There are some standard phrases that you are going to come across time and again. For instance, I’m sure you’ve heard someone say, “Excuse me, but …,” which is a simple way of grabbing someone’s attention without seeming too intrusive. You can follow that phrase with a request, a question, or any other “imposition.” You …
English
If you’ve ever watched the news in the United States of America, you’ve undoubtedly come across the expression “the tri-state area.” You might have heard it during a weather report, a crime report, or something that had to do with the elections. Moreover, “tri-state areas” have been mentioned in countless movies, TV shows, and radio …
Every one of us is on their own personal journey. We like to think of our lives as narratives, ones that only end when we go six feet under. However, during this journey, we are bound to experience highs and lows. There will be some good days, and other days will be dismal. However, for …
Human beings are aspirational creatures. We tend to be optimistic even when the odds aren’t in our favor. If anything, it is our optimism that has allowed us to shoot for the stars, to wish for the moon, and to go where no man has gone before. It is our optimism that has emboldened countless …
Ask anyone who’s ever written an essay how he or she feels about commas and you’re likely to receive a groan for an answer. Despite the comma hate, this piece of punctuation has only a few basic rules. Part of the problem is that writers tend to hyper-focus on how commas interact with specific words. …
Grammar is a funny thing. Even though most of us profess that we don’t think about it all that often, and we consider anyone who’ll correct your grammar as a pedant and a grammar nazi, we still subconsciously judge others whenever they make grammatical mistakes. We feel that they are either careless or less intelligent …
Despite a bad reputation as one of the most confusing parts of English grammar, the comma actually follows fairly simple rules. Chief among them is that the need for commas is primarily determined by the need for clarity. In other words, you really only need a comma when the meaning of a sentence or its …
Language can tell us a lot about the culture surrounding it. This becomes all the more obvious when you look at words that are not translatable from one language to another. For instance, in Japan, there is an art called “kintsugi,” where broken pottery is fixed using powdered gold. At first glance, this may come …
Is there a comma before since? There is usually no comma before since, as “since” is a subordinating conjunction. “Since” can also function as both a preposition and an adverb. In these roles, too, a comma preceding ‘since’ is generally unnecessary. ”Since” as a preposition — Comma Rules When “since” acts as a preposition, …