Mark Sebring and Kelly Szabo asked about using “I myself.” They both claim it bothers them. There is nothing wrong with using myself or other reflexive pronouns for emphasis. In that case, they are called “intensive pronouns.” Some examples include “I myself can’t stand her” and “I made it myself.” The sentences mean the same [...]

Let’s discuss ranges. If you’re using 1-5, that is pronounced “from one to five.” So you shouldn’t use between 1-5 or from 1-5. Using between means you need and in the range: between 1 and 5. If you use from, it should be from 1 to 5. It’s best to spell out the numbers in [...]

I heard Ted Allen say “hone in” on Chopped. That reminded me that I had to look up the term for project I was doing a few years ago. Webster’s says hone in is an alteration of home in, possibly from a softening of the sound. Although it’s become more accepted in American English and [...]

I have a shirt that reads Cal Poly Pomona Girl’s Basketball Camp. You see, the apostrophe indicates the camp belongs to only one girl. What a bummer for the rest of the girls. It should be Girls’ (with the apostrophe at the end).

Bob Vardeman asked about using what some might term sexist language (using just he for someone who could be either). If you’re doing this a lot, one accepted way to get around it is to switch back and forth so some are he and some are she. It’s important to not use them when the [...]