BizWritingTip reader: “Please review the following phrase and let me know which one sounds better: ‘in appreciation to’ or ‘in appreciation of.’ ” BizWritingTip response: When it comes to using the noun “appreciation” meaning “in favourable or grateful recognition,” the correct preposition is “of.” Therefore, you should say “in appreciation of.” Wow, that was an […]
Writing Style – Rules for Numbers
in Grammar, StyleBizWritingTip reader: “I was recently told that in a written document numbers should be displayed in written form for values of nine or less and numerically for values of 10 or larger; is this correct?” BizWritingTip response: Yes, this is Canadian style. Spell out whole numbers below 10 and use figures for 10 and above. […]
Word Choice – Who Versus That
in -Latest, Feature Article, Word ChoiceHilary’s question: “Please discuss the use of ‘who’ versus ‘that’ in a sentence. For example, in the sentence — There are many other participants in the videos that also share their stories about welding as a career of choice — I think it should be ‘who also share their stories.’ ” BizWritingTip response: This is […]
Word Choice – Incidence Versus Incidents
in Word ChoiceBizWritingTip reader: “Is it ‘incidence’ or ‘incidents?’ For example: ‘While the incidence or incidents of illegal dumping has decreased…’ ” BizWritingTip response: This is a great question. Sometimes our English words sound so much alike it is difficult to know which one to use. “Incidence” is a singular noun and refers to the frequency of an occurrence. It cannot […]
Writing Style – Ms.
in StyleBizWritingTip reader: “I was told that it is not correct to add a period after Ms as it isn’t a short form of a word as Mr. is for Mister. Is this correct?” BizWritingTip response: Yes, Ms. is not actually a short form. It was coined by well-known author Germaine Greer and other feminists in the 1970s […]
Grammar Tip – Commas in a Series
in GrammarBizWritingTip reader: “I have heard that it is now acceptable to place a comma before the ‘and’ in a list in a sentence. Is this something that was changed recently? Can you help me out?” BizWritingTip response: When a sentence contains three or more items in a series, place a comma before the “and” to […]
Word Choice – Which Versus That
in -Latest, Feature Article, Word ChoiceBizWritingTip reader: “Will you please clarify the correct use of ‘that’ versus ‘which’ in qualifying sentences? It seems to me people often use ‘which’ when they should be using ‘that.’ ” BizWritingTip response: It’s interesting that I have received three separate requests for this information in the past two weeks. So although I have dealt […]
Word Choice – Company Name
in Style, Word ChoiceBizWritingTip reader: “When you close a business letter, does it still need to include the company name typed under the closing line? It seems like it duplicates the letterhead.” BizWritingTip response: Before letterhead, the courts required companies to put their name somewhere on the document to show they stood behind the correspondence. Most organizations placed […]
Writing Style – In Appreciation
in StyleBizWritingTip reader: “Please review the following phrase and let me know which one sounds better: ‘in appreciation to’ or ‘in appreciation of.’ ” BizWritingTip response: When it comes to using the noun “appreciation” meaning “in favourable or grateful recognition,” the correct preposition is “of.” Therefore, you should say “in appreciation of.” Wow, that was an […]
Grammar Tip – Commas in a Series
in GrammarBizWritingTip reader: “I have heard that it is now acceptable to place a comma before the ‘and’ in a list in a sentence. Is this something that was changed recently? Can you help me out?” BizWritingTip response: When a sentence contains three or more items in a series, place a comma before the “and” to […]
Word Choice – Oversight Versus Oversee
in Word ChoiceBizWritingTip reader: “Can you please clarify the correct use of the word ‘oversight’ versus ‘overseeing.’ I’ve been seeing the word ‘oversight’ used in the context of ‘X department is responsible for the oversight of Y project.’ Please clarify the correct usage of the word ‘oversight’ versus ‘to oversee.’ ” BizWritingTip response: “To oversee” is a […]