Grammar, Punctuation and Style
Here’s a great guide to grammar, punctuation and style. http://grammar.uoregon.edu/toc.html
Author Archives
Aishwariya
I'm Aishwariya. Passionate about writing, marketing communications, books, blogging and editing. I've donned several hats, such as copywriter, blogger, copy-editor, and journalist.
Why are there silent letters in English spelling?
Etymology is the reason there are so many silent letters in English spelling. Etymology is the study of the history of words, and there was a widespread view that words should show their history in the way they are spelled. There was a genuine belief that it would help people […]
The Great Vowel Shift
A series of changes affecting the long vowels of English, known as the Great Vowel Shift, took place in the early 1400s. Before the shift, a word like loud would have been pronounced ‘lood’, name as ‘nahm’, leaf as ‘layf’, mice as ‘mees’. Although the shift had no clear beginning […]
The First English Copyeditor
William Caxton introduced the printing press around 1400.In the prologue to the first book to be printed in England, The Recuyell(compilation) of the Historyes of Troy, he reflects on his experience in the translating business. He met Lady Margaret, the sister of King Edward IV, and happened to mention what he […]
100 Most Mispronounced Words
Here’s a list of 100 most mispronounced words: http://www.yourdictionary.com/library/mispron.html
On Copyediting
Check out this article. It’s a fun read. http://www.ibiblio.org/copyed/Stepp.html
Improve your vocabulary
Learn one new word a day with examples of its usage. Subscribe to the A.W.A.D( A Word a Day) newsletter. Go to the following link to sign up: http://wordsmith.org/awad/subscribe.html
The Runglish Cocktail
LONDON: First there was Franglais, a mangled combination of English and French. Then came Spanglish and subsequently Denglish, a mixure of German and English. Don’t fret. Just start getting used to Runglish — the the English-laced argot of young Russians — especially if you are planning a visit to the […]
Interesting courses and memberships
IGNOU offers a certificate course in copyediting and proofreading, which is of 6 months’ duration. Details are available on the site: http://www.ignou.ac.in Symbiosis Distance Learning Programme offers a 1 year Post-Graduate Diploma in Instructional Design. The site is http://www.scdl.net/pgdid.asp Being an accredited proofreader and belonging to a socity for proofreaders […]
Yes, eh?
Many of us Indians have the habit of vernacularising the English language. For example, to show agreement with the speaker or to show our involvement with his or her dialogue, we often say ” Yes, eh?” This happens more with Tamilians. It would be a lot better if we just […]
