21st Century Grammar Handbook (14 page)

Similarly, the addition of an
exclamation point
creates emphasis when it happens occasionally, but not when it is overdone. So don’t do it too often!

Other
punctuation
marks commonly used to emphasize text are the
dash,
the
ellipsis,
and the
quotation mark.
All these marks have more legitimate uses than emphasis and should be used for those purposes more often than for emphasis. But it is true that an interjected or omitted phrase marked by dashes or ellipses is a sometimes handy tool, just as the “extra” quotation mark can call attention to a word that bears a bit of extra thought from the reader (see
interjection).

It is also possible to use word selection and word order to stress a point or idea (which is close to saying write more forcefully rather than rely on the more mechanical devices noted above). Words that merit special attention might be moved from their more expected or common position to a comprehensible but slightly unusual place in a phrase, clause, or sentence to draw attention to them: “Going home is nice” is probably a stronger expression than “It is nice to be going home.” The rearrangement of words need be no more dramatic or unusual than in this example to achieve adequate emphasis.

The simplest and strongest places for words to draw attention are at the beginning and end of phrases, clauses,
and particularly sentences. Which is why most sentences begin with a
subject
—the thing you most want your reader to pay attention to—and end with an
object,
the next most important thing in the sentence. Right in the middle lies a
verb
—at the center of attention in its own way.

But sometimes more radical tools are needed: “Indeed, interjections—even wholesale
inversions
of word order—can come into play.” Using a
conjunction
or other interjected word at the beginning of a sentence is a modest emphatic device. Similarly, starting a sentence with a word other than the subject can add point to the statement. Similarly again,
repetition
of words in key positions or repeated similar phrase or clause structures can pull a sentence or series of statements out of the ordinary and into the reader’s focus: “Using inversions, choosing interjections, and writing for effect can add punch to your words.”

Depending on how much pizzazz you are looking for or your
audience
can tolerate, you can resort to certain
rhetorical
devices that fairly scream your intent. “Hyperbole” is the intentional exaggeration of something to make a point: “There are millions of people here!” Exclamation points go quite naturally with hyperbole, which should be used with similar caution and restraint. So too with words that border on the limits of taste and acceptability by whatever standards are in force for your audience:
Expletives
of whatever degree of severity or slang can draw attention. Usually they are unwarranted, and always they risk causing dismay or disgust. But, damn the torpedoes, give it a try!

Expletives of the grammatical sort—sentences that begin with “it” or “there” and a form of
“be”
—have often been
seen as a kind of emphasis, since they move the subject from its expected leading position in the sentence. However, any emphasizing effect such sentences might have ever had has long since been lost in overuse. These more formal expletives are now
clichés
of a sort and often emphasize only weak or sloppy writing.

Yet another device for emphasis is the sentence
fragment,
usually a grammatical error but on rare occasions an acceptable method for calling attention to something: “It was dark. Storm clouds. Thunder.” This technique is probably appropriate only to fiction or poetry (if there) or personal correspondence. Fragments are often signaled or emphasized in themselves by the addition of ellipses.

A final device for emphasizing is the use of
auxiliary
verbs: “I do believe this is important.” This method borders on the mechanical devices listed above and should not be abused by overuse. Better to use variety of structure and word choice, attention to placement of key words or phrases, and the selective application of more radical and mechanical devices to make sure that your writing has force and makes its important points clear to your readers.

Ensure.
See
assure.

-er.
When “er” is added to most
adjectives,
it creates their comparative degree: “The cat is fat, but the dog is fatter.” See
comparison.

-est.
The particle or
suffix
“est” is added to
adjectives
to form their
superlative
degree of comparison: “All the
Himalayas are high, but Everest is the highest mountain of all.”

Et al.
This partial
abbreviation
of the
Latin
words “et alia” means “and others” (usually people). Like most such Latinisms, it can be used in academic or very formal prose without much chance of reader incomprehension or distaste. But even in the “highest”
styles,
“et al.” and similar Latinisms are best avoided and replaced by the equivalent English phrase or a clearer and more explicit statement of what is being abbreviated.

The proper place for “et al.,” if anywhere, is in endnotes and footnotes rather than in text. In notes it indicates that other people were involved in the writing, editing, or production of a text: “Dalton, et al.,
Style: A Handbook.”

Although “et al.” comes from the Latin, it is not treated as a foreign phrase and so appears in regular, or
Roman,
type rather than being underlined or put in
italics.
Be careful not to put a
period
after the “et,” but always have one after the “al.”

Etc.
This
abbreviation
of the
Latin
words “et cetera” stands for “and so on.” This is perhaps the most overused abbreviation, often being a written version of the hems, haws, and pauses that dot our speech. Such interruptions of your train of thought communicate little or nothing to your
audience
except the fact that you probably haven’t given enough thought to what you want to say and are filling the gaps in your ideas with meaningless things like “etc.”

Replacing “etc.” with “and so on” gets you out of the
trap of overly formal style, but it doesn’t add much to your weak statement. In short, see “etc.” as a signal that you need to go back and rethink, revise, and amplify what you are saying.

Every day, everyday.
The solidly spelled “everyday” is an
adjective
that suggests commonness, ordinariness, or mundaneness; the open
compound word
“every day” is an
adverb
and means day after day in unending succession: “Connie reads books every day but doesn’t read everyday books.”

Everyday.
See
every day.

Every one, everyone.
The first
phrase,
the open
compound word
“every one,” is usually used as an
adjective
to modify
nouns
and means “all”: “Sarah ate every one of her beans.” The second word is a singular
indefinite pronoun
and means all the people being talked about: “Everyone ate all of his or her beans.” See also
modifier
and
pronoun.

Everyone.
See
every one.

Everything.
Distinguish between the
compound word
“every thing” (which means things one by one: “Sandy picked up every thing in the room no matter how heavy it was”) and the
indefinite pronoun
“everything” (which means all things: “Sandy picked up everything in the room immediately”).

Except.
See
accept.

Exclamation point.
The exclamation point (!) is a
punctuation mark
that is used for emphasizing statements: “You’re telling me!” The exclamation point can appear inside or outside
quotation marks,
depending on the role it plays in the sentence and what is being emphasized. The example sentence correctly puts the exclamation mark inside the quotes since a whole emphasized
sentence
is being quoted in full. If you are quoting speech that is not an exclamation but want to emphasize your feelings about the quoted statement, put the exclamation point outside the quotes: “How disgusting it is to hear words like ‘damn’!”

When the exclamation point ends a quoted statement that is followed by a
phrase
that identifies the speaker, no
comma
should appear after the exclamation mark. WRONG: “‘Be gone!,’ the artist said.” RIGHT: “‘Be gone!’ the artist said.”

The exclamation point can appear inside or outside
parentheses:
“Don’t dare use
expletives
here (like ‘damn’)! I said this (and by heaven, I meant it!) in the meeting.” See
emphasis.

Expletive.
There are two things called “expletives” to think about as you write: strong language and bland introductory words.

Grammatical expletives are bland constructions too often used to introduce sentences. These expletives begin with
“it”
or “there” and are followed by forms of
“be”:
‘There are four of them.’ Although they represent a sort of
emphasis
because they change the most common
order of words
in a
sentence (subject, verb, object),
too many writers have used and overused this device. As a result,
there is little emphasis to be gained from such sentences, which probably should be rewritten when you find them during
revision
or proofreading phases of your writing.

Words beyond the boundaries of good taste (however that is defined by you and the people who will read your writing) can add spice and emphasis to your writing. But such words must be used with the greatest care, as it is impossible to predict the effect they will have on your
audience
or who might be among your readers that you didn’t expect to be there or to offend.

Fall, fell, fallen.
An
irregular verb
in its main,
past tense,
and past
participle
forms.

Fallen.
See
fall.

Farther, further.
The formal distinction between these two words is fading but should be observed in strictly standard statements. Use “farther” to refer to distance and “further” to refer to degree or time: “The farther we walked the more I realized this situation could go no further.”

Feel, felt, felt.
An
irregular verb
in its main,
past tense,
and past
participle
forms. See
linking verbs.

Fell.
See
fall.

Felt.
See feel.

Fewer, less.
The difference between these two words is important but very commonly ignored. By preserving the distinction and using the words properly, you will add precision and
clarity
to your writing and demonstrate to your
audience
that you are an attentive writer fully in command of your language.

“Fewer” refers to things that are easily enumerated one
by one, such as pins, people, or penguins: “Fewer penguins were in the zoo than we expected to see.”

“Less” is used with things that are not easily divisible or that you intend in your writing to be seen as a not easily enumerable mass: “There is less sand in my shoe than I expected. Fewer grains of sand fell out when I took it off than I thought would.” In the first sentence in the example, sand is seen as indistinct mass, while in the second sentence emphasis is put on the number of distinct grains of sand by using “fewer.”

Fight, fought, fought.
An
irregular verb
in its main,
past tense,
and past
participle
forms.

Find, found, found.
An
irregular verb
in its main,
past tense,
and past
participle
forms.

Firstly.
There is no reason to add “ly” to this or other
ordinal numbers,
especially when they are used to
list
things.

Flew.
See
fly.

Flown.
See
fly.

Fly, flew, flown.
An
irregular verb
in its main,
past tense,
and past
participle
forms.

For.
Preposition
governing the
objective case
: “There was a package at the post office for her.”

Forget, forgot, forgotten.
An
irregular verb
in its main,
past tense,
and past
participle
forms.

Forgot.
See
forget.

Forgotten.
See
forget.

Formal English.
See
standard English.

Fought.
See
fight.

Found.
See
find.

Fractions.
When a
number
is divided by another number, the mathematical operation can be represented as a fraction, which is two numbers linked by a slash: “3/5,” “22/143,” “2/3.” In most ordinary writing, simple fractions that represent proportions of things are spelled out rather than written in figures: “The first-graders’ play will take up three-quarters of the program.” But fractions of any kind that are attached to other numbers, that are in lists of numbers, or that represent scientific or technical quantities are usually presented as figures: “22 ½”; “The scores were 10, 9 ¾?, and 6.”