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A guide to English usage and grammar resources on the Internet.
Overview and History of Usage
A Brief History of English Usage - From Webster's Dictionary of English Usage, an interesting and informative essay.
Linguistic Prescription: Wikipedia - The Wikipedia's article on usage issues. A lot of detail and links to further information.
Prescriptive versus Descriptive Grammar - From an online introduction to generative grammar. Modern linguistics takes a largely descriptive approach to the study of language and grammar.
Linguistic Prescription: Wikipedia - The Wikipedia's article on usage issues. A lot of detail and links to further information.
Prescriptive versus Descriptive Grammar - From an online introduction to generative grammar. Modern linguistics takes a largely descriptive approach to the study of language and grammar.
Grammar, Usage, Spelling, and Composition
- The American Heritage Book of English Usage
- A leading usage manual searchable by word and subject.
- Ask Oxford: Better Writing
- The Ask Oxford Better Writing section includes spelling and grammar tips, letter writing, and other advice for both the intemediate level and the more experienced writer.
- BCC Writing Lab Virtual Tutor
- Submit questions about grammar, punctuation, word usage, and the English language to the writing lab at Bellvue Community College, Bellevue, WA.
- The Grammar Curmudgeon
- An editor and English professor answers questions about grammar, writing, and English as a Second Language free of charge.
- The Chicago Manual of Style FAQ
- The manuscript editing department of the University of Chicago Press answers questions regarding writing style and manuscript preparation.
- Ask the Grammar Maven
- A service from the Central Michigan University Department of English Language & Literature. Good-humored advice on grammar questions.
- OWL Online Writing Lab: Grammar, Punctuation, and Spelling
- Handouts, exercises, and powerpoint presentations.
- The Nuts and Bolts of College Writing
- A guide broken-down into the following categories: Thinking, Style, Structure, and Mechanics. Useful for college students and anyone else needing to write clear and effective English.
- The University of Victoria Writer's Guide
- Covers a wide range of topics involving grammar, logic, puntuation, and style.
- Fifty Writing Tools
- From PoynterOnline's Roy Peter Clark. (A guide aimed at journalists, but of interest to other writers.)
Famous Manuals and Articles
- The Complete Plain Words
- A writer's guide by Sir Ernest Gowers that was first published in 1954.
- The Elements of Style
- A manual written in 1918 by William Strunk Jr that has garned a considerable following in the US.
- George Orwell: Politics and the English Language
- A famous essay written in 1946.
- The King's English: H. W. Fowler
- A classic work first published in 1908. Heavy going for the modern reader and in many respects out of date, but still of interest.
Forums and Bulletin Boards
- Dave's ESL Cafe Help Center
- Assistance for English as a Second Language students with questions about grammar, writing, vocabulary, idiom, slang, or related problems, presented by David Sperling.
- Literacy Matters
- Literacy training and resources, lesson plans, advice, and news.
- The Writer's BBS: International Writers Community
- Offers free homepages for authors and poets. Chat online with writers, or post questions in the writers' forum.
Word of the Day
Related Books on Amazon
Random House Webster's Grammar, Usage, and Punctuation
Amazon Price: $11.86 (as of 10/12/2008)
Random House Webster's Handy Grammar, Usage, and Punctuation, 2nd. Ed. (Handy Reference Series)
Amazon Price: $4.99 (as of 10/12/2008)
Random House Webster's Pocket Grammar, Usage, and Punctuation: Second Edition (Pocket Reference)
Amazon Price: $5.95 (as of 10/12/2008)
Polishing the PUGS: Punctuation, Usage, Grammar, and Spelling
Amazon Price: $14.58 (as of 10/12/2008)
Random House Webster's Student Notebook Grammar, Usage, and Punctuation Guide (Handy Reference Series)
Amazon Price: (as of 10/12/2008)
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