No pun intended, though, because this was supposed to be just for my eyes only; but I was thinking, if I don’t make a writeup now, then it wouldn’t make sense and wouldn’t help others at all who are aspiring to write. I don’t know, maybe just so I can read a short blog the way I would have wanted it to be, so consider this basic English training. Not to attack the writers, but a short lesson to be learned.

Even legitimate English speakers have their flaws with their native tongue, especially if it is extemporaneously speaking. BUT if one is a blogger, being mindful of the SVAgr, tenses word usage, and spellings is a must. A blogger should always have, and I reiterate, should always have a dictionary handy.  Here’s a couple of websites you can use, and for free. You can choose between http://www3.merriam-webster.com online dictionary and the http://wordweb.info/,  WordWeb,  that works offline.

These dictionaries are comprehensive one-click English thesaurus and dictionary for Windows. They can be used to look up words from almost any program, showing definitions, synonyms, and related words. They include pronunciations and usage examples, and have helpful spelling and sounds-like links.

One simple advice: Once you blog, it becomes public and open for criticisms, so it pays to be very careful, only because we Filipinos are noted as one of the best ESL speakers.

1. English 101 lesson number 1: Verb Tense: When the action is done, use the past tense of the verb. Preposition “to” followed by any verb functioning as an adverb in a sentence, therefore, takes the present form of the verb. No “d.”

2. English 101 lesson number 2: Word Usage that changes the meaning of the word. Consulting the dictionary helps a lot.  For example, sunglass versus sunglasses.

SUNGLASS is a convex lens that focuses the rays of the sun and also used to start a fire. On the other hand, SUNGLASSES is a pair of spectacles that are darkened or polarized to protect the eyes from the glare of the sun.

3. English 101 lesson number 3. Missing punctuations or punctuations in the wrong places. Rule: Use period to end a sentence. If the sentence has two independent clauses without any conjunctions, separate by a period or a semicolon.

Never put a comma after the word “so” if it means “so that” or “in order that”; but if “so” meant “therefore,” a comma is used before the word “so.”

4. English 101 lesson number 4: Word usage: “farsighted, nearsighted, and officemate” are written as one word only, as in ONE WORD ALWAYS.

And this concludes a basic English lesson.

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