Administrative Assistant's Update - sample

5 Administrative Assistant's UPDATE You say: "I feel badly about missing your meeting." Sounds as though you have a grip on usage, right? Are you correct? No. Feel, used in this way, is a "linking" verb that connects the subject with a word that describes the subject. Here are a few more examples of linking verbs: His story seems fishy. (fishy story) Her background sounds impressive. (impressive background) Dinner smells enticing. (enticing dinner) This countertop feels sticky. (sticky countertop) So, to be correct, say . . . I feel bad. Bad describes "I" at that moment. (Sounds a little weird, doesn't it, but that's what's happening here.) It does not describe the physical sense of touch (feel). ************ You say: "Ms. Stamper commended Louise and I on our marketing plan." Sound good? Like you know your pronouns? Maybe it does, but it's incorrect. This is one you can solve with your ear. Just isolate the pronoun I : Ms. Stamper commended Louise and I on our (my) marketing plan. Clearly incorrect. So, to be correct, say . . . "Ms. Stamper commended Louise and me on our marketing plan." Become accustomed to applying the "isolation" test when you have any question about what is the correct pronoun. *********** You say: "Joanie came into the meeting room just as I was describ- ing how we would surprise her on her birthday. Isn't that ironic?" It's a coincidence, for sure, but it's not ironic. Irony is a discrepancy between the expected and the actual state of affairs. Here's an example of irony ap- plied appropriately: A music historian wrote about how composer Robert Schumann had to abandon his concert career, "a sad and ironic result of permanently injuring his right middle finger with a sling contraption he had developed in order to strengthen it." In this instance, the result of using the device was the opposite of what had been expected. Most often when the word ironic is used, the situation should have been described as a coincidence, some- times remarkable or even astounding, but not ironic. comprise or compose? Comprise means includes or consists of: Tank Force Kandahar comprised nearly 6,000 Canadian and American soldiers. Compose means constitutes or makes up: Concrete is composed of coarse granular material em- bedded in a hard matrix of mate- rial (the cement or binder) that fills the space among the aggregate particles and glues them together. NOTE: Because of widespread use of comprise in place of compose, some dictionaries now offer make up/compose as an acceptable definition of comprise. Careful writers are not likely to use comprise in this way. infer or imply? Is the following use of infer correct? When you referred to Jack as capable of better things, were you inferring that he was not trying hard enough? Infer means to read something into what someone else has said, to read between the lines. The better word in the example above would be implying, which means to indicate the existence of some- thing by suggestion rather than the actual words used. Imply relates to what the speak- er may intend, and infer relates to what the listener hears. lead or led? Lead (a noun, pronounced led) is a metallic element. Lead (a verb, pronounced leed) means to guide or show the way. The past tense of the verb lead is led, pronounced the same as the metallic element. Lead (pron. led but spelled lead, like the metal) is often erroneously used. words often misused The signs should have made clear that visiting hours were restricted, however, visitors seemed to come at all hours. This kind of awkward splice often occurs with the use of however; is it con- nected to the first clause or the second? You must decide and then punctuate accordingly. Fix it with a semicolon or a period: The signs should have made clear that visiting hours were restricted; how- ever, visitors seemed to come at all hours. The signs should have made clear that visiting hours were restricted. How- ever, visitors seemed to come at all hours. comma splice with however Sounding "right" while actually being wrong In business writing, "winging it" without an applied knowledge of appropriate language use can not only be embarrass- ing but can also distract from the business at hand. On this page, AAU calls attention to some grammar and usage errors that crop up more often than they should – and which can be nipped in the bud by an alert administrative pro. George Pearson AAU editor

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