Grammar Girl Quick and Dirty Tips for Better Writing

The listener show! (canceled, think, lettuce, funnily, episode numbers, at about, mangos, musgos)

Jan 23, 2024

Listener questions on spelling differences like 'canceled,' idiomatic phrases, zero plurals for words like 'fish,' linguistic choices with verbs and episode numbers, usage of 'at about' in time expressions, regional language variations with mangos vs. green peppers

19:45

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Episode notes

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Quick takeaways

Canceled spelling varies between American and British English, 'another think coming' origin in song lyrics influenced American usage.

Zero plurals like 'deer' and 'species' reflect historical language evolution and gendered noun origins.

Deep dives

Different spellings of canceled

Canceled with one L is the main American English spelling, while canceled with two Ls is the main British spelling. The Associated Press style book recommends canceled with one L in America. However, canceled with two Ls is dominant in British English, Canadian English, and Australian English.

Introduction

3min

Spelling differences and zero plurals

12min

Verbs in their Infinitive Form and Episode Numbers in Podcast Titles

2min

Discussion on the Use of 'At About' and 'Around' in Time Expressions

3min

Regional language variations and family words

4min

965. It's a listener question extravaganza! I answer your questions about "canceled," "another think/thing coming," zero plurals such as "fish," the way I reference verbs, episode numbers, "at about," mangos versus green peppers, and muskgos. (And if I didn't answer your question, don't despair. I hope to do another show with listener questions in a month or two.)

| Transcript: https://grammar-girl.simplecast.com/episodes/listener-qs/transcript

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