Compound words: open, closed, hyphenated

A common spelling quandary that many writers face is whether to write compounds as separate words, one word, or hyphenated words.

The Difference Between Essential and Nonessential Clauses

Also known as restrictive and nonrestrictive clauses

An essential clause cannot be eliminated from a sentence without changing the meaning of the sentence. Essential clauses are never set off from the rest…

Pronoun agreement

A pronoun is a word that follows a noun in a sentence. We use pronouns all the time, but we often get them wrong in our writing and while talking. A general rule of thumb is to use a singular pronoun (he, she, it) after a singular noun or phrase, and a plural pronoun (they, them, theirs) after a…

Writing Dates

Rules of thumb for writing dates in AP Style

Years should be expressed as numerals except at the beginning of a sentence.

Example: Nineteen sixty-nine was the year Neil Armstrong landed on the Moon. 🌙

Passive and active voice

Although we’re often taught to avoid the passive voice altogether, using it isn’t grammatically incorrect, and there are some instances when it actually makes sense. Active voice means that a sentence has a subject that acts upon its verb. Passive voice means that a subject is a…

Misplaced Modifiers

Modifiers are words, phrases or clauses that add description. Examples of modifiers:

• When COVID-19 hit I quickly picked up a new hobby: baking bread.
• I always feed my sourdough starter in the morning.

Writing Numbers in AP Style

When you write a number, you can either use a numeral or spell the number out. Here’s how to write numbers in AP style.

Comma Splices

Comma splices occur when a writer joins two independent sentences with a comma instead of separating them with a period or coordinating conjunction. When you have two independent clauses, a comma is not strong enough to glue them together.

Hyphens (-) vs. Em dashes ( — )

Hyphens and em dashes — what’s the difference?

Hyphens combine compound words or two-word adjectives before nouns

Example 1: We work in a dog-friendly office.