And, perhaps a related question is: why do so many people dislike grammar, to the point where the dislike spreads to grammarians and English teachers and – dare I add – business writing consultants?

Some examples:

• In every business writing course I teach, when we start to address grammar and syntax, I can feel participants become tense. I need to draw them back in with reassurance the grammar we will review is not punitive or judgmental. It’s about clarity. I have to be careful not to reopen old wounds inflicted by a harsh grammar teacher so many encountered somewhere in their educational paths. Participants often need to vent about this, the scars run so deep. (I empathize, as I was truly tortured by Sister Rose Carmel, my high school English teacher. It’s amazing my love of writing endured past her dungeon-like classroom.)
• Two weeks ago, I coached a highly successful pharmaceutical scientist. He apologized profusely for his “poor writing.” After some probing, I realized his writing ability is quite good. His analytical skills are exceptional. He made two consistent grammar errors, which were easily corrected. Too often, I meet with technical people who believe they will never “become good writers” because of self-defeating perceptions, fostered by easily correctable grammar issues.

Some business writing consultants recommend that business writing be organized primarily by a “GPS” process, based on G=Grammar, P=Punctuation, and S=Syntax.

I disagree.

• In business writing, content is critical. If we write a status report with perfect grammar, syntax and punctuation, but omit a software defect from the report, the cost implications, errors, and team impact is exponential.
• If we write a sales letter that is grammatically perfect, but reflects a smug tone, we alienate a potential client.
• A customer service letter that omits the action needed to resolve a customer dispute, no matter how grammatically perfect, still fails.

Grammar and syntax and punctuation are the backbone of language structure. These rules allow each of us to speak and write our common language. Language is continually evolving, which makes it so interesting. I do not mean to imply that grammar is not important. Grammar is very important. But, a full mastery of grammar alone does not mean one is an effective business writer. Conversely, grammar errors are very easy to train away.

Audience perception, content, organization, structure, and style and tone and grammar all matter.

And, of all these requisite skills, grammar is the easiest to correct. It’s simply a matter of learning correct rules and then establishing a habit of practice for that rule in your writing.

I believe we impede business writing when grammar takes precedence over other equally important elements of business writing. And, we alienate many business people from enjoying writing when we professionals wield smarmy judgment along with our red correction pens.

Grammar is an important element in writing. It’s part of a writing process that all business people can learn to manage well, along with the many other business tasks they so competently manage.

If you need grammar training, this course will correct any errors. Do not worry about grammar; errors are easily corrected:

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This controversy probably exists because there is no grammar “rule.” Just convention. Let this convention guide your usage.

To define: a serial comma is the optional comma used at the end of a list. The most common conjunctions in a list are “and” and “or.” The serial comma is the comma that comes before the conjunction:

I like cookies, cupcakes(,) and gumdrops. (The comma before and is the serial comma.)

Let me tip my hand, and give you my opinion on this business grammar issue, and then I’ll explain why:

• The customary convention in business writing is to use the serial comma.

• The customary convention in journalism is to omit it, historically to conserve space.

• The British tend to use serial commas less than Americans.

• It is both correct to use or not use a serial comma, so what is most important is consistency. (And, be prepared for some editors to correct you, regardless of which option you choose.)

I recommend using the serial comma in business writing, since it is the customary convention. And, to me, it is much easier to consistently follow this convention, than to omit it most of the time and add it in when clarity is needed. Keep it simple.

Let’s look at examples where the serial comma clarifies:

When stocking your desk, be sure you have pens, pencils, paper clips(,) and pins. (The comma after pens in parentheses is the serial comma.)

If you do not use a serial comma in this sentence, meaning is still quite clear, but you might wonder if you need to buy a box of paper clips and pins mixed together:

When stocking your desk, be sure you have pens, pencils, paper clips and pins.

Let’s examine a more ambiguous example:

The job involves restocking shelves, cleaning and serving customers. (Without a serial comma before and, the sentence suggests the person doing this job will be responsible for cleaning the customers in addition to serving them.)

Another example illustrating confusion that results by omitting the serial comma:

“To reduce stress, I like running, yoga, meditation and visualization and quiet time alone.” Notice I omitted the serial comma here. Let’s see how this example works:

• No comma: To reduce stress, I like (running,) (yoga,) (meditation and visualization and quiet) time.

• Comma: To reduce stress, I like (running,) (yoga,) (meditation and visualization,) and (quiet) time.

Recommendation

Use the serial comma consistently in your business writing. Only omit it in those rare instances when it muddies meaning. The two guide books I most value for business writing advocate its use: The Gregg Reference Manual and The Elements of Style. Only newspaper style guides advocate omitting it, to save space.

Grammarians love to debate this issue, and there will never be full agreement, but for business writing, the convention is clear: use the serial comma.

What is your opinion on this hotly debated grammar issue? Do you favor using the serial comma?

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I noticed in your post about the power of short words in business writing, you capitalized “Bible.” Why?

Answer:

In that instance, I was referring to the Christian Bible, so it is a proper noun. Proper nouns are capitalized, just like London.

Additionally, works regarded as sacred should be capitalized (but do not quote, italicize, or underline). The Gregg Reference Manual provides good examples:

• the King James Bible
• the Qur’an
• the Talmud
• the Torah
• The Lord’s Prayer
• Hebrews 13:8
• Kaddish
• the Sermon on the Mount

Do not capitalize bible when the work it refers to is not sacred, or being used as a proper noun:

Example: The Business Writer’s Handbook is considered the bible of business writing.

It’s both clarifying and funny. She wore a purple wrist band to remind her of her pledge not to complain. The problem? The bracelet omitted a needed hyphen, prompting Louise’s grammar complaint:

Argh! I just can’t stand it anymore! I’ve been doing this purple-bracelet “stop complaining” exercise for almost three weeks now (and am on my record 5th day of not complaining) but I can’t hold it in any longer because every time I look at the half inch of rubber encircling my wrist I want to gouge a little hyphen between “Complaint” and “Free.” It’s “A Complaint-Free World,” people, not “A Complaint Free World”! Oh the irony of complaining about the “complaint free” bracelet. But really!

Hyphens are very complicated. I agree with Grammar Girl’s recommendation to check a dictionary and style guide when possible. When it’s not, fall back on this baseline rule:

Hyphenate compound modifiers when they come before a noun, and don’t hyphenate them when they come after a noun.

Louise illustrated this rule nicely:

Why is this? Here’s my best explanation: hyphens group modifiers together for clarity. Say you have a red brick house. Is it a red house? Yes. Is it a brick house? Yes. Therefore, no hyphen is needed. However, what if you have a “gluten free recipe.” Is it a gluten recipe? No. Is it a free recipe? No. Therefore, a hyphen is needed to group the modifiers together so you know the recipe has no gluten. It’s a gluten-free recipe.

Why then do you not hyphenate after the noun, e.g. “the recipe is gluten free”? The temptation is to throw in extra hyphens just in case, e.g. “the recipe is gluten-free.” But it’s just as bad to over-hyphenate as to under-hyphenate, and it really isn’t necessary. Here’s why: when the modifier comes after the noun, it’s only modifying the one word immediately after it. So we ask ourselves, “What kind of ‘free’ is it?” and the answer is “gluten.” It’s gluten free.

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Even a careful study of root meaning does not shed much light. Consider these two excellent sources:

Merriam-Webster Dictionary:

biannual   • \bye-AN-yuh-wul\  •  adjective

1.  : occurring twice a year
2.  : occurring every two years

Example Sentence:
The report recommended that we begin conducting a more frequent annual safety review rather than our current biannual review.

Did you know?
When we describe something as “biannual,” we can mean either that it occurs twice a year or that it occurs once every two years. So how does someone know which particular meaning we have in mind? Well, unless we provide them with a contextual clue, they don’t. Some people prefer to use “semiannual” to refer to something that occurs twice a year, reserving “biannual” for things that occur once every two years. This practice is hardly universal among English speakers, however, and “biannual” remains a potentially ambiguous word. Fortunately, English also provides us with “biennial,” a word that specifically refers to something that occurs every two years or that lasts or continues for two years.

The Columbia Guide for Standard English:

The bi- prefix on biannual “divides into two,” so that biannual usually means “twice a year.” Biennial comes from a Latin word whose prefix bi- meant “two,” so biennial means “every two years,” as in a biennium, “a two-year period.” Semiannual also means “every half year,” or “twice a year.” Biannual is almost a hopeless case, conveying only the idea of two, but not specifying when; semiannual is a little more helpful, suggesting as it does “half-yearly.” Make certain that context makes your meaning clear, no matter which word you use; in fact, given the potential for confusion, half-yearly and two-yearly may be better than any of these.

Solution:

In business writing, clarity is critical. So, instead of using the ambiguous term “biannual,” simply clarify your meaning:

- Reports will be issued twice a year.
- Reports will be issued every two years.

Remember, in business writing, one should write to express, not to impress. Use the descriptor that most accurately conveys meaning for your reader. Avoiding ambiguous terms helps your reader know exactly what to expect.

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My wife and I each own a Blackberry. If we place them together in Blackberry harmony on our table, do they become Blackberries or Blackberrys, in plural form? In other words, which is correct:

*”The Blackberries are on the table.”

Or

*”The Blackberrys are on the table.”

ANSWER:

Most words ending in “y” become plural by adding “ies.” However, this rule does not apply to family names. For example, the plural of Kennedy is Kennedys, not Kennedies.

Since the term “Blackberry” in this context refers far more to a brand name than a piece of fruit, you should follow the form that makes a family name plural. Therefore, the correct pluralization of the Blackberry phone is Blackberrys.

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According to the New York Times, despite the fact that “His BlackBerry was constantly crackling with e-mails,” Obama’s outgoing messages “are generally crisp, properly spelled and free of symbols or emoticons.”

So, if you want to emulate a highly skilled communicator, be like Obama and keep your electronic communication top notch.

John’s is possessive so it needs the apostrophe, but thing’s is plural only (not possessive), so it needs no apostrophe. This should read: John’s Things.

I so wish I had my camera with me this morning because I saw two signs alerting shoppers they would find CDs in the area. They read:

CD’s and CDs

I had to laugh, wondering if the sign maker thought by presenting both forms, one was sure to be correct!

Non-possesive plurals do not need an apostrophe. The correct sign is: CDs

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This question addresses Inanimate Possessives. Before we look at Inanimate Possessives specifically, here is the main use for using an apostrophe to show possession in the English language:
1. Showing “contractions” – i.e. where letters have been omitted from words to make them shorter (was not to wasn’t).
2. Indicating “possession” – i.e. that something belongs to someone or something.

The Gregg Reference Manual (which I highly recommend) explains:

As a rule, nouns referring to inanimate things should not be in the possessive. Use an “of” phrase instead.
- the bottom of the barrel (NOT: the barrel’s bottom)
- the wording of the agreement (NOT: the agreement’s wording
- the lower level of the terminal (NOT: the terminal’s lower level)

However, in reference to time and measurement, and in phrases implying personification, possessive form has come to be accepted usage:
- a day’s notice
- an hour’s work
- two years’ progress (plural possessive)
- two weeks’ salary (plural possessive)

An easy way to remember this is to realize that possession does not belong only to people and places, but also to time. Here are logical examples:

- The end of the journey = the journey’s end
- In the time of 1 hour = in an hour’s time
- In the time of 5 hours = in 5 hours’ time (both possessive and plural)
- In the time of a month = in a month’s time (it is only one month)

ANSWER:

In two days’ time, the answer posted will be grammatically correct. (not two days time)

Think this over for a week’s time, and it will make much sense. (not a weeks time)

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The it’s vs its confusion is actually a very easy correction because an apostrophe is only used in the contracted form of it’s:

* It’s is a contraction of it is or it has:

- Darlene has been pushing the Kanter proposal for all it’s worth. (…for all it is worth.)

- It’s too late. (It is too late.)

- It’s been exhausting. (It has been exhausting.)

* Its is a possessive pronoun, so you do not need an apostrophe in this possessive form:

- Let us bring in a consultant to analyze the Acme proposal and assess its worth. (Here, its is a possessive pronoun; no apostrophe should be used.)

- Leave the manuscript with its owner. (Possessive)

There is a second error in this sign:

Breath: respiration (noun) ; Breathe (verb): to inhale and exhale

The sign should read:

This strange looking mammal can hold its breath under water for 10 minutes while resting.

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