Grammar & Usage

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

All your favorite pet peeves

Democracy or Republic: What's the difference?

And which is the United States?

7 Pairs of Commonly Confused Words

We promise you're not the only one who has trouble with these words

Popular

Is that lie 'bald-faced' or 'bold-faced'?

And what about 'barefaced'?

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

'A historic' night or 'An historic' night?

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?

A learned explanation that is not wicked hard

Commonly Misspelled Words

Spelling is hard

How to Use Em Dashes (—), En Dashes (–) , and Hyphens (-)

Be dashing—and do it well

'Lose' or 'loose'?

Keep this somewhere you won't forget it

How to Use Accents and Diacritical Marks

You know, the markings above and below letters.

7 Uncommonly Doubled Letters

For word games and other shenanigans

Commonly Confused

Commonly Confused

'Canceled' or 'cancelled'?

One L or two?

Usage Notes

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A Comprehensive Guide to Forming Compounds

Everything you need to know

'Broadcast' or 'Broadcasted'?

Conjugating an irregular verb

Can ‘criteria’ ever be singular?

It depends on what you base your decision.

Plural and Possessive Names: A Guide

A guide to plural and possessive names

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

Well, who's asking?
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Spelling & Pronunciation

Spelling & Pronunciation

The Many Plurals of 'Octopus'

But which is correct?

Punctuation

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To Use or Not Use the "?" in Requests

"Would you read this, please."

All About Ellipses ...

How to use them … and talk about them

The History of 'Ampersand'

How the '&' got its name

Comma Splices: What They Are and How to Correct Them (or not)

Adventurous writers pull them off regularly

Why do we use apostrophes to show possession?

The shifting role of the apostrophe
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