RULES OF THUMB FOR DICTION from Grammar Shots by Mamie Webb Hixon Created by April Turner

DICTION A—used before words and letters with an initial consonant sound Ex: a CPA, a historical event AN—used before words and letters with an initial vowel sound Ex: an MBA, an honorable man ALOT—incorrect spelling for A LOT

Ex: I graciously accept your invitation. ACCEPT—verb: to take Ex: I graciously accept your invitation. EXCEPT—verb: to omit; preposition: but Ex: Mothers of small children are excepted from jury duty. Ex: Everyone was excused except Joe.

Ex: Most good advice falls on deaf ears. ADVISE—verb ADVICE—noun Ex: Most good advice falls on deaf ears. ADVISE—verb Ex: The protestors were advised to submit a list of their grievances.

AFFECT—verb: to influence or to alter Ex: The noise affects my concentration. EFFECT—noun: result; verb: to bring about Ex: His speech had a positive effect on me. Ex: The President has effected a new tax law.

ALRIGHT—incorrect spelling for ALL RIGHT ALMOST—adverb Ex: We sold almost all the tickets. MOST—adjective or pronoun Ex: We sold most of the tickets.

AMONG—used for relationships involving MORE THAN TWO people or things Ex: There is a silent closeness among the family members. BETWEEN—used for relationships involving ONLY TWO people or things Ex: Lois and Hattie had only fifty cents between them.

AMOUNT—used with singular (mass) nouns Ex: amount of work, amount of credit NUMBER—used with plural (countable) nouns Ex: number of classes, number of mistakes

AS, AS IF, AS THOUGH—used before clauses Ex: It looks as if (not like) it’s going to rain. Ex: He acts as though (not like) he has Alzheimer’s disease. LIKE—preposition used to introduce a phrase, not a clause Ex: His features are unique like a fingerprint. Ex: It looks like rain.

BE SURE AND—misused for BE SURE TO TRY AND—misused for TRY TO COULD OF—misused for COULD HAVE SHOULD OF—misused for SHOULD HAVE MIGHT OF—misused for MIGHT HAVE WOULD OF—misused for WOULD HAVE

DIFFERENT THAN—used only when a clause follows Ex: The old plantation is different than it used to be. DIFFERENT FROM—used always except when a clause follows Ex: Her hairdo is different from yours.

DUE TO—used to introduce ADJECTIVE phrases; means “caused by” Ex: His mistakes were due to carelessness. BECAUSE OF—used to introduce ADVERB phrases; means “as a result of” Ex: He was dismissed because of his dishonesty.

DUE TO THE FACT THAT—misused and wordy for BECAUSE ENTHUSE/ENTHUSED—colloquialisms for ENTHUSIASTIC

FEWER—used with countable nouns Ex: fewer cigarettes, fewer people LESS—used with mass nouns or general amounts Ex: less time, less money

IRREGARDLESS—misused for REGARDLESS HOPEFULLY—used as an adverb meaning “in a HOPEFUL MANNER,” not as a sentence modifier Ex: The children waited hopefully for the packages to arrive. WRONG: Hopefully, the team will win. IRREGARDLESS—misused for REGARDLESS

KIND OF/SORT OF—correctly used preceding NOUNS, NOT ADJECTIVES IS WHEN/IS WHERE—should NOT be used to introduce an explanation or a definition Ex: Plagiarism occurs when (not is when) a writer presents the thoughts and ideas of another author as his own. KIND OF/SORT OF—correctly used preceding NOUNS, NOT ADJECTIVES Ex: I enjoy reading this kind of magazine. WRONG: The movie was kind of boring. CORRECT: The movie was rather boring.

LEAD AND LED—Lead (pronounced “leed”) means “to go first LEAD AND LED—Lead (pronounced “leed”) means “to go first.” Its principal parts are lead, leads, led (rhymes with red), and (have) led. Ex: Priests lead lives of celibacy. Ex: The man led a life of celibacy before he became a priest. The homonym for led is a noun. Ex: The lead in this pencil is broken.

LEND—verb: to allow the use of (lending, lent, [have] lent) Ex: The credit union lends (not loans) money to members only. Ex: I lent (not loaned) my book to her last week. LOAN—noun: something lent for temporary use Ex: I need to establish credit so that I can be eligible for a loan.

LIE—verb: to rest (LYING, LAY, [have] LAIN Ex: I lie on the couch every day. Ex: I lay on the couch for hours yesterday. Ex: The sweater is still lying on the couch. LAY—verb: to put (LAYING, LAID, [have] LAID) Ex: Where did he lay my brush? Ex: I must have laid it down somewhere yesterday. Ex: I’m always laying things down and forgetting where I laid them.

PRINCIPAL—noun: chief official; adjective: foremost, major PRINCIPLE—noun: axiom, rule Ex: Her principal reasons for resigning were her principles of right and wrong.

REASON IS BECAUSE/REASON WAS BECAUSE—misused for REASON IS THAT/REASON WAS THAT Ex: The reason he was promoted is that (not because) he worked exceptionally hard.

RISE—verb: to go up (RISING, ROSE, [have] RISEN) Ex: She must rise early in the morning to get to work on time. RAISE—verb: to push up (RAISING, RAISED, [have] RAISED) Ex: The landlord must raise the rent to cover an increase in taxes.

SIT—verb: to be seated (SITTING, SAT, [have] SAT) Ex: Good students usually sit on the front row. SET—verb: to put, to place (SETTING, SET, [have] SET) Ex: Please set the paperwork on my desk. Ex: Try to set a positive example for young people to follow.

SUPPOSE TO/USE TO—incorrect spellings for SUPPOSED TO and USED TO THAN—conjunction Ex: Amy is a better tennis player than I. THEN—adverb of time (often misused for THAN) Ex: The cashier rang up our sale; then he gave us our change.

LET’S PRACTICE!!! I took the advise of my counselor and dropped the class. ADVICE A employee with a MBA earns more than an internist. AN employee, AN MBA Alot of students come to college with no clear notion of what they want to do. A LOT Medical schools except fewer than half the students who apply. ACCEPT

At noon, we runners were already to start At noon, we runners were already to start. When I reached the halfway mark, my body did not feel alright. ALL READY; ALL RIGHT Most all the Republicans stood all together to give their support to the proposed amendment. ALMOST all Among the two girls, Madison ran faster. BETWEEN The amount of people in the hall was extraordinary. NUMBER

My students act like they have acute mental disorders. AS IF Whenever you’re depressed, you should try and lose yourself in science fiction. TRY TO I should of backed out of the agreement. SHOULD HAVE Why is your copy of the book different than mine? DIFFERENT FROM

Due to the Presidents’ Day celebration, the library will be closed. BECAUSE OF Due to the fact that her car wouldn’t start, Charlotte was late for class. BECAUSE This drink contains less calories than the sparkling water. FEWER She was enthused about entering the contest. ENTHUSIASTIC

An honorarium IS a fee paid to a professional for… Hopefully, his pains will subside. I HOPE THAT Irregardless of the objections, all students in Comp I classes are required to do Lab work. REGARDLESS An honorarium is when a professional receives a fee for services rendered. An honorarium IS a fee paid to a professional for… When I got off the roller coaster, I felt sort of sick. RATHER, SOMEWHAT

Joanne lead her sister into a sad world of crime. LED The bank will not loan me the money until I establish credit. LEND He laid on the floor, wondering why stupid people should be allowed to vote. LAY You are my principle problem. PRINCIPAL

The reason she left the office is because she forgot something in her car. IS THAT The curtain was about to raise on the last act of the senior play. RISE Do set down and tell me all about your summer vacation. SIT Dick is suppose to be interviewed by the governor for a position at the state level. SUPPOSED TO The trail went farther into the bush then the hunter expected. THAN

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