Grammar Girl here, I'm Minyon Fogarty, and this week I have a quick and dirty tip about

the difference between North and Northbound.

In a meaty middle, about the difference between I was and I were, or what's called the subjunctive

mood.

And finally, a featured listener.

And remember, you can always find the transcript for each segment of the podcast at quickanddirtytips.com

so you can follow along or check back if you're wondering about these topics later.

A listener named Cindy works in the Auto Claims department at an insurance company and asked

how to use directional words.

For example, when should she use North?

And when should she use Northbound?

Well, Northbound is the easier word to deal with because it is just an adjective.

Northbound also tends to have a sense of movement, a sense of something going in a

northern direction.

You could use the word Northbound like this.

The Northbound lanes are closed.

In that sentence, Northbound is an adjective that describes the lanes.

They are Northbound lanes or lanes in which cars move in a northern direction.

North is a more complicated word because it can be a noun, adverb, or adjective.

Instead of indicating motion, North usually has more of a sense of the compass direction.

You could use the word North like this.

The storm is coming from the North.

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