The
Grammar
Logs
# 427
QUESTION How should I write the following: as Thanks.
- I have five years experience
or- I have five years' experience
SOURCE OF QUESTION & DATE OF RESPONSE Cheltenham, UK Wed, Apr 18, 2001
GRAMMAR'S RESPONSE "Five years of experience" becomes "five years' experience." Authority: New York Public Library Writer's Guide to Style and Usage HarperCollins: New York. 1994. Cited with permission.
QUESTION Is this sentence correct? This poem by who knows whom? amuses children.If not, your comments please. Thank youSOURCE OF QUESTION & DATE OF RESPONSE DeBary, Florida GRAMMAR'S RESPONSE You might consider setting off that "who knows whom?" with dashes, as in This poem — by who knows whom? — amuses children.Now as to your real question, should it be who or whom? I suspect that who would be correct, since it's actually a clause with the verb and object left out — "who knows who [wrote it]?" — that you're looking for, so you'd need the subject form, "who."Gerald Smyth suggests, persuasively, that "whom" would be appropriate:
In the sentence 'This poem — by who knows whom? — amuses children', I think I would stick with "whom." I interpret the parenthetical clause as a passive one: "who knows by whom [it was written]."
QUESTION My Question is about Subject-verb agreement. The sentence:
I've been told that the first version is correct because the subect of the sentence is "Ninety percent", (i.e Ninety percent relies....), but no one I know says that. Which version is correct and more importantly why?
- Ninety percent of dogs relies on people.
vs.- Ninety percent of dogs rely on people.
SOURCE OF QUESTION & DATE OF RESPONSE Unknown GRAMMAR'S RESPONSE Whether a mathematical expression like that is singular or plural depends on what is being measured, whether it's countable or not. Since "ninety percent of dogs" is a countable entity, we'd use a plural verb, "rely." In a non-count situation, we'd use a singular verb: "Ninety percent of the student body uses the tutoring center."
QUESTION Can three sentences, or thoughts, that are related to the same subject, be combined into one sentence with the independent clauses separated by commas? For example: Thank you for a wonderful party. Everything was beautiful, the band was awesome, and everyone had a great time.SOURCE OF QUESTION & DATE OF RESPONSE Farmington Hills, Michigan GRAMMAR'S RESPONSE Yes, indeed. It's helpful, of course, if these independent clauses are well balanced in terms of length and importance. And, of course, they have to be closely related, as you point out.
QUESTION Which is correct way to say?
- I like my mother better than my father.
or- I like my mother more than my father.
SOURCE OF QUESTION & DATE OF RESPONSE Fremont, California GRAMMAR'S RESPONSE According to Burchfield, "better than" is often used as a substitute for "more than" in informal writing, but not in formal language. You also must be careful that the sentence says what you want it to say. Do you prefer your mother over your father or do you like your mother more than your father does? As of now, either sentence could leave us wondering. Authority: The New Fowler's Modern English Usage edited by R.W. Burchfield. Clarendon Press: Oxford, England. 1996. Used with the permission of Oxford University Press.
QUESTION I can't ever seem to figure out how to use the phrase a fortiori in a sentence. I understand it to mean a logical relationship between two concepts with the concept which is being emphased by the phrase being stronger and impliedly included in the other concept, if it is proved or assumed true. Must the phrase "a fortiori" always start the sentence? Would a synonym be something to the effect of "then of course" a second concept would be true? It is often appropriate for my legal writing but I stumble over the proper usage. Thanks. SOURCE OF QUESTION & DATE OF RESPONSE San Diego, California GRAMMAR'S RESPONSE The phrase is a bit stronger, logically speaking, than "then of course," but that's as good a translation as I've seen. I have to admit I've lived long and well without ever using that phrase. No, it doesn't have to be the initial phrase of a sentence. In fact, my Merriam-Webster's uses it in the middle of a sentence: The man of prejudice is, a fortiori, a man of limited mental vision.Authority for this note: WWWebster Dictionary, the World Wide Web edition of Merriam-Webster's Collegiate® Dictionary, Tenth Edition. Used with permission.
QUESTION Which is correct?: Thanks.
- In the article, "The World at Large," Mary A. Ryan states that "the world is a beautiful place." (with a comma after article)
- In the article "The World at Large," Mary A. Ryan states that "the world is a beautiful place." (no comma after article)
SOURCE OF QUESTION & DATE OF RESPONSE Pennington, New Jersey GRAMMAR'S RESPONSE We need the title of the article (because we have to assume we don't know which article you're referring to), so the title is not parenthetical and we should not set it off with a pair of commas. (There is a comma after the title because it comes at the end of an introductory phrase.) So, no article after "article."
QUESTION Your guide has shown that the word 'then' is not coordinating conjunction. Does this make the following sentence incorrect in formal English? First wait, then go.Thanks.SOURCE OF QUESTION & DATE OF RESPONSE San Francisco, California GRAMMAR'S RESPONSE In formal, academic prose, that sentence would be incorrect except that those little clauses are so nicely balanced and the chances for confusion nonexistent, so we can certainly get away with the comma. With longer, more complex clauses, you'd want to avoid the comma splice, perhaps by using a semicolon: "First, you should wait here for your brother; then go on to the next corner."
QUESTION What is the difference between "different from" and "different than". I learned to say "Your opinion is different from mine" meaning "differs from mine". However, I hear people say "...different than mine". Are they simply wrong or is the latter accepted American usage? Are there cases where "different than" is correct? SOURCE OF QUESTION & DATE OF RESPONSE Oakland, California GRAMMAR'S RESPONSE In British English, you'd want to avoid "different than" like the plague; in American English, it is not so loathed. The Oxford Guide to English Usage notes that "different than" is useful in constructions such as "I was a different man in 1935 than I was in 1916" or "The American theatre is suffering from a different malaise than ours." In the example you give, I'd use "from." Authority: The New Fowler's Modern English Usage edited by R.W. Burchfield. Clarendon Press: Oxford, England. 1996. Used with the permission of Oxford University Press.
QUESTION Is it correct to say: "The window looked out onto an enclosed garden"? My question concerns the usage of "onto" in this sentence. Or should it be "on to"? I have consulted the dictionary but it seems that usage in this instance may be determined by idiomatic convention. Thank you for your advice.
SOURCE OF QUESTION & DATE OF RESPONSE Lancaster, Pennsylvania GRAMMAR'S RESPONSE In most situations, either construction would be acceptable. In certain situations, however, it can make a difference. "We drove on to the shore" would suggest that we continued our journey until we got to the shore. "We drove onto the shore" would mean that our car ended up on the beach. (Burchfield's examples) It often depends on the verb being used, and whether that verb calls for an independent status for the word "on." In your sentence, we could have a construction such as "The window looked out on an enclosed garden," but I suspect that three prepositions in a row like that is a stretch: "The window looked out on to an enclosed garden." I'd definitely stick with "onto." Authority: The New Fowler's Modern English Usage edited by R.W. Burchfield. Clarendon Press: Oxford, England. 1996. Used with the permission of Oxford University Press.
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