The Grammar Logs -- Number Seventy-Seven

The
Grammar
Logs
# 77

Question What about the comma before the word, "which"? Is it necessary?
Thanks in advance.
Source & Date
of Question Unknown
27 February 1998
Grammar's
Response No, the comma before the word "which" is not always necessary, and that's because the word "which" does not always introduce a restrictive clause (although some writers will argue that it ought to be reserved for that purpose). See the discussion on which and that in the Notorious Confusables section.

Question I am a teacher in the middle school and have a child in the fifth grade who is having trouble diagramming sentences. If given enough time, can you help with homework.
Source & Date
of Question Chattanooga, Tennessee
27 February 1998
Grammar's
Response No, for a couple of reasons, the first being the most important: I'm not very good at it. Second, it's very difficult to show how to diagram a sentence through e-mail and even on the web. I suggest you get hold of Martha Kolln's book; it ought to be in the library.
Understanding English Grammar by Martha Kolln. 4rth Edition. MacMillan Publishing Company: New York. 1994.

Question
Write in the margin. The accident occurred on the road. Are the prepositions correct in the above sentences?
Is it: The rich is getting richer or The rich are getting richer.
He comes home every weekend.Does the word 'weekend' means Saturday and Sunday only? How about countries where Saturday is a half working day and Sunday is a off day.Can we consider weekend only to be Sunday only in this context? Please clarify.
He came here for a couple of days.Can we mean 'couple of days' as two days only in this statement?
What does the abbreviation KIV mean?
Do we consider John Kennedy as one or two words ?
Thank you for answering my queries.
Source & Date
of Question Penang, Malaysia
27 February 1998
Grammar's
Response
Yes, those prepositions are fine.
The rich ARE (definitely) getting richer!
That's going to vary from culture to culture, it seems to me. Frankly, I don't know. Since Sunday is usually regarded as the first day of the week, I don't know why it's called part of the week_end_ at all.
Yes.
I don't know. There is an online dictionary of abbreviations and acronyms somewhere, but I can't seem to find the URL. Sorry.
John Kennedy is two words. One person, but two words.

Question Dear Sir/Madam,
May I ask you a question? I write a sentence that is
I am a boy, I live in H.K.
Is it correct to combine these two sentences with a comma?
Thank you for answering my question.
Source & Date
of Question Hong Kong
28 February 1998
Grammar's
Response The answer is both yes and no, I'm afraid. You have two independent clauses connected by only a comma; technically, that's a comma splice. However, because these clauses are quite short and because they are nicely balanced in form, you could get along with the comma by itself. Some writers would argue that a semicolon is too "heavy" to be used there and that the comma should suffice. Certainly in fiction and in informal writing you will often find brief, balanced clauses connected this way. Personally, though, I would either use the semicolon or insert the conjunction "and."

Question Adjectives are words that describe nouns whereas adverbs are words that describe verbs. How about words that describe adjectives? What do we call them? The following are some examples:

He is VERY fast.
She is QUITE good.
Peter is SURPRISINGLY early today.

Source & Date
of Question Singapore
1 March 1998
Grammar's
Response Words that modify adjectives are called adverbs. Adverbs can also modify other adverbs, as in "He moved very quickly." It might be useful to have another word for this function, but we don't have one.

Question When do I capitalize family names such as dad, mom, etc.? Which is correct - My dad is a lawyer. or My Dad is a lawyer. Tonight mom cooked dinner. or Tonight Mom cooked dinner.
Source & Date
of Question Lafayette, Louisiana
1 March 1998
Grammar's
Response You will capitalize names like that when they are actual substitutes for someone's name. Usually that means that when you modify a name with an article or a possessive (or anything else) you don't capitalize it. So we would write "They went to visit Mom yesterday." But then we would write "They went to visit their mom yesterday." So my dad is a lawyer, and Mom cooked dinner.

Question Which is the correct form? It's I or It's me.
Source & Date
of Question Martinsburg, West Virginia
1 March 1998
Grammar's
Response A purist would say that "It's I" is correct. The predicate nominative linked to its subject with a "to be" verb must be in the nominative, a purist would add. But "It's me" probably sounds better to most of us, except perhaps in the most formal of settings, and why does the predicate have to be in the nominative? Picture a detective uncovering a murder victim's face and saying, "My God, it's she!" Not going to happen. This is one of those places where being purely correct is rapidly losing ground to something that makes just as much sense and sounds better to most of us.

Question We use the present tense when we are talking about things which are factual are things that occur regularly.
However, to my confusion, the present tense is also used in the following contexts:

Sypnoses of Movies - e.g."Mike is a scientist. He goes to...."
Headlines of Newpaper - e.g."Princess Diana Dies"
Note that, for example, we should say "Princess Diana is dead" or "Princess Diana has died". Please enlighten.
Source & Date
of Question Singapore
1 March 1998
Grammar's
Response These are simply matters of convention. When we're writing about literature, we also use the present tense. Even when we're talking about something that happened in a story, we say that Roderick Usher welcomes his old friend to his ancestral home. And we would say that Poe uses various sound devices in his story even though he did so long ago. The same is true of reviews, synopses, and is often true of newspaper headlines. I suspect it has something to do with creating the illusion that something is happening now, even as you read.

Question Dear sir/madam,
I have a sentence in question which is
"John enjoyed swimming in the lake after dark."
Is "enjoyed swimming" a gerund phrase?
Thank you for your answer.
Source & Date
of Question Unknown
1 March 1998
Grammar's
Response Well, not exactly. "Enjoyed" is actually the verb of the sentence and not part of the gerund construction. And what is the thing that John enjoyed, the object of the sentence? "Swimming." or (more exactly) "swimming in the lake after dark." So "swimming" is the gerund and "swimming in the lake after dark" is your gerund phrase.

Question I am still having a terrible time with affect and effect....I took the quiz provided here....and got 50% correct....muy malo (very bad)
This dilemma is having a terrible affect/effect on me!!!!! Please help! I especially hate using the wrong word when I am e-mailing someone....yuck, it certainly is not very attractive!! :(
Love grammar and this is now my very special place on AOL.....Plan on spending lots of time here......
Thanks for your help.
Source & Date
of Question Seal Beach, California
1 March 1998
Grammar's
Response Well, we're not exactly on AOL, but that's ok; we have a lot of friends there. Affect/effect is one of the worst of the Notorious Confusables. Try to remember that we rarely use "effect" as a verb (except when we're saying that we have tried to effect a change in something) and that when we need a verb form we almost always need "affect" (How did this affect you?) and when we need a noun form we almost always need "effect" (What effect did this have on you?)

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Question	What about the comma before the word, "which"? Is it necessary? Thanks in advance.
Source & Date of Question	Unknown 27 February 1998
Grammar's Response	No, the comma before the word "which" is not always necessary, and that's because the word "which" does not always introduce a restrictive clause (although some writers will argue that it ought to be reserved for that purpose). See the discussion on which and that in the Notorious Confusables section.

Question	Write in the margin. The accident occurred on the road. Are the prepositions correct in the above sentences? Is it: The rich is getting richer or The rich are getting richer. He comes home every weekend.Does the word 'weekend' means Saturday and Sunday only? How about countries where Saturday is a half working day and Sunday is a off day.Can we consider weekend only to be Sunday only in this context? Please clarify. He came here for a couple of days.Can we mean 'couple of days' as two days only in this statement? What does the abbreviation KIV mean? Do we consider John Kennedy as one or two words ? Thank you for answering my queries.
Source & Date of Question	Penang, Malaysia 27 February 1998
Grammar's Response	Yes, those prepositions are fine. The rich ARE (definitely) getting richer! That's going to vary from culture to culture, it seems to me. Frankly, I don't know. Since Sunday is usually regarded as the first day of the week, I don't know why it's called part of the week_end_ at all. Yes. I don't know. There is an online dictionary of abbreviations and acronyms somewhere, but I can't seem to find the URL. Sorry. John Kennedy is two words. One person, but two words.

Question	Dear Sir/Madam, May I ask you a question? I write a sentence that is I am a boy, I live in H.K. Is it correct to combine these two sentences with a comma? Thank you for answering my question.
Source & Date of Question	Hong Kong 28 February 1998
Grammar's Response	The answer is both yes and no, I'm afraid. You have two independent clauses connected by only a comma; technically, that's a comma splice. However, because these clauses are quite short and because they are nicely balanced in form, you could get along with the comma by itself. Some writers would argue that a semicolon is too "heavy" to be used there and that the comma should suffice. Certainly in fiction and in informal writing you will often find brief, balanced clauses connected this way. Personally, though, I would either use the semicolon or insert the conjunction "and."

Question	Adjectives are words that describe nouns whereas adverbs are words that describe verbs. How about words that describe adjectives? What do we call them? The following are some examples: He is VERY fast. She is QUITE good. Peter is SURPRISINGLY early today.
Source & Date of Question	Singapore 1 March 1998
Grammar's Response	Words that modify adjectives are called adverbs. Adverbs can also modify other adverbs, as in "He moved very quickly." It might be useful to have another word for this function, but we don't have one.

Question	We use the present tense when we are talking about things which are factual are things that occur regularly. However, to my confusion, the present tense is also used in the following contexts: Sypnoses of Movies - e.g."Mike is a scientist. He goes to...." Headlines of Newpaper - e.g."Princess Diana Dies" Note that, for example, we should say "Princess Diana is dead" or "Princess Diana has died". Please enlighten.
Source & Date of Question	Singapore 1 March 1998
Grammar's Response	These are simply matters of convention. When we're writing about literature, we also use the present tense. Even when we're talking about something that happened in a story, we say that Roderick Usher welcomes his old friend to his ancestral home. And we would say that Poe uses various sound devices in his story even though he did so long ago. The same is true of reviews, synopses, and is often true of newspaper headlines. I suspect it has something to do with creating the illusion that something is happening now, even as you read.

Question	When do I capitalize family names such as dad, mom, etc.? Which is correct - My dad is a lawyer. or My Dad is a lawyer. Tonight mom cooked dinner. or Tonight Mom cooked dinner.
Source & Date of Question	Lafayette, Louisiana 1 March 1998
Grammar's Response	You will capitalize names like that when they are actual substitutes for someone's name. Usually that means that when you modify a name with an article or a possessive (or anything else) you don't capitalize it. So we would write "They went to visit Mom yesterday." But then we would write "They went to visit their mom yesterday." So my dad is a lawyer, and Mom cooked dinner.

Question	Which is the correct form? It's I or It's me.
Source & Date of Question	Martinsburg, West Virginia 1 March 1998
Grammar's Response	A purist would say that "It's I" is correct. The predicate nominative linked to its subject with a "to be" verb must be in the nominative, a purist would add. But "It's me" probably sounds better to most of us, except perhaps in the most formal of settings, and why does the predicate have to be in the nominative? Picture a detective uncovering a murder victim's face and saying, "My God, it's she!" Not going to happen. This is one of those places where being purely correct is rapidly losing ground to something that makes just as much sense and sounds better to most of us.

Question	Dear sir/madam, I have a sentence in question which is "John enjoyed swimming in the lake after dark." Is "enjoyed swimming" a gerund phrase? Thank you for your answer.
Source & Date of Question	Unknown 1 March 1998
Grammar's Response	Well, not exactly. "Enjoyed" is actually the verb of the sentence and not part of the gerund construction. And what is the thing that John enjoyed, the object of the sentence? "Swimming." or (more exactly) "swimming in the lake after dark." So "swimming" is the gerund and "swimming in the lake after dark" is your gerund phrase.

Question	I am still having a terrible time with affect and effect....I took the quiz provided here....and got 50% correct....muy malo (very bad) This dilemma is having a terrible affect/effect on me!!!!! Please help! I especially hate using the wrong word when I am e-mailing someone....yuck, it certainly is not very attractive!! :( Love grammar and this is now my very special place on AOL.....Plan on spending lots of time here...... Thanks for your help.
Source & Date of Question	Seal Beach, California 1 March 1998
Grammar's Response	Well, we're not exactly on AOL, but that's ok; we have a lot of friends there. Affect/effect is one of the worst of the Notorious Confusables. Try to remember that we rarely use "effect" as a verb (except when we're saying that we have tried to effect a change in something) and that when we need a verb form we almost always need "affect" (How did this affect you?) and when we need a noun form we almost always need "effect" (What effect did this have on you?)