(Refer to the Text Fragments post for interesting words and phrases.)
Words
hyphenated words: Generally words migrate from open (two words) through hyphenation to closed (one word). ‘life cycle’ appear to be skipping the hyphenation phase and though the open form still predominates, the closed form (‘lifecycle’) is gaining. Before versions are generally considered correct.
get: The helping verb ‘get’ is problematic in phrases such as ‘get married’; in those cases reword to omit the ‘get’. For example, “we will marry” or “we will say our vows”. Idiomatic phrases are an issue in certain contexts; a man shouldn’t ask a lactating woman “Got milk?”.
glisten: Moisture is the difference between glistening and glowing – though does that mean that ladies glowing (i.e. politely sweating) are more correctly glistening?
comprise: Avoid the passive use of ‘comprise’. For example, ‘The set comprises objects 1 through 3’ but not ‘Objects 1 through 3 comprise the set’. Instead use compose, constitute, or make up.
Punctuation
(Refer to the ‘Words’ section for a comment on hyphenating words.)
Syntax
Grammar
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References
Books
Vex, hex, Smash, smooch by Constance Hale, W.W. Norton & Company, Inc., 2012.
Sin and Syntax by Constance Hale,
Wired Style by Constance Hale,
Eats, Shoots & Leaves by
The Elements of Style by William Strunk Jr., and E.B. White
The Careful Writer by Theodore M. Bernstein
Merriam-Webster’s Dictionary of English Usage by xx
Garner’s Modern American Usage by xx
Origins of the Specious by Patricia T. O’Conner and Stewart Kellerman
The Accidents of Style by Charles Harrington Elster
Columns and Blogs
Verbal Energy by Ruth Walker in the Christian Science Monitor weekly magazine
Web sites
Constance Hale’s lesson plans based on Sin and Syntax
www.thefreedictionary.com
www.urbandictionary.com
www.businessdictionary.com and investorwords.com
en.wiktionary.org
www.wikipedia.org
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