1. Kind of and Sort of; Could of, Should of, and Would of Mini-lesson #56 FROM THE UWF WRITING LAB’S 101 GRAMMAR MINI-LESSONS SERIES

2. Kind of and Sort of In informal speech, kind of and sort of are often used incorrectly as adverbs meaning rather, somewhat, nearly, or almost. INCORRECT: I am kind of (or sort of) depressed about my grade in English. CORRECT: I am rather depressed about my grade in English.

3. Kind of and Sort of Cont. Kind of and sort of are used correctly as type of, preceding a noun. I enjoy this kind of movie. This is my favorite sort of dessert.

4. Could of, Should of, and Would of Could of, should of, and would of are non- standard written forms of could have, should have, and would have. The contraction ‘ve (for have) is sometimes incorrectly written as of. INCORRECT: He could of been accepted to any college he desired. CORRECT: He could’ve (or could have) been accepted to any college he desired.

5. PRACTICE, PRACTICE, PRACTICE! I am (kind of/sort of/rather) worried about the midterm exam. Rather He (could of/should of/could have) told you he was going to be late. Could have

6. MORE PRACTICE! After work, the teacher is (kind of/rather) tired. rather You look (kind of/rather) bewildered. rather

7. That was (kind of/rather) fun!