In general, you form the past tense of an English verb by adding –ed (or just –d if the verb ends in e) and, in some cases, making minor spelling tweaks. Talk becomes talked, love becomes loved, hop becomes hopped and holp becomes helped. As anyone who knows even a bit of English is aware, …
Start Writing: Begin With First Drafts “I have rewritten – often several times – every word I have ever published. My pencils outlast their erasers.” – Vladimir Nabokov As any seventh-grader should be able to tell you, the first stage of the writing process is prewriting – planning out what …
If you’ve been reading this blog for a while, you’re probably aware that using proper English is governed by rules and restrictions that are largely unconscious within the minds of native speakers. You probably realize that these rules do not completely overlap with the rules of “proper English”. Which are …
Plenty of books can give you advice about how to network, set goals, and manage your time. But to build up your core skills you should also check out some literary novels. While it may seem like curling up with a high-quality novel or sophisticated short story could only be …
Chances are you give little thought to the slash mark (/), but as it turns out, this little piece of punctuation has an interesting history. Origins of the Slash Mark The slash was invented, according to reporter Keith Houston, by a twelfth-century Italian scholar named Buoncampagno da Signa. He intended …
A misplaced modifier could cause readers to misunderstand your blog post, and a poorly-punctuated résumé could lose you a potential job interview, so it’s important to think about the relationship between what you write and what you mean, especially the grammar and wording. That said, minor linguistic errors or ambiguities …
While many people puzzle over whether to use that or which, the basic rule is pretty simple: use that when providing essential information and which when providing extra information. In order to implement this rule, you need to look beyond the specific sentence you’re writing and think about context. That …
The Why Maybe there’s a new language that intrigues you, but you never seem to get around to actually learning it. You already know that learning the language would help you communicate with more people, understand more media, and maybe qualify for more jobs. But, in case you need a …
Ask ten people what you need to do to live a happy life, and you’ll get ten different answers. Although it can be difficult to figure out a path to happiness, let alone actually achieve it. A few simple tweaks to your daily life can help you feel significantly more …
Scrabble and Words with Friends can be tons of fun, but if you’re looking for an English language-based game that’s a little further off the beaten track, there are plenty of options out there. Here are five that will tickle your interest – and maybe even teach you something along …
