Learning Express goof-proof Business Writing PHẦN 10 pptx

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Proper Nouns
The dictionary that spell check uses does not include most
proper nouns and may also exclude technical and field-specific
terms. If spell check doesn’t recognize a word that you know is
spelled correctly, verify the spelling using another reliable source,
then simply add it to spell check’s dictionary.
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BUSINESS WRITING
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BUSINESS WRITING TIPS & STRATEGIES
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www.basic-learning.com/wbwt/tips-index.htm—Bull’s Eye Busi-
ness Writing Tips
www.business-letter-writing.com—Secrets to Effective Business
Letter Communication
www.bigchalk.com—offers business writing tips and strategies for
students
www.businessletterpunch.com—takes users through the steps of
writing a successful business letter
www.mapnp.org/library/commskls/cmm_writ.htm—the Business
Writer’s Free Library includes general resources and advice,
basic composition and writing skills resources, sample corre-
spondence, and reference materials.
www.gailtycer.com/writing.htm—offers business writing tips
ONLINE RESOURCES
appendix
B
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ONLINE BUSINESS COURSES

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www.trainingbetter.com
www.learnatest.com
www.instructionalsolutions.com
www.online-learning.com/course_pbw2_desc.html
www.englishonline.net/writing/busi.html
www.onlinebusinessenglish.com
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BUSINESS TERMS
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Barron’s Online: www.barrons.com
Bloomberg.com: www.bloomberg.com (includes a financial glos-
sary at: www.bloomberg.com/money/tools/bfglosa.html)
Business Journals: www.bizjournals.com (you can personalize the
site to your locality)
Business Week Online: www.businessweek.com
Career Journal from The Wall Street Journal: www.careerjour-
nal.com
CNN Financial News Online: www.cnnfn.com
Fast Company Magazine Online: www.fastcompany.com
Hoover’s Online: www.hoovers.com
Inc. Magazine Online: www.inc.com
Office.com: www.office.com
The Business Search Engine: www.business.com
The Wall Street Journal Online: www.wsj.com
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GRAMMAR
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www.wsu.edu/~brians/errors/index.html—Paul Brians’ “Com-
mon Errors in English” site

iteslj.org/quizzes/—self study quizzes for ESL students, but useful
for anyone interested in grammar
www.englishgrammar101.com—English Grammar 101. Several
English grammar tutorials.
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BUSINESS WRITING
www.dailygrammar.com—Daily Grammar—offers daily e-mail
messages with a grammar lesson five days of the week and a
quiz on the sixth day
www.ruthvilmi.net/hut/help/grammar_help/—offers interactive
grammar exercises and grammar resources
www.grammarlady.com/—offers grammar tips and features a
grammar hotline
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SPELLING
●
www.dictionary.com—a useful online dictionary (with thesaurus).
You can sign up for “word of the day” e-mails to help expand
your vocabulary.
www.funbrain.com/spell—a site designed for young people with
a Spell Check spelling game
www.m-w.com—Merriam Webster Online. This site has a number
of interesting features that will make you forget you are trying
to improve your spelling! Check out the Word for the Wise sec-
tion (www.m-w.com/wftw/wftw.htm) for fun facts about words.
www.randomhouse.com/words/—Words @ Random. Here you
will find crossword puzzles, quizzes, dictionaries, and other fun
stuff all in one site.
www.say-it-in-english.com/SpellHome.html—Absolutely Ridicu-

lous English Spelling
www.sentex.net/~mmcadams/spelling.html—This site has a tricky
online spelling test that is worth taking.
www.spelling.hemscott.net/—useful advice on how to improve
your spelling
www.spellingbee.com/index.shtml—The Scripps Howard National
Spelling Bee site contains “Carolyn’s Corner” with weekly tips
and information on spelling.
www.spellweb.com—This site will help you to pick the correct
spelling of two versions of a word or phrase.
167
Online Resources
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LITERARY TERMS
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Glossary of Literary Criticism—www.sil.org/~radneyr/humani-
ties/litcrit/gloss.htm
Glossary of Rhetorical Terms with Examples—www.uky.edu/Arts-
Sciences/Classics/rhetoric.html
Literary Arts, Inc.—www.literary-arts.org/
Literary Criticism on the Web— />Literary Terms—www.tnellen.com/cybereng/lit_terms/
Online Literary Criticism Collection—www.ipl.org/ref/litcrit/
The Literary Web—www.people.virginia.edu/~jbh/litweb.html
Virtual Salt—A Glossary of Literary Terms: www.virtualsalt.com/
litterms.htm
Wordwizard—www.wordwizard.com
Zuzu’s Petals Literary Resources—www.zuzu.com
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TECHNOLOGY TERMS
●

CIO Magazine Online—www.cio.com
Fast Company Magazine Online—www.fastcompany.com
Government Technology—www.govtech.net
Information Technology Association of America—www.itaa.org
National Institute of Standards and Technology—www.nist.gov
Tech Web: The Business Technology Network—www.techweb.com
Technology & Learning—www.techlearning.com
Technology Review (MIT)—www.techreview.com
Web Services Community Portal—www.webservices.org
Webmonkey—www.hotwired.lycos.com/webmonkey (especially
the glossary)
Webopedia Online Dictionary for Computer and Internet Terms—
www.pcwebopaedia.com/
Women in Technology International—www.witi.org
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BUSINESS WRITING
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GENERAL
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Alfred, Gerald J et. al. The Business Writer’s Handbook, 6th
Edition. (New York: St. Martin’s Press, 2000).
Bly, Robert. The Encyclopedia of Business Letters, Fax Memos,
and e-mail. (Franklin Lake, NJ: Career Press, 1999).
Chesla, Elizabeth. Improve Your Writing for Work, 2nd Edition.
(New York: LearningExpress, 2000).
Danziger, Elizabeth. Get to the Point! Painless Advice for Writing
Memos, Letters, and e-mails Your Colleagues Will Understand.
(New York: Three Rivers Press, 2001).
Galko, Francine D. Better Writing Right Now. (New York:

LearningExpress, 2002).
Iacone, Salvatore J. Write to the Point: How to Communicate in
Business with Style and Purpose. (Franklin Lake: Career Press,
2003).
Kirschman, DeaAnne. Getting Down to Business. (New York:
LearningExpress, 2002).
PRINT RESOURCES
appendix
C
Kolin, Philip C. Successful Writing at Work, 6th Edition.
(Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 2001).
LearningExpress. The Complete Professional: Solutions for
Today’s Workplace. (New York: LearningExpress, 2000).
Olson, Judith F. Writing Skills Success in 20 Minutes a Day, 2nd
Edition. (New York: LearningExpress, 2002).
Roddick, Hawley. Business Writing Makeovers: Shortcut
Solutions to Improve Your Letters, e-mails, and Faxes. (Avon:
Adams, 2002).
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STYLE GUIDES
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Williams, Joseph M. Style: Ten Lessons in Clarity and Grace, 7th
Edition. (Boston: Longman, 2002).
Strunk, William Jr. et. al. Elements of Style, 4th Edition. (Boston:
Allyn & Bacon, 2000).
The Chicago Manual of Style: The Essential Guide for Writers,
Editors, and Publishers, 14th Edition. (Chicago: University of
Chicago Press, 1993).
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GRAMMAR & SPELLING

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Devine, Felice. Goof-Proof Grammar.
(New York: LearningExpress, 2002).
Devine, Felice. Goof-Proof Spelling.
(New York: LearningExpress, 2002).
Follett, Wilson and Wensberge, Erik. Modern American Usage: A
Guide. (New York: Hill & Wang Publishers, 1998).
LearningExpress. 501 Grammar and Writing Questions, 2nd
Edition. (New York: LearningExpress, 2002).
LearningExpress. 1001 Vocabulary & Spelling Questions. (New
York: LearningExpress, 1999).
LearningExpress. Vocabulary & Spelling Success, 3rd Edition.
(New York: LearningExpress, 2002).
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BUSINESS WRITING
Magnan, Robert and Santovec, Mary Lou. 1001 Commonly
Misspelled Words: What Your Spell Checker Won’t Tell You.
(New York: McGraw-Hill Professional Publishing, 2000).
Morrow, David. DK Pockets: Spelling Dictionary. (New York:
DK Publishing, 1998).
O’Conner, Patricia T. Woe Is I: The Grammarphobe’s Guide to
Better English in Plain English. (New York: Riverhead Books,
1998).
Olson, Judith F. Grammar Essentials, 2nd Edition. (New York:
LearningExpress, 2000).
Princeton Review, Grammar Start: A Guide to Perfect Usage,
2nd edition. (New York: Princeton Review, 2001).
Straus, Jane. The Blue Book of Grammar and Punctuation, 7th
Edition. (Mill Valley: Jane Straus, 2001).

vos Savant, Marilyn. The Art of Spelling: The Method and the
Madness. (New York: Norton, 2000).
Wallraff, Barbara. Word Court: Wherein Verbal Virtue is
Rewarded, Crimes Against the Language Are Punished, and
Poetic Justice is Done. (New York: Harcourt, 2000).
Walsh, Bill. Lapsing into a Comma. (New York: McGraw Hill,
2000).
Woods, Geraldine. English Grammar for Dummies. (New York:
Hungry Minds, 2001).
171
Print Resources
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Section 4
Rule #23: Learn the Most Commonly Confused Words,
and Use Them Properly
1. I assured Rebecca that her new hairstyle was attractive.
2. Their sofa was delivered this morning.
3. The yellow dress fits better than the red one.
4. The personnel office is in the back of the building.
5. To whom should I address this letter?
Rule #24: Learn the Most Misused Words, and Use Them
Properly
1. My brother was being indecisive, so I was forced to decide
between the two movies.
2. After working long hours for three months, Joan was eager
to start her vacation.
3. I lost the game but didn’t feel bad because I’d tried my best.
4. Exhausted, she went to her bedroom to lie down.
5. The dinner that we ate last night was delicious.

ANSWER KEY
appendix
D
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BUSINESS WRITING
Rule #25: Don’t Use Words That Aren’t Really Words
1. He brought a calculator with him to the calculus final.
2. I hope the meeting will go well.
3. Anywhere you want to meet for lunch is fine with me.
4. Regardless of the weather, we are going to play golf.
5. People should take responsibility for themselves.
Rule #26: Don’t Use Words or Phrases That Might
Offend Your Reader
1. The chairperson of our committee read a report regarding
absenteeism among the wait staff.
2. Appropriate
3. The tennis players Venus and Serena Williams are the best
in the world.
4. Please support the efforts of our Vice President of Person-
nel, Dora Sinclair, by sponsoring her in the Relay for Life.
5. Did you send the invitation to Dr. Choe and Ms. Jones?
Rule #27: Understand Positive and Negative
Connotations to Choose Words Wisely
1. Inexpensive has a positive connotation. Consider cheap to
convey the idea negatively.
2. Encourage has a positive connotation; think of it in relation
to abet.
3. Aromatic has a positive connotation; think of it in relation
to smelly.

4. Ludicrous has a negative connotation; amusing is a more
positive synonym.
5. Cozy has a positive connotation (whereas comfortable is
more neutral).
Rule #30: Formality versus Informality
Note that none of the formal words in this exercise are preten-
tious or archaic. You may create a formal tone with simple words
that get the point across.
a. F
b. I
c. F
d. I
e. I
f. F
g. I
h. F
i. I
j. F
Rule #31: Avoid Colloquialisms
1. In conclusion, we believe you should not choose our com-
petitor’s product because they do not understand the tech-
nology the way we do.
2. The accident last Tuesday was unfortunate; we must install
new floor mats to avoid another one in the future.
3. They are not sure if they will attend the meeting that we are
holding tomorrow.
4. If we do not finish on time, our firm could always tell the
client their last minute changes held up production.
5. The decision to cancel the trip has been made; you should
accept it instead of dwelling on it.

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Section 5
Rule #35: Noun/Verb Agreement
1. Shelly and her husband are traveling to Spain.
2. Correct
3. Both of the managers are rumored to be fired after losing
the account.
4. Correct
5. Either you or your brother is going to have to talk to your
parents.
Rule #39: Double Negatives
1. We barely caught the train.
2. Lee had nothing to say at the meeting.
3. Correct
4. Heather never went anywhere on vacation.
5. Correct
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Answer Key
Rule #40: Don’t Make Spelling Mistakes
1. Incorrect—abundance
2. Correct
3. Correct
4. Incorrect—existence
5. Incorrect—fulfill
6. Incorrect—globally
7. Incorrect—harass
8. Correct
9. Correct
10. Incorrect—occasionally
11. Incorrect—parallel

12. Correct
13. Incorrect—questionnaire
14. Correct
15. Incorrect—relevant
16. Incorrect—scary
17. Correct
18. Incorrect—temperature
19. Incorrect—vacuum
20. Incorrect—wherever
Rule #41: Use Punctuation Marks Correctly
1. it’s
2. its
3. It’s
4. its
5. it’s
Rule #42: Don’t Overuse Capital Letters
1. Correct
2. Next Wednesday is Dr. Lee’s lecture.
3. Do you want me to pick up the copies at the Xerox machine?
4. Correct
5. Make a right on Maple St., and then stop in front of the post
office.
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BUSINESS WRITING