Advanced Grammar: Precision, Emphasis and Editing
Use inversion, emphasis with It was and What, ellipsis, the subjunctive, hedging, formal noun style, and colons, semicolons and dashes, then edit with precision.
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Lessons in this module
- Inversion and fronting for controlled emphasisStart a sentence with a negative or limiting phrase, and put the helping verb before the subject.
- Clefts, fronting and information flowPut the important information where the reader will notice it.
- Ellipsis and substitution without ambiguityAvoid repeating words by leaving them out or replacing them, while the meaning stays clear.
- The subjunctive and formal recommendationsWrite formal recommendations and demands with that + subject + base form.
- Hedging: say exactly how sure you areMake a claim as strong as your evidence, and no stronger.
- Nouns or verbs? Control density in formal writingChoose between a verb and its noun form so that formal writing stays clear.
- Colons, semicolons and dashesUse semicolons, colons, dashes and hyphens to show how the parts of a sentence are related.
- Precision editing: agreement, parallel structure and registerFind the real errors in advanced writing, and tell them apart from choices of style.
- Mastery workshop: defend your grammar choicesRevise an advanced text and give the reason for each change.
- Stage 3 checkpoint: check your precisionCheck what you can do after Modules 08 to 10, and find the lessons to study again.