Yet Another Pet Peeve...

31 May 2007

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1 Min

By: William Shunn

Table of Content

...is when someone says "tenant" but means "tenet." A tenant is an inhabitant. A tenet is a principle.

The building's tenants adhered to the tenets of Zoroastrianism.

Grammar Pet Peeves Spelling

Author

William Shunn

Hugo and Nebula Award nominee. Creator of Proper Manuscript Format, Spelling Bee Solver, Tylogram, and more. Banned in Canada.

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Grammar

Don't Knock It

I was reading a major novel from a major genre publisher last night (okay, it was Half the Blood of Brooklyn by Charlie Huston, from Del Rey), when a character suddenly "knocked" an arrow into his bowstring. Not to knock the book's copy editor, but the

28 Jan 2008

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1 Min

By: William Shunn

Grammar

Almost Snuck That One Past, Eh?

What is wrong with the following sentence (from a New York Times article by Manohla Dargis)? Still, it proved that a studio division could make money, win awards, attract talent and excite the audience, which is why Miramax and all it helped wrought is one of the best things to

22 Jan 2007

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1 Min

By: William Shunn

Grammar

Discretion a Virtue, and Spelling Too

In a recent Craigslist posting, a dominant male businessman requests a Secretary-like secretary who, in addition to being able to take dictation and a good paddling with equal aplomb, must be discrete. One presumes that this distinct and differentiated individual will also be discerning and prudent enough to gently inform

18 Apr 2006

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1 Min

By: William Shunn

Grammar

Tense and Dangling

Would you say the past tense of podcast—and the past participle, for that matter—is podcast or podcasted? My vote is podcast.

23 Feb 2006

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1 Min

By: William Shunn

Yet Another Pet Peeve...

Author

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Don't Knock It

Almost Snuck That One Past, Eh?

Discretion a Virtue, and Spelling Too

Tense and Dangling

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