Q:

Dear Grammer Cop:

Which of the following is correct?

Who are the worst team in baseball? or Who is the worst team in baseball?

Ben and Nora

A:

A team is a collective, like a flock of geese or a bunch of bananas. Collectives act as a single unit, so they are treated in the singular. This goes for teams, companies and any group that, for the purposes of the sentence they appear in, act as one.

So, the correct answer is “Who is the worst team in baseball?”

A:

Dear Grammer Cop: Which of the two sentences is correct?

The depth of the dredge shall be no more than 8 feet.

OR

The depth of the dredge shall not be more than 8 feet.

Signed, Christine

A:

Dear Christine:

Wow, this is a subtle one.

I trust that using “shall” over “should” means that it absolutely cannot be over 8 feet, and that it is not a suggestion. This means it’s in the prohibitive mood, as it were.

A:

Dear Grammer Cop:

Is the following statement correct?

"A year ago from now, we met to discuss the party."

Let me know!
Signed, Ms. Reid

A:

Dear Ms. Reid:

I'm afraid it's not correct, and it mixes tenses.

It would be better to say, "A year ago, we met to discuss the party."

"From now" implies future tense, not present, and the sentence is already in present tense, so it would be redundant, anyway.

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Q:

Dear Grammer Cop,

Please settle an argument;

Which is correct?

This thorough compilation covers the different types, advantages, pitfalls and proper use of one of the best defensive shooting accessories available.

or

This thorough compilation covers the different types of, advantages of, pitfalls of and proper use of one of the best defensive shooting accessories available.

Signed, David

A:

Dear David:

Q:

Dear Grammer Cop,

This is driving me nuts- I see it everywhere. What is the rule for using apostrophe s when you aren't showing possession?

For example, everyone in my office uses the phrase "to do's" for a list of tasks they have. Wouldn't it be "to dos"?
I just received a "do's and don'ts" list from my recycling service—shouldn't it be "dos and don'ts," or am I wrong?

I'm not sure why I care so much, but I need to know!!

--Jane

A:

Dear Jane,

Q:

Dear Grammer Cop,

Where would additional commas belong in this sentence?

The assets as of December 31, 2007 and 2006 are listed below:

--Nancy

A:

Dear Nancy,

I would like to see it as such:
The assets, as of December 31, 2007 and 2006, are listed below:

If that has too many commas for you, consider parentheses:

The assets (as of December 31, 2007 and 2006) are listed below:

Hope this helps!

Q:

Dear Grammer Cop,

What is the proper way to list time in a document? 11:00am, 11:00 AM or 11:00a.m.

--Chrystal

A:

Dear Chrystal,

There really isn’t a standard method for this, and it varies depending on which style guide you wish to follow.

Personally, I prefer the Chicago Manual of Style’s 11:00 a.m.

Hope this helps!

Q:

Dear Grammer Cop,

I work at a vet clinic and we have two cats to give away. We are putting up a sign, saying that we have two "five month" old cats which need homes. Would there be a hyphen between "five month?"

--Concerned

A:

Dear Concerned,

It's really a matter of personal preference in this case. Hyphens are generally used in instances like this to group closely related terms, and I think that certainly applies, so I'd use the hyphen. You might even consider "five-month-old". Again, it's whatever looks best to you.

Hope this helps!

Q:

Dear Grammer Cop,

A quick question of which is more correct in a scientific manuscript: sevenfold or seven-fold, and does it make a difference if numbers higher than ten are used (e.g. 17-fold?).

Thank you for your time.

--Rick

A:

Dear Rick,

I use the Oxford English Dictionary as the final arbiter in matters like this, and it spells it as one word—sevenfold. The OED stops at twelve, giving no advice for higher numbers, indicating to me that they have no context in historical English.