The
Grammar
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# 172

QUESTION
I have two comparison questions. I will be grateful, if you clarify my doubt.
  1. Because of prevailing circumtances, he has decided to resign rather than to face humiliation.
    Because................., he has decided to resign rather than face humiliation.
  2. It is better to make comparison of different properties rather than of different behaviours, for this kind of metal.
    It is better to make comparison of different properties rather than different behaviours, for.......
My question is that whether we can omit To and Of after -rather than- in both the sentences. If not what is the basic rule in such a situation. Thanks
SOURCE OF QUESTION & DATE OF RESPONSE
UAE, Dubai Saturday, July 25, 1998
GRAMMAR'S RESPONSE
Yes, you've still created parallel elements without the repetition of the prepositions. Incidentally, you want to try to get into the habit of inserting a space after commas and periods.

QUESTION
Good day,
I am trying to find a list of words that represent palindromes and acrostics. This is for my 11-year-old daughter's homework.

Please help?

SOURCE OF QUESTION & DATE OF RESPONSE
Pretoria, Gauteng, South Africa Saturday, July 25, 1998
GRAMMAR'S RESPONSE
I suggest you visit our section on Vocabulary and, toward the bottom of that page, click on the hyperlink to Judy Wolinsky's website Word Play. If you can't find it there, it doesn't exist.

QUESTION
I am killing myself trying to find how to spell (bear with me!) "animanipia."

Also, what is it?

SOURCE OF QUESTION & DATE OF RESPONSE
Columbus, Ohio Saturday, July 25, 1998
GRAMMAR'S RESPONSE
Don't worry about it. There are only about twenty people in the whole world who know how to spell onomatopoeia and they're all in the final round of the Scripps-Howard Spelling Bee. (At least I think that's what you mean.) It refers to words that reproduce, in sound, what they stand for: like chortle, and sizzle, and the buzzing of bees, cuckoo, plop, and (for Poe) the tintinnabulation of the bells.

QUESTION
Which one is correct??
  1. The deposition was carried out in the temperature range of 190-2500 C.
  2. The deposition was carried out in a temperature range of 190-2500 C.
or else any better form??
SOURCE OF QUESTION & DATE OF RESPONSE
Toyama, Japan Sunday, July 26, 1998
GRAMMAR'S RESPONSE
I don't see any difference between the "the" and the "a" in this case. The "the" makes it sound a bit more specific, I suppose. I assume the word "deposition" makes sense in some kind of scientific situation that I would be quite unfamiliar with.

QUESTION
Which of the following is correct?
  1. I missed having a father.
  2. I missed not having a father.
SOURCE OF QUESTION & DATE OF RESPONSE
Rohnert Park, California Monday, July 27, 1998
GRAMMAR'S RESPONSE
I think the sense of this statement is that you didn't have a father around (when you were a kid?), and so you'd say, "I missed having a father."

QUESTION
I dont know how to explain to friends that they shouldn't put "to" in front of all the verbs. I really don't understand why they do that, but I have noticed that when people are first learning they do this.

Another thing they always do is to put "the" in front of all nouns: example: I don't agree with the abortion. instead of writing I don't agree with abortion.

SOURCE OF QUESTION & DATE OF RESPONSE
Costa Rica Monday, July 27, 1998
GRAMMAR'S RESPONSE
The two troubles you describe are not unusual among English learners. When you learn the base form of the verb, you frequently learn the infinitive form, "to run, to sleep," etc. That "to" then gets carried into all kinds of situations in which it doesn't fit. As far as articles are concerned, they seem so insigificant, yet they stick out like linguistic sore thumbs (now there's an ugly cliché) when misused. They are much more difficult for students who are used to a language that does not have a similar article system. Spanish English-learners usually pick up article usage pretty quickly. You might review our section on Articles and Determiners for hints that could help.

QUESTION
I am confused in using progressive after 'to'. You cannot say I plan to playing football. I have always believed that you cannot use a progressive after to. However, in letter writing it is common to use, "I am looking forwards to meeting you."

I would appreciate if you could help me. Thanks.

SOURCE OF QUESTION & DATE OF RESPONSE
Georgetown, Penang, Malaysia
Monday, July 27, 1998
GRAMMAR'S RESPONSE
In the example you give us -- "I am looking forward to meeting you." -- the word "meeting" is not a progressive verb, it's a Gerund, a verb form being used as a noun. I suggest you review that section of the guide and then get back to us if you still have questions.

QUESTION
Is this sentence right? If not, could you please explain why not. Thanks very much.
Not a day passes, but it rains. Or, Not a day has passed, but it has rained.
SOURCE OF QUESTION & DATE OF RESPONSE
Berlin, Germany Monday, July 27, 1998
GRAMMAR'S RESPONSE
Both versions of that sentence are idiomatically correct; in fact, they're fine. The first version suggests quite simply that it rains every day; the second suggests that at this point we can say that it has rained every single day (something you might say on a vacation in Denmark, and you write home after several rainy days in a row to complain, "Not a day has passed, but it has rained.").

QUESTION
Where is the error in the sentence that follows?
The ice cream melted on the counter that we left out last night.
SOURCE OF QUESTION & DATE OF RESPONSE
New Bern, North Carolina Monday, July 27, 1998
GRAMMAR'S RESPONSE
The relative pronoun "that we left out last night" will tend to modify the noun it follows, "the counter." Thus it appears that you left out the counter. You probably did leave out the counter, but you meant to say that you left out the ice-cream: "The ice-cream that we left out last night melted all over the counter." or "The ice-cream that we left out on the counter last night melted all over the place."

QUESTION
I'm working on some bio's for my company and have a few style questions:

Is there a comma before or after words like "Inc." and "Ltd." or no comma at all?

Also, when describing one's college degree, what is the proper form, and which words should be capitalized? (She received her B.A. in Journalism; or She received her Bachelor of Arts degree in journalism, etc.)?

Thanks.

SOURCE OF QUESTION & DATE OF RESPONSE
New York, New York Monday, July 27, 1998
GRAMMAR'S RESPONSE
The most helpful guideline I can find on companies' names is in the New York Public Library's Writer's Guide:
Words that form part of a company's legal name, such as company, corporation, incorporated, or limited, are usually abbreviated; these terms are often dropped completely when the context does not require the formal and complete name of the company.
The examples given in the Writer's Guide don't have a commas.

Authority: New York Public Library Writer's Guide to Style and Usage HarperCollins: New York. 1994. p. 334. Cited with permission.

In plain text, you don't need to capitalize the names of the discipline (unless it's something you would capitalize anyway, such as English), but you would, of course, capitalize the letters designating the degree itself.


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