GRAMMAR

Here’s how to nail the pluralization of your name—even if there’s a possessive involved.

To Apostrophe or Not to Apostrophe: How to Pluralize Your Last Name

Pluralizing a last name can seem confusing—and it gets even more confusing when you want to make a name both plural and possessive. Here’s how to correctly do both.

She's happy because she finally understands that she's lying down—not laying down.

Lay vs. Lie: When to Use Each

The ‘laying vs. lying’ situation is tricky—but direct objects can help.

Jive vs. Jibe vs. Gibe: What’s the Difference?

This information might not jibe with what you’ve heard before.

What Does "The" Mean?

It’s the most frequent word in the English language, accounting for around 4 percent of all the words we write or speak. But what the word 'the' means is surprisingly complicated.

These words are tripping up Google users.

‘Congradulations’: The Most Commonly Misspelled Words in the U.S.

Belive it or not, spelling errors are a fact of life.

You just know which one Goldilocks is going for.

Em Dash vs. En Dash vs. Hyphen: What’s the Difference?

Deciding when to use an em dash instead of some other punctuation mark is largely up to you—except in situations that call for an en dash or hyphen.

Compliment vs. Complement: What’s the Difference?

If you’re talking about a free hotel breakfast, the word you want is ‘complimentary.’

Recurring vs. Reoccurring: What’s the Difference, and When Should I Use Each?

Yes, they’re synonyms. But there’s a little more to the semantic story of ‘recur’ vs. ’reoccur’ than that.

Stink vs. Stank vs. Stunk: What's the Difference, and When Should I Use Each One?

When does something stink, when did you believe something stank, and when might it have stunk?

The situation has clearly gone from bad to worse.

How to Use Worse vs. Worst Correctly in 6 Common Phrases

What's the 'worse' or 'worst' that could happen if you use the wrong form of this commonly used word? Here's what to know.

Is “As I Lay Dying” Grammatically Incorrect?

Musician Sufjan Stevens recently jumped on the “open letter to Miley Cyrus” bandwagon with a tongue-in-cheek critique of her grammar in the song “Get It Right.”

Where vs. Whereas: When to Use Each One Correctly

One historical definition of ‘whereas’ is ‘preamble.’ But that’s probably not the one you’re looking for.

If you're writing a conditional statement, then you should use then.

Then vs. Than: When to Use Which

‘More than’ or ‘more then’ isn’t a matter of opinion. But there was a time when they were interchangeable.

Disinterested vs. Uninterested: What’s the Difference?

Should you use ‘disinterested’ or ‘uninterested’? It depends on the context, the era, and how much you care about the grammar sticklers in your life.

Hopefully this article will have a positive effect on your grammar skills.

Affect vs. Effect: How to Use Each Word Correctly

Affect or effect? These examples—and a grammar hack from TikTok—will help you remember the difference.

If you use the wrong one, you can always claim it was a typo.

Semicolon vs. Colon: When to Use Each One

Semicolon-versus-colon is one of the most fearsome face-offs in the grammar game. Here’s how to come out on top.

Insure vs. Ensure: What's the Difference?

Insure and ensure started out as alternate spellings of the same word, but today they have slightly different definitions.

She's ready to captivate her classmates with a rousing debate on each vs. every.

Each vs. Every: What’s the Difference?

There’s a reason why “Every of my feet” sounds so wrong, and why “Almost each foot” is equally weird.

"May I please use can when asking permission to do something?"

Can vs. May: When to Use Each Term

Many a teacher has reinforced the grammar rule that ‘may’ is for asking permission—not ‘can.’ But there’s a little more to it than that.

Grave Error: A Man Attempting to Fake His Own Death Was Caught Because of a Typo

Robert Berger tried to avoid a jail sentence by forging a death certificate. Unfortunately, there is no such thing as the Office of Vital Statistics and Regsitry.

This woman systematically drinks orange juice while her creative juices are flowing.

Systemic vs. Systematic: How to Use Each Word Correctly

Something systemic—like a disease—means it’s present throughout a system. ‘Systematic’ refers to how a system is operated.

Please, thumbs, step away from the spacebar.

In a Bold Move, Microsoft Office Is Now Flagging Double Spaces Between Sentences as an Error

How many spaces should we include after a period? Microsoft is now quietly telling us that the answer is one.

She may decide to use might in her essay.

May vs. Might: When to Use Each Word

'May' and 'might' are two modal verbs that are often used interchangeably, but there are grammar rules governing which one is technically correct.

What the Death of the Apostrophe Protection Society Means for Grammarians

The head of the society signed off for good, declaring that “The ignorance and laziness present in modern times have won!”

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