The Hopper Guy has 30 years’ editing experience and a passion for precise language. Click the blue headline to see the whole post.
The most famous style guides include the Chicago Manual of Style (most widely used in academic publishing) and the Associated Press Stylebook (most widely used in reporting and advertising). Below…
Editors see things that you don’t. They know how language works and what rules govern its use. And those rules vary. Sometimes to communicate what you want as clearly as…
What we talk about when we talk about language Any thing is called a "noun" as a part of speech. Any action is called a "verb.". Anything that describes another…
The number of words is not what conveys meaning; the choice of words does. My cutting your words does not harm your meaning; leaving just the right one makes it…
Why do we need to follow editors' rules? Writing is sustained speech. Nonverbal cues are not there when people are not talking in one another's company, so grammar rules replace…
"The shear quality of the program" I think The right word is "sheer" as in "unqualified," but I like the idea that if you want to leave the program early,…
I just got my first freelance assignment to help with publishing a study protocol. Journals are encouraging publishing of protocols from studies that are funded but not yet begun…
A lingua franca is any set of language words and constructs that are agreed upon by a set of people. For example, for academics it is lingua franca to say…
A while ago my brother, an environmental planner, had to give a presentation about proposed radio antenna towers. He told me that the plural is antennas for radio towers, though…
When is a plural verb not a plural verb? When it's the subjunctive form. Compare these sentences. "If I was drunk at the time I made the offer, then it…