All Hail the Homonym

Ah, the English language. It’s mind-boggling how many ways we confuse ourselves! Here is just one example of the absurdity of it all:
HOMOGRAPHS are words that share the same spelling, but have different pronunciations.
Dressed in a lovely gown with a bow, I bow before the Queen.
I will lead the way to see the Queen, whose crown of lead  is very [...]

Point Taken!

I’m all for enthusiasm and energy ― in speech and in writing ― but I just can’t handle a writer’s overzealous use of the exclamation point.
You know what I’m talking about. The email from your friend on vacation in Hawaii who writes, “How beautiful and sunny it is here!!!” Or the teenager who proclaims in [...]

Apostrophe Catastrophe

I realize that there are more important things in the world to worry about than the misuse of the apostrophe, but still, it is aggravating. Why can’t people - highly intelligent people at that - use the apostrophe appropriately? Here are some helpful hints:
NO apostrophe is needed when the word is plural:
The boys in the band are [...]