Grammar is a term for the rules governing the use of any given language. Along with diction (choice of words), it is an important part of quality communication. Technical communication deliverables are often judged by these rules, and as a result, technical communicators are often relatively skilled in the theory and practice of them. Grammar is often discussed in the contexts of rhetoric, writing, editing, presentations and collaboration.
#27365
Everyone fears the long sentence. Editors fear it. Readers fear it. Most of all, writers fear it. Even I fear it. But...
Clark, Roy Peter. Poynter Online (2004). Articles>Writing>Grammar>Rhetoric
#25796
So maybe you do know how to add memory to your computer or program your cell phone, but do you know where to put a comma in a sentence? If you have a sentence followed by a list, do you use a semicolon or a colon? Does the period go inside or outside of quotation marks? How do you keep up with changing rules of grammar and punctuation when you can't remember where to put the apostrophe? People often fear punctuation because the rules have changed and they continue to do so.
Straus, Jane. Grammarbook.com (2004). Articles>Style Guides>Grammar
#25005
Gender-Free Legal Writing: Managing the Personal Pronouns
Where a statement of any complexity is made about a person, the maker of the statement may face decisions about how further references should be framed.
Close, Arthur. British Columbia Law Institute (1984). Reference>Writing>Legal>Grammar
#13404
The Good Grammar, Good Style™ Pages
Do you have a question about style, grammar, or mechanics? Find the answer to your questions in the Good Grammar, Good Style Archive — over 100 pages of useful articles and frequently asked questions!
Factotum Ink, Limited (2002). Reference>Style Guides>Grammar
#10655
A website about English grammar for students.
Verkouteren, J. Adrian. St. Albans School (1998). Reference>Style Guides>Grammar
#22691
Don't you think that it is a tragedy that 95 percent of the people who desire to be technical writers have a poor command over the language? I am sure all of us make a mistake or two, once in a while. But to make it in every sentence and paragraph shows utter disrespect for readers.
Kamath, Gurudutt R. IT People (2003). Articles>Editing>Grammar>Technical Writing
#11851
Grammar, Spelling, and Punctuation
A guide on punctuation, capitals, spelling, sentence construction and parts of speech.
#10717
Normal rules of English grammar are often violated in technical writing, sometimes with good reason. However, writers are often not aware of these violations. This guide identifies some of the rules that are most commonly violated.
Author's Guide (2001). Reference>Writing>Grammar
#25798
This site is dedicated to answering grammar, composition, or formatting questions.
#10652
A web-based complete guide to English syntax and grammar.
Darling, Charles. Capital Community College (2001). Reference>Style Guides>Grammar
#26000
Fifty-two humorous rules about how to write well (each of which is broken).
PlainLanguage.gov (2004). Humor>Writing>Grammar
#28161
The hyphen serves a single function. It joins things together: syllables of a word separated at the end of a line; two words used as a compound; or a modifier and the word it describes (when the combination itself is used as a modifier). But for the latter two functions, a hyphen isn't always needed. So how do you decide?
Wenger, Andrea. Carolina Communique (2006). Articles>Writing>Grammar
#20420
Hyphens, En-Dashes and Em-Dashes
Hyphens, en-dashes and em-dashes are frequently used punctuation marks that are just as frequently misunderstood. All three marks are essentially horizontal lines, though their lengths vary (as do, occasionally, their designs – see figure 1). However, these three different marks have very different purposes, and using a hyphen to do an m-dash’s job is just as much of a punctuation error as using a question mark in place of a comma.
Strizver, Ilene. Upper and lowercase Magazine (2002). Design>Typography>Grammar
#29089
In studies of political communication the use of personal pronouns is often put forward as one of the strategies for influencing sender-receiver relations (e.g., De Fina [1], Haverkate [2], Zupnik [3]). As Rogers and Swales [4] among others have demonstrated, similar techniques can be detected in corporate communication. In this article, the use of French and Dutch personal and possessive pronouns in the first person plural is examined in internal communication documents. The focus is on the link between text types and the use of inclusive, exclusive, or ambiguous we. First the research material is described; then a concise overview of the literary sources is given; finally the results of the research are discussed. It will be demonstrated that managers can exploit personal pronouns strategically and that the use of we is a parameter for identifying text function.
Dieltjens, Sylvain and Priscilla Heynderickx. Journal of Technical Writing and Communication (2003). Articles>Language>Grammar
#29794
When it comes to relative pronouns, incomplete knowledge may lead to frustration and confusion. The pronouns that, which, who, and what serve as relative pronouns when they introduce a relative (or subordinate) clause.
Wenger, Andrea. Carolina Communique (2007). Articles>Writing>Diction>Grammar
#28635
When it comes to relative pronouns, incomplete knowledge may lead to frustration and confusion. The pronouns that, which, who, and what serve as relative pronouns when they introduce a relative (or subordinate) clause.
Wenger, Andrea. Carolina Communique (2007). Articles>Writing>Grammar
#30338
I think it can be dangerous for a technical writer to be a grammar expert.
DeGraw, Yvonne. Boston Broadside (1993). Articles>Writing>Technical Writing>Grammar
#30356
Nancy's Wordsmithy: Rules You Don't Have to Obey, Part III
The funny thing is, this rule should be running out of steam, because certain standards of written English have changed in ways that make the rule at least partly obsolete. Learning it is kind of like learning to change a cloth ribbon on an old manual typewriter.
Allison, Nancy. Boston Broadside (1989). Articles>Writing>Editing>Grammar
#29074
A New Look at Infinitives in Business and Technical Writing 
This article begins by arguing that the infinitive phrase has not been taken seriously in writing because writers have been too concerned with Bishop Robert Lowth's proscription against the split infinitive. However, careful examination of three types of technical prose (instructions, annual reports, and 'junk mail') reveals that more than one sentence in four contains an infinitive phrase. The article then argues that two linguistic theories do not adequately explain the overwhelming presence of infinitives in the three types of prose. The reason for the presence of infinitives seems to be that they fulfill several rhetorical purposes, including vigor, symmetry, emphasis, variety, economy, and depersonalization. Implications for writing and teaching are also discussed.
Myers, Marshall. Journal of Technical Writing and Communication (2002). Articles>Writing>Grammar>Technical Writing
#18217
Nominalizations and Their Impact on Readers 
The study presented here examined the effect of nominalizations in technical documents on readers’ recall and comprehension. Subjects read one of two technical passages in either a nominalized or denominalized form, and took recall and comprehension tests. Results indicate that denominalized passages can help readers retain more information when the original nominalizations are critical to the readers’ understanding of the passage.
Spyridakis, Jan H. and Carol S. Isakson. STC Proceedings (1996). Presentations>Writing>Grammar
#26502
The suffix -able can be very useful in the English language because it helps us to express capability or worthiness. However, it's often bad form to pick any verb, slap -able on the end of it, and try to make a valid adjective.
#22687
One Hundred Simple Tech Writing Errors
Here are the 100 writing errors that the author has encountered in his experience. (Followed by the subsequent article 'Ten More Errors in Technical Writing.')
Kamath, Gurudutt R. IT People (2003). Articles>Editing>Grammar>Technical Writing
#10672
Explains English parts of speech and gives several usage examples.
#20151
Participles Becoming Prepositions--Some Arcane Information for Editors
A presentation that accompanies the paper of the same name at http://webhome.crk.umn.edu/~mpringle/UsingPaper.rtf.
Pringle, Mary Margaret. STCTC (2001). Presentations>Editing>Grammar>Minimalism
#20150
Participles Becoming Prepositions--Some Arcane Information for Editors
In English, some participles have already become prepositions. The author noticed in her work as a technical editor that most of her writers seemed to perceive the participle 'using' as a preposition already although it is not listed as such in the dictionary. The paper gives the evidence and rationale for making such a claim. It offers a window on written language change in progress and celebrates the language user’s ability to make the stolid dialect we call technical writing more vigorous and efficient by turning a participle into a preposition.
Pringle, Mary Margaret. STCTC (2001). Presentations>Editing>Grammar>Minimalism
