Is the past tense of learn, learned or learnt? Reader’s question: What is the difference between learned and learnt as the past tense of the verb ‘to learn’? Answer: Both are acceptable and mean the same thing. Learnt is more common in British, Australian and New Zealand English, and learned is more common in US English. English has many irregular verbs that change their […]
When to use full stops with abbreviations The rules around punctuation with abbreviations are as follows. Abbreviations of first letters When a word is abbreviated after the first few letters, the traditional rule is to put a full stop after the abbreviation. Inc. cont. However, many writers no longer use a full stop with some […]
Where should you put the reference number for footnotes? Reader’s question: When using footnotes, where should the number link be located – before or after the punctuation mark (e.g. comma, semicolon)? Answer: The Australian government Style manual (2002) says: ‘Superscript placement: Place superscript note identifiers: at the end of a sentence or clause rather than immediately after the words to […]
She flouted the school rules when she flaunted her new dress at school. Flaunt Flaunt means to show off. She flaunted her new dress at the party. Flout flout means to treat with contempt, disregard or disdain. She flouted the rules. Learn more Learn more about other commonly confused words with my online Business Writing course. Subscribe to my monthly […]
Test your knowledge of commonly confused words We all have words that we commonly get confused. I often have to stop and think about some pairs such as discrete and discreet. Research for the Concise Oxford Dictionary found that most people have learnt the difference between its and it’s (only 8% got it wrong), yet many people still get confused by words […]
A quirk of history caused the abbreviation of will not to won’t Won’t doesn’t come from will not but from woll not. This is an alternative form of will not that existed into the mid-1800s. Will muscled out woll, but won’t muscled out willn’t. Read more information. Learn more about words Learn about my online writing and grammar courses. Subscribe to my monthly e-newsletter to receive […]
Verbing: turning nouns into verbs When we add endings to nouns to turn them into verbs, it’s known as ‘verbing’, ‘verbification’, ‘denomilisation’ or ‘verbifying’ – ugly words to describe a common process! For example: She eyed an opportunity. He tabled a proposal. She authored a book. They accessed a lift. You can friend and unfriend people on Facebook. She messaged someone on her phone. Some of these verbs even […]
Many new verbs are created from adding endings to nouns When we add endings to nouns to turn them into verbs, it’s known as ‘verbing’, ‘verbification’, ‘denomilisation’ or ‘verbifying’ – ugly words to describe a common process! For example: She eyed an opportunity. He tabled a proposal. She authored a book. They accessed a lift. […]
Improve your writing with an online class My latest online courses are now available I’ve finally finished rewriting all my online courses. I thought this would take a month or so and it took seven months! My latest two are: Business Writing Grammar Basics The others are: Grammar, Punctuation and Usage Write to Govern emails@work […]
Use modern and consistent writing styles Using modern business writing styles is part of a business’s branding. First impressions count and we usually judge a piece of business writing on its visual appearance before we’ve even read a word. Many visual aspects are taken care of in a well-written document, as good writing makes use of […]