The Editor’s Manual
Free learning resource on English grammar, punctuation, usage, and style.
Anticipatory reference occurs when a pronoun appears before its antecedent, or the person or thing it refers to, in a sentence (“When she can, Rita runs marathons”).
It’s grammatically fine to start a sentence with a conjunction like “and,” “but,” and “or.” Do this when you want to emphasize the connection between two sentences.
It is grammatically fine to use “because” at the start of a sentence. Just remember to write a complete sentence, and avoid using a pronoun before its noun.
It is perfectly acceptable and idiomatic to end a sentence with a preposition. Consider “What are you talking about?” and “This is what I was looking for.”
Data can be a plural noun (“the data are”) or a singular mass noun (“the data is”). As a mass noun, it is used much like the word “information.”
Use “who” for the subject and “whom” for the object in a sentence. In everyday communication, “who” can replace “whom.” To choose between “who” and “whom,” a simple trick is to form a question and frame its answer.
Split infinitives are grammatically fine in English. Splitting an infinitive can help clarify meaning and emphasize the right word (e.g., “I promise to always be there for you”).