive
refers to content, in contrast to form or superificial characteristics. |
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| Upholding
and Holding Up: |
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| When
you uphold someting, you support and help to maintain it. |
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When
you hold something up, you hinder it or prohibit it from continuing or
developing. |
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| The
word "unique" means "one of a kind."
There can only be one of that kind. This is an either/or situation;
either something is unique or it is not. It can not be more or less. |
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That
means something can not be "very" unique or something can not be
"more" unique than something else. It is like being pregnant;
either you are or you are not; you can not be just a little bit pregnant,
or less pregnant than Isobel. |
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| Up
and down are supposed to be opposites. What do we do with a tree? We cut
it down. Then what? We cut it up.
Can you read these correctly
... the first time?
1) The bandage
was wound around the wound.
2) The farm was
used to produce produce.
3) The landfill
was so full, they had to refuse more refuse.
4) Please
polish the Polish furniture.
5) He could
be in the lead if he would get the lead out.
6) The soldier
chose to desert his dessert in the desert.
7) Since
there is no time like the present, it is time to present the present.
8) A bass
was painted on the head of the bass drum.
9) When
shot at, the dove dove into the bushes.
10) I did not object
to the object.
11) The insurance was
invalid for the invalid.
12) There was a
row among the oarsmen about how to row.
13) They were too close
to the door to close it.
14) The buck does strange
antics when does are around.
15) A seamstress and
a sewer fell down into a sewer line.
16) To help with planting,
the farmer taught his sow to sow.
17) The wind was too
strong for us to wind the sail.
18) I shed a tear upon
seeing the tear in the painting.
19) I had to subject
the subject to a series of tests.
20) I need to intimate
this to my most intimate friend?
There is no egg in eggplant,
no ham in hamburger; neither apple nor pine in pineapple. English muffins
were not invented in England nor French fries in France. Sweetmeats
are candies, while sweetbreads, which aren't sweet, are meat.
We find that quicksand
can work slowly, boxing rings are square, and a guinea pig is neither from
Guinea nor is it a pig. And why is it that writers write but fingers
don't fing, grocers don't groce and hammers don't ham? If the plural
of tooth is teeth, why isn't the plural of booth, beeth? One goose, 2 geese.
So one moose, 2 meese?
You can make amends but,
not one amend? If you have a bunch of odds and ends and get rid of
all but one of them, what do you call it? If teachers taught, why
didn't preachers praught? If a vegetarian eats vegetables, what does a
humanitarian eat? How is it that people recite a play and play
at a recital; ship by truck and send cargo by ship; have noses that
run and feet that smell?
How can a slim chance
and a fat chance be the same, while a wise man and a wise guy are opposites?
Your house can burn up as it burns down; you fill in a form by filling
it out and an alarm goes off by going on. When the stars are out, they
are visible, but when the lights are out, they are invisible. Why
doesn't "Buick" rhyme with "quick?" |
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