An editor with a large database company is tussling with colleagues over the proper use of the words comprise and composed of. She believes the correct usage would be: The alphabet comprises 26 letters or The alphabet is composed of 26 letters...
Grant responds to a voicemail from Doug in Louisville, Kentucky, who asks whether our phone’s autocomplete function will affect the way we talk and write. The answer is yes, partly because of Markov chains, or models describing a sequence of...
Many so-called “rules” of grammar are actually just zombie rules. They’re ill-advised attempts by 17th-century grammarians to make English syntax fit the orderly rules of Latin. This is part of a complete episode. Transcript of...
Todd, a firefighter in Fond du Lac, Wisconsin, wonders about the difference between the words smell and odor. Also, which verb is the better choice: orient or orientate? This is part of a complete episode. Transcript of “Smell vs. Odor”...
A listener in Fargo, North Dakota, ask which is correct: graduated from high school or graduated high school? Increasingly, the former is falling by the wayside. This is part of a complete episode. Transcript of “Graduate School vs. Graduate...
Which is correct, toward or towards, meaning in the direction of? If you’re in the United States, the far more common term is toward. This is part of a complete episode. Transcript of “Towards vs. Toward” Hello, you have A Way with...