fbpx Skip to Content

If there’s one definite way to describe how languages work, well, I’d probably not be writing this article at all. Language is complex, albeit novel, and nonetheless arbitrary. Yes, language prescriptivism has proven to be one of the most effective ways to decode the human communication process. However, this approach may not be generally applicable …

Read More about “Before” or “By” when using Dates & Temporal Expressions

Economic development induces the need for technological and business advancements. These inevitable, nonetheless exponential, progressions have dramatically affected most, if not all fields of disciplines including linguistics. Morphological truncation or word shortening has been consistently on par with communication agent developments such as mobile phones and computers. While this process is already tricky, it is …

Read More about Comma after Abbreviations: The Definitive Guide

Writing may arguably be one of the most creative, albeit tedious, language-related activities. Although writing standards seem far less rigid in the digital world, the academic and professional fields require otherwise. Punctuations and cohesive devices alike do have the ability to make us feel confused, nonetheless anxious. As an attempt to help in the mentioned …

Read More about Comma before or after “although”: The Definitive Guide

Have you ever been in doubt about where to put sneaky commas in sentences? And, have you mistakenly thought of a word belonging to one part of speech when, in fact, it doesn’t? Writing may seem to be one of the most agonizing tasks for most people, except for experts in the field of course. …

Read More about Comma before or after “despite: The Definitive Guide

One of the many troubles encountered in writing is with multifaceted words and punctuation marks. Words wearing multiple faces are tricky because we could get tangled up in which denotation or connotation should be applied in what sense. Punctuations, especially commas, are but sneaky too since they have more grammatical and stylistic rules to follow. …

Read More about Comma before or after “so”: The Definitive Guide

One of the most grueling decisions to make in writing is related to punctuations, especially commas. Although word choice and sentence construction are already devious trickeries, comma-decisions may further crucify native and non-native writers alike. What else complicates writing? Adverbs, of course. Especially those with multiple personalities. This post’s goal is to address comma-related decisions …

Read More about Comma before or after “in particular”: The Definitive Guide

While a ship navigates via radar and the three kings by a star, a reader is also guided by punctuations in texts. Punctuations, in essence, serve as mountain beacons so readers so do not get lost in the savage jungle of words. Without punctuations such as commas, sentences and paragraphs would be nonetheless incoherent and …

Read More about Comma before or after “unfortunately”: The Definitive Guide

Punctuations provide prosodic cues that convey the intention and tone of texts. The rhythm of the text can be manipulated by the mastery of punctuation placement, such as commas. Put simply, sentences without punctuations are like songs without beats while punctuation misplacement is equivalent to a person who could sing, yet hits the wrong notes …

Read More about Comma before “too”: The Definitive Guide

If it’s later than afternoon, but not night yet, what time is it? No, that’s not the start of a terrible dad joke. The answer is, of course, “evening.” But when is evening, exactly? Let’s take a look at the complicated nuance, and long history, of this seemingly simple word.   What time is “evening”? …

Read More about What Time is Evening? — The Answer!