The Blue Book of Grammar and Punctuation

1 The Blue Bookof Grammarand PunctuationAn Easy-to-Use Guidewith Clear Rules, Real-World Examples,and Reproducible QuizzesTenth EditionJane StrausThe Blue Bookof Grammarand PunctuationAn Easy-to-Use Guidewith Clear Rules, Real-World Examples,and Reproducible QuizzesTenth EditionJane StrausCopyright 2008 by Jane Straus. All rights by Jossey-BassA Wiley Imprint989 Market Street, San Francisco, CA part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form orby any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, scanning, or otherwise, except aspermitted under Section 107 or 108 of the 1976 United States Copyright Act, without either the priorwritten permission of the publisher, or authorization through payment of the appropriate per-copy fee tothe Copyright Clearance Center, Inc.

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3 No warranty may be created or extended by salesrepresentatives or written sales materials. The advice and strategies contained herein may not be suitablefor your situation. You should consult with a professional where appropriate. Neither the publisher norauthor shall be liable for any loss of profit or any other commercial damages, including but not limited tospecial, incidental, consequential, or other books and products are available through most bookstores. To contact Jossey-Bass directly callour Customer Care Department within the at 800-956-7739, outside the at 317-572-3986, or also publishes its books in a variety of electronic formats. Some content that appears in printmay not be available in electronic : 978 0 470 22268 3 Printed in the United States of AmericaTENTH EDITIONPB Printing10987654321 ContentsAcknowledgmentsxiiiAbout the AuthorxvForeword by Mignon Fogarty ( Grammar Girl)xviiIntroductionxix1 Grammar1 Finding Subjects and Verbs1 Finding verbsUsing verbs to find subjectsYouas an understood subjectMultiple subjects and verbs in a sentenceSubject and Verb Agreement2 Singular vs.

4 Plural verbsWithorandnorWitheitherandneitherWit h conjunctions such asandandbutWith interrupting expressionsWith pronouns as subjects such aseach, everyone,andanybodyWith portions such aspercent, fraction, part, some, all,andnoneWithhereandthereWith sums of moneyWithwho, that,andwhichWith collective nounsPronouns6 Subject Case (Nominative):I, you, he, she, it, we, theyiiiivThe Blue Book of Grammar and PunctuationObject Case (Objective):me, you, him, her, it, us, themCorrect use of pronouns by finding clausesFollowingthanorasPossessive case:mine, yours, his, hers, ours, theirs, sUsing possessive case with gerundsReflexives: theselfpronounsWho vs. Whom8 Whoever vs. Whomever8 That vs. Which9 Adjectives and Adverbs10 Adjectives modifying nouns and pronounsAdverbs modifying verbs, adjectives, and adverbs: Answeringhow, when,orwhereWhen to add -lySense verbs:taste, smell, look, such as ervs.

5 , that, these, with Prepositions13 Ending a sentence with a prepositionAvoiding extra prepositionsWith Writing14 Concrete vs. vague languageActive vs. passive voiceClumsy construction such asthere isorit wasDouble negativesSimilar grammatical formMisplaced and dangling modifiersFragments2 Confusing Words and reHundreds more confusing words and homonyms3 Punctuation52 Spacing with Punctuation52 Periods52 With complete sentencesWith indirect questionsWith abbreviations at the end of a sentenceEllipsis Marks53 With omitted words or sentencesSpacingCommas54To separate three or more itemsTo separate adjectivesWith namesWith datesWith city and stateWith degrees and titlesTo set off interrupting expressionsWith weak and strong clausesAfter phrasesWith nonessential descriptionsWith conjunctionsTo avoid confusionComma spliceRun-on sentenceTo introduce quoted materialTo separate statements from

6 QuestionsTo separate contrasting parts of a sentenceWith introductory words such aswellandyesWith interrupters such ashoweverandthereforeWith introductory words such asnamely, that is, for example, , they are followed by a series of itemsSemicolons57To join two sentences without a conjunctionWith introductory words such asnamely, that is, for example, , they introduce a complete sentenceTo avoid confusion where commas already existviThe Blue Book of Grammar and PunctuationWith sentences that have multiple clausesColons58To attach lists to sentencesSpacingWith tabular formattingWith long quotationsAfter the salutation in a business letterQuestion Marks60 Exclamation Points61 Quotation Marks61 Placement with periods, commas, question marks, and semicolonsUse of single quotation marksUse ofsicParentheses62 For clarificationFor asidesTo enclose numbersWith complete sentencesApostrophes63 ContractionsPossessionSingular possessionPlural possessionWith names ending insWith compound nouns such asmother-in-law sTo show joint possessionWith possessive pronouns such ashis, hers,andoursTo show plurals of numbers, letters, and abbreviationsWith gerunds (-ingwords)

7 Hyphens65 Between wordsWith compound verbsWith compound adjectivesWith -lywordsWith compound adverbsWith compound numbersWith prefixesWith double vowels such assemi-invalidWith doubleeand doubleosuch aspreemptiveandcoordinateContentsviiWith mixed vowels such asproactiveWith vowels and consonants such asnoncomplianceWithself, ex,andreHyphens Between WordsHyphens with PrefixesDashes68En DashEm Dash4 Capitalization70 Beginning a sentence or quoted sentenceProper nounsTitlesGovernment officialsPoints of the compassTitles of publicationsWith state, federal, and other government bodiesWith seasonsWith salutationsWith words derived from proper nouns such asEnglish5 Writing Numbers73 Using figures vs. spelling outMixed quantities within the same sentenceFractionsLarge numbersDecimalsDatesTimeCompound numbers6 Quizzes76 Grammar Pretest76 Finding Subjects and Verbs Quiz 178 Finding Subjects and Verbs Quiz 278 Subject and Verb Agreement Quiz 179 Subject and Verb Agreement Quiz 280 Pronouns Quiz 181 Pronouns Quiz 281 Who, Whom, Whoever, Whomever Quiz 182 Who, Whom, Whoever, Whomever Quiz 283 Who, Whom, That, Which Quiz 184viiiThe Blue Book of Grammar and PunctuationWho, Whom, That, Which Quiz 284 Adjectives and Adverbs Quiz 185 Adjectives and Adverbs Quiz 286 Problems with Prepositions Quiz 187 Problems with Prepositions Quiz 287 Affect vs.

8 Effect Quiz 188 Affect vs. Effect Quiz 288 Lay vs. Lie Quiz 189 Lay vs. Lie Quiz 290 Advice vs. Advise Quiz 190 Advice vs. Advise Quiz 291 Their vs. There vs. They re Quiz 191 Their vs. There vs. They re Quiz 292 More Confusing Words and Homonyms Quiz 192 More Confusing Words and Homonyms Quiz 293 More Confusing Words and Homonyms Quiz 394 Effective Writing Quiz 195 Effective Writing Quiz 297 Grammar Mastery Test98 Punctuation , capitalization , and Writing Numbers Pretest100 Commas Quiz 1102 Commas Quiz 2102 Semicolons and Colons Quiz 1103 Semicolons and Colons Quiz 2104 Question Marks, Quotation Marks, and Parentheses Quiz 1105 Question Marks, Quotation Marks, and Parentheses Quiz 2106 Apostrophes Quiz 1106 Apostrophes Quiz 2107 Hyphens Between Words Quiz 1107 Hyphens Between Words Quiz 2108 Hyphens with -lyWords Quiz 1108 Hyphens with -lyWords Quiz 2109 Hyphens with Prefixes Quiz 1109 Hyphens with Prefixes Quiz 2110 Hyphens withre-Words Quiz 1110 Hyphens withre-Words Quiz 2111 capitalization Quiz 1111 capitalization Quiz 2112 Writing Numbers Quiz 1112 ContentsixWriting Numbers Quiz 2113 Punctuation , capitalization .

9 And Writing Numbers Mastery Test1137 Answers to Quizzes116 Grammar Pretest116 Finding Subjects and Verbs Quiz 1118 Finding Subjects and Verbs Quiz 2118 Subject and Verb Agreement Quiz 1119 Subject and Verb Agreement Quiz 2120 Pronouns Quiz 1120 Pronouns Quiz 2121 Who, Whom, Whoever, Whomever Quiz 1122 Who, Whom, Whoever, Whomever Quiz 2123 Who, Whom, That, Which Quiz 1124 Who, Whom, That, Which Quiz 2124 Adjectives and Adverbs Quiz 1125 Adjectives and Adverbs Quiz 2125 Problems with Prepositions Quiz 1126 Problems with Prepositions Quiz 2127 Affect vs. Effect Quiz 1127 Affect vs. Effect Quiz 2128 Lay vs. Lie Quiz 1128 Lay vs. Lie Quiz 2129 Advice vs. Advise Quiz 1129 Advice vs. Advise Quiz 2130 Their vs.

10 There vs. They re Quiz 1130 Their vs. There vs. They re Quiz 2131 More Confusing Words and Homonyms Quiz 1131 More Confusing Words and Homonyms Quiz 2132 More Confusing Words and Homonyms Quiz 3133 Effective Writing Quiz 1134 Effective Writing Quiz 2135 Grammar Mastery Test136 Punctuation , capitalization , and Writing Numbers Pretest138 Commas Quiz 1140 Commas Quiz 2140 Semicolons and Colons Quiz 1141 Semicolons and Colons Quiz 2142 Question Marks, Quotation Marks, and Parentheses Quiz 1143 Question Marks, Quotation Marks, and Parentheses Quiz 2144xThe Blue Book of Grammar and PunctuationApostrophes Quiz 1144 Apostrophes Quiz 2145 Hyphens Between Words Quiz 1145 Hyphens Between Words Quiz 2146 Hyphens with -lyWords Quiz 1146 Hyphens with -lyWords Quiz 2147 Hyphens with Prefixes Quiz 1147 Hyphens with Prefixes Quiz 2147 Hyphens withre-Words Quiz 1148 Hyphens withre-Words Quiz 2148 capitalization Quiz 1149 capitalization Quiz 2149 Writing Numbers Quiz 1150 Writing Numbers Quiz 2150 Punctuation , capitalization , and Writing Numbers Mastery Test151To my wonderful husband, Lester Kaufman, who spares me fromembarrassment by being the most tenacious, relentlessproofreader a gal could ask for.