Language Portal of Canada
www.ourlanguages.gc.ca
Common menu bar links
Institutional links
Guided Tour of the Portal
-
Language Portal
-
Well Written, Well Said
-
Discover
-
From Our Contributors
Stay connected!
Information
-
Proactive Disclosure
On the one hand…
Recommend or share this page by e-mail, social bookmarking or social networking
Share this pageShare this page
If you wish to recommend or share this page by e-mail, social bookmarking or social networking, click on the icon of your choice:
Access to the proposed sites is free, but you must have a user account. Access to these sites may vary depending on your browser (for example, Internet Explorer 6 does not support all the sites). You must make sure that your browser is up to date. In addition, depending on which sharing method you have chosen, some characters (accented letters, apostrophes or other symbols) in the title of the page you are recommending may be displayed incorrectly or missing. You will need to make these corrections yourself before recommending the page to your contacts.
Note: No e-mail or personal information will be retained. For more information on privacy policies and practices that apply to the Language Portal of Canada, see the Government of Canada Privacy Statement.
Social bookmarking
Social bookmarking allows you to save your favourite links on the Internet through social bookmarking sites such as Google Bookmarks or Reddit. These sites offer many advantages. You can:
Social bookmarking sites are usually free, but you must subscribe to use them. Social bookmarking is also known as collaborative tagging, social classification and social indexing.
Social networking
Social networking sites, such as Facebook and Linkedln, are Internet platforms that allow you to interact online and create interconnected Web communities. You can create personal profiles, establish lists of users with whom you have a common connection or establish new relationships.
To exchange ideas with other members, you can post messages to your personal page, send e-mails and instant messages or share files.
Comments
Please do not hesitate to contact us at noslangues.ourlanguages@tpsgc-pwgsc.gc.ca if you have any comments or suggestions about this feature.
Question:
I have always been told that you can't use on the other hand without first using on the one hand. But I often see on the other hand used alone. Has this rule changed?
Answer:
On the one hand, sometimes you need to pair these two phrases. On the other hand, sometimes you don't.
You use these conjunctive adverbs to contrast two ideas. If you start your sentence with on the one hand, then you must pair it with on the other hand to introduce the second idea.
Incorrect: On the one hand, I love the freedom of working freelance. But I crave the financial security of a full-time job.
Correct: On the one hand, I love the freedom of working freelance. On the other hand, I crave the financial security of a full-time job.
However, Garner's Modern American Usage (2009) and Collins Cobuild English Dictionary for Advanced Learners (2001) agree that it isn't always necessary to pair on the other hand with on the one hand. You can use on the other hand alone to create a smoother transition between sentences.
Correct: I love the freedom of working freelance. On the other hand, I crave the financial security of a full-time job.
Note that these phrases can make your writing heavy. Often, you can leave them out:
I love the freedom of working freelance, but I also crave the financial security of a full-time job.
