science

Fumblerules

Fumblerules is a science topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Fumblerules rather than just read about it. In short: A fumblerule is a rule of language or linguistic style, humorously written in such a way that it breaks this rule. The science editor George L.

Key takeaways

Fumblerules belongs to science; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Fumblerules to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Fumblerules from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

A fumblerule is a rule of language or linguistic style, humorously written in such a way that it breaks this rule. The science editor George L. Trigg published a list of such rules in 1979. The term fumblerules was coined in a list of such rules compiled by William Safire on Sunday, 4 November 1979, in his column "On Language" in The New York Times. Safire later authored a book titled Fumblerules: A Lighthearted Guide to Grammar and Good Usage, which was reprinted in 2005 as How Not to Write: The Essential Misrules of Grammar.

Examples "Avoid clichés like the plague." "Don't listen to any advice." "Ending a sentence with a preposition is one thing that I will not put up with." "English is the crème de la crème of all languages." "Eschew obfuscation, espouse elucidation." "It is bad to carelessly split infinitives." "Never use no double negatives." "No sentence fragments." "Parentheses are (almost always) unnecessary." "The passive voice should never be employed." "You should not use a big word when a diminutive one would suffice." "And don't begin a sentence with a connective." "Using discourse markers in academic writing basically sounds terrible, you know."

See also Muphry's law – Adage about hypocritical proscription Epimenides paradox, a self-referential statement by a Cretan that "All Cretans are liars." The Hacker Writing Style section of the Jargon File includes humorous examples of self-referential examples in copyediting, such as "This sentence no verb.", "Bad speling", and "Incorrectspa cing".

References

External links The Fumblerules of Grammar by William Safire Fumblerules entry on the alt.usage.english FAQ Hacker writing style section of JARGON FILE, VERSION 4.3.3, 20 SEP 2002

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Fumblerules

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Fumblerules claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In science, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Fumblerules before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Fumblerules ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Fumblerules

In research: Fumblerules appears in science research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Fumblerules in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Fumblerules is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics 1979 neologisms, Adages, Fumblerules, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Fumblerules outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

Ask Teacher Smith questions about this articleOpens your AI tutor with a question about “Fumblerules” →

Affiliate

Preply — study more efficiently by working with a personal tutor. 50% off.

How to study Fumblerules in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Fumblerules means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Fumblerules out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Fumblerules in simple terms?

A fumblerule is a rule of language or linguistic style, humorously written in such a way that it breaks this rule. The science editor George L.

Why does Fumblerules matter?

Because it connects several science ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Fumblerules?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Fumblerules.