----------------------------------------------------------------- THE BETTER WRITING SKILLS NEWSLETTER, May 2012 By Tim North of Scribe Consulting www.scribe.com.au ----------------------------------------------------------------- Welcome to the Better Writing Skills newsletter. IN THIS ISSUE 1. Apostrophes in dates: 1970's or 1970s? 2. 'Empathic' or 'empathetic'? 3. 'As if' or 'as though'? 4. Just for fun Your comments and questions are always welcome. Just send email to: info@scribe.com.au Cheers, Tim North (Perth, Western Australia) ----------------------------------------------------------------- 1. Apostrophes in dates: 1970's or 1970s? ----------------------------------------------------------------- My first correspondent this month, Brigit, continues last month's discussion about apostrophes: Thank you for the piece on apostrophes, a subject of great interest to me. Could you clarify a further use/misuse of apostrophes for me? I often see them used alongside a number, such as '1970's'. Is this correct, or should it be '1970s'? The Australian Government's official style manual ('The Style Manual for Authors, Editors and Printers', 6th edn) has this to say (p. 170): The standard form for representing decades in general text is: 1990s 2000s 2100s In the past, an apostrophe was often placed before the s, but there is no grammatical need for it, and the practice is now uncommon. Decades: Do not use an apostrophe when presenting decades in numerals hence 1990s, not 1990's. Many US sources also provide similar advice. While usage will vary, omitting the apostrophe seems like the best choice. Hope this helps. -- (c) 2012 Tim North: http://www.scribe.com.au ----------------------------------------------------------------- 2. Empathic or empathetic? ----------------------------------------------------------------- My next question comes from Joanna and concerns word choice: Do you think you could tell me if, when talking about someone being able to convey empathy, is it best to say someone is empathic or empathetic? I have looked on the internet and it appears either can be used, but I would like to check with an expert. I personally prefer empathic. The Oxford and Macquarie dictionaries list both words as acceptable adjectives and indicate little, if any, difference between them. I agree with you that both can be used interchangeably. My own preference, for what it's worth, is also for 'empathic'. When I hear 'empathetic', it sounds similar to 'pathetic' and suggests a negative connotation. Hope this helps. -- (c) 2012 Tim North: http://www.scribe.com.au ----------------------------------------------------------------- Do you know someone who'd like this newsletter? ----------------------------------------------------------------- Do you have a friend or colleague who'd find the Better Writing Skills newsletter interesting? If so, please feel free to send a copy of this issue to them. Alternatively, please tell them they can browse back issues here: http://www.scribe.com.au/newsletter.html Thanks for helping to make this newsletter so successful! ----------------------------------------------------------------- 3. 'As if' or 'as though'? ----------------------------------------------------------------- My next correspondent, Beverly, also has a question on word choice: When do you say 'as if' and when do you say 'as though'. For instance: His face was grubby AS THOUGH he had postponed washing for the last week. His face was grubby AS IF he had postponed washing for the last week. Which is correct? I haven't been able to find any reputable source that says that these two are different. The short answer to your question is that both are correct. The Oxford and Macquarie dictionaries both have entries worded like so: 'as if (or though)'. The Merriam-Webster dictionary does have a separate entry for 'as though' but this simply redirects readers to 'as if'. Together these may suggest that the 'as if' form is more common, but it's not much to go on. I'm comfortable saying that they're equally acceptable. Also, in informal American English, 'as if' and 'as though' are sometimes replaced with 'like'. Hope this helps. -- (c) 2012 Tim North: http://www.scribe.com.au ----------------------------------------------------------------- 4. Just for fun ---------------------------------------------------------------- I've mentioned snopes.com before. It's a fantastic resource for testing the truth of urban legends, fallacies, misinformation, old wives' tales, strange news stories, rumours, celebrity gossip and similar items. There's a section within the web site dedicated to myths about language: http://www.snopes.com/language/ It starts: The very tool we use to communicate legends to each other -- language -- is itself a source of folklore. A number of the words and phrases in use today have interesting origins that have almost become obscured in the mists of time. Equally, our sense of romance leads us to invent unusual origins for commonplace words rather than be satisfied with their mundane beginnings. Enjoy. Cheers, Tim. ----------------------------------------------------------------- Would you like more help with your writing? ----------------------------------------------------------------- On my web site, you'll find my range of jargon-free, downloadable e-books that will help you to become a better writer. These e-books will help you with business proposals, report writing, term papers, technical writing, grant writing, creative writing and more: http://www.scribe.com.au/ebooks.html ---------------------------------------------------------------- REPRODUCING THIS MATERIAL You're welcome to reproduce the articles from this newsletter that are copyrighted by Tim North, but please don't modify or sell them. Also, please provide a clickable link back to: http://www.scribe.com.au FUTURE MAILINGS You can prevent (or receive) future mailings by visiting this page: http://www.scribe.com.au/newsletter.html This is a GENUINE service, and you will not receive any unsolicited email as a result. You have my word on it. -----------------------------------------------------------------