I found myself listening to Ivanka Trump be interviewed at the 2015 Fortune Most Powerful Women Summit. She talked about how she organizes her time, what it’s like to be Donald Trump’s daughter, and her approach to building brands. The woman is cool, calm, and collected and has a... (Read More)
“Whenever I read something, I’m picturing it in my head like a movie,” a Disney animator remarked when asked about his reading habits. His statement hit on that thrill we all feel when we read—or hear—words that are so right they give us an image in an instant.
Do “word... (Read More)
“I will see you their.”
That message gave Jeff Cohen second thoughts about meeting his OkCupid date, according to a recent front-page article in The Wall Street Journal about the allure of good grammar. Mr. Cohen now uses an app that ranks the message quality of prospective partners.... (Read More)
“I can’t stand it when people say they’re going to reach out.”
I hear that all the time. The phrase seems to make people downright squirmy.
Reach out is tentative—maybe you’ll make the connection; maybe you won’t. I get an image of an outstretched arm that may or... (Read More)
“Come for Bloody Mary’s,” read the invitation to Sunday brunch.
“I’ll be there,” I responded. But what’s with the apostrophe? (I kept that question to myself.)
To make a plural out of many proper names, including ones that that end in y, you simply add s, so Bloody... (Read More)
A popular daily newsletter arrived with this bit of information about DreamWorks Studios: “It produced less films and less profits than expected.”
That didn’t sound right.
The rule of thumb is to use fewer for things you can count (the number of DreamWorks films) and less when referring to amounts... (Read More)
Humid air surging up into southern New England could help produce locally heavy rainfall and thunder. Farther west, drier air will move into the Middle Atlantic region.
So read a recent weather forecast that I paid extra attention to for its correct use of farther, which refers to physical distance.... (Read More)
“He’s a friend of mine, but he missed his time,” Donald Trump said of New Jersey Governor Chris Christie. “If he would have done it four years ago, he would have beaten Romney.”
The “it” obviously refers to the presidential run the governor didn’t make in 2012, so that... (Read More)
These two sentences came across my desk the other day. Only one is correct. Which one is it?
• In 1915, the company formally established its travel business and has built it, year by year, on the deep-seeded values of trust, security and service.
• Private commercial bankers are... (Read More)
When the Eagles rock band learned it was among this year’s Kennedy Center honorees, the group’s musicians issued a statement saying they were truly humbled. A school that surpassed its fund-raising goal said the sum was a true testament to the incomparable educational experience it offers. A company I patronize... (Read More)
