Prose Rules That Are Not Rules
• Don't begin a sentence with "And" or "But."*
• Don't conclude a sentence with a preposition.**
• Don't split infinitives.***
*Is it always the best thing to do? No. But...
**Churchill never said that thing.
***It's not even a real rule. Ignore it.
#copyediting
• Don't begin a sentence with "And" or "But."*
• Don't conclude a sentence with a preposition.**
• Don't split infinitives.***
*Is it always the best thing to do? No. But...
**Churchill never said that thing.
***It's not even a real rule. Ignore it.
#copyediting
Comments
Love me a good "and" sentence.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MQh0TW0AUso
*Maybe you don't need to begin a sentence with "And" or "But." But if you need to (and want to), do.
**If you tie yourself in knots not to end a sentence with a preposition, you may end up sounding as if you learned English on Uranus.
***Still complete nonsense. Continue to ignore.
But I came of age when we were instructed, “To boldly go . . .”
https://www.reddit.com/r/linguistics/s/u6Gl9ELBu4
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Lowth
However, I do believe in teaching English in a plain & simple way with rules.
(Notice how I broke one of those “rules!”)
Stupid rules are made to be beaten to death with a shovel.