It is generally accepted that there are five major types of phrases in the English language, one for each of the main parts of speech. Phrases are a group of words that act as a part of a speech but cannot stand alone in order to form a complete sentence because they do not include both a subject and a predicate. You can find out more about phrases in our guide to phrases. Our free printable cheat sheet presents the five major types of phrases together with information about how to spot them and what punctuation rules you should bear in mind when using them. To download a free copy of the Five Types of Phrases cheat sheet, simply click on the image below.
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20 Ill-Conceived Slogans That are Unintentionally Brilliant
Advertising copywriting is a hard task. Formulating the perfect combination of words to sum up a product or service while avoiding all innuendos and insults is no mean feat and these slogan writers have failed miserably in their quest to sell a serious product. Luckily, these genius slogans didn’t escape the attention of those of us who prey on mistakes. Here are our favorite slogans of all time. Let us know if you’ve come across any gems.
Proofreading: The President Will Thank You for It
Writing stories worthy of newspaper print is actually quite challenging and journalists deserve much more credit than they get. Capturing an audience’s attention takes real skill and journalistic flair but, if all else fails, our budding reporters have the option to forgo a proofreading service and make headlines for completely different reasons. This particular gem proves that sometimes just one small letter really can make all the difference.
A Massive Compilation of the Most Horrendous English Translations Ever Recorded by Man
As the world gets smaller, the art of translation becomes all the more imperative to our ability to communicate with the people on the other side of the world whom we don’t really like but will tolerate because they are not Canadian. Thankfully, when a non-native speaker of a language translates something, there is always … Read more
What is a Double Negative?
Source: www.failblog.com What is a double negative and do you need to care? The quick answer to this is yes. Some people believe that there is a place for them in written English and others argue that they are non-standard and should not be used. Regardless of your opinion, you need to be able to … Read more
Possibly the Most Important Missing Space of All Time
Forget gender planning, that is so yesterday. No, these days disruptive innovation is conquering new heights, and now your local neighborhood crèche brings you the latest in kindergarten gender reassignment surgery. If you got a boy and were desperately hoping for a sweet little girl, fear not. Drop your kid off here for the day … Read more
Splendidly Smug Cover Letter That May Not Bode Well for Your Job Prospects
This totally outlandish cover letter is actually quite inspiring. On face value, it actually checks all the boxes: grabs attention (check), focuses on why the candidate is different (double check) and avoids cliché phrases that have no real substance (mega-check). However, it’s safe to say that this type of letter isn’t going to get you … Read more
How to Write a Formal Letter: 8 Top Tips
There are occasions in everyone’s life when they need to write a formal letter. Whether you are responding to a job advertisement, complaining about the service you received in a public establishment or appealing for help from your local political representative, there are some occasions where you need to know how to construct a letter … Read more
When is it Okay to Use Contractions in Formal Writing?
Many people avoid using contractions in formal writing because they are under the impression that contractions are only appropriate for casual writing and that they constitute non-standard grammar. Are they really representative of sloppy writing? When is it okay to use contractions? Many automatic grammar-checking software packages will produce an error if you use a … Read more
When to Indent Paragraphs
Questions about when to indent paragraphs may constitute typographic minutia, but getting it right is important nonetheless, especially if you intend to produce writing that will be professionally published. Many people believe that every single paragraph in a piece of text should be indented. This is actually unnecessary. You should use indentation to indicate a … Read more
19 Signs That Prove That McDonald’s Employees are Morons
Perhaps it’s the proximity to unidentified chemical foodstuffs that poisons the brain, or maybe the inane repetition of the same tired phrases has slowly driven them all mad. Regardless, you would think that the billions of dollars this major corporation garners from the billions of worshippers of those golden arches, that they could afford to … Read more
26 Completely Unforgivable Spelling Mistakes
Human beings are by our very nature flawed; we are destined to make mistakes at every turn. While some proofreading errors are particularly cringeworthy, others are completely unforgivable, like these…
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When to Use a Colon: 9 Simple Rules
It is important that you know when to use a colon, as good writing in English will usually make use of this punctuation mark. A colon consists of two dots, one above the other, and it should not be confused with the semi-colon, which looks similar but has very different uses.
There are several rules that are useful when you are learning when to use a colon.
When to use a colon: Nine Simple Rules
Should You Use a Colon or a Comma Before Quotation Marks?
Many people do not understand whether they should use a colon or a comma before quotation marks, to introduce direct speech. In truth, it doesn’t really matter, and if you are introducing a quotation by using words such as “he said,” “she commented,” “they asserted,” etc. using either a comma before the quotation mark or a … Read more
When to Use Commas: 15 Comma Rules Everyone Should Know
Many people find it difficult to understand when to use commas. Comma rules appear to be extremely complicated, and it is very easy to make mistakes when using them. In this article, we present a comprehensive list of 15 comma rules that you should know in order to master the use of commas in your writing.
An Unbelievable Twist of Fate That Superbly Demonstrates the Real Meaning of the Word Irony
The word ironic is one of the most abused words in the English language. Isn’t it ironic? Actually, no, you can learn why here: 10 words that you think you know the meaning of, but probably don’t.
One story that perfectly illustrates the true meaning of the word irony was presented during the 1994 annual Darwin Awards ceremony. The Darwin Awards commemorate individuals whose foolish and idiotic behavior leads to their own death and simultaneously protects the gene pool of the human race.
Is it Really Possible to be this Stupid?
One disappointed would-be teacher just can’t believe that the Commonwealth of Massachusetts actually dared to refuse her entry to a teacher training program. It seems that she completely failed her tests for educator licensure.
I, for the life of me, cannot fathom why they would refuse such a fine literacy perfectionist. If she failed a question about chocolate, God knows how she would have fared if she had undergone a grammar test.
40 Ridiculously Cringeworthy Mistakes That Prove Punctuation and Proofreading Matter
Failing to use a punctuation mark, using it in the wrong place, or failing to proofread is one of the most effective methods of transforming a great piece of writing into something that sucks.
These absolutely delightful examples of the way in which punctuation can completely change the meaning of an intended message, are cringeworthy, but brilliant. These guys deserve medals for turning otherwise dull and mundane signs into something that we can all have a laugh at. Editing and proofreading really does matter!
The 15 Lamest Excuses for Spelling Mistakes on Facebook Ever Conceived
If you love nothing better than a laugh at other people’s mistakes, look no further than the world’s largest social network. Some of these people haven’t actually made a mistake, though; it seems they have an excuse for their esteemed ignoramus status. It matters not that these excuses are as ridiculous as a glow-in-the-dark toilet seat…
Why You Should Never Diss Your Teacher on Facebook, Especially if You Can’t Spell
This guy was clearly not a fan of either grammar lessons or his grammar teacher at school. Shame really; a bit more concentration in class could well have prevented him from looking like a prize idiot in front of all his Facebook friends… go Mrs. Johanson!
5 Complicated Punctuation Marks Explained in One Simple Picture
Punctuation marks are pretty complicated and getting your head around them won’t happen overnight. One of the most common uses of many punctuation marks is to give the reader an indication of when they should pause or take a breath. However, such pauses need to be managed carefully: you certainly do not want to leave your reader hyperventilating after a continual stream of shallow breaths forced by over-punctuation. Nor do you want them to be gasping for breath at the end of a long sentence that completely omits any punctuation marks.
It is also important that you use the right punctuation mark to correspond with the length of pause that the sentence requires. Here’s a quick overview of five punctuation marks that can be used to denote pauses, together with their corresponding duration of pause.
If you think you could benefit from more help with your punctuation, take a look at our free punctuation cheat sheet.
Quite Possibly the Worst Letter Ever Sent From a School Teacher
This letter was sent from none other than the Director of Curriculum from a city public school in Alabama. Full of unnecessary quotation marks, spelling mistakes, and absolutely appalling sentence structure, this must be one of the worst letters ever sent from a teacher to the pupils’ parents in the history of formal educational establishments.
He may have been shedding tears of joy, we are shedding tears of dismay!
When to Capitalize: A Free Printable Cheat Sheet
Knowing when to capitalize and the basic rules of capitalization does not come easily to anyone, and if you find that you are never quite sure which words should start with a capital letter and which should not, don’t worry, you are certainly not alone. Approximately 80% of the documents that are submitted for our editing and proofreading service contain at least one capitalization error, so it is pretty clear that those pesky capital letters confuse even the smartest people.
To help you, we have put together a capitalization cheat sheet that should give you an idea of when to capitalize. It contains a list of the common situations within which you should, and should not, start a given word with a capital letter. It’s free to print out and keep… so now you have no excuses!
13 Extremely Unfortunate Abbreviations That You Couldn’t Show Your Mother
The English language is being increasingly condensed; sometimes it is appropriate, most of the time it isn’t. Here are 13 occasions when the human tendency to condense words resulted in extremely unfortunate abbreviations, for which we are extremely grateful.
As usual with these things, the contents of some of these pictures are not for the easily offended… the clue’s in the title.
Need help with your written English? Take a look at our proofreading services.
