Top 10 Common English Goofs by Web Authors

In reviewing and browsing web sites over the years, I have compiled a list of the most common misuses of English by web authors. Here they are in Letterman (reverse) order.

10. Who, which or that?

"Who" (or "whom") refers to persons. "Which" refers to animals or things, never to persons. "That" can refer to either persons or things.

Examples:

The girl who was hungry. The dog that wagged its tail. The software which I wrote.

9. Anyone vs any one

"Anyone" means "any person," not necessarily any specific person. It could refer to multiple people simultaneously.

As two words, "any one" refers to a single person.

Examples:

Anyone can download my software. But the software can only be used by any one user at a time.

8. Commonly misspelled words

All right
Dependable
Independent
Recommend
Responsible
Separate

7. Don't put punctuation at the end of a URL

While not technically an English grammatical error, don't put a period or anything immediately after a URL reference. Doing so will usually invalidate the URL. You might call this an internet grammatical rule.

Example:

Notice the lack of a period in the following sentence. My URL is http://article-promotion.blogspot.com

6. Software not softwares

"Software" can be singular or plural. Never use "softwares."

5. Do the quotes go after or before the period?

Put quotes after a period or comma. Put quotes before a colon. Put quotes after a question mark unless the entire sentence is a question. This is a US English standard. British English usage can differ.

Examples:

He asked, "Are you hungry?" She replied, "Yes, I am hungry." Did she say, "Yes"?

4. There, their, or they're

"There" is used in two ways. It can specify a place. It can also be used as an expletive or empty word to start a sentence.

"Their" is used as a possessive form of "they".

"They're" is short for "they are."

Examples:

I live there, not here.
There are nine planets in the solar system.
The two boys raced their bikes.
They're both tired after walking up the stairs.

3. Powerful

Too many developers describe their software as, "XXX Software is a powerful, easy-to-use, ... ." I searched download.com and found 2149 descriptions or titles of software containing the word "powerful." Powerful has many meanings, most referring to how effectively something is performed, as in muscular. A car with 450 horsepower is clearly more powerful than one with only 200 horsepower. But what is powerful software? If you mean feature-rich (like Adobe Photoshop), then say so. If your software does only one thing, but it does it completely or thoroughly (like CounterSpy), then say so. But please, no more powerful software.

2. Site or sight

A "site" is a place.

"Sight" refers to your sense of vision.

Examples:

A web site is a place on the internet that you visit with your browser. A beautiful sunset is a marvellous sight.

And, finally, the most common English blunder by web authors is:

1. Its or It's

Use "it's" only when it means "it is." Unless you can replace "it's" with "it is," use "its." Never use "its'."

Examples:

It's raining today.

The dog wagged its tail.

Conclusion:

English is very difficult for persons whose native language is not English. It is also difficult for many English-speaking authors.

Unfortunately, most of the common grammatical errors will not be caught by a spell checker, so you have to manually check your writing for them.

An excellent reference is the short and timeless book, The Elements of Style, by William Strunk, Jr. and E.B. White. A free online version of this book is available at http://www.bartleby.com/141/index.html

I hope that web authors can use this article to recognize and correct some of the most common grammatical blunders that abound on the internet.

Kempton Smith helps internet businesses promote their products or services online by ghostwriting affordable, unique, keyword-rich articles for them. Email him now at articleghostwriter at yahoo.com for a free article for your online business, no obligation. Or for a free report on how to use articles to promote your product or service, visit http://article-promotion.blogspot.com

Copyrig ht © 2005 by Kempton Smith. This article may be freely published provided you leave it intact.

---

Writers Block is No Longer a Problem

"If you're like me, than I'm sure you're pretty familiar... Read More

Effective Collaboration - Working With Your Ghostwriter

Using a ghostwriter to craft your free reprint articles and... Read More

14 Tips On Writing The Short-Short Story

The short-short story has been likened by some as being... Read More

Writing Your Best-Selling Non-Fiction Book Title

Your struggling to sell just a few copies of your... Read More

Overcome Writers Block with Snake Dancing

Writer's block! Even columnist Dave Berry has it. He admits... Read More

Print-On-Demand: A Definition and a Comparison

The purpose of this article is to consider Print-On-Demand publishing... Read More

Dreading the Writing Assignment? Outlines to the Rescue

Writing technical articles is a challenge. There you sit, surrounded... Read More

Common Writing Mistakes - Are These Holding You Back From Writing Success?

During the years that I've been teaching writing and participating... Read More

Creative Writing Tips - Have You Established Your Main Character At The Start?

In the beginning of your story you have to grab... Read More

Story Structure - Final Conflict

Beyond three and four act story structure, lies the Hero's... Read More

Learn How To Write Poetry!

A poet isn't born; you must work at crafting your... Read More

Becoming A Successful Author: The Price!

So you want to be a successful author? You want... Read More

Advice for New Writers

With the advent of email communications in the workplace, it's... Read More

Vital Verbs

Remember back in the dark days of your school years... Read More

Top Ten Tips (Part 1)

The following rules are essential if you want people to... Read More

Writers Helping Writers - A Noble Legacy

It is satisfying to be a part of such a... Read More

Write For Yourself First

It would be very selfless or noble of me to... Read More

Before You Write Your Book, Organize Its Parts - Part 1

If you are a serious writer who wants to publish... Read More

A Mode of Transportation

Great writing transports one vicariously to realms that the reader... Read More

Make Your Readers Cry

You know, I really hate it when someone catches me... Read More

Write On! - Key Components of Successful Business Communication

Written communication is often the first impression you make on... Read More

Publisher Ethics For Reprint-able Articles

Let's Discuss Publisher Ethics:If you are an ezine publisher or... Read More

Creative Writing

Do you consider yourself a storyteller? Do you consider yourself... Read More

Making Money from Freelance Writing

Making Money from Freelance WritingIt's the question that every aspiring... Read More

Publication Road

The journey to having my first novel for children published... Read More

Five Golden Rules for Writers

Regardless of what sort of writer you are and how... Read More

Publish It Now! No Matter What It Is

Do you want to publish something? An article, a non-fiction... Read More

Where to Look for Your Next Project when You?re Writing for Profit

When my first book "Starting Your Own Business" was published... Read More

10 Ways to Shatter Writers Block

1. Use Logic: Check for External PressuresAre you under physical... Read More

Top Seven Mistakes Writers Make and What to Do About Them

Writers often get stuck because they make assumptions about writing,... Read More

Writers Block - Melting the Ice

What does one do as a writer who loves writing... Read More

The Blank Mind

Many writers stare at the blank page or clean computer... Read More

Does Your Story Have A Theme?

Creative Writing Tips ?It should.A theme is a one-line explanation... Read More