English grammar explained in plain language simple enough to be understood.
We can use italics to emphasize certain words in our writing. Look at this example:At the party last night, I saw Mary with her boyfriend. By italicizing the word boyfriend, the writer calls attention to the word. The boyfriend must… Read more424. Use Italics to Show Emphasis in Your Writing
Section A: Write the words in each sentence that should be in italics.1. We went to the Opera House to see a performance of West Side Story.2. The Chicago Ballet Company is performing The Nutcracker in December.3. Last summer, I… Read more425. Practice With Italics
Verb tense tells when the action is happening. With present tense, the action is happening right now. Past tense tells about action that happens before now. Future tense tells about action that happens after now. When you write, be careful… Read more304. Highlight on Writing: Consistent Verb Tense
In active voice, the subject does the action in the sentence.In passive voice, the subject does no action. The subject is acted upon. Both active voice and passive voice are used in writing, but active voice makes the writing more… Read more307. Highlight on Writing: Using Active and Passive Voice
A prepositional phrase adds descriptive information to a sentence. The prepositional phrase tells the location or position of an object or a person. It is important to be sure that the prepositional phrase is close to the person or object… Read more479. Highlight on Writing: Placement of Prepositional Phrases
Students are often told to write a paper in MLA format, and we will talk this week about what that means. MLA stands for Modern Language Association of America. The Modern Language Association is a professional association for scholars of… Read more491. Writing in MLA Format
When writing in MLA format, you must first set up some regulations on your computer. The computer should be set to double-space with one-inch margins at the top, bottom, and both sides. Set the font to Times New Roman, size… Read more492. MLA Format – Font, Spacing, Margins, and Header
Now that you have your document set up with Times New Roman size 12 font, double-spacing, a header, and one-inch margins, you are reading to begin typing your document. Be sure to click out of the header area (at the… Read more493. MLA Format – Heading and Title
MLA has certain expectations when you are using citations within your essay. An “in-text” citation is when you quote from a piece of writing other than your own. At the end of the quoted words, you must make a citation… Read more494. MLA Format and Citations
We use adjectives and adverbs to add interest and information to our writing, but sometimes there is a better way to write what you want to say. Here are some weak sentences using an adjective:Make your argument strong.You can make… Read more324. Highlight on Writing: Be Selective in Using Adjectives and Adverbs