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Grammar 101

Welcome to your starting guide to Grammar for Policy Writers. Each lesson will explore  ways to sharpen your writing, so that you can communicate clearly and effectively, to advance MDDI's digital policy priorities.

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01

Writing better sentences is the foundation of clear and effective communication. Especially in policy writing —the strength of your sentence construction shapes how your message is received. Well-formed sentences not only make your ideas easier to understand but also reflect your credibility as a writer. This lesson on sentence construction will help you build the skills to write with precision, clarity, and confidence by focusing on how to structure your sentences correctly.

02

A key part of mastering sentence structure is understanding subject-verb agreement. While this might seem straightforward, it’s one of the most common areas where writing can go wrong, especially in longer or more complex sentences. In this lesson, we’ll look at how to identify the true subject of a sentence, navigate tricky constructions like compound subjects or inverted word order, and avoid common mistakes that can confuse your reader or undermine your message.

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03

Using jargon, clichés, and other common language traps can seriously undermine the clarity and effectiveness of your writing.  Such shortcuts may seem convenient, but they can obscure your message and weaken your credibility. In policy writing especially, clear, direct language is essential. This lesson will help you recognize and avoid these pitfalls so your sentences remain precise, engaging, and accessible to a wide audience.

04

Punctuation and style are essential tools for guiding your reader through your writing with clarity and rhythm. Proper punctuation— like commas, periods, colons, and dashes — helps break sentences into manageable parts, and clarifies meaning. Without it, even well-structured sentences can become confusing or misleading. Style, on the other hand, refers to the tone and flow of your writing: whether it's formal or informal, concise or elaborate. In this lesson, we’ll explore how punctuation choices affect meaning and how developing a clear, consistent style enhances readability and strengthens your overall communication.

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