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The Grammar Logs # 184 |
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| QUESTION |
| I am confused in the usage of "this" and "that". Foreign people like Americans always use "that" in their speaking: e.g. That's not fair. |
| SOURCE OF QUESTION & DATE OF RESPONSE |
Hong Kong  Tuesday, August 18, 1998
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| GRAMMAR'S RESPONSE |
| You mean as opposed to saying, "This is not fair"? You could use either pronoun in that case, the only difference being a matter of distancing yourself from the thing being referred to. "This" makes things appear closer at hand; "that" creates a sense of distance. But in this context, at least, there isn't much difference. |
| QUESTION |
As a teacher, I feel as though I'm fighting a losing battle with pronoun/antecedent agreement. For example: "Each student had their own pencil."This is absolutely rampant these days! Should I continue to correct or just give up? |
| SOURCE OF QUESTION & DATE OF RESPONSE |
| Fairfax, Virginia Tuesday, August 18, 1998
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| GRAMMAR'S RESPONSE |
| My position on this matter now (which is different from my position a few months ago), is that I might discuss the matter in class and I might make a mark on a student's paper, but I certainly wouldn't let the use of "their" affect my grading. There's too much precedent among very good writers for the use of a gender- and number-nonspecific use of "their" to weigh in against it. What are we left with for options: "his"? -- certainly not acceptable nowadays outside of all-male situations; "his and her"? -- a clumsy device that quickly becomes tiresome; "his/her"? -- a transvestian invention that pleases no one, including transvestites. In my opinion, this is not the place to draw a line in the shifty sands of grammar. |
| QUESTION |
In writing a military performance report, we are struggling with the following bullet statement concerning possible faulty parallelism:
Created a solution complete with technical diagrams and sources of supply in less than two weeks...____________ the customer more than $20,000 in materials and countless equipment compatibility issues.The question is, which word, "saved" or "saving," goes in the underscored block? |
| SOURCE OF QUESTION & DATE OF RESPONSE |
| APO, AP Tuesday, August 18, 1998
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| GRAMMAR'S RESPONSE |
| This is not really a matter of parallel form. "Saved" would be parallel to "created," but what you need here is a participial phrase (beginning with "saving") to modify "a solution." |
| QUESTION |
Which is correct:
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| SOURCE OF QUESTION & DATE OF RESPONSE |
| Tampa, Florida Tuesday, August 18, 1998
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| GRAMMAR'S RESPONSE |
| Most dictionaries nowadays will give you a choice with a word such as historic, which begins with an "h" sound but which contains a stress on the second syllable (as opposed to "a history," where the stress is on the first syllable of HIStory). |
| QUESTION |
| In your Anomalous Anonymies section, in the second line of the box crediting Richard Lederer's book, the letter "s" needs to be removed from the word "remains." I just thought you'd like to know. I have that sick disease that compels me to correct everyone else's grammar. I'm an English teacher. |
| SOURCE OF QUESTION & DATE OF RESPONSE |
| Holdenville, Oklahoma Tuesday, August 18, 1998
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| GRAMMAR'S RESPONSE |
| I would like to say that we have purposely left a handful of such errors scattered throughout the Guide to Grammar and Writing so that English teachers will have something to do. That's what I would like to say. Thank you for pointing this out to us. |
| QUESTION |
What's the correct answer?
Rather than studying steadily throughout the semester, doing regular (revision/revisions) of what they have learned, students all too often get so involved in non-academic activities that they have little time to study.thanks |
| SOURCE OF QUESTION & DATE OF RESPONSE |
| Somewhere, Malaysia Tuesday, August 18, 1998
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| GRAMMAR'S RESPONSE |
| Neither choice seems entirely appropriate to me. Why would they do "revisions" of what they have learned? Perhaps "reviews" would be a better word? or "periodically reviewing what they have learned"? |
| QUESTION |
| Hello! My question is about the indefinite "any." When is the noun following the indefinite "any" singular, when is it supposed to be plural? e.g. The saw can cut through any material or materials, including wood, plastic, ceramics, etc.Thanks in advance. |
| SOURCE OF QUESTION & DATE OF RESPONSE |
| Unknown Tuesday, August 18, 1998
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| GRAMMAR'S RESPONSE |
| The singular "material" will do fine here; it's being used as a non-count noun -- then you proceed to enumerate the kinds of material the saw might be used to cut. |
| QUESTION |
| What is the past tense of input? |
| SOURCE OF QUESTION & DATE OF RESPONSE |
| Malaysia Tuesday, August 18, 1998
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| GRAMMAR'S RESPONSE |
| The online Merriam-Webster's lists "inputted" first, and then "input." Personally, I would prefer "input," but I wouldn't use either outside the narrow field of computer data input. Authority for this note: WWWebster Dictionary, the World Wide Web edition of Merriam-Webster's Collegiate® Dictionary, Tenth Edition. Used with permission. |
| QUESTION |
| What is the plural of the title "Mr.", as in "Misters Adams, Jefferson and Jones"? If this is not an acceptable practice, must I use "Mr. Adams, Mr. Jefferson and Mr. Jones"? |
| SOURCE OF QUESTION & DATE OF RESPONSE |
| Alexandria, Virginia Tuesday, August 18, 1998
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| GRAMMAR'S RESPONSE |
| The plural of Mr. is the French Messrs. This avoids the confusion with Mrs., among other things. |
| QUESTION |
What would the best answer be to fill in the blank?
sentence: Flo, who already had five kids of her own, _______ divorced and remarried and Flo's and Silvio's kids -- like a bunch of elves -- filled a minivan and two taxis. |
| SOURCE OF QUESTION & DATE OF RESPONSE |
| Somewhere, Malaysia Tuesday, August 18, 1998
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| GRAMMAR'S RESPONSE |
| I think you could use either "had" or "was" in that context. |
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