Monthly Archives: February 2011

Is that irony in your pocket? I couldn’t tell without a punctuation mark.

Think the interrobang is strange? Well, the nonstandard punctuation department is hardly a lonely place. For centuries, humans have been toying with squiggly lines and dots, trying to get them to do more than the jobs of standard punctuation. One … Continue reading

Posted in punctuation | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

Interrobang: Is this the coolest name for a punctuation mark ever‽

In writing, sometimes it is necessary to express both excitement/surprise and disbelief at the same time. The most accepted method of showing these emotions through punctuation is to use both a question mark (?) and an exclamation point (!). Examples: … Continue reading

Posted in punctuation, story time | Tagged , , , | 3 Comments

One space or two?

Lesson: One space or two after a period   This recent Slate article reignited an old battle for typographers, punctuation geeks, and old-school users of typing instruments: Is it one space or two after a period? I hate to break … Continue reading

Posted in style issues | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

All ready already!

Lesson: all ready vs. already   Though all ready and already sound alike, they have different meanings. Luckily, once you learn the rules, it is easy to know which word to use when. All ready means “completely ready.” For example: … Continue reading

Posted in grammar | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Woulda, Shoulda, Coulda

Lesson: Have versus of with should, could, and would   Is it “I should of gone to the movies,” or “I should have gone to the movies”? “Would of” or “would have”? “Could of” or “could have”? A common mistake … Continue reading

Posted in grammar | Tagged , , | Leave a comment