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The Grammar Logs # 144 |
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| QUESTION |
| Is "through the door" a prepositional phase or is the word "through" an adverb. |
| SOURCE OF QUESTION & DATE OF RESPONSE |
Holyoke, Massachusetts  Saturday, June 13, 1998
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| GRAMMAR'S RESPONSE |
| "Through the door" is a prepositional phrase and the word "through" is a preposition. The phrase is probably acting as an adverb, though, as in "He looked through the door." |
| QUESTION |
Which tense to use:
Drove or driven by insanity, she committed suicide last night.Thanks in advance. |
| SOURCE OF QUESTION & DATE OF RESPONSE |
| Taipei, Taiwan Saturday, June 13, 1998
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| GRAMMAR'S RESPONSE |
| You need the participle form there, "driven." (Incidentally, are you sure that's what you mean, "driven by insanity." I think you might be driven by insane urges or insane preoccupations or something, but I'm not so sure about "driven by insanity.") |
| QUESTION |
| How do you address an wedding invitation to a couple (husband and wife) when both are doctors. Also, the the first name of the wife is not known. |
| SOURCE OF QUESTION & DATE OF RESPONSE |
| Northampton, Pennsylvania Saturday, June 13, 1998
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| GRAMMAR'S RESPONSE |
| That's really more of an etiquette question than a grammar question, and I don't have the kind of reference materials that would help you. The plural of Dr. is Drs., if that's a clue. It's going to look strange to write Drs. Smith, but without both first names, I think you're stuck. |
| QUESTION |
Which is correct?
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| SOURCE OF QUESTION & DATE OF RESPONSE |
| Wilmington, North Carolina Saturday, June 13, 1998
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| GRAMMAR'S RESPONSE |
| Glasses, sunglasses, are plural, so you'd say "they." When you have a question like this, it sometimes helps to create a really simple sentence -- My sunglasses are broken. -- and that will usually tell whether the object is regarded as singular or plural. |
| QUESTION |
| Hi, I would like to know if the usage of the word repair is correct or not in the following sentence. Pl. help me out in this regard. Make sure your bicycle is in proper working order. Not only should all the mechanical parts be in good repair (e.g. brakes, tire, gears) but the bicycle should be adjusted properly for seat height, handlebars, etc. If you do not have a helmet, borrow one or buy one. If you will be riding at night, you need and must have a light.Thanks |
| SOURCE OF QUESTION & DATE OF RESPONSE |
| Madras, Tamil Nadu, India Sunday, June 14, 1998
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| GRAMMAR'S RESPONSE |
| Yes, the word repair can be used to mean condition. Something "in good repair" is in good condition. In fact, it is not necessary that it's even been repaired (in the sense of being broken and then fixed). Usually, though, it means that the thing has been maintained in good shape. |
| QUESTION |
| What are substantives? |
| SOURCE OF QUESTION & DATE OF RESPONSE |
| Yardley, Pennsylvania Sunday, June 14, 1998
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| GRAMMAR'S RESPONSE |
| Kolln says that a substantive is a nominal, which might not help at all. A nominal is something that can function in a slot of a sentence that requires some kind of noun construction: subject, direct object, indirect object, subjective complement, objective complement, and object of the preposition. Kolln also argues that appositives are a renaming of a noun and therefore are nominals (more than adjectival). A substantive, then (I take it), is some kind of noun structure that can fulfill any of those roles. I hope this response doesn't confuse you more than it helps you. I also hope it's right; I'd never heard of the word before. Authority: Understanding English Grammar by Martha Kolln. 4rth Edition. MacMillan Publishing Company: New York. 1994. Chapter 4.
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| QUESTION |
I'm confused on the use of 'effected' vs 'affected'. Is it...
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| SOURCE OF QUESTION & DATE OF RESPONSE |
| San Jose, California Monday, June 15, 1998
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| GRAMMAR'S RESPONSE |
| It's "affected." When you want a verb, you almost always want "affect." "Effect" is the noun (almost always). The only exception is when when you say something like "We have tried to effect a change in the following systems." |
| QUESTION |
| I am an English teacher in Korea.
One student asked me the following question. The book which contains the above question says that the above dialogue is wrong but it has no explanation, so curious student asked me to explain the reason why that dialogue is unacceptable in English, but I could not explain the reason to him. I would like to know the reason why that dialogue is unacceptable in English. I would be very much appreciated if you answer my question. Thank you. |
| SOURCE OF QUESTION & DATE OF RESPONSE |
| Ulsan, Korea Monday, June 15, 1998
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| GRAMMAR'S RESPONSE |
| I think I may be missing something. Is this a question about grammar or logic or metals? Grammatically, I'm not sure there is a problem with the "dialogue," as you call it. The response, "either one," doesn't make a lot of sense, though, in light of the question. You're given an either/or choice, and unless gold and silver are equally precious (and then you could answer, "Neither one."), you have to answer one or the other (or say you don't know). Or perhaps something weirdly philosophical is going on here, and I don't have a clue? |
| QUESTION |
Can you please clarify something for my office? Can you give me the rules on capitalizing words such as:
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| SOURCE OF QUESTION & DATE OF RESPONSE |
| Milwuakee, Wisconsin Monday, June 15, 1998
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| GRAMMAR'S RESPONSE |
| This is similar to a question that is often asked about similar titles in the business world, and the answer (as you might expect) is not simple. Most manuals and reference books I look at suggest that nowadays the practice leans more and more toward not using capitals for such offices, especially when they are not immediately connected to someone's name (the president's relationship with the faculty, etc.). Even when they are connected to someone's name (Georgina Scharks, president of Wisteria University), they aren't capitalized, according to the Chicago Manual of Style. That book might be in the minority on this issue, though. The important thing, all resources agree, is consistency within whatever document you're writing. (One resource -- maybe it's the Chicago manual? -- suggests reserving a capital for President of a given entity, but that seems grossly nonegalitarian to me and I don't like the idea. Consistency from Clerk to CEO or clerk to ceo is the best policy, I think.) |
| QUESTION |
| Please advise the plural of Mr. and some other respectable abbreviations we use day to day like Mr., Miss, Mrs etc. I would be highly appreciative of your help. Thank you very much in advance. |
| SOURCE OF QUESTION & DATE OF RESPONSE |
| Doha-Qatar Monday, June 15, 1998
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| GRAMMAR'S RESPONSE |
| I'm not sure what others you might have in mind, but the plurals of Mr, Miss, and Mrs. are Messrs., Misses, and Mmes., (with the periods) respectively. The French words are used, apparently, because if you try to change Mr. to a plural by adding "s," you end up with Mrs., which is a very bad mistake -- for most people, anyway. |
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