Linden’s question: “The verb I always have trouble with is ‘lay’ and its past tense and past participle. Can you provide some guidance?” BizwritingTip response: “Lay” and “lie” are two verbs that fall into the irregular category. In other words, the normal rules for changing their tenses do not apply. But let’s start with their […]
Judy’s question: “When writing about a sports team, such as the North Stars, is the accompanying verb singular or plural? Should it be ‘the North Stars consists’ or ‘the North Stars consist’?” BizWritingTip response: When referring to a collective noun, such as a team, use a singular verb. Example (correct) The team is playing tonight. […]
Jo’s question: “Which is correct? ‘There was lightning and thunder last night,’ or ‘there were lightning and thunder.’ ” BizWritingTip response: This question relates to subject and verb agreement. When a sentence begins with there or here, the actual subject is considered to be the word or words following the verb. Use a singular verb if the […]
Arun’s question: “I have noticed that sometimes the word ‘peoples’ is used instead of ‘people.’ What is the difference? I always thought that ‘people’ is plural.” BizWritingTip response: As long as I am answering this question, we might as well start with the word “person.” A person is an individual human being. It comes from […]
Muhammed’s question: “I have read that The Associated Press has officially killed off ‘e-mail’ in favour of ‘email’ in their official style guide. What are your thoughts?” BizWritingTip response: My first thought is that whatever I write will irritate someone. E-mail is the original spelling of the word. Normally, all English words that use a […]
There are numerous English words that have the same meaning but are spelled/spelt differently. For example, in Britain and in many other English speaking countries people write “centre” and “organize.” But in the U.S., writers use “center” and “organise.” Why? The reason is interesting. In the early 1900s, the American industrialist/philanthropist Andrew Carnegie believed English […]
Susan’s question: “I had a discussion the other day about the word ‘center/centre.’ I was under the impression that ‘centre’ was a noun and ‘to center’ something was the verb. But I was told that it was grammatically correct to use ‘centred.’ ” BizWritingTip response: The word centre comes from the Latin centrum meaning “stationary […]
Mary’s question: “I am never quite sure when to use ‘distrust’ versus ‘mistrust.’ Are they interchangeable, or do they each have specific usages/meanings?” BizWritingTip response: There is a fine line between these two words. Based on the Oxford Dictionary, distrust as a noun means “suspicion or lack of trust.” Mistrust means “suspicion or lack of […]
Heather’s question: “I hope you’ll address the words ‘principal’ versus ‘principle’ soon. I was taught principal was a school official, as in your ‘pal,’ and principle is defined as a belief. In more recent years, I think some instructors have this rule mixed up.” BizWritingTip response: Principal and principle do confuse many people. Yes, you […]
Lisa’s question: “I would appreciate learning about the correct use of the expression ‘very much.’ I see it often, and it bugs me, but I don’t know why. Examples include ‘it’s very much a work in progress …’ or ‘It is very much appreciated.’” BizWritingTip response: “Very” and “much” are intensifiers. They allow you to […]