Editorial policy

How a lesson gets written

1. Start from a real question. Topics come from what the checker flags most and what people actually search for, not from a keyword list.
2. Check the rule against established usage. Reference grammars and dictionaries are used to confirm the rule, including its exceptions.
3. Write original examples. Every example sentence on this site is written for it. Examples are never lifted from a book or another website.
4. Answer first. The direct answer goes in the first screen. Readers should be able to get what they came for and leave.
5. Include the exceptions. A rule presented without its exceptions is a lesson that will fail the reader later.
6. Add a test. Where a reliable mental test exists, it goes on the page, because a test outlasts a memorised rule.

On copying

Grammar rules themselves are facts about the language and belong to nobody. The wording of a particular book’s explanation, and its example sentences, do not. Reference works are used to confirm what is correct, and then the explanation and every example are written from scratch.

On American and British English

Neither variety is treated as more correct. The default across the site is American English, and the checker’s dictionary holds both, so a British spelling is never flagged as a mistake. Where the two genuinely differ, both forms appear and each is labelled.

What this site will not do

• No invented credentials. No degree, no certification and no number of years teaching appears anywhere unless it is true and checkable.
• No accuracy percentages for the tools. A single number would hide what the checker does and does not cover. The tools page lists the categories instead, including what it misses.
• No claim to replace a teacher. The checker handles mechanical errors. Argument, order and tone need a person.
• No filler. Pages are as long as the topic needs and no longer.

Corrections

If a lesson is wrong, it gets fixed rather than quietly deleted. Report anything you find through the contact page. Readers regularly catch things we miss, and a site about correct English has no excuse for leaving an error up.

Who is responsible

Lessons are written and reviewed by Rizwan Aslam, editor of GrammarVista.com.

For the standards search engines describe for trustworthy, people-first content, see Google’s guidance on creating helpful content.