21st Century Grammar Handbook (18 page)

Inversion is a very powerful way to enliven and enrich your writing. Take care that sentence elements in a different order than expected work according to all the necessary
rules
and are still clear enough to be followed.

Irony.
When a writer or speaker says one thing but suggests somehow that a different or opposite meaning is intended, the statement is said to be “ironic”: “Life is short, but who would want it any other way?” Clearly some people want life to be longer, so that this
rhetorical
question could be said to be ironic. Irony is a useful device to draw attention to a point, but it often eludes some readers who treat statements literally.

Irregardless.
Don’t use this word, which is in fact a
double negative
that contradicts itself. The right word is “regardless.”

Irregular verbs.
The following list includes the most common irregular verbs. Only the forms listed below vary from the normal patterns of
conjugation:
these verbs all form their
future tenses,
for instance, in the same way others do—by adding “will” to the main form. Each verb has an entry of its own for further explanations, if necessary.

Since some of the commonest verbs, including many
linking verbs
and
auxiliary
verbs, are irregular, it is important to be aware of how these verbs work.

Is.
The
third-person
singular
present tense
of
be:
“He/she/it is important.” Also see
agreement, auxiliary, conjugation, number,
and
tense.

It.
The
third-person
singular
pronoun
is “it” in both the subjective case and
objective case.
See
its.

Italics.
Slanted type is called “italic,” as distinguished from the normal upright forms called
“Roman”
: “Most printing is in Roman, but
some
words are italic.” Italicized words are emphasized for various purposes: to indicate
titles
or names of various things, to distinguish non-English words from English ones, and to draw attention to the words for any other purpose: “The teacher was reading
War and Peace
out loud, but mispronounced the Russian word for ‘war’—
voina
—and got
very
angry.” The example is a bit forced, but it shows the title of a work of literature, a non-English word, and a word italicized for
emphasis
(“very”). The use of italics for the last kind of emphasis (or of underlining or
quotation
marks to do the same thing) is one of those overused devices that should be resorted to only occasionally if at all. Create force and point in your writing in other ways than through typographical enhancement.

When words, letters, or numbers need to be emphasized so that it is clear they are being talked about as words in the grammatical sense rather than being used directly in a sentence, underlining, quotation marks, or italics can be used: “Grammatical terms like
verb
or
noun
can be misunderstood.” In this book, words that have entries explaining or defining them are set in italic type. See
names, titles,
and
typeface.

It’s.
See
its.

Its, it’s.
Don’t confuse “its,” the
third-person
singular
possessive
pronoun, with “it’s,” a
contraction
of “it is.” the first term is used to indicate something that belongs to something (“That is its den.”), while the second word only stands in place of “it is” (“It’s very clear that we are not welcome here.”). See
pronoun.

Japanese.
One of the main
Asian languages,
Japanese has a well-established system of transliteration into English. In most everyday writing, the
accents
that appear in some Japanese words are not used. Consult relevant reference works for details.

Jargon.
A specialized
vocabulary
that is used mainly by a limited group of people in the same work or profession is called jargon. Since the meaning of jargon is known only to a restricted
audience,
its use limits the number of people who can understand what you are saying or writing. Such a limitation is not a problem if you are addressing only colleagues, professional associates, or peers; indeed, it can be a benefit since jargon is often shorthand that lets someone in the know quickly understand what you are trying to say. Jargon conveys information quickly about one’s knowledge, status, and membership in groups. But for more general audiences or those who might not be among the initiated in special
usages
of words, stick to more commonly recognized terminology.

Jargon: “How many megabytes in your box?” Translated: “Does your computer have lots of memory?” Even the second, translated example might be too obscure for those who are not computer literate. A better, but longer, question for them might be: “Does your computer have a large additional storage device to permanently record files?”

Jargon need not be technical. Many people speak in special ways among friends, neighbors, or others with whom they can identify by some means or other. Such language is also called “argot,” “lingo,” or
“slang.”
As it becomes more commonly recognized, it merges with
colloquial,
or everyday, speech and sometimes passes into accepted usage.

Jr.
The
abbreviation
of “junior,” used very often with a
comma
after appropriate names (“Adam Arkin, Jr.”), but it’s never acceptable as an independent element in a
sentence.

Keep, kept, kept.
An
irregular verb
in its main,
past tense,
and past
participle
forms.

Kept.
See
keep.

Kind.
“Kind” is one of those words used in English too often because it takes the place of thought or extends what looks like a skimpy idea or
phrase
into something larger or longer. Most often it signals weak or sloppy thinking: “That kind of work is poor.” This
sentence
is acceptable but communicates little to the reader. Better to specify what is hidden behind “kind”: “Careless work is poor.”

“Kind of” is another flabby form for avoiding
clarity
of thought or expression: “It is kind of warm.” This is not acceptable and can be improved, again, by getting rid of “kind of” and spelling out what you have in mind: “It is very (not very, a little) warm.” Also see
sort.

It is also best to avoid “kind” in place of words like “variety”: “That is a kind of banana.” It is either a banana or not, or it is some variant form of a banana; but it tells your
audience
nothing worth knowing to say it is a “kind of” banana. Do you mean it is a form of banana you’ve never seen before? Or maybe you don’t know what it is called? Then say so: “This looks like a banana, but I don’t know what it’s called.” “I think it is related to bananas, but it might be something else altogether.” If you do know that
it is a variety (“sort” or “type”) of something, “kind” can be used to indicate a relationship to a larger category: “I don’t know the name for this, but this kind of banana grows here.”