The English
Handbook Pages
A Handbook of Grammar and Punctuation
By Chelly Wood
This document can be found online at http://englishemporium.wordpress.com if
you need to access it from home (or a mobile device). Most of the clipart images
come from iClipart.com and are copyrighted.
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Abbreviations
Here’s a list of common abbreviations and their meanings, in alphabetical order:
1.
AD or A.D. = Anno Domini (year of the Lord–
20. lb. = pound
2.
used with dates)
AM or A.M. or a.m. = period of time from
21. Ln. = Lane
22. Miss = Miss (not an actual abbreviation)
3.
midnight to noon (morning)
Ave. = Avenue
23. Mr. = Mister
24. Mrs. = Mistress
4.
5.
BC or B.C. = before Christ (used for dates)
BCE or B.C.E. = before the Common Era
25. Ms. = a title free of marital status for women
26. Mt. = Mount
6.
(used for dates)
Blvd. = Boulevard
27. N. = North
28. pl. = plural (more than one)
7.
8.
c/o = care of
CE or C.E. = Common Era (used for dates)
29. PM or P.M. or p.m. = period of time from noon
to midnight (afternoon/evening)
9. Corp. = Corporation
10. Dept. = Department
30. Rd. = Road
31. S. = South
11. Dist. = District
12. Dr. = Doctor
32. Sr. = Senior
33. St. = Street or Saint
13. E. = East
14. Etc. = et cetera (and others)
34. TV = television
35. US or U.S. = United States
15. ft. = foot or feet
16. i.e. = Latin for “that is”
36. VFW = Veterans of Foreign Wars
37. vol. = volume
17. in. = inch(es)
18. Inc. = Incorporated
38. vs. = versus
39. W. = West
19. Jr. = Junior
And here are the U.S. states’ abbreviations in alphabetical order:
1.
2.
Alabama (AL)
Alaska (AK)
18. Louisiana (LA)
19. Maine (ME)
35. Ohio (OH)
36. Oklahoma (OK)
3.
4.
Arizona (AZ)
Arkansas (AR)
20. Maryland (MD)
21. Massachusetts (MA)
37. Oregon (OR)
38. Pennsylvania (PA)
5.
6.
California (CA)
Colorado (CO)
22. Michigan (MI)
23. Minnesota (MN)
39. Rhode Island (RI)
40. South Carolina (SC)
7.
8.
Connecticut (CT)
Delaware (DE)
24. Mississippi (MS)
25. Missouri (MO)
41. South Dakota (SD)
42. Tennessee (TN)
9. Florida (FL)
10. Georgia (GA)
26. Montana (MT)
27. Nebraska (NE)
43. Texas (TX)
44. Utah (UT)
11. Hawaii (HI)
12. Idaho (ID)
28. Nevada (NV)
29. New Hampshire (NH)
45. Vermont (VT)
46. Virginia (VA)
13. Illinois (IL)
14. Indiana (IN)
30. New Jersey (NJ)
31. New Mexico (NM)
47. Washington (WA)
48. West Virginia (WV)
15. Iowa (IA)
16. Kansas (KS)
32. New York (NY)
33. North Carolina (NC)
49. Wisconsin (WI)
50. Wyoming (WY)
17. Kentucky (KY)
34. North Dakota (ND)
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With the invention of the cell phone (mobile phone), texting has become a part of our daily communications. This is a
list of common texting abbreviations, but remember, these are considered informal language and shouldn’t be used in
formal situations:
1.
BTW = by the way
8.
OIC = oh, I see
2.
3.
IMHO = in my humble opinion
IMO = in my opinion
9. OT = off topic
10. POV = point of view
4.
5.
j/k or J/K = just kidding
l8r or L8R = later
11. THX = thanks
12. TMI = too much information
6.
7.
LOL = laugh out loud or lots of love
NUB = noobie (person who’s new to the site)
13. TTYL = talk to you later
14. XOXO = hugs and kisses
Emoticons are also handy to know when you’re online. Here are a few:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
:) colon + closed parenthesis = 
;) semicolon + closed parenthesis = wink
:$ colon + dollar sign = blushing face
:P colon + letter P = tongue lolling face
:D colon + letter D = BIG smiley face
:o colon + lower-case O = surprised face
7. S-l letter S + hyphen + lower-case L = wacky
face
8. :@ colon + at symbol = angry, gritting teeth
9. (*) parentheses enclosing asterisk = gold star
10. :( colon + open parenthesis = sad face
Apostrophes
There are two basic reasons to use an apostrophe: contraction and possession.
Apostrophes are used as contractions (can’t, that’s, I’ve, etc…) and they are also used to show possession
(ownership). For possession, to place the apostrophe in front of the “s” means that only one thing possesses (owns)
it. Here are some examples with explanations:
1.
The girl’s stocking cap is knitted. (There is only one girl who has a stocking cap.)
2.
Look at that cow’s black spots! (We’re only looking at one cow in this case. It has black spots.)
To place an apostrophe behind the “s” means that more than one thing possesses it. (It can also be used for things
which end in “s” or “z”, like Zeus’ lightning bolt.) Here are some examples of plural possessives:
1.
2.
Those milkmaids’ aprons are red. (There are many milkmaids. Their aprons are red.)
Those cows’ spots are funny-looking. (There are many cows. They all have funny-looking spots.)
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Capitalization
1.
Always capitalize the pronoun, I, even in contractions like I’ve, I’ll, and I’m.
2.
Capitalize the first word of a quoted sentence, even if you already capitalized the first word of your own
sentence. For example: We heard Beyoncé say, “Go get me a mocha latte, please.”
3.
Capitalize all proper nouns, like place names, people’s names, the name of a company, the name of a club,
4.
the name of a historical event, religions, languages, the name of a street or town, etc…
Capitalize all proper adjectives (examples: French bread, Flintstone vitamins, Micron computer).
5.
6.
Common animals, like domestic dogs, black bears, and stingrays, do not need capitalized, but if the breed of
animal uses someone’s last name or the name of a place (like Doberman pinschers, French poodles, and
Labrador retrievers), then the names of people and places must be capitalized within the breed.
Certain technology-related brand names capitalize the second letter of their name instead of the first letter.
This is called "camel case" (instead of upper-case or lower-case). Some examples of these brand
7.
names include iPod, iBook, iMac, iPad, and iPhone.
Capitalize people’s titles. For example, Mr. Bean, President Lincoln, Dr. Dre, and St. Patrick.
8.
Capitalize family titles (mom, dad, etc.), if you could replace it with a name and it works. Here’s what I
mean: In a sentence like “We’re going to Grandma’s house,” you could have said “Ruth’s house,” and it still
sounds fine, but if you had said, “We’re going to my grandma’s house,” it would sound silly to replace it with
“my Ruth.”
9.
Capitalize days of the week, names of the months, and holidays. This rule doesn’t hold true
in Spanish though, so if you’re bilingual in Spanish and English, please keep this in mind.
10. Capitalize the first, last, and all important words in a title. Here are some examples: Pirates of the Caribbean,
“Just the Way You Are,” and Times-News.
11. Capitalize the greeting and closing of a postal letter. For example, capitalize Dear Dr. Oz, and capitalize the
first word in the closing, Sincerely yours, as your letter comes to an end. E-mails are generally less formal, but
greetings and closings are sometimes used with e-mails, especially if it’s the first e-mail ever sent to the
recipient. See more under the heading “E-mail.”
Comma Rules
1. When two complete sentences are joined by a conjunction (and, but, nor, for, yet, or, so) put a comma
before the conjunction (glue word). Example: I love Taylor Swift’s videos, and I think her music is awesome
2.
too.
Use commas for introductory prepositional phrases and similar clauses. When a preposition or
conjunction such as in, on, since, at, once, after, although, if, when, while, or until,begins a sentence, put a
comma at the end of the introductory phrase. Example: If you get a new iPod, you’ll have to register it. But
how do you find the right spot for the comma? Just ask “If what?” The answer, “If you get a new iPod,” is
3.
4.
where the phrase ends, and that’s also where the comma goes.
Separate items in a series with commas. Example: Please buy milk, cheese, and eggs at the store.
Set off all interruptions to the flow of the sentence, even names of people and titles of things, with
commas. Example: To be a veterinarian, if that’s what you really want to be, you must go to college for
seven years. It is possible to read this sentence without its interruption, and it still makes sense. Like
this: To be a veterinarian, you must go to college for seven years. This feature tells us this is an appositive,
because we have paused for the interruption. Appositives can be set apart by using parentheses as well.
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5.
6.
Phrases that begin with who, whom, whose, which, and that, are often surrounded by
commas. Example: Miss Thornbuckle, who lives next door, is featured on YouTube this week.
Put a comma after the greeting and closing in a friendly letter. The greeting is usually, Dear Selena, while the
7.
closing is generally stated as Sincerely yours, Justin (using the letter writer’s name in place of Justin).
Separate parts of dates and addresses with commas. Example: Monday, May 21, 2012. Another example: I
live at 7319 W. State St., in Omaha, Nebraska. However, if you’re addressing a letter or envelope, there’s no
comma after St. Instead, drop down to the next line for Omaha, NE 68104 (and don’t write out Nebraska).
8.
Always put a comma between a city and state or a city and country, i.e. Las Vegas, Nevada or London,
England.
9. If you join two sentences with a comma but there's no conjunction, that's called a comma
splice. Avoid doing this. You must have the conjunction when joining two complete sentences; a
comma doesn't work by itself in this case (but a semicolon might, as you can see).
10. When a comma follows a title, you’ve got to think about your audience. If you’re publishing online, you’ll
probably want to put the comma outside the quotation marks, as this is the British method; however, if you’re
publishing for a strictly American (US) audience, you’re supposed to put the comma inside the quotes. Here
are examples of each:

(American) My mother asked me if I’d ever heard King Julien sing “I Like to Move It,” and I told her I had.

(British/UK) My mum asked me if I’d ever heard King Julien sing “I Like to Move It”, and I told her I had.
E-Mail
1.
When creating a subject heading (the RE box), follow the rules of title capitalization for business e-mails, but
capitalize using sentence guidelines for personal e-mails. Putting a subject heading in ALL CAP is a red flag;
people will think your message is spam (junk mail) and delete it without reading it. Never put your subject
2.
heading in ALL CAPITAL LETTERS. It looks like you’re screaming!
Make sure the topic listed in the subject heading matches the content of the e-mail.
3.
Never use TAB to indent the paragraphs of an e-mail. In some e-mail programs, this will move your cursor up
to the heading options. So leave paragraphs flush against the margin, but skip one line between paragraphs.
4.
5.
E-mail programs usually only allow single spacing. Double spacing is not an option.
E-mails should avoid texting language. Take the time to type out the words.
6.
If you’re replying to an e-mail in which someone asked a question, remind them of the question before
providing them with your answer. If you only supply them with an answer to their question, they may have
7.
forgotten the question by the time you reply.
If you’re the first person to send an e-mail, it’s important to include a greeting and closing. Once the first email has been sent, however, it’s okay to leave out the greeting and closing in your replies (although this is
somewhat informal). It’s also okay to include a greeting and closing (especially if you wish to keep your
8.
9.
correspondences more formal).
The greeting of an e-mail is the part where you say, Dear so-and-so. Begin all formal e-mails with a greeting,
and capitalize the first word of your greeting. The greeting of an e-mail should be followed by a comma.
At the end of your e-mail, skip one line between the final paragraph and the closing. Capitalize the first word
of the closing, and follow the closing statement with a comma. Then drop down one line (in other
words, don’t double-space) to type your name. In formal e-mails, include your first and last name.
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Here’s a sample e-mail:
Envelopes
New System Vs. Old
There are two different ways to address an envelope for mailing through the United States Postal Service.
1.
New System: Use all capital letters, no punctuation marks. This system is often used by businesses, and the
address is usually typed.
2.
Old System: Both capital and lower-case letters are used. Punctuation is also used. This system is primarily
used for friendly, less business-like letters. It is generally hand-written.
Example of Old System Envelope:
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Example of New System Envelope:
Some Tips:
1.
Using the new system may speed up your letter’s delivery time, especially if you’re mailing in a large
2.
population area.
Abbreviate whenever possible on an envelope, because it saves space.
3.
4.
The stamp always goes in the upper right-hand corner of an envelope.
Leave a slight margin around the edges of the envelope, so it can be easily read by machines at the post
office.
Letters
There are basically three types of letters: full block, modified semi-block, and friendly. Below you’ll find examples of
each. For information about the grammatical guidelines for writing e-mail correspondences, please turn to the e-mail
page.
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Full Block Style
With full block style, you keep everything flush against the left margin. Use a colon after the greeting (Dear Mr.
Boyardee:) and include the addresses of both parties. Skip one line between all the parts of the letter’s body,
including paragraphs. In the heading and closing, you’ll need to skip three lines where indicated in parentheses.
Here’s what a block letter looks like:
Lincoln Middle School
1412 W. Smarticus Ave.
Clarksville, TN 37040
Nov. 29, 2012
(skip three lines here and begin typing again on the fourth line down)
Chef Boyardee
c/o ConAgra Foods Inc.
1 Conagra Drive
Omaha, NE 68102
Dear Mr. Boyardee:
My name is Mr. Sanchez, and I teach English at Lincoln Middle School in Clarksville, Tennessee.
I’d like to have my students write fan letters to you, but I’m checking first to make sure this address
is where we should send our fan mail.
If there is a different address you’d prefer we use, please let me know. You can contact me at the
following e-mail address: [dsanchez@lms.com]. Thank you for your time.
Sincerely,
(sign name here, on the three lines skipped between the closing statement and the typed name)
David Sanchez
Modified Semi-Block Style
With a modified semi-block letter, use both a sending and receiving address, but follow these guidelines:
1.
2.
The greeting (Dear Mr. Boyardee:) should be followed by a colon if you want the letter to seem formal.
Indent the paragraphs in the body of the letter.
3.
4.
The author’s address, the date, and the closing should be indented halfway across the page.
In the closing of a business letter (both block and semi-block), sign your name between the typed closing
5.
words (like Sincerely,) and the typed (or neatly printed) name.
Don’t forget to put a comma after the closing statement (like Very truly yours,).
6.
It’s best to type a business letter (block or semi-block), but if that’s not possible, at least remember to use blue
or black ink.
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Friendly Letter Style
Friendly letters are sometimes very informal. You’re not required to put your own address or the date on a friendly
letter, but it can be helpful to the person who receives the letter. To make your friendly letter look nice you should do
the following:
1.
Include your address, the date, and the closing, halfway across the page.
2.
3.
Indent your paragraphs.
Skip one line between all sections of the letter.
4.
5.
Include a greeting of some kind and follow it with a comma instead of a colon.
Don’t include the address of the recipient (the person receiving the letter).
6.
Only write your name one time. A last name isn’t required for friendly letters, if the recipient knows you well
(like if you’re writing to a best friend or close relative).
7.
Friendly letters can be written in fun colors (like red or green), but remember to make it legible. Don’t use a
highlighter or silver gel pen; they’re just too hard to read. It’s also okay to type a friendly letter.
8.
Take a look at the friendly letter illustration on page 7 as a general guide.
Numbers
Write out numbers zero through ten in word form. Numbers after ten can be written as a numeral, but they can also
be written as a word.
Example:
Correct: Suri Cruise will be eight years old on her birthday.
Incorrect: Suri Cruise will be 8 years old on her birthday.
Exceptions are made for dates, times, scores, page numbers, and for graphs or charts that may appear in a
document. Avoid starting a sentence with a numeral; instead, write the number out when it starts a sentence.
Furthermore, a Roman numeral is nearly always used in World War II; never use an Arabic 2.
Paragraphing
There are two basic rules for paragraph breaks:
1. New speaker = new paragraph
2. New subject = new paragraph
1. The first one, new speaker = new paragraph is for writing dialog. Here’s an example of a dialog between two
characters. Notice how there’s a new paragraph each time a different person begins to speak:
The soldier asked, “What has happened here?”
“I fell off the wall,” said Humpty Dumpty.
“How on earth did you get on the wall in the first place?”
”Well, when I saw the stairs on the other side of the wall, I
ran to the top. I spun and lost my balance.” Humpty Dumpty looked
up at the soldier pitifully. “It was then, that I fell.”
“A fine story,” said the soldier, “but I don’t have the
technology to heal this injury.”
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2. Now here’s an example of the other rule, new subject = new paragraph:
There are more than 200 species of fleas. Most people are familiar with dog fleas. The scientific
name for a dog’s fleas is Ctenocephalides canis. Some fleas can carry diseases, but a dog’s fleas are merely
annoying.
.
My dog, Scooby, has fleas sometimes. To get rid of his fleas, we use dog shampoo, flea powder,
and a flea collar. Still, as much as Scooby likes to roll around on the ground, it’s difficult to keep his flea
problem in check.
When you are editing someone’s paper, and you think they need a new paragraph, you should use the paragraph
symbol to show them this. See “Proofreading Symbols” for an example of the paragraph symbol.
Parts of Speech
Noun = a person (author), a place (ocean), thing (toy), or idea (war)
1.
How can you tell it’s a noun? If you can use the words a, an, or the in front of the word and it sounds right, it’s
2.
being used as a noun.
It’s a proper noun if it names the person (Rick Riordan), place (Pacific Ocean), thing (Play Dough) or idea
(Civil War). In these cases, the noun must be capitalized. Usually the a/an/the trick doesn’t work with proper
3.
nouns.
It’s a common noun if it doesn’t name the person (guy), place (ocean), thing (toy) or idea (war). In that case,
4.
it’s not capitalized.
Collective nouns are usually one word that doesn’t end with an S, but they indicate a collection of stuff. For
5.
example, you might have a bunch of Play Dough. Bunch is a collective noun.
Plural nouns are simply more than one. For example, there are seven oceans. Because you’re talking about
more than one, the word oceans is plural.
Verb = an action word
1.
How can you tell it’s a verb? Try putting an –ing on the end of it. If you can, it’s probably a verb. For example,
“to swim” is a verb, because you can go “swimming.”
2.
Some verbs can also be nouns at the same time. For example, you caught the fish when you went fishing. So
“fish” is both a noun and a verb, depending on how you use it in a sentence.
3.
Helping verbs add meaning to other verbs. Some common helping verbs are “to be” and “to have”. Here’s
how they can be used as helping verbs: I have been fishing with Scott Martin. The words “have” and “been”
are helping the word “fishing”. Other helping verbs include must, can, is, are, were, was, might, and should.
Adjective = a word that describes a noun
1.
2.
How can you tell it’s an adjective? If it’s an adjective, it helps you add details to the person, place, thing, or
idea in your mind.
Some examples are in bold here: funny author, wet ocean, sticky Play Dough, bloody war. Do you see how
these words (funny, wet, sticky, and bloody) help you imagine the nouns better? That’s what adjectives do.
3.
They help you imagine details about nouns.
Be careful, sometimes we use other nouns to describe nouns too, like The author with the gray hair is my
favorite. In this sentence gray and favorite are adjectives, but hair is a noun because it’s a thing, like toy is a
thing in the noun example. Nouns can often be held in your hand, but adjectives can’t. You can’t hold a gray
or a favorite, but you can hold hair.
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Adverb = a word that describes a verb; it describes how you do something
1.
How can you tell it’s an adverb? A lot of adverbs end in the suffix –ly. Some examples are lazily, wisely,
courageously, obnoxiously, and slowly.
2.
It’s possible to turn a lot of adjectives into adverbs by simply adding –ly. For example, the adjective busy
becomes the adverb busily; the adjective interesting becomes interestingly, but this doesn’t always work.
There’s no word favoritely, for example, but favorite is a good adjective to describe an author.
3.
Some adverbs don’t end in –ly. These ones are tricky to spot, but ask yourself, “Does this word explain how
something is done?” For example, how did she walk through the door? She walked through it backwards. If
that answers how, then backwards is an adverb.
Conjunction = a connecting word; it glues stuff together
1.
2.
3.
Common conjunctions include the following: and, but, or, nor, for, yet, so, since, because. There are others,
but these ones are the most common.
Conjunctions can stick two sentences together: I watched iCarly because there wasn’t anything better on TV.
Here the sentence I watched iCarly is joined to the sentence There wasn’t anything better on TV by using
the word because as a conjunction.
Conjunctions can also stick two objects together: My two favorite shows are America’s Got
Talent and Spongebob Squarepants. Here the conjunction and connects two proper nouns, not two complete
sentences.
4.
Remember that the use of a conjunction doesn't always require the use of a comma. Usually only
coordinating conjunctions (and, but, nor, for, yet, or, so) require the use of a comma when they
connect two sentences. Connecting two objects doesn't usually require the use of a comma either.
Pronoun = a word that represents a noun
1.
How annoying would it be, if we had to say someone’s name over and over again? We’d sound like this:
When Spiderman leaves Spiderman’s friend’s apartment, Spiderman has to make sure Spiderman is wearing
Spiderman’s suit. Pronouns make it sound better: When he leaves your apartment, he has to make sure he is
2.
wearing it.
Some examples of pronouns include the following: he, him, himself, I, me, myself, you, your, yours, mine,
3.
ours, our, they, them, us, we, it, itself, etc…
Oddly, when you look up possessive pronouns in a dictionary, it may say they are adjectives. That’s
because the word your in your apartment describes who the apartment belongs to; therefore, your is both a
pronoun and an adjective in that sense.
Preposition = a word that indicates a position in time or space
1.
The definition is in the word itself: it’s a preposition.
2.
A position in space can be words like above, under, beneath, upon, behind, beside, through, etc… The
guitarist is seated on a stool.
3.
A position in time can include words like before, after, since, if, when, etc… I finished playing my guitar before
noon.
4.
A prepositional phrase is usually a preposition, the noun that goes with it, and any descriptive words that
accompany the noun. Mom told me to put away my guitar after lunch. In this example, the bold-print words
are the prepositional phrase starting with after.
5.
An introductory prepositional phrase is a prepositional phrase that starts a sentence. Introductory
prepositional phrases usually end in a comma. For example: If you want to go see The Hobbit, I bet Taylor
will go with you. The bold print words are the introductory prepositional phrase.
Interjection = a word that expresses emotion
1.
Some examples of interjection include the following: darn, hooray, oh, and ouch.
2.
In a sentence, an interjection is usually followed by a comma or exclamation point, depending upon the
intensity of the emotion.
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Poetry
One of the fun things about poetry is its ability to break all the rules. However, you must have a good reason to break
rules. And frankly, before becoming a rule breaker, it’s a good idea to know what the basic rules of traditional
poetry are. After all, Pablo Picasso studied traditional artwork before he started doing his cubism thing.
So what are the basic rules of traditional poetry? I’ve listed them here for you.
The Three Basic Rules of Traditional Poetry:
1.
2.
Rhyming words generally fall at the ends of lines.
Each line should make sense by itself.
3.
Capitalize the first word of each line.
Try reading this poem, but please note: it breaks rules #1 and #2:
Roses are red
violets
Are blue sugar is
Sweet and so are
You
See? Did that make any sense? Not really. The line “Roses are red violets” sounds like roses and violets are the
same thing, but that can’t be what the poet meant. “Sweet and so are” sounds like a dish of Chinese food. That line
makes my tummy growl, but it certainly doesn’t make sense by itself.
Written correctly, the poem would look like this:
Roses
red
Rosesare
are red
Violets
Violetsare
are blue
blue
Sugar
is
sweet
Sugar is sweet
And And
sosoare
you
are you
To fix the problem, use a proofreading symbol called “Line of poetry ends”. You can find this, along with
other proofreading symbols, on page 13.
However, you should remember that poetry is infamous for not following the rules. Once you’ve got the basics down,
you may wish to break free from these three basic rules. Just make sure you have a good reason to break the rules
whenever you choose to be creative.
Other Tips:
1.
Poetry is usually single-spaced.
2.
3.
It’s not a bad idea to give a poem a title, but it isn’t essential. Many traditional poems have titles though.
Poems use lines, not sentences.
4.
5.
When lines are split into sections, we call those stanzas.
Traditional poetry doesn’t indent stanzas.
6.
In poetry, punctuation is optional. It’s up to the poet to decide whether or not a punctuation mark is needed.
When used, punctuation should be applied for a good reason (to make the reader deliberately pause, for
7.
example).
Not all poems rhyme, but when they do, they often use a rhyme scheme (see link for details).
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All the information contained herein is also available online at englishemporium.wordpress.com for your
convenience. Please visit my site, “like it” on Facebook, and tell a friend! Thanks! 
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All the information contained herein is also available online at englishemporium.wordpress.com for your
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Punctuation
1.
What is a semicolon? Here’s a semicolon…….. ;
It is used to join two complete sentences which are
very closely related in meaning. Example: Mark my words; you’ll learn a lot in her language arts class! In
this compound sentence, the two pieces need each other, because without the explanation, “you’ll learn a lot
in her language arts class,” the statement “mark my words” wouldn’t make any sense. The two connected
2.
sentences are depending on one another.
What is a colon? It’s this thing……… :
It is used after a salutation in a block or semi-block letter. It can
also be used between numbers, to indicate the time of day. Sometimes it is used to introduce a
list. Example: The following authors have eBooks available for purchase: Rick Riordan, Nicholas Sparks,
3.
Suzanne Collins, Becca Fitzpatrick, and Lauren Kate. Another example: Dear Webmaster: Or Dear
Customer Service Manager: And don’t forget this: It’s 9:12 a.m.
What is a hyphen? It looks like this…………. –
It can be used to connect compound words, numbers,
and letter-word combinations. Here are some examples: man-eating shark, twenty-first, and T-bone
steak. Many of these compound words can be found in the dictionary, but often compound adjectives
(like three-dimensional) are not found in the dictionary. You can also use hyphens to break a word at the
4.
margin. Place the hyphen between syllables.
What are parentheses? They look like this….. ( )
Parentheses are used to include helpful explanations in
a sentence. Here’s an example: Twilight, by Stephenie Meyer (published by Little, Brown and Company in
2005), has been translated into 37 different languages.
5.
What are brackets? They look like parentheses, but more square…….. [ ]
They tend to be used for
technical purposes, like when a website’s URL needs to be included. Here’s an example: I found my used Wii
6.
games on Craigslist [http://www.craigslist.org/about/sites], so if you want to get one for yourself, I’d look
there. As a proofreading symbol, we insert them, just like we do with parentheses.
What is an exclamation point? Here’s one….. ! An exclamation point should only be used for words that
7.
are shouted. However, if a question is shouted, avoid using an exclamation point, and use a question mark
instead. Here’s an example: Aren’t you going to run? Get out
of there before it explodes!**
What is a question mark? Here’s a question mark…… ? It is used whenever questions are
8.
asked. Here’s an example: Who is your favorite Jonas brother?
What is a period? A period looks like this…..
.
A period ends a sentence, abbreviation, or
initial. These are some examples: H. G. Wells was an early science fiction writer. Mr. Wells was famous for
9.
his novel, War of the Worlds. Another example: I used to live at 127 N.E. Hwy. 99, Vancouver,
Washington. Note the abbreviations for Mister, North, East, and the first and middle names of the author.
What is a comma? This is a comma……… , For more on commas, see my page entitled, Comma Rules.
** Here’s another example that uses a shouted question: He did what? No way!
Quotation Marks
1.
2.
New speaker = new paragraph.
All of the words that a character from a story actually says must be put in quotation marks.
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3.
If he said or she said follows the words that a character has said, and that character made a statement
ending in a period, the actual quoted sentence must end with a comma, where the period would have
gone. For example: “You can buy my cookbook,” said Chef Boyardee.
4.
When you interrupt a quoted sentence with he said or she said, surround the interruption with both quotation
marks and commas, as follows: “Hey,” the chef asked, “how do you like my cheese ravioli?”
5.
A question mark should only end the questioning part of the quote. Here’s what I mean: “Would you rather
have some spaghetti and meatballs?” asked Chef Boyardee.
6.
An exclamation point should only end the shouted part of a quote. For example: “I burned myself!” the chef
7.
shouted.
A comma always follows he said or she said, when he said or she said comes at the beginning of a quoted
statement. Here’s an example of this: He said, “Use a hot pad when taking food out of the microwave.”
Sentence Structure
Subject = the noun, i.e. the person (author), place (ocean), thing (toy), or idea (war) that does something in a
sentence
1.
How can you tell you’ve found the subject? Look for the verb in the sentence. If the verb is swim, ask
yourself who or what does the swimming? That who or what is the subject of your sentence.
2.
So in a sentence like Michael Phelps goes swimming, you would ask yourself who or what goes swimming?
The answer, Michael Phelps, is the subject of your sentence, because he’s the one going swimming—he’s the
one doing whatever the verb indicates.
Predicate = the action word (verb) and everything that goes with the action
1.
2.
3.
How can you tell you’ve found the predicate? Well, if you know what the subject of the sentence is, the rest of
the sentence is usually the predicate.
So in a sentence like Michael Phelps goes swimming, we know going and swimming are both verbs,
because you can stick an –ing on the ends of them. So goes swimming is the predicate.
In a more complex sentence, like Michael Phelps goes swimming for three hours every morning and evening,
everything that follows the verb is part of the predicate. So goes swimming for three hours every morning and
evening is the predicate, because all of those words follow the verb.
Double Subjects = there’s more than one thing doing the action (also called a “compound subject”)
1.
2.
But what if Michael Phelps invites his friend along? Then what do we do for a subject? Both people are doing
the action, so this is called a double subject.
For example, in the sentence Michael Phelps and his teammate, Ryan Lochte, go swimming every morning
and evening, the subject of the sentence is Michael Phelps and his friend, Ryan Lochte. This is called a
double-subject because two nouns do the action.
Complete Subjects = the subject may include some descriptive words, and these are all part of the complete
subject
1.
Let’s look at the following sentence: Handsome, long-armed Michael Phelps goes swimming for three hours
every morning and evening. In this sentence, you must include the modifiers (descriptive words) with the
subject, so the complete subject is Handsome, long-armed Michael Phelps.
What’s the complete subject in a sentence like Lovely Kim Kardashian might be pretty, but she’s no
swimmer? The complete subject is Lovely Kim Kardashian—the noun + the word that describes it (lovely).
Tips on Subjects and Predicates:
1. Remember that the subject is never part of a prepositional phrase. So in a sentence like Beside the empty
2.
pool, Michael Phelps sat crying his eyes out, the subject of the sentence, is Michael Phelps, not the pool.
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2.
3.
But it is possible to have a pronoun be the subject, like in this case: He was broken-hearted over Kim’s
tragic choice. In this case, the simple subject is the pronoun He. The predicate is the verb and all that follows
it: was broken-hearted over Kim’s tragic choice.
Why do we need to know this stuff? It helps us 1.) punctuate sentences correctly, 2.) re-write sentences so
they have better fluency, and 3.) understand the meanings of sentences.
Six Traits of Good Writing

Conventions – How does the paper look, as far as grammar, spelling, and punctuation?

Ideas and Content – Is the topic of this paper original? Or is the approach unlike anyone else’s?

Organization – Titles go at the top. Some papers are double-spaced; others are not. Did they
follow these rules of organization? Do they have an introduction? Does the conclusion make
sense?

Sentence Fluency – Try to read the paper out loud. Where do you stumble? That’s a fluency glitch.

Voice – Does the paper make you laugh out loud? Cry? Gasp in awe? That’s good voice!

Word Choice – Did the writer choose advanced vocabulary words that sound challenging?
Spelling
These are the most commonly misspelled words found in my students’ papers. Here’s a brief definition for each one
and a sample sentence:
1. to — indicates direction or goes with a verb (to make/to go/etc.)–My brother had to go to the office.
2.
3.
two — 1+1 –At our school two people cannot share lockers.
too —also or very or in excess–It’s too bad they have that rule.
4.
5.
are — present tense of the verb “to be”–My sisters are in eighth grade.
our — owned by “us”–Our brother is in sixth.
6.
7.
right — opposite of left or correct–He’s deaf in his right ear.
write — to compose words–We plan to write a letter to the principal requesting that we share lockers.
8.
where — indicates or questions place or direction–My locker is over where the eighth grade hall connects to
ours.
9. were — past tense of “are”–Our sisters were mad at us yesterday.
10. we’re — contraction for “we are”–Now we’re not talking.
11. than — a comparison word–My brother is nicer than my sisters.
12. then — in the past or after that–Once our sisters go to high school, then we’ll be happy.
13. past — a time before now–In the past, our sisters used to pick on us.
14. passed — went by or advanced–They told my friends I barely passed the third grade.
15. once — just that single time only–Once my sister stuck a fake love note in my locker.
16. hole — an empty spot–She jammed it through a hole in my locker door.
17. whole — complete–My whole sixth grade year was a pain because of my sisters.
18. piece — a portion–They cut off a piece of my brother’s hair and made fun of him.
19. peace — a time without war–My brother and I just want peace between all of us.
20. bare — – naked or uncovered–I keep my locker bare, because they know my combination.
21. bear – a hibernating animal–My brother turns into a real bear when they tease him.
22. the — an article indicating a single noun–The worst thing about my sisters is their sneakiness.
23. them — those people there–That’s why we can’t stand them.
24. there — in that place or direction–Just look at them standing over there with sneaky smiles!
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25. their — owned by “them”–They hang out with their friends for protection.
26. they’re — contraction for “they are”–They’re good at fooling all the teachers too.
27. its — owned by “it”–This school’s west wall is where you’ll find its seventh grade lockers.
28. it’s — contraction for “it is”–It’s a shame my sisters found out my combo.
29. of – related to (not necessarily in a family way though)–There are four of us, plus our parents.
30. have — to own; this is also a helping verb–We should have joined forces long ago!
31. no — a negative statement–Then our sisters would have said, “No way!”
32. know — to be aware of–They know we’re going to defend each other this year.
33. now — at the present time–We are now ready to take on our rotten sisters.
34. your — a pronoun showing ownership to you–When your sisters are mean, what do you do?
35. you’re — contraction for “you are”–You’re probably braver than me.
36. a lot – two words, not one, which together mean “many”--My brother has a lot more courage than me.
37. here — in this place–This is my brother, right here.
38. hear — to use one’s ears to listen–Remember, he can’t always hear you because of his partial deafness.
39. still — without moving at all–When he stands still, he’s listening carefully.
40. steal — to take something that doesn’t belong to you–We’ve heard our sisters are planning to steal my
notebook today.
41. cause — to make something happen–We don’t know the cause of this particular attack against me.
42. because — since, or due to the fact that–I’m not taking any chances, because they’ve done crueler things in
the past.
43. smelled — used the nose to perceive odor–One time I smelled something gross in my locker after school.
44. smelt — a small fish which is somewhat like a trout–They had put a package of smelt in my locker.
45. I — the pronoun meaning first person personal–I tried to tell our mom, but she didn’t believe me.
46. and — a conjunction indicating a joining together (don’t use the symbol in formal writing)–Now my
brother and I will face them together!
Titles
Quotation Marks–Quotation marks aren’t just used when characters talk to each other in a story. They are also
used around titles for all of the following:
 songs like “Welcome to the Jungle”



newspaper articles
TV shows that are not part of a series




magazine articles
poems
reports and papers
short stories
encyclopedia articles
Underlining–Some titles have to be underlined, rather than quoted. Only underline the title if it’s hand-written. If
you’re typing a title, use italics instead. The following titles should be underlined:
 plays
 newspaper titles
 movies like Rise of the Guardians
 web addresses (URLs—don’t italicize these)





encyclopedias
books
magazine titles




long poems (50+pgs.)
TV shows that are a series
long stories (50+pgs.)
CDs
ships
paintings
One other handy tip, if it’s your own title, don’t underline, quote, or italicize it. By doing so, you would be saying, “By
the way, I didn’t write this!”
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Word Choice
Verbs
1.
Look up verbs in the dictionary or on the Internet, to see if they are irregular. For example, “to write” is an
irregular verb, because we should say, “Justin Bieber has written his paper,” instead of “Justin Bieber has
writed his paper.” Verbs normally end in –ed when we talk about something that already happened, but the
verb to write doesn’t do that. Other irregular verbs include to be, to do, to eat, to feel, etc…
2.
When you have a series of verbs all in a row, you need to make sure they are the same kind of verb. For
example: correct: Fred Figglehorn screamed, squeaked, and raced away. incorrect: Fred Figglehorn
screamed, squeaked, and was racing away.
3.
When the subject is singular, the verb must also be singular. Here’s an example: That movie trailer, with all
its celebrity cameos, is fun to watch. There’s only one trailer, so the verb that coordinates with trailer is the
word is.
Usage
1.
Avoid using the “&” symbol; instead, write out “and”. Exceptions are made for note-taking and texting.
2.
Check your writing to see if you have made a common wording error, like writing “should of,” when what you
meant to write was, “should have.” Taylor Swift should have bought that pink shirt instead.
3.
Avoid using double-negatives. For example, avoid phrases like, “don’t have none” or “don’t like
nobody.” Instead, say, “don’t have any” or “don’t like anybody”.
4.
5.
Avoid using double comparatives. For example, say, “Dumbledore is funnier than Mrs. McGonagall,” rather
than “Dumbledore is more funnier than Mrs. McGonagall.”
“An”, rather than “a”, should be used before words which begin with a vowel (for example: an emoticon).
6.
Check double-subjects (like he and I OR she and Shakira OR you and they). When a pronoun is paired with
another subject at the beginning of a sentence, try each pronoun alone to see if it works, like this: In the
sentence, “He and Shakira are going to a movie,” does it make more sense to say, “Him is going to a movie?”
or “He is going to a movie”? Try both forms of each pronoun to choose which one works. (Note: you need to
adjust the verb when you try this sometimes, as the example shows.)
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