Discussion Groups / English Usage / January 2010

Last Revised: 2006-02-06 (6 Feb 2006).
                               A copy of this is posted at:
                                    The alt.usage.english Website
                                    http://alt-usage-english.org/
                                 
------------------------------
Contents of Intro F:
------------------------------

 (a) the Table of Contents of the AUE FAQ
 (b) the Table of Contents of the FAQ Supplement.

Both can be found by way of links at the AUE Website
<http://www.alt-usage-english.org/>.

We post these Tables of Contents so that you can get an idea of the
broad range of material covered at our website, as well as names of
specific topics. Please check here or at the site to see if the topic
you want to ask about is listed, and if so, PLEASE read the FAQ entry
before posting.

If, once you have read the appropriate topic in the FAQ, you feel that
there is an aspect of your topic that justifies further discussion, dive
on in, but if you mention in your posting that you *have* read the FAQ
entry, this will save you and many regular readers much distress.

*The Search box at the AUE Website is a quick way to reach your desired
topic.

-----------------------------------------------------
(a) THE AUE FAQ
-----------------------------------------------------

A "live" linked version of the following is at AUE's fast-access FAQ,
http://www.alt-usage-english.org/fast_faq.shtml

------------------------------------------------------------------------
Table of Contents of  
THE ALT.USAGE.ENGLISH FAQ FILE
------------------------------------------------------------------------
                            by Mark Israel
                       
                    Last updated:  29 September 1997

Welcome to alt.usage.english!
       guidelines for posting
       related newsgroups

recommended books
       dictionaries
       online dictionaries
       general reference
       grammars
       books on linguistics
       books on usage
       online usage guides
       online language columns
       books that discriminate synonyms
       style manuals
       books on mathematical exposition
       books on phrasal verbs
       books on phrase origins
       books on Britishisms, Canadianisms, etc.
       books on "bias-free"/"politically correct" language
       books on group names
       books on rhyming slang

artificial dialects
       Basic English
       E-prime

pronunciation
       how to represent pronunciation in ASCII
       rhotic vs non-rhotic, intrusive "r"
       How do Americans pronounce "dog"?
       words pronounced differently according to context
       words whose spelling has influenced their pronunciation

usage disputes
       "acronym"
       "all ... not"
       "alot"
       "alright"
       "between you and I"
       "company is" vs "company are"
       "could care less"
       "could of"
       "different to", "different than"
       "done"="finished"
       double "is"
       "due to"
       "functionality"
       gender-neutral pronouns
       "God rest you merry, gentlemen"
       "hopefully", "thankfully"
       "if I was" vs "if I were"
       "impact"="to affect"
       "It needs cleaned"
       "It's me" vs "it is I"
       "less" vs "fewer"
       "like" vs "as"
       "like" vs "such as"
       "more/most/very unique"
       "mouses" vs "mice"
       "near miss"
       "none is" vs "none are"
       plurals
               plurals of Latin and Greek words
               plurals => English singulars
       preposition at end
       "quality"
       repeated words after abbreviations
       "Scotch"
       "shall" vs "will", "would" vs "should"
       split infinitive
       "that" vs "which"
       "that kind of a thing"
       the the hoi polloi debate
       "true fact"
       "try and", "be sure and", "go" + verb
       "whom"
       "you saying" vs "your saying"

punctuation
       "." after abbreviations
       spaces between sentences
       ," vs ",
       "A, B and C" vs "A, B, and C"

foreigners' FAQs
       "a"/"an" before abbreviations
       "A number of..."
       when to use "the"
       subjunctive

word origins
       "A.D."
       "alumin(i)um"
       "bloody"
       "bug"="defect"
       "Caesarean section"
       "canola"
       "catch-22"
       "cop"
       "copacetic"
       "crap"
       "ebonics"
       "eighty-six"="nix"
       "Eskimo"
       "flammable"
       "freeway"
       "f.ck"
       "golf"
       "hooker"
       "ISO"
       "jerry-built"/"jury-rigged"
       "kangaroo"
       "limerence"
       "loo"
       "love"="zero"
       "merkin"
       "nimrod"
       "O.K."
       "outrage"
       "paparazzo"
       "pie-shaped"
       "portmanteau word"
       "posh"
       "quiz"
       "Santa Ana"
       "scot-free"
       "sincere"
       "sirloin"/"baron of beef"
       "SOS"
       "spoonerism"
       "suck"="be very unsatisfying"
       "till"/"until"
       "tip"
       "titsling"/"brassiere"
       "troll"
       "typo"
       "Wicca"
       "widget"
       "wog"
       "wonk"
       "wop"
       "ye"="the"

phrase origins
       "the bee's knees"
       "beg the question"
       "billions and billions"
       "blue moon"
       "Bob's your uncle"
       "break a leg"
       "to call a spade a spade"
       "cut the mustard"
       "cut to the chase"
       "The die is cast"
       "dressed to the nines"
       "Elementary, my dear Watson!"
       "Enquiring minds want to know"
       "The exception proves the rule"
       "face the music"
       "fall off a turnip truck"
       "full monty"
       "Get the lead out"
       "Go figure"
       "Go placidly amid the noise and the haste" (Desiderata)
       "go to hell in a handbasket"
       "hell for leather"
       "hoist with his own petard"
       "by hook or by crook"
       "Illegitimis non carborundum"
       "in like Flynn"
       "Jingle Bells"
       "Let them eat cake"
       "mind your p's and q's"
       "more honoured in the breach than the observance"
       "more than you can shake a stick at"
       "ollie ollie oxen free"
       "peter out"
       "politically correct"
       "push the envelope"
       "put in one's two cents' worth"
       "rule of thumb"
       "shouting fire in a crowded theater"
       "son of a gun"
       "spitting image"/"spit and image"
       "There's a sucker born every minute"
       "to all intents and purposes"
       "wait for the other shoe to drop"
       "Wherefore art thou Romeo?"
       "whole cloth"
       "the whole nine yards"
       "You have another think coming"

words frequently sought
       words ending in "-gry"
       words without vowels
       list of language terms
       "I won't mention..."
       names of "&", "@", and "#"
       "The quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog."
       "Take the prisoner downstairs", said Tom condescendingly.
       What is the opposite of "to exceed"?
       What is the opposite of "distaff side"?
       grass strip between road and sidewalk

miscellany
       What is a suggested format for citing online sources?
       Does the next millennium begin in 2000 or 2001?
       What will we call the next decade?
       Fumblerules ("Don't use no double negatives", etc.)
       English is Tough Stuff
       What is the phone number of the Grammar Hotline?
       deliberate mistakes in dictionaries
       How reliable are dictionaries?
       etymologies of personal names
       How did "Truly" become a personal name?
       trademarks
       commonest words
       Why do we say "30 years old" but "a 30-year-old man"?
       What words are their own antonym?
       sentences grammatical in both Old English and Modern English
       radio alphabets
       distribution of English-speakers
       provenance of English vocabulary
       "billion":  a U.K. view
       Biblical sense of "to know"
       postfix "not"
       origin of the dollar sign

spelling
       spelling reform
       joke about step-by-step spelling reform
       What is "ghoti"?
       I before E except after C
       How do you spell "e-mail"?
       Why is "I" capitalized?
       diacritics
       "-er" vs "-re"
       "-ize" vs "-ise"
       doubling of final consonants before suffixes
       possessive apostrophes

========      End AUE FAQ section     ==========================

-----------------------------------------------------
(b) THE FAQ SUPPLEMENT
-----------------------------------------------------

Following is the table of contents of the AUE FAQ Supplement:

books

    Dictionaries
    Grammar
    Books about words

pronunciation

    Speech examples
    Formant analysis

disputed usages

    "any more" and "anymore"
    "company is" and "company are"
    Is 'people' the plural of 'person'?
    "miss not having"
    What is prescriptivism?

grammar

    Does English have a subjunctive mood?
    Genitive is not always possessive
    Plural formation
    Thou, thee & archaic grammar

punctuation

    Quotes for emphasis

word origins

    "SOS"

spelling

    Comments on a proposal for reformed English spelling
    Exceptions to 'i_before_e' rule
    Preferences, "e-mail" vs "email"

miscellany

    Britain/Great Britain/United Kingdom &C: Some common confusions
    What is the UK? Is it the same as Britain, Great Britain or
England?
    Worldwide distribution of English-speakers

====== End FAQ SUPPLEMENT section ======

----------------------------------------------------------------------
This series of seven "Intro Documents" is intended to aid newcomers to
the newsgroup. The articles are posted frequently here, and are also on
the Web for your convenience, at the AUE Website:

       http://www.alt-usage-english.org/