Don’t use multiple negatives

Posted on April 25, 2013 by barnabyharward

Read this:

If the Deposit is not paid, the Seller has the right to rescind this Agreement by a notice in writing to the Purchaser delivered within 30 days from the date of this Agreement, provided that such rescission right shall not be effective unless and until the Seller does not rescind the Preliminary Agreement for the Property.

Got it? If not, feel free to read it again. And again… and probably again.

Got it now? Perhaps you should read it once more just to double check.

No doubt you’re having trouble with this part: “…shall not be effective unless and until the Seller does not rescind…”

I think you’ll agree that the difficulty is mainly due to the use of multiple negatives – “shall not”, “unless” and “does not”. It’s more of a brain teaser than a practical piece of communication. Unfortunately most of us don’t have the time or inclination to work out brain teasers.

So – my advice is simple: Don’t use multiple negatives. Write something like this instead:

If the Deposit is not paid, the Seller has the right to rescind this Agreement by written notice to the Purchaser delivered within 30 days of the date of this Agreement. However, the rescission right is not effective if the Seller has rescinded the Preliminary Agreement for the Property.

I know I’m taking something of a risk pretending I’ve understood the original correctly, but I’m willing to do so. If my interpretation is wrong, far from showing my lack of intelligence, it proves how bad the writer is at communicating.

In case I haven’t convinced you that multiple negatives are a bad idea, here are a few more brain teasers for you to waste your time on:

The following actions are not excluded from the prohibition.

No termination will be approved unless the administrator reviews the application and finds that it is not lacking in any requisite materials.*

No reason for refusing confirmation of the master’s report not covered by the exceptions in the rule is disclosed by the record or urged by the defendants.*

* From Bryan Garner, Legal Writing in Plain English, University of Chicago Press, 2001, p. 31

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The difference between Shareholders’ meeting and Shareholders meeting

Posted on January 17, 2013 by barnabyharward

Do you add the apostrophe to Shareholders’ meeting? Or do you prefer Shareholders meeting, without the apostrophe?

Both are in fact correct. It may seem like a very small point, but misunderstanding the underlying grammar is the source of some serious mistakes.

The difference is this:

Shareholders’ meeting – the word Shareholders’ is a possessor. The phrase could be rewritten as meeting of Shareholders.

Shareholders meeting – the word Shareholders is an attributive noun: a noun that describes a main noun.

In this example there is no difference in meaning.

However, sometimes there is a difference in meaning. For example, company’s car and company car.

Company’s car – this is a car possessed by a company. It would probably be kept at the company’s premises and be used for company business.

Company car – here Company is an attributive noun which describes the type of car, i.e. one provided by a company for an employee as a benefit in addition to salary.

Another problem related to this issue is word order.

Have a look at this sentence:

WRONG
Our experience includes advising MaxCo in connection with the construction of the company new headquarters in Warsaw.

Here, “company” is an attributive noun which describes the main noun “headquarters”. “New” is an adjective. Attributive nouns must always be next to the main noun they describe. Adjectives must go before attributive nouns.

RIGHT
Our experience includes advising MaxCo in connection with the construction of the new company headquarters in Warsaw.

There is another way of correcting this sentence:

RIGHT
Our experience includes advising MaxCo in connection with the construction of the company’s new headquarters in Warsaw.

Here, I have made “company” a possessor. This changes the word order requirements. Adjectives describing the main noun must come after the possessor. If you put them before the possessor they describe the possessor:

WRONG
Our experience includes advising MaxCo in connection with the construction of the new company’s headquarters in Warsaw.

In this version, it is not the headquarters that are new, but the company.

Here’s another example of this mistake. The incorrect word order has totally changed the meaning:

WRONG
We have not been provided with security agreements concerning the other company’s points of sale.

RIGHT
We have not been provided with security agreements concerning the company’s other points of sale.

And here’s another example of the same mistake, which again has changed the meaning:

WRONG
We also made some editorial corrections and added the correct employee’s details.

RIGHT
We also made some editorial corrections and added the employee’s correct details.

Company names

Mistakes are commonly made with company names because they can be used either as possessors or attributive nouns. Word order must change depending on which form is used.

WRONG
We have been asked to review the amendments that the bank made to the standard Acme’s non-disclosure agreement.

RIGHT ­– “Acme” as possessor
We have been asked to review the amendments that the bank made to Acme’s standard non-disclosure agreement.

RIGHT ­– “Acme” as attributive noun
We have been asked to review the amendments that the bank made to the standard Acme non-disclosure agreement.

WRONG
The HSBC’s latest results were rather disappointing.

RIGHT ­– “HSBC” as possessor
HSBC’s latest results were rather disappointing.

RIGHT ­– “HSBC” as attributive noun
The latest HSBC results were rather disappointing.

Summary

The word order rule may be summarised as follows:

Possessor – adjectives – attributive nouns – main noun

Needless to say – there are exceptions!

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Christmas and New Year greetings in English

Posted on November 28, 2012 by barnabyharward

The simplest Christmas greeting is:

Happy Christmas

Another popular standard greeting is:

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year

“Merry” and “happy” have slightly different meanings. “Merry” means happy, but in a joyful and festive way. We don’t use the word very often, except in Christmas greetings, but it may be used to describe any traditional occasion involving food and drink, music and dancing.

There are numerous variations on this greeting. For example:

Merry Christmas and Best Wishes for a Happy New Year

Merry Christmas and all the best in the New Year (less formal)

 

Generic greetings which are suitable in a multi-faith context are:

Season’s Greetings

Holiday Greetings

Happy Holidays

They may be modified as follows:

Season’s Greetings and best wishes for the New Year

Holiday Greetings with all good wishes for the New Year

Season’s Greetings from all of us at [name of company]

 

There is any number of more complex greetings. Here’s a sample of some that would be suitable in a business context:

Best wishes for a happy Christmas and a prosperous New Year

Greetings of the Season and Best Wishes for the New Year

Warmest thoughts and best wishes for a wonderful Holiday and a Happy New Year

Wishing you every happiness this Holiday Season and throughout the coming year

May the peace and joy of the Holiday Season be with you throughout the coming year

All of us at [name of company] join in sending seasons greetings with all good wishes for the New Year

 

More specific greetings – thanks:

In warm appreciation of our association during the past year, we wish you a Merry Christmas and every success in the New Year

With thanks for our fruitful cooperation during the past year, we wish you a very Merry Christmas and look forward to continuing our joint success in the New Year

All of us at [name of company] join in saying “thank you” and wishing you a happy holiday and prosperous new year

 

Greetings with more of a Christian message:

May the Blessings of Christmas bring you Peace and Joy throughout the New Year

May the Joy and Peace of Christmas be with you now and throughout the New Year

 

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What is the correct position in a sentence of the word “also”?

Posted on November 27, 2012 by barnabyharward

One of the most common mistakes associated with word order is the tendency to put adverbs in the wrong place. This particularly applies to the word “also”, but other adverbs are commonly misplaced too.

Consider the following examples with “also”:

WRONG
We included also the information that the holiday year starts on 1 January.
RIGHT
We also included the information that the holiday year starts on 1 January.

WRONG
The rules set out above apply also to the Confidential Information.
RIGHT
The rules set out above also apply to the Confidential Information.

As these examples show, “also” should go between the subject and the verb, NOT after the verb. The next examples – with other adverbs – follow the same pattern:

WRONG
We have only time to finish the first part of the project by the deadline.
RIGHT
We only have time to finish the first part of the project by the deadline.

WRONG
Who has usually access to classified information?
RIGHT
Who usually has access to classified information?

WRONG
Do you know when Jan Kowalski started officially his work for the Company?
RIGHT
Do you know when Jan Kowalski officially started his work for the Company?

There is, of course, an exception to this rule. When the verb is “to be” the adverb usually goes after the verb:

She is also an experienced adviser on mergers and acquisitions in this sector.

The client is often unable to sign documents at short notice due to extensive foreign travel.

When a sentence has an auxiliary verb and a main verb, it is usual to put adverbs between them. For example:

We have finally completed the project.

Here “have” is the auxiliary verb and “completed” is the main verb; “have completed” is the present perfect tense.

More examples:

You must also send us the signed PoA.
(“must” is a modal auxiliary verb which modifies “send”)

We have already heard about the outcome.
(“have heard” = present perfect)

He is just arriving now.
(“is arriving” = present continuous)

The firm has frequently been praised for its commercial approach to problem solving.
(“has been praised” = present perfect passive)

In some of these examples the adverb could be put in a different place for particular emphasis. But these show standard word order.

 

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How to end emails

Posted on November 6, 2012 by barnabyharward

Here are the basic rules for starting and ending correspondence:

START

END
Formal
Dear Sir,
Dear Madam,
Dear Sir or Madam,		 Formal
Yours faithfully, (UK)
Sincerely (yours), (US)
Yours truly, (US)
Formal / Standard
Dear Mr Smith, (UK)
Dear Ms Smith, (UK)
Dear Mr. Smith: (US)
Dear Ms. Smith: (US)		 Formal
Yours sincerely, (UK)
Sincerely (yours), (US)
Yours truly, (US)
Informal
Dear John,
John		 Standard / Informal
In order of formality:
Kind regards,
Best regards,
Best wishes,
Regards,
Best,

Note that in UK English, if you start with Dear Sir or Dear Madam, you should end with Yours faithfully. But if you use the person’s name, you should end with Yours sincerely. This rule may seem arbitrary, but it is one of the rules of formal letter writing that is widely known in the UK; therefore I recommend you stick to it. However, there is no such strict rule in the US.

Email writing is generally less formal than letter writing, but it is still a good idea to maintain a degree of formality in business correspondence, especially if you’re writing to someone you do not know. In such a case I would recommend starting an email with a phrase from the first two rows in the table above, but ending it with a phrase from the third row.  When you know the person you’re emailing — or have corresponded before — it is fine to use a starting phrase from the third row as well.

Here are some example closing sentences for emails:

I look forward to hearing from you.

I look forward to hearing from you soon.

I look forward to receiving your reply.

I look forward to seeing you.

I look forward to meeting you.

I look forward to speaking to you on this matter.

I look forward to a successful working relationship in the future.

Please let me know a convenient time for us to meet / for me to call you.

If you need any further information, please do not hesitate to contact me.

I will let you know more details as soon as I have them.

Please feel free to call me any time on my mobile: 0099 999 999 999

I would appreciate your immediate attention to this matter.

As this matter is urgent, I would be grateful for a swift response.

 

For more information on writing emails see: How to start emails

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How to start emails

Posted on November 6, 2012 by barnabyharward

If you don’t know the name of the person you are writing to, start business emails with either of the following:

Dear Sir,
Dear Madam,

Dear Madame, is wrong.

If you don’t know whether you’re writing to a man or a woman use:

Dear Sir or Madam,

It is not usual to start an email To whom it may concern. This should be reserved for letters of reference or similar communications when the recipient is an unknown third party.

It is always better to use somebody’s name if you know it. If it is the first time you are writing to someone, use either of the following:

For men:   Dear Mr Smith,
For women:   Dear Ms Smith,

Once you get to know someone, i.e. after exchanging one or two emails or if you meet them in person, it is usually OK to use their first name.

In UK English we do not add full stops after Mr and Ms. But in US English it is correct to do so. It is also usual to use a colon instead of a comma after the salutation in US business letters:

Dear Mr. Smith:
Dear Ms. Smith:

If you are writing to a man and a woman use Dear Mr Smith and Ms Jones,

Use Dear Sirs, if you are writing to more than one person even if the group of people includes women.

Dear Ladies and Gentlemen, is wrong. “Ladies and Gentlemen” is only used in formal speech.

Dear Madams, is wrong. Dear Ladies, is best avoided.

If you are writing to more than one woman the strictly correct (though old-fashioned and rather pompous) salutation is Dear Mesdames, but, if possible, it is better to use their names or their title (if they all have the same one) e.g. Dear Directors, Dear Members of the Board,

Once you get to know the group of people you may use the less formal Dear All, for both men and women.

The word Dear may also be omitted in less formal emails. Instead, you may just open with the person’s first name/people’s first names.

The first line of an email or letter should always start with a capital letter:

WRONG
Dear Mr Smith,
with reference to your email of 25 October…

RIGHT
Dear Mr Smith,
With reference to your email of 25 October…

Here are some example opening sentences for emails:

I hope you enjoyed your holiday and are finding it easy to settle back in to work.

It was good to meet you in [place]. I hope you had a safe journey home.

Thank you very much for your email. I am glad to hear that you and your family are well.

Thank you for your prompt reply.

I apologise for not replying sooner, but I have been very busy these last few weeks.

Thank you for your email of [date]. Please find my reply to your query below.

I am writing with regard to XXXX.

Thank you for getting in touch with us about XXXX. (Less formal, more friendly)

Thank you for contacting us regarding XXXX. (More formal)

With reference to your email of [date], I would like to bring the following to your attention.

As a follow-up to our phone call this morning, I would like summarise the key issues.

Re the question you raised in your previous email, please find my explanation below.

Following our meeting on [date] / in [place], please find below a summary of the points we discussed.

In reply to your query regarding XXXX, I would like to make the following points.

Phrases best avoided:

I hope this email finds you well.

Please be informed that…

Please be advised as follows.

This email concerns…

For more information on writing emails see: How to end emails

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How to translate “dziś rano”

Posted on October 31, 2012 by barnabyharward

“Dziś rano” CANNOT be translated as today morning. Similarly, today afternoon and today evening are WRONG.

Say this morning / this afternoon / this evening.

But remember that yesterday morning / afternoon / evening and tomorrow morning / afternoon / evening are correct.

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Biannual, bimonthly & biweekly

Posted on October 30, 2012 by barnabyharward

“Biannual”, “bimonthly” and “biweekly” must be some of the most useless words in the English language. This is because each word has two different meanings.

They can either mean “occurring once in two years/months/weeks” or “occurring twice in one year/month/week”.

If you don’t believe me look them up in a dictionary. It’ll say the same thing, but it’ll make no apologies.

But it should, because if you say, for example, “The above payments should be made bimonthly” nobody knows whether you mean these payments should be made twice a month or every two months. Or if you say “The organisation publishes a biweekly newsletter”, nobody knows whether you mean the newsletter comes out twice a week or every two weeks. (By the way, every two weeks could mean bimonthly – i.e. twice a month. So it is possible for a biweekly magazine to also be a bimonthly. Which is silly.)

So I recommend you avoid using these words.

Here are some more sensible alternatives:

Biannual
occurring once in two years: every two years / biennial
occurring twice in one year: twice a year / semi-annual

Bimonthly
occurring once in two months: every two months / every other month
occurring twice in one month: twice a month / semimonthly / every two weeks (UK only: once a fortnight / every fortnight / fortnightly)

Biweekly
occurring once in two weeks: every two weeks / every other week / twice a month / semimonthly (UK only: once a fortnight / every fortnight / fortnightly)
occurring twice in one week: twice a week / semiweekly

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Is it OK to split infinitives?

Posted on October 25, 2012 by barnabyharward

One of the most famous examples of a split infinitive is in the introduction of the original Star Trek TV series: “to boldly go where no man has gone before”.

The infinitive “to go” has been split by the addition of the adverb “boldly”.

Most split infinitives follow this model – an adverb is put between “to” and the verb. But you also get compound split infinitives where more than one word is put between “to” and the verb, for example: If they make me a partner I can expect my salary to more than double.

So is it correct English to split infinitives?

This has been a subject of debate for many years. Until relatively recently the consensus was that splitting infinitives is not good style. Nowadays, however, most linguists and grammarians accept that users of English do habitually split infinitives and therefore it is not wrong to do so. This comes largely as a result of the change from the strict prescriptive approach to grammar (rules determine usage) to an attitude that, to some extent at least, says usage should determine rules. Also, there are times when your writing will be more fluent and your meaning will be clearer if you do split an infinitive.

Consider the following example¹:

Our monitoring system has failed adequately to provide the required information.

A system can fail partially, or fail completely, but can a system fail adequately? Surely what the writer means to say is this:

Our monitoring system has failed to adequately provide the required information.

And here’s another example²:

He considers it unwise to attempt radically to alter taxes on large cars, as proposed by Labour.

Here we can’t be certain which infinitive the writer is being careful not to split. But the sentence would make much more sense if it was written like this:

He considers it unwise to attempt to radically alter taxes on large cars, as proposed by Labour.

So, my answer is yes – it is OK to split infinitives.

¹ From R.L.Trask, Mind the Gaffe Penguin Books (2001) p. 270
² From Pocket Fowler’s Modern English Usage Oxford (1999) p. 547

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How to use “prevent”, “prohibit” and “ban”

Posted on August 10, 2012 by barnabyharward

WRONG
The Lease does not provide for a period of time during which the Tenant is prevented to use the Premises.

RIGHT
The Lease does not provide for a period of time during which the Tenant is prevented from using the Premises.

WRONG
The crew should be provided with training on how to prevent from sea contamination.

RIGHT
The crew should be provided with training on how to prevent sea contamination.

Although the verb “prevent” takes the preposition “from”, it can also be used with no preposition. The rules are as follows:

“prevent” + something
The soldiers prevented the evacuation.
The automatic breathalyser prevents driving under the influence of alcohol.

“prevent” somebody from + -ing
The soldiers prevented the refugees from evacuating.
The automatic breathalyser prevents drivers from driving under the influence of alcohol.

 

The word “prohibit” works in exactly the same way:

“prohibit” + something
The law prohibits the construction of public buildings without adequate fire exits.
The school rules prohibit smoking.

“prohibit” somebody from + -ing
There are no specific provisions in the law that would prohibit an employer from summarily dismissing an employee due to his/her misconduct.

 

The verb “ban” also works in the same way:

The government banned the advertising of tobacco products in 2002.
The court convicted him of hooliganism and banned him from attending football matches.

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