Guide for Better English Grammar

Subject/Verb Agreement

• Make sure that your subjects and verbs match. A singular verb should match a singular noun. Write the following:
  My teacher says we need to write a five-paragraph essay.

  Don't write the following:
  My teacher say we need to write a five-paragraph essay.

Using Pronouns Correctly

• In addition to making your nouns and verbs match, it's also important that you match your pronouns and antecedents. Make sure that if you're using a singular pronoun you follow it with a singular antecedent. Consider this example:
  Does your friend want a martini with their meal?

  Notice that "friend" does not agree with "their," because "friend" is singular, and "their" is plural. Instead, write this:
  Does your friend want a martini with her meal?
  If you're unsure of the gender of the subject, simply write "his or her."

  In addition, make sure that your pronouns clearly refer to the words they're replacing. For example, don't write the following:
  Working at a restaurant is a way to gain experience that you can put on your resume, but make sure it's a good one.
  Make sure what's a "good one"? The restaurant? The resume?
  Instead, write the following:
  Working at a restaurant is a way to gain experience that you can put on your resume, but make sure the restaurant is a good one.

Using Apostrophes When You Write

• William Strunk, author of "The Elements of Style," says to form the possessive singular of a noun with "'s." For instance, write "George's cat," not "Georges cat." Possessive simply means that the something belongs to the subject. In this case, the cat belongs to George. This rule also applies to singular nouns that end in an "s." Write "Charles's computer." For plural nouns---nouns that signify more than one---the apostrophe should follow the "s." For instance, if you're talking about more than one movie, say the "movies' characters." Likewise, if you're only talking about one movie, simply write the "movie's characters."

  If you're confused by contractions, always remember that the apostrophe in a contraction signifies that the word is a shortened way of writing two words. For instance, "you're" is really "you are." "They're" is really "they are." Don't make the mistake of using "your" for "you're" or "there" or "their" for "they're." Likewise, "it's" will always mean "it is." The apostrophe before the "s" does not signify possession in this case.

Commas and Coordinating Conjunctions

• Coordinating conjunctions are words that need a comma before them when they're followed by an independent clause---a phrase that can stand independently on its own. The seven coordinating conjunctions include the words "for, and, nor, but, or, yet and so." Remember these seven words by thinking of the acronym FANBOYS. These words are easy ways to combine two independent clauses. For instance, write the following:
  I need to go to the store, but my husband says we should wait until Thursday.

  In the previous sentence, the phrases before and after "but" are independent clauses, so the coordinating conjunction---in this case "but"---is used to separate them, along with a comma.

Avoiding Comma Splices

• If you don't want to use a coordinating conjunction, you could simply use a semicolon.
  I need to go to the store; my husband says we should wait until Thursday.

  Semicolons always separate two independent clauses. Separating two independent clauses with a comma is called a comma splice. Avoid comma splices.