Questions related to the use of proper writing style in English
90
votes
12answers
3k views
Why do English writers avoid explicit numerals?
The junction has a stop sign on each of the four entrances.
The junction has a stop sign on each of the 4 entrances.
The first is preferred, for some reason, by many English texts. Why? I ...
61
votes
13answers
12k views
Should I put a comma before the last item in a list?
Should I put a comma before last item in list?
I would like crackers, cheese and some soda.
I would like crackers, cheese, and some soda.
55
votes
1answer
3k views
When should I use an em-dash, an en-dash, and a hyphen?
I generally know how to use a hyphen, but when should I use an en-dash instead of an em-dash, or when should I use a hyphen instead of an em-dash?
38
votes
9answers
3k views
Why, in old books, are dates often given with the years redacted?
silly question, and I'm not sure this is even necessarily the right forum, but it's the most appropriate on StackExchange, so here we are.
Why is it, in older books, that years are sometimes redacted ...
33
votes
6answers
2k views
What is wrong in Strunk & White's “Elements of Style?”
I was reading the comments on this answer where several users claimed that Strunk & White's "Elements of Style" was "misinformed, hypocritical, and wrong" and "flat-out wrong or totally ...
28
votes
6answers
11k views
Use of “I”, “we” and the passive voice in a scientific thesis [duplicate]
Possible Duplicate:
Style Question: Use of “we” vs. “I” vs. passive voice in a dissertation
When the first person voice is used in scientific writing it is mostly ...
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?
21
votes
6answers
2k views
Using “utilize” instead of “use”?
My friend has been raising a ruckus about the abuse of the word "utilize" in place of the word "use." He complains that it just makes your sentences sound pretentious.
u·ti·lize [yoot-l-ahyz]
verb ...
21
votes
3answers
9k views
When to use & instead of “and”
Are there rules of usage when using the ampersand "&" instead of "and"?
Are they completely interchangeable?
The ampersand seems more casual, but I'm not sure.
19
votes
6answers
27k views
Is it “Yours faithfully” or “Yours sincerely”?
When should one sign a letter with "Yours faithfully" or "Yours sincerely"?
17
votes
3answers
4k views
Is it recommended to use “we” in research papers?
Is it recommended to use "we" in research papers? If not, should I always use passive voice?
16
votes
4answers
872 views
Usage of “And” in the beginning of a sentence
Since I first learned English, I have been holding this understanding that "and", as a conj. but unlike "but", can only connect two clauses, not two sentences ended with periods.
But recently, I ...
16
votes
4answers
889 views
Heavy usage of synonyms in English or not?
I am a native German speaker and in German it is considered very bad style to use a word more than once in a sentence or even in close proximity. So you usually have a big list of synonyms in your ...
16
votes
4answers
2k views
What did Old English writing (letters and formatting) typically look like?
I am wondering if there is a specific kind of writing that people would typically associate with Old English language. Are there well-known manuscripts that typically represent the kind of writing ...
15
votes
8answers
5k views
Is it poor form to start too many sentences with I?
I often find myself writing a lot of comments to blog posts and responses on forums, and have noticed a tendency to start a lot of sentences with 'I'. 'I think...', 'I had no idea', 'I used to...' ...
15
votes
6answers
636 views
What are the principles that make certain lists sound euphonious?
Has this ever happened to you: You write a question, include a list or two in the discussion, and then come back to edit that list because the order doesn't sound "right"? Off the top of my head, I ...
14
votes
4answers
2k views
Is it ever appropriate to use a space before and after an ampersand?
A colleague and I have a difference of opinion. I believe our department should be abbreviated as "L&D." She believes it should be "L & D," which just looks silly to me. I never see spaces ...
14
votes
2answers
433 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 ...
14
votes
4answers
689 views
What is it called when words are deliberately written wrong but pronunciation is kept unchanged?
For example,
Night -> Nite
Nite even appears in some dictionaries as having the same meaning as night.
What is it called when words are deliberately written incorrectly but the pronunciation ...
13
votes
3answers
499 views
Difference between styles of English in technical communication
I have a collaborative software project with two other users. Nearly every technical report and documentation written goes through the following editorial changes to some of the sentences (examples ...
12
votes
3answers
424 views
Is it appropriate to add a postscript to an email?
Wikipedia says:
A postscript may be a sentence, a paragraph, or occasionally many paragraphs added to, often hastily and incidentally, after the signature of a letter or (sometimes) the main body ...
12
votes
7answers
6k views
Are there any differences between “I believe” vs “I think” vs “I reckon”?
These are the three most common ways to say "I think." (At least, I believe so. I mean, I think so. Um...)
Are there any subtle differences between them?
Are there situations where one of the three ...
12
votes
3answers
8k views
Should there be a space before a percent sign?
Should there be a space before a percent sign or not?
Should you write 20% or 20 %?
I'm not sure if there is any consensus about this or not. Is one way more common than the other?
11
votes
3answers
822 views
Does the abbreviation for Saint in a church name require a period?
In referring to a local church, does the name "St Giles" require a period after the "St"? I was told that to add a period confuses it with the abbreviation for street.
10
votes
7answers
2k views
Is using passive voice “bad form”?
Whenever I create a document in Microsoft Word, it complains about a lot of my sentences being in passive voice. But, when I read that sentence aloud, it sounds fine to me. I am not sure if it is just ...
10
votes
3answers
2k views
Style Question: Use of “we” vs. “I” vs. passive voice in a dissertation
As I'm not a native speaker and just finishing my dissertation in Computer Science, I wonder what style I should be using.
In German (my native tongue) most dissertations, school-books and scientific ...
10
votes
1answer
323 views
Writing the most important part of a sentence (at the end, between parentheses)
I've seen this writing style several times, where the most important part of a sentence - or a twist - is put at the end between parentheses. This is typically used in titles and gives the sentence an ...
10
votes
5answers
797 views
fait accompli – to italicize, or not to italicize
Background
I was looking up the rule about italicizing foreign phrases and found an apparent consensus that the criterion is if the phrase is familiar. Well, who gets to decide that? I know perfectly ...
10
votes
2answers
3k views
“The train will leave” vs. “is going to leave” vs. “leaves” vs. “is leaving”
From the grammatical point of view all are correct, just the meaning are different, please bring your clarification, thank you.
The Train will leave at 10:00 tomorrow morning.
The Train is ...
9
votes
9answers
1k views
When is it acceptable to use Internet abbreviations such as “u” or “r”?
In my business communication over Internet text messengers, for example Google Talk or Skype, I see that many people often use shorten words like u instead of you, r instead of are and the like.
How ...
9
votes
3answers
3k views
Footnote marks at end of a sentence
I find it common in my writing to end up a sentence with a footnote reference mark. Should the footnote mark come before the stop or after it?
... this is some text1.
... this is some text.1
9
votes
3answers
422 views
Where can I find a list of common padding words?
Like a lot of people, I actually have the habit of actually adding a lot of actual padding words when I actually write. A common one I use is actually. These are actually rarely worth keeping, ...
9
votes
1answer
290 views
On the usage of “etcetera”
In Spanish, we use the word etcétera at the end of an enumeration to imply there are more things to mention, which may (or not) be important, but they will be omitted. Thus, I was fairly surprised ...
8
votes
3answers
407 views
Bringing word into existence just by calling and using it
Sometimes, when I read essays, I see that writers make up words and by using them, they bring those words into existence.
For example:
In her article "Juban America", Ruth Behar uses the term ...
8
votes
5answers
13k views
“I and someone”, “me and someone” or “I and someone we” [duplicate]
Possible Duplicate:
When do I use “I” instead of “me?”
A friend of mine asked me for advice about an e-mail he was writing. There was a sentence like this:
I and ...
8
votes
3answers
343 views
Capitalization of “Internet” [duplicate]
Possible Duplicate:
Should the words “internet” and “web” be capitalized?
For the most part Internet is capitalized, less frequently it occurs uncapitalized. Is ...
8
votes
5answers
367 views
'How to' vs 'How do I'
This question is inspired by comments on a question on stackoverflow. The original poster wrote:
How to correct this error?
And comments say that it's an incorrect question. Better is
How ...
8
votes
3answers
2k views
Is “et al.” acceptable for citations with exactly two authors?
I have a bunch of information from a source, but the authors names are particularly long; is it acceptable (in MLA) to use "et al." for exactly two authors, e.g.,
“The Corpus juris not only ...
8
votes
5answers
558 views
Is it poor style to use adverbs ending in “ly” in formal writing?
I came across this infographic which contains the following claim:
Some grammarians consider "ly" ending adverbs as bad style in formal writing.
Are there any serious style advice sources that ...
8
votes
2answers
771 views
How to add emphasis to a modal verb
To add emphasis to a normal verb, we use the emphatic do:
He does run fast.
Do come in.
Do brush your teeth.
Obviously, with modal verbs this would be a grave mistake:
(*) He ...
8
votes
0answers
404 views
When to use passive and active voice [closed]
When is it better to use passive voice in writing and speech?
When is it better to use active voice in writing and speech?
7
votes
3answers
598 views
meaning and usage of 'teh'
“I wouldn’ say no teh a bit o’ yer birthday cake, neither.”
“He usually gets me ter do important stuff fer him.”
—Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone
Hagrid’s ...
7
votes
3answers
2k views
Analysis of “It is like a dream come true”
I've been unable to grammatically analyse the sentence
It is like a dream come true.
To me, it should either be
It is like a dream that has come true
or
It is like a dream comes true.
...
7
votes
5answers
1k views
Strunk and White says “Charles's” is correct — is this still the case? [duplicate]
Possible Duplicate:
What is the correct possessive for nouns ending in s?
When did it become correct to add an 's' to a singular possessive already ending in 's'?
I just ...
7
votes
4answers
5k views
In a written work, is it better to reference people by their first or last name?
In a work, when you introduce someone by their full name and later refer to them in a context which is not appropriate for a pronoun, do you use their first or last name?
Example: "Eli Whitney is ...
7
votes
1answer
3k views
To hyphenate or not?
As a non-native speaker of English and an engineer by training, I always get confused about hyphenation and almost always end up referring to Google every time I need to make that decision.
Does ...
7
votes
3answers
220 views
Can I say this in English: “Hard- and Software”? [duplicate]
Possible Duplicate:
Use of hyphens when writing repeated compound words that has common parts
In German we can use a hyphen as indication that there is a continuation of the current word ...
7
votes
3answers
2k views
Recommended books on writing well in English? [closed]
I keep "On writing well" close to me when writing something long. What other books would you recommend on the topic of good writing-style in English?
7
votes
3answers
2k views
Where does “emphasis mine” go in a quotation?
I have often seen the term emphasis mine used whenever an author wishes to denote that emphasis in a given quotation originates from said author rather than from the original source.
What is the ...
7
votes
3answers
1k views
Name and origin of writing with period after each word
It may be limited to the web ecosystem, but I've read a lot of those sentences lately, where each word is followed by a period.
Examples:
Oh. My. God.
Best. Job. Ever.
No. F***ing. Way.
...
