The
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# 243

QUESTION
Do you think the phrase 'thesis topic' is better with an apostrophe to show possession or not 'The candidate displayed a genuine interest in the thesis topic.'
SOURCE OF QUESTION & DATE OF RESPONSE
Tasmania, Australia Thu, Oct 29, 1998
GRAMMAR'S RESPONSE
I don't see where you would use an apostrophe in that phrase. It's not appropriate. I'm not too keen on the phrase itself, for that matter. It's rather redundant, isn't it? I suppose there's a difference between thesis and topic, but I'm not convinced the phrase "thesis topic" means anything. Your sentence works fine without the word topic at all. Sometimes we hear the term thesis statement, which makes more sense to me.

QUESTION
Which is the correct sentence?
  1. When the dead awakens.
    or
  2. When the dead awaken.
A detailed response is appreciated. Thank you.
SOURCE OF QUESTION & DATE OF RESPONSE
El Paso, Texas Fri, Oct 30, 1998
GRAMMAR'S RESPONSE
The dead would be one of those things we call a collective adjective; they're always preceded by the, they act as nouns, and they're always plural. (Like "the poor are not to blame."

QUESTION
I would ask you about the structure "relative + infinitive".
  • I lack words with which to express my thanks.
  • His small capital formed a useful basis on which to build a fortune.
I heard this structure is too formal and it is common to use "infinitive + preposition without a relative pronoun." In which case, can I use this structure? And can I rewrite the upper sentences to the following?
  • I lack words to express my thanks with.
  • His small capital formed a useful basis to build a fortune on.
Thank you
SOURCE OF QUESTION & DATE OF RESPONSE
Hyogo, Japan Fri, Oct 30, 1998
GRAMMAR'S RESPONSE
In a sense, you've forsaken a very nice (if a tad formal) construction with a sentence-ending preposition, which sounds even worse in this case. You could write "I lack the words to express my thanks," but the second sentence is better off with the "on which" construction.

QUESTION
What is the proper way of depicit the plural of an acronym?

Example: INU stands for inertial navigation unit. If you are talking about two units, is the plural INUs, INU(s), INU's or you do not add an "S" to make it a plural.

SOURCE OF QUESTION & DATE OF RESPONSE
Kent, Washington Fri, Oct 30, 1998
GRAMMAR'S RESPONSE
The plural of an INU would be INUs.

QUESTION
If I write letter to friend, which sentence is correct:
  • I took a photo with my baby yesterday. She was six months old now.
    or
  • I took a photo with my baby yesterday. She is six months old now.
SOURCE OF QUESTION & DATE OF RESPONSE
Hong Kong Fri, Oct 30, 1998
GRAMMAR'S RESPONSE
When logic demands, you can shift tenses from sentence to sentence. You might have said, "I took a photo with my baby yesterday. She was six months old yesterday." But the second version, above, is fine.

QUESTION
Ante Meridiem
What is the proper abbreviation?
I was under the impression that it should always be in small CAPS or regular caps.
9 AM
I've seen it as: a.m. but thought that was incorrect. 9 a.m.
Also for PM:
3 PM or 3 p.m. that is the question.
Please advise
SOURCE OF QUESTION & DATE OF RESPONSE
East Hanover, New Jersey Fri, Oct 30, 1998
GRAMMAR'S RESPONSE
The answer is yes. The Chicago Manual of Style accepts any of the above. 3 p.m., 3 PM, 3 PM, and 3 P.M. (or substitute "a" above). The lower-case alternative seems to be more British than American, Chicago says, but I'm not really convinced that's so.

Authority: Chicago Manual of Style 14th ed. U of Chicago P: Chicago. 1993. p. 469.


QUESTION
What does parenthentical mean and what does typographical mean?
SOURCE OF QUESTION & DATE OF RESPONSE
New York, New York Fri, Oct 30, 1998
GRAMMAR'S RESPONSE
Parenthetical describes something that can be removed from a sentence without changing the essential meaning of a sentence, as in "My oldest brother, who went to Wesleyan, just finished his Ph.D." in which the relative clause is parenthetical. Typographical refers to the way something is typed. The matter of placing a period or comma inside the quotation marks is a typographical issue.

QUESTION
Are these puncuations correct?
  1. Steve said, "The baseball is white.".
  2. Please write down the letter, "T".
In other words, does the period go inside or outside of the quotes. Is there ever an exception to the rule, like a quote within a quote? Thanks for your help.
SOURCE OF QUESTION & DATE OF RESPONSE
Cabin John, Maryland Fri, Oct 30, 1998
GRAMMAR'S RESPONSE
In the United States, the period goes inside the quotation marks. Your sentences should be punctuated this way:
  1. Steve said, "The baseball is white."
  2. Please write down the letter "T."
(We don't need a comma before "T.") There are some odd exceptions, as when a philosophical term is put inside quotation marks: We talked about Sartre's concept of "nothingness".

QUESTION
When do I use further versus farther? (ex: Let's go four miles (further, farther) before we make camp).

When do I use ours versus our's? (ex: This land is (ours, our's)).

SOURCE OF QUESTION & DATE OF RESPONSE
Unknown Fri, Oct 30, 1998
GRAMMAR'S RESPONSE
You're talking about measurable distance, so you want farther. (Later on, we'll talk about this further.)

There is no such thing as our's (with an apostrophe), so don't worry about it. That land is ours.


QUESTION
One simple question: The Chicago Manual of Style you recommended is probably a great resource for Americans, but is there any equivalent book which deals with British English grammar/writing rules?

Thanks in advance!

SOURCE OF QUESTION & DATE OF RESPONSE
Somewhere, Sweden Fri, Oct 30, 1998
GRAMMAR'S RESPONSE
[E-Mail Icon]I'm sure that the Chicago manual still carries adequate authority in the U.K. I don't know the answer to this question, though, and will leave an e-mail icon here in case some reader can suggest an answer. I've been told that The New Fowler's Modern English Usage, edited by R. W. Burchfield, does a good job of discussing differences between American and British usage (the original was purely King's English), but I don't own the book (it's on my Christmas list).

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