June 19 2014

Rules Of Grammar: Backslash vs. Forward Slash


Backslash: \ (leans backwards)
Forward slash: / (leans forward)

The use of the term “backslash,” in regards to citing a website address, is a commonly accepted error. Website addresses are actually composed of forward slashes. However, backslashes are used in reference to directories and file paths in Windows.

Forward slashes are also known as just “slashes.” In addition to comprising website addresses, forward slashes are used to denote fractions and division. It is also used as a substitute for the word “or.” For example, his/her.

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May 19 2014

Rules Of Grammar: Gray vs. Grey

For the most part, gray spelled with an “a” is more commonly used in American English (think “a” for “American”). Grey, spelled with an “e” is said to be more commonly used in the English language outside of the United States. Both of the words have the same meaning although they are spelled differently.

According to the website Grammarist, “In the U.K… grey appears about twenty times for every instance of gray. In the U.S. the ratio is reversed.”

Grammarist also points out a couple of exceptions to the words being interchangeable, “Greyhound, for the breed of dog, always has an e, while grayling, which refers to several types of fish, always has an a.”

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April 21 2014

Rules Of Grammar: Diffuse vs. Defuse

Diffuse is defined in the following was: “(1) To spread out. (2) To move freely throughout a large area. (3) To exist or be known throughout an area. (4) To cause (light) to be soft and spread out. (5) Being at once verbose and ill-organized.”

Defuse is defined as: “(1) To remove the fuse from (as a mine or bomb). (2) To make less harmful, potent, or tense.”

Briefs:
Option #1: diffuse= DIF/FAO*US
Option #2: diffuse= DA/FAOUS

Option #1: defuse= DE/FAOUS
Option #2: defuse= DPAOUS

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March 27 2014

Rules Of Grammar: Queen vs Quean

Queen is defined as the following: “The female ruler of an independent state, especially one who inherits the position by right of birth.” “The most powerful chess piece that each player has.” “A woman that is foremost or preeminent in any respect.” “The fertile fully developed female of social bees, ants, and termites whose function is to lay eggs.”

A quean is defined as the following: “A overly forward, impudent woman.” “A prostitute.” By Scottish definition, it is defined as: “A woman who is young or unmarried.”

Briefs:
queen= QAOEN
quean= QAO*EN

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December 19 2013

Rules Of Grammar: Capitonyms

A capitonym is a word that’s meaning, and sometimes pronunciation, changes when it is capitalized.

Here are some examples:
march= a manner of walking
March= the month of the year

may= can
May= the month of the year

Cuban= related to the country Cuba
cuban= related to cubes

Lent= the period between Ash Wednesday and Easter
lent= to lend

Polish= from Poland
polish= to create a shiny suface by rubbing against

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October 24 2013

Rules Of Grammar: Appositives

An appositive is a noun or pronoun, often with modifiers, set beside another noun or pronoun to explain or identify it.

Your friend Bill is in trouble. (Appositive= Bill)

My brother’s car, a sporty red convertible with bucket seats, is the envy of my friends. (Appositive= a sporty red convertible with bucket seats)

The chief surgeon, an expert in organ-transplant procedures, took her nephew on a hospital tour. (Appositive= an expert in organ-transplant procedures)

An appositive phrase usually follows the word it explains or identifies, but it may also precede it.

A bold innovator, Wassily Kandinsky is known for his colorful abstract paintings. (Appositive= A bold innovator)

The first state to ratify the U. S. Constitution, Delaware is rich in history. (Appositive= The first state to ratify the
U. S. Constitution)

SOURCE: Purdue Online Writing Center

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