A sometimes online sparring partner of mine recently wrote: Men (as opposed to women) have had a purpose that should serve us well should this new transhuman world ever actually materialize: We provide; we protect; we invent; we drive the engine of economies. Normally, I wouldn’t separate the items in a series after a colon … Read more
I’m not an English speaker, so my question might seem a little bit weird, but I’m truly confused. I saw some other cases like this one, which caused me to question what they really meant. There’s a reading challenge in a social platform, and the tasks are: 1) Set and share a reading goal 2) … Read more
I’ve seen semicolons used to separate independent clauses, but is it correct to use them with an independent clause, a conjunction, and a dependent clause? <independent clause 1>; but <dependent clause 2> For example, consider this sentence: The product permits a dual use that provides all of the standard benefits of a typical standing mat; … Read more
Is it grammatically correct to combine an independent clause with a phrase. For example, “I live in California, specifically in San Francisco.” It sounds correct to my ear but I am unsure if I am “hearing” incorrectly. Answer Yes, it’s fine. In your example, “specifically in San Francisco” is an appositive to “in California”. An … Read more
I have seen examples in some grammar website about non-relative clauses that refer to the whole main clause: Chris did really well in his exams, which is quite a surprise. My friends were all hiding in my apartment, which isn’t what I’d expected. She’s studying to become a doctor, which is difficult. I notice the … Read more
Consider the following sentence: I remember the time I pushed John and he fell over. Is that sentence correctly punctuated as written? I ask because it has no commas. As I understand it, the phrase “the time I pushed John and he fell over” is a noun phrase with time as its head word. However, … Read more
