Grammatically wrong
1. Defeated in the house, the Senate now gets to debate the bill.
should be
Defeated in the house, the bill will now be up for debate in the Senate.
Stylistically wrong
2. The 19-year-old boy got a ticket for jay-walking at 9 p.m. last night.
should be
The 19-year-old boy received a ticket for jaywalking at 9 p.m. [insert day of week] night.
See if you can catch what's wrong.
3. Meredith ran away from home, she was so angry that night.
should be
Meredith ran away from home. She was so angry that night.
These should be easy:
4. Yes Brittney I can figure this one out.
should be
Yes, Brittney, I can figure this one out.
5. Holding there flags high the veterans marched through town.
should be
The veterans marched through town holding their flags high.
6. The students said they would "skip class" if Britney made them do more exercises that had to do with grammar punctuation spelling or style.
should be
The students said they would skip class if Brittney made them do more exercises that had to do with grammar, punctuation, spelling or style.
7. I think most students in this class are apart of the class of 09.
should be
I think most students in this class are a part of the class of 2009.
8. "I wonder if this is how you punctuate this quote?" Brittney said.
should be
"I wonder if this is how you punctuate this quote?" Brittney asked.
OK, now that's enough torture. Answer this question for a bonus point:
9. Why is it important for journalists to get these things right?
It's important for journalists to get these things right to "provide a uniform presentation of the printed word, to make a story written anywhere understandable everywhere," according to the AP Stylebook. I fully agree, since geographic dialect may find its way into writing and the reader from another part of the world - or even the country - wouldn't clearly understand.
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