CORRECTIONS & EXPLANATIONS - May 10, 2009

Here are the corrections and explanations for last week's entries. Be patient. There is a lot to digest.

Monday

PHRASES

What is a phrase and what are its components?

A phrase is a group of words made up of a preposition and its object.
A preposition is a word such as “in”, “on”, “upon”, “for”, “into” or “of”.
An object can be a noun or a pronoun and, in this case, answers the question “what” after a preposition.

How can a phrase be used in a sentence?

A phrase can be used as, or can function as an adjective.
The boy in the car is Tom.
“In the car” describes “boy” so it is an adjective phrase modifying “boy”.

A phrase can be used as, or can function as an adverb.
The cat sat on the mat.
“On the mat” answers the question “where” about the verb so is an adverb phrase modifying “sat”.

A phrase can be used as, or can function as a noun.
Into the woods is where the boy went.
“Into the Woods” is the subject of the copula verb “is” because it is what “is”.



Tuesday

The following were gleaned from one article and all are incomplete thoughts.
Does the fact that it is an opinion piece allow some form of poetic license to the author?
The clipped style of terse and incomplete street jargon for newspaper writing, be it opinion or straight reporting, is unacceptable and incorrect. Professional writers have an obligation to the public to write correctly. Anything other than that is slipshod and sends the wrong message to the readers; as an example, when this type of writing is read in the classroom, students are misguided and the mistakes are perpetuated and compounded.

“Not if you count the expropriation mess, legal fees, lost tax assessment, management time, and the opportunity costs.”

This is an incomplete thought; there is no principal clause.

“Windsor still hasn’t finished paying for the last scheme yet, not if you count the expropriation mess, legal fees, lost tax assessment, management time, and the opportunity costs.”


“A canal to nowhere, as it were.”

This is not a complete thought; there is no principal clause.

“The new downtown canal would be a canal to nowhere, as it were.”


“Bobbing litter and stagnant water when the pumps break down, as they always do in Coventry Gardens.”

This is not a complete thought; there is no principal clause.

“At worst it would become a canal of bobbing litter and stagnant water when the pumps break down, as they always do in Coventry Gardens.”


Wednesday

BUILD OFF OF

One builds “on” one’s foundation.
Additionally, “off of” puts two prepositions together and that is incorrect.

“I have achieved some success and I am going to build on that.”


Thursday

Find, identify and correct the error in the following unit.

“Revenues the city gets from Caesars Windsor, which was the city's single largest taxpayer, combined with ths local heavy industry sector, adds up to the same amount as a decade ago, said Colucci.”

The subject, revenues, and verb, adds, do not agree. Subject and verb must agree.

“Revenues the city gets from Caesars Windsor, which was the city's single largest taxpayer, combined with ths local heavy industry sector, add up to the same amount as a decade ago, said Colucci.”


Friday

Find, identify and correct the errors in the following entry.

FYI - WOW!
This is a record for the blog: there are nine errors in the original fourteen word entry.

“Sheila McCabe - well know instructor, she has impacted many students lives over the years”

This is a run-on sentence. Actually, it is not a sentence at all.
The dash should not be used.
“Well know” should be “well-known”, a hyphenated word.
“A” should be inserted before “well known”.
“She” should be eliminated.
“Impact” is a noun and cannot be used as a verb.
“Students” should be the plural possessive form.
There is no period at the end.

“Sheila McCabe, a well-known instructor, has had an impact on many students’ lives over the years.”


A GOOD THOUGHT

“Generosity is giving more than you can, and pride is taking less than you need.”
Kahlil Gibran, a Lebanese American artist & poet, created this epithet.


LAST WEEK’S WORDS

“Tempestuous” (adj.) means furious, angry, raging or wild.

“Feral” (adj.) means ferocious, savage, wild or fierce.

“Mortification” (n.) refers to humiliation, embarrassment or shame for one’s deeds.
“Mort” is the root of the word and that means death. “Mortify” is the verb form.

“Virtuosity” (n.) refers to the technical skill, proficiency or expertise of a virtuoso. It also refers to the love of the elegant arts collectively. The root is “virtu” from which “virtue” is derived.

“Simper” (v.) means to smile affectedly, derisively or to look suggestively. It also means to smile in a silly, self-conscious way.