There are numerous things that can go wrong when you are writing, ranging from the isolated word that is spelt incorrectly to an entire sentence that fails ;o make sense. Some of the most common problems, however, are problems usage, of being unclear about, for example, the difference between flaunt and flout, or whether hanged or hung is correct. Writing is all about paying attention to detail, which means making sure that you always get the right words in the right order. But if you do not know the conventions if usage, you are almost bound to come unstuck. We have, therefore, listed below, in alphabetical order, a Top 30 of the niggling little queries about usage.
1. Agree to, agree with
Agree to means that you accept what someone proposes (although you might, of course, agree to differ). Agree with means that one person or thing is in accord with another: agree to that suggestion-, I agree with you about the need for more trees.
2. All right
All right is two words, and means that everything is correct: The spellings were all right Alright is used to mean ‘well’, ‘unhurt’: The student was alright after the crash. The two are commonly confused, as in the television programmed title It’ll Be Alright on the Night, where ‘alright’ means ‘okay’ or ‘line’ rather than ‘all right’. Some dictionaries do not recognize ‘alright’ as a Word. In formal writing, use all right
3. All together, altogether
All together means ‘gathered in one place’ or ‘in union’, whereas altogether means ‘entirely’ or ‘totally’, with nothing left out: At last the family was all together; altogether, it had been a night to remember.
4. Among, between
Among is used when more than two are involved. Between involves only two. Between you and me, I’d rather not be among my relatives at Christmas. The distinction between among and amongst also causes some confusion. Essentially, there is no difference of meaning, so choose whichever you prefer. It is worth remembering, however, that among is used far more often, and possibly more often with every year that passes.
Why, however, should we say between you and me rather than between you and I? Think in terms of a parallel: it’s between you and them, not it’s between you and them. Prepositions such as ‘to’, ‘for’ ‘after’ and ‘from’, together with ‘between’ are all followed by the ‘me’ form. What this in effect Means is that ‘me’ here is acting as an object, not as the subject. The same would be true of us, him, her and them which are the objective form of the personal pronouns we, he, she and they.
5. Are, is
Be quite sure to remember to use is with a singular subject, and are with a feral subject. You would write the tree is, but the trees are. Sometimes, however, you have to check that you are making a connection with the true Subject of the sentence. You should write. The number of trees is declining because the is agrees with the singular noun number, not with the plural word trees, although the practice is often different in speech. The convention for bracketed extensions is that the verb agrees with the subject before the bracket: My answer (and those of my cousins) is no.
Another problem area arises with nouns such as ‘family’ and ‘government’ where either is or are is acceptable nowadays according to modern linguists, traditionalists still prefer to treat these collective nouns as singular: the committee is still meeting. Using the plural, however, is not wrong: the team have played well.
Tags: alphabetical order, attention to detail, conventions, correct writing, dictionaries, distinction, english writing tips, paying attention to detail, singular, Spelling