It's or its?
by Donna Richmond
    The "meanest writing monster" for English language users just has to be the little word "it." Let us clear up two things about this little word: "it's" = "it is" "It's" is a contraction, a word made when two little words are put together and one or more letters is (are) left out. "It's" is often used at the beginning of a sentence. It's raining outside. = It is raining outside. "its" is the possessive form of the pronoun, "it" The possessive form of the pronoun "it" never has an apostrophe. The church is holding its gospel meeting in May.

What about that Comma?
by Donna Richmond
    This question was sent in by one of our subscribers: Is a comma required to separate the last item in a list (e.g., a horse, a cow and a pig OR a horse, a cow, and a pig)? Good question. When we who are "baby boomers" were in school, we were taught to always put the comma before the "and." The English language rules seem to be constantly changing, and about ten years later, students were taught to leave the comma out before "and." However, leaving the comma out, in some cases, can be confusing. For example: For dinner we had salad, rolls, cabbage, pork and beans cooked with onions. The reader may, at least with first glance, think "pork and beans" were cooked with onions. When the comma is inserted before "and," the meaning is clear. English teachers now say to always use a comma before "and." 

What about punctuation and quotes?
by Donna Richmond
    I received this question: Is punctuation to be placed inside or outside the closed quote? (e.g., He said, "It is true," but I had my doubts. OR He said, "It is true", but I had my doubts.)? Quotation marks and the accompanying punctuation are pretty confusing. Most of the time, the punctuation goes inside the quotation marks, but there are a few exceptions. Look at these examples: A direct quote: "Where are my books?" he asked. "Here are your books," she said. A divided quote: "Here," she said, "are your books." However, question marks and exclamation points go outside the quotation marks when the whole sentence is a question or exclamation. Did he write the tract "The Faithful Servant"? How happy we will be to hear "Enter in, faithful servant"! 

Which or that?
by Donna Richmond
    I'm often confused whether to use the word "that" or to use the word "which" in referring to something. (e.g., This is something that (which) baffles me.) English pronouns are confusing. There are so many, and so many different kinds! To best answer the question, I quote from the book "Understanding Grammar," pages 72 and 73, by Paul Roberts. "Who," "which," and "that" were not used as relative pronouns in Old English. In Early Middle English, the relative "that" came to be used, referring to both persons and things, as it still does in Modern English. In the fifteenth century, "which" came to be used as a Relative (pronoun), mostly with reference to things but sometimes with a person as antecedent: "Our Father, which art in heaven." In the sixteenth century, the interrogative pronoun "who" came into general use as a relative with reference to persons. The normal present- day English usage is this: "Who" is used with reference to persons. The boy who is riding the bicycle is my brother. "Which" is used with reference to beings other than persons and to things. The computer which I use is the oldest. "That" is used with reference to either persons or things. Please bring the book that you wrote. Notice the pronoun "that" is used to define something not previously identified. In the above sentence, we don't know which book until we read "that you wrote." Also, when the relative pronoun is the object of a preposition, only "which" and "whom" are used; "that" is impossible: the man "with whom" we dined the house "to which" I had been directed In your example, "that" is the word needed: This is something that baffles me. We need to define the "something," so use "that." Now that is probably much more than you wanted to know! 

A Review
by Donna Richmond
    Since we have nearly 100 subscribers who did not receive BulletinGold#1, today we're going to review a bit and add to the subject covered in the first issue. Remember: It's = it is. It's time for Bible study. "Its" is the possessive form of the pronoun, "it." "Its", the possessive pronoun, never contains an apostrophe. English possessive pronouns never contain an apostrophe. Think NO APOSTROPHE when you see these words: yours, his, hers, ours, theirs, its (when "its" shows possession) Because they are already possessive before the "s" is added, they do not need an apostrophe. 

Would or, Could of, Should of which?
by Donna Richmond
    It doesn't take much reading in newspapers or magazines to see one of the above "no-no's." What the writer means to convey is "would've," "should've," or "could've." They are contractions for "would have," "should have," or "could have." According to today's English teachers, we should leave contractions out of our formal writing. Our bulletin is not what I consider formal writing, but at the same time, I certainly do not want it full of grammatical errors. I leave out the "would of's," "could of's," and "should of's"! 

Words often confused: accept / except, access / excess
by Donna Richmond

    "Accept" is a verb that means "to respond favorably or without protest." I accept your decision, although I disagree. "Except" is usually a preposition that means "not including." It may also be a verb that means "to leave out." We have every color except brown. The seniors were excepted from taking the test. 
    "Access" is usually a noun that means "permission or ability to enter or to use," but it can also be a verb used in talking about "getting to stored data." Only the treasurer has access to our bank account. Because the electricity was off, we could not access the computer files. "Excess" is a noun or an adjective that means "more than enough." We prepared an excess of food for the party.
 

All ready or Already?
by Donna Richmond

    Here are some more words that we often confuse. all ready--means completely ready We are all ready to go to the picnic. already--means previously The preacher has already announced his sermon topic.