Unlike a regular statement, one marked by parentheses is usually an additional thought, aside, or statement that isn’t essential to the topic at hand. For example, consider the following: When I saw the pink-frosted donut, my mouth began to water (sort of like Homer Simpson). The ...
followed by a right parenthesis. Theexpris either a token or a nonterminal symbol defined in another grammar rule. This grammar rule can be interpreted to say that a parenthesized expression consists of a normal expression inside parentheses. ...
As long as there have been rules of grammar, there have been theories about what makes it work and how to classify it. For example, American linguist Noam Chomsky posited thetheory of universal grammar. It says that common rules dictate a...
6. Withneither/norandeither/orin the subject position, the second element controls the number of the verb. When the correlative conjunctionseither/or orneither/norframe alternatives in the singular, the verb is singular<either phone="" or="" fax="" is acceptable for your response>. When the...
Parentheses and Brackets Apostrophes Hyphens Dashes Ellipses Quotation Marks Exclamation Points Slashes Other Rules Capitalization Confusing Words and Homonyms Writing Numbers Online Quizzes FREE Quizzes Subscription Quizzes This website andThe Blue Book of Grammar and Punctuationrepresent American English r...
So when it comes to your blog, know which way is correct, but don’t be afraid to bend the rules a bit here for the sake of sounding more conversational. Who vs. That I’ve saved this one for last because, frankly, I don’t agree with the rule. I strongly feel that writers shou...
Our rules for punctuating with parentheses can be found on the Parentheses and Brackets page. Rule 1 says, “If material in parentheses ends a sentence, the period goes after the parentheses.” Rule 2 says “Periods go inside parentheses only if an entire sentence is inside the parentheses.”...
Grammar, punctuation, usage, mechanics — it can all feel overwhelming, like an enormous pile of rules, right? Why do we even need them? Why can’t we jettison all the rules and just write? These rules might seem confusing or pedantic, but in truth, they exist for one good reason: to...
"Grammar Girl's Quick and Dirty Tips for Better Writing," is a hit among students and educators alike, and her weekly grammar podcast has been downloaded more than 20 million times and hailed by "USA Today" as "authoritative but warm." Now, in tip-of-the-day form, Grammar Girl presents...
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