A practical guide to difficult and disputed points in modern English, both written and spoken. Arranged alphabetically with cross-referencing, it contains 500 entries and covers a range of language problems in meaning, grammar, spelling, pronunciation, punctuation and style etc
This easy-to-use guide helps readers improve their wordpower and is full of practical advice on how to effectively manage dictionaries, thesauri, and other language reference books. Useful tips for tackling spelling and the meaning of difficult words are included, along with a comprehensivereference section that highlights easily confused words, foreign terms, and word formation. Topic-based noun lists, covering architecture, the human body, countries, music, mathematics, and language help expand vocabulary, and a lexicon of "hard" words provides needed assistance with the mostproblematic terms. Overall, this book allows readers to develop a better understanding as well as to finesse their use of the English language.
Current usage of vocabulary and style is explained clearly and sections included cover: jargon, cliches, spelling and punctuation; ground rules of grammar; superfluous words, overuse or misuse; sexist language, the influence of science and technology, American English and exemplary clarity.
Current usage of vocabulary and style is explained clearly and sections included cover: jargon, cliches, spelling and punctuation; ground rules of grammar; superfluous words, overuse or misuse; sexist language, the influence of science and technology, American English and exemplary clarity.
Points out common errors in the way we write and shows us how to correct them. Gives many examples of linguistic abuse, showing how and where to avoid it Provides definitions of terms such as ambiguity, irony, metaphor and jargon Explains complexgrammatical terms such as disguised conjunctions and fused participles Demonstrates how to use punctuation and grammar to ensure clarity Offers constructive advice on the proper use of English
Based on the highly successful second edition of the Oxford Guide to English Usage , this new Little Oxford Guide to English Usage offers the same valued information in a handy, compact format. Here is an essential guide to good English that takes the user clearly and easily through each aspectof writing and speaking English, with copious examples drawn from the works of the best writers. Have you ever had doubts about when to hyphenate two words? Confused over whether you should disassociate or dissociate yourself from something? Do you know when to spell doggie as doggy ? Is it really arule that a preposition should never fall at the end of a sentence?The Little Oxford Guide to English Usage answers these questions and more, and it also includes advice on spelling, punctuation, pronunciation, and difficult and misused words. Designed for daily use, this marvelous handbook is organized according to basic themes (Word Formation, Pronunciation,Vocabulary, Grammar) and written to address the actual needs of a typical writer. Now there's a single, convenient, and eminently portable source you can turn to with all your questions about how to speak and write more clearly.