Hilary’s question: “I often see sentences that I think overuse the word ‘of,’ e.g., ‘He lived outside of Canada’ or ‘She peered out of the window.’ Isn’t this incorrect?” BizWritingTip response: This is actually a style issue rather than a grammar one. The term “outside of” is considered acceptable North American informal speech. However, business writing […]
Marlene’s question: “I hear people say ‘zero dollars.’ If it’s zero, shouldn’t it be ‘zero dollar’?” BizWritingTip response: “Zero” can be used as a noun, verb or adjective. Examples (correct) Turn the dial to zero. (Zero is a singular noun.) We all got zeros on the test. (Zero is a plural noun.) She quickly zeroed in […]
BizWritingTip reader: “Do you have an opinion on the construction ‘Bob’s information was different than mine’? I see it all the time and do not like it. I would write ‘Bob’s information was different from mine,’ but I appear to be one of the few who feel this way.” BizWritingTip response: The phrases different from and different than are […]
Seng’s question: “When referring to a person who may be delegated a task, would you write designate or designee? For example, the manager or designate/designee is responsible for approving the report.” BizWritingTip response: Designate is a verb meaning “to appoint” or “to mark or point out clearly.” Examples Who was designated to write the report? […]
Teri’s question: “Here is something I would like clarified: Is the proper phrase “use to” or “used to” as in “I ______ to enjoy snow.” BizWritingTip response: “Used to” is employed when making a statement about repeated activities or thoughts that are now finished. Examples I used to love golfing in hot weather. Now I […]
Deane’s question: “Should terms such as francophone and anglophone be capitalized. I don’t think so as they do not refer to races of people per se. However, especially in the case of francophone, people in government and in the press often write Francophone.” BizWritingTip response: My first inclination was to say “no.” Do not capitalize […]
Angela’s question: “Can you please describe when to use ‘reoccur’ and when to use ‘recur.’ Are they interchangeable?” BizWritingTip response: Aha more controversial words! The dictionary defines “recur” as a verb meaning “to occur again” or “be repeated.” (“Recurrence” is the noun.) Examples Lightning recurred throughout the night. (It happened often.) It is a recurring […]
Daniel’s question: “I am not sure which is the right spelling: coworkers or co-workers?” BiztipWritingTip response: Unfortunately, this question is still being debated. Both the CP (Canadian Press) and the AP (Associated Press) stylebooks recommend co-worker. So does the dictionary associated with the MicroSoft Word program. But The Chicago Manual of Style and The Economist’s […]
Claire’s question: “What is the correct use of the expression ‘as well’ versus using ‘also’?” BizWritingTip response: Also is an adverb meaning “in addition, likewise, besides, moreover.” As well is an idiom and is defined as “also, in addition, to an equal extent, too.” Although these words appear similar, do not interchange them. Also is […]
Suzanne’s question: “I often struggle with the use of quotation marks in conjunction with periods, question marks, and exclamation marks. I was educated in Scotland, and we sometimes put them outside.” BizWritingTip response: Yes, the North American English rule for using periods with quotation marks is now different from the British English rule. North American […]