Glossary

The sentence seems to say that believing in signs causes people to be superstitious. The opposite is closer to the truth. The writer was thinking, “Jim believes in signs. Because he does, I know he is superstitious.” The sentence mistakes the effect (belief in signs) for the cause.

Substituting “since” for “because” makes the problem worse; it does nothing to improve the logic, and it may confuse readers who take “since” to mean “from the time when.”

STILL ILLOGICAL: Jim is superstitious since he believes in signs.

Do not rely on “This shows that” or “meaning that” to correct the error:

RIGHT BUT MECHANICAL: Jim believes in signs. This shows that he believes in signs.

BETTER: Jim is a superstitious man who believes in signs.

2. Be especially careful when you use “not” and “because” in the same sentence. The reader of the sentence below cannot tell if the baseball fan is happy or not.

AMBIGUOUS: He is not happy because the Yankees won.

CLEAR: He is unhappy because the Yankees won.

CLEAR: He is happy, not because the Yankees won, but because the Red Sox lost.

(is) because, the reason is because

Avoid using “because” after “is.” There are two simple ways to correct such errors:

WRONG: The reason he is absent is because he is sick.

RIGHT: He is absent because he is sick.

RIGHT: The reason he is absent is that he is sick.

A clause beginning with “because” or “how” acts as an adverb (in the example, it modifies “absent”). The linking verb “is” requires a complement; it must, therefore, be followed by a noun or adjective phrase.

behavior

Not a count noun; it should be used only in the singular. Its plural use has a ring of social science jargon.

AWKWARD: His strange behaviors made me suspect he was hiding something.

BETTER: His strange behavior made me suspect he was hiding something.

“Behaviorism” is used only to mean a theoretical branch of psychology.

being, being that

Redundant when used as a participial modifier to imply “because”:

WRONG: Being young, I could not understand my parents’ worries.

RIGHT: I was too young to understand my parents’ worries.

WRONG: Being that it’s late, I’m tired.

RIGHT: Because it’s late, I’m tired.

beside, besides

“Beside” means “next to”; “besides” means “except” or “in addition.”

There is a deserted house beside the road.

No state besides Nebraska has a unicameral legislature.

She’s everything he wants in a woman: bright, charming, beautiful. Besides, she’s rich.

better, had better

The expression “had better” is used to make a recommendation or indicate necessity. In formal writing, do not use “better” in place of “had better.” “Had” is the verb; “better” is an adverb.

WRONG: We better not be late for our appointment.

RIGHT: We had better not be late for our appointment.

between, among

Use “between” for two things, “among” for three or more. It is illogical to talk about “equality among the sexes.”

bond, bind

Use “bind” as a verb meaning “tie together”; its past tense and past participle are “bound.” Use “bond” as a noun meaning “something that ties things together.” “Bonding” is pop psychology jargon; the Keables Guide recommends avoiding it.

JARGON: They bonded in childhood.

JARGON: Childhood memories bonded them.

RIGHT: Childhood memories bound them in friendship.

RIGHT: Childhood memories created bonds of friendship.

but

Avoid beginning sentences with words like “but” or “and.” A sentence that starts with a coordinating conjunction (“but,” “and,” “or,” “nor,” “yet”) is technically a fragment. People use such sentences all the time in conversation, but they sound informal in academic writing, and they quickly become monotonous. Although a comma may be enough to correct the error, often the best solution is to restructure the sentence.

FRAGMENT: The United Nations held peace talks. But the civil war continued.

SENTENCE: The United Nations held peace talks, but the civil war continued.

SENTENCE: Despite the peace talks, the civil war continued