Even the best of us get mixed up in which words to use. Knowing is growing.
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A commenter is the common word used to refer to people who post comments on online forums like reddit, YouTube, and Facebook.

A commentator is a person who provides commentary on a particular topic because it is their job or because they have some expertise in the field. A journalist is different from a commentator in that a journalist reports on facts while a commentator provides comments on the facts. An example of a commentator is a Sportscaster, who comments on games like those of the National Hockey League (NHL).

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Truth be told.

The reason why I’m writing about this is because I messed up this expression. I said ‘One in the same’, which was understood, but is not the standard phrase and is widely viewed as a mistake.

Alas, no one is perfect.

‘One and the same’ is a fun expression in that it has some redundancy (‘one’ and ‘the same’ being synonyms). I choose to think of this as a fun expression because it allows you to add emphasis to whatever you are suggesting is the same, either people or things.




​Some examples of when to use this expression:

• Innovation and science are often one and the same.
• The Social Media team lead and the person who leads on social media performance metrics are one and the same - it’s me!
• A toque and a winter hat are one and the same. 
• I was surprised to learn that Carrie Fisher’s daughter and the actress who played Lieutenant Connix in Star Wars are the one and the same, Billie Lourd!

Share your fun examples.

​That Annoying Apostrophe
You know what’s become a modern-day epidemic? Bad grammar.
Today’s blog post will focus on the confusing apostrophe.
When to use it?
 
Possession: When we are trying to indicate something belongs to someone, we need to use the apostrophe followed by the letter s.
Examples:
Those are Bonnie’s shoes.
Please don’t move my cat’s pillow.
Note: The possession rule with pronouns followed by a noun is different. They are:

​Contractions: This involves combining two words. Depending on which words we combine, the last letter(s) will differ.
Examples:
I’ll try my best to explain this to you. I’ll = I will
I didn’t know that. Didn’t = did not.
 
Possession vs. Plural: Use the apostrophe when indicating the possessive. Do not use the apostrophe when indicating only the plural.
Examples:
Kids really love trick-or-treating on Halloween. (Plural)
Someone stole that kid’s bike. (Possession)
I love cuddling my cats. (Plural)
My cats’ purring really calms me down. (Plural and possessive)

Reference:
Shout out to Dave, one of my followers, for the idea.
https://www.wizcase.com/blog/how-good-grammar-saves-lives-and-other-reasons-its-still-important/

The English language is dynamic and is constantly evolving. Starting in the 20th century, blended words began to emerge to describe new technologies or cultural phenomena.

Blending is one of the many ways new words are made in English. Blending is when you use the beginning of one word and the end of another to make a new word with a new meaning. 

​Here’s a fun and non-exhaustive list of some of the blended words you might use every day without even realizing.

What words do you know that exist because of blending?

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Examples of seldom used in sentences:

• I seldom go to the library. I can order my books electronically now or get them cheap from garage sales.
• Makeup was something I seldom wore - maybe just for special outings. Now with the pandemic, I never wear makeup. 

Another cool thing about ​seldom is that if you use it as the first word introducing your sentence, then word order changes. Instead of basic English word order of subject-verb-object, word order gets flipped a bit to auxiliary verb-subject-verb-object.

• Seldom do I go to the library. 
• Seldom do I choose to wear makeup anymore.​

As always, if you have more questions about seldom or any of the other frequency adverbs, just leave a comment below, or send me a personal question by clicking on Contact me.

References:
https://www.forbes.com/sites/dailymuse/2015/06/04/its-not-nip-it-in-the-butt-and-other-idioms-you-might-be-getting-wrong/#3144253f50c0 

References:
https://www.merriam-webster.com/words-at-play/epidemic-vs-pandemic-difference 
https://www.health.com/condition/infectious-diseases/active-vs-passive-immunity 
https://scholarsark.com/question/difference-between-an-epidemic-and-a-pandemic/ 

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​Food for thought. What does it mean? It's an idiom describing something that requires more thought and consideration.

It’s an expression that has been around since the 19th century, and is based on the idea of digestion and transferring it from the stomach to the brain.

Example: My manager’s advice on how to react to a difficult situation provided me with food for thought.

It means that the advice my manager gave me was information I needed to consider and give more thought to. I could have said that instead of “food for thought”, but that’s what makes the English language so much fun. We have so much variety in how we communicate.

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Reference:
https://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/food%20for%20thought 

A famous tradition people often practice is to make a New Year’s resolution. Common resolutions include exercising more, eating better, or swearing less. It’s a specific intention to better oneself.

But how did this come about?

History records the ancient Babylonians as being the first people to make New Year’s resolutions – over 4000 years ago – although their new year started in mid-March, when crops were ready to be planted. These resolutions, or promises, were made to their gods. If the Babylonians kept their promises, they would be in the gods’ favour. If not, well…it wasn’t good.

The same sort of thing happened in ancient Rome after Julius Caesar set January 1 as the beginning of the new year. January, named after Janus – was a god usually depicted as having two faces. The Romans believed that Janus both looked into the past and into the future. The Romans made promises of good conduct to Janus for the coming year.
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Despite the fact that the tradition has religious roots, it is now a more secular practice. Gone are the days of making promises to the gods. Instead, we tell our friends or family of our intentions, and hope to god that we follow through on them.

“Here's to a bright New Year and a fond farewell to the old; here's to the things that are yet to come, and to the memories that we hold.” ~ Anonymous

​References:
https://www.etymonline.com/word/resolution 
https://www.history.com/news/the-history-of-new-years-resolutions

It’s understandable that people might confuse the use of these words when writing - they sound pretty much the same. But they are indeed quite different.

Accept is a verb that means ‘to agree or receive’. Accept is a verb. A verb is an action word. Accept and Action both start with the letter A. There’s your trick to remember how to use it!
Example: I had no choice but to accept the terms of service in order to download the app. 
(I agreed to the terms of service)

Except is usually used as a conjunction or a preposition. A preposition often expresses a relation of one noun to another. As a preposition, except means ‘not including’.
Example: I generally like all music except rap.
(I don’t like rap music)

Except can also be used as a conjunction, which while similar in meaning as the preposition, where it appears in a sentence is different. A conjunction connects independent clauses or sentences. Words like “and” and “but” are conjunctions. As a conjunction, except means ‘other than’.
Example: I didn’t say much except to say I loved him.
(All I really said was that I loved him)

Note:
Accepted is either the past participle of the verb accept, or an adjective. As an adjective, it means ‘generally approved or believed to be true’. 
Example: Climate change is accepted by many as fact since it is backed up by many scientists who know more about the subject than non-scientists.
(Climate change is generally believed to be a real and factual phenomenon)