53
votes
Writing some as (S)ome - What does this really mean?
These two cases are unrelated.
As @RuchirShah correctly observes, the (s) at the end of employer(s) is number-agnostic: you might have one employer or several.
However, the parenthesised (S) at the ...
- 815
13
votes
Writing some as (S)ome - What does this really mean?
In case 2, “employer(s)” is an abbreviation for “employer or employers.” You will sometimes also see “employer/s,” or “(s)he.”
Case 1 is not standard written English. What probably happened is that ...
- 7,537
6
votes
Accepted
Where should the apostrophe go on a possessive abbreviation?
In your question, the two alternatives that you permit readers (and yourself) to consider are
If the Giant Ostrich Bomb's (GOB) fuse is too short, you may be too close when it goes off and you may ...
- 166k
6
votes
Accepted
When a sentence uses a parenthetical plural, should the rest of the sentence treat it as singular or plural?
There are at least two references that say the verb should be singular.
"... when an 's' or 'es' is added in parentheses to a subject or subjects, the verb should be singular because the 's' or 'es'...
- 301
5
votes
Do parenthetical statements change subject-verb agreement?
According to Chicago manual of style:
Q. If words in parentheses would turn a singular subject into a plural subject, should the verb (outside the parentheses) be plural? I’m wondering specifically ...
- 795
5
votes
Accepted
Where do I put the question mark if a question has a parenthetical statement at the end?
The rule with the highest precedence here is that any content within parentheses must be removable without altering the grammar of the surrounding content. If it can't be, then something somewhere ...
- 6,170
5
votes
Singular or plural verb after parenthetical material containing a conjunction?
Two references say the verb should be singular, and I have seen none that say it should be plural.
"Rule 3. Parentheses, despite appearances, are not part of the subject. Example: Joe (and his trusty ...
- 301
4
votes
Accepted
What does () mean in IPA?
Merriam-Webster does not actually use IPA (in IPA "expanse" is standardly transcribed as /ɪkˈspæns/, although /ɪkˈspans/ is another possible representation). Parentheses are not an official part of ...
- 83.7k
4
votes
Where do I put the question mark if a question has a parenthetical statement at the end?
This question actually raises four different issues of punctuation placement:
Where does a question mark fall when a simple question gives way to a parenthetical remark that is not a complete ...
- 166k
4
votes
Is it "room(s)" or "room/s" when referring to the possibility of more than one of something? [Parenthetical plurals]
There are people who disagree with this but my interpretation is that brackets (or parentheses if you prefer) are for optional material, while a slash should be read as or (with a few exceptions in ...
- 21.9k
4
votes
How can I avoid using so many "e.g." in my school writing?
Do you definitely have to use an explicit "e.g." and must it always be in parentheses?
The example sentence can be written without either:
Students rely on friends, classmates, coworkers and ...
- 3,226
4
votes
How can you differentiate these two propositional statements in English?
Logical notation has been invented precisely because it is difficult to express the structure of complex propositions precisely and unambiguously in ordinary language. One thus generally cannot expect ...
- 8,806
3
votes
Accepted
Capitalize first word of a string within parentheses which is also a full sentence?
Your sentence(s) can either be written as:
The value is estimated by correcting the image for a bead size of
25nm. (See above for bead size correction.)
or
The value is estimated by ...
- 2,447
3
votes
Accepted
Nesting parentheses inside brackets
Leave out the round brackets. Single square brackets already advise the reader that the normal flow of the quotation is being interrupted by an editorial note. The added round brackets are redundant. ...
- 28.6k
3
votes
using comma within the appositive
Yes, it's correct.
However, some people could think it was confusing. Stylistically, you can always use different punctuation to indicate the appositive if the commas concern you:
The factory ...
- 38.2k
3
votes
Using brackets in quotes: You['re] vs [You're]
I don't see much importance and necessity in contracting that word, especially since it is a quote which means you have to respect what the source said and how the source said it.
Brackets have many ...
- 214
3
votes
Accepted
Should I pluralize based on an item in parentheses
Note the use of is in this sentence: My friend (and her brother) is coming today. The subject is My friend. Despite appearances, parentheses are never part of the subject.
According to https://data....
- 115
3
votes
Accepted
Is it correct to allow a parenthesized sentence to be followed by another parenthesized sentence?
As you suspect, the period should go outside the closing parenthesis in your first sentence. CMOS 14th ed. section 5.14 says:
When parentheses or brackets are used to enclose an indpendent sentence, ...
- 7,960
3
votes
Use of quotation marks in parentheses when shortening a title
This depends on the style guide. While perhaps not the exact same type of writing, a blog about contract drafting cites A Manual of Style for Contract Drafting (MSCD):
MSCD 5.37 says “place in ...
- 67.1k
2
votes
'A' or 'an' before word in parentheses
Very interesting query!
Copyeditor with 10 years under his belt, for what it's worth. Still learning new odds and ends of the English language daily.
As to this: Since the rule of a parentheses ...
- 29
2
votes
Why are some words in a sentence put in parentheses despite being essential to the sentence's meaning?
This is a quotation from MTV's original disclaimer for the show 'Beavis and Butthead'
Beavis and Butt-head are not real. They are stupid cartoon people completely made up by this Texas guy who we ...
2
votes
What is the proper way to address quantities in a list of materials?
Everything about a list is a matter of personal choice guided by only two rules, both of thumb:
A) Nothing in a list needs to follow any standard rule of punctuation, grammar, capitalization, ...
- 2,500
2
votes
Accepted
Brackets and comma usage
No, brackets parenthesise text such that the sentence should read just the same, i.e. grammatically complete, with the parenthesised section removed. Remove that section from your example and the ...
- 585
2
votes
Accepted
Are .). and .), correct notations?
The Chicago Manual of Style (13th ed) says:
Although the use of etc. in running text is to be discouraged, it should, when used, be set off by commas:
The firm manufactured nuts, bolts, ...
- 16.3k
2
votes
Singular or plural verb after parenthetical material containing a conjunction?
The general rule with parenthetical expressions, is a complete and grammatically correct sentence, when the expression is removed. Parenthetical expressions are meant to clarify, though they do not ...
2
votes
Parenthesis for English name(foreigner)
If you want to have "Jane" be treated as your first name, then it should be "Jia (Jane) Wen Lee". Note that there should be spaces around the parentheses.
- 4,975
2
votes
Directions within parentheses
What you do will be determined by the particular style guide you follow. If you don't follow one, then do whatever makes sense—but keep it consistent.
The Chicago Manual of Style's guidelines (6.13) ...
- 38.2k
2
votes
Accepted
Parentheses within abbreviations
Since the parenthetical part is inalienable from the non-parenthetical part when written out in full, the abbreviation without space is correct, in the sense of what conveys the most accurate ...
- 298
2
votes
Accepted
Use of parentheses/brackets in legal titles
"What is the logic used to decide what goes in parentheses and what stays out?"
The main phrase (excluding the parenthetical) is the essential Bill/ Act/ Law/ Rule/ Order. It is qualified where ...
- 37.5k
2
votes
Brackets within brackets
This depends on your style guide. In APA, you shouldn’t nest parentheses. Instead either use square brackets (if the citation belongs to what’s inside the parentheses) or offset the reference with a ...
- 67.1k
Only top scored, non community-wiki answers of a minimum length are eligible