grammar Archives - Mandi Stanley

Capitalization Competency: A Capital Idea

August 15, 2023/in grammar/by Mandi Stanley

Are department names supposed to be capitalized? Do we submit something to the Administration and Finance Department or the administration and finance department? Does it make a difference if it’s the Department of Administration and Finance or the department of administration and finance?

What about job titles? How do we know when to capitalize someone’s job title in a sentence?

Let’s all test our capitalization competency with a quick quiz on capital letters.

Jackson Lawrence, immediate past [Chief Executive Officer/chief executive officer] of the Eagle Leadership Institute, gave the keynote address.

Thompson Padgett, [Diversity Officer/diversity officer] for the College of Business and Industry, is leading an initiative devoted to creating a culture of belonging.

Shannon Pierce, [President/president] of the Rotary Club, facilitated a strategic planning session for the new year.

Answers:

Jackson Lawrence, immediate past chief executive officer of the Eagle Leadership Institute, gave the keynote address.

Did this one surprise you? It’s the most frequently overcapitalized tendency. The rule I hope you take away from this exercise is this:

The only time we capitalize the first letters of a person’s job title is when the title precedes the person’s proper name. When a job title is used as an appositive, it is not capitalized in the sentence.

In the pop quiz question above, the job title of chief executive officer is an appositive for Jackson Lawrence; therefore, it remains lower case.

Thompson Padgett, diversity officer for the College of Business and Industry, is leading an initiative devoted to creating a culture of belonging.

Diversity officer is an appositive for Thompson Padgett. It remains lower case.

Shannon Pierce, president of the Rotary Club, facilitated a strategic planning session for the new year.

President is an appositive for Shannon Pierce. Even the word president remains lower case in this instance.

We’ll discuss the capitalization of departments next week.

To customize a keynote or professional development session that will have your audience laughing and learning, contact Mandi Stanley.

Certified Speaking Professional Mandi Stanley works with business leaders who want to boost their professional image by becoming better speakers and writers through interactive high-content keynotes, breakout sessions, workshops, technical writing seminars, and fun proofreading classes.

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Photo by Suzy Hazelwood

That’s a Whole “Nuther” Story

January 11, 2023/in Wacky Word Choice/by Mandi Stanley

This wacky word is making a comeback in 2023. Already several times in the new year I’ve heard professional speakers and broadcasters—and even a preacher—use the word “nuther.”

But, I’m posting this blog today because I saw someone actually write it in a paper: nuther.

Is nuther a word? Short answer: No.

We hear people say, “That’s a whole nuther story.” Or, “We’re looking at a whole nuther level of shenanigans.”

However, the solution is not necessarily to correct it with “a whole other story,” which is poor grammar. Rather, I believe the problem lies with the word “whole.” What is actually happening is the speaker is inserting the “whole” between the first and second syllables of “another,” and the result is “a-whole-nother” story. This sounds like “a whole nuther” story.

So, the solution is to get rid of “whole.” Just say, “That’s another story.” That’s another story for another day. Whether it’s spelled nother or nuther, don’t say it—and certainly don’t write it.

What about you? What’s another wacky word you are hearing and seeing a lot these days and, perhaps, you’ve always questioned?

To customize a keynote or professional development session that will have your audience laughing and learning, contact Mandi Stanley.

Certified Speaking Professional Mandi Stanley works with business leaders who want to boost their professional image by becoming better speakers and writers through interactive high-content keynotes, breakout sessions, workshops, technical writing seminars, and fun proofreading classes.

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Eminent or Imminent? What’s the Word Week 1

September 21, 2022/in Wacky Word Choice/by Mandi Stanley

Think back a few years and imagine you are sitting in your high school history classroom one day, just waiting for the bell to ring, and your teacher walks through the doorway and tells everyone in the classroom: “Class, put your books under your desk and take out a clean sheet of paper.”

Toilets: Fun with Words Week 4

June 1, 2022/in Fun with Words/by Mandi Stanley

I play a game on social media with my extended family members called, “Where is Mandi this week?” I post a photo, and my family competes to see who can guess it first. Read more

Is It Home In or Hone In? Fun with Words Week 2

May 11, 2022/in Fun with Words, grammar/by Mandi Stanley

This photo is of one of the walls in the conference center at the #AloftSeattleRedmond. I was honored to facilitate a three-day Advanced Communications Program for a cohort of emerging leaders for one of my clients, and we all got a kick out of the creative artwork throughout the meeting area. But, can you tell what the wall is composed of? Look closely.

In fact, we’ll use this photo to introduce our #GrammarforGrownups question this week. Which word is correct?

If you [home in, hone in] on this photo, you can tell the entire wall is composed of old keyboard keys.

Scroll for the answer.

Answer: home in

If you home in on this photo, you can tell the entire wall is composed of old keyboard keys.

I have always said hone in similar situations.

I have always been wrong.

To home in means to get closer to something such as an object or a goal or the truth. Picture a homing pigeon (why haven’t I realized that before).

To hone means to sharpen something—and you don’t hone in on anything.

My son honed his test-taking skills in preparation for the ACT.

And, I’m certainly honing my vocabulary this month.

Can you think of other examples of words you have been using incorrectly without realizing it?

To customize a keynote or professional development session that will have your audience laughing and learning, contact Mandi Stanley.

Certified Speaking Professional Mandi Stanley works with business leaders who want to boost their professional image by becoming better speakers and writers through interactive high-content keynotes, breakout sessions, workshops, technical writing seminars, and fun proofreading classes.

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