USAGE ERRORS U1 –U 10

C1: GENERALIZATION A generalization is speaking in a general way about groups of people Each individual person has a variety of traits. You should avoid general statements about groups or types of people. You can do this by saying: seemingly or in my opinion. Examples: Boys are interested in football. (Not all boys—some may be interested in art or golf. Some boys are interested in football. It seems most boys are interested in football.

U2 Word Choice Don’t use slang, over-inflated words, simple words, repetitive words in formal papers. If you need to for effect, italicize them. My awesome paper was delivered at the eleventh hour. The party on Friday was tight. The party last Friday was outlandish. The beautiful sky. The awe-inspiring sky. The night was dark. In the darkness were stars. The stars twinkled in the darkness. The morning ended the darkness. The entertainment scheduled for the next expedition of dancing will be classified as Alternative Music. Correction: The next dance performance will be Reggae—which is different than pop. Use words that describe exactly what is in your mind’s eye. The car went down the highway and went in the ditch The 1965 red Ford Mustang careened off Hwy 84 and flipped into the arroyo.

U3: PUNCTUATION ERRORS COMMA ERRORS APOSTOROPHE PERIOD QUOTATIONS ITALICS TITLES OF BOOKS DASHES ETC.

MORTAL SIN OF USAGE ERRORS Thou shall not use texting format in an essay. Thou shall capitalize proper nouns Thou shall always put punctuation inside the quotation marks. Thou shall always use an apostrophe for words of possessions. Thou shalt have no comma splices Thou shalt use a comma between two independent clauses Thou shalt not use a comma between an independent clause and a dependent clause. Thou shalt have comma after and introductory phrase at the beginning of the sentence. Thou shalt have no sentence fragments or run on sentences. Thou subject shall agree with thou verb. Thou shall have parallel form. Thou shall have pronoun reference agreement. Thou shalt use a comma to separate two or more coordinate adjectives. Thou shalt use a comma to separate three or more words, phrases, or clauses written in a series. Thou shalt use a semicolon when you link two independent clause with no connecting words. Thou shalt use a colon for a list, introducing a quotation, or the second part of a title. Thou shalt proofread your paper before sending it to your instructor. MORTAL SIN OF USAGE ERRORS

No Texting Shortcuts in Essays btw u can bring a friend.

Capitalizing Proper Nouns My teacher, Ms. Cotner, is my online instructor for English 111 at the University of New Mexico Taos campus.

Punctuation INSIDE Quotation Marks “To be or not to be,” is a quote by William Shakespeare.

Thou shall always use an apostrophe for words of possessions. My mother’s birthday is Friday. My sisters’ birthdays are on the same day.

Thou shalt have no comma splices A comma splice is sticking two complete sentences together with a comma. You either need to make it two sentences, insert a conjunction preceded by a comma, or use a semi-colon. I like steak, my brother likes fish. I like steak. My brother likes fish. I like steak, and my brother likes fish. I like steak; my brother likes fish.

Thou shalt use a comma between two independent clauses connected by a conjunction. When you have two independent clauses connected by a conjunction, you must use a comma. INCORRECT: I went to the store and I bought bread. CORRECT: I went to the store, and I bought bread. IF ONE OF THE CLAUSES IS DEPENDENT, IN OTHER WORDS, IT DOESN’T HAVE A SUBJECT AND PREDICATE, DON’T USE A COMMA INCORRECT: I went to the store, and bought bread. (no subject—I) CORRECT: I went to the store and bought bread. (no subject--)

Thou shalt have no sentence fragments or run on sentences. A SENTENCE FRAGMENT fails to be a sentence in the sense that it cannot stand by itself. It does not contain even one independent clause. EXAMPLE: After much deliberation. (no subject or very) CORRECTION: After much deliberation, I decided to watch the movie, Captain Fantastic. (Subject is I. Predicate is decided) RUN ON SENTENCES are sentences that contain too many ideas without proper punctuation. EXAMPLE: Yesterday I went to the store bought chips came home and watched television for six hours until I was so sleepy I couldn’t keep my eyes open so I went to bed. CORRECTION: Yesterday, I went to the store, bought chips and came home; whereby, I watched television for six hours until I was so sleepy, I couldn’t keep my eyes open. I, then, went to bed.

Thou subject shall agree with thou verb Subjects and verbs must AGREE with one another in number (singular or plural). Thus, if a subjectis singular, its verb must also be singular; if a subject is plural, its verb must also be plural. EXAMPLES: My dog always growl at the postal carrier. My dog always growls at the postal carrier. Basketballs rolls across the floor. Basketballs roll across the floor. Sugar and flour is needed for the recipe. Sugar and flour are needed for the recipe Neither my dad nor my brothers knows how to ski. Neither my dad nor my brothers know how to ski. Pepperoni and cheese is great on a pizza. Pepperoni and cheese are great on a pizza.

Thou shall have parallel form. The balance between two or more similar words, phrases or clauses is called parallelism in grammar. Parallelism is also called parallel structure or parallel construction. Parallel construction prevents awkwardness, promotes clarity and improves writing style and readability. EXAMPLES: X Nancy likes playing the piano, the trumpet and play the guitar.  Nancy likes the piano, the trumpet and the guitar. X She played basketball, had a shower and gone to school. She played basketball, had a shower and went to school Thou shall have parallel form.

Thou shall have pronoun reference agreement. A pronoun should refer to a specific antecedent, not to a word that is implied but not present in the sentence. EXAMPLE: After braiding Ann's hair, Sue decorated them with ribbons. The pronoun them referred to Ann's braids (implied by the term braiding), but the word braids did not appear in the sentence." (Diana Hacker and Nancy Sommers, Rules for Writers, 7th ed. Bedford/St. Martin's, 2012)  Ambiguous Pronoun Reference If a pronoun can refer to more than one antecedent, revise the sentence to make the meaning clear.- The car went over the bridge just before it fell into the water. EXAMPLE: What fell into the water—the car or the bridge? The revision [ The car went over the bridge just before the bridge fell into the water] makes the meaning clear by replacing the pronoun it with the bridge. Kerry told Ellen, she should be ready soon. Reporting Kerry's words directly, in quotation marks [ Kerry told Ellen, 'I should be ready soon'], eliminates the ambiguity.

Thou shalt use a comma to separate three or more words, phrases, or clauses written in a series. Use commas to separate three or more words, phrases, or clauses in a series. A conjunction goes between the last two items of the series. While some authorities say that the comma before the conjunction is optional, leaving it out may cause confusion, so it is better to include it. EXAMPLE: The street was filled with angry protestors, shouting spectators and police.  The street was filled with angry protestors, shouting spectators, and police.

Thou shalt use a comma to separate two or more coordinate adjectives. Coordinate adjectives are two or more adjectives of equal value that are used to describe the same noun. They are separated by the word 'and' or a comma. Writers know they are working with the coordinate adjective when the adjectives may be written in reverse order with 'and' between them. In the attic we found old thin paper cutouts we used to play with when we were children. The poster depicted a brown-haired blue-eyed child wearing a red denim shirt. For breakfast we ate two oversized blueberry muffins. We bought two dozen boxes of mouth-watering peanut butter Girl Scout cookies. ANSWERS In the attic we found old, thin paper cutouts we used to play with when we were children. The poster depicted a brown-haired, blue-eyed child wearing a red denim shirt. For breakfast we ate two oversized blueberry muffins.(no commas) We bought two dozen boxes of mouth-watering peanut butter Girl Scout cookies. (no commas) Thou shalt use a comma to separate two or more coordinate adjectives.

Thou shalt use a comma to separate three or more words, phrases, or clauses written in a series. Use commas to separate words and word groups in a simple series of three or more items. Example: My estate goes to my husband, son, daughter-in-law, and nephew. Note: When the last comma in a series comes before and or or (after daughter-in-law in the above example), it is known as the Oxford comma. EXAMPLES: INCORRECT: I like bread jelly and ice-cream. CORRECT: I like bread, jelly, and ice-cream.

Thou shalt use a semicolon when you link two independent clause with no connecting words. A semicolon is most commonly used to link (in a single sentence) two independent clauses that are closely related in thought. Use a semicolon between two independent clauses that are connected by conjunctive adverbs or transitional phrases. EXAMPLES Dad is going bald; his hair is getting thinner and thinner. I really like beef, with mushroom sauce; pasta, with Alfredo sauce; and salad, with French dressing.

COLONS are used in sentences to introduce that something follows like a quotation, example or a list EXAMPLES There are two choices at this time: run away or fight. We knew who would win the game: the Eagles He wanted to see three cities in Italy: Rome, Florence and Venice Remember: Two can play at that game. Thou shalt use a colon for a list, introducing a quotation, or the second part of a title.

WRITING WITH POWER TEXTBOOK FOR FURTHER HELP CONSULT YOUR WRITING WITH POWER TEXTBOOK Grammar: Chapter 4, pgs. 614-745 Usage: Chapter 5, pgs. 746-904 Mechanics: Chapter 6, pgs. 904-1014

LAST BUT NOT LEAST… Thou shalt proofread your paper before sending it to your instructor. OR IT WILL BE RETURNED RECEIVING A GRADE OF A ZERO