English grammar explained in plain language simple enough to be understood.
Always use a comma when writing a date. The comma goes between the day of the month and the year. Jim was born on May 30, 1989.My grandparents were married on May 7, 1931. If the date is written into… Read more867. Comma Rules – in a date
In a sentence, place a comma between a city and a state.I live in Chicago, Illinois.My friend traveled to Denver, Colorado. If the sentence continues after the city and state, also put a comma after the state.We visited Charleston, North… Read more868. Comma Rules – with a city and state or country
In a sentence, if you are addressing a person by name, you must set off their name with a comma.Bob, please bring the iced tea.I’m happy you like the gift, Josie.Billy, you need to finish your homework. If the name… Read more869. Comma Rules – Addressing someone by name
Use a comma to separate items in a list of three or more objects. I bought lemons, sugar, and cookies at the store.We visited Kentucky, North Carolina, and Mississippi this spring.My dog eats sausage, biscuits, and grits. Do not use… Read more871. Comma Rules – in a list
Use a semicolon (:) at the end of a complete thought. The semicolon comes in the middle of a sentence between the first complete thought and the second complete thought. When the two thoughts are connected by a similar idea,… Read more894. Stop Punctuation – the Semicolon
When using quotation marks at the end of a sentence, you must put the end punctuation inside of the quotation marks. Here is an example:Jan said, “Meet me at the park.”Notice that the period at the end of the sentence… Read more902. Using Quotation Marks in a Sentence
The word you’re has an apostrophe (‘) in it. The apostrophe makes the word a contraction. You’re really means you are. You’re going to school today.You are going to school today.A contraction is a word that is formed by shortening… Read more921. Confusing Words – you’re and your
The word they’re is a contraction. The two words – they are – are pushed together with an apostrophe (‘) where the letter a was removed. They are coming to the party tonight.They’re coming to the party tonight. The word… Read more922. Confusing Words – they’re, their, there
The word we’re is a contraction. It combines the words we are. We‘re going to the movies tonight.We are going to the movies tonight. The word were is a past tense verb.Today we are at school.Last night, we were at… Read more923. Confusing Words – we’re and were
The word it’s is a contraction. The words it is are combined to make it’s.It is a confusing word. It’s a confusing word. The word its shows possession.The cat chased its own tail. The store advertised its sale with a… Read more924. Confusing Words – it’s and its