Hyphens, Em Dashes, and En Dashes: When to Use Them and How to Type Them
The hyphen, the em dash, and the en dash are all horizontal marks of varying lengths. Each functions differently from the others. Below we define...
Starting Sentences with “And” or “But”
One of our subscribers wrote to ask if it’s OK to start a sentence with the words and or but. The answer is yes. The...
Parallel Structure
Whenever our writing includes a list, the items in that list need to be parallel with one another. That is, all of the items in...
Regarding “Irregardless”
I could sum up my advice on this word in a single sentence: avoid using irregardless, especially in professional contexts. Although you will often hear and...
Using Ellipses
An ellipsis consists of either three or four periods, or dots. A single dot is called an ellipsis point. The definition is pretty straightforward, but...
