| Grammatically Correct
9/13/06 A weekly grammar tip created by Academic Center Peer Writing Tutors. |
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| When to Use Sale and Sell by Kelli Trungale |
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It’s a common quandary: When do I use sale, and when do I use sell? Although the answer seems simple, sometimes it’s necessary to take a step back and make sure we’re choosing the correct word. Sale is a noun, a thing. It refers to an exchange of currency or other means of compensation for products and/or services. Ex. The sale of Tony’s car is contingent upon the potential buyer’s creditworthiness. Ex. There’s a sale at Target. Sell is a verb, an action. It refers to the action involved with a sale. Ex. Carmella doesn’t want to sell the new Porsche SUV her husband gave her. |
Definitions
sale (n) The action of trading goods or services for currency or any other equivalent means of payment
sell (v) To participate in a sale; to exchange goods or services for a method of payment Definitions are adapted from Dictionary.com. |
| Recommended Grammar Website of the Week by Kelli Trungale |
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Along with our website, we recommend the following site: About.com’s Free Online English Courses. Both learners and teachers can sign up for lessons in grammar, vocabulary, teaching ESL, and other topics. These lessons are emailed to the enrollee on a weekly basis. |
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| Test Your Knowledge by Kellie Trungale |
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Test your understanding by choosing the correct word in each of the following sentences. 1. Christopher negotiated the (sale/sell) of the
watches. Answers |
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Grammatically Correct is a grammar tip of the week created by Academic Center Peer Writing Tutors at the University of Houston-Victoria in Victoria, Texas. Comments about this newsletter should be directed to Summer Leibensperger, leibenspergers@uhv.edu. Subscribe/Unsubscribe/View Archive
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