Only proper nouns need to be capitalized, such as cities, names, etc.
Titles need to capitalize all words except articles (e.g. of, the, etc.). All major words need to be capitalized.
Capitalize the beginning of every sentence and the word “I”.
A singular noun names one person, place, thing, or idea; a plural noun names more than one person, place, thing, or idea.
Most singular nouns form the plural by adding -s.
A singular noun ending in s, x, z, ch, sh makes the plural by adding-es.
A singular noun ending in a consonant and then y makes the plural by dropping the y and adding-ies.
There are some irregular noun plurals. These don't follow specific rules and just need to be memorized.
A singular nouns takes a singular verb while a plural nouns takes a plural verb.
Examples:
Affect vs Effect
Be careful with effect vs affect. Affect is the action while effect is the result.
Examples:
A/An vs The
When we are referring to any member of a group we use a/an. In this case, it is not important which one we are talking about.
If it is a specific member of a group, we need to use the.
Their/There/They're
Their refers to ownership of something.
There refers to a place that isn’t here.
They’re is a contraction for "They are".
Your vs You're
Your indicates possession (it tells that something belongs to you).
You’re is a contraction for “You are”.
A sentence fragment is a group of words that looks like a sentence, but actually isn’t a complete sentence. Sentence fragments are usually missing a subject or verb. A sentence fragment does not form a complete thought and therefore can't stand on its own.
Here are some common issues with sentence fragments:
Here are some ways to fix a sentence fragment:
A run-on sentence occurs when two or more independent clauses are not joined correctly, which makes the information lose its clarity.
Example: The bear ate the honey the dog ate the steak.
Use a period. The easiest way to fix a run-on is to split the sentence into smaller sentences using a period.
Example: The bear ate the honey. The dog ate the steak.
Use a semicolon. Adding a semicolon is a potential option. Just make sure the two sentences are closely related.
Example: The bear ate the honey; the bear did not eat the steak.
Use a comma and coordinating conjunction. A comma, paired with a coordinating conjunction (e.g., "and," "but," or "or"), corrects a run-on sentence.
Example: The bear ate the honey and the dog ate the steak.
Use a subordinating conjunction. Turn one of the independent clauses into a dependent clause. Then, use a subordinating conjunction (e.g., "because," "unless," and "although"), which connects two clauses.
Example: Because the bear ate the honey, the dog ate the steak.