✨📕 The NEW Collegiate Dictionary, 12th Edition Over 5,000 words added — Learn More!
✨📕 The NEW Collegiate Dictionary — Learn More!
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Est. 1828

Grammar & Usage

Should we say ‘elfs’ or ‘elves'?

A question surrounding a hard-working plural.

How to Use 'Who' vs. 'Whom'

What you really need to know

Is 'gift' really a verb?

You might not like the answer
  • Commonly Confused
  • Usage Notes
  • Spelling & Pronunciation
  • Punctuation

Popular

'Affect' vs. 'Effect'

How to pick the right one

'Buck Naked' or 'Butt Naked'?

It's a natural question

31 Useful Rhetorical Devices

Beyond 'simile' and 'metaphor'

The Difference Between 'i.e.' and 'e.g.'

For example, the different ways to use them

What’s the difference between ‘cemetery’ and ‘graveyard’?

Graveyards are sometimes smaller, but not always.

Democracy or Republic: What's the difference?

And which is the United States?

Your vs. You're: How to Use Them Correctly

Here's your explanation, and you're welcome

Every Letter Is Silent, Sometimes: A-Z List of Examples

When each letter can be seen but not heard

Commonly Confused

Commonly Confused

  • Is it 'forty' or 'fourty'?

    This is usage
  • Is It 'jail' or 'prison'?

    How they differ and overlap
  • 'Deduction' vs. 'Induction' vs. 'Abduction'

    Mmm, logic
  • 'Nip it in the butt' or 'Nip it in the bud'?

    We're gonna stop you right there
  • See All

'Awhile' vs. 'A While'

There are rules, but who's listening?

Usage Notes

See More

Can you end a sentence with a preposition?

Yes, a preposition is something you can end with.

First, Second and Third Person Explained

First, second, and third person explained

Are 'funner' and 'funnest' real words?

We got a whole mess of fun here, folks

Can you use 'comprised of'?

It's been in use for centuries.

Is it 'graduated' or 'was graduated from'?

No, this will not be on the test
See More

Spelling & Pronunciation

Spelling & Pronunciation

  • The Many Plurals of 'Octopus'

    But which is correct?
  • How to Remember the Spelling of 'Definitely'

    A definitive answer.
  • Why does English have so many silent letters?

    Inexplicable silent letters, explained
  • Video: Why is there a 'c' in 'indict'?

    And who put it there, anyway?
  • See All

10 Words You See But Don't Hear

How to pronounce 10 words with unpredictable stress and vowel sounds

Punctuation

See More

Why do we use apostrophes to show possession?

The shifting role of the apostrophe

A Guide to Using Colons

We'll get to semicolons later.

To Use or Not Use the "?" in Requests

"Would you read this, please."

All About Ellipses ...

How to use them … and talk about them

How to Use Word Division Dots and Syllable Hyphens

Dictionary secrets, revealed!
See More
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