Common+Usage+Problems5

 © Copyright 2002 Vicki Jones and Ann Bertoldie 
 * __whether, weather __** Use whether as in the phrase "whether or not" and use weather when referring to atmospheric or climatic conditions. 
 * __who, whom __** Who is the nominative case ("He is the one who will be elected"), while whom is the objective case ("He is the one whom you have been seeking"). 
 * __who's, whose __** Who's is a contraction of who is or who has ("Who's there?"), while whose is the possessive of who ("Whose book is that?"). 
 * __write, right, rite __** Write means to scrawl, to pen, to put thoughts into readable format ("I need to write a letter to my grandmother"). Right means correct ("Your answer is right"). A rite is a ceremony ("The priest read the dying man his last rites"). 
 * __you, one __**<span style="FONT-SIZE: 9pt; COLOR: black; FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial Narrow','sans-serif'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman'"> The use of you as an indefinite pronoun instead of the formal one is characteristic of an informal style. If you adopt you in an informal paper, be sure that this impersonal use will be recognized by your readers; otherwise, they are likely to interpret a general statement as a personal remark addressed specifically to them. Generally avoid shifting from one to you within a sentence. <span style="FONT-SIZE: 9pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial Narrow','sans-serif'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman'">
 * __<span style="FONT-SIZE: 9pt; COLOR: black; FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial Narrow','sans-serif'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman'">your, you're __**<span style="FONT-SIZE: 9pt; COLOR: black; FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial Narrow','sans-serif'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman'"> Your is the possessive of you ("Where is your book?") and you're is a contraction of you are ("You're enrolled in French II, aren't you?"). <span style="FONT-SIZE: 9pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial Narrow','sans-serif'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman'">