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Editorial Help Desk:
Your Resource for Grammar and MCPS Style
Word of the Month
Lodestar (noun)
A star that is used to guide the course of a ship. Usually the North Star.
His coach became his lodestar in high school.
Tip of the Month
Pesky Prepositions
Not sure which preposition to use with your verb? Your dictionary is a great source for help. The prepositions are often clarified along with the definition of the verb.
Here are a few that make many writers scratch their heads.
Abide with (stay)
She asked her friend to abide with her for the evening.
Abide by (obey)
All campers must abide by the rules.
Acquiesce in (a decision)
Mr. Lu acquiesced in the committee's decision to buy
the electric model.
Acquiesce to (pressure)
The buyer tried not to acquiesce to the salesman's pressuring argument.
Bestow on (not upon an honoree)
The director bestowed the title of stage manager on the deserving student.
Conform with (similar)
Her suggestions conform with our changes to the curriculum.
Conform to (being obedient)
All players must conform to the rules of the game.
Independent of (not from) something else
First, choose your courses independent of the times they are offered.
Differ from (something or some quality)
She differs from her brother, who is very outgoing.
Differ with (a person)
I differ with my colleague on which restaurants are the best.
Differ about or over or on (an issue)
Their opinions differ on whether to wear shorts to work.
Look for the 2018 MCPS Acronyms, coming to your desk very soon.
Contact Donna M. Marks on Outlook or call 240-740-2971.
Learn to decipher the alphabet soup! Look it up in MCPS Acronyms
Do you know the difference between an ELT and an EMT, between FLS and FLES? Keep this reference on hand and you'll never get lost in jargon.
MCPS Acronyms (PDF)
