Category Archives: usage features

Smaug, the Stupendous

Posted on March 14, 2016 by Ingrid Tieken

This semester, I teach an MA course called Testing Prescriptivism. Part of the requirements for the course, as for earlier courses I taught on the subject, is that students write two blogposts each. Here is the first, by Bram Steijn: … Continue reading →

Posted in MA Leiden, usage features | 3 Comments

Continuing the usage game

Posted on February 22, 2016 by Carmen Ebner

On our blog, we often report on current developments in the usage debate, bits and pieces of our research findings and also new publications of usage guides. Being a true book addict, I would like to share two of the … Continue reading →

Posted in news, usage features, usage guide | Tagged , , , | 2 Comments

Splitting only

Posted on February 18, 2016 by Ingrid Tieken

What do try and, only, split infinitives and dangling participles have in common? This is a question we asked a few weeks ago, and I promised to let you know as soon as we found out. Here, then, is a partial answer … Continue reading →

Posted in polls and surveys, usage features | Tagged , | Leave a comment

Of pedants, mavens, sticklers and …

Posted on February 9, 2016 by Ingrid Tieken

… only-snoopers! This is a term adopted by Sir Ernest Gowers in his discussion of the placement of only in Plain Words, another old chestnut in the usage guide tradition. The term reminds me of which-hunting, something pedants and other prescriptivists are renowned … Continue reading →

Posted in usage features, usage guide | Tagged , | 1 Comment

The descriptive backlash

Posted on January 31, 2016 by Morana Lukač

Last month The Independent published a story featuring an email etiquette rule by Jonathan Tisch, a hotel magnate. According to Mr. Tisch, the one word you should never use to start emails is “I”. Referring to mentors, teachers and your own … Continue reading →

Posted in usage features | Tagged , , , | 6 Comments

Try and, only, split infinitives, dangling participles

Posted on January 27, 2016 by Ingrid Tieken

(If this is your first time on this blog: please fill in the acceptability survey below. Thank you!) What do these features have in common? That is something Carmen Ebner and I are going to figure out in the article we … Continue reading →

More Galleries | Tagged , , , | 6 Comments

Drownded: read drowned

Posted on January 12, 2016 by Ingrid Tieken

Perhaps the most interesting irregular verb form I found in my analyse of the usage guides in HUGE (for a paper I’m giving next week on the topic) is drownded. The only usage guide in the HUGE database that mentions … Continue reading →

Posted in usage features | Tagged , , | 12 Comments

He said, she said or he admitted, she boasted?

Posted on December 3, 2015 by Carmen Ebner

What is wrong with the word said? Personally, I do have nothing against this very useful verb. But as it turns out, some teachers in the US are actively encouraging their students to not make use of it. Gabriel Roth … Continue reading →

Posted in usage features | Tagged , , | 7 Comments

Washington Post accepts singular they or Newspaper style guides as language authorities

Posted on December 2, 2015 by Morana Lukač

Today one of the top trending tweets on the topic of English usage was “Washington Post will allow singular they”.  The same Post memo stating that they is now okay included the style guide updates regarding the spelling of email, website, … Continue reading →

Posted in usage features | Tagged , | Leave a comment

Adding the Mx: Gender-neutral titles and pronouns

Posted on November 6, 2015 by Morana Lukač

In the Q&A section of the Chicago Manual of Style Online, a question was posed about editing out they as a personal pronoun in reference to a transgender person. Here is the disputed sentence:  “During Harry’s senior year, they were … Continue reading →

Posted in usage features | Tagged , | 2 Comments