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The Blue Book of Grammar and Punctuation

Category: Definitions

Catalog or Catalogue: Which Is Correct?

Posted on Friday, March 19, 2021, at 9:00 am

Have you seen the word catalog spelled two ways—with and without a u—and wondered which is correct? Here we'll aim to clarify the distinction by explaining the spelling differences and discussing how to use the word in both of its forms. How Do You Spell It? In the U.S., we typically spell catalog without a …

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Anytime vs. Any Time: Which Is Correct?

Posted on Monday, March 15, 2021, at 9:00 am

This question comes up often, and for good reason. You frequently see both anytime and any time used in written sentences, and when spoken, they sound the same. Because the pause that would go between the two-word version is passed over, it's tough to tell if it should be there in the first place. So, …

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Continually vs. Continuously

Posted on Wednesday, March 10, 2021, at 6:00 am

Writers and speakers of English use the verb continue to communicate the idea of something's going or keeping on, as in "We hope the good weather continues." The concept of the English word continue comes from the Latin root continuāre, meaning "to join together or connect, to make all one." We further understand the idea …

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For All Intents and Purposes vs. For All Intensive Purposes

Posted on Monday, March 1, 2021, at 9:00 am

You've probably heard this expression used a couple of different ways. You may also have wondered which one is correct and where the confusion comes from. Let's break down what you should write and say, what the phrase means, and why there is confusion about it. Is For All Intents and Purposes Right, or Is …

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Irregular Plural Nouns

Posted on Wednesday, February 24, 2021, at 6:00 am

In the English language nouns are commonly made plural by adding s or es. For example, car becomes cars and house becomes houses. In this discussion, we'll consider what irregular plural nouns are. With irregular plural nouns, an s or es is not used to create the plural. This can sometimes cause confusion for users …

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Sarcastic vs. Facetious: What’s the Difference?

Posted on Monday, February 22, 2021, at 9:00 am

One of the most entertaining facets of communication can also be one of the most frustrating: That's because people don't always mean exactly what they say. We refer not to lies or falsehoods, but to statements that aren't aimed to be accepted or understood by their literal meaning. For example, if a friend tells you …

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Could or Couldn’t Care Less: Which One Is It?

Posted on Friday, February 19, 2021, at 9:00 am

Sometimes in American English, you find an expression that is used or pronounced more than one way. In the case of could and couldn't care less, we may often find that different people use one expression or the other—and they are certain their form is correct. So which is the right one for proper writing …

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What Is a Palindrome?

Posted on Wednesday, February 17, 2021, at 12:00 am

Some people may see or hear the word palindrome and wonder what it is. A palindrome is a word, a phrase, or a sequence of words that read the same way in either direction, as with madam, don't nod, and Eva, can I see bees in a cave? A palindrome can include spaces and punctuation. …

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Is It Eachother or Each Other?

Posted on Monday, February 15, 2021, at 9:00 am

When we want to express a reciprocal relationship between two things, should we write eachother as one word or each other as two words? Plenty of American English speakers ask this question, including many who grew up with the language. Fortunately, this area of grammar is rather simple to sort out. The short answer is …

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Farther vs. Further

Posted on Friday, February 12, 2021, at 9:00 am

Few sets of words stump speakers and writers of American English as much as farther and further do. In this post we'll examine the correct uses for each word. One reason farther and further are difficult to distinguish is that both mean something close to "beyond." However, there is a big difference. Farther generally refers …

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