Tag: Punctuation

Sounds and spelling of Spanish

This post summarises the spelling and pronunciation of Spanish. I discuss below mainly standard Spanish of Spain (Castilian), but point out a few of the differences for Spanish regions and Latin America. Spanish Alphabet The Spanish alphabet includes: 26 letters also used in the English alphabet (though <k> and <w> are rare, used mainly in…… Continue reading Sounds and spelling of Spanish

How long should a paragraph be?

Advice on writing often suggests that a paragraph should deal with a single idea, and that writers should start a new paragraph once they move on to a new idea. That advice implies that: a paragraph can be as short as a single sentence, or even as short as a single word; and there is…… Continue reading How long should a paragraph be?

I’m in a quandary about em-dashes

We are all starting to see more and more texts written by what is misleadingly known as Artificial Intelligence (AI), usually by ‘Large Language Models’. Supposedly, texts written by AI differ in various ways from texts written by humans. I’ve read several times recently that one common hallmark of AI writing is using the punctation…… Continue reading I’m in a quandary about em-dashes

Is the English language just French in disguise?

Bernard Cerquiglini’s 2024 book bears the provocative title «La langue anglaise n’existe pas» C’est du français mal prononcé (‘ “the English language doesn’t exist.” It is badly pronounced French.’) The title is from a quip by Clemenceau (presumably French Prime Minister Georges Clemenceau, 1841-1929). Cerquiglini emphasises that it is a quotation by putting quotation marks…… Continue reading Is the English language just French in disguise?

Keep it concise, but not too concise

Editors often advise writers to keep their texts as concise as possible. That is generally good advice. Concise texts are easier to read and understand, and easier to refer back to. But it is important not to carry that advice too far. If you delete from a text every word that is theoretically dispensable, the…… Continue reading Keep it concise, but not too concise

Spotting essays written by AI

A few weeks ago, the press reported that ‘researchers’ at Cambridge University had complied a list of indications that student essays have been written by AI tools. The source of the press reports was a short article at https://www.cambridge.org/news-and-insights/news/does-chat-gpt-make-the-grade-cambridge-research According to the article, the researchers described ChatGPT’s default writing style as echoing ‘the bland, clipped, and…… Continue reading Spotting essays written by AI

Street names’ apostrophes

A mini-row has erupted for the umpteenth time about the removal of apostrophes from street names on English road signs. The latest belligerence revolves around St Marys Walk (a street formerly known as St. Mary’s Walk) in Harrogate. Harrogate is a spa town in Yorkshire. I would love to describe Harrogate as genteel. That word…… Continue reading Street names’ apostrophes

Mousemat with accented characters

One thing I find very useful is a mousemat with instructions for typing accented characters. I picked mine up around 5-10 years ago at Foyles bookshop in Charing Cross Road London. Here is a picture. Of course, it doesn’t cover everything, but it does show many characters needed for most western European languages. Painfully, I…… Continue reading Mousemat with accented characters

In defence of brackets (3)

Most writers don’t use brackets often enough. I’ve given before a couple of examples where using brackets makes a text clearer. Here’s another example. I recently read something saying in Coity, near Bridgend, where they lived until her death. This wording doesn’t make it clear enough that these people lived in Coity, not in Bridgend.…… Continue reading In defence of brackets (3)