grammar | Aqua Vita

12.08.2009
Naked Writing

Four More Writing Mistakes You Shouldn't Make

Published by Michelle Pierce under Naked Writing

This is not the first time I’ve touched on this subject, and I doubt it’ll be the last. Here are four more writing mistakes you should avoid:

Peak/Peek/Pique

A pet peeve of mine is when I see people use the phrase “peak my interest” or “peek my interest.” It’s “pique,” dammit.

“Peak” is a noun, and means the highest point of something, like “mountain peak” or “peak traffic time” or “peak oil prices.”
Writing Mistakes
“Peek” is a verb that means “to look quickly.” For example: “Go on, take a peek.”

“Pique” is a verb that means to provoke, excite, or wound (especially pride or vanity, in the case of the third). Since the phrase “pique my interest” means that your interest has been provoked, this is the homophone you use.

Cue/Queue

I don’t know why everybody has suddenly started using “queue” in place of “cue.”

“Queue” is a noun that means a waiting line. That list of movies in your Netflix account that you have waiting to come home? That’s a queue. When you get in line at the grocery store? You’re “queuing up.” (That’s the only time it’s used as a verb.)

When you set the music to come on at a certain time? That’s “cuing” it. When you forget to come out on stage at the appropriate time? You’ve missed your “cue.”

Yes, I know that “queue” is much more fun to spell, but unless you’re talking about a waiting line of some sort, you’re probably misusing it.

Rein/Reign

I know I’m getting tired when I’m typing and I can’t tell the difference between “rein” and “reign.” It takes a lot longer than I’d like to admit to remember which one I’m supposed to use.

“Reins” are the ropes that you tie on to the bridle of a horse. As a verb, it means “to curb or restrain.” When you need to pull something back, you “rein it in.”

A reign is the rule of a king or queen, and as a verb, it means to have power or sovereignty. So, if you’ve got a maniacal monarch running rampant over his people, well, his “reign” will not be remembered with much fondness.

Past/Passed

Like the “rein/reign” conundrum, this is one that throws me for a loop when I’ve been staring at the computer screen for four hours and I can feel my brain slowly shutting down.

“Passed” is the past tense of “pass.” For example:

“He passed the football.”
“She passed the class with flying colors.”
“She got in trouble because she passed notes in class.”

“Past” means that something has already happened, “to go by,” or “beyond.” So, you have:

“That week sucked, but it’s all in the past.”
“They walked past the house.”
“We are past all hope.”

Remember: When all else fails, Dictionary.com can be your very best friend.

Got any grammar/spelling/writing questions? Send ‘em my way! Or, sign up for our RSS feed to get fresh, piping hot blog posts sent directly to you every time we update.

Picture by Niccolò Caranti

11.03.2009
Naked Writing

Michelle's 30-Second Guide to Possessives

Published by Michelle Pierce under Naked Writing

Last time we discussed the ever-elusive apostrophe, I kept it short and sweet, touching on the most common rules that we run in to while writing. However, when it comes to making possessives, it’s a little more complicated than adding “apostrophe + s.”

Never fear, though. Here at Aqua Vita, we’re all about clear communication and making the rules easy to remember.

So, here’s how you handle possessive nouns:

Singular possessives are pretty easy. Just add an apostrophe and “s.” For example: Michelle’s glass, Jack’s computer, the dog’s tail, the waitress’s table.
For plural possessives that end in “s,” you just add an apostrophe at the end. For example: the churches’ vans, the students’ bags, the teachers’ break room.
For plural possessives that do not end in “s,” you add an apostrophe and “s.” For example: women’s shoes, men’s clothing, the children’s playground.

Easy enough so far, right? Now it gets a little trickier:

If two or more nouns share the possession of something, then you only need to make one of the nouns possessive. For example, say Jack and Jill share a pail of water. You would write “Jack and Jill’s pail.” You always make the last noun the possessive one.
By contrast, if Jack and Jill each owned a pail, then you would make both nouns possessive, like so: “Jack’s and Jill’s pails.”

Well, maybe not that much trickier.

Anyway, what about all those names that end in “s”? Like James or Williams or Achilles or Xerxes? (I’m quite impressed if you’re writing about Achilles or Xerxes, by the way.)

Those are what the trusty AP Stylebook calls “Singular Proper Nouns that End in S.” (Sounds fancy, doesn’t it?) For these words, you just add an apostrophe on the end. For example, Charles Dickens’ books, Xerxes’ army, Achilles’ tendon.

So, here’s the summary:

Singular possessive nouns: Add apostrophe + s.
Plural nouns ending in “s”: Add an apostrophe.
Plural nouns that don’t end in “s”: Add apostrophe + s.
When there’s joint ownership between two or more nouns, the last one in the list gets the apostrophe + s.
When there’s a list of two or more nouns that own something individually, then you make each of them possessive.
For “Singular Proper Nouns that End in S,” you just tack an apostrophe on the end.

Got any other grammar questions? Ask them in the comments, or just click here to shoot me an email.

Picture by todd*

8.24.2009
Naked Writing

Michelle's 30-Second Guide to the Apostrophe

Published by Michelle Pierce under Naked Writing

“Am I the only one distracted by apostrophes and weird quoting?”
–Seth Godin

No, sir, you are not.

For whatever reason, the correct use of apostrophes seems to baffle otherwise intelligent people. They may be a certifiable genius with a 175 IQ, but the apostrophe concept eludes them. Unfortunately, little mistakes like this can make you look stupid, and when you’re trying to make a first impression on somebody, that’s generally not a trait you want to convey.

And so, we bring you your 30-Second Guide to the Apostrophe.

Apostrophes have pretty much two uses:

They take the place of missing letters, as when they’re used in contractions. (can’t, won’t, shouldn’t, let’s)
They denote possession. (Jack’s newsletter, Marie’s dress, the cat’s meow)

That’s it. That’s all they do. They do not make a word plural. They have not ever made a word plural. The only things they make plural, according to my handy-dandy AP Stylebook, are single letters. For example, listing grades on a report card:

“She made two A’s and two B’s.”

Let’s review, shall we?

Apostrophes are used in contractions to take the place of missing letters, e.g. “can’t.”
Apostrophes are used to denote possession, e.g. “Jack’s tie.”
Apostrophes are ONLY used to make a single letter plural, e.g. “B’s and C’s.”
Apostrophes are NOT used to make anything else plural. “The fox’s ran away” is so wrong it pained me to type it.

To see if you’re using our friend the apostrophe correctly, just take some time to think about what you’re writing, as you would when deciding between “your” and “you’re”. Is the word a possessive or a plural? Does it own something, or is it simply more than one of something?

If it’s a plural, leave off the apostrophe. That’s all there is to it.

Don’t have the time to edit yourself? That’s what we’re here for. Contact us!

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