grammargramma

[grammargramma]

active vs. passive voice

In a nutshell:

Active Voice: the subject does something or is something Passive Voice: the subject has something done to it

It’s all about whether your subject performs or receives the verb. Performing requires action...so that’s active voice; if you’re passive, you allow things to be done to you...that’s passive voice.

Examples:

Active: Grammar Gramma is writing this post. Passive: This post Is written by Grammar Gramma. In the first sentence, the verb is "is writing." Grammar Gramma is the thing performing the action of the verb, and it is in front of the verb. This is active voice. In the second sentence, "is written" is the verb...but "this post" is not doing the writing. "This post" is what was written - by Grammar Gramma. This sentence is in passive voice because your subject is not completing the action of the verb; it is receiving the action of the verb.

Active: A giant rooster chased my sister. Passive: My sister was chased by a giant rooster. The rooster is doing the chasing, so the first sentence in active. In the second sentence, sister is not the one doing the chasing...sister is being chased, which makes that a passive voice sentence.

Most of the time, active voice makes your writing stronger. However, there are some occasions which lend themselves more toward the passive voice.

Scientific or Medical Contexts: "The blood sample was collected" sounds more official and objective than "I collected the blood sample." In academic/scientific/medical writing, personal pronouns (like I, he, she etc) generally aren't encouraged. Passive voice helps get around that.

To Emphasize Action > Subject: "The singer was arrested after the concert." This places more emphasis on the arrest itself as opposed to the singer.

To Avoid Blame or Responsibility: "Mistakes were made" sounds a little nicer, a little less accusatory, a little less accountable. You'll hear people in authority positions use this trick instead of admitting "I made a mistake," which places direct blame and responsibility on their shoulders.

[grammargramma]

Help with hyphens! How to use them? When to use them in writing?

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There are a few different situations which call for a hyphen. Read on!

1. Use a hyphen to continue a word when you run out of space at the end of the line. Honestly, this has fallen out of common usage thanks to technology that has moved past typewriters...but just in case some of you are out there tapping away...

2. Use a hyphen to indicate that something is being spelled/spoken out letter by letter or number by number. "Can I get a name for the order, please?" "Sara. S-A-R-A."

3. Use a hyphen to join compound adjectives that describe the same noun. Everyone should own a first-aid kit.

4. Use a hyphen to avoid double vowels. ultra-ambitious, semi-insane, pro-organic

5. Use a hyphen to join a prefix to a proper noun. un-American, pre-Christmas, mid-July

6. Use a hyphen with these affixes: all-, ex-, self-, and -elect ex-husband, all-inclusive, re-elect

7. Use a hyphen in compound numbers. twenty-two, thirty-eight, ninety-seven

8. Use a hyphen to indicate pauses or stutters. "P-P-Please let us keep the puppy!"

I’m betting some people are confused and thinking...but I use hyphens in my sentences all the time! Is that wrong?

In short, yes. The root of the problem is that you’re actually using a dash, which is totally fine, but also totally not a hyphen. Hyphens are used in the situations above. A dash is a slightly longer hyphen (RIP English grammar is so silly) that is often used to indicate a pause or a range (like of time), or a dash can also be used to create emphasis.. It’s like a step between a comma and a period. English makes no sense. It is what it is.

Okay, so when should you use a dash?

1. Use a dash to show a break/pause in the middle of your sentence. My sisters — Mary and Margaret — both have red hair like our grandmother.

2. Use a dash to show an afterthought. My grandmother had red hair — probably a nod to her Irish heritage.

3. Use a dash to introduce a list. My grandmother was known for three things — her hair, her cooking, and her sass.

4. Use a dash (or dashes) to show that letters or words are missing. "That's really f—ed up!"

5. Use a dash to create emphasis. The politician introduced the bill — the first of its kind — at the press conference.

6. Use a dash to show a range. I should be there some time between 1:00 — 1:30.

And if you're wondering wtf is the difference between the two, dashes are longer than hyphens, except they're not included on a keyboard...so many people just use a hyphen when they want a dash. If you want to be technical, you can type a dash by pressing option + shift + minus on a Mac. Gramma has a Mac, so if you're looking for how to type a dash on something else...off to Google you go.

[grammargramma]

Tips on how to avoid run-on sentences please!!

[grammargramma]

Oh boy, the run-on sentence...

The reason so many people have trouble with run-on sentences (also sometimes called fused sentences) is because so many people do not understand clauses.

In English, there are two basic clause types: independent and dependent. All clauses must contain a subject and a verb.

Independent clauses are just that - independent. They buy their own diamonds and they buy their own rings. They are a complete thought which can, and does, stand alone as a whole, complete sentence. No further information is required. These are the important ones to be able to recognize when considering run-on sentences because independent clauses cannot just be smushed together all willy nilly. These are strong independent clauses! You can't just throw them at each other - chaos will ensue! You need to join them together in an orderly manner!

Example: I wanted the white chocolate raspberry cookie however my sister took it first.

This is a run on. I wanted the white chocolate raspberry cookie is a complete thought, and so is my sister took it first. An attempt was made to join the two with "however," but the proper punctuation isn't used. How do we fix it? These are the three easiest, most common solutions to correcting run-on sentences:

1. Put a period between the clauses to make them two separate sentences. I wanted the white chocolate raspberry cookie. My sister took it first.

2. Put a semicolon between the clauses to join them. I wanted the white chocolate raspberry cookie; however, my sister took it first.

3. Use a comma and a coordinating conjunction (for, and, nor, but, or, yet, so) I wanted the white chocolate raspberry cookie, but my sister took it first. A word of caution: a comma alone is never enough to join two independent clauses. This creates something called a comma splice. Ex: I wanted the white chocolate raspberry cookie, however my sister took it first. → I wanted the white chocolate raspberry cookie; however, my sister took it first. Ex: My sister ate the white chocolate raspberry cookie, I ate the chocolate cookie. → My sister ate the white chocolate raspberry cookie, and I ate the chocolate cookie. Ex: Commas alone aren't strong enough to separate clauses, it's a big job! → Commas alone aren't strong enough to separate clauses; it's a big job!

[grammargramma]

Worse, worst, and which is...worse?

∙ 'worse' and 'worst' are the comparative and superlative form of 'bad.'

∙ Use 'worse' when comparing two things

Ex: I'm worse at grammar now than I was when I was in school!

So this says that your grammar skills now are inferior to your grammar skills then.

∙ Use 'worst' to imply that one thing is the absolute most inferior thing to allll the other things

Ex: I'm the worst at grammar.

This one says that you are the worst person to involve when it comes to grammar.

More examples?

∙ It could have been worse! (There is another level of 'bad' that could have happened here) ∙ That's the worst haircut I've seen in my life. (There is not another level of bad that could have happened here...)

Tip

∙ Think of it as good - better - best...except opposite (bad - worse - worst)

[grammargramma]

Why are prepositions so weird?

• In, on, and at are all prepositions that help locate in time/place.

• In that order (in, on, at), they move from general to more specific.

• Think about time.

In the 21st century... (pretty general) On December 12... (more specific) At 3:00... (most specific)

• Now think about place.

In the United States... (pretty general) On Pennsylvania Avenue... (more specific) At the corner of 5th and 7th Street... (most specific)

• Where things can get confusing

Public transportation is almost always used with on (on the bus, on the train, on a plane). We also use on for small forms of transportation (on a bicyle, on a motorcycle, on a skateboard). However, we use in for personal vehicles (in my car).

• In an nutshell:

→ Use in for months, years, centuries, seasons, and other long periods of time → Use on for days and months → Use at for a precise, specific time

[grammargramma]

"Was" and "were" are both past tense verbs of the verb "to be." Because "to be" is an irregular verb, these two get a little tricky sometimes...

• When should I use "was"?

"Was" is the singular past tense form of "to be," so you use it with first person singular pronouns (like I) and third person singular pronouns (he, she, it)

Examples: → I was late for work. → He was in the zone at work. → She was always on time.

• When should I use "were"?

"Were" is the plural past tense form of "to be," so you use it with first and third person plural pronouns (like we, they) and with all second person pronouns (you, yours).

Examples: → We were best friends in school. → They were our neighbors at one point. → You were lucky. → Yours were sent to the wrong address. • What are the exceptions to the rules?

The subjunctive mood/tense is where everything hits the fan. So, what's the subjunctive mood? It's conditional. It's hypothetical. It's used for something that hasn't actually happened but could happen...might happen...but also might not happen. When you have this going on, you always use the plural form of "to be," which is "were." If is a giveaway word in subjunctive sentences. Wish is another giveaway word in subjunctive sentences.

Examples: → If I were you, I wouldn't go in there. → If she were taller, she wouldn't have to ask for help to reach the top shelf. → I bet he wishes he were wealthier so he could afford that motorcycle. → If you were at Disney World, what would you ride first?

• To summarize...

Use "was" with first/third person singular pronouns (I, she, he, it) or singular subjects (the dog, Sally, a rainbow...) and for statements of fact/reality.

Use "were" with second person and plural pronouns (you, yours, they, we) and for statements that are no true but more hypothetical.

[grammargramma]

Who vs Whom vs Whomst

In a nutshell:

• Who → use as a subject • Whom → use as an object (of a verb or preposition)

What does that mean?

• A subject is the person or thing that's completing or being the action of a sentence.

Ex: Sally is throwing a party. → Sally is the subject, because she is the person who is throwing a party.

If I'm not sure, I would ask "Who is throwing the party?" 'Who' is in the same position as 'Sally' was - the subject position. That's why we used 'who' instead of 'whom.'

• Pro Tip: If you're not sure if you should use who/whom, replace the who/whom in question with he/she. If the sentence still makes sense, you need to use 'who.'

Ex: Who/Whom would like to win a million dollars? → He would like to win a million dollars → Make sense! I know I should use "who" here.

• An object is the person or thing that's receiving the action.

Ex: Sally is throwing a party. → We already know that Sally is the subject. Party is the object, because it's what is receiving the action. What's being thrown? A party. That's an object of a verb, aka a direct object.

• An object can also be the object of a preposition (a locator in time/space)

Ex: Sally walked to the park. → "Park" is the object of the preposition "to."

When the who/whom belongs in the object place in a sentence, use whom.

Ex: To whom was the letter addressed? → 'Whom' isn't completing the action of the sentence here...it's receiving it. That makes it an object.

You can also use the substitution trick here. "To he was the letter addressed" doesn't make sense, so I know that I should not use "who" here. I can replace it with the objective form of he/she though, which is him/her. It requires a little rearranging since this is a question, but I could say "To him the letter was addressed." Him/Whom are both object forms.

• But be careful!

Questions, like the one above, confuse people because the subject isn't always at the beginning of the sentence like we're expecting it to be. A lot of times, people want to use 'who' because it's the first word of the sentence, and they think 'oh! subject!' but that's not always the case.

Ex: Whom do you believe?

A lot of us would say "Who do you believe," right? But the subject of this sentence is actually "you" because you are the one believing someone/something. Whom is the object - the person being believed. It feels a little backwards! Use the trick again. Do you believe HIM or do you believe HE? Him, right? So we use whom! They both have an M on the end :)

What about whomst?

• This feels like a fancy pants word that someone living in England in during the Renaissance probably used, but it's not. Sorry. Thank the Internet for this one. It's not a real word, but by all means, whomst tf am I to tell you what word to use?

[grammargramma]

A common writing error is misplacing punctuation marks inside or outside of quotations. What goes inside? What goes outside? And when?

• Use a comma to introduce a quotation when it comes in the middle of your sentence.

EX: Mama always said, "Life is like a box of chocolate."

• Put commas and periods inside the quotation marks UNLESS a citation follows.

EX: Mama always said, "Life is like a box of chocolate."

EX: Mama always said, "Life is like a box of chocolate" (Gump 42)

• Put question marks or exclamation points inside the quotation marks if the the question mark/exclamation point applies to the quotation itself. If the question mark/exclamation point applies to the whole sentence, put it outside of the quotation marks.

EX: Sally asked, "Would you like to dance?"

EX: Did Jimmy say, "Over my dead body"?

• Don't ever double up on end punctuation!

EX: Did Jimmy say, "Over my dead body."? (YIKES)

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[grammargramma]

Past vs. Passed

last but not least

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Lead vs Led or even Lead vs Lead

for you

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bear vs bare please!

voila!

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