| 1. When are 'state' and 'federal' capitalized? |
"State" and "federal" are capitalized when part of a proper name such as a federal agency, act, etc. (for example "Federal Reserve Bank" but "federal, state, and local laws").
The terms "federal government" and "government" (referring specifically to the United States government) are now commonly written in small letters. In government documents, however, and in other types of communications where these terms are intended to have the force of an official name, they are capitalized. |
| 2. How are 'I', 'me' and 'myself' used? |
Use "I" as a subject ["Louise and I submitted our reports yesterday."] and after "than" in comparisons or with understood verbs ["She is a faster typist than I (am)."]
Use "me" as an object of a verb ["Please put Lila and me on the expense account."] and as the object of a preposition ["David assigned the project to Sam and me."].
Use "myself" when "I" has already been used as the subject -- intensively ["I, myself, will handle this."] or reflexively ["I hurt myself playing tennis."].
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| 3. What is the difference between 'than' and 'then'? |
| "Than" is a conjunction used in comparisons; "then" (which rhymes with "when") is an adverb indicating time ["He is older than I am." "I will see you at dinner and return your book then."]. |
| 4. Why shouldn't sentences begin with 'It is...'? |
Meaningless openers weaken the power of a sentence. Readers look to the beginning of sentences -- the subject position -- for key ideas and to the verb position for key actions.
Therefore, eliminate weak openings such as "It is" and "There are" and meaningless introductory phrases such as "It is important to note that." |
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| 5. May a business writer begin a sentence with 'Because'? |
Many writers remember learning the rule, "A group of words that begins with 'because' is not a complete sentence." That is, "Because of increased account activity" is not a sentence.
However, that rule does not mean, "Do not begin a sentence with 'because.'" For example, the following is a correct sentence: "Because of increased account activity, we have hired an additional customer service specialist."
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Writers may begin a sentence with "because." In fact, doing so allows them to use the very persuasive "Sell and then tell" sentence pattern in which reasons and benefits are presented at the beginning of the sentence.
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