Q. I received a lease agreement and am questioning the meaning of one line in it. The line says, “Landlord will be responsible for any structural or major maintenance and repairs, other than routine maintenance and repairs that are not due to Tenant’s misuse.” I believe this means that the landlord will not be responsible for repairs that are not due to tenant’s misuse, whereas I’m being told that it means that the landlord will not be responsible for repairs that are due to tenant’s misuse.
A. That messy sentence is almost impossible to figure out. It appears to be an instance of misnegation; the writer probably didn’t mean what the sentence actually says. Unfortunately, I’m afraid you need a lawyer, not a style guide.
[This answer relies on the 17th edition of CMOS (2017) unless otherwise noted.]
Q. Which is correct? “Because of the affect/effect of unpaid interest, your loan balance has become larger than its cash value.”
Q. I’m confused over when to use the article the in expressions like “the British psychiatrist Michael Rutter’s study.” Although readers will know it might not be the case, to me, using the makes that person the only one in that field.
A. It’s just a matter of how you read it. When you see that the name Michael Rutter is a restrictive appositive defining which British psychiatrist we’re talking about, the does not make him the only British psychiatrist—quite the contrary. See CMOS 5.23.
[This answer relies on the 17th edition of CMOS (2017) unless otherwise noted.]
Q. When used in footnotes what does the Latin word pace mean?
A. Pace is Latin for “in peace,” and in footnotes it means something like “no offense intended” toward a person or source that you are contradicting. For example,
This conclusion is usually incorrect (pace Smith and Jones 1999).
Although in Chicago style familiar Latin terms are set in roman type, put pace in italics if there’s danger of mistaking it for the English word pace.
[This answer relies on the 17th edition of CMOS (2017) unless otherwise noted.]
Q. Is it incorrect to use “and then” when stating the multiple actions of an individual? E.g., “She glanced around the room and then exited for the last time.” If it’s better to omit the and, does that mean there should be a comma in place of the and? How about in this sentence: “He got a DUI then resisted arrest”? Should there be a comma before then?
A. No, yes, and yes. It’s fine to write “and then” as you did in your first sentence. If you leave out and, add a comma before then: “He got a DUI, then resisted arrest.”
[This answer relies on the 17th edition of CMOS (2017) unless otherwise noted.]
Q. I am unsure of how to handle subject-verb agreement in sentences that involve em dashes or parentheses. For example, “The president (and, to some extent, Congress) is committed to the policy” or “The president—and, to some extent, Congress—is committed to the policy.” Is it correct to treat the subject in each of these sentences as singular or plural?
A. Singular. Choose a verb as though the parenthetical “afterthought” weren’t there. (This is true if the afterthought is set off by commas as well.)
[This answer relies on the 17th edition of CMOS (2017) unless otherwise noted.]
Q. When providing options between two or more singular items and one or more plural items, should a writer use a plural verb or a singular verb? For example: “When Mom or Dad or both [say/says] no, you’d better stop asking.”
A. Grab the nearest noun or pronoun in the series and use it to determine the verb:
When Mom or Dad or both say no, you’d better stop asking.
When your parents or the babysitter says no, you’d better stop asking.
[This answer relies on the 17th edition of CMOS (2017) unless otherwise noted.]
Q. I’m having a long debate with a writer about the following usage: “Each sister was prettier than the next.” As an editor, I say that as stated, it means that the sisters got uglier on down the line, which was not what the author intended. I say it should be “Each sister was prettier than the one before.”
A. You are right; this is a common error: it should be either “prettier than the one before” or “prettier than the last.”
[This answer relies on the 17th edition of CMOS (2017) unless otherwise noted.]
Q. Hello! Is the following sentence grammatically correct? “Good news is, at Microsoft we are here to help!”
A. Your sentence is casual—almost slangy—because it leaves out words for the listener/reader to fill in: “The good news is that at Microsoft we are here to help!” Although your sentence is technically grammatical, it doesn’t reflect formal English grammar. Of course, in advertising not many people expect formal English grammar.
[This answer relies on the 17th edition of CMOS (2017) unless otherwise noted.]
Q. An author suggests teachers “videotape” themselves presenting a lesson so they can watch and critique their lesson later. I tried changing “videotape” to “video record,” but I think that’s too awkward. And just “record” could mean audio only. Do you think I should blaze a trail for retaining the technically inaccurate “videotape”? Seriously, what term will we use down the road when we’re using who-knows-what technology? Perhaps we should have dug in heels with “film” as a verb. “Film yourself teaching”?
A. Blaze away; we’ll see how many follow. When an expression develops a clear generic meaning and widespread usage in nontechnical contexts, however, it has the potential to outlive its literal meaning. After all, if we can “print” to PDF and “cc” someone on an email, I guess we can videotape a lesson.
[This answer relies on the 17th edition of CMOS (2017) unless otherwise noted.]