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* '''Misconception:''' ''[[Infinitives]] must not be [[Split infinitive|split]].''
"There is no such rule" against splitting an infinitive, according to ''The Oxford Guide to Plain English'',<ref name="Cutts 2009. p. 111">[[#Cut09|Cutts 2009]]. p. 111.</ref> and it has "never been wrong to 'split' an infinitive".<ref>[[#CK09|O'Conner and Kellerman 2009]]. p. 17.</ref> In some cases it may be preferable to split an infinitive.<ref name="Cutts 2009. p. 111" /><ref>[[#CK09|O'Conner and Kellerman 2009]]. pp. 18–20.</ref> In his grammar book ''A Plea for the Queen's English'' (1864), [[Henry Alford (theologian)|Henry Alford]] claimed that because "to" was part of the infinitive, the parts were inseparable.<ref>[[#CK09|O'Conner and Kellerman 2009]]. p. 19.</ref> This was in line with a 19th-century movement among grammarians to transfer Latin rules to the English language. In Latin, infinitives are single words (e.g., "''amare, cantare, audire''"), making split infinitives impossible.<ref name="Cutts 2009. p. 111" />
* '''Misconception:''' ''[[Conjunction (grammar)|Conjunctions]] such as "and" or "but" must not begin a sentence.''
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* '''Misconception:''' ''[[Paragraph]]s must be at least three sentences long.''
Richard Nordquist writes, "no rule exists regarding the number of sentences that make up a paragraph", noting that professional writers use "paragraphs as short as a single word".<ref>[[#Nor11|Nordquist 2011]].</ref> According to the ''Oxford Guide to Plain English'':<blockquote>If you can say what you want to say in a single sentence that lacks a direct connection with any other sentence, just stop there and go on to a new paragraph. There's no rule against it. A paragraph can be a single sentence, whether long, short, or middling.<ref name="Cutts 2009. p. 112">[[
According to the [[University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill|University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill's]] Writing Center's website, "Many students define paragraphs in terms of length: a paragraph is a group of at least five sentences, a paragraph is half a page long, etc." The website explains, "Length and appearance do not determine whether a section in a paper is a paragraph. For instance, in some styles of writing, particularly journalistic styles, a paragraph can be just one sentence long."<ref>[[#UNC11|University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill 2011]].</ref>
* '''Misconception:''' ''[[Contraction (grammar)|Contractions]] are not appropriate in proper English.''
Writers such as [[Shakespeare]], [[Samuel Johnson]], and others since Anglo-Saxon days have been "shrinking English". Some opinion makers in the 17th and 18th century eschewed contractions, but beginning in the 1920s, usage guides have mostly allowed them.<ref>[[
==Semantics==
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* '''Misconception:''' ''It is incorrect to use "healthy" to refer to things that are good for a person's health.''
It is true that the adjective "healthful" has been pushed out in favor of "healthy" in recent times.<ref>{{cite web |date=20 April 2011 |title=Healthful vs healthy |url=http://grammarist.com/usage/healthful-healthy/ |access-date=2013-06-11 |work=Grammarist}}</ref> But the distinction between the words dates only to the 19th century. Before that, the words were used interchangeably; some examples date to the 16th century.<ref>{{cite web |last1=O'Coner |first1=Patricia |last2=Kellerman |first2=Stewart |date=2012-02-24 |title=Healthy choices |url=http://www.grammarphobia.com/blog/2012/02/healthy-healthful.html |access-date=2013-06-11 |work=Grammarphobia Blog}}</ref> The use of "healthful" in place of "healthy" is now regarded as unusual enough that it may be considered [[Hypercorrection|hypercorrected]].<ref>[[
==Notes==
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