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Subjunctive? If I were/was a rich man...
"The subjunctive mood expresses something that is contrary to fact, that is conditional, hypthetical, or purely imaginative; it can also express a wish, a doubt, or a possibility. The subjunctive mood may change the form of the verb, but the verb be is the only one in English that preserves many such distinctions.
EXAMPLES The senior partner insisted that he (I, you, we, they) be in charge of the project.
If we were to close the sale today, we would meet our monthly quota.
If I were you, I would postpone the trip.
The advantage of the subjunctive mood is that it enables us to express clearly whether or not we consider a condition contrary to fact. If so, we use the subjunctive; if not, we use the indicative.
EXAMPLES If I were president of the firm, I would change several personnel policies.(subjunctive)
Although I am president of the firm, I don't feel that I control every aspect of its policies. (indicative)" (Alred, Gerald, Charles Brusaw, and Walter Oliu. The Business Writer's Handbook 375).
When "if" isn't subjunctive: According to English Grammar for Dummies, "You may think that all sentences with the word if need a subjunctive verb. Nope. Some if sentences don't express a condition contrary to fact; they express a possibility, something that may happen. The if sentences that express a possibility take a plain old, normal, indicative verb. Here are some examples:
NON-SUBJUNCTIVE IF SENTENCE: If Lochness goes to prison, he will take a burrito cookbook with him.
WHY IT'S NOT SUBJUNCTIVE: Prison is a possibility.
NON-SUBJUNCTIVE IF SENTENCE: If Ludwig divorces, he will remarry within a year.
WHY IT'S NOT SUBJUNCTIVE: Divorce is a possibility. In fact, Ludwig is already looking around.
In an if sentence, if something is possible, use a normal everyday verb to say it. If something is untrue, use a subjunctive verb" (Woods 291).
Than I/ than me?
"She is tougher than I." / "She is tougher than me." "She plays as well as I." / "She plays as well as me." Correct: "She is tougher than I (am)." "She plays as well as I (do)."
The Columbia Guide to Standard American English says the following: "Than is both a subordinating conjunction, as in She is wiser than I am, and a proposition, as in She is wiser than me. As a subject of the clause introduced by the conjunction then, the pronoun must be nominative, and as object of the preposition than, the following pronoun must be in the objective case. Since the following verb am is often dropped or 'understoood,' we regularly hear than I and than me. Some commentators believe that the conjunction is currently more frequent than the preposition, but both are unquestionably Standard [emphasis added].... Than is frequently misspelled then, although in Edited English it is usually caught and corrected. But watch for the error" (433-434).
That or Which?
According to The Grammar Bible,
"That refers to people, animals, or things.
The woman that witnessed the shooting will testify tomorrow.
The camel that carried us through the desert has died.
The explorers found the cave that hid the treasure for so many years.
Which refers to animals and things, never to people.
The dog which tipped over my garbage can needs a shorter leash.
The crowd cheered as the plane which had flown around the world landed (Strumpf 198).
Common Errors in English argues that "there is little evidence that this distinction is or has ever been regularly made in past centuries by careful writers of English. However, a small but impassioned group of authorities has urged the distinction; so here is the information you will need to pacify them.
If you are defining something by distinguishing it from a larger class of which it is a member, use 'that': 'I chose the lettuce that had the fewest wilted leaves.' When the general class is not being limited or defined in some way, then 'which' is appropriate: 'He made an iceberg lettuce Caesar salad, which didn't taste right'" (Brian 61-62).
The faculty is or the faculty are?
According to Merriam Webster's Dictionary of American Usage, "Faculty in American English most often serves as a collective noun meaning 'the teaching and administrative staff in an educational institution'...but faculty is also used in the U.S. as a plural having the sense 'faculty members'.... This plural use of faculty has drawn the disapproval of several commentators.... It continues to be common, however, and has clearly established a secure place for itself in the language of academics. If you dislike it, use 'faculty members' or 'teachers' instead" (427).
The meanings of grammar?
1a. "The study of how words and the component parts combine to form sentences. b. The study of structural relationships in language or in a language, sometimes including punctuation, meaning, and linguistic history. 2a. The system of inflections,syntax, and word formation of a language. b. The system of rules implicit Ian a language, viewed as a mechanism for generating all sentences possible in that language. 3a. A normative or prescriptive set of rules setting forth the current standard of usage for pedagogical or reference purposes. b. Writing or speech judged with regard to such a set of rules. 4. A book containing the morphologic, syntactic, and semantic rules for a specific language (The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language 763).
According to The Grammar Bible, grammar "is the regular system of rules that we use to weave sounds into the meaningful units with which we express our thoughts and ideas, creating language. We call this system grammar.
In a simple sense, grammar is the study of words and the ways words work together. It is a sort of invisible hand that guides us as we put words together into sentences. Any person who is able to communicate using a particular language has knowledge of the grammar of that language, even if his or her knowledge is unconscious. Grammar is pervasive" (Strumpf xiv).
Then or than?
Than is used to indicate comparison or degree: His drive was longer than mine. Then is used to indicate time: Then he putted out and won the tournament.
Thru or through?
Through serves as an adjective, adverb, and preposition. Since thru is informal and should not be used in formal writing, just keep on using through as you have in the past.
To, too, or two?
According to The Least You Should Know About English,
"Two is a number.
I have two brothers. Too means "more than enough" or "also." The lesson was too difficult and too long. She was too late. (more than enough)
I found it boring too. (also)
I'll be at the party too. (also)
Use to for all other meanings.
He likes to snorkel. He's going to the beach" (Glazier 18).
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