When a pronoun replaces a noun, the noun is called an antecedent.
Michael is the antecedent and he is the pronoun. The antecedent doesn’t have to go before the pronoun, but putting the pronoun first can make long or complex sentences harder to follow.
To learn more about grammar and to help us celebrate National Grammar Day this March, visit our new resource page.
At first glance, the rules of English capitalization seem simple. You probably know you should capitalize proper nouns and the first word of every sentence. But you also (sometimes) capitalize the first word of a quote. Usually you don’t capitalize after a colon, but there are exceptions. And what do you do when you’re not sure whether something is a proper noun?
1 Capitalize the First Word of a Sentence
This one’s easy. Always capitalize the first word of a sentence.
2 Capitalize Names and Other Proper Nouns
You should always capitalize people’s names.
Names are proper nouns. The names of cities, countries, companies, religions, and political parties are also proper nouns, so you should capitalize them, too.
You should also capitalize words like mom and grandpa when they are used as a form of address.
But
3 Don’t Capitalize After a Colon (Usually)
In most cases, you don’t need to capitalize after a colon.
There are a couple of common exceptions. One is when the word following the colon is a proper noun.
The other exception is when the words following the colon form one or more complete sentences.
4 Capitalize the First Word of a Quote (Sometimes)
Capitalize the first word of a quote when the quote is a complete sentence.
Don’t capitalize the first word of partial quotes.
5 Capitalize Days, Months, and Holidays, But Not Seasons
The names of days, months, and holidays are proper nouns, so you should capitalize them.
The names of seasons, however, are not proper nouns, so there’s no need to capitalize them.
6 Capitalize Most Words in Titles
The capitalization rules for titles of books, movies, and other works vary a little between style guides. In general, you should capitalize the first word, all nouns, all verbs (even short ones, like is), all adjectives, and all proper nouns. That means you should lowercase articles, conjunctions, and prepositions—however, some style guides say to capitalize conjunctions and prepositions that are longer than five letters.
7 Capitalize Cities, Countries, Nationalities, and Languages
The names of cities, countries, nationalities, and languages are proper nouns, so you should capitalize them.
8 Capitalize Time Periods and Events (Sometimes)
Specific periods, eras, and historical events that have proper names should be capitalized.
However, centuries—and the numbers before them—are not capitalized.
Whether you realize it or not, you’re a writer.
It’s hard not to be one in the information age, when writing is essential, if not inescapable. Maybe you’re keeping up with old friends and upcoming assignments. Or perhaps you’re trying to impress a hiring committee or a hot date. We’re constantly dashing off notes and status updates with a regularity that would’ve been the envy of anyone in the era of telegrams and typewriters, let alone the cloistered monks who hand-copied ancient scrolls by candlelight.
It’s easier than ever to hammer out reams of words on all manner of gadgets that can go just about anywhere. The act of writing is hardly confined to the monastery, er, office; we do it in coffee shops, on the train, and in bed. We send text messages and respond to emails when we’re half asleep, when we’re getting a ride home, or maybe having just stepped out of the shower.
At Grammarly, we help legions of writers just like you get their ideas down clearly and in ways that will help them look sharp. We also learn a lot about what writers are like – from what programs they use to what time of day their prose usually comes out looking its best. After proofreading and analyzing more than a billion words, here are a few of the patterns we’ve found particularly interesting about how you tend to write:
1 The average writer cranks out roughly a thousand words per week.
Among U.S. Grammarly users, the weekly average is 980 words, to be precise. Multiply that by 52 weeks, and you’re mashing out 50,960 words each year. That’s about equivalent to a light summer novel – enough of a read to last through several lazy days at the beach, at least.
2 That’s mostly in emails, according to user data, along with programs like Microsoft Word – but plenty of writing also happens online in social media and blogs.
Hundreds of thousands of new statuses and comments appear on Facebook every. single. minute. (Rules of punctuation trampled here for emphasis.) This is to say nothing of the perhaps dozens of text messages you might send back and forth each day. Frequent texters can crank out thousands of words per month, just in their preferred messaging app.
3 Most of the mistakes you make in emails are misspelled words.
Users averaged around a dozen mistakes per every hundred words – and more than half of those were spelling errors.
4 You’re especially prone to making gaffes on social media – nearly three times as likely as anywhere else you write.
This may not surprise you, as such platforms tend to be more casual and invite lots of slang and abbreviations, tbh. Here, we found an average of close to 40 mistakes in every hundred typed words.
5 What time of day you write has a clear impact on how often you make mistakes.
We found a decided difference between the patterns of early birds, who write from 4 to 8 a.m., and night owls, who work from 10 p.m. to 2 a.m. As you might guess, one seems clear-headed and fresh, while the other is a bit more more muddled. Indeed:
6 You tend to do your best writing early in the morning – before 8 a.m.
Across platforms, early birds averaged 13.8 mistakes per 100 words – 3.2 fewer than the night owls’ 17.
7 Those writing for blogs make the fewest mistakes after lunch, between 1 and 5 p.m. Even so, early birds still outperformed night owls, with the 4 to 8 a.m. crowd averaging 5.6 mistakes per 100 words, compared to the night owls’ 9.1.
8 Still, good writing can happen at any time.
It’s worth noting there is some evidence that staying up late to work may be an evolutionarily advantageous behavior associated with high intelligence – even if folks who do it need to be extra mindful of their writing.
9 Apostrophe mistakes were the most common source of errors.
A common example is let’s vs. lets. The former is a contraction of “let us,” while the latter means “allows,” as in “this lets us avoid similar errors.” (Of course, you can always brush up on sound apostrophe usage right here.)
10 Too vs. To was next down the list, followed by Everyday vs. Every Day
Rounding out the most common mistakes were such mix-ups as than vs. then, there vs. their, and of vs. off. As ever, you can find tips on our blog – answers to such questions and more are right there.
As we wrap up, there’s one more fun observation we’d like to share about writers online, which applies more broadly, not just to folks using Grammarly:
11 Bonus – Writers on the web may be using more and more languages, not just English.
English enjoyed something of a head start among early Internet users and was once regarded as the default language of the web. As the British linguist David Graddol wrote two decades ago in his paper “The Future of English?”:
The system has its origins in the academic and, in particular, scientific community, which is the longest connected community of all. English is deeply established among scientists as the international lingua franca and, from this beginning, English appears to have extended its domain of use to become the preferred lingua franca for the many new kinds of user who have come online in the 1990s…
In a reflection that looks increasingly prescient, Graddol goes on to note that at the time, some 90 percent of the computers online were connected through English-speaking countries, suggesting that in the years since, as the technology has grown ever more global, it’s gotten easier and easier to communicate in other languages.
Indeed, some estimate that now just over half of all content on the web is in English, but it’s not easy to track precisely; other experts believe it’s below 40 percent. Notably, in China, hundreds of millions of users blog and post updates in Chinese to social media sites like Renren and Sina Weibo.
Whatever your preferred language, platform, or time of day to work, it’s always worth a second look to make sure your writing is radiant and clear.
A comma splice is particular kind of comma mistake that happens when you use a comma to join two independent clauses. Here’s an example:
How can you tell that’s a comma splice? Look at the group of words before the comma.
Did you notice that this group of words can stand by itself as a complete sentence? That means it’s an independent clause.
Now look at the group of words after the comma.
This group of words can also stand by itself as a complete sentence. It’s another independent clause.
When you have two independent clauses, a comma is not strong enough to glue them together.
There are three common ways to fix a comma splice. Let’s look at a new example:
One way to fix a comma splice is to add a conjunction immediately after the comma. With most comma splices, the conjunction you’ll want to add is probably and, but, or so.
If adding a conjunction doesn’t seem to work, you can change the comma to a semicolon instead. Unlike commas, semicolons are strong enough to glue two independent clauses together.
If you decide to use a semicolon, make sure there is a close, logical connection between the two independent clauses.
If adding a conjunction doesn’t seem to work and using a semicolon feels too stuffy, you can fix a comma splice by simply making each independent clause a separate sentence.
Are you getting the hang of it? Here are a few more examples of comma splices and possible corrections.
Adding a conjunction like and or but after the comma in the sentence above doesn’t really make sense. But there does seem to be a close, logical connection between the first independent clause (I’m thinking of skipping English class) and the second independent clause (it’s really boring). This is the perfect situation for a semicolon.
You could also break those two independent clauses apart and make them separate sentences.
Let’s try another:
In this case, the conjunction so fits the bill.
Or you could use a semicolon.
Or you could make two sentences, especially if you want to sound blunt.
Yes! You should avoid comma splices in formal writing, but now that you know the rule, you can sometimes break it in more artistic types of writing.
In fiction, for instance, you might use a comma splice to convey a character’s racing thoughts or observations.
Comma splices can also create a sense of grandeur in rhetoric, but only if they’re used sparingly.
And in poetry, of course, the rules are even more relaxed. Sometimes, a comma splice creates just the right rhythm.
That’s it! Now you’re ready to get out there and use your commas with confidence.
Introductory clauses are dependent clauses that are often found at the beginning of the sentence (although they can be moved to the end of the sentence, too, without confusing the meaning of the sentence). After a dependent introductory clause, we use a comma to separate the introductory clause from the independent clause. Consider the examples below:
As with many other rules in English grammar, the comma-after-introductory-clauses rule comes with an exception. When the introductory clause is short, the comma may be omitted as a matter of style. See the example below:
Since the introductory clause consists of only three words, the comma separating the introductory clause from the main clause may or may not be used.
Although it is not strictly required, it is considered good style to follow introductory dependent clauses containing dates with a comma. This is true whether the date given denotes a century, a year, a month, or even a day.
But if the date does not appear as an introductory clause, no commas are necessary.
How to start a letter, what type of letter you should write, what letter format you should choose—everyone should be familiar with these basics of letter writing. Here’s the information you need to know, along with some helpful examples.
There are no hard-and-fast rules. What letter format you choose depends on your audience. For a friend or close relative, a casual, handwritten message is usually the best way to go. However, for business contacts or people you don’t know well, a typed formal letter is almost always the most appropriate choice.
Formal letters begin with the sender’s name and address. Some companies use special paper, called letterhead, that includes contact information.
The next line of a formal letter and the first line of an informal letter is the date. Write it two lines after your address or at the top of a casual letter.
Additionally, formal letters need the name and address of the recipient two spaces after the date. Incorporating all this information ensures that your letter can be used as a reference to contact you after the recipient discards the envelope.
Finally, you’re ready to greet the person (or business) to whom you’re writing. Skip a space from any addresses you’ve included. Casual letters are easy; you can start with “Hello” or another customary greeting. Formal letters begin with “Dear” followed by the name of the receiver. If you don’t have a contact at a certain company, search online for a name, a job title, or department. For example, you might try “Dear Manager” or “Dear Human Resources Department.” As a last resort, use the generic salutation “To Whom It May Concern.” A comma follows all greetings.
The content of your letter will vary, so let’s focus on some general guidelines.
Do. . . keep it focused. Business letters should have a clear objective. Even personal letters shouldn’t ramble. Proofread. Errors can cause misunderstandings.
Don’t. . . use contractions in formal letters. And definitely avoid writing anything you’ll regret being recorded for posterity.
Leave a blank space between your closing paragraph and the complimentary closing. A complimentary close is a polite way to send your regards to your receiver. One of the most common closers is “Sincerely,” and it’s generally a safe bet. If you have a warmer relationship with the recipient, you can sign off with “Warm regards” or “Cordially.” There are dozens of options, so you’ll have to do a little research to determine which is best for you. Commas follow all complimentary closings. Remember, only the first letter of the phrase is capitalized. Leave another couple of spaces for the last step—your signature! Type your full name underneath it in formal letters.
With sincere gratitude, Signature Dr. Malcolm J. Carl, Jr.
P.S. stands for postscript. It’s something you add at the last minute after the letter is complete. Typically, you don’t add postscripts to formal letters; if you need to add something, you’ll have to revise the whole document to include the new information.
In the United States, the maximum weight for a first-class letter is 3.5 ounces. If your letter is more than three pages or you’ve written it on heavy paper, you’ll have to weigh it to make sure it meets the requirements. The size and shape of the envelope matter too. It has to be rectangular and less than roughly 6×11 inches or you run the risk of the post office returning it.
After you’ve determined that the envelope is the right kind, the hardest part is over. Now, you just have to mail it. (If it’s a personal letter, you can always deliver it yourself. In that case, just write the intended recipient’s name on the outside of the envelope. A bonus of hand-delivery?: You can use any size or shape envelope that you want!) In the top left-hand corner, write your name and address or attach a mailing label. In the center of the envelope, carefully write the address of the recipient. Besides the state abbreviation and zip code, international letters should include the country for both the destination and return address. Postage rates vary. Check the USPS website for current prices or use a forever stamp for US destinations. Double-check that everything is correct on the outside of the envelope. If it is, fold your letter and insert it inside neatly. Don’t seal it until you’re sure that you’ve included every page you intend to send.
Doesn’t it feel good sending a letter that you know you’ve carefully prepared? Certainly, a well-written letter has the best chance of accomplishing its purpose. But what about a cover letter for a job application? Cover letters have their own set of best practices. Read everything you need to know about how to write a cover letter before you send out your next resume!
If you are shy or socially awkward, you probably hate networking. Even if you find it difficult to approach professionals in your field, you can still alleviate some of the stress with these ten useful networking tips.
1 Know who will be there.
To be forewarned is to be forearmed. Knowing the attendees in advance gives you the chance to beef up on the company’s goals and show interest in its latest achievements. It also removes the fear of the unknown. Naturally, some people you weren’t expecting will turn up. However, as they say, half a loaf is better than no bread. Start off talking to the people you prepared for until you feel confident enough to approach the others.
2 Ask open-ended questions.
To avoid awkward silence, aim for open-ended questions rather than yes-no questions. Listen carefully to the response and try to think of a follow-up comment or question to keep the conversation going. If someone asks you a question, “And you?” is an easy way to continue the discussion.
3 Set definite goals for the interaction.
Don’t you love playing a video game and hearing the words: “Level complete!” You can generate that feeling at networking events by setting interpersonal goals. For instance, commit to staying at least a half hour. After the time is up, leave without guilt. Or, set a goal to talk to at least five new people. Setting objectives makes networking events seem less overwhelming because you have a manageable goal in mind. Also, you might find that once you get the ball rolling, you can push yourself past the minimums that you set.
4 Arrive early.
If big groups freak you out, it’s best to come while the crowd is still thin. Besides being quieter, a room with few people is less intimidating than one packed from wall to wall. Punctuality also gives you a conversational advantage. You’ll find it easier to approach others if they aren’t already in the throes of conversation.
5 Find the connection.
What do you have in common with the person with whom you are conversing? In 1929, Frigyes Karinthy proposed that each individual in the world is only six or fewer steps away from any other person. Granted, there were fewer people on earth back then, but you should be able to find some common ground. Did you major in the same subject? Do you share hobbies or causes? Challenging yourself to find the connection will motivate you to keep the conversation flowing. As a bonus, you will have a great excuse to exchange contact information with your new buddy. Later, you will feel comfortable asking for advice or a job referral. If you really hit it off, you can invite your contact to an event that you think you will both enjoy.
6 Have a few emergency ice-breakers ready.
If you find a conversation going stagnant, plan a few interesting ice-breakers. In a small group, you might try a getting-to-know-you game that involves everyone. The following idea comes from EventManager Blog: Ask everyone to think of one word that describes a topic of your choice. (For a group of doctors, for instance, you might choose “medical school.”) The responses should give you some laughs and opportunities to share experiences.
7 Look approachable.
The extroverts will flock to you if you look welcoming. Smile and try to make eye contact. Practice open body language. That means no folded arms or hiding behind your hair! This warm, friendly demeanor will make others want to find out who you are.
8 Rely on your tribe.
Why go at it alone? Invite colleagues and associates to attend networking events with you. Even if you don’t spend much time with them, their friendly faces will make you feel at ease. You can also practice your elevator pitch with people you know and ask them for feedback before the event.
9 Make a good last impression, even if the first one wasn’t ideal.
Even if you felt like you failed to impress in person, you still have a chance to shine on paper. Send a brief thank you note or email to show how much you enjoyed meeting the participant. You can thank them for taking time to talk with you. Once you make contact, you can update them about the status of your job search (or ask them about theirs if they are a jobseeker too.)
10 Follow through on referrals.
If you fail to follow through on referrals, you are letting all your hard work go to waste. A lack of response also shows disrespect for the people who vouched for you. Even if you don’t accept a job, you should still thank the referrer and the hiring manager for their time.
Networking is necessary, and it doesn’t have to be evil! Admit it; these networking tips won’t be impossible to try. Which one do you want to tackle first?
Ah, the comma. Of all the punctuation marks in English, this one is perhaps the most abused and misused. And it’s no wonder. There are lots of rules about comma usage, and often the factors that determine whether you should use one are quite subtle. But fear not! Below, you’ll find guidance for the trickiest comma questions.
While a period ends a sentence, a comma indicates a smaller break. Some writers think of a comma as a soft pause—a punctuation mark that separates words, clauses, or ideas within a sentence.
With few exceptions, a comma should not separate a subject from its verb.
Writers are often tempted to insert a comma between a subject and verb this way because speakers sometimes pause at that point in a sentence. But in writing, the comma only makes the sentence seem stilted.
Be especially careful with long or complex subjects:
Don’t separate two nouns that appear together as a compound subject or compound object.
When a subject or object is made up of two items and the second item is parenthetical, you can set off the second item with commas—one before it and one after it. But you don’t need a comma when you’re simply listing two items.
You get a compound predicate when the subject of a sentence is doing more than one thing. In a compound predicate that contains two verbs, don’t separate them with a comma.
This mistake is most common when the predicate is made up of long verb phrases.
Don’t use a comma in compound predicates unless there is a chance of misreading:
In the sentence above, you need the comma to make clear that it was Cleo who waved, not the man.
When you want to join two independent clauses, you need a conjunction or a semicolon. A comma alone isn’t strong enough to join them. This kind of mistake is called a comma splice.
You can fix a comma splice by adding a conjunction or changing the comma to a semicolon.
Or, you can simply write the two independent clauses as separate sentences.
A comma normally follows participial phrases that introduce a sentence:
When an adverbial phrase begins a sentence, it’s often followed by a comma but it doesn’t have to be, especially if it’s short. As a rule of thumb, if the phrase is longer than about four words, use the comma. You can also use a comma with a shorter phrase when you want to emphasize it or add a pause for literary effect.
But, if there is a chance of misreading the sentence, use the comma:
Don’t use a comma before “than” when you’re making a comparison.
Interrupters are little thoughts that pop up in the middle of a sentence to show emotion, tone, or emphasis. A parenthetical element is a phrase that adds extra information to the sentence but could be removed without changing the meaning of the sentence. Both interrupters and parenthetical elements should be set off with commas.
A question tag is a short phrase or even a single word that is added to the end of a statement to turn it into a question. Writers often use question tags to encourage readers to agree with them. A question tag should be preceded by a comma.
When addressing another person by name, set off the name with commas.
An appositive is a word or phrase that refers to the same thing as another noun in the same sentence. Often, the appositive provides additional information about the noun or helps to distinguish it in some way. If you could remove the appositive without changing the meaning of the sentence, it is said to be nonessential and should be set off with commas. If the appositive is necessary, it’s said to be essential and it should not be set off with commas.
Nonessential appositives:
Essential appositives:
When writing a date in month-day-year format, set off the year with commas.
If you are using the day-month-year format, however, commas are unnecessary.
If you are referencing a day of the week and a date, use a comma:
When you are referencing only a month and year, you don’t need a comma.
When multiple adjectives modify a noun to an equal degree, they are said to be coordinate and should be separated by commas. One way to tell whether the adjectives are coordinate is to try switching the order of them. If the sentence still sounds natural, the adjectives are coordinate.
If the adjectives are not coordinate, don’t separate them with a comma.
Use a comma before the word but if it is joining two independent clauses:
If but is not joining two independent clauses, leave the comma out.
When you have a list that contains only two items, don’t use a comma before the and.
When correcting a comma splice, that is when joining two independent clauses with a coordinating conjunction, put the comma before and.
When you have a list that contains more than two elements, use commas to separate them.
(The comma before the and in a list of three or more items is optional. See below under Serial Comma for more information.)
Your list might be made up of nouns, as in the example above, but it could also be made up of verbs, adjectives, or clauses. Imagine, for a moment, that you have just finished doing three chores. The chores were:
If you were to list these three chores in a sentence, you would write:
or
As mentioned above, when you are listing three or more items, commas should separate each element of the list. However, the final comma—the one that comes before the and—is optional. This comma is called the serial comma or the Oxford comma.
Whether or not you use the serial comma is a style choice. Many newspapers do not use it. Many trade books do use it. In your own writing, you can decide for yourself whether to use it or not—just be consistent.
Keep in mind, though, that occasionally the serial comma is necessary for clarity.
The sentence above will almost certainly cause readers to do a double-take. Without a serial comma, it looks like “Jane Austen and Albert Einstein” is an appositive, rather than two more elements in a list. To put it another way, the writer seems to be saying that her parents are Jane Austen and Albert Einstein. A serial comma eliminates the possibility of misreading, so even if you’re not using serial commas in your writing, make an exception for sentences like this:
Don’t separate a transitive verb from its direct object with a comma.
A nonrestrictive clause offers extra information about something you have mentioned in a sentence, but the information isn’t essential to identify the thing you’re talking about. Nonrestrictive clauses are usually introduced by which or who and should be set off by commas.
The clause “which Chester recommended” is nonrestrictive because “Posey’s Cafe” is already specific. Identifying it as the restaurant recommended by Chester doesn’t narrow it down any further.
The clause “whom I love dearly” is nonrestrictive because you could remove it and it would still be clear that you’re talking about the same person—“my wife” is already specific.
A restrictive clause adds necessary information about something you have mentioned in a sentence. Restrictive clauses are often introduced by that or who and should never be set off by commas.
The clause “that Chester recommended” is essential information in the sentence above. If you removed it, there would be no way to tell which restaurant you were talking about.
Correlative conjunctions are conjunctions that come in pairs (such as either/or, neither/nor, and not only/but also) and connect words or phrases in a sentence to form a complete thought. Typically, commas are unnecessary with correlative conjunctions.
An attributive tag is a phrase like “he said” or “she claimed” that identifies the speaker of a quote or piece of dialogue. Attributive tags can come before, after, or even in the middle of a quote. Use commas to separate attributive tags from quotations.
If a quotation before an attributive tag ends in a question mark or exclamation point, however, there’s no need for a comma.
In American English, commas always go before closing quotation marks.
In British English, however, the convention is the opposite. If you are writing for a British audience, put the comma after the closing quotation mark.
Parentheses are used to give additional information to the reader—information that would disrupt the flow of the sentence if written as a nonrestrictive clause. Commas may be placed after the closing parenthesis but not before either the opening or the closing parenthesis. If the sentence would not require any commas if the parenthetical statement were removed, the sentence should not have any commas when the parentheses are added.
Don’t use a comma between an article and a noun.
When speaking, we often pause while we think of the next word we want to say. In writing, though, there’s usually no reason to add this pause. If you’re writing dialogue and you specifically want to convey a pause here while someone is thinking, use an an ellipsis: I’ll have an… apple.
The phrase “as well as” usually doesn’t require commas unless it’s part of a nonrestrictive clause.
The phrase “such as” requires commas if it introduces a nonrestrictive clause.
If “such as” introduces a restrictive clause, omit the commas.
Using a comma before “too” is optional.
A comma simply adds emphasis.
Thinking about the quality of writing in social media is usually enough to make English teachers the world over weep. But, it’s not all bad and it’s about time to celebrate some of the more grammar-conscious writers on social networks. This year, in honor of National Grammar Day on March 4, we decided to find social media’s celebrity grammar hero.
After analyzing the tweets of the top fifty celebrities by size of follower base, Conan O’Brien comes out on top as our #GrammarDay champion. O’Brien averages just 0.21 mistakes per 100 words. But he’s in good company with his fellow comedians—Ellen DeGeneres and Jimmy Fallon also made the top five with 0.29 and 0.3 errors per 100 words, respectively.
Our top ten grammar heroes are a pretty diverse bunch that includes tech tycoons, comedians, international politicians, pop stars, and reality television stars.
We also found that politicians, as a group, have the best grammar on average at 0.6 mistakes per 100 words, with President Obama leading the category. Reality TV stars come in second with 1.59 errors per 100 words, with Khloé Kardashian leading the category. Nicki Minaj has the best grammar of hip-hop and rap artists, who, as a group, outperform pop stars by about 31 percent.
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Are you curious about how you stack up? Find your celebrity grammar twin with our Grammar Hero Personality Quiz!
Today, millions of online voices will cry out, “May the 4th be with you!” to celebrate Star Wars Day. When it comes to space, two franchises arguably rule the sci-fi universe—Star Wars and Star Trek. One struggles fiercely for independence in a galaxy far, far away while the other explores strange new worlds, seeking out new life and new civilizations. We wanted to see what things are unique about the way their fandoms communicate, so we took a broad look at the writing styles and accuracy of their Reddit fan communities by analyzing nearly 2,000 comments.
We found some interesting data. (No, not the android named Data, although he proved to be a popular Star Trek character.) For instance, we discovered that Star Trek fans talk about Star Wars 3.8 times more often than Star Wars fans discuss Star Trek. Is it because Star Wars is the bigger titan of sci-fi pop culture? Our research showed that Star Wars certainly has the larger fan community with 456,728 Reddit members, versus 97,846 members talking about all things Trek.
Have a look at our infographic for more insights and to learn which characters, episodes and series from each franchise were the most popular.
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We visited Reddit to gather the top 200 upvoted posts from both the Star Wars and Star Trek subreddits between April 18, 2015, and April 18, 2016. To get a broad range, we selected the top five upvoted comments with 20 words or more from each thread.
Using Grammarly, we identified the errors in the comments, which were then verified and tallied by a team of live proofreaders. For the purposes of this study we counted only black-and-white mistakes, such as misspellings, wrong and missing punctuation, misused or missing words, and subject-verb disagreement. We ignored stylistic variations, such as intentional misspellings, acronyms, common slang, and foreign or invented language.
Job searching is like dating: each side involved is trying to find the perfect fit. You’re sizing up an employer to see if they’ve got what it takes to make you happy. The employer is evaluating whether you can make their dreams come true as a productive, successful team member.
However, much like dating, there are some behaviors that can be a turn-off. No, we’re not talking about things like mansplaining at the dinner table or endlessly sharing stories about an ex. Instead, we’re talking about ways that you may — knowingly or unknowingly — be discouraging recruiters from giving you an interview or even that coveted offer letter.
Here are seven ways you may be scaring off recruiters and hiring managers. Job seekers, beware.
1 Unfocused resume and social media profiles
It’s great that you have three certifications, loads of hobbies, and the ability to multitask like the best of them. However, when you are applying for a role, it’s vital that your resume and LinkedIn profile clearly tell a compelling narrative about why you are the ideal candidate for the job. This is why some experts recommend having more than one resume. Your resume should clearly convey why you are a good fit for the specific role, as opposed to being a catch-all document for all of the jobs you’ve worked in your life. Similarly, your LinkedIn profile should mirror your resume and expound on some of the details, including projects you’ve worked on, articles you’ve been featured in, professional organizations you are a member of, etc. Recruiters, on average, take six to seven seconds to read a resume. If yours is a mash-up of your greatest hits, they won’t know what to take away from it. In the end, an unfocused resume may be the reason recruiters aren’t calling you back.
READ: 9 Mistakes to Avoid on Social Media While Looking for a New Job
2 Excessive numbers of applications
While you may be uber passionate to work at a particular company, resist the urge to apply to every open role that you might qualify for. Seeing your name and application pop up for four or five job listings sends a clear message to recruiters: You don’t know what you want, or you’re not decisive. If there are a handful of roles that, initially, you think you’d be a good fit for, print our the job descriptions and really read them. Compare them with one another. Notice the differences, and then start prioritizing which ones are a better fit given your skills, experience, and education.
Don’t be that person whose name pops up in an inbox multiple times, like an email stalker. Home in on one or two roles that you feel strongly about and apply to those.
3 Overeager emails, calls, and follow-ups
You’ve applied to a position. You’re feeling good, but then . . . nothing. Silence. A couple of weeks go by and you haven’t heard back from a recruiter. If you’ve found yourself in the job search black hole, it’s okay to follow up with a professional email. However, if you have emailed twice, called three times, and left a Facebook message for the recruiter, you’ve gone too far. You are scaring him/her. Hell, you’re scaring us. Begging for a response doesn’t make you look like the professional, informed candidate that a company would want to hire. It’s safe to say that if you haven’t heard from an employer after three weeks and a follow-up email, you should move on to the next opportunity.
READ: How to Write a Follow-up Email After a Job Interview
4 Repeatedly rescheduling calls, interviews, and meetings
Recruiters get it. Schedules get busy and calendar conflicts arise. However, if you’ve rescheduled a phone interview, in-person interview, or follow-up call, be cautious about continuing to reschedule. Most talent acquisition pros are juggling multiple requisitions and dozens of applicants. You’re making their job harder by constantly rescheduling, and what’s worse is that you’re giving yourself a bad reputation. Be punctual and reliable.
5 Incomplete or incorrect information
In the same vein, you may be scaring off recruiters with your incomplete application or incorrect information. As an informed candidate, you should not only be highly engaged and well-informed but also make a recruiter’s job easier by giving them the right information. That means full and complete information for your references, a fully filled out application, and an easily accessible portfolio or work samples. Ideally, you want to make a recruiter’s interactions with you as pleasant and seamless as possible so that hiring you is an even bigger delight.
READ: What Are the Best Ways to Show Your Skills to an Employer?
6 Bashing former employers on social media
Airing a former employer’s dirty laundry or badmouthing former colleagues is one of the quickest ways to scare off potential employers. After all, who wants to hire someone who has a track record of bashing? When critiquing former employers or colleagues on social media or even when you leave an anonymous Glassdoor review, always be fair and professional. Whether your name is attached to it or not, it’s important that recruiters see that no matter what may have transpired between you and a previous employer, you still know how to handle yourself with grace and class.
7 Inconsistent interview performance
Lastly, inconsistent interactions with team members of your potential employer can put off a recruiter, or at the very least make them question your fit for the role. Being inconsistent in interviews, phone calls, or work samples can send the signal that you’ll be an inconsistent employee, which is not what you want a recruiter or hiring manager to think about you. And while this final behavior may not scare off recruiters quite like the aforementioned actions, it’s important to remember that you must consistently perform during the application process with everyone you come into contact with so that they have a clear impression of the kind of informed candidate you are.
A version of this post originally appeared on Glassdoor’s blog.
More from Glassdoor:
The Ultimate Guide to Analyzing a Company’s Glassdoor Page
10 Smart Ways to Improve Your Chances for a Raise
8 Honest Reasons You Didn’t Make It Past the First Interview
When two words are used together to yield a new meaning, a compound is formed. Compound words can be written in three ways: as open compounds (spelled as two words, e.g., ice cream), closed compounds (joined to form a single word, e.g., doorknob), or hyphenated compounds (two words joined by a hyphen, e.g., long-term). Sometimes, more than two words can form a compound (e.g., mother-in-law).
The most common spelling quandary writers face is whether to write compounds as separate words, one word, or hyphenated words.
An open compound word is created in cases when the modifying adjective is used with its noun to create a new noun. This isn’t quite the same as a noun with a modifying adjective. We just use a space between the adjective and the noun, so sometimes it can be hard to identify as a compound; however, if the two words are commonly used together, it’s considered to be a compound word.
When adverbs ending in -ly combine with another word, the resulting compound is always spelled as two separate words.
Closed compound words look like one word. At one point, these words weren’t used together, but they’re now accepted as a “real word” in the English language. Closed compound words are usually made up of only two words. Here are some closed compound examples.
The English language is always evolving, and when words become used more frequently, they are often eventually written as one word. When the Internet first began, for example, we talked about going on-line. Now that this is a daily experience for most of us, the spelling online has become commonly accepted.
There are a great many grammar rules regarding hyphens in compound words. One important rule of thumb to remember is that in most cases, a compound adjective is hyphenated if placed before the noun it modifies, but not if placed after the noun.
But…
This is just one of many rules concerning hyphens in compound words and it is often necessary to consult the dictionary to determine whether these terms should be hyphenated or not.
Close your eyes. Imagine words as people in an office setting. The verbs scurry about, active and animated, getting things done. The adjectives and adverbs conjure ideas and images in the marketing department. But there’s always that one guy. See him? He’s over by the water cooler, leaning against the wall. He’s omnipresent, and yet nobody really knows what he does. He may be hanging around, but he sure doesn’t seem to be pulling his weight.
That One Guy could represent any word or phrase that always shows up in our writing but doesn’t contribute anything. Here’s a list of thirty-one words and phrases you need to take off your payroll this year.
At all times
Watch out for flabby phrases at all times.
Each and every
Look for filler words in your writing each and every day daily.
As yet
We don’t know as yet whether we’ll succeed.
In order
Eliminate excess verbiage in order to clean up your writing.
Basically, essentially
These words basically don’t add value. They’re essentially useless.
Totally, completely, absolutely, literally, actually
Without filler words, your writing will be totally fabulous.
Very, really, quite, rather, extremely
These very common words are really not useful. They’re rather dull.
Simply
Simply Don’t use this word often.
Pretty
It’s a pretty good idea to use this one sparingly, too.
Just
If your sentence works without it, you just don’t need this word.
That
This is a word that you should only use when you need it for clarity.
Up, down
We don’t care whether you stand up or sit down to write, just write cleanly!
In the process of
We’re in the process of learning to remove wordiness.
As a matter of fact
As a matter of fact, Your skills have improved.
All of
All of Your readers will enjoy reading cleaner copy.
As being
You’ll be known as being a proficient writer!
Being that
Being that Because you’re the best writer in your class, you’re sure to get good grades.
During the course of
During the course of the writing lesson, we learned some new tricks!
For all intents and purposes, For the most part
For all intents and purposes, Our writing has improved.
Point in time
You don’t need to use filler words at this point in time now.
Every word needs to have a purpose in your writing, and there are plenty that don’t contribute anything but clutter. Now that you have a list of common offenders, how many more can you think of? Leave a comment!
Compound words, like anytime and any time, sometimes don’t have the same meaning as the individual words they comprise. It’s a case of the whole being different from the sum of its parts. Everyday and every day are like that—everyday (with no space) doesn’t mean the same thing as every day (with a space). In speech, however, they do sound the same. No wonder it’s so easy to confuse them with each other. What does each phrase mean and how do you use them?
The everyday vs. every day dilemma is not an uncommon one. These two words suffer from the same problems as anytime and any time, or anyone and any one—compounds can be a source of much confusion. So let’s see how we define and use everyday and how we define and use every day.
Everyday (as one word) is an adjective. Thesauruses list average, mundane, ordinary, and standard as synonyms. “Everyday clothing,” then, refers to the ordinary clothes you wear on regular days, as opposed to outfits designated for special events or holidays. Occasionally, people use everyday as a noun—it’s a shorthand way of referring to their everyday routines.
Every day means “each day.” The easiest way to remember this is to think about the space separating the two words. Because of that space, “every” is simply an adjective modifying the word “day.” If you paired every with any other word, it would mean each—every day means “each day”, just like “every word” means “each word.” There’s nothing more to it.
If you’re still having trouble distinguishing between everyday and every day and you don’t know when to use which, you’ll be alright as long as you remember that in every day you can easily replace “every” with “each.” So, if you’re talking about how often you wear green pants, you’d say “I wear green pants every day. It still makes sense if you replace “every” with “each”: I wear green pants each day. On the other hand, you can’t say “I wear pants eachday” because there’s no such word.
It’s sweaty foot season, so this week on Kinja Co-Op, we’re on the hunt for the best everyday men’s socks. —Lifehacker
For most Brazilians, everyday crime is a much more imminent threat than terrorism. —The New York Times
But the real point is this: You need to think and act like you are selling your business, every day. —The Globe and Mail
But people do it all across the globe every day. —The Huffington Post
