Standard English is but one of a myriad ways of speaking the English language. No child should be penalised for speaking another
Articles on English grammar
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Grammatical nous has been found to give students a broader understanding of their own language and a key to learning others. The problem is, teachers aren’t being equipped to teach it.
The survival of the apostrophe is vital to the comprehensibility of our language. If those who have protected it are hanging up their red pens, it’s time we all do our bit.
The former journalist raised eyebrows recently when he lapsed into Nonstandard English which is frowned upon in his National Curriculum.
Teaching children how to break down words into their meaning and origin can help them be better spellers.
Grammar pedantry recently contributed to the downfall of World Bank chief economist Paul Romer. But ‘grammonds’ are people to be celebrated not vilified.
A badly written law cost a US company US$10 million, when a judge ruled that a comma missing from a statute meant 75 truck drivers were owed four years of unpaid overtime wages.
A new database that shows the use of gendered words in major Australian newspapers tells us much about whose voices are being heard.
The use of adjectives in English has caused an internet storm – here are the ‘rules’ explained.
For centuries, written communication was tinged with formality and finality. But since the emergence of casual forms like texting, using proper grammar can be fraught with misinterpretation.
New, harder tests for primary school children have raised questions about the purpose of learning grammar.
Even if you don’t have a word for it, you can make one up.
Irregular verbs, crazy spelling and the difficulty of being polite. English is tough.
Perfect spelling, vocabulary, usage, grammar, punctuation and style do not necessarily correlate perfectly with intelligence and competence, but most people infer that they do. Thus perception is reality.
Top contributors
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Honorary Associate Professor in Writing, The University of Queensland
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Head of the School of Philosophy, Psychology and Language Sciences; Professor of Linguistics, University of Edinburgh
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Adjunct Lecturer, School of Languages, Literatures, Cultures and Linguistics, Monash University
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Associate Professor in Linguistics, Macquarie University
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Senior Lecturer in English Language and Linguistics, University of Westminster
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Professor of English Language and Literature, University of Oxford
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Director, Office of Scholarly Communication and Publishing, University of Pittsburgh
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Senior Lecturer in English Language and Literature, University of Sheffield
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Professor of German Language Emeritus, Dartmouth College
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Professor of Sociolinguistics, University of Sheffield
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Associate Professor in Language, Literacy and TESL, University of Canberra