Editing English Grammar Like an Expert: Tips and Tricks

English grammar editing encompasses checking written documents for grammar, spelling, punctuation and misuse of vocabulary mistakes.

Punctuation

Punctuation are the marks that indicate when there are pauses or stops in sentences.

Some punctuation marks indicate emphasis; others indicate pauses for effect. These marks also indicate pauses between spoken words and indicate when a speaker does not finish a sentence. Punctuation also indicates when one sentence ends and another begins.

Your writing benefits when you know which punctuation marks are to be used where.

To summarize, full stops (.) indicate that sentences have ended. Commas indicate the presence of pauses in sentences and nonessential words or phrases.

Dashes indicate strings of sentences. Quotes are used to show the presence of quoted material in the text. Parentheses indicate enclosures.

Semicolons separate independent clauses. An exclamation point indicates raised voices. A question mark indicates uncertainty.

Learning english grammar editing involves the correct deployment of these punctuation marks each time.

Spelling

Learning to spell is a process that takes place over a lifetime. Children who are just learning how to read can be confused by simple words like their, there, look.

As they age and read more, eventually they’ll get the knack of spelling and can advance to more difficult words and phrases.

It detracts from your written work when your spelling is not up to par. Therefore, when editing for spelling mistakes use the spell checker in your word processing program.

Understand that there are some spelling errors that your word processor will miss. This is because they sound the same. If you are unclear in such a case, use your dictionary.

Grammar

The number of grammar rules is almost infinite, and it will be impossible to remember them all. When you are editing your writing for grammar, make sure you have a book like “The Student’s Companion” on hand.

If you are unclear on any grammar rules, you can consult it. If you don’t have this book, your dictionary will do.

Vocabulary

Having a wide vocabulary enriches your writing. When editing, you can always tell someone with a wide vocabulary versus someone who has a poor vocabulary.

Unfortunately, vocabulary isn’t a skill that can be acquired over a short period. When editing your work for vocabulary, the best shortcut we can recommend is using a thesaurus.

A thesaurus will give you many variations of the same word. This way you avoid using similar words all the time and your writing has variety.

Style

In english grammar editing, style is how all these elements come together. When you have good style, your writing flows. When you have bad style, it’s very hard to read.

Style can only improve through practice.