ESL General English Grammar Questions

Re: grammar help!

Clive — Wed, 14 May 2008 12:34:14 GMT

Hi,

As we've noted, this usage is widely accepted.

If you'll permit me to say so, my feeling is that, if you are able to understand the kind of discussion in this blog, you are able to make your own stylistic choices about English without needing help from other people.

Best wishes, Clive

Re: grammar help!

26TMNTJG2PG — Wed, 14 May 2008 11:03:05 GMT

'They' is commonly used here. This is the so-called 'Singular They', but I read somewhere that this is a disputed usage. I have finally located the site where I have seen it. It is a blog post titled

Concord failures/noun-pronoun disagreements?â

Best regards.

Re: grammar help!

Clive — Mon, 12 May 2008 20:53:59 GMT

Hi guys,

Some points of disagreement as listed below for argument sake:-

Should it be "There is a tour"? Please advise. Yes - Should be "There will be a tour" since the message appears to refer to the next one. No, use present tense because the writer is describing an event that happens regularly.

Prior to September 11th, hardly anyone in the West had heard of it, and when anyone did, the one thought it perhaps a radical Muslim operation. - to be symmetrical. Yes, you could use the second 'anyone' as suggested here, if you wanted to. However, this use of 'the one' is so unnatural as to be simply wrong. 'They' is commonly used here. If you don't want to say that, you could say 'that person thought it . . '.

Best regards, Clive.

Re: grammar help!

26TMNTJG2PG — Mon, 12 May 2008 13:06:55 GMT

Some points of disagreement as listed below for argument sake:-

Should it be "There is a tour"? Please advise. Yes - Should be "There will be a tour" since the message appears to refer to the next one.

Prior to September 11th, hardly anyone in the West had heard of it, and when anyone did, the one thought it perhaps a radical Muslim operation. - to be symmetrical.

Best regards.

Re: grammar help!

Clive — Mon, 12 May 2008 12:19:20 GMT

Hi,

There are many opportunities in a community to generate favorable news coverage. One that works well for us is our open house, which we hold once every two years, inviting friends on that island, local clergy, politicians, and the media. There a tour, entertainment and small talk, all of which allow those of other religions to understand what we are doing.

Should it be "There is a tour"? Please advise. Yes

All ministers of religion in one area should be considered one's natural allies regardless of sect, in an effort made to personally know each. Not to be overlooked is the simple but expensive method of buying paid advertising space in newspapers, magazines, television, or, in this case, on a billboard calling for the ordination of women as priests in the Catholic Church.

Should it be "personally know each other." Please check. The phrase doesn't make sense. Perhap 'and an effort made . . . '?

Its reporting needs to be accurate and unbiased, something that can be trusted by the media. While not begun by a religious group, a useful illustration is Al Jazeera, the Qatar-based news channel and Web site. Prior to September 11th, hardly anyone in the West had heard of it, and when they did, they thought it perhaps a radical Muslim operation.

Should it be " thought it was perhaps"? Please clarify. You could say 'was', but it's not necessary. I prefer the 'they' I have added.

A group from any religion could have taken the lead had the papers and cartoonists been convinced to apologize early, and it would have been much more difficult for the matter to become an international disaster complete with loss of life.

Any punctuation or word missing before "had the papersâ¦"? Please check. No.

Best wishes, Clive

grammar help!

Anonymous — Mon, 12 May 2008 10:48:13 GMT

Should it be "There is a tour"? Please advise.

All ministers of religion in one area should be considered one’s natural allies regardless of sect, in an effort made to personally know each. Not to be overlooked is the simple but expensive method of buying paid advertising space in newspapers, magazines, television, or, in this case, a billboard calling for the ordination of women as priests in the Catholic Church.

Should it be "personally know each other." Please check.

Should it be " thought it was perhaps"? Please clarify.

Any punctuation or word missing before "had the papersâ¦"? Please check.

ESL General English Grammar Questions

Re: grammar help!

Re: grammar help!

'They' is commonly used here. This is the so-called 'Singular They', but I read somewhere that this is a disputed usage. I have finally located the site where I have seen it. It is a blog post titled

Concord failures/noun-pronoun disagreements?â

Re: grammar help!

Re: grammar help!

Re: grammar help!

grammar help!

Concord failures/noun-pronoun disagreements?â