Grammar&Written Expression
Grammar&Written Expression
Grammar&Written Expression
A sentence in English must have at least one subject and one verb
The sentence says that Sally and the best student in the
class are the same person. Note that if you leave out
the appositive phrase, the sentence still makes sense
(Sally got an A on the test)
Example
, George, is attending the lecture.
a. Right now b. Happily
c. Because of the time d. My friend
In this example you should recognize from the commas that
George is not the subject of the sentence. George is an
appositive. Because this sentence still needs a subject, the best
answer is (D), my friend.
APPOSITIVES
An appositive is a noun that comes before or after another noun and is generally set off
from the noun with commas. If a word is an appositive, it is not the subject. The following
appositive structures are both possible in English.
S APP, V
Tom, a really good mechanic, is fixing the
car.
APP, S V
A really good mechanic, Tom is fixing the car.
A present participle is the -ing form of the verb
(talking, playing). A present participle can cause
confusion because it can be either a part of the verb or
an adjective. It is part of the verb when it is preceded
by some form of the verb be.
The man is talking to his friend.
VERB
In this sentence talking is part of the verb because it is
accompanied by is.
A present participle is an adjective when it is not accompanied
by some form of the verb be.
The man talking to his friend has a beard.
ADJECTIVE
In this sentence talking is an adjective and not part of the verb
because it is not accompanied by some form of be. The verb in
this sentence is has.
Example:
The child playing in the yard is my son.
a. Now b. Is
c. He d. Was
In this sentence there is a complete subject (child) and a
complete verb (is), so this sentence does not need another
subject or verb. The best answer here is (A).
PRESENT PARTICIPLE
A present is the -ing form of the verb. The
present participle can be (1) part of the verb or
(2) an adjective.
It is part of the verb when it is accompanied by
some form of the verb be. It is an adjective when
it is not accompanied by some form of the verb
be.
1. The boy is standing in the comer.
2. The boy standing in the corner was naughty.
Past participles can cause confusion in the Structure
section because a past participle can be either an
adjective or a part of a verb. The past participle is the
form of the verb that appears with have or be. It often
ends in -ed, but there are also many irregular past
participles in English.
The family has purchased a television.
VERB
The poem was written by Paul.
VERB
In the first sentence the past participle purchased is
part of the verb because it is accompanied by has. In
the second sentence the past participle written is part
of the verb because it is accompanied by was.
A past participle is an adjective when it is not
accompanied by some form of be or have.
The television purchased yesterday was expensive.
ADJECTIVE
The poem written by Paul appeared in the magazine.
ADJECTIVE
In the first sentence purchased is an adjective because
it is not accompanied by a form of be or have (and
there is a verb, was, later in the sentence). In the
second sentence written is an adjective because it is
not accompanied by a form of be or have.
Example
The packages……….mailed at the post office will arrive
Monday.
a. have b. were
c. them d. just
Answer (D) is the best answer to this question
PAST PARTICI PLE
A past participle often ends in -ed but there are also
many irregular past participle. The -ed form of the verb
can be (1) the simple past, (2) the past participle of a
verb, or (3) an adjective.
(1) She painted this picture,
(2) She has painted this picture.
(3)The picture painted by Karen is now in a museum.
Exercise Skills 1-5
When you have two clauses in an English sentence, you must
connect the two clauses correctly. One way to connect two
clauses is to use and, but, or, so, yet between the clauses.
Tom is singing, and Paul is dancing.
Tom is tall, but Paul is short.
Tom must write the letter, or Paul will do it.
Tom told a joke, so Paul laughed.
Tom is tired, yet he is not going to sleep
In each of the examples, there are two clauses that are correctly
joined with a coordinate conjunction and, but, or, so,yet, and
a comma (,)
Sentences with adverb clauses have two basic patterns in
English.
I will sign the check before you leave.
Before you leave, I will sign the check.
In the examples, there are two clauses: you leave and I will sign
the check, and the clause you leave is an adverb time clause
because it is introduced with the connector before. In the first
example the connector before comes in the middle of the
sentence, and no comma (,) is used. In the second example the
connector before comes at the beginning of the sentence. If the
connector comes at the beginning of the sentence, a comma (,)
is required in the middle of the sentence
Adverb clauses can express the ideas of time and cause; adverb
clauses can also express a number of other ideas, such as
contrast, condition, manner, and place.
I will leave at 7:00 if I am ready.
Although I was late, I managed to catch the train.
In the examples, there are two clauses that are correctly joined
with adverb connectors. In the first sentence the adverb
condition connector if comes in the middle of the sentence. In
the second sentence the adverb contrast connector although
comes at the beginning of the sentence, and a comma (,) is used
in the middle of the sentence
A noun clause is a clause that functions as a noun. It is used in a
sentence as either an object of a verb, an object of a
preposition, or the subject of the sentence.
I know when he will arrive
NOUN CLOUSE AS OBJECT OF VERB
I am concerned about when he will arrive
NOUN CLOUSE AS OBJECT OF PREPOSITION
When he will arrive is not important
NOUN CLOUSE AS SUBJECT
A noun clause connector can also be the subject of the clause at
the same time.
I do not know what is in the box
NOUN CLOUSE AS OBJECT OF VERB
We are concerned about who will do the work
NOUN CLOUSE AS OBJECT OF PREPOSITION
Whoever is coming to the party must bring a gift
NOUN CLOUSE AS SUBJECT
An adjective clause is a clause that describes a noun. It is
positioned directly after the noun that it describes.
The woman is filling the glass that she put on the table
S V Adjective Clause
When the question word introduces a question, the subject and verb are inverted
Question word V S?
what are they ?
When the question word connects two clauses, the subject and verb that follow
are inverted
S V Question word S V
I know what they are
After ideas expressing place, the subject and the verb sometimes
invert in English. This can happen with single words expressing
place, such as here, there, or nowhere. The subject and verb can also
be inverted after prepositional phrases expressing place
Here is the book that you lent me.
There are the keys that I thought I lost.
Nowhere have I seen such beautiful weather.
In the first example the place word here causes the subject book to
come after the verb is. In the second example the place word there
causes the subject keys to come after the verb are. In the last
example the place word nowhere causes the subject I to come after
the verb have.
The subject and verb can also be inverted after prepositional
phrases expressing place.
In the closet are the clothes that you want.
Around the corner is Sam’s house.
Beyond the mountains lies the town where you will live
Example
On the second level of the parking lot ...................
a. is empty b. are empty
c. some empty stalls are d. are some empty stalls
The answer is D.
INVERTED SUBJECTS AND VERBS WITH PLACE EXPRESSIONS
When a place expression at the front of the sentence is necessary to
complete the sentence, the subject and verb what follow are inverted.
PLACE (necessary) S V
In the classroom were some old desks
When a place expression at the front of the sentence contains extra
information that is not needed to complete the sentence, the subject and
verb that follow are not inverted.
PLACE (extra) S V
In the classroom, I studied very hard
The subject and verb can also be inverted after certain negatives
and related expressions. When negative expressions, such as no,
not, or never, come at the beginning of a sentence, the subject
and verb are inverted.
Not once did I miss a question
Never has Mr. Jones taken a vacation
In the first example the negative expression not once causes the
subject I to come after the helping verb did.
In the second example the negative word never causes the
subject Mr. Jones to come after the helping verb has.
Certain words in English, such as hardly, barely, scarcely, and
only, act like negatives. If one of these words comes at the
beginning of a sentence, the subject and verb are also inverted.
•Hardly ever does he take time off.
(This means that he almost never takes time off.)
•Only once did the manager issue overtime paychecks.
(This means that the manager almost never issued overtime
paychecks.)
S Prepositional Phrase V
When a prepositional phrase come between the subject, and the verb), be sure
that the verb agrees with subject
A particular agreement problem occurs when the subject is an
expression of quantity, such as all, most, or some, followed by
the preposition of. In this situation, the subject (all most, or
some) can be singular or plural, depending on what follows the
preposition of.
•All (of the book) was interesting.
singular
•All (of the books) were interesting.
plural
•All (of the information) was interesting.
uncountable
SUBJECT/VERB AGREEMENT AFTER EXPRESSION OF QUANTITY
all
most OF THE OBJECT V
some
half
When an expression of quantity is the subject, the verb agrees with the object
After question words, negative expressions, place expressions,
conditions without if, and comparisons, the verb agrees with the
subject, which may be after the verb.
•Behind the house were the bicycles I wanted.
plural plural
•Behind the house was the bicycle I wanted.
singular singular
Question
Negative V S
Place
Condition (no if)
Comparison
Certain words in English are always grammatically singular,
even though they might have plural meanings.
•Everybody is going to the theater
Vowel change man / men toot / feet tooth / teeth goose / geese
woman / women mouse / mice
She is beautiful
ADJECTIVE ENDINGS
-ent excellent -ive expensive
-ant important -ous dangerous
-ful careful -al natural
-ic economic -able capable
-ible possible
• Adverbs to describe verbs, adjectives, or other
adverbs.
Describe Verbs: She sings beautifully.
Describe Adjectives:
She is a beautifully dressed woman.