Author: Mignon Fogarty

Today I’ll explain the difference between dashes, commas, and parentheses. Stever Robbins, the host of the Get-It-Done Guy podcast, has been writing a book, and his birthday is today. He told me that his birthday wish would be for me to do a show to help him understand the difference between dashes, commas, and parentheses because it keeps coming up in his writing. Well, Stever, it’s an odd thing to want for your birthday, but here it is. In general, you can think of parentheses, commas, and dashes as a continuum of marks. Parentheses are the quiet whisper of an…

Last week when I was speaking at the Field’s End Writers Conference on Bainbridge Island, someone in the audience asked about dashes. When should she use a dash and how is it different from a colon? Dashes and Drama The difference between a colon and a dash is pretty subtle: they can both serve to introduce a related element after the sentence, but a dash is a stronger and more informal mark than a colon. Think of a colon as part of the sentence that just ambles along. “Squiggly has two hobbies [and, now I’m going to tell you what…

Today’s topic is why grammar matters. One thing people said they wanted to hear more about in my print book is why grammar matters. I didn’t think any of you would need convincing, but maybe you’re looking for arguments to defend yourself against the people who say it doesn’t matter. In any event, I’ve invited Martha Brockenbrough, author of the new book “Things That Make Us [Sic],” to make the case for good grammar. She’s also a grammar columnist for MSN’s Encarta and the founder of SPOGG—the Society for the Promotion of Good Grammar. Who couldn’t love an organization with…

Today I’m going to beg the question. Often when I do radio interviews, callers ask me about the phrase begs the question. They often hear begs the question used to mean “raises the question,” and if they took a formal logic class in college or had a particularly diligent English teacher, they think the “raises the question” meaning is wrong. They’re right, but it’s a little more complicated than that too. The Right Way to Use “Begs the Question” Begs the question is a term that comes from formal logic. It’s a translation of the Latin phrase petitio principii, and it’s used to mean that…

Since this is my 100th episode, it seems like a fitting time to talk about how to use numbers in sentences. [Note: There are many exceptions to the rules about how to write numbers. These tips will point you in the right direction, but if you are serious about understanding all the rules, you need to buy a style guide such as The Chicago Manual of Style or The Associated Press Stylebook.] Whether to use a numeral or to spell out a number as a word is a matter of style. For general writing, most guides agree that you should…

To understand the difference between “which” and “that,” first you need to understand the difference between a restrictive element and a non-restrictive element, because the simple rule is to use “that” with a restrictive element and “which” with a non-restrictive element. OK, don’t worry; it’s easy. Restrictive Clauses and Nonrestrictive Clauses A restrictive element is just part of a sentence you can’t get rid of because it specifically restricts the noun. Here’s an example: Desserts that contain chocolate please Squiggly. The words “that contain” restrict the kinds of desserts we’re talking about. Without those words, the meaning of the sentence would…

Grammar Girl here. Today’s topic is whether it’s OK to start a sentence with the word hopefully. Paul from Long Island, NY, called the voice-mail line with this comment: I was wondering if maybe you could do a podcast devoted to the misuse of the word hopefully. It’s an adverb, but nobody uses it that way. I drive a lot of people crazy with that one; it’s a big pet peeve of mine. Maybe you could drive more people crazy with it than I do. I’m probably going to make everyone crazy with this topic, because I think it should…

Today’s topic is who versus that. Lesley called in with this question: My pet peeve is who versus that, as in “You know Bob, he’s the guy that sold me my car.” It drives me nuts. Or am I mistaken and it’s just become part of the new English verbiage in the evolution of the language? I kind of talked about this question in episode 7, but other people have also asked the same thing recently, including Corinne, so I thought it would be worth going into a little further. The quick and dirty answer is that you use who…