Titles | The Blue Book of Grammar and Punctuation

Mrs., Ms., Miss: Understanding the Difference

GrammarBook.com — Wed, 04 May 2022 11:00:53 +0000

We all at some point have addressed someone as Ms., Miss, or Mrs. We may also have a general idea about when to use these forms of address in American English, as well as to whom we should express them. At the same time, it’s good to further understand the distinction among these references so […]

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Abbreviating Professional Titles and Academic Degrees

GrammarBook.com — Wed, 09 Feb 2022 12:00:31 +0000

American English includes many details concerning items of style. One such item is the abbreviation of professional titles and academic degrees. By becoming more familiar with this usage, you will become more precise in your daily formal writing. This precision can then also potentially conserve more space for other words you’re expressing. Abbreviating Professional Titles […]

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Capitalizing Titles

GrammarBook.com — Wed, 23 Jun 2021 11:00:55 +0000

When and how to capitalize titles of works and titles of formal rank or professional status can remain a common question. We’ll focus on that topic today for additional clarity. (Note that style for capitalizing titles can vary among stylebooks and in-house style guidelines. What we share here offers a baseline that you can follow; […]

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Punctuation for Abbreviations

GrammarBook.com — Wed, 05 May 2021 11:00:35 +0000

Those who write in American English may sometimes wonder when to abbreviate a word as well as how to abbreviate it. This review will help address those questions. An abbreviation is a shortened or contracted form of a word or a phrase (e.g., Mister to Mr.). If you’re ever in doubt about when and how […]

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Ms., Mrs., or Miss: Which One Should You Use?

GrammarBook.com — Mon, 22 Mar 2021 14:00:15 +0000

Some speakers of American English think Ms., Mrs., and Miss all mean the same thing. They don’t, and learning their differences can enhance your grammar while ensuring you communicate politely. Before we dive into details, we’ll start by saying that each form of address is intended as a respectful title. To be well-mannered, you would […]

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A Study of Style: The U.S. Military

GrammarBook.com — Wed, 19 Aug 2020 05:00:30 +0000

Our exploration of American English strives to venture even further than the principles that guide writing with precision and eloquence. We are also interested in the language variances beyond what we accept as common for information exchange. For example, we know that United States can be abbreviated, often as either US or U.S. One might […]

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American vs. British English: Punctuation

GrammarBook.com — Wed, 24 Jun 2020 05:00:30 +0000

During the last several weeks we’ve covered some meaningful ground about the language we share with our friends across the water. For us, it’s been fun to reflect on what we have in common as well as how each dialect varies its voice. So far, we’ve examined spelling, vocabulary, and points of grammar. We’ll conclude […]

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& What About the Ampersand?

GrammarBook.com — Wed, 16 May 2018 05:00:26 +0000

The ampersand (&): We see it often in our daily communication, which adheres to a modern ethos of speed and brevity as seen in letters, emails, texts, tweets, memos, and notes. The mark is appealing because it helps save character space, it fits right in with other letters’ heights, and many could argue it’s one […]

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Year-End Quiz 2017

GrammarBook.com — Tue, 09 Jan 2018 18:01:03 +0000

Review is good for retention. That’s why GrammarBook.com likes to start the new year with a jumbo quiz that spans the last twelve months of topics we’ve covered with you. In 2017 we explored an array of ways to enhance your grammar and writing. We hope what you learned follows you well into 2018 as […]

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Capitalizing Composition Titles, Part II

GrammarBook.com — Tue, 10 Mar 2015 15:53:37 +0000

Some may question the need for a two-part series on this esoteric topic. But even those who consider themselves top-notch at identifying parts of speech in a word grouping will find composition-title capitalization a skill worth mastering. Any title of more than two words can be a challenge. How would you capitalize a title such […]

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