Antecedent and Pronoun: How To Make Your Writing Clear!
How to make your writing both economical and clear by being sure that each and every pronoun has a clear antecedent.
Category: Newsletters
What part of speech is SEVERAL?
Thomas answers a question about what part of speech the word SEVERAL is. Here’s a hint: It depends on the sentence!
What Are Verbs of Action?
In the Basic Cozy Grammar Course, Marie and I help students explore the fundamentals of grammar: the eight parts of speech and how understanding them can enhance creativity.
How To Remember The Difference Between Its And It’s
One of the perennial confusions in English is between its and it’s. Here’s a way to remember the difference forever. The key to distinguishing between it’s and its is to remember that it’s, with an apostrophe, is a contraction, and its, without an apostrophe, is a possessive pronoun.
What words CAN’T a sentence start with in English?
During a virtual classroom visit, Thomas answered a question about what kinds of words can begin sentences and paragraphs.
Introduction to Subjects and Predicates
In this free excerpt from The Basic Cozy Grammar Course, Marie uses simple, visual, and memorable examples to answer the question, “What are subjects and predicates?”
When to use the Pronouns I or Me in English
Do we use the pronoun I or me when speaking about I or me and someone else? Here’s a simple way to answer the question easily and playfully.
What is the Difference between Adverbs and Helping Verbs?
Can it possibly be correct to say “It is they”? Yes, it is, but there is another correct way to say the same thing: “It is them.” Here’s why!
Compound Sentence Examples from the Beach!
Marie answers the questions “What is a principal clause?” and “What is a compound sentence?” with clear, beach-side examples.
Is “It is they” grammatically correct?
Can it possibly be correct to say “It is they”? Yes, it is, but there is another correct way to say the same thing: “It is them.” Here’s why!
What are Possessive Pronouns?
In this free excerpt from the Basic Cozy Grammar Course, Marie answers the question “What are possessive pronouns?” and gives some easy-to-remember examples in the context of daily life.
Do We Need the Oxford Comma?
De we need the Oxford or serial comma? Here are two examples of how this comma can make our writing clearer.
A Handy Memory Trick for Quotation Marks
In these excerpts from the Basic Cozy Punctuation Course, Marie offers an introduction to quotation marks and a handy trick for remembering which marks go where. She also gives examples of how to use double quotation marks in a sentence.
When can you NOT replace a comma with AND?
A student from Quest Academy’s 4th grade Mustang class asks, “Is there any way you CAN’T replace a comma with the word AND?”
What is the Difference between Ethereal and Ephemeral
A viewer recently asked us to compare the words ephemeral and ethereal. Thomas offers a peek into the roots of each word to make their meanings clear.
How to Make Sentences More Interesting
One of the reasons Marie wanted to make The Basic Cozy Grammar Course was to show how grammar—the technique of speaking and writing—can enhance creativity. We wanted to start the New Year by sharing an excerpt from The Basic Cozy Grammar Course in which Marie shows how knowledge of grammar can help make our sentences more interesting.