Grammaticality refers to whether something obeys the rules of grammar for English.
30
votes
7answers
16k views
Are there rules about using “that” to join two clauses?
He will understand that I was not joking.
He will understand I was not joking.
Which of the sentences is correct? Are there any specific rules about the use of "that" in the sentences I ...
22
votes
8answers
11k views
Are collective nouns always plural, or are certain ones singular?
I'd say Microsoft have a way of bending the rules and I know that McLaren have won the championship. While this sounds strange, I believe it is correct English (sorry, I'm not native).
But when it's ...
61
votes
12answers
5k views
When is it appropriate to end a sentence in a preposition?
Like many others, I commonly find myself ending a sentence with a preposition. Yes, it makes me cringe. I usually rewrite the sentence, but sometimes (in emails) I just live with it. To, with... ...
44
votes
8answers
9k views
When should I use “a” versus “an” in front of a word beginning with the letter h?
A basic grammar rule is to use an instead of a before a vowel sound. Given that historic is not pronounced with a silent h, I use “a historic”. Is this correct? What about heroic? Should be “It was a ...
37
votes
7answers
13k views
“If I was” or “If I were”. Which is more common, and which is correct?
My question of whether to use if I was or if I were. Which one is incorrect or nonstandard?
32
votes
6answers
15k views
When do I use “I” instead of “me?”
From some comments in the answers for common English usage mistakes, there's confusion around the usage of I vs. me:
While the sentence, "the other attendees are myself and Steve," is agreed to be ...
12
votes
7answers
13k views
Which is correct, “you and I” or “you and me”?
When the phrase is used as an object, why so many native speakers are saying "you and I" instead of "you and me"? I'm not a native speaker but I thought "you and me" is correct. Not sure if this falls ...
15
votes
3answers
3k views
When is a gerund supposed to be preceded by a possessive pronoun?
I assume that the following sentences are grammatically correct:
He resents your being more popular than he is.
Most of the members paid their dues without my asking them.
They objected ...
18
votes
5answers
12k views
“My friends and I” vs. “My friends and me” vs. “Me and my friends”
I've always been taught to put myself last when referring to myself in the same sentence as others but the usage of "me and..." seems to be everywhere these days. The misuse of the word "me" instead ...
15
votes
6answers
6k views
“Who wants ice-cream?” — Should I say “(not) I” or “(not) me”?
With the enthusiastic question of "Who wants ice-cream?", what is the more correct response?
(Not) I.
(Not) me.
Neither response is a sentence. The first response of "(not) I" sounds ...
30
votes
14answers
4k views
I can run faster than _____. (1) him (2) he?
Consider the sentence "I can run faster than 15 miles per hour." Its meaning is clear and to my eyes obviously grammatically correct. Now let me present some variations that have given me trouble for ...
12
votes
8answers
1k views
The grammaticality of “that don't impress me much”
I'd like to know how the sentence "That don't impress me much" sounds to a native English speaker.
The phrase is the title of a song by Shania Twain, and to my eyes it contains a clear error. It is ...
26
votes
6answers
19k views
Is it correct to use “their” instead of “his or her”?
Is this sentence grammatically correct?
Anyone who loves the English language should have a copy of this book in their bookcase.
or should it be:
Anyone who loves the English language should ...
16
votes
10answers
16k views
What is the correct way to use infinitive after the verb “help”: with or without “to”?
What is the correct way to use infinitive after the verb "help": with or without "to"?
For example:
Please, help me to understand this.
or:
Please, help me understand this.
14
votes
3answers
1k views
Are split infinitives grammatically incorrect, or are they valid constructs?
Mark's generosity in this crisis seems to more than make up for his earlier stinginess.
Should those sentences always be avoided, or are there cases where they are valid?
22
votes
15answers
6k views
What are some examples of awkward sounding but grammatically correct sentences?
What are some examples of awkward sounding but grammatically correct sentences?
10
votes
5answers
906 views
I <verb> and am <rest of sentence>
I sometimes find myself writing something like this:
XXX is a project I admire and am very interested in.
The "I <verb> and am <something>" feels strange here. It somehow sounds more ...
4
votes
1answer
2k views
Which is correct: “has died” or “died”?
To me, using Present Perfect form means the event can occur again. So, saying
someone has died
may not be grammatically correct.
Also, I noticed (it might be just co-incidence):
passed ...
20
votes
2answers
9k views
A number of questions “has been” or “have been” asked?
Formally, is it correct to write:
A number of questions has been asked here.
or:
A number of questions have been asked here.
As a non-native speaker of English, I would prefer the former: ...
12
votes
5answers
897 views
Is using the possessive 's correct in “the car's antenna”?
I know that to mark possession of an item you can use 's like in the following example:
The user's password shall not be blank.
However, is it correct to use the following:
The car's antenna ...
24
votes
6answers
3k views
Is it ever acceptable for a period to come after a quote at the end of a sentence? [duplicate]
Possible Duplicate:
Is it correct to use “punctuation outside of the quotations”, or “inside?”
I've heard that you should always place ending punctuation inside of quotes, no matter what.
...
10
votes
4answers
2k views
Can “whose” refer to an inanimate object?
We lit a fire whose fuel was old timber wood.
Is the word whose referring to fire, an inanimate object, correct in this sentence? Or is there a more appropriate word?
18
votes
4answers
2k views
Correct position of “only”
Which is grammatically correct?
I can only do so much in this time.
or
I can do only so much in this time.
19
votes
5answers
2k views
Is there some rule against ending a sentence with the contraction “it's”?
I heard this lyric in a song the other day and it just sounded so wrong that I assumed it must be incorrect grammar, but I can't find any specific prohibition that applies.
That's what it's.
...
18
votes
6answers
9k views
Which is correct: “what if there was” or “what if there were”? [duplicate]
Possible Duplicate:
“If I was” or “If I were”. Which is more common, and which is correct?
Is this correct grammar?
What if there was a Stack Overflow on…
...
5
votes
4answers
5k views
Is it “a uniform” or “an uniform”? [duplicate]
On a Physics specification, it says:
6.7 Know how to use two permanent magnets to produce a uniform magnetic field pattern.
Isn't it "produce an uniform magnetic field", or is the existing ...
8
votes
2answers
983 views
Preferred way to apostrophise in case of dual or multiple ownership by distinct entities [duplicate]
Possible Duplicate:
“Nikki's and Alice's X” vs. “Nikki and Alice's X”
Consider describing the wedding of X and Y. If I want to avoid the overly-formal ...
14
votes
5answers
3k views
Is it really incorrect to start a sentence with “and”?
I know it's wrong, but I do it all the time or else my sentences would go on forever.
30
votes
8answers
8k views
Is there a standard ordering for the question mark and the exclamation mark used together?
We've all wanted to express certain questions, rhetorical or not, with annoyance, excitement, surprise, frustration and so on. What better way than with both a question mark (?) and an exclamation ...
11
votes
3answers
820 views
Descriptivism and widespread misspelling
If you search google for "fuscia" it asks "did you mean fuschia?". The correct spelling of the word is "fuchsia". (This was pointed out on the xkcd blog a while ago.)
So enough people are spelling ...
3
votes
0answers
290 views
possessive connecting word for inanimate object [duplicate]
Duplicate of:
Is the word 'whose' referring to an inanimate object correct in this sentence?
Usage of “whose” not referring to a person.
Referring to some attribute of an inanimate ...
8
votes
4answers
1k views
“Neither Michael nor Albert is correct” or “Neither Michael nor Albert are correct”?
What is the correct sentence?
Neither Michael nor Albert is correct.
Neither Michael nor Albert are correct.
17
votes
3answers
739 views
“Those who qualify will be awarded a certificate” or “those who qualify will be awarded certificates”?
All my life, I have been confused with choosing plural or singular form to represent one-one correspondence notion.
Only those who qualify will be awarded a certificate.
or
Only those who ...
17
votes
6answers
23k views
Which is correct, “neither is” or “neither are”?
Bob: "Can I set the font color? Can I customize the text?"
Frank: "Neither of these options is available. Sorry!"
Is "neither is" always correct or should one use "neither are" in some cases and ...
16
votes
4answers
2k views
Types of things vs. types of thing
When speaking precisely or technically, one would say that "Homo erectus and homo sapiens are two species of hominid" rather than "Homo erectus and homo sapiens are two species of hominids." The ...
6
votes
2answers
211 views
“Nikki's and Alice's X” vs. “Nikki and Alice's X”
Which option is grammatical?
There will be readings from Nikki Giovanni’s and Alice Walker’s writings.
There will be readings from Nikki Giovanni and Alice Walker's writings.
Saying it ...
5
votes
3answers
342 views
“He didn't know where New Jersey was”
I know the past tense carries the past tense in every dependent clause, but referring specifically to places or to things that are eternal, like the Earth, seems a bit weird and therefore we sometimes ...
13
votes
9answers
812 views
What rules make “Remember me, who am your friend” grammatical?
An acquaintance recalled this specific example from an English textbook, but it is jarring to my native ear. Is this an example of prescriptive grammarians gone wild?
11
votes
5answers
12k views
What is the difference between “nothing but”, “anything but”, and “everything but”?
What is the difference between these phrases? When is it valid to use which? Should they be avoided as being ambiguous?
4
votes
4answers
2k views
Which one is more correct: “works at a university” or “works in a university”?
My relative is a fairly big academic and works at a university.
Is this correct? or should I have used in instead?
3
votes
1answer
294 views
“I'm not sure what the right way is”
I believe the sentence in the title is grammatically correct.
Recently I've seen too many people writing it this way:
I'm not sure what is the right way.
Is it grammatically correct as well? ...
1
vote
0answers
564 views
Other ways of saying whichs [duplicate]
Possible Duplicate:
'Which', 'whose' or something else?
Of course there isn't a word whichs (as far as I know), but I am talking about the possessive form of which.
...
64
votes
8answers
4k views
Which is correct: “__ is different from __” or “__ is different than __”?
As someone who learned English later on in life, I was taught that different from is the correct grammar to use: this is different from that. However, it seems these days everyone uses different than ...
22
votes
3answers
2k views
“This question has been asked at Stack Overflow” vs. “on Stack Overflow”
How should I phrase it:
This question has been asked at Stack Overflow.
Or,
This question has been asked on Stack Overflow.
24
votes
3answers
3k views
Can I use an “if” clause without “then”?
I have the following sentence:
If T had still been alive, there is the great possibility that either T or C ...
My teacher says that the word "then" must appear after the comma, but I think that ...
14
votes
2answers
434 views
Ellipsis that results in one word serving as both subject and object
Quoting from Jeff Atwood's blog:
[I expanded the team] by adding Kevin, who I didn't know, but had built amazing
stuff for us without even being asked to, from Texas. And again by adding ...
8
votes
5answers
2k views
Future tense in conditional clauses
All the textbooks I have ever come across during the course of my studying English emphasize that future tense should not be used in conditional clauses.
For example,
If it rains in the evening, ...
5
votes
4answers
6k views
Should an adverb go before or after a verb?
For example:
The word rarely turns up outside of those contexts.
The word turns up rarely outside of those contexts.
Which one is correct and why?
4
votes
6answers
6k views
How can I explain to people that the phrase “off of ” is grammatically incorrect?
How can I explain to people that the phrase off of is grammatically incorrect?
I‘ve heard this phrase used a lot, especially by Americans (though they aren't the only ones).
In my understanding, ...
5
votes
4answers
2k views
“A lot of ideas” is or are?
My boyfriend and I are arguing about whether the phrase "a lot of ideas" should be followed with is or are. I say that it should be is because the verb is linking to a lot, not ideas. If it were "lots ...
