One of the headlines on a national TV channel: “Study indicates less HIV cases in Somalia.”
Do you spot the error here? No? Check these sentences you hear often:

“Type it close. It means less pages to xerox.”
“How come there are less women in marketing?”
“The library bought less books this year.”
“I got less marks in Geography.”

In all these sentences “less” is not the word you should be using. Why? “Less” is used for things that cannot be counted, that are measured. “Less” shows amount. A non-countable mass. As in “time” or “money”.
It takes less effort with better tools. I’ll finish it in less time if you stop talking. Talk less and work more. This plant needs less water. Less sugar, please!Look at the words qualified by “less”. Effort, time, talk,water, sugar cannot be counted individually. They are taken as whole “amounts”, the amount of water, the amount of sugar, the amount of talk…

The quantity of what can be counted individually should be indicated with the word “fewer”. “Fewer” points to numbers. We want fewer politicians speaking fewer words. The world would be a happy place with fewer criminals. It’s less likely you’ll win, if you make fewer attempts.

“Less likely”… see that? “Less” – that poor, overworked word is used to quantify an adverb. Since the word is used to anchor both nouns and adverbs let’s not burden it further by attaching it wrongly to countable nouns.

How do you understand “less successful”? Easy, isn’t it? Someone who makes a few billion dollars less than Bill Gates. It is clear who “less successful professionals” are.What if you come across “fewer successful pros”? This means there ARE successful pros but not as many as we think. Their number (taken as a quantity) is less than we thought. “Fewer” here talks of pros, not of “successful”.
So let’s pick “less” when we talk of masses of amounts, choose “fewer” for individually countable things. Like fewer books, fewer children, fewer mistakes, fewer pages, fewer hours…

[We also say, “I’ll take less than an hour to reach“. Hours of course can be counted and should be combined with “fewer”, but a word is missing here. That’s right, “less” should be tagged on to “time”. I’ll take less (time) than an hour to reach. We manage without that.]

So “less HIV cases” is wrong. It is “fewer HIV cases”. We definitely vote for “fewer HIV cases”. Heave a sigh of relief. For both “less” and “fewer” the opposite is “more”. We can’t ask for anything more. It’s more water, more books, more sugar please, more girls in the party. Long live English grammar!

Quiz: less or fewer?

[1] There is _____ employment because there are _______ jobs.

[2] A shower takes _____water than a bath, so take _____ baths and more showers.

[3] I enjoyed his new film ____ than his last one.

[4] I spent ____ time on the first question than the second.

[5] I’ve been there ____ times than I should.

[6] It was ____ difficult than I’d thought it would be.

[7] The project is ____ complicated than the last one.

[8] There were _____ complications this time.

[9] There were ______ students at the college last year.

[10] For some reason I have been getting ______ marks in Math.

By deleting the first name and designation of the Somali Premier, readers were left confused by the news item “NOTHING TO WORRY, SAYS PREMIER“.

This appeared in a newspaper and it’s a mess. I very strongly suggest that you don’t waste time and energy hauling word bricks to build something like this.

Let’s take the errors one by one.
[1] The first part in red is the modifier (meaning it adds to the information given in the second part after the comma). But it doesn’t say who is doing the deleting. So we have no choice but to think it is the readers. Come on, the modifier is placed nearest the word “reader”, right?

If the reader is the one doing the deleting job, why is he confused? Ok, don’t glare at me. If the reader is not the deleter, then who is? Bad, bad.

You need three things to fix the first part – [1] the answer for ‘who’, [2] a proper verb (‘deleting’ lost its rank as a verb) and [3] a connecting word. Together these will put sense into the dangling modifier and get it on firm ground.
My choice of the three: who deleted? – the newspaper, verb – deleted, connecting word – when
Now put it together: When the newspaper deleted the first name and designation of the Somali Premier, readers were left confused by the news item “NOTHING TO WORRY (?), SAYS PREMIER“.

[2] And “Nothing to worry”? But there is . It is the deletion of the word “about”. Make that “NOTHING TO WORRY ABOUT, SAYS PREMIER. Surely newspapers can afford that extra ink for the word!

Quiz: fix these sentences.
[1] By removing the billboards on Airport Road, the aircraft were able to take off and land in safer conditions.

[2] Sitting in the chair with the huge rod and reel, in the well of the sport-fishing vessel, it was inescapably apparent who had the edge. [“Sitting” dangles here, with nothing to modify.]

[3] Each of the hospitals in Brooklyn’s “brownstone belt” have lost patients from neighborhoods like Park Slope, Fort Greene, Boerum Hill, Prospect Heights and Carroll Gardens.

[4] Mr. Bruckner’s observations of new teachers were thorough and nerve-wracking.

[5] Mr. Brisbane said he expected to tackle a wide variety of subjects during his three-year term, including the affect on The Times’s journalistic standards of publishing articles for the Web on tight deadlines.

[6] One in four smokers use roll-ups. Do you see the error here?

[7] “I should say that his losses would be around $ 5m a year,” said a top cricket writer who have been following the fortunes of some of them.

[8] It might be said that editorial interpretations of aggregate data is in itself an indication of the spirit of the time. (The question here is: What are indications of the spirit of the time?)

Here is explanation you can use.
The proximity principle: I believe the simple rule of thumb is that when we use “Either” or “Neither” in the sentence with 2 single subjects, the verb should be in singular form. e.g.  Neither John nor Paul wants to go to the party. Of course, not everyone buys this rule.

Here is the rule: When one of the subjects joined by or/nor is plural, the verb must be plural. The plural subject should be placed nearest the verb.

Neither the chairman nor the directors are present.

This is because both the nouns (chairman, directors) are of equal importance. “Or” and “nor” are choices, right? And choices should be of equal importance. The nearest subject, “directors” is plural, so the verb is plural.

Briefly put, in neither … nor constructions, the verb should always agree with the noun nearest it. Thus, “Neither the contractor nor his agent were available for comment” should be “was available for comment.” Since the noun nearest the verb (agent) is singular, the verb should be singular. However, when the noun nearest the verb is plural, the verb should also be plural: “Neither the President nor his advisers were available for comment.”
When neither is used on its own, without the nor, the verb should always be singular: “Neither of the men was ready;” “Neither of us is hungry.”

In short, more often than not a singular verb is called for but that singularity is by no means invariable. Try to remember that neither emphasizes the separateness of items. It doesn’t add them together, at least not grammatically.
Finally, note that a neither … or combination is always wrong, as here: “[The] movie mixes horror with science fiction to make something that is fun as neither one thing or the other” (New York Times). Make it nor. The following sentence makes the same error and the additional one of failing to provide a grammatical balance between the neither phrase and the nor phrase: “Borrowing which allows a country to live beyond its means serves neither the interests of the borrower or the financial community” (Times). Make it “serves the interests of neither the borrower nor the financial community.”

Why is “If” sometimes followed by “were” as in “If I were the President, I would cancel all exams.” [Fat chance, but no harm in dreaming, is there?]
That’s it! In the conditional clause “If” is followed by “were” when the idea is improbable.

Read these sets of sentences to see the difference in normal and improbable situations.
[1] Normal: If I knew her name, I would tell you.
Improbable: If I were you, I would report this at once. [I cannot be you. I just assume something improbable.] “Were” is used to show the possibility of something that could have happened. It has the sense of “Ah, if only it had happened that way!”

[2] N: If I am elected president, I will reduce taxes. (Said by a presidential candidate)
Im: If I were elected president, I would change the school system. (Said by a schoolboy)

N: If we win this match, we will qualify for the semifinals.
Im: If I won a lottery, I would stop teaching. (improbable)

[3] N: If dad had divided the property (then), I would not be a pauper (now). Here we are talking about a situation that did not happen in the past.

Summing up
The conditional construction does not normally use will or would in if-clauses.
Exception: [1] Request: If you will come this way, the manager will see you now.

[2] Willingness: I would be grateful if you would give me a little help.

For improbable situations, use “were” with “If”. If I were a rich man…

Finally, the mixed sentence: If she had written to me [then], I would not be married. [now].

Why do we use “were” for a singular subject (If I were…)? That is because were is not a plural here. We use “were” to show the subjunctive mood – to show this is unlikely, hypothetical. It is something we imagine. “Were” is the indication of that.
If the situation was true, you simply use “was”. If I was doing well, it was because of my aunt.

Error here:
Incorrect: If the Senate confirms her after hearings that begin on June 28, she would be the 112th justice of the United States Supreme Court.
Correct: No conditional form is needed here: “If the Senate confirms her, she WILL BE the 112th justice.”

Question: If a sentence has  “if” should it b followed by a past tense verb? Not always.

The word “If” is a connecting word. It connects its adverb clause to the main clause.

If you work hard, you will get a good rank.
[subordinate clause] + [main clause]

You will get a good rank if you work hard. [The “if” clause does not have a “will” or”shall'.]
[main clause] +            [subordinate clause]

The clause carrying “If” as a connecting word shows a condition for something to happen. Therefore, it is called a conditional clause. The conditional sentence can be in the future tense.
If you hurry up, you will be able to board the train.
It can be in the past perfect tense.
If you had worked hard, you would have won the prize.

Do not be confused by an “If” sentence where the word “have” or “has” is used as a regular verb. (meaning “possess”).
If she has enough money, she will buy designer shoes. [present]
If she had enough money, she would have bought designer shoes. [past]
if she had had money, she would have bought designer shoes. [past perfect]

So, an “If” clause is used [1]  with a future tense main clause (If you wait here, I will join you soon. If he is late, we will have to go without him.)
[2] with a present tense main clause (If the sum of the digits of a number is divisible by three, the number is divisible by three. If mom comes to know, we are in trouble.)
[3] with a command (if you find the street, give me a call.)
[4] in the past tense (If she knew, she would tell you.)
[5] in the past perfect tense (If she had called, she would have been saved.) The verb “would have been” shows the future in the past.
CONTINUED…

A note from a friend.
“I am back after a two week vacation in New Zealand (my gift to myself on turning 30). I am happy to report that bad grammar is a universal phenomenon with wrong usage of apostrophes at its van. NZ, I was happy to note, is contributing its fair share. (Glad to know we are not alone in this endeavour, friend. It’s a comforting thought that our co-accused are native speakers of the language. Wish you had collected some of the apostrophe gems for display here.)
Anyway, I am glad to see a test and here are my attempts.
[10] The team captain, as well as the players, ______ anxious. (is, are) Ans: Tricky one. I have a nagging feeling that I read a footnote in my grammar text (’Agreement of the verb with the subject’ – Class 7 if I am not wrong) which suggests that in case of a compound subject (one which is singular and the other which is plural), the verb should agree with the subject which is closest to it. In which case the answer should be ‘are’. The sentence also rolls of the tongue better with ‘are’ in it. So I will go with ‘are’. Would definitely like to hear from you on this.”

I totally agree with that. “The team captain, as well as the players are anxious” rolls off the tongue easily. But that’s because we have been hearing people say that. To make the subject plural, we need to upgrade “as well as”. Give it the status of “and”. It’s only then does it become a compound subject. Otherwise “as well as” and what follows it are considered “parenthetical” – something that should be hidden between two curved doors. It keeps the subject singular. So,
The Mayor, {as well as his councillors,} is present.
The team captain, {as well as the players} is anxious.

Here are some teasers:
[1] To take pay and then not do the work ____ dishonest. (is, are)

[2] One of the other fellows ____ stolen the watch. (have, has)

[3] The house, as well as its contents, _____ auctioned. (was, were)

[4] The strain of facing so many difficulties ____ left its mark on him. (has, have)

[5] Both the team captain and the player ______ anxious. (was, were)

[6] Both candidates oppose increased defense spending. Neither of the two candidates _________ (oppose) the war in Iraq.
[7] Both the manager and her assistant have been fired. Neither the manager nor her assistant ________ (have) been notified.
[8] The Professor often goes for long walks in the rain. The lights in his house _________ (go) on at midnight.

Directions: Each passage in this group is followed by questions based on its content. After reading a passage, choose the best answer to each question. Answer all questions following a passage on the basis of what is stated or implied in the passage.

Television has been called in a mirror of society. But the metaphor overlooks the major issue of the responsibility of broadcasters. In considering this responsibility, one must ask what the mirror is to reflect. Is it to reflect the best or the worst in society? One cannot escape the question by saying that it must do both. One must ask whether it is to do both neutrally and without comment. If the answer is that such passivity is unthinkable, that in showing both, television must show them for what they are, then the active choice has been made to show the worst in such a way that it will be recognised for what it is. That this choice must be made emphasises the flaw in the comparison. Television does not, cannot, merely reflect the moral standards of society. It must affect them either by changing or by reinforcing them.

[A] According to the author, the comparison between the television and a mirror is flawed because television

[a] originates, rather than imitates ideals.

[b] shapes rather than reflects values.

[c] provides rather than limits choices.

[d] hides rather than reveals defects.

[e] encourages rather than discourages action.

[B] The information in the passage provides an answer for which of the following questions?

[I] What is the criterion broadcasters should apply in determining whether events shown are good or evil?

[II] What is the decision broadcasters must make in order to fulfil their responsibilities?

[III] What is a method broadcasters can use in order to present events accurately.

A. I only B. II only C. I and II only D. II and III only E. All three

[C] Which of the following best describes the author’s approach to his subject?

[a] He describes several ways of looking at an issue.

[b] He describes a situation as it is and then summarises it in a metaphor.

[c] He gives his opinion and then presents arguments for and against it.

[d] He states a problem but does not suggest a solution

[e] He presents a point of view and then explains why it is inappropriate

[D] The word “escape” is used by the author in the sense of

[a] ignore [b] leave unanswered [c] bypass [d] feign innocence

Two things need your attention when you prepare to face the comprehension test.
[1] The passages are taken from different disciplines and sources. It is likely you are not familiar with the topic discussed. Do not allow an unfamiliar subject discourage you. Read the passage one more time to absorb the information and the arguments. Questions will be drawn from the passage, so answering them cannot be beyond your scope. You do not need outside knowledge to tackle the questions.

[2] The language could be convoluted, and the sentences could be long. The following tips should help to overcome this.
[a] Analyze the passage carefully. Do thoughtful reading, looking out for clues to help you understand less clear portions of the passage. Try to separate main ideas from supporting ideas or evidence. Try also to separate the author’s own ideas or attitudes from information he or she is presenting.

[b] Note places where the author moves from one idea to the next. Understand the relationships among the different ideas or parts of the passage. Which are the contrasting ideas? Which ones complement one another?

[c] Note the points the the author makes. Note his conclusions. Note where he makes them and why.

How to answer:
[a] Read each question carefully and be certain that you understand exactly what is being asked.

[b] Always read all the answer choices before selecting the best answer.

[c] The best answer is the one that most accurately and most completely answers the question.

[d] Don’t choose an answer choice simply because it is a true statement. Ask: Does it answer the question completely?

[e] Reject answer choices that only partially answer the problem posed in the question.

[f] Answer questions strictly on the basis of information provided in the passage. Your opinion or your outside knowledge is irrelevant here. Always it is “According to the author…”

[g] Work within the context of the passage. You are not expected to agree or disagree with arguments given in the passage.

Go to Quiz Time for a sample comprehension test.

The comprehension part of the test presents 2 chanllenges. First, understanding the passage – which means the words and phrases in which it is written and the content itself. Second, understanding the questions. Not much about the first part can be done if your level of English doesn’t reach the level of the language used. But if you’re erasonably proficient, the following tips will help you with the second part.

Q 1. Why a comprehension test? Comprehension questions measure your ability to
[1] read with understanding, insight and discrimination

[2] analyze a written passage from several perspectives

[3] recognize explicitly stated elements in the passage

[4] recognize assumptions underlying statements or arguments

[5] understand implications of those statements or arguments.

Q 2. What is it?

The passage presents a sustained discussion of a particular topic. These are the opinions of the author. The author of the passage may be presenting opinions of other people, but still it is his choice to present those opinions. The passages are drawn from different subject matter areas, including humanities, social sciences, biological sciences physical sciences.

Q 3. What should I do?
Read it once quickly for a global understanding. What is the topic discussed in the passage? Then read it a second time for a review. Keep these in mind when you read the passage a second time.
[1] The function of a word in relation to a larger segment of the passage

[2] The relationships among the various ideas in the passage

[3] The relationship of the author to the topic or to the audience. (What is the author’s opinion on the matter?)

Q 4. What kind of passages can I expect? Thee are five types of reading comprehension questions.
[1] The main point of the passage. What is the argument about?

[2] Information explicitly stated in the passage. What is the one aspect of vegetarianism that the author thinks is the most cruel?

[3] Information or ideas implied or suggested by the author. (Meat-eaters cause environmental damage.)

[4] Applications of the author’s ideas to other situations. (Does the author agree that vegetarianism cannot be practised everywhere?) Identification of situations or processes related to those described in the passage.

[5] Author’s logic, reasoning, or persuasive techniques. (Quotes, questions to the readers, examples, statistics)

Next we will discuss ways to tackle the passage and the questions.

You may have great ideas and may have collected fine phrases to express them in, but if you fail to avoid grammatical errors, you put off your readers. You really can’t expect all your readers to be grammar duds, can you?

Check if you’re using the words correctly. Check the sentences for slip-ups in grammar – the commonest error being the non-agreement of the verb and the subject. I was rather surprised to find this sentence in an article written by a well-known columnist.

“Today’s younger generation of women seem to associate the garment with an earlier era…”

See the trap here? You write “women” and automatically use the plural verb “seem” (singular would be “seems”) . This sentence is about the younger “generation”, which is singular. “women” is the object of the preposition “of”. Pitfall, right?

[1] So check your verbs, check the subjects whose actions they talk about. Take care to see you have used “few”, “a few” and “the few” correctly. You have used “fewer” and “less” in the right places. I find fewer books of fiction in this library, but there is less noise. Get it?

[2] Read them a few times to see your words say what you want them to say. A TV anchor on a popular English TV channel kept shrieking “Fresh reports of clashes between the police and the agitators!” for three consecutive days. How could there be “fresh” reports? The reports were the same. No one was writing them differently every time they took place. What she wanted to say was, “Reports of fresh clashes“.

Do you see the huge difference in meaning here? Word order or the placing of adjectives and adverbs in the sentence is important. Now, take the quiz and correct these sentences.

[1] Central Station is one of those rare films that leaves you feeling both happy and sad at the same time. (Read previous grammar posts if you need help.)

[2] Dora’s one of those bitter, mean-spirited, cynical women who rarely mails any of these letters that people pay her to write.

[3] But his road shows, where he mingled with the public freely disregarding the security, has created concerns for the Center.

[4] Articles like this really shows what is happening in the city.

[5]The woman down the street is one of those wonderful people who is always planning something fun.

Go on, write the answers in the “comments” box!