With his trademark humor and flair, bestselling linguist John McWhorter busts the myths and shares the history of the most controversial language topic of our times: pronounsThe nature of language is to shift and evolve—but every so often, a new usage creates a whole lot of consternation. These days, pronouns are throwing curveballs, and it matters, because pronoun habits die hard. If you need a refresher from eighth-grade English: Pronouns are short, used endlessly, and serve to point and direct, to orient us as to what is meant about who. Him, not her. Me, not you. Pronouns get a heavy workout, and as such, they become part of our hardwiring. To mess with our pronouns is to mess with us. But many of today’s hot-button controversies are nonsense. The singular they has been with us since the 1400s and appears in Shakespeare’s works. In fact, many of the supposedly iron-clad rules of grammar are up for debate (Billy and me went to the store is perfectly logical!), and with tasty trivia, unexpected twists, and the weird quirks of early and contemporary English, John McWhorter guides readers on a journey of how our whole collection of these little words emerged and has changed over time. Read more

The engaging, self-guided way to learn how to write better in English Mastering English grammar can be a real challenge. But, with a little practice and patience, you can discover how to communicate better through self-study in your spare time. The English Grammar Workbook for Adults is here to help improve your writing fluency so you can gain confidence while crafting emails, cover letters, conducting daily business, and personal correspondence. No matter your current skill level, this English grammar workbook has everything you need to learn essential elements, including nouns, verbs, adjectives, adverbs, tenses, and beyond. Then, you'll apply what you've learned to everyday situations you could encounter at school, at work, social situations, creative writing, online, and more. The English Grammar Workbook for Adults features: Fun & functional—This clear, concise book is essential for ESL/EFL and other grammar students who want to work on writing English.Situational success—Get expert tips on how grammar applies to real-world scenarios.Easy to use—Find quick answers to your English grammar questions using text boxes and the expanded index in the back of the book. Learning how to communicate more clearly is a snap with The English Grammar Workbook for Adults. Read more

A special 10th-anniversary edition of Roy Peter Clark's best-selling guide to writing, featuring five bonus tools.Ten years ago, Roy Peter Clark, America's most influential writing teacher, whittled down almost 30 years of experience in journalism, writing, and teaching into a series of 50 short essays on different aspects of writing. In the past decade, Writing Tools has become a classic guidebook for novices and experts alike and remains one of the best loved books on writing available. Organized into four sections, "Nuts and Bolts", "Special Effects", "Blueprints for Stories", and "Useful Habits", Writing Tools is infused with more than 200 examples from journalism and literature. This new edition includes five brand-new, never-before-shared tools. Accessible, entertaining, inspiring, and, above all, useful for every type of writer, from high school student to novelist, Writing Tools is an essential book.PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying PDF will be available in your Audible Library along with the audio. Read more

You know the authors' names. You recognize the title. You've probably used this book yourself. This is The Elements of Style, the classic style manual, now in a fourth edition. A new Foreword by Roger Angell reminds readers that the advice of Strunk & White is as valuable today as when it was first offered. This book's unique tone, wit and charm have conveyed the principles of English style to millions of readers. Use the fourth edition of "the little book" to make a big impact with writing. Read more

Ace your grammar, improve your grades—125 simple exercises for grades 6, 7, and 8 Grammar is an essential part of the sixth, seventh, and eighth grade curriculum. With The English Grammar Workbook for Grades 6, 7, and 8, students will build a strong foundation for understanding the concepts of grammar and using them effectively when reading, writing, or speaking. This grammar workbook offers students the flexibility to learn at their own pace while providing the structure they need to successfully retain essential grammar rules, such as parts of speech, sentence structure, phrases and clauses, active and passive voice, mood, punctuation, writing style, and more. Inside the pages of this grammar workbook, you'll find: Basics and building blocks—Students can progress at their own pace and build their knowledge as they go.Engaging lessons and reviews—Strengthen students' learning and skill retention with simple reviews after every three lessons.Practical quizzes and answers—Prepare students for real-world grammar usage with helpful quizzes and an easy-to-navigate answer key. Make learning the fundamental concepts of grammar easy and organized. Read more

When Kate L. Turabian first put her famous guidelines to paper, she could hardly have imagined the world in which today’s students would be conducting research. Yet while the ways in which we research and compose papers may have changed, the fundamentals remain the same: writers need to have a strong research question, construct an evidence-based argument, cite their sources, and structure their work in a logical way. A Manual for Writers of Research Papers, Theses, and Dissertations—also known as “Turabian”—remains one of the most popular books for writers because of its timeless focus on achieving these goals. This new edition filters decades of expertise into modern standards. While previous editions incorporated digital forms of research and writing, this edition goes even further to build information literacy, recognizing that most students will be doing their work largely or entirely online and on screens. Chapters include updated advice on finding, evaluating, and citing a wide range of digital sources and also recognize the evolving use of software for citation management, graphics, and paper format and submission. The ninth edition is fully aligned with the recently released Chicago Manual of Style, 17th edition, as well as with the latest edition of The Craft of Research. Teachers and users of the previous editions will recognize the familiar three-part structure. Part 1 covers every step of the research and writing process, including drafting and revising. Part 2 offers a comprehensive guide to Chicago’s two methods of source citation: notes-bibliography and author-date. Part 3 gets into matters of editorial style and the correct way to present quotations and visual material.  A Manual for Writers also covers an issue familiar to writers of all levels: how to conquer the fear of tackling a major writing project. Through eight decades and millions of copies, A Manual for Writers has helped generations shape their ideas into compelling research papers. This new edition will continue to be the gold standard for college and graduate students in virtually all academic disciplines. Bestselling, trusted, and time-tested advice for writing research papers The best interpretation of Chicago style for higher education students and researchers Definitive, clear, and easy to read, with plenty of examples Shows how to compose a strong research question, construct an evidence-based argument, cite sources, and structure work in a logical way Essential for anyone interested in learning about research Everything any student or teacher needs to know concerning paper writing Read more

Get up and running with FrenchEasy French Step by Step proves that a solid grounding in grammar basics is the key to mastering a second language. You are quickly introduced to grammatical rules and concepts in order of importance, which you can build on as you progress through the book. You will also learn more than 300 verbs, chosen by their frequency of use. Numerous exercises and engaging readings help you quickly build your speaking and comprehension prowess. Read more

Best-selling guide and essential reference for 20 years, designed to support the learning and use of English from grade school through college and beyond for communication and writing. In six laminated pages you get the need-to-know rules, how and why of word use in sentence structure, phrasing and flow, and punctuation and mechanics rules. With more answers per page than any book or website you get the facts you need for better grades and writing at any academic level. As a general reference to rules you may have forgotten this is also a great professional communication desktop tool. Succinct and colorfully designed and formatted so you can find the answers you need fast, at this price this proven tool is a must have. 6 page laminated guide includes: Grammar: Word Parts Parts of Speech Parts of a Sentence Sentence Types & Forms Dependent Clauses Sentence Structure & Clarity Verb & Pronoun Agreement Misplaced & Dangling Modifier Sentence Flow & Phrasing Punctuation: Punctuation Apostrophes Brackets Colons Commas Dashes Ellipses End Punctuation Hyphens Parentheses Quotation Marks Semicolons Slashes Mechanics Abbreviations Capitalization Italics Numbers Paragraphing Spelling Read more

Grammar greatness—with simple rules, exercises, and quizzes. Mastering English grammar has never been easier. The Perfect English Grammar Workbook is a complete explanation of standard American English and an irreplaceable resource for students, ESL learners, and anyone else who's serious about mistake-free speaking and writing. From punctuation and prepositions to adverbs and abbreviations, this grammar workbook provides simple and straightforward guides to every part of English grammar. With classroom-style lessons you can practice your skills with dozens of helpful exercises. Afterwards, check your progress with comprehensive end-of-chapter quizzes. The Perfect English Grammar Workbook includes: Modern rules for modern writers—Make sure your skills are up to date with a grammar workbook featuring the latest rules for learning English.Focused lessons—Master grammar over the course of 17 chapters—each divided into individual sections so you can focus on one idea at a time.Exercises, quizzes, and more—This grammar workbook is filled with handy practice exercises and quizzes that will help you test what you've learned. Never misplace a comma again—The Perfect English Grammar Workbook makes it easy. Read more

The bestselling workbook and grammar guide, revised and updated!Hailed as one of the best books around for teaching grammar, The Blue Book of Grammar and Punctuation includes easy-to-understand rules, abundant examples, dozens of reproducible quizzes, and pre- and post-tests to help teach grammar to middle and high schoolers, college students, ESL students, homeschoolers, and more. This concise, entertaining workbook makes learning English grammar and usage simple and fun. This updated 12th edition reflects the latest updates to English usage and grammar, and includes answers to all reproducible quizzes to facilitate self-assessment and learning.Clear and concise, with easy-to-follow explanations, offering "just the facts" on English grammar, punctuation, and usageFully updated to reflect the latest rules, along with even more quizzes and pre- and post-tests to help teach grammarIdeal for students from seventh grade through adulthood in the US and abroad For anyone who wants to understand the major rules and subtle guidelines of English grammar and usage, The Blue Book of Grammar and Punctuation offers comprehensive, straightforward instruction. Read more

Four-Time Gold Medal Winning Book in Children/Teen Education.Updated Content October 2021Finally! An easy-to-understand English grammar book with fun grammar lessons for middle grades. An excellent education reference for classroom and homeschool grammar lessons.The Dragon Grammar Book is the perfect grammar study guide to help readers learn the rules of grammar and improve language art skills with ease and enjoyment. From multi-award-winning children's fantasy author, Diane Mae Robinson, The Dragon Grammar Book provides a fun and engaging approach to learning English grammar through easy-to-follow lessons, humorous example sentences, and chapter quizzes to conquer all those tricky grammar rules.Easy-To-Understand Lessons organized to gradually build on the basic grammar rules toward an intermediate level.Engaging Examples Sentences explain each grammar rule through a humorous and creative writing style.An Expansive Resource of grammar terminology, confusing words, punctuation rules, types of sentences and proper structure, parts of speech, verb agreement, and linguistics.Quizzes with Answer Keys reinforce each lesson before proceeding to the next lesson.Featuring the zany fantasy characters in the author's international-award-winning The Pen Pieyu Adventures series, The Dragon Grammar Book is sure to be enjoyed by kids, teens, young adults, and the whole kingdom. "Oriented toward pragmatic, real-world usage, The Dragon Grammar Book is a great resource for kids, their teachers, and anyone else who'd like to know more about language and linguistics. Most highly recommended."--Jack Magnus for Readers' Favorite.2018 Book Excellence Awards, 1st Place Winner, Education & Academics.2018 Readers' Favorite International Book Awards, Gold Winner, Children-Education.2018 Literary Classics International Book Awards, Gold Winner, Educational Books.2018 Lumen Award for Literary Excellence. Read more

Learn to communicate exactly what you mean with this English writing and speaking guideFrom conjugating verbs to mastering punctuation to polishing your speaking skills,Perfect English Grammar makes it easier than ever to improve your grasp of grammar. Language learners of all levels can turn to this easy-to-navigate grammar guide again and again for quick and authoritative information for improving everyday communication.With this English grammar book, you'll:Never Be Wrong: Catchy examples help you remember core grammar rules.Sharpen Your Style: Composition guidelines let you express yourself fully.Look It Up: Seamless navigation makes it easy to find answers quickly.Expert guidance: Explore the tricky questions with linguist Grant Barrett's help.Perfect English Grammar helps you clearly say what you want to say‚ and the best way to say it. Read more

The spirited and scholarly #1 New York Times bestseller combines boisterous history with grammar how-to’s to show how important punctuation is in our world—period.In Eats, Shoots & Leaves, former editor Lynne Truss, gravely concerned about our current grammatical state, boldly defends proper punctuation. She proclaims, in her delightfully urbane, witty, and very English way, that it is time to look at our commas and semicolons and see them as the wonderful and necessary things they are. Using examples from literature, history, neighborhood signage, and her own imagination, Truss shows how meaning is shaped by commas and apostrophes, and the hilarious consequences of punctuation gone awry.Featuring a foreword by Frank McCourt, and interspersed with a lively history of punctuation from the invention of the question mark in the time of Charlemagne to George Orwell shunning the semicolon, Eats, Shoots & Leaves makes a powerful case for the preservation of proper punctuation. Read more

Learning Hiragana and Katakana is a systematic and comprehensive Japanese workbook that is perfect for self-study or use in a classroom setting. Written Japanese combines three different types of characters: the Chinese characters known as kanji, and two Japanese sets of phonetic letters, hiragana and katakana, known collectively as kana, that must be mastered before the Japanese kanji can be learned. Learning Japanese Hiragana and Katakana provides beginning-level students of Japanese a thorough grounding in the basic hiragana and katakana phonetic symbols or syllabaries. A comprehensive introduction presents their primary function, origin, pronunciation and usage. The main body of the book is devoted to presenting the 92 hira and kata characters along with their variations, giving step-by-step guidelines on how to write each character neatly in the correct stroke order, with generous practice spaces provided for handwriting practice. This Japanese workbook includes: Systematic and comprehensive coverage of the two Japanese kana systems. Ample provision for Japanese kana practice, review, and self-testing at several levelsDetailed reference section explaining the origin and function of kana, and the various kana combinations. Access to online Japanese audio files to aid in correct pronunciation. Helpful additional information for language students accustomed to romanized Japanese. Vocabulary selected for usefulness and cultural relevance.About this new edition:The new third edition has been expanded and revised to include many additional reading and writing exercises. Accompanying online recordings demonstrate the correct pronunciation of all the characters, vocabulary, and sentences in the book. Read more

Are you ready to master Italian’s many conjugations and verbs like a native?Over 60 million people speak Italian in the world, as well as 15% of the population of Europe. Because of this, you’ll want to learn Italian as soon as you can, especially if you’re planning a trip to the Roman Colosseum, the fashionable streets of Milan or the Leaning Tower of Pisa, among other fantastic places in this nation that is so rich in history and culture. Still, many Italian learners struggle when it comes to conjugations and verbs.It’s certainly not that straightforward to learn these, and you can hit a proverbial wall… but we’re about to change that. Italian Verbs Made Easy Workbook, a stellar workbook created by top language teachers, which will not only teach you on how to dominate Italian conjugations and verbs like an expert, but also put you to the test in terms of knowledge!How Italian Verbs Made Easy Workbook works:With an amazingly straightforward introduction section at the beginning, you will learn the alphabet and simple pronunciations, as well as gaining an understanding of verbs and their structure.Covering every single type of conjugation and verb used in native Italian, we have created some easy-to-digest sections that include theoretical insight into each of them, their construction and endless examples that will illustrate their usage in daily conversations, as well as professional situations.BONUS: Every chapter contains a number of high-resolution images for better understanding, and we have added reminders and fun facts for you to ease your learning!Next up, a great variety of exercises awaits – create sentences, fill in blanks, write your own examples and more in this challenging workbook. INCLUDES AUDIO EXERCISES!Having trouble with a few of the exercises? No worries, we have added an in-depth answer key at the very end of the workbook to help you solve any problems.Your Italian journey will be so much easier once you have acquired our workbook and begun to unlock your full fluency.It’s time to learn. Pick up the Italian Verbs Made Easy Workbook now! Read more

Understanding and practicing even the trickiest English grammar points has never been easier with this beautifully packaged box set for adults.Puzzled by past tenses? Confused by comparatives? Make learning grammar fun with this box set containing a comprehensive visual reference guide to English grammar and an accompanying practice book. With more than 1,000 practice exercises, this beautifully packaged box set makes learning and practising grammar incredibly easy.English for Everyone: English Grammar Guide & Practice Book Grammar Box Set is a one-stop visual reference guide to all the key points of English grammar and an accompanying workbook. This grammar guide is aligned to the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR) and uses an innovative visual learning method to make even the most difficult grammar rules clear and simple.Interactive and engaging, this English grammar box set includes: - A comprehensive visual guide to English grammar, along with a practice book containing more than 1,000 exercises to drill and reinforce grammar points.- All of the most important English grammar constructions in one easy-to-navigate reference book and one easy-to-use practice book.- Innovative visual learning methods making even the trickiest points of English grammar easy to learn and practice.Ideal for learners at all levels, this self-study program covers basic, intermediate, and advanced grammar. Whether you want to improve your grammar for work, study, travel, or exams, the English for Everyone Grammar Guide & Practice Book offers you a simple way to learn English grammar, remember it, and use it with confidence.At DK, we believe in the power of discovery. So why stop there?If you like English for Everyone: English Grammar Guide & Practice Book Grammar Box Set then why not try English for Everyone Business English Practice Book Level 2, as part of the widely successful English for Everyone Series, which have sold millions of copies in over 90 countries. Read more

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • A sharp, funny grammar guide they’ll actually want to read, from Random House’s longtime copy chief and one of Twitter’s leading language gurus NAMED ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR BY O: The Oprah Magazine • Paste • Shelf Awareness“Essential (and delightful!)”—People We all write, all the time: books, blogs, emails. Lots and lots of emails. And we all want to write better. Benjamin Dreyer is here to help. As Random House’s copy chief, Dreyer has upheld the standards of the legendary publisher for more than two decades. He is beloved by authors and editors alike—not to mention his followers on social media—for deconstructing the English language with playful erudition. Now he distills everything he has learned from the myriad books he has copyedited and overseen into a useful guide not just for writers but for everyone who wants to put their best prose foot forward. As authoritative as it is amusing, Dreyer’s English offers lessons on punctuation, from the underloved semicolon to the enigmatic en dash; the rules and nonrules of grammar, including why it’s OK to begin a sentence with “And” or “But” and to confidently split an infinitive; and why it’s best to avoid the doldrums of the Wan Intensifiers and Throat Clearers, including “very,” “rather,” “of course,” and the dreaded “actually.” Dreyer will let you know whether “alright” is all right (sometimes) and even help you brush up on your spelling—though, as he notes, “The problem with mnemonic devices is that I can never remember them.” And yes: “Only godless savages eschew the series comma.” Chockful of advice, insider wisdom, and fun facts, this book will prove to be invaluable to everyone who wants to shore up their writing skills, mandatory for people who spend their time editing and shaping other people’s prose, and—perhaps best of all—an utter treat for anyone who simply revels in language.Praise for Dreyer’s English“Playful, smart, self-conscious, and personal . . . One encounters wisdom and good sense on nearly every page of Dreyer’s English.”—The Wall Street Journal “Destined to become a classic.”—The Millions “Dreyer can help you . . . with tips on punctuation and spelling. . . . Even better: He’ll entertain you while he’s at it.”—Newsday  Read more

The practical English grammar guide for perfect writing.Gone are the days when you worry about embarrassing yourself with pesky misplaced modifiers or dreaded double negatives. Next time you have a nagging grammar question, pick up this practical guide and write with clarity and confidence.English Grammar spares you the lessons and cuts right to the answers. Designed for fast reference, this book makes it easy to avoid the most cringe-worthy mistakes in the English language—and maybe even make your grade school grammar teacher proud.Inside English Grammar:English Grammar goofs—Avoid falling into the most common traps with guidelines for incomplete sentences, possessive pronouns with gerunds, dangling modifiers and more.Word mix-ups—Learn the difference between common word misuses like sex vs. gender, its and it's, whose and who's, the list goes on…Write with style—Make a good (and grammatically correct) impression with every sentence you pen using these easy writing hacks and suggestions.Everyone makes mistakes—but with this English grammar guide you'll make a lot fewer of them. Period. Read more

Mastering grammar is now easier than ever with this fully illustrated guide that covers the most important rules in grammar and punctuation—making even the most confusing rules easy to understand. This illustrated guide to English grammar gives you everything you need for a better understanding of how to write and punctuate correctly. From proper comma usage to the correct form of there, their, or they’re—understanding grammar has never been easier. Is it who or whom? Affect or effect? And what is a prepositional phrase? With The Infographic Guide to Grammar,you’ll learn the answers to all of these questions, and so much more. Filled with colorful, easy-to-understand entries, this book includes topics like: –Basic sentence structure –The parts of speech –Common mistakes and how to avoid them Featuring 50 vibrant infographics explaining everything from subject-verb agreement to the Oxford comma and verb tenses this book breaks down the complicated rules and guidelines for writing the English language and makes them clear and straightforward. Read more

This set includes two essential resources for writers and editors: The Copyeditor’s Handbook, now in its fourth edition, and The Copyeditor’s Workbook, the new companion to the bestselling Handbook.   Unstuffy, hip, and often funny, The Copyeditor’s Handbook: A Guide for Book Publishing and Corporate Communications has become an indispensable resource both for new editors and for experienced hands who want to refresh their skills and broaden their understanding of the craft of copyediting. This fourth edition incorporates the latest advice from language authorities, usage guides, and new editions of major style manuals, including The Chicago Manual of Style. It registers the tectonic shifts in twenty-first-century copyediting: preparing text for digital formats, using new technologies, addressing global audiences, complying with plain language mandates, ensuring accessibility, and serving self-publishing authors and authors writing in English as a second language. The new edition also adds an extensive annotated list of editorial tools and references and includes a bit of light entertainment for language lovers, such as a brief history of punctuation marks that didn’t make the grade, the strange case of razbliuto, and a few Easter eggs awaiting discovery by keen-eyed readers.The Copyeditor’s Workbook: Exercises and Tips for Honing Your Editorial Judgment—a new companion to the Handbook—offers comprehensive and practical training in the art of copyediting for both aspiring and experienced editors. More than forty exercises of increasing difficulty and length, covering a range of subject matter, enable you to advance in skill and confidence. Detailed answer keys and explanations offer a grounding in editorial basics, appropriate usage choices for different contexts and audiences, and advice on communicating effectively and professionally with authors and clients. Whether the exercises are undertaken alone or alongside the new edition of The Copyeditor’s Handbook, they provide a thorough workout in the essential knowledge and skills required of contemporary editors. Read more