4th Grade Homework Tasks

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Grammar, Usage, and Mechanics Skills

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Lesson 1

Kinds of SentencesSentences can be classified according to the purpose of the speaker or writer.There are four kinds of sentences: declarative, interrogative, imperative, andexclamatory.

A declarative sentence makes a statement or expresses an opinion. It endswith a period.

During the summer, Cathy worked on her father’s farm near Joplin.Benjamin Franklin made important contributions in many areas.

An interrogative sentence asks a question and ends with a question mark.

Will you please move down one seat?Did you know that Ira is training for the Olympics?

An imperative sentence gives a command or makes a request. The subjectof an imperative sentence is generally you, understood but not stated. It endswith a period or an exclamation point.

Please pass the popcorn.Be careful going down these stairs.Don’t touch that electric cord!

An exclamatory sentence is a statement or command made with strongfeeling. It ends with an exclamation point.

What a lovely old mantelpiece this is!How sleepy you look!

Exercise ARead each sentence. On the line in front of the sentence, write whether thesentence is declarative (D), interrogative (In), imperative (Imp), orexclamatory (E).

________ 1. In what year did Saul Bellow win the Nobel Prize forLiterature?

________ 2. You were often in my thoughts as I hiked the mountain trails.

________ 3. How did you know that blue is my favorite color?

________ 4. Hand me the lettuce and that bag of carrots.

________ 5. How remarkable that he remembered our names!

________ 6. Tell me how you were able to write the book in only threeweeks.

________ 7. Our road trip last summer was more than we bargained for.

________ 8. Kai taught us how to build a canoe during our spring vacation.

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144 Grade Eleven SkillBook, Grammar, Usage, and Mechanics

________ 9. Do you know the distance from Lake Meade to Kansas City?

________ 10. Grab your coat and follow me to the saltwater pond.

Exercise BRead each sentence. Add an appropriate end punctuation mark to eachsentence. On the line in front of the sentence, write whether the sentence isdeclarative (D), interrogative (In), imperative (Imp), or exclamatory (E).

________ 1. Janie wondered why Katrina never answered her letters

________ 2. Help me move this desk closer to the window

________ 3. Charles could see that the fuse would have to be replaced

________ 4. What will happen if the officer tries to arrest the strikers

________ 5. What a fantastic meal this is

Exercise CWrite a paragraph using all four kinds of sentences. Label each sentencetelling what kind it is.

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Grade Eleven SkillBook, Grammar, Usage, and Mechanics 145

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Lesson 2

Subjects and PredicatesStandard English sentences have two main parts: a subject and a predicate.The subject tells whom or what the sentence is about. The predicate tells whatthe subject does or is.

Subject PredicateDogs bark.Some are becoming fine swimmers.

Simple subjects and simple predicates. The noun dogs and the pronounsome—the words that tell what barks and who are becoming—are the simplesubjects. The verb bark and the verb phrase are becoming—the words that tellwhat the subjects do—are the simple predicates.

Many writing errors are the result of faulty agreement between the verband subject. Being able to locate simple subjects and simple predicates willhelp writers eliminate this error.

Complete subject Complete predicateThe last person out of the room closed all the windows.The purple bubble gum tastes horrible.

Complete subjects and complete predicates. In the first example thecomplete subject is The last person out of the room and the complete predicateis closed all the windows. The simple predicate is the action verb closed, whichtells what happened. If you ask who or what closed, the answer will be person,the simple subject. The simple predicate of the second example is the verbtastes. When you ask who or what tastes, the answer is the simple subject, thecompound noun bubble gum.

Now find the simple subject and simple predicate of this sentence:

Complete subject Complete predicateThe battered old car does not look like a classic.

The simple predicate is a two-word phrase—does look—divided by the adverbnot. By asking who or what does not look, you find the simple subject, car.

Compound subjects and predicates. When one verb has two or moresubjects, that sentence is said to have a compound subject.

The horses and pigs were led into the barn.

In a compound predicate two or more main verbs have the same subject.

This apple looks and tastes delicious.

A sentence may also contain a compound subject and a compound predicate.

The boys and girls ate and drank all the refreshments at the party.

The understood subject. In many imperative sentences the subject is youand is often not stated. You is called the understood subject.

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(You) Don’t be late.(You) Come to my house tonight.

Exercise ARead each sentence. Draw one line under the simple subject and two linesunder the simple predicate in each sentence.

1. A tropical sunset comes with dramatic swiftness.

2. Spices were as precious as jewels in medieval Europe.

3. In 1969, Neil Armstrong was the first human to walk on the moon.

4. Much larger crowds came to the football games this year.

5. The sidewalk vendors displayed a large variety of handmade articles.

Exercise BMake complete sentences by adding compound subjects or compoundpredicates to each phrase. Write your complete sentences on the linesprovided.

1. The glass in the window

2. placed first and second in the volleyball tournament

3. Our high school marching band

4. are difficult to learn in just one lesson

5. John, Frank, and their fishing guide

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Lesson 3

Simple and Compound SentencesSentences can be classified according to their structure: simple, compound,complex, and compound-complex.

Simple sentences contain one independent, or main, clause and nosubordinate clause. In a simple sentence, either the subject or the verb—orboth the subject and verb—may be compound. In the following examples, thesubject of each simple sentence is italicized and the verb is printed in boldface.

The wind blew.Olympus Mons, a volcano on Mars, rises eighteen miles above the plainssurrounding it.The climber clung for a moment to the edge of the cliff and then pulledherself over the top.Books and papers littered the desktop and cluttered the seat of the chair.To finish on time, we worked all night.

A compound sentence contains at least two main clauses and nosubordinate clauses. These main clauses are usually joined by a coordinateconjunction (and, but, or, for, yet, nor); by correlative conjunctions (either/or,neither/nor, and so on); by a conjunctive adverb (also, besides, consequently,furthermore, however, moreover, nevertheless, otherwise, then, therefore, thus, still,and so on); or by a semicolon.

Our country was invaded in 1941, and almost immediately my sister and Ienlisted in the Armed Forces.Either I will bring the movie myself or you can come get it.Derek is too busy to take us to the bookstore; besides, his car isn’t runningvery well.Charity often felt faintly uncomfortable about her given name; most of thegirls in her class had names like Tracy, Stacy, Tammi, or Kelly.

Exercise ARead each sentence. On the line in front of the sentence, write whether thesentence is simple (S) or compound (C).

________ 1. Umbrellas are seldom useful in Chicago because of the city’sstrong winds.

________ 2. Jason had read every book in the junior library, so he requestedan adult library card.

________ 3. The walls of the cottage needed repairs, and the floors had tobe scraped and refinished.

________ 4. The water in Topaz Bay is almost fifty feet deep, yet one canclearly see the sandy bottom.

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________ 5. Beth and her brother each ordered ice cream and a slice ofcherry pie.

________ 6. Where is the path to the old lighthouse, and how steep is it?

________ 7. Bathing in that mineral spring made my skin tingle, so I lovedto swim there as a child.

________ 8. Arnold should succeed, for he combines ambition with patience.

________ 9. Prying up the disguised trap door, we discovered a secretchamber, once a station on the Underground Railroad.

________ 10. By successfully jumping through the blazing hoop into the tank,Jim and his dog—billed as “Bozo the Bravest Circus Dog”—won the crowd’s admiration.

Exercise BThe following sentences are simple sentences. Rewrite them on the linesprovided, adding to them so that each becomes a compound sentence.

Example: My friend Jarmila brought me two tins and a cookbook full ofrecipes for tea cakes and sandwiches.

Answer: My friend Jarmila knows I love to cook, so she brought me twotins and a cookbook full of recipes for tea cakes and sandwiches.

1. Jake caught Darla and Betty Lou picking the green apples.

2. Mary Stewart wrote the novel Airs Above the Ground.

3. Of the three Watson girls, only Rhonda called me.

4. The man in the apartment above us finally turned down his stereo.

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Lesson 4

Sentence FragmentsA sentence fragment is a group of words that should be part of a sentencebut that has been punctuated as though it were a complete sentence in itself.

The examples that follow show some of the more common types ofsentence fragments as well as how to correct them.

Fragment: Calvin quickly repaired the leak. Using birch bark, canvas,and an old tin can.

Corrected: Using birch bark, canvas, and an old tin can, Calvin quicklyrepaired the leak.

Fragment: It happened on a day in early autumn. A bronze and blue day.Corrected: It happened on a bronze and blue day in early autumn.

Fragment: We found a great deal of evidence. A smashed perfume bottle,several packs of playing cards, and a bar of Swiss chocolate.

Corrected: We found a great deal of evidence—a smashed perfume bottle,several packs of playing cards, and a bar of Swiss chocolate.[The fragment has been added as an appositive phrase.]

Fragment: Urging his companions to follow, Jeff parachuted from theplane. Which was going down in flames.

Corrected: Urging his companions to follow, Jeff parachuted from theplane, which was going down in flames.

Fragment: Ileana Degollado went to look for her cousin, Martha. Whowas visiting for the summer.

Corrected: Ileana Degollado went to look for her cousin, Martha, whowas visiting for the summer.

Fragment: My sister announced that she wanted to get a dog. And nameit Bonkers.

Corrected: My sister announced that she wanted to get a dog and nameit Bonkers.

ExerciseRead each statement and identify each as a sentence or a fragment by writing Sor F on the line to the left. For each fragment, add the words, punctuation,and capital letters necessary to make it a sentence. Write your sentences on thelines provided.

________ 1. We had to ride on burros. To get to the bottom of the GrandCanyon.

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________ 2. When we arrived in Spain, an official asked us for our passports.

________ 3. The Golden Gate bridge, a beautiful sight.

________ 4. My brother, Julio, was dizzy and fell down. When we got offthe roller coaster.

________ 5. When did they leave for the post office?

________ 6. After the swim team had their annual party.

________ 7. Meet me at the ice rink on Saturday. Unless you hear from mebefore then.

________ 8. Squirrels have figured out how to get seeds from my birdfeeder.

________ 9. The radio talk show was popular. Even though it had been onthe air for just a few months.

________ 10. A gallon of ice cream, a chocolate cake, and thirty cans of soda.

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Lesson 5

Run-On Sentences and Comma SplicesA run-on sentence occurs when two sentences are written as one with nopunctuation to separate them.

Run-on: In the last act we witness the death of Clarissa this eventoccurs just before the final curtain.

Corrected: In the last act we witness the death of Clarissa; this eventoccurs just before the final curtain.

A comma splice occurs when two sentences are joined only by a comma.

Comma splice: First take two ounces of this medicine, then lie down foran hour.

Corrected: First take two ounces of this medicine; then lie down foran hour.

ExerciseRead each sentence. Write R for run-on, C for comma splice, or Correct onthe line to the left of the sentence.

________ 1. Mac spends too much time on his computer, I think he needs toget out more often.

________ 2. Anna has an autographed first-edition copy of Gone With theWind it is worth a lot of money.

________ 3. The sinking of the Maine in Cuba, in 1898, was one of thereasons for the war between the United States and Spain.

________ 4. My sister became a Licensed Vocational Nurse, then she wentback to school to become a Registered Nurse.

________ 5. You must be careful when you add water to baking yeast itshould be between 105 and 115 degrees Fahrenheit.

________ 6. The state motto of California is Eureka, which means “I havefound it.”

________ 7. Colin drove the car by himself for the first time last night, hehit something in the road and blew out two tires.

________ 8. I didn’t see that program last night, since we don’t watchtelevision on school nights.

________ 9. Every time I go near that bush, a mockingbird swoops downnear my head.

________ 10. You don’t have to bring the contract to my house, you can fax itto me.

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________ 11. “The Gift of the Magi” was written by O. Henry, he was knownfor his short stories with surprise endings.

________ 12. Shanghai is the largest city in China, and it is also the mostpopulous city in Asia.

________ 13. Television played a central role in the 1960 presidential electionJohn F. Kennedy narrowly beat Richard M. Nixon.

________ 14. Mike quit his job as a roofer after only one day, he’s afraid ofhigh places.

________ 15. Our cat, Ruggles, got into a fight with a raccoon we had to takeRuggles to the veterinarian.

________ 16. James Dean, a popular movie star in the late 1950s, died aftermaking only three movies.

________ 17. “The Star-Spangled Banner” was written by Francis Scott Keyit was originally a poem and not a song.

________ 18. We drove to Mexico to buy pottery and wrought-iron chairs wegot some great bargains.

________ 19. Although Lincoln had trouble finding competent army generals,he finally found a good general in Ulysses S. Grant.

________ 20. First I walk the dog each morning, then I read the sports andcomics sections of the newspaper.

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Lesson 6

Word Order in SentencesThe position of a subject in a sentence has no effect on the agreement betweensubject and verb. Read the following sentences.

Over the marsh soared two large blackbirds.When did Janet Evans, the famous swimmer, win her first Olympic goldmedal?There are very few ocean liners being built today.

In these sentences the verbs come before their subjects. There are severaltypes of sentences that do not follow the usual subject-verb order.

Inverted sentences. A writer may place a verb before its subject toemphasize the action of the verb or to create a different style.

Behind the curtain on the stage were hidden all the star’s old friends.High upon the mountain sat the wise old man.

Questions. In many questions and in some exclamations the subject isplaced between an auxiliary verb and the main verb.

When will the next bus for Halifax leave?Was Aunt Agatha surprised to see me on her doorstep?

Sentences beginning with here or there. In these sentences the subjecteither follows the verb or comes between parts of it.

Here comes the cable car now.There is a huge crowd waiting at the entrance to the stadium.

Exercise ARead each sentence. Draw one line under each simple subject and two linesunder each simple predicate.

1. Where could those mysterious radio signals have originated?

2. The mountain lake glistened smooth and silver as a mirror.

3. In front of us was a band of bagpipers in tartan kilts.

4. Here stands the last pillar of a vanished temple.

5. In the National Air and Space Museum in Washington, D.C., the Wrightbrothers’ original airplane is poised in an everlasting takeoff.

6. Slowly and almost noiselessly the skilled tracker poled his slim canoethrough the thick reeds of the marsh.

7. There will never again be a sports figure quite like Cal Ripken, Jr.

8. Why didn’t you replace the flashlight batteries sooner?

9. Last in line was Arnie, sleepy and famished.

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10. There seemed little reason for the postponement of the test flight.

11. Included in the purchase of the computer are several valuable softwarepackages.

12. Have the players been chosen for the volleyball team?

13. Here are the missing car keys.

14. There are several trees that need pruning this spring.

15. On the last page of the newspaper are numerous legal notices.

Exercise BUse each of the following groups of words in a different sentence. The first isdone for you in the example below.

Example: here isAnswer: Here is Carla, on time as usual.

1. here is

2. there goes

3. there are

4. was the girl trying

5. were you calling

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Lesson 7

Direct Objects and Subject ComplementsA direct object is a noun or pronoun that follows an action verb and tellswhat or who receives the action of the verb. A direct object can be compound.

I hurt myself with the hammer.The spring thaw brought torrential floods.Before the meeting she prepared a revised budget and a detailed agenda.

In the first sentence, myself receives the action of the verb hurt. In the secondsentence, floods receives the action of the verb brought. In the third sentence,budget and agenda receive the action of the verb prepared. Direct objects usuallyfollow their verbs. However, the typical subject-verb-object order may beinverted for emphasis.

The largest bouquet Lois saved for the speaker’s table.The best cuts of meat Mr. Loomis set aside for himself.

A subject complement is a noun that identifies the subject by an alternatename, a pronoun whose antecedent is the subject, or an adjective that follows alinking verb and identifies or describes the subject. It is called a complementbecause it completes the meaning of a sentence. A sentence with a linking verb(appear, be, become, feel, look, taste, and so on) has three essential parts: a subject,a linking verb, and a subject complement.

Noun: Ms. Dorsey will be made supervisor.Pronoun: The fault is neither ours nor theirs.Adjective: Mother seems terribly upset.

ExerciseRead the following sentences. Underline the direct object or subjectcomplement in each sentence. On the line to the left of each sentence, writeDO for direct object or SC for subject complement.

________ 1. No one can become a great actor without constant effort.

________ 2. Because of her rigorous training, the swimmer won all threeevents.

________ 3. Carnow’s testimony convinced the jury of his innocence.

________ 4. The victims of the tornado need your direct help.

________ 5. Beethoven’s music sounded radically modern in 1820.

________ 6. The astronomy club greatly enjoyed the donated telescope.

________ 7. Both rivalry and mutual respect have long bound us together.

________ 8. When will the snowplow arrive to clear the neighborhoodstreets?

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________ 9. Despite many setbacks, Dr. Ashmore remained optimistic andcompletely confident regarding her invention.

________ 10. Little hope had the pilgrim against such odds.

________ 11. These explorers were more eager for scientific discovery thanfor conquest.

________ 12. Dorothea Lange was a great photojournalist.

________ 13. Even his gold records the bankrupt rock star had sold.

________ 14. If André fails to compete in the race, the loss will be his.

________ 15. His beloved mountains the trapper would see no more.

________ 16. On the first morning of our voyage, the sea was a ghostly gray.

________ 17. Carson read the note several times in disbelief.

________ 18. Nothing about the job was easy or enjoyable.

________ 19. Through the eye of the camera, the announcer appeared uneasyin his new role.

________ 20. In a far corner of the yard, Wayne found the injured rabbit.

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Lesson 8

Indirect Objects and Object ComplementsAn indirect object is a noun or pronoun that tells to whom or for whom theaction of the verb is done. A sentence that contains a direct object may alsocontain a noun or pronoun that serves as an indirect object.

I won’t tell Lannie anything.Monty gave the old man dinner.The folk singer taught Monica three new songs.

In the first example, anything is the direct object of the verb phrase won’t tell.The indirect object is Lannie. It tells to whom I will not tell anything. In thesecond example, dinner is the direct object of gave. The indirect object is man.In the third example, songs is the direct object of taught. The indirect object isMonica.

Although a preposition (to or for) is implied when an indirect object is used,an indirect object is never part of a prepositional phrase. A noun or pronoun isan indirect object only if it precedes the direct object and is used without apreposition. If it follows a preposition, it is the object of the preposition, notan indirect object.

Indirect object: Sean’s disloyalty left us few choices.Object of preposition: Sean’s disloyalty left few choices for us.

Exercise ARead the following sentences. Underline the indirect object or object of apreposition in each sentence. On the line to the left of the sentence, tellwhether it is an indirect object (IO) or the object of a preposition (OP). Forsentences that contain no indirect object or object of a preposition, write None.

________ 1. Donnell lent me a wrench so that I could repair the car.

________ 2. Dr. Smoyer left very early the next morning.

________ 3. The heavy snow gave Denzil a chance to see a real winter.

________ 4. Lizzie and Vic sent a new catnip toy for my kitten.

________ 5. Give me the document so that I can see if it is authentic.

Exercise BRewrite the sentences on the lines provided. Replace the underlinedprepositional phrases with indirect objects.

Example: Trent told the secret of his success to me.Answer: Trent told me the secret of his success.

1. I gave our order to the young man in the baseball cap.

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2. Can anyone find the key to the bicycle lock for me?

3. Janie’s coworkers sent a fruit basket and a greeting card to her.

4. The owner offered free concert tickets to his employees.

5. Gretchen found a small apartment in the city for us.

Just as a subject complement describes or gives an alternate name to asubject, an object complement describes or gives an alternate name to adirect object. An object complement may be a noun or an adjective, and itusually follows the object it refers to.

Noun: The track team elected Frances their new captain.Adjectives: Critics labeled her play important but very dull.

In the first example, captain is the object complement of the direct objectFrances. In the second example, important and dull are the object complementsof the direct object play. A good way to detect an object complement is to tryinserting to be between a direct object and any word following it that seemslikely to be an object complement: Shoppers find food (to be) increasinglyexpensive.

Exercise CRead the following sentences. Underline the direct object in each sentence.Write the object complement on the line provided.

1. Gary painted his bike a dazzling yellow.

2. Tess had long considered herself unlucky.

3. Before I saw her run, I never imagined her an athlete.

4. That choice we considered much too risky.

5. Does that architect deliberately make his designs drab and featureless?

6. Silas found the cabin door completely open.

7. One reviewer called the novel a masterpiece.

8. The captain considered his crew able and ready for the journey.

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Lesson 9

Independent and Dependent ClausesA clause is a group of related words that contains a subject and verb and isused as part of a sentence. There are two kinds of clauses: independent anddependent.

An independent clause is a part of a sentence that is grammaticallyindependent. It can stand alone and make sense by itself.

Here comes the bus, and you have not yet said good-bye or bought your ticket.

Notice that the verb in the second clause is compound. Within a clause thesubject, the verb, or both the subject and verb may be compound.

A dependent clause has a subject and a verb but does not make sense byitself. It must be attached to an independent clause in order to make sense.Dependent clauses begin with words such as who, which, that, because, when, if,until, before, and after.

Because Josephine and Haile whispered and giggled during the lecture, Mr.McKenzie gave them extra homework.

Note in the above example that a dependent clause can contain a compoundsubject and a compound verb.

Exercise ARead the following sentences. Underline the dependent clause in each.

1. If you look just overhead, you can see the Big Dipper.

2. Many times since he had visited the Lake District, Brian had wanted toreturn to its serene beauty.

3. Start pitching the tents after you have unloaded the trucks.

4. Sod houses must be well plastered so that the walls will not sprout grass.

5. I will meet you at the gym, after I go to the library.

6. Soon after Elijah graduated from college, he was hired by the advertisingdepartment of a magazine.

7. Mr. Elliston required his son to take an automotive repair class so that hewould know how to take care of his new car.

8. Although he endured many hardships during his first winter in Alaska, Arisoon learned to live in the wilderness.

9. Mrs. Tran preferred cooking meals to washing dishes, which pleased theother tenants.

10. When Ridge saw smoke curling out of the cabin chimney, he knew thatthe Donaldsons had returned to the hills.

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Exercise BOn the line to the left of each sentence, write I if the underlined clause isindependent or D if it is dependent.

________ 1. Kirsten was unable to see the children who broke Mr. Kosinski’sfront window.

________ 2. When Manolo began running, at age sixty, his sons thought himfoolish.

________ 3. We want to rent a van that will hold a dozen people.

________ 4. Until you set a goal and work to reach it, you are likely to feelrestless and frustrated.

________ 5. Janet’s first diving coach was a woman who had won a goldmedal.

________ 6. We decided to buy tickets at the last minute, which proved tobe a bad idea.

________ 7. Once the team members decided on a name, they registered inthe all-city league.

________ 8. Everyone is looking forward to the picnic because it marks thestart of summer vacation.

________ 9. After he reread the chapter, Wes better understood the lives ofthe early settlers.

________ 10. Eric seemed unfazed when his opponent—last year’schampion—stepped onto the court.

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Lesson 10

Adjective and Adverb ClausesAdverb Clauses

An adverb clause is a subordinate clause that, like an adverb, modifies averb, an adjective, or another adverb. The examples that follow show adverbsfirst and then adverb clauses that are used to do the same kinds of work.

To modify verbs:Julia smiled mysteriously. [adverb modifying smiled]Julia smiled as if she knew a wonderful secret. [adverb clause modifying smiled]

To modify verbals:The audience began to laugh nervously. [adverb modifying the infinitive tolaugh]The audience began to laugh whenever Paul appeared on stage. [adverb clausemodifying the infinitive to laugh]

To modify adjectives:She has unusually swift reflexes. [adverb modifying swift]She has reflexes so swift that she can catch anyone in a race. [adverb clausemodifying swift]

To modify adverbs:Our old car ran deceptively smoothly. [adverb modifying smoothly]Our old car ran more smoothly than it had before the tune-up. [adverb clausemodifying smoothly]

Subordinate conjunctions. Adverb clauses are usually introduced bysubordinate conjunctions, conjunctions that serve to introduce thesubordinate clause to the main clause and to establish the relationship betweenthe information in the two clauses. The subordinate clauses tell you about time(when it happened), place (where it happened), manner (how it happened),reason (why it happened), purpose, result, conditions (under what condition),contrast (something is true despite a contradictory fact), and degree (tells towhat extent).

Some common subordinate conjunctions include:

Adjective ClausesAn adjective clause is a subordinate clause that, like an adjective, modifies

a noun or a pronoun.Adjective clauses are usually introduced by one of the relative pronouns

(who, whose, whom, which, or that). The relative pronoun joins the clause to therest of the sentence and serves a grammatical function within the adjectiveclause.

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afteralthoughas

as ifbecausesince

so thatthanthat

unlessuntilwhen

wheneverwherewhether

In our province and indeed in all of Canada, Joey Smallwood soon becamea personality whom nobody could forget. [The adjective clause is whom nobodycould forget. The relative pronoun whom refers to the noun personality in themain clause. Whom also serves as the direct object of the adjective clause.]

Relative adverbs in adjective clauses. An adjective clause can also beintroduced by a relative adverb such as when, where, why, before, and after.

Give me a couple of reasons why I should believe you. [The adjective clausemodifies reasons. Within the clause, the relative adverb why modifies shouldbelieve.]

Exercise ARead each sentence. These sentences contain adverb clauses. Draw one lineunder the adverb clause in each sentence; draw two lines under thesubordinate conjunction in each clause.

1. Park your car wherever you are lucky enough to find a space.

2. Millie will worry if her daughter continues to live in the city.

3. His hair is so curly that he has difficulty combing it.

4. Since my sister became president of her class, she has been insufferable.

5. Takako’s paper was better than mine because she spent more time on it.

Exercise BRead each sentence. These sentences contain adjective clauses. Underline anyrelative pronoun or relative adverb in each sentence.

1. He is the same man who stole our newspaper last Sunday morning.

2. She traveled with Ida in Haiti, where they attended school.

3. On a day when there was almost no smog, Uncle Stanley went jogging inthe park.

4. Calico, who came from the city pound, is the prettiest cat in our building.

5. I wanted a list of places where I could travel alone safely.

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Lesson 11

Noun ClausesA noun clause is a subordinate clause that functions as a noun. It can be usedanywhere in a sentence that a noun appears. In each of the sentences thatfollow, the noun clause is italicized.

Whoever owns that car is going to be surprised. [noun clause used as asubject]I know that you are furious at both Mom and Dad. [noun clause used as adirect object]We will send whoever answers the phone a free ticket for Friday’s concert.[noun clause used as an indirect object.]In the center of the tennis court, the two boys argued about who had themost impressive backhand. [noun clause used as the object of a proposition]

Noun clauses may be introduced by subordinate conjunctions (that, if,whether), pronouns (who, whoever, what, which), adjectives (which, whatever), andadverbs (when, where, how). When subordinate conjunctions are used tointroduce noun clauses, these words have no grammatical function within thenoun clause. However, pronouns, adjectives, and adverbs used to introducenoun clauses all do have a function within the noun clause. Compare thefollowing sentences; the noun clause in each is italicized. Notice how eachclause functions in its sentence.

I can’t help wondering if she ever feels sorry for herself. [The subordinateconjunction if introduces the noun clause, but it has no function withinthat clause.]Whoever climbs the rope to the ceiling will receive an A in gym for thissemester. [The pronoun whoever introduces the noun clause and also is itssubject.]I can’t hear what you are saying. [The pronoun what introduces the nounclause and is also the object of the verb are saying.]Nicki could hardly believe how easily her daughter Annie learned the newdance. [The adverb how introduces the noun clause and also modifies theadverb easily within that clause.]

Words used to introduce noun clauses can also be used to introduce othertypes of subordinate clauses. In order to identify a clause, you must firstdetermine how that clause is used in a sentence. Note the different ways thesame clause can be used.

Noun clause: This shore is where the settlers landed. [subjectcomplement]

Adjective clause: A monument marks the spot where the settlers landed.[modifies spot]

Adverb clause: An annual pageant is performed where the settlerslanded. [modifies is performed]

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ExerciseUnderline the noun clause and write its function on the line provided. If thereis no noun clause in the sentence, write None.

Example: Fires that glimmered brightly revealed which hills the army stillheld.

Answer: direct object; which hills the army still held

1. I just learned that Sid won the election.

2. Nobody who arrived after noon knows which direction the parade willcome from.

3. Whoever turned in that false alarm should be punished.

4. Jim handed whomever he met a copy of his first book.

5. Their dream is that they will see Ireland again.

6. Did Paula mention who baked these muffins?

7. Willard opened a restaurant in a town where there were already too manyplaces to eat.

8. In Mr. Sotak’s classroom, how the amoeba reproduces itself becomes avery interesting topic.

9. The knights fought against whoever lifted a sword or aimed a crossbow.

10. Marc’s secret is that he wrote six romance novels under the name ofCoyla Lenore Wainwright.

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Lesson 12

Complex SentencesA sentence with one independent clause and one or more dependent clauses iscalled a complex sentence. Though a dependent clause has a subject and verb,it cannot stand alone. It has to be joined with an independent clause to make asentence.

In the complex sentences that follow, the dependent clauses are in italics.

We soon discovered why the old car had cost so little. [The dependent clauseis a noun clause.]When Harris finally awoke, the afternoon sunlight dazzled him. [Thedependent clause is an adverb clause.]Helga treasured the concert program that had been given to her by hergrandfather after the old man gave his last piano recital. [This sentencecontains two dependent clauses, the first an adjective clause and the secondan adverb clause.]

A dependent clause may come before, after, or within the independentclause in a complex sentence.

Exercise ARead each sentence below. On the lines provided, rewrite the sentences byadding a dependent clause to form a complex sentence. Use the word inparentheses to introduce the dependent clause.

Example: We went to the grocery store. (because)Answer: Because we needed food for dinner, we went to the grocery store.

1. Terry and Jan visited us on Thanksgiving. (before)

2. Columbus and his crew began to celebrate. (because)

3. This computer software program can easily be installed. (if)

4. The magician sawed her assistant in half. (after)

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5. Sam drove all of us to school. (although)

6. Both of my sisters attended school in Europe. (because)

7. You can compete in the track meet. (if)

8. I went on a trip to New York City. (which)

9. You should read the instructions. (before)

10. We had been taking that path to the camp. (until)

Exercise BOn the lines provided, write S if the sentence is simple or C if it is complex. Ifit is complex, underline each dependent clause.

________ 1. Please bring me the file that contains the Perkins contract.

________ 2. No bystander could tell exactly how the accident happened.

________ 3. Do not forget to leave the spare key where Ed can find it.

________ 4. Approaching the dog cautiously, Donna discovered that the dogwas friendly.

________ 5. After the divers brought up a cannon and some gold doubloons,other treasure hunters tried to trail their boat to the reef wherethey had made the discovery.

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Lesson 13

Compound-Complex SentencesA sentence that contains two or more independent clauses and one or moredependent clauses is a compound-complex sentence. You will recall that acompound sentence contains at least two main clauses—and no dependentclauses—joined by a coordinate or correlative conjunction, a conjunctiveadverb, or a semicolon, conjunction.

Mrs. Gennaula entered the room, and her class, which had been making aterrible racket, suddenly became quiet.

The plumber entered our house, and he raised his eyebrows as he studiedmy water-soaked carpet.

In the first compound-complex sentence, the independent clauses areMrs. Gennaula entered the room and her class . . . suddenly became quiet. Thedependent clause is which had been making a terrible racket. In the secondsentence, the two independent clauses are The plumber entered our house and heraised his eyebrows. The dependent clause is as he studied my water-soaked carpet.

Now look at the following two sentences. One is a compound sentence,and one is a compound-complex sentence.

Whenever we see the old man walking on the beach, he is always wearing abright yellow blazer and an orange baseball cap.

After we finished the aerobics class, the instructor called us to her office,and she asked us to take part in a competition.

The first sentence is a complex sentence. It has one independent clause, Heis always wearing a bright yellow blazer and an orange baseball cap, and onedependent clause, Whenever we see the old man walking on the beach.

The second sentence is a compound-complex sentence. It has onedependent clause, After we finished the aerobics class, and two independentclauses, the instructor called us to her office and she asked us to take part in acompetition.

ExerciseRead each sentence. Write S if the sentence is simple, C if the sentence iscompound, CX if it is complex, or CC if it is compound-complex. Write youranswer on the line to the left of the sentence.

________ 1. When we started our new business, we had no idea howsuccessful it would be.

________ 2. The business was my brother’s idea, and he and I went intobusiness after we had saved enough money.

________ 3. I need to buy some running shoes that will last for more than afew months.

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________ 4. My golden retriever is a big dog, but he is so friendly that heisn’t a very good watch dog.

________ 5. New York City is made up of five boroughs, and the New YorkMarathon goes through all five of the boroughs.

________ 6. My television, which is brand new, is broken, and my radio’sbatteries are dead.

________ 7. Because the ice storm lasted all night, school was closed for theday.

________ 8. Raul was elected president of the senior class, and he got over70 percent of the total student body vote.

________ 9. The U.S. Interstate Highway System, which linked most partsof America, was begun in the 1950s, and it encouragedpopulation growth in the South and the West.

________ 10. If you take the Concorde from New York to London, yourflight will only take three and a half hours.

________ 11. In 1628 the brand-new Swedish warship Vasa sank on hermaiden voyage before she ever left Stockholm harbor.

________ 12. The tides and currents between Vancouver Island and theCanadian mainland are extremely treacherous.

________ 13. Because the night was foggy, it was impossible to tell whetherthe signal fire had been lit.

________ 14. Either Akira did not hear the doorbell, or he is so busy that hedoesn’t want guests right now.

________ 15. At Ibiza our friends disembarked; we stayed on board, headingfor the larger island of Majorca.

________ 16. There were many good reasons to replace the old computer,and Harvey Miller listed them all; however, Corrine Aderholdtwas unconvinced and said so.

________ 17. Where did you put the screwdriver I have been looking for?

________ 18. Just imagine what it must be like to stand atop Mount Everest,and then you’ll know why people climb mountains.

________ 19. Cutting though the cane fields, Denny Gibler gallopedheadlong toward Charleston to warn the town of the buccaneerraid.

________ 20. The rich tones of the new organ, which had been built toreplace the one destroyed in the air raid, brought the restoredcathedral back to life.

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Lesson 14

Combining Sentences with ClausesA string of simple sentences, especially short ones, can make your writingsound choppy. You can sometimes combine two such sentences by turning oneof them into a clause. Three methods of doing this include the use of anadjective clause, an adverb clause, or a noun clause.

Using adjective clauses. A compound sentence gives equal emphasis to twoideas or details; this is the process of coordination. Giving more emphasis toone idea or detail is the process of subordination.

One kind of subordinate clause is the adjective clause, which givesadditional information about a noun or a pronoun in the main clause.Adjective clauses usually begin with words such as that, which, who, whom, orwhose.

We booked passage with Simon Stern. He is one of the crew.

We booked passage with Simon Stern, who is one of the crew. [Bookingpassage is emphasized; Simon Stern’s being one of the crew is additionalinformation. A comma is used to set off the clause because it isnonrestrictive.]

Simon Stern, with whom we booked passage, is one of the crew. [SimonStern’s being one of the crew is emphasized; that we booked passage withhim is additional information.]

The crewman with whom we booked passage is Simon Stern. [Stern’s identityis emphasized; no comma is used because the clause is restrictive.]

To combine sentences using adjective clauses, first decide which details orideas you want to emphasize, and put these in the main clause. The remaininginformation can be put into one or more subordinate clauses.

Using adverb clauses. Sentences can also be combined using adverb clauses.Adverb clauses tell how, when, where, or why an action happened.

Judd moved to Silver Spring. He had enrolled in evening classes atGeorgetown University.

Judd moved to Silver Spring before he had enrolled in evening classes atGeorgetown University. [The subordinate clause is an adverb clausemodifying moved.]

Because the relationship in adverb clauses is usually expressed by thesubordinate conjunction, that conjunction should be carefully chosen toconvey the intended meaning.

Judd moved to Silver Spring after he had enrolled in evening classes atGeorgetown University.

Judd moved to Silver Spring because he had enrolled in evening classes atGeorgetown University.

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Using noun clauses. Noun clauses can be used in any position in a sentencein which a noun can be used. A noun clause, however, can transmit much moreinformation than a single noun—information that otherwise would have to beexpressed in a separate sentence. Because of this, noun clauses can beparticularly useful in combining sentences.

Why were we there? That is what Mr. Lape asked.Mr. Lape asked why we were there. [The noun clause is the direct object ofthe verb asked.]

ExerciseCombine the sentences using the method indicated in parentheses. Write yournew sentence on the lines provided. Note that there may be more than onecorrect way to combine the sentences.

Example: Classes were canceled on Thursday. The furnace was broken.(adverb clause)

Answer: Classes were canceled on Thursday because the furnace wasbroken.

1. She had done it. Why couldn’t they? (adverb clause)

2. Just ring the bell. Someone should answer the door. Ask that person if wecan get some water for the radiator. (noun clause)

3. Human beings started using language long ago. Exactly when willprobably never be determined. (noun clause)

4. In tribute to the bravery of Confederate General Robert E. Lee, theUnion troops saluted him. These troops had assembled to receive Lee’ssurrender. (adjective clause)

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5. The match was canceled. We were to have participated in it. (adjectiveclause)

6. Jemmy shook his head back and forth. You would think he was debatingwith himself. (adverb clause)

7. There were no spare ribs left in the meat counter. That was a bigdisappointment to me. But Ross only asked about our next choice. Whatshould we get instead? (noun clause)

8. Weimaraners are used not only in hunting game but also in trailingcriminals. These dogs have an unusually keen sense of smell. (adjectiveclause)

9. We went out for pizza. We had finished the final exam. (adverb clause)

10. It takes me time to decide to make a telephone call. Louise can writethree letters and get them in the mail in less time. (adverb clause)

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Lesson 15

Improving SentencesA dangling modifier occurs in a sentence when there is no word in thesentence to which the modifier can properly and logically be attached.Dangling modifiers usually occur at the beginning of sentences.

Dangling modifier: Having been ill all night, the eggs at breakfastlooked unappetizing.

Corrected: Having been ill all night, I found the eggs atbreakfast unappetizing.

A misplaced modifier has a word in the sentence to modify, but themodifier is placed too far from the word for a reader to easily spot theconnection. Modifiers misplaced in this way can be unintentionally humorous.

Misplaced modifier: Sizzling over the glowing coals, the childrenwatched the hamburgers.

Corrected: The children watched the hamburgers sizzling overthe glowing coals.

Parallel construction or parallelism can make a comparison clearer whenyou are presenting two or more ideas of equal importance or of similar nature.A parallel construction repeats the same grammatical structure within asentence or paragraph.

Nonparallel: The raft was six feet wide and eight feet in length.Parallel: The raft was six feet wide and eight feet long.Parallel: The raft was six feet in width and eight feet in length.

Sentence elements that are joined by coordinate conjunctions orcorrelative conjunctions should be parallel in structure. Parallelism is alsoimportant when items are listed in a series.

Nonparallel: Lydia Marshall won awards in speech, drama, and playing theviolin.

Parallel: Lydia Marshall won awards in speech, drama, and music.

Nonparallel: Arriving on the late flight from Morgantown, Uncle Alfhad to decide whether to go directly to his cousin’s house orwhether he should rent a hotel room for the night.

Parallel: Arriving on the late flight from Morgantown, Uncle Alfhad to decide whether to go directly to his cousin’s house orwhether to rent a hotel room for the night.

Parallel: Arriving on the late flight from Morgantown, Uncle Alfhad to decide whether he should go directly to his cousin’shouse or whether he should rent a hotel room for the night.

In sentences that use pronouns, be sure the antecedent—the noun towhich the pronoun refers—is clear to the reader. In a sentence with nouns ofdifferent numbers (singular and plural) or different genders (he, she, and it),

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there is seldom any difficulty in recognizing the antecedent of a pronoun. In asentence such as the one below, however, it is impossible to tell what noun isreferred to.

Unclear antecedent: Mother gave Nina a silver dollar after she had wonthe marathon. [Who won the marathon, Mother orNina?]

Corrected: Because Mother had won the marathon, she gaveNina a silver dollar.

Corrected: Mother gave a silver dollar to Nina, who had wonthe marathon.

In other kinds of sentences, the antecedents of pronouns are not present, andthe reader must imagine them.

Unclear: Acting is a very demanding job, but still I would like to beone.

Corrected: Acting is a very demanding job, but still I would like to be anactor.

Unclear pronoun references are likely to occur when a pronoun in onesentence is supposed to refer to an antecedent in another sentence but in factdoes not do so.

Unclear: During the last year, Grandfather Johns has broken his hip,lost his part-time job, and moved to a smaller apartment.However, it doesn’t seem to have made him less cheerful.

Corrected: During the last year, Grandfather Johns has broken his hip,lost his part-time job, and moved to a smaller apartment.However, these events do not seem to have made him lesscheerful.

ExerciseRead each sentence. Rewrite any sentence that contains a dangling ormisplaced modifier, nonparallel structure, or an unclear pronoun reference. Ifa sentence does not need to be improved, write Correct on the line below it.Some sentences can be rewritten in more than one way.

1. After suffering the hardships of a long ocean voyage, the new colony wasfounded in 1752.

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2. Looking down at the dusty road toward her home, Johnella had anuncontrollable urge to weep.

3. Hal told Keith to go home because he was angry.

4. Any student who wants to take part in the work-study program mustschedule fall classes in the preceding spring, set up job interviews forAugust, and you must also meet with your counselor the first week inSeptember.

5. I felt that I was invisible to the crowd of shoppers wearing my oldraincoat, a scarf, and dark glasses.

6. Having turned sour over the long weekend, I had to throw out the twogallons of milk.

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Lesson 16

AppositivesAn appositive is a noun or pronoun that is usually placed next to anothernoun or pronoun in order to identify or describe it more fully. Mostappositives follow the words they explain and are often set off by commas ordashes.

“Fun at the Dentist’s,” a videotape, was a hit with the second-graders.The biggest losers in the dispute—the fans—have been ignored by both theowners and the ballplayers.

An appositive phrase is made up of an appositive and its modifiers.

Ron Joslin, a real charmer, was elected “Most Popular” by a landslide vote.Only a good excuse—illness, family obligations, or the death of a close relative—will be accepted. [Note that an appositive may be compound.]

Occasionally, an appositive is placed in front of the word it modifies. In thesentences that follow, each appositive phrase is italicized, and the word itexplains is in boldface.

Great seafarers, the Haida Indians built ocean-going canoes.Reporters, office workers, typesetters, and janitorial staff—all took part in thestrike at the local newspaper.

In the examples above, the appositive is used with the subject of thesentence. Appositives can also be found with direct objects, indirect objects,subject complements, and objects of prepositions. In the sentences that follow,each appositive phrase is italicized, and the word it describes is in boldface.

Following a direct object: Harvey bought Sophia a newdictionary, one printed in largetype.

Following an indirect object: Ollie, a very thoughtful person,gave Elsie, a woman with manyallergies, special meals.

Following a subject complement: Paxton’s tuxedo was paleorange, an unusual color forformal clothing.

Following the object of a preposition: Michael Abbott played on ourcity’s semi-pro football team,the Viscounts.

Sometimes an appositive and the noun or pronoun it explains will beseparated in a sentence.

What she wanted, a twelve-string guitar, was very expensive.

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ExerciseUnderline the appositive phrase in each sentence below. On the line provided,write the word or words to which the appositive refers.

1. The U.S. Navy has a school in Athens, a landlocked town in Georgia.

2. In one turbulent year, A.D. 69, Rome had four emperors.

3. Thor Heyerdahl built Ra II, a replica of an ancient Egyptian papyrus ship,

for his successful voyage across the Atlantic.

4. Mrs. Ravizza, our landlady, also owns The Crow’s-Nest, a sailor’s inn on

the coast of Nova Scotia.

5. Earth, the third planet from the sun, is one of several heavenly bodies

that have at least one moon.

6. Charles Bannister showed his oboe teacher, Ms. Welch, the score of his

first symphony.

7. A jagged pinnacle of ice and rock, the Matterhorn seems unconquerable.

8. Two of England’s greatest poets, Chaucer and Shakespeare, were also

shrewd and practical businessmen.

9. Rookie of the Year is Whitmore Reid, a strong runner and consistent

pass-catcher.

10. Strange tales are told of the Bermuda Triangle—stories not unlike

medieval legends of sea monsters.

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Lesson 17

Identifying NounsCharacteristics of NounsA noun is a word used to name a person (sailor, Admiral Byrd), place (ocean,Antarctica), thing (bird, eagle), or idea (patience, virtue). Some nouns consist ofmore than one word (Pennsylvania Avenue, gas mask, shock absorber, Sons of Italy,Princess Anne).

Recognizing nouns. Often you can find the nouns in a sentence by firstlooking for short words called noun markers, which come before manynouns. These words can include a, an, the, this, those, some, and any.

The children were given an hour for a rest.The mayor had an operation for a slipped disk.

A, an, and the, called articles, are the most common noun markers, but otherwords can also signal nouns: this table, some old bicycles, any hardware store.

Some nouns can be recognized by endings such as -ance or -ence (endurance,existence), -ant or -ent (descendant, incident), -ness (happiness), -er or -or (cutter,tailor), -hood (neighborhood), -ism (industrialism), -ity (dignity), -ment (enrollment),-ship (hardship), and -sion or -tion (decision, notion).

Most nouns have three forms.

Singular: book, mosquito, childPlural: books, mosquitoes, childrenPossessive: book’s/books’, mosquito’s/mosquitoes’, child’s/children’s

Types of NounsNouns can be classified as either common nouns or proper nouns and as

either abstract nouns or concrete nouns.

Proper nouns and common nouns. A proper noun names a uniqueperson, place, thing, or idea (Moby Dick, Senator Daniel Patrick Moynihan, Israel,White House). A common noun names any one of a class or group of persons,places, or things (book, legislator, country, home). In the sentence that follows,proper nouns are printed in boldface and common nouns in italics.

The Great Pyramid of Pharaoh Cheops was the world’s tallest structurefor forty centuries, until England’s Lincoln Cathedral was completed in1548.

Abstract and concrete nouns. A concrete noun names a person, place, orthing that can be seen, touched, or felt (wallet, bridge, Zubin Mehta, dog,Pennsylvania). An abstract noun names an idea, quality, or sensation (physics,happiness, beauty, McCarthyism, sorrow, Ice Age). Note that abstract and concretenouns can be either common or proper.

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ExerciseUse the space below each sentence to list nouns in the sentence. Tell whethereach noun is common or proper, and also whether it is concrete or abstract.Figures in parentheses show the number of nouns in each sentence. Nouns ofmore than one word count as one noun.

Example: The entire herd of Black Angus turned to the east and headedfor the Arkansas River. (4)

Answer: herd—common, concrete; Black Angus—proper, concrete;east—common, abstract; Arkansas River—proper, concrete

1. The needle made of bone was a crucial tool. (3)

2. Without warm garments, prehistoric tribes could never have occupied thechilly Temperate Zone. (3)

3. The grandchildren of the Greeks who sacked Troy were themselvesconquered by invaders. (4)

4. George Eliot supposedly based one of her novels on a single glimpse of aFrench family eating supper. (6)

5. Mayan astronomers in ancient Mexico developed an accurate calendarover one thousand years ago. (4)

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Lesson 18

Plural NounsMost nouns are made plural by adding -s or -es. Some nouns are made pluralby making a spelling change. Study the chart below. If you have questionsabout other plurals, check a dictionary.

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Most nouns: add -sshoe—shoes valley—valleysclock—clocks roof—roofsNouns ending in s, x, ch, z, sh, ss: add -esgas—gases waltz—waltzesbox—boxes wish—wishesmatch—matches kiss—kissesNouns ending in a consonant and y: change y to i and add -escity—cities party—partiesstory—stories lady—ladiesNouns ending in a vowel plus o: add -sradio—radios tattoo—tattoosNouns ending in consonant plus o: some add -s, some add -es, some add eitheralto—altos potato—potatoespiano—pianos tornado—tornadoes or tornadosveto—vetoes volcano—volcanoes or volcanosSome nouns ending in f or fe: change the f to v and add -es. Others add -s. A few add either.elf—elves roof—roofsleaf—leaves chief—chiefslife—lives scarf—scarfs or scarvesknife—knivesNouns ending in ff: add -scuff—cuffs sheriff—sheriffsCompounds of more than one word: add -s or -es to the main wordsister-in-law—sisters-in-law car pool—car poolsten-year-old—ten-year-oldsNouns that change spelling: add or change lettersgoose—geese stimulus—stimuliox—oxen crisis—criseschild—childrenNouns that do not changedeer—deer series—series

Exercise AWrite the plural of each word on the line beside the word.

1. porch

2. symphony

3. eye

4. trellis

5. library

6. varnish

7. fence

8. blueberry

9. alphabet

10. bleach

Exercise BWrite the plural of each word in the space beside the word. Words markedwith an asterisk have two acceptable plural forms. Write both. You may use adictionary.

1. tornado*

2. shelf

3. mouse

4. motif

5. hoof*

6. calf

7. avocado

8. sheaf

9. potato

10. scarf*

11. virtuoso*

12. villa

13. hors d’oeuvre

14. sari

15. shampoo

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Lesson 19

Possessive NounsPossessive nouns show ownership. They are formed with an apostrophe andthe letter s (’s) or with only an apostrophe. Many writers confuse possessivenouns with plural nouns. Keep in mind that in the possessive forms, anapostrophe and s signify ownership (Jennifer’s cat), possession (Brad’s office),authorship (Fitzgerald’s novel), measurement (month’s delay), and description(children’s clothing).

Possessive nouns modify nouns. They describe or limit the nouns thatfollow them.

The athlete’s medal is gold.The coach’s pride is great.

The possessive noun athlete’s modifies medal by telling whose medal it is—themedal of the athlete. Athlete’s limits the noun medal to the one belonging tothe athlete. The possessive noun coach’s modifies pride—the pride of the coach.

When you form possessive nouns, follow the steps below.

• Note whether the noun ends in the letter s.• Decide if the noun is singular or plural.• Use the rule below that applies.

If the noun is singular, add ’s.skater’s awardclass’s tripJames’s decision

If the noun is plural and ends in s, add only an apostrophe.players’ awardsclasses’ tripthe Smiths’ home

If the noun is plural and does not end in s, add ’s.women’s victorychildren’s toysmice’s squeaks

The possessive forms of compound nouns follow similar rules.

Singular: add ’s to the end of the wordmy brother-in-law’s team

Plural, with no s at the end: add ’s to the end of the wordmy brothers-in-law’s team

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ExerciseRead each sentence. On the line provided, write the correct form of thepossessive noun or nouns in parentheses.

1. Mr. Fine does not approve of his (sons) wives.

2. Having four women with the same name in her dorm added to the new(house mother) confusion.

3. (Mary Lennon) goal was to write a best-selling novel.

4. (Mrs. Sadler) son argued that people her age cannot appreciate his(generation) ideals.

5. (Mrs. Panapinto) sons-in-law gave her a surprise birthday dinner.

6. The disaster was averted and hundreds of lives saved due to (Nils) quickthinking.

7. The (Smashing Pumpkins) new album will, no doubt, be a hit.

8. You won’t be able to find a room the week of the (coin collectors)convention.

9. I can’t wait to attend our (motorcycle club) annual trip to Terre Haute.

10. (Sally) younger—and more outgoing—sister greeted the guests at thedoor.

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Lesson 20

Plural or Possessive?To make a noun plural, you usually change its spelling. To make it possessive,you always change its form. These changes can be confusing. The chart belowshows the form changes of some nouns.

Plurals and possessives sound alike. If you read the words inventors,inventor’s, and inventors’ aloud, they sound exactly the same. But, as you cansee, they are different noun forms and have different meanings.

Possessive nouns are used to show ownership. Plural nouns are used toshow more than one. Study the sentences below.

All the inventors’ works were small.One inventor’s tools were custom-made.The inventors were working on their invention.

The possessive nouns inventors’ and inventor’s in the first two sentences showownership. The plural noun inventors in the last sentence tells that there wasmore than one inventor.

Exercise AWrite the plural form of each word on the lines provided. You may use adictionary.

1. tablespoonful

2. first lady

3. deer

4. great-grandchild

5. tributary

Exercise BRewrite the phrases on the next page, changing them to indicate theappropriate possessive forms for the context.

Example: the surrender of Cornwallis to the forces of WashingtonAnswer: Cornwallis’s surrender to Washington’s forces

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Nouns Possessive Nouns

Singular Plural Singular Plural

diamond diamonds diamond’s value diamonds’ valuefox foxes fox’s den foxes’ dencanary canaries canary’s song canaries’ songswoman women woman’s group women’s groupknife knives knife’s blade knives’ blades

1. the terrible plight of the two boys

2. several costumes belonging to the actors

3. the editorial policies of the widely read magazine

4. the chief complaint of the arresting officers

Exercise CRewrite the following sentences, adding apostrophes where necessary.

1. Several comedians humor was not appreciated by a rowdy audience,whose catcalls jarred the performers.

2. Although the Kearnses cottage was close to the beach, we were delayedby the paths twists and turns.

3. A politicians decline in the polls is often blamed on the mediasinsensitivity and unfair coverage.

4. The babies new toys remained untouched on the floor, as they chortled indelight at Jacks antics.

5. Doug and Pennys efforts to gain approval for their project were dashedby the chairmans indifference.

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Lesson 21

Personal PronounsCompare the following sentences.

Rolf twisted Rolf’s back when Rolf and Susan accidentally fell into Rolfand Susan’s pool.Rolf twisted his back when he and Susan accidentally fell into their pool.

Each italicized word in the second sentence is a pronoun, a word used inplace of a noun. The noun for which the pronoun is substituted is called theantecedent of the pronoun. Pronouns eliminate the necessity of repeating thesame noun, such as Rolf, again and again. In the preceding example, Rolf is theantecedent of the singular pronouns his and he, and Rolf and Susan are theantecedents of the plural pronoun their. A pronoun need not occur in the samesentence as its antecedent, and sometimes it may occur before the antecedent.

Kinds of pronouns. There are six kinds of pronouns: personal, reflexive orintensive, interrogative, relative, demonstrative, and indefinite.

Personal pronouns. Personal pronouns are used in place of personsspeaking (first person: I, we), persons spoken to (second person: you, yours), andpersons or things spoken about (third person: he, she, it, they). Personalpronouns change their forms depending on their function in a sentence. Theseforms are called case forms. There are three case forms: nominative, objective,and possessive. All personal pronouns reflect number (singular and plural), andthird-person singular forms indicate gender (masculine, feminine, neuter). Theforms are shown in the following table.

SingularNominative Objective Possessive Case Case Case

First person: I me my, mineSecond person: you you your, yoursThird person: he, she, it him, her, it his, her, hers,

its

PluralNominative Objective Possessive Case Case Case

First person: we us our, oursSecond person: you you your, yoursThird person: they them their, theirs

The possessive forms mine, yours, hers, ours, and theirs are used only when nonoun follows the pronoun.

Those are my books. Those books are mine.Which is your locker? Which locker is yours?

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ExerciseUnderline the personal pronouns in each sentence. Write the antecedent ofeach pronoun on the line provided.

1. Sandy, where did you put the lawn mower?

2. “I hope we can go to the golf course this weekend,” Fran said to Alex.

3. Mr. and Mrs. Johnson said they had just sold their old car.

4. Carlos asked Beth if she had seen his calculator.

5. “My grandfather will be celebrating his 100th birthday this month,” Carla

told Ann.

6. Steve tagged his bags and put them on the conveyor belt.

7. Tricia will be bringing a chicken and rice dish to the party. This is the

first time she has made it.

8. The president met with the visitors, and he let them take his picture.

9. Hertha read the novel Tess of the D’Urbervilles by Thomas Hardy when

she was a junior in high school.

10. When it was introduced to Europe by voyagers returning from the

Americas, the tomato was greeted with great suspicion.

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Lesson 22

Other Kinds of PronounsReflexive and intensive pronouns. Some personal pronouns can becombined with -self and -selves to form the reflexive or intensive pronounsshown in the following table.

Singular PluralFirst person: myself ourselvesSecond person: yourself yourselvesThird person: himself, herself, itself themselves

Reflexive pronouns indicate that the action of the verb is turned back onthe subject. Reflexive pronouns almost always come after the verb.

While he was building the fence, Sam cut himself on the barbed wire.After the hike we gladly bathed ourselves in the muddy stream.

Intensive pronouns are used after a noun or pronoun to add emphasis.

The president herself greeted the new employees.The construction itself was the cause of the tragedy.

Relative pronouns. A relative pronoun is a pronoun used to introduce adependent clause and to relate, or join, that clause to another word in thesentence. In each of the following examples, the dependent clause is printed initalics and the relative pronoun is in boldface. The arrow points out the wordto which the pronoun refers.

The woman who is wearing the hat gave the opening lecture.

The artist whom Glenn Hodges met in Venice is coming to Atlanta.

The Edsel, which people had originally laughed at, is now a classic car.

It is Chesapeake Bay, not its long bridge, that is worth seeing.

The relative pronouns are who (nominative), whom (objective), whose(possessive), which, and that. Which and that do not change form.

Interrogative pronouns. An interrogative pronoun is one used to askquestions. Who, whose, whom, which, what, and sometimes whoever and whatevercan be used as interrogative pronouns.

Who can act this part?Which pair of jeans fits you?What happened to Elsa?Whose bike was damaged?Whoever heard of such a silly thing?

Demonstrative pronouns. A demonstrative pronoun is used to identify orpoint out a particular person, place, or thing. This, that, these, and those aredemonstrative pronouns.

This is my dog.That belongs to the person who lived here before me.These worked fine, but those broke the first time I tried to use them.

Indefinite pronouns. An indefinite pronoun refers to one or more of anumber of persons or things.

Has anybody told Linda that her new car has been towed away?Karl smashed the box to be sure nothing was in it.

Common indefinite pronouns are listed below.

all either neither someanother everybody nobody somebodyany everyone none someoneanybody everything no one somethinganyone few nothing suchanything many one, oneselfboth most othereach much several

ExerciseRead the passage below. On your paper, list each pronoun and its antecedent.If there is no antecedent for a pronoun, write None. The passage containsfourteen pronouns.

Example: I became a lover of dried apricots recently. They make delicioussnacks. Unfortunately, small, chewy tidbits like these are tooeasy to eat one after another.

Answer: I—none; They—apricots; these—tidbits; one—tidbits;another—tidbits

A century ago, food was often contaminated and much was alreadyspoiled when it was sold. Today’s high standards of nutrition andcleanliness in food processing help guard against problems like these.Techniques for refrigerating, storing, and transporting perishable foodshave also been greatly improved. The health standards and techniques areboth largely due to the work of Dr. Mary Engle Pennington. She earned adoctoral degree in chemistry in the late nineteenth century. This was thedawn of the Progressive Era, a period that gave birth to widespread socialreforms. Among these were demands for better hygiene in food processing.By improving dairy and poultry processing and by designing betterrefrigerators, Dr. Pennington helped make perishable foods safer and morenourishing than any had been before. Several of the essential processes ofthe modern frozen-food industry were invented or developed by her.Nobody made a greater contribution to the vast improvement in nutritionfrom which so many benefit today.

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Lesson 23

Pronouns as Subjects and ObjectsNouns keep the same form whether they are functioning as subjects oras objects.

George called Gretchen last night.Gretchen called George last night.

Pronouns change according to the function they are performing in asentence.

He called her last night.She called him last night.

The form a pronoun takes in a given sentence is called its case. Pronouns havethree cases: nominative, objective, and possessive.

Pronouns as subjects. A pronoun that is used as the subject of a sentence(or as an appositive referring to the subject) is always in the nominative case.Nominative case forms of the personal pronouns are I, you, he, she, it, we, andthey.

Lavonne and she will represent our class. [Not her]Frank and I are bringing the ice. [Not me]Both waiters, Paul and he, tried to take our order. [Not him]

Pronouns as objects. A pronoun that is used as a direct object, an indirectobject, an object of a preposition, or an appositive referring to an object is inthe objective case. Objective case forms of the personal pronouns are me, you,him, her, it, us, and them.

Tom invited William Hallock and me on the cruise to Alaska. [Not I. Thepronoun is part of the compound direct object.]

Betsy rode west with Ike and her. [Not she. The pronoun is part of thecompound object of the preposition.]

Saying that they still looked hungry, the hostess gave Jill and them extra icecream. [Not they. The pronoun is part of the compound indirect object.]

I delivered the prizes to the winners, Sylvia and him. [Not he. The pronounis in apposition to the object of the preposition.]

We and us paired with nouns. The pronouns we and us are sometimespaired with nouns for emphasis or clarification.

We swimmers have protested the closing of South Avenue Beach.Nobody pays any attention to us students.

In sentences such as these the choice of pronoun is determined by the functionof the pronoun in the sentence. If you are uncertain about which form to use,cover the noun and read the sentence aloud.

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ExerciseUnderline the pronouns in each sentence. If the form of a pronoun isincorrect, write the correct form on the line to the left.

________ 1. On the second day of the term, all of us girls auditionedtogether.

________ 2. Him and Kristin are the stage managers.

________ 3. The special lighting effects were created by she and her staff.

________ 4. They and Bill painted the sets.

________ 5. Both stagehands, Linda and her, are better electricians thanthey are painters.

________ 6. Tom gave Bertie and I interesting jobs to do.

________ 7. Roger selected Ralph and he to run the box office.

________ 8. The seniors received most of the publicity, but us freshmen didmost of the work.

________ 9. Dean Hershey thanked both them and us for cooperating sowell.

________ 10. We put two juniors, she and Rick, in charge of therefreshments.

________ 11. Me and Linda practically stole the show.

________ 12. The audience divided its praise equally between she and I.

________ 13. After the show, Dad bought pizza for we chorus members.

________ 14. Me and him ate a whole pizza between us.

________ 15. Between you and I, I don’t think a better show has ever beengiven at North Union High.

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Lesson 24

Pronouns as Subject ComplementsThe dancer in the striped leg-warmers is she.In 1995 the outstanding senior athletes were she and Angie.

In standard English, pronouns that function as subject complements are in thenominative case and are interchangeable with the subject of the sentence.

She is the dancer in the striped leg-warmers.In 1995 she and Angie were the outstanding senior athletes.

When you are not sure if you have used the appropriate form of a pronoun ina subject complement, you can test your choice by trying the pronoun out asthe subject of the sentence.

In casual speech, objective forms are used as subject complements withincreasing frequency. But in careful speech and in writing, the nominativeforms are still the appropriate ones to use.

Written: It was he who brought the script to our attention.Spoken: It was him who brought the script to our attention.

A nominative form may sometimes sound unnaturally formal. One way toavoid this problem is to express the same idea in another way.

He was the one who brought the script to our attention.

It’s me. There is one exception to the general pattern for pronouns used assubject complements. People have used the expression It’s me (instead of themore formal It is I) for so long that it has become acceptable in standardEnglish. However, the forms It’s him, It’s her, It’s us, and It’s them, thoughcommonly heard in informal conversation, are not yet considered appropriate.

Exercise AChoose the pronoun in parentheses that is appropriate for written English.Write the correct pronoun on the line to the left of the sentence.

________ 1. The women on the food committee are Margaret and (she, her).

________ 2. Lester isn’t allowed to go to Seattle even if Daphne’s parents doaccompany (he, him) and Daphne.

________ 3. It might have been (he, him) who filed the complaint.

________ 4. The winners of the sack race were (he, him) and Loretta.

________ 5. Bonnie thought it was (we, us) who short-sheeted her bunk.

________ 6. Weren’t you and (they, them) the first guests at the party?

________ 7. Manuel said that he wouldn’t accept the presidency because (he,him) and the other officers would never be able to worktogether.

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________ 8. Was it William or (he, him) who fixed the drain in the sink?

________ 9. In our production, Cinderella’s two sisters were (she, her) andPenny.

________ 10. One might not think that the serious-looking young man in thatphoto from a 1957 high-school yearbook is Donald, but it’s (he,him) all right.

________ 11. Elizabeth asked Bobby and (I, me) to help her decorate the gymfor the school dance.

________ 12. It was (she, her) who thought of the theme for the dance.

________ 13. Yoguesh told (we, us) that he thought he would arrive at thebasketball game fifteen minutes late.

________ 14. The best guitar players in our class are Jaime and (I, me).

________ 15. It was (he, him) that first got me interested in playing rhythmguitar.

________ 16. Knowing that she should bring only one guest, Pauletta stillinvited Brad and (I, me).

________ 17. Ted thought that it was (we, us) who put the sign on thebulletin board.

________ 18. Vinnie or (he, him) will bring the thermos.

Exercise BMake up a one-paragraph story using sentence 5 from the preceding exerciseas your topic sentence. Include in your story at least three of the followingitems:

1. A personal pronoun used as part of a compound subject.

2. A personal pronoun used as part of a compound object.

3. We or us paired with a noun.

4. A personal pronoun as a subject complement.

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Lesson 25

Pronouns in ComparisonsComparisons that begin with than or as followed by a pronoun are oftenincomplete comparisons. You must complete the comparisons before you candetermine the appropriate pronouns to express your meaning.

Hank can’t swim as far as she.My Aunt Hillary is older than I.

The comparisons could be completed as follows.

Hank can’t swim as far as she can (swim).My Aunt Hillary is older than I am (old).

In the first sentence, the pronoun she is the subject of the verb in the clause asfar as she can swim. In the second sentence, the pronoun I is the subject of theverb in the clause than I am old.

Pronouns can also function as objects in comparisons.

The shirt looks better on José than me.

The comparison could be completed as follows.

The shirt looks better on José than it looks on me.

In this sentence the pronoun me is the object of the preposition on in theclause than it looks on me.

Sometimes the intended meaning of a sentence determines whether asubject or object pronoun is used. Read these sentences.

Sasha knows Rick better than we.Sasha knows Rick better than us.

Both sentences are correct, but they are different in meaning.

Sasha knows Rick better than we know Rick.Sasha knows Rick better than Sasha knows us.

In the first sentence, the pronoun we is the subject of the clause than we knowRick. In the second sentence, us is the object of knows.

ExerciseChoose the correct pronoun in parentheses to complete each sentence. Writethe correct pronoun on the line to the left of the sentence. In two of thesentences, either pronoun in parentheses could be used.

________ 1. Marci and Todd received a better grade on their joint artproject than (I, me).

________ 2. Dad has always liked Susan more than (I, me).

________ 3. Roland spent twice as much money as (she, her).

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________ 4. Rufus is beautiful; actually, there is no dog more beautiful than(he, him).

________ 5. That sweater is more attractive on you than (she, her).

________ 6. Jeff is faster than (I, me), but I’m more agile than (he, him).

________ 7. Lisa found the movie funnier than (we, us).

________ 8. Mrs. Shemanski is not as temperamental as (we, us).

________ 9. That old car runs better for Willy than (we, us).

________ 10. Did Mr. Vulich offer Kerry as good a job as (he, him)?

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Lesson 26

Using Who and WhomThe pronoun who changes its form according to its use. The nominative formswho and whoever are used when the pronoun is the subject or subjectcomplement.

Who caught the brass ring? [subject of caught]I don’t know who caught the ring. [subject of caught in the clause who caughtthe ring]We found the girl who caught it. [subject of caught in the clause who caught it]Do you know who she is? [subject complement of is in the clause who she is]

The objective forms whom and whomever are used when the pronoun is anobject or an object of the preposition.

Whom did the committee choose? [direct object of did choose]Mr. DeGroot would not reveal whom he preferred. [direct object ofpreferred in the noun clause whom he preferred]With whom did you go to the ceremony? [object of preposition With]The vendor from whom we buy the Sunday paper is expanding his business.[object of preposition from]

It is not always easy to figure out which form of who to use in a sentence.Sometimes words that come between who and the verb can cause you tochoose the wrong form. Interrupting expressions to watch for are she believes, Ithought, or does he think.

Mr. Lofton found a man who she believes is a reliable gardener. [Not whom.Who is the subject of the adjective clause who is a reliable gardener.]Hank is the gardener whom I thought she hired. [Not who. Whom is thedirect object of hired in the adjective clause whom she hired.]Who does he think he is? [Not whom. Who is the subject complement of is,not the object of does think.]

In recent years there has been a tendency in informal English to use thenominative form who at the beginning of a sentence regardless of whether thepronoun is being used as a subject or an object.

Informal: Who did the managers select? [Who is the direct object of didselect.]Who did you speak to? [Who is the object of the preposition to.]

Formal: Whom did the managers select?To whom did you speak? or Whom did you speak to?

When a preposition immediately precedes the pronoun, the objective formwhom is always used, even at the beginning of a sentence.

To whom did the manager give the award?From whom did you receive the prize?

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ExerciseComplete each sentence with the correct form of who.

1. put the hot sauce in Ms. Murphy’s chowder?

2. I think it is bad manners that she wants to know isgoing to the party before she responds to the invitation.

3. To do you wish to speak?

4. Shavondra is the one I thought they liked the most.

5. Frank is the only man belongs to the marchingcorps.

6. do you trust?

7. Kristin is the one on we pinned our hopes.

8. do you think will win the trophy?

9. will the board of governors select to represent us atthe games?

10. I intend to write a letter stating that the immigration officer from

we received our visas was not very cooperative.

11. We asked she had in mind for the post of Secretaryof Defense.

12. Nathan found a crew member he thought wasreliable.

13. For has this feast been prepared?

14. did you talk to at the conference?

15. Do you know Althea is building the cabinet for?

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Lesson 27

Pronoun AgreementIn standard English a pronoun agrees with its antecedent in person (first,second, or third), number (singular or plural), and gender (masculine,feminine, or neuter).

James brought an extra sandwich for himself. [third person singular,masculine] That desk has dust all over it. [third person singular, neuter] The girl next door brought her bike. [third person singular, feminine]The women lowered their voices. [third person plural]

Agreement with indefinite antecedents. In formal English, the masculineforms he, his, and him have traditionally been used to refer to antecedents thatmean either men or women or both men and women.

A good singer knows how to protect his voice.When you meet a new member, treat him courteously.

Some writers prefer to use he or she, his or her, and him or her in situationswhere the gender of the antecedent is not known.

A good singer knows how to protect his or her voice.When you meet a new member, treat him or her courteously.

In sentences where he or she seems clumsy and he alone is misleading, theproblem often can be avoided by rewording.

Good singers know how to protect their voices.When you meet a new member, be courteous.

Agreement with indefinite pronouns. Often the antecedent of onepronoun is another pronoun. Use singular pronouns to refer to the indefinitepronouns anybody, anyone, everybody, everyone, nobody, no one, somebody, someone,each, either, and neither when these forms have a singular meaning. In theseexamples, the antecedents of the boldfaced pronouns are italicized.

Someone left his coat on the bed.Everyone wants to have something he can call his own.

Some writers use plural pronouns in sentences like these when the indefinitepronoun refers to both men and women.

Is anybody taking their own equipment?Everyone wants to have something they can call their own.

Though common in informal conversation, this usage is inappropriate inwriting and formal speech. Sometimes a singular indefinite pronoun is usedwith a clearly plural meaning. In such situations, using a singular pronoun torefer to the indefinite can make a sentence nonsensical.

Nobody in class heard the bell because he was too busy reading.

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In such sentences it makes better sense to use a plural pronoun to refer to theindefinite.

Nobody in class heard the bell because they were too busy reading.

However, in formal English, when these indefinites are always treated assingular, the problem can be avoided by rewording.

Nobody in class heard the bell because everyone was too busy reading.

ExerciseCircle the pronoun or pronoun phrase that is correct for written English.

1. Neither of the women wanted (her, their) picture taken by the reportersoutside the courtroom.

2. Does anybody want (her, their) car washed?

3. No one likes to think (he is, they are) unloved.

4. If a member can’t be on time for the meetings, (he doesn’t, they don’t)belong in the club.

5. Everybody I know raves about the new restaurant, even though (he or shehasn’t, they haven’t) been there yet.

6. Nobody on this island will admit that (his, their) own life is in danger.

7. Each of my brothers told me what (he, they) did at camp.

8. Will somebody lend me (her, their) comb?

9. A thoughtful person will weigh all the alternatives before (he or shemakes, they make) a decision.

10. If someone asks about it, tell (him or her, them) to contact me.

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Lesson 28

Common Pronoun ErrorsBefore writing the final draft of any composition, check for two errors inpronoun usage often found in student writing: the use of they and you asindefinite pronouns and the misspelling of possessive forms.

They and you as indefinites. In informal English you is often used withoutan antecedent to mean “people in general.”

Modern technology can supply you with devices that help shorten timespent on household chores.

In formal English and in some writing, however, a person or one is generallyused.

Modern technology can supply a person with devices that help shorten timespent on household chores.Modern technology can supply one with devices that help shorten timespent on household chores.

Extensive use of one, however, can sound stilted and pompous.

Here at Mount Saint Mary’s Academy for Girls, one has a considerableamount of freedom in determining one’s individual schedule.

Many writers and speakers avoid this by substituting a noun and third personpronouns or by making the statement plural.

Here at Mount Saint Mary’s Academy for Girls, a student has aconsiderable amount of freedom in determining her individual schedule.Here at Mount Saint Mary’s Academy for Girls, students have aconsiderable amount of freedom in determining their individual schedules.

In informal speech they is sometimes used without a stated antecedent.

In 1980 they closed all the Iranian consulates in the United States.

In most circumstances a more specific statement is preferred.

In 1980 the federal government closed all the Iranian consulates in theUnited States.

Possessive forms. No apostrophe is used in writing the possessive formsmine, yours, his, hers, its, ours, theirs, and whose.

Don’t let that stray dog into the house until its fur dries a little.

Indefinite pronouns, like nouns, do have an apostrophe in the possessive form.

Someone’s raincoat is still hanging in Ms. Mudry’s classroom.

The possessive of the pronoun which may be either whose or the formal(and more clumsy), of which.

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A new blue sedan, whose doors were locked, blocked the alley.A new blue sedan, the doors of which were locked, blocked the alley.

ExerciseCircle the pronoun or pronouns in each sentence that are appropriate forstandard written English.

1. (Hers, Her’s) is the book with the torn cover.

2. I hope (your, you’re) dog’s bark is worse than (its, it’s) bite.

3. (Whose, Who’s) motorcycle did Gus borrow?

4. What they will do with the money is (anybodys, anybody’s) guess.

5. Along the fence were several rows of tulips (who’s, whose) bright colorsshone in the sunlight.

6. The house on the left is (theirs, their’s).

7. I’ve heard that (its, it’s) going to be a cold winter.

8. (Whose, Who’s) standing on my foot?

9. (Someones, Someone’s) glove has fallen under the seat.

10. (Ours, Our’s) is the boat with the striped sail.

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Lesson 29

Identifying VerbsIn a sentence, a verb either expresses action or it links the subject to a word orwords in the predicate. A verb that tells what action is taking place is called anaction verb. It can show either physical or mental action.

Fiona sprang off the diving board, twisted in the air, and somersaulted intothe pool. The crowd admired her clean dive.

The verbs sprang, twisted, and somersaulted show physical action. The verbadmired shows mental action.

Action Verbs (Transitive and Intransitive)Action verbs may be divided into two types, transitive and intransitive. A

transitive verb is one that expresses an action done to someone or somethingthat is named in the sentence.

Yesterday we dissected frogs in biology class.Mary Jane forgot her lines at the beginning of the second act.

In the first sentence, the action—dissecting—is done to the frogs. In thesecond, the lines receive the action (forgetting).

An intransitive verb expresses an action in which no receiver is named.

Cathleen DiPaulo lives in New York City.Peter cried at the news of the victory.

In the first example in New York City merely tells where Cathleen lives; there isno receiver of the action of the verb. Similarly, Peter cried could be complete initself: at the news of the victory adds additional information (tells why he cried)but does not receive the action of the verb.

Many action verbs can be either transitive or intransitive depending on thesentence in which they appear.

Roy worked the clay into a perfectly beautiful little bowl. [Transitive: Theword clay receives the action of the verb.]For years Roy worked in Coal Center, Pennsylvania. [Intransitive: There isno word that receives the action.]

Linking VerbsNot all verbs express action. A linking verb is a word that does not show

action; it joins a noun or pronoun with other words in the sentence thatrename or describe that noun or pronoun. Some of the more common linkingverbs are forms of be: am, are, is, was, and were. Other linking verbs includeseem, appear, feel, look, taste, smell, sound, and become.

He is the president.After breakfast, I felt rather ill.

Some verbs can be either action verbs or linking verbs depending on thesentences in which they appear.

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Linking: She grows more famous with each book she writes.Action: She grows rare orchids as a hobby.

Exercise ARead each sentence. Underline the action verb of each sentence. Tell whetherit expresses a mental or a physical action. Write M or P on the line to the left.

________ 1. Dennis ran the Boston Marathon two years in a row.

________ 2. Uncle Hector thought about his problem night and day.

________ 3. Giselle remembered the phone number just in time.

________ 4. Carlos cooked dinner for us during the entire vacation.

Exercise BRead each sentence. For each underlined verb, tell whether it is an action verbor a linking verb. Write A or L on the line to the left.

________ 1. In the United States, car pools were not popular until thegasoline crises of the late 1970s.

________ 2. By the light of the flickering candles, the figure appearsshadowy and mysterious.

________ 3. Angela bought four tickets for tomorrow night’s game.

________ 4. Our clients seemed happy with the first proposal.

________ 5. The sun momentarily blinded Seth’s vision.

________ 6. We were often fearful of earthquakes during our visit toCalifornia.

________ 7. Phillips and his men escaped to a remote island.

________ 8. At first, their situation looked hopeless.

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Lesson 30

Verb PhrasesA verb phrase consists of a main verb and one or more helping, or auxiliary,verbs. The main verb tells what is happening. It is always the last word in theverb phrase. The auxiliary verb or verbs precede the main verb and help itexpress meaning and tense.

Catherine had paid full price for the guitar.The thieves might have been watching the house for months.

Verbs often used as auxiliaries include those listed below.

do does did have has hadam are is was were be being beencan could will would shall should must may might

Some of these verbs may be used alone, as main verbs.

The team was overjoyed at the victory.I had tapioca pudding for dessert.

In a statement, one or more auxiliary verbs may come before the mainverb. Sometimes the auxiliary verb is separated from the main verb by anadverb or adverbial phrase. In a question, the auxiliary verb usually comes firstand is separated from the main verb by a subject.

Statement: Arlen is working at the yogurt shop.Statement: Arlen is still working at the yogurt shop.Question: Is Arlen still working at the yogurt shop?

Exercise A.Underline the verb phrase in each sentence.

Example: Jason Kim may have attended that seminar.Answer: Jason Kim may have attended that seminar.

1. Justin had warned his friend of the danger many times.

2. Our cat has been sleeping most of the day.

3. We will not ever forget your kindness.

4. May I see your passport?

5. Did you know Marshall from tennis camp?

6. Many species of birds have been spotted at our feeders.

7. Mrs. VuThuong is teaching cooking classes in her home.

8. I have not often seen a sunflower that tall.

9. Luckily for Donna, she did not forget the combination to the safe.

10. Would you help me with this geometry problem?

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Exercise BDraw one line under each auxiliary verb and two lines under each main verb.

Example: Could you please find a new box of staples for me?Answer: Could you please find a new box of staples for me?

1. Our library could eventually attract 20,000 patrons.

2. This mistake may well have cost the firm thousands of dollars.

3. I can now see the light at the end of the tunnel.

4. Poor visibility at the intersection has often caused accidents.

5. You should always use the best available resources.

6. Sean could barely contain his anger at the other driver.

7. Did anyone see the results of Holling’s experiment?

8. This errand will take about twenty minutes.

9. I would not order the fish at that restaurant again.

10. They must surely have finished by now.

11. One contestant had actually bought fifty raffle tickets.

12. Who might possibly be open at this time of the night?

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Lesson 31

Simple Tenses and Verb PartsTenses. Verbs change in form to indicate the time of their action. Someverb forms are made by changing the verb itself (dance to danced); other formsare made by adding an auxiliary verb to the main verb (will dance); still othersare made by changing the main verb and adding an auxiliary (are dancing). Thetime of the action indicated by a verb is called its tense. The forms of thesimple tenses are present, past, and future.

Present: Sheila dances well. She is dancing now.Past: I danced for two hours at the party. I was dancing with Sue most

of the time, but I did dance with Lil twice. I used to dance withKim.

Future: Burt will dance on a large float in the parade. He is going to danceon roller skates.

Verb parts. Verbs have four basic forms called principal parts. Theseprincipal parts are used to build tenses. They are the present, the presentparticiple, the past, and the past participle.

Present Present participle Past Past participlejump (is) jumping jumped (have, has, had) jumpedmove (is) moving moved (have, has, had) movedplay (is) playing played (have, has, had) playedtap (is) tapping tapped (have, has, had) tappedcarry (is) carrying carried (have, has, had) carried

The first form is the present. The second form, the present participle, isformed by adding -ing to the present. The present participle is used withforms of the auxiliary verb be, as in the verb phrases is jumping and are moving.Verbs formed from the present participle are sometimes said to be in theprogressive tense. Notice the spelling changes that can occur when -ing isadded.

The past and the past participle are usually made by adding -ed to thepresent form. Verbs forming their pasts and past participles in this way arecalled regular verbs. The past participle always requires an auxiliary verb, oneof the forms of have. Verbs whose principal parts are formed in other ways,such as fall, falling, fell, and fallen, are called irregular verbs.

ExerciseChange each underlined verb to the tense shown in parentheses. Write thecorrect form of the verb on the line.

Example: Deshaun was taking a test when the smoke alarms go off. (past)Answer: went

________ 1. Norman accompanies me to school. (past)

________ 2. Larry joins his golfing foursome today. (future)

________ 3. Both girls now admit that they cheated on the test. (presentparticiple)

________ 4. Fred said that he felt faint as I bait my hook with a worm. (past)

________ 5. The bus arrives at exactly four-thirty. (future)

________ 6. Kenneth locks up the winning lottery ticket minutes after theannouncement. (past participle)

________ 7. I knock on that door for fifteen minutes, and so far no one hasanswered. (past participle)

________ 8. Martha makes the most beautiful gingerbread houses for theholidays. (present participle)

________ 9. The Stanwoods prefer a room with an ocean view. (future)

________ 10. Enzo ran six miles before breakfast this morning. (pastparticiple)

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Lesson 32

Regular and Irregular VerbsRegular verbs. The past tense and past participle of most English verbs areformed by adding -ed or -d to the present tense.

Present tense Past tense Past participlework worked (have) workedjump jumped (have) jumpeddance danced (have) danced

Verbs such as these are called regular verbs. (The auxiliary have, inparentheses, is included with the past participle form to draw attention to thefact that the past participle, when used as a verb, is always accompanied by anauxiliary verb such as have, has, had, was, were, and so on.)

Irregular verbs. In forming the past tense and the past participle, someverbs do not follow the pattern of regular verbs. The past tense and pastparticiple of such verbs are formed in a variety of ways.

Present tense Past tense Past participlecling clung (have) clungcome came (have) comebring brought (have) broughtsing sang (have) sungburst burst (have) burstcost cost (have) cost

Verbs such as these are called irregular verbs. Their principal parts are formedby changing the vowels (cling, clung, [have] clung), or the final consonants (lend,lent, [have] lent), or both (bring, brought, [have] brought). A few irregular verbshave the same form for all three parts (burst, burst, [have] burst).

Exercise ARead each sentence. On the line, write the correct form of the verb tocomplete each sentence.

Example: The relay team (swim) a good race yesterday.Answer: swam

________ 1. Russell (hold) the mugger at bay while his friend Mario ran forhelp.

________ 2. First he washed his hands, then he (set) the table.

________ 3. Glenda (make) a lot of noise while she was cleaning up thekitchen last night.

________ 4. We (sell) the last television set just as the store was closing.

________ 5. I (buy) a new swimsuit before we went to the beach.

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________ 6. Yesterday our geography teacher (teach) us about Ireland withphotos from his Irish vacation.

________ 7. David (read) thirteen novels over last year’s summer vacation.

________ 8. When I was skiing down the mountain, I (lose) my glove.

Exercise BCircle the correct form of the verb for each sentence.

1. Before leaving home, Ilsa (put, putted) the dog in the backyard.

2. Duffy (thinked, thought) that he had hatched a clever plan.

3. Some winners have (choosed, chosen) to donate their prize money tocharity.

4. Two days before the graduation party, Lonnie (caught, catched) a terriblecold.

5. It has (took, taken) me three months to get permission to have the shedremoved.

6. We were surprised to hear that the bank had (lended, lent) Mona themoney for her new business.

7. The mail carrier had (brung, brought) nothing but bills for three weeks ina row.

8. Once she (found, finded) the main highway, Angela knew she would besafe.

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Lesson 33

Troublesome Irregular VerbsThe most troublesome of the irregular verbs are those whose past tense andpast participle forms are different.

Present tense Past tense Past participledo did (have) donego went (have) gonesee saw (have) seenrun ran (have) runcome came (have) come

Many of these verbs can be grouped by type. The examples in the followingthree groups include some of the most commonly used irregular verbs.

Verbs with past participles ending in -en. The following verbs have pastparticiples that end in -en.

Present tense Past tense Past participlebreak broke (have) brokenchoose chose (have) choseneat ate (have) eatenfreeze froze (have) frozengive gave (have) givenshake shook (have) shakenspeak spoke (have) spokensteal stole (have) stolen

Verbs such as ring and swim. The following verbs have identical vowelchange patterns consisting of i in the present tense, a in the past tense, and uin the past participle.

Present tense Past tense Past participlebegin began (have) begundrink drank (have) drunkring rang (have) rungswim swam (have) swum

Verbs such as draw and grow. The following verbs end in -ew in the pasttense and -n in the past participle.

Present tense Past tense Past participledraw drew (have) drawngrow grew (have) grownknow knew (have) knownthrow threw (have) thrown

Problems with verbs such as these usually result from either (1) using thepast participle in place of the past tense, or (2) using the past tense in place ofthe past participle. If you know the principal parts of a verb, you can avoid

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misusing the past tense and past participle forms by remembering that the pasttense is always used alone.

I saw the ad in yesterday’s newspaper. [not I seen]

Remember that the past participle is always accompanied by an auxiliary verb.

Cheryl has run her last race. [not Cheryl has ran]

Exercise AOn the line provided, write the correct form of the verb in parentheses.

Example: Felicia has (shake) that salad dressing already.Answer: shaken

1. When Neha dialed the emergency number, the police (come)

immediately.

2. Juan looked at the crumpled fender and asked who had (do) it.

3. Last summer’s vacation (cost) a small fortune.

4. John Paul took away the crayons before Joey had (draw) all over the wall.

5. No one (drink) the milk I bought last week.

Exercise BOn the line provided, write the appropriate past participle form of the verb inparentheses.

1. When Ricardo arrived, Debbie had already (choose) the music.

2. Your dog has (eat) all of the cheesecake!

3. Haven’t the ice cubes (freeze) solid yet?

4. Michael had never (speak) to me in that tone of voice before.

5. Captain Clark’s accusation made me angry because I’ve never (steal)

anything in my life.

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Lesson 34

Troublesome Verb PairsSome pairs of verbs are confusing because they have similar forms, similarmeanings, or similar spellings. Compare the verb pairs below and notice thesimilarities and differences in the principal parts of each pair.

Present Past Past participlelay laid (have, has, had) laidlie lay (have, has, had) lainset set (have, has, had) setsit sat (have, has, had) satlet let (have, has, had) letleave left (have, has, had) leftteach taught (have, has, had) taughtlearn learned (have, has, had) learnedbring brought (have, has, had) broughttake took (have, has, had) taken

Lie and lay.lie (lying, lay, [have] lain): to reclinelay (laying, laid, [have] laid): to put or to place

Lie on the bed for a while.Lay the pencil on your desk.

Sit and set.sit (sitting, sat, [have] sat): to occupy a seat or to seat oneselfset (setting, set, [have] set): to put in some place; to position

Sit down and tell me everything.Don’t set your glass on the piano.

Bring and take. If the direction of the action is toward the speaker, a form ofbring is used.

When Linda comes over, she usually brings popcorn.

If the direction of the action is away from the speaker, a form of take is used.

When Linda goes to the movies, she takes popcorn with her.

Learn and teach.learn (learning, learned, [have] learned): to acquire knowledgeteach (teaching, taught, [have] taught): to help learn; to give instruction

With Rosemary’s help, I learned how to change a tire.Rosemary taught me how to change a tire.

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Leave and let.leave (leaving, left, [have] left): to go away or to let remain in a particularconditionlet (letting, let, [have] let): to permit or to allow to pass, go, or come

Frank will leave at noon. Let me cut your hair.I left the door open. The usher let us in late.

ExerciseCircle the correct verb in parentheses to complete the sentence.

1. Lynn (sat, set) in the back seat for the whole trip.

2. I’d like to (learn, teach) her a thing or two about manners.

3. (Leave, Let) me help with the dishes.

4. Don’t forget to (bring, take) some money with you when you go.

5. A beetle (sat, set) on the top shelf.

6. Grandma Logan (learned, taught) me everything I know about canning.

7. When Gabriel came over last night, he (took, brought) flowers with him.

8. Kim (left, let) me go when I twisted her arm.

9. The logs (set, sat) unused for two weeks.

10. My cousins were never (learned, taught) the correct way to change a tire.

11. Seeing that the milk had turned sour, Helga (brought, took) it back toJulia Qualk’s store for a refund.

12. Ray (sat, set) under the apple tree.

13. (Leaving, Letting) Julian fix the rolls will solve one problem.

14. Missing the bus yesterday (learned, taught) me a good lesson.

15. (Bring, Take) that roast over here.

16. Just (sit, set) those antlers in the corner, please.

17. Lisa is being (learned, taught) mechanical drawing this term and moderndance in the spring.

18. If you (let, leave) her get away with this, she won’t do any housework nextweek.

19. Leon (brought, took) out baskets with him to the market, and he(brought, took) them back to us filled with berries.

20. Joan (sat, set) the money on the windowsill two days ago, and it has been(sitting, setting) there ever since.

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Lesson 35

SubjunctiveI wish Jason were here to help us.If I were President, I would cut the budget in half.Mom insisted that Burton be punished for his deeds.It is necessary that Rami take the exam to qualify for financial aid.

The italicized verbs in the preceding sentences are in the subjunctivemood. (Verbs have three moods: indicative, imperative, and subjunctive.) Weoften use the subjunctive mood automatically in set phrases such as “If I wereyou,” “Far be it from me,” and “Heaven forbid.” We also use it in motions: “Imove that the meeting be adjourned.”

There are three constructions in which the subjunctive mood is used informal English.

1) In wishes:

I wish my hair were a little darker.

2) In statements or conditions that are highly doubtful or contrary to fact:

If this bat were bigger, I could knock the ball out of the park.

3) In clauses beginning with that when such clauses come after verbs ofordering, insisting, asking, and requesting, and such expressions as it is necessaryand it was urged:

I insist that you be on time for the appointment.It was urged that Bill forget the incident.

In informal English the indicative mood is often used in wishes and instatements contrary to fact.

I wish my hair was a little darker.If this bat was bigger, I could knock the ball out of the park.

In both formal and informal English, the subjunctive mood can be avoidedin that clauses by expressing the same idea in another way.

You should be on time for the appointment.Bill was urged to forget the incident.

Wishes referring to past time. To show that a wish or statement contraryto fact refers to past time, the helping word had, not would have, is used.

I wish my hair had been a little darker when I had that picture taken. [notwould have been a little darker]If the bat had been bigger, I could have knocked the ball out of the park.[not would have been bigger]

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ExerciseUnderline the form of the verb in parentheses that is appropriate in formalEnglish.

Example: If the sky (was, were) green, do you think the grass would lookgreen, too?

Answer: If the sky (was, were) green, do you think the grass would lookgreen, too?

1. If anyone (would have, had) asked her, Allison could have cleared up themystery.

2. I wish the trail guide (were, was) here to help us.

3. If my car (was, were) two inches longer, it wouldn’t fit into this parkingspace.

4. The hostess insisted that Amit (takes, take) the last doughnut.

5. If Pat (had been, would have been) on time, we all would have seen theparade.

6. Sitting home alone, Alice wished that Todd (was, were) allowed to go outon weeknights.

7. All of us wish Mrs. Swenson (was, were) feeling better.

8. Annie acts as if she (was, were) in control of the project.

9. The police ordered that no one (is, be) allowed near the scene of theaccident.

10. The whales would have survived in captivity if they (would have been, hadbeen) fed the proper food.

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Lesson 36

Active and Passive VerbsWhen the subject of a verb tells who or what does the action, the verb is calledactive.

The trainer feeds the lions twice a day. [The subject, trainer, does theacting, feeds.]

When the subject of a verb names who or what receives the action, the verb iscalled passive.

The lions are fed twice a day by their trainer. [The subject, lions, receivesthe action, are fed.]

Whether the active form or the passive form of a verb is used in a sentencedepends on the idea to be emphasized. Active verbs are more common thanpassive verbs in most writing because they are more direct and forceful. Butpassive verbs are useful in two specific situations.

1) They are effective in sentences where the doer of the action is unknown,unimportant, or obvious.

The mysterious package had been left on our doorstep. [Who left thepackage is unknown.]Within two hours, all of the bargain dresses had been sold. [Who sold thedresses is unimportant.]

2) Passive constructions are effective in sentences in which the writer wants toplace the emphasis on the receiver of the action.

Four buildings were leveled by the blast. [Emphasis is on the buildings, noton the blast.]

Exercise AWrite A if the sentence is active or P if it is passive.

________ 1. Max and his uncle towed the car to a downtown garage.

________ 2. Lightning hit our house during last night’s storm.

________ 3. The opening remarks were made by the president of thecorporation.

________ 4. Most of the computers were moved by McMillan and SonsMoving Company.

________ 5. Why didn’t you call me with the news first thing this morning?

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Exercise BRewrite the sentences below, changing the passive verbs to active verbs.

Example: One mile is run by Bonnie every morning.Answer: Bonnie runs one mile every morning.

1. The candles were lit by Father after we were called to dinner by him.

2. A beautiful sweater was received by Kokila from her coworkers.

3. Dolphins can be taught by their trainers to jump through hoops.

4. When Linda cuts the grass, the power mower is used by her.

5. After the car was bought by Fred, it was driven home by him.

6. The song had been sung by us so many times that it was known by heart.

7. Streets that run north and south are cleaned by the city on Tuesdays.

8. Aunt Ruby was called and she was wished a happy birthday by me.

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Lesson 37

Subject-Verb AgreementIn grammar, agreement of subject and verb means that those two parts of thesentence match. A singular verb is used with a singular subject. A plural verb isused with a plural subject. Intervening phrases and subject complements maycause confusion in subject-verb agreement.

Intervening phrases. Agreement between subject and verb is not affectedby words or phrases that come between the subject and the verb. In a sentencein which the subject and the verb are separated, the subject and the verbshould still agree.

The briefcase behind those coats is mine.

The subject of the sentence is the singular noun briefcase, which agrees withthe singular verb is. The plural noun coats appears near the verb is but has noeffect on the number of the verb because coats is not the subject.

Similarly, phrases that contain singular nouns may come between a pluralsubject and its verb.

The advantages of a life of solitude outweigh the disadvantages.

The number of the subject is not affected by a parenthetical phrasebeginning with as well as, with, together with, along with, in addition to, oraccompanied by.

Coffee, as well as sugar and ground beef, has increased dramatically inprice in the last month.

Subject complements. In a sentence in which the subject and the subjectcomplement are different in number, the verb agrees with the subject, not thecomplement.

Coach Dickey’s main concern was the many errors committed by the team.[Errors is the subject complement.]The team’s many errors were Coach Dickey’s main concern. [Errors is thesubject.]

ExerciseUnderline the subject in each sentence. If the verb does not agree with thesubject, write the appropriate form of the verb on the line provided. If the verbis correct, write Correct.

Example: The bouquet of flowers are red, pink, and white.Answer: The bouquet of flowers are red, pink, and white. is

1. A machine with moving parts that are easy to replace are more desirable

for our operation.

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2. Expenses for the July trip down the Colorado River was not as much as

we had feared.

3. Aunt Ruth, along with Uncle Roy and Aunt Lourdes, is going to

represent the family at the wedding.

4. The motion in favor of holding the three dances were passed

unanimously.

5. Each discussion of the merits of part-time jobs convinces Bill that he

needs one.

6. Grandpa’s joy in life are his grandchildren.

7. That table laden with platters of meats, salads, and desserts bears the

weight easily.

8. The red books on the table by the window belongs to me.

9. Miguel, as well as his brothers, work part time in the variety store.

10. Our sofa, together with two end tables and the cane rocking chair, were

donated to the charity auction.

11. The woman with the two large shopping bags are getting into a

limousine.

12. This peak of the Rocky Mountains are popular for mountain climbing.

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Lesson 38

Agreement with Compound SubjectsSubjects joined by and. A plural verb is used with two or more subjectsjoined by and when the subjects refer to more than one person or thing.

A hammer and a wrench make a lot of repairs possible.Both Frank and Tony live on the hill.

A singular verb is used with a compound subject joined by and if the nounsjoined refer to only one person or thing.

Chips and salsa is the only bargain on the menu. [Chips and salsa refers toone item on the menu.]

Subjects joined by or, nor, either . . . or, or neither . . . nor. In formalEnglish, a singular verb is used with a compound subject joined by or, nor,either . . . or, or neither . . . nor when both parts of the compound are singular.

Either the state of Maryland or the District of Columbia is responsible for thedevelopment of this wildlife sanctuary.

In informal writing, however, plural verbs are often used if the subject is pluralin idea.

Informal: Neither Mother nor Father like the idea.Formal: Neither Mother nor Father likes the idea.

When the parts of a compound subject joined by or, nor, either. . . or, orneither . . . nor are plural, a plural verb is used.

Neither the teachers nor the students want classes to begin any earlier.

If one part of a compound subject is singular and the other part is plural, theverb agrees with the part that is closer to it.

Neither my friends nor Julio is interested in attending the meeting.Neither Julio nor my friends are interested in attending the meeting.

ExerciseOn the line provided, write the correct verb form for each sentence, based onformal written English.

1. Billy, Dedric, and I (am, are) planning a canoe trip.

2. A notebook and pen (constitutes, constitute) the only tools needed for

this class.

3. A map or a photograph of the region (makes, make) the surveyor’s work

easier.

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4. The owner and daytime supervisor of the station (is, are) Elsie.

5. Both sweat and pain (results, result) from hard physical training.

6. Neither rain, nor snow, nor sleet, nor dark of night (keeps, keep) the mail

from getting through.

7. Chandrise, Lisa, and she (plan, plans) to live in the dorm next year.

8. Sausage or steak (is, are) good for breakfast.

9. Neither pain nor agony (seems, seem) to distress him very much.

10. The tulips and daffodils (was, were) Laura’s only concern.

11. Cheese or pastries (was, were) offered for dessert.

12. Either our neighbor’s children or Sally (mows, mow) the lawn.

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Lesson 39

Inverted Word OrderUnusual word order in a sentence does not affect subject-verb agreement; theverb generally agrees with the subject whether the subject follows or precedesit.

Inverted word order for emphasis. In sentences in which the verb isplaced before the subject for emphasis, the presence of other nouns before theverb can be confusing. In such sentences, look for the subject and make theverb agree with it.

Included in the collection are three rare lithographs. [If it were notinverted, this sentence would read Three rare lithographs are included in thecollection.]Among the director’s faults is his tendency to lose composure at criticalmoments. [If rewritten in subject-verb order, the sentence would read Histendency to lose composure at critical moments is among the director’s faults.]

Questions. Questions may be worded so that all or part of the verb comesbefore the subject. In such sentences, remember that singular verbs are usedwith singular subjects and plural verbs are used with plural subjects.

Singular: Does the volume of my stereo bother you?Singular: Is the bass or the treble too loud?Plural: Have the Boyntons gone home yet?Plural: Were Mary and Franco at the party?

Here and there. The verb frequently comes before the subject in sentencesthat begin with here or there. Remember that in such sentences here and thereserve as introductory words; they are almost never the subjects, and they donot affect subject-verb agreement. Look beyond the verb for the subject andmake the verb agree with it.

Singular: Here is the latest directory of station managers.Plural: There are forty-six names in this year’s directory.

ExerciseUnderline the subject in each sentence. If the verb does not agree with thesubject, write the appropriate form of the verb on the line. If the verb iscorrect, write Correct.

1. Do the coach of those teams get a large salary?

2. Here are our complete list of new books.

3. Hidden from view by the dense foliage was a majestic buck and his mate.

4. Have Alicia or Don volunteered to make the punch?

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5. There is no excuse for those kinds of mistakes.

6. Among the guests at the reception were the new director of the

department and her husband.

7. Aren’t the governor or one of her aides going to speak at the convention?

8. There goes my last cent.

9. Included in the workers’ demands was a cost-of-living clause and

comprehensive benefits package.

10. Was Ted and his brother involved in the accident?

11. There stands the tallest trees in the forest.

12. In view of the circumstances, hasn’t Reggie and his family suffered

enough already?

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Lesson 40

Agreement with Special SubjectsPlural forms with singular meanings. A singular verb is used with asubject that is plural in form but singular in meaning. Nouns such as news,mumps, mathematics, semantics, and electronics look plural because they end in -s.Each of them, however, refers to a single thing.

What good news is on the radio this cold and gloomy morning?Mumps is a contagious disease.Mathematics has been my worst subject ever since third grade.Semantics was a popular course on campus last term.Many believe that electronics holds the key to the future.

Words of measure. In the following sentences, the subjects five minutes, tenpounds, four yards, and two miles are plural in form but singular in meaning.Each of them names a single item (an amount of time, a weight, an amount offabric, a distance). A singular verb is used with such words of measure whenthe meaning is clearly singular.

Five minutes is a ridiculously short time to spend on homework.I hated to admit it, but ten pounds was too much for me to lift.Is four yards of fabric enough to make that skirt?Two miles on foot is not to be taken lightly.

Titles. Titles, such as those of books, plays, magazines, newspapers, songs,paintings, and business firms, are considered a single unit, even when theycontain plural words. Therefore, when a title is used as the subject of asentence, it takes a singular verb.

The Los Angeles Times has all my favorite columnists.For fans of Dickens, Hard Times is a pleasant book for a Sunday afternoon.“Good Vibrations” was recorded by the Beach Boys in 1966.

Collective nouns. Nouns such as audience, class, committee, crew, faculty, team,and troop are called collective nouns. A collective noun names a group ofpersons or things. Collective nouns appear singular in form, but they can beeither singular or plural in meaning. When used as the subject of a sentence, acollective noun may take either a singular verb or a plural one, depending onthe meaning. A singular verb is used if the group is thought of as a unit.

The band leads every parade.Our faculty is well regarded in academic circles.

A plural verb is used if the members of the group are acting as individuals.

The band have been arguing among themselves for hours.The faculty take turns chaperoning the prom.

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ExerciseCircle the appropriate verb form for each sentence.

1. “The Brady Bunch” (is, are) an old favorite of many TV fans.

2. The jury (has, have) been debating among themselves all day.

3. Ten dollars (is, are) the price listed for all main floor seats.

4. Ninepins (resembles, resemble) bowling in many ways.

5. Appleby and Associates (handles, handle) all of our real estate dealings.

6. Mathematics (is, are) easy when Ms. Grogan is the teacher.

7. (Is, Are) three hours out of the week for volunteer work too much to askof you?

8. The audience (is, are) respectfully requested not to interrupt the musicwith applause.

9. News of the riot (has, have) affected ticket sales for their next concert.

10. Twenty pounds of ground beef (was, were) ordered for the choir cookout.

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Lesson 41

Agreement with Indefinite Pronouns and AdjectivesWords like each and everyone. The following indefinite adjectives andpronouns are singular: each, every, either, neither, everyone, everybody, anyone,anybody, someone, somebody, no one, and nobody. When used as subjects, they takesingular verbs. When a subject is modified by one of them, it takes a singularverb. In the examples that follow, the subjects are printed in italics and theverbs in boldface.

Everyone in the three classes has been given extra time to complete theassignment.Either of my brothers is available to drive you home.Every mother and father is expected to attend the meeting.Both men have requested extra pay, but neither is qualified to receive it.

Words like some, all, and any. Some words that refer to an indefinitenumber or amount can be either singular or plural, depending on the meaningintended. Words like some, all, any, more, most, and none, and nouns like half,part, and rest are singular in meaning when used to tell how much.

All of the food has spoiled.Most of the course repeats last year’s material.Some of the land has been planted in corn.

These words are plural in meaning when used to tell how many.

All of my friends are happy for me.Most of the people were pleased with the results.Some of the packages have been mailed early.

ExerciseIf the verb and subject agree, write Correct on the line. If the verb does notagree with its subject, write the correct verb on the line.

Example: Some of the batch of cookies are still in the tin.Answer: is [some of the batch tells how much]

________ 1. Everybody at Franklin High is excited about homecoming.

________ 2. Each of the classes are involved in the preparations.

________ 3. Anyone interested in helping out have been invited to sign upfor one of the two committees.

________ 4. Most of the work on the week’s activities have already begun,but we still have room for more volunteers.

________ 5. All tickets for the game and the dance were put on saleyesterday.

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________ 6. Neither of the events are sold out yet, but my friends havetickets for both.

________ 7. Most of the town support the team.

________ 8. Some of the stores are giving out homecoming buttons andpompoms.

________ 9. Everyone in the schools are excited about the proposedlegislation.

________ 10. Most of the graduates of Paschal High School plan to attendcollege.

________ 11. Either of the community center classes come highlyrecommended by the director.

________ 12. All of the bills have been paid this month.

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Lesson 42

One Special Agreement ProblemDon’t and doesn’t. In nonstandard English, don’t is frequently used in placeof doesn’t in situations where doesn’t is the appropriate verb form. To avoidconfusing these two contractions, keep in mind that don’t is used with thesubjects I and you and with all plural subjects.

I don’t think much of the idea.Don’t you want more?We don’t care if it rains.Mary and John don’t want to cause trouble.They don’t feel that it’s worth it.

But doesn’t—not don’t—is used with subjects that are third person singular.

Matt doesn’t like basketball.The door doesn’t open very wide.He doesn’t want much.She doesn’t leave home very often.Doesn’t it matter to you?

ExerciseRead each sentence. Complete the sentence with the proper verb form: don’tor doesn’t.

1. It really bother me at all.

2. My sister help with the housework.

3. I’m convinced that the team care about the game.

4. the long lines at the movies make you mad?

5. The buses run after midnight on Sundays.

6. Vanessa knows about the problem, but she want toget involved.

7. your parents know where you are?

8. He think the roses will survive the frost.

9. Why the phone ring?

10. Rodney know that it matter?

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Lesson 43

Identifying Adjectives and AdverbsAdjectives are words that modify nouns and pronouns, making the meaning ofnouns and pronouns more exact. Adjectives usually come before, but maycome after, the words they modify.

Four boys from that school bicycled to the old, run-down mill.They were nervous about the broken gears on the green bike.

Notice that in the second example nervous modifies the pronoun They. Whatwords do the other adjectives modify?

An adjective gives specific information about a noun or pronoun by tellingwhat kind, how many, or which one.

What kind: new buildings, clever students, fancy bicycleHow many: some words, two racers, many girlsWhich one: this song, that competition, those plants

Adjectives can be formed from certain words when suffixes such as -ful, -able, -less, or -ish are added to them.

peace + -ful = peaceful help + -less = helplessremark + -able = remarkable self + -ish = selfish

A word that is ordinarily a noun may be used as an adjective: table lamp,lion tamer. Some proper nouns can also be used as proper adjectives: Flag Dayparade, California sunshine. A proper adjective is an adjective formed from aproper noun. It is always capitalized and may contain more than one word.

Proper Noun Proper AdjectiveIreland Irish stewLatin America Latin American dances

Articles are special kinds of adjectives. The words a, an, and the appearbefore many nouns.

An adverb is a word that can modify a verb. When it does so, the adverbtells how, where, or when the action of the verb takes place. Notice theadverbs in the following sentences.

The lion walks slowly into the clearing.There he notices a herd of antelopes.The antelopes will immediately flee at the predator’s approach.

Slowly in the first example tells how the lion walks. There and immediately inthe next two examples tell where and when. Notice that the adverb can occurafter the verb, at the beginning of a sentence, or even in the middle of a verbphrase.

Adverbs can also modify adjectives or other adverbs by telling how muchor to what extent.

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A very noisy crowd watched.The lion roared quite fiercely.

The adverb very modifies the adjective noisy. It tells to what extent the crowdwas noisy. The adverb quite modifies the adverb fiercely. It tells to what extentthe lion roared fiercely.

Some adverbs are formed by adding the suffix -ly to adjectives.

Adjective Suffix Adverbeager -ly eagerlyquiet -ly quietly

However, not all words that end in -ly are adverbs. Some are adjectives: curly,lonely, lovely, friendly.

ExerciseCopy each italicized word on the line below the sentence. Tell whether theword is used as an adjective or an adverb.

1. Wordsworth, the English poet, tried to use simple language.

2. The Incas had a highly efficient postal system.

3. These paintings look rather similar.

4. Medieval knights could barely walk in that heavy armor.

5. Please return your overdue books by next week.

6. The crowd burst into noisy celebration.

7. Woolly mammoths may have died out fairly recently.

8. Polite travelers are seldom treated rudely overseas.

9. The car looked jaunty in its fresh yellow paint.

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10. The band came next, gaudy in their dress uniforms.

11. The wind is less strong than it was yesterday.

12. Cassandra was wholly absorbed in her experiment.

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Lesson 44

Making ComparisonsA modifier shows degrees of the quality named by that modifier. The simpleform of the modifier, in which no comparison is intended, is called thepositive degree. The form that compares one thing to another is called thecomparative degree. The form that compares three or more things is calledthe superlative degree.

Regular and Irregular Forms

Regular comparisons. There are two ways that the form of a modifier canbe changed to show a greater degree of the quality it names. The first is byadding -er or -est to the simple form.

Positive Comparative Superlativetall taller tallesthappy happier happiestsoon sooner soonest

The second is by putting more or most before the simple form.

Positive Comparative Superlativeeffective more effective most effectivefrequent more frequent most frequentquickly more quickly most quickly

The -er and -est endings are used with almost all one-syllable modifiers and formany two-syllable ones. More and most are used with some modifiers of twosyllables, with modifiers of three or more syllables, and with almost all adverbsending in -ly. But many modifiers, particularly those of one or two syllables,may be compared using either form. For such words, the form you choose maydepend on the emphasis you want. When the emphasis is on the quality namedby the modifier, the -er and -est endings are generally used. But when theemphasis is on the degree of the quality, more and most are often preferred.

The lions are quieter this afternoon. [emphasis is on the quiet]The lions are far more quiet than the tigers. [emphasis is on the degree ofquiet]

Less and least. To show a lesser degree of the quality named by a modifier,we put less before the simple form of the modifier for the comparative degreeand least for the superlative degree.

Positive Comparative Superlativefrequent less frequent least frequentquickly less quickly least quickly

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Irregular comparisons. Some adjectives and adverbs do not follow theregular patterns for making the comparative and superlative forms.

Positive Comparative SuperlativeAdjectives: bad worse worst

far farther farthest, furthestgood better bestlittle less, lesser leastmuch, many more most

Adverbs: well better bestlittle less leastmuch more most

Making Comparisons

Choosing the right degree. We generally use the comparative degree tocompare two things (people, objects, groups) and the superlative degree tocompare more than two.

Comparative: Both cats are fighters, but Sundance is tougher thanLittlefoot.

Superlative: Vikram is the strongest of the three wrestlers.

Expressing comparisons logically. The following examples and tips canhelp you express comparisons logically.

Illogical: The crossword puzzles in the Times are harder than the DailyReview. [Puzzles are being compared to a newspaper.]

Logical: The crossword puzzles in the Times are harder than those inthe Daily Review.

Illogical: Belinda likes strawberry ice cream better than any flavor shehas tasted. [Any flavor includes tomato.]

Logical: Belinda likes strawberry ice cream better than any other flavor[of ice cream] she has tasted.

Illogical: Puff is the smartest of any other cat on our street.Logical: Puff is the smartest of all the cats on our street.

Exercise AOn the line provided, write the appropriate comparative or superlative form ofthe modifier or modifiers in parentheses.

Example: Is Joel or his younger brother Christopher the (capable)?Answer: more capable

1. Raymond liked Aunt Lucy the (little) of all his relatives.

2. Who is the (striking) dresser—Sue Wagley or I?

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3. Among all the tables at the banquet, ours had the (lovely) flower

arrangement.

4. Of the two alternatives, which do you think is (good)?

5. To conceal his fears, Jerry tried to sound (cheerful) than usual, but that

only made matters (bad).

6. Jan is (friendly) than the other girls in my math class.

7. Mr. Rumple gave us three assignments, but I completed only the (easy)

one.

8. Is Lake Geneva’s water (clean) than any other lake in Wisconsin? If not,

which lake in the state has the (clean) water?

9. Of the two desserts, I like chocolate cake (much).

10. The (bad) experience Megan has ever had on a plane is the (little)

frightening of all the plane stories I’ve heard.

Exercise BThe following sentences contain illogical comparisons. Rewrite each sentence,making the comparisons logical.

Example: That is the tritest of any other remark Ariel has made.Answer: That is the tritest of all the remarks Ariel has made.

1. The mud on Patricia’s face took longer to wash off than her feet.

2. I like Adrian’s Chicken Kiev more than any chicken dish he makes.

3. Crime and Punishment is the most difficult of all the other novels assignedin that course.

4. Mrs. McLean is the most helpful of any other officer in the club.

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5. The geraniums do much better in the backyard than the windowsill.

Exercise C

Write a one-paragraph comparison of any of the following:

1. Your favorite musical group and other currently popular groups.

2. Today’s clothing styles and clothing styles of a few years ago.

3. Domestic automobiles and imported automobiles.

4. Your family and a “typical” family on TV.Include at least two modifiers in the comparative degree and two in thesuperlative degree.

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Lesson 45

Adjective or AdverbCompare the italicized words in the following pairs of sentences.

The whale looked sadly at us.In our opinion the whale looked sad.

We tasted the pie eagerly.The pie tasted delicious.

Words such as look, taste, appear, act, feel, grow, smell, and sound can be usedeither as action verbs or as linking verbs.

When used as action verbs, they are often followed by adverb modifiers.

We all looked joyfully at the new meeting hall.The hungry dog sniffed hopefully around the tightly closed garbage cans.Everybody in our class agreed that Laurie acted the part of Pandora verynicely.

When these words are used as linking verbs, the modifier that follows is anadjective used as a subject complement.

During the service all of us felt joyful about the future. [not joyfully]Hendricks sounded hopeful when he announced that fresh troops were onthe way. [not hopefully]Laurie acted nice even though she was furious at Mrs. Crenshaw. [notnicely] [Here the meaning of acted is “seemed” or “pretended to be” ratherthan “performed.”]

When you are uncertain whether to use the adverb form or the adjectiveform of the modifier after verbs such these, first determine whether action isbeing expressed. If action is being expressed, use the adverb. If the verb isbeing used to link the subject with a complement, use the adjective.

ExerciseCircle the form of the modifier in parentheses that is appropriate in formalEnglish.

1. Through the dense fog, Martin drove (careful, carefully) back to SanFrancisco.

2. The water lapped (calm, calmly) against the weathered piers.

3. After hearing what time it was, June ate (rapid, rapidly).

4. After the serious misunderstanding with her parents, Misty felt (strange,strangely) about returning to the city.

5. The coffee smelled (bitter, bitterly) when Sophie poured it.

6. Don’t some people’s voices sound (weird, weirdly) over the phone?

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7. Based on her experience of the past few weeks, she looked (skeptical,skeptically) when Tom promised not to be late.

8. All of us felt (bad, badly) about losing the debate.

9. Don’t take their complaints so (serious, seriously).

10. I thought Henrietta Smith’s reindeer stew might taste (peculiar,peculiarly), but it was absolutely delicious.

11. Anastacio sounds (impressive, impressively) even when he doesn’t makemuch sense.

12. Can you sound your f’s and v’s more (distinct, distinctly)?

13. The (fresh, freshly) green boughs smelled (wonderful, wonderfully).

14. Kelly’s tone grew more (nasty, nastily) with each accusation.

15. Toni behaved very (rude, rudely) when we met for coffee last Thursday.

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Lesson 46

Problem Modifiers (good, well, bad, badly) People often confuse good and well and bad and badly. Good and bad areadjectives, and well and badly are adverbs.

The adjective good is used to modify a noun or pronoun. Do not use it tomodify a verb. Use the adverb well to modify a verb.

Don’t write: Terrence sings good.Write: Terrence sings well.Don’t write: He also plays the mandolin good.Write: He also plays the mandolin well.

In the first pair of sentences, the adverb well modifies the verb sings. In thesecond pair of sentences, well modifies plays.

Use the adjective bad to modify a noun or pronoun. Use the adverb badly tomodify a verb.

Don’t write: Lin’s car was smashed bad in an accident.Write: Lin’s car was smashed badly in an accident.Don’t write: Was Lin or the other driver hurt bad?Write: Was Lin or the other driver hurt badly?

In the first pair of sentences, the adverb badly modifies was smashed. In thesecond pair of sentences, the adverb badly modifies hurt.

Remember that the adjectives good and bad, not the adverbs well and badly,are used after linking verbs.

Marissa looked good in her costume for the play. (not well)Mr. and Mrs. Gonzales felt bad about missing the play. (not badly)

One exception: After a linking verb such as feel, the word well is used as anadjective to mean “in good health”: I feel well now that I’m over that cold. Usethe adjective good after feel to mean “in good spirits”: I felt good when mysister won first prize.

ExerciseCircle the correct adjective or adverb from the words in parentheses.

1. If Darcy could hit as (good, well) as she pitches, our team would beunbeatable.

2. That old meat slicer is working (bad, badly), so I’ll get it fixed or buy anew one.

3. Finishing all that work on time makes me feel (good, well).

4. Willie looks as though he doesn’t feel very (good, well).

5. Unfortunately, the fund-raising activity for the school band was (bad,badly) run.

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6. Only one of the suits that I tried on fits (good, well), and it costs threetimes what I planned to spend.

7. This strawberry shortcake doesn’t store very (good, well), so please have asecond helping now.

8. How (bad, badly) do you think Chester wants this salary raise?

9. Virginia didn’t think she had done very (good, well) on her midterm, sothe A she got on it looks especially (good, well).

10. Joan sings (good, well) enough to be in the senior chorus.

11. Josefina felt (bad, badly) for Tahnee when she didn’t make the volleyballteam.

12. I slept (bad, badly) on the night my cat, Ringo, was missing.

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Lesson 47

Using Negative WordsThe use of two negative words in the same clause to convey the meaning “no”or “not” is called a double negative. Only one negative word is needed.Negative words include neither, never, no, not, nothing, nobody, none, nowhere,and the contraction n’t, the shortened form of not.

Read the examples below for ways to correct double negatives.

Incorrect: He couldn’t do nothing right.Correct: He could do nothing right.Correct: He couldn’t do anything right.

Incorrect: We haven’t had no rain for a month.Correct: We have had no rain for a month.Correct: We haven’t had any rain for a month.

As you can see, the sentences were corrected by dropping one of the negativewords or by changing one negative word to a positive word. Positive wordsthat can be substituted for negative words include any, anything, anybody,anywhere, either, and ever.

Negative words that do not begin with the letter n, such as hardly, barely,scarcely, and without, are somewhat harder to catch. But they should not beused with another negative word either.

Incorrect: Hardly nobody wanted to have a picnic.Correct: Hardly anybody wanted to have a picnic.

Occasionally three negatives are incorrectly used together.

Incorrect: Mitch shouldn’t never count on nothing at all.Correct: Mitch shouldn’t count on anything at all.Correct: Mitch should never count on anything at all.Correct: Mitch should count on nothing at all.

Exercise ACircle the form in parentheses that correctly completes the sentence.

1. Clayton knew there (was, wasn’t) no bread in the pantry.

2. When we were young, we never thought (nothing, anything) aboutwalking two miles to school.

3. John was able to win the spelling contest with hardly (no, any) thought.

4. I don’t know (anything, nothing) about repairing racing bicycles.

5. Sherrie doesn’t have (no, any) time to go to the movies until she finishescleaning her room.

6. He was able to go to Florida without (no, any) help from his parents.

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7. I (could, couldn’t) barely hold my head above water.

8. The girls (can, can’t) hardly wait until spring vacation.

Exercise BRewrite the following sentences to eliminate double or triple negatives. Whenpossible, rewrite the appropriate sentences two ways.

1. We can’t open no office without no customers.

2. Jesse was so nervous he couldn’t hardly speak.

3. Don’t you never think about taking a vacation?

4. Mrs. Paulos doesn’t have hardly enough sugar for the recipe.

5. Albert doesn’t have no time for bowling since he started training dogs.

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Lesson 48

Participles and Participial PhrasesA participle is a form of a verb. You may recall that present participles endwith -ing and most past participles end with -ed. The past participles of thefirst three verbs in the chart have regular endings. The last three do not; theyare irregular.

Present tense Present participle Past participlejump jumping jumpedtalk talking talkedanticipate anticipating anticipatedbite biting bittenblow blowing blownhold holding held

A participle can be used with an auxiliary verb to form a verb phrase. Aparticiple is also used, without an auxiliary verb, as an adjective to modify anoun or pronoun. Read these sentences.

The runner is jumping the hurdles.The jumping runner tripped.

In the first sentence the present participle jumping is part of the verb phrase isjumping. In the second sentence jumping is used as an adjective to describe thenoun runner.

Since participles are verb forms, they can take objects, complements, andmodifiers. A participle together with these other words forms a participialphrase.

Jumping over a hurdle, the runner tripped.Finding himself alone in the room, Jerome waited nervously.Steve Taylor, looking handsome and dapper in his new cream-coloredsuit and white patent leather shoes, might have stepped out of the pagesof a 1920s novel.

Absolute phrases. An absolute phrase, sometimes called a nominativeabsolute, differs from other participial phrases in that it modifies a noun orpronoun within the phrase itself. Compare the following phrases.

Having paid my bill, I buttoned up my coat to leave.—participial phraseThe bill having been paid, I buttoned up my coat to leave.—absolute phrase

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ExerciseUnderline the participle. On the line below the sentence write the word itmodifies. If any sentences contain absolute phrases, write absolute phrase.

1. Rotting potatoes give off a choking, sulfurous odor.

2. The admitting clerks at the hospital dislike the new forms.

3. Have you seen three boys pushing a piano down the street?

4. Her bags packed, Amy waited for the taxi.

5. The camp cook soon had chili simmering in the blackened kettle.

6. Our teacher being absent, we got to do our homework.

7. With increased practice, Richard L. Coutant soon mastered the triplesomersault from the high trapeze.

8. Mr. Provo pedaled down the middle of the path, his bicycle wobblingperilously.

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Lesson 49

Gerunds and Gerund PhrasesGerunds. A gerund is a verbal that ends in -ing and functions as a noun. Itis easy to confuse a gerund with a participle or participial phrase, as both endin -ing. However, a participle or participial phrase cannot be used as a noun. Agerund can be used anywhere in a sentence that a noun can be used.

Skiing was invented by prehistoric hunters. [subject]Pamela gave swimming and studying equal attention.[compound indirect object]Buck thinks golfing the best sport. [direct object]Water can be purified by boiling. [object of preposition]The best part of our visit was leaving. [subject complement]

A gerund can be made up of more than one word, the first of which is alwaysan -ing form.

Being beaten was no way to celebrate homecoming.Having been robbed made me wary of strangers.

Gerund phrases. Mixing with strangers is very difficult for some people.

In the preceding sentence the italicized group of words is a verbal phrase.The phrase in the sentence contains a verbal, and that verbal—together withthe other words in italics—acts as a subject of the sentence. A gerund phrase,then, consists of a gerund with its modifiers and complements, all of whichfunction together just as a noun would.

Here are some examples of other ways gerund phrases can function.

Ensign Jill Ratica’s duties included monitoring the pressure gauges. [directobject]Garfield’s employer praised him for being a hard worker. [object ofpreposition]Consuela’s specialty is working with senior citizens. [subject complement]His crime, telling secrets to the enemy, almost cost us the war. [appositive]

Exercise AUnderline the verbals or verbal phrases. On the line, write whether each verbalis a participle or a gerund.

1. Practicing on the violin for hours after school leaves Vickie little time forrelaxing.

2. Filling the baskets with heavy stones is tiring work.

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3. Hurrying to the railroad station, Brett experienced a series of upsettingincidents.

4. Filling the baskets with heavy stones, Hamilton grew stronger with everyday of work.

5. Feeling his way along the stone wall in the dark scraped and bruised Mr.Timlin’s hands quite badly.

6. Mandy passed the club’s initiation test, threading a needle in a dark room.

7. Feeling his way along the stone wall in the dark, Mr. Timlin at lastdiscovered an iron gate.

8. Walking every day up the steep hillside to the spring and carrying twobuckets of water back to his family’s cabin had given the marathon runnerstrong lungs and tireless legs.

9. Making very little noise, the newfangled steam engine was pumping waterfrom the mine shaft at the amazing rate of five gallons a minute.

10. Unfortunately, my monkey’s only trick is jumping off his swinging perchinto the rubber plant.

Pronouns and nouns with gerunds. A pronoun or a proper nounimmediately preceding a gerund is usually possessive. In the examples thatfollow, the noun or pronoun is in italics and the gerund is in boldface.

I hope that my hammering didn’t disturb anyone.Your going has left all of us lonely.

But when a common noun precedes the gerund, usage varies.

Incorrect: Grandfather and our older aunts and uncles enjoyed my cousinplaying the banjo at Camilla’s wedding reception.

Correct: Grandfather and our older aunts and uncles enjoyed mycousin’s playing the banjo at Camilla’s wedding reception.

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When a plural common noun precedes a gerund, the ordinary form of thenoun is used.

Did you know about both my sisters winning honorable mention in thepiano competition? [not sisters’]

Sometimes, in order to convey a specific meaning, you may want toemphasize the pronoun or noun rather than the gerund. In such situations usethe objective form of the pronoun and the ordinary form of the noun.

I can’t imagine him hurting anyone. [emphasis on him]I can’t imagine Skippy hurting anyone. [emphasis on Skippy]

Exercise BRead each sentence. Write Yes if the italicized pronoun or noun isappropriate. If it is not, write the appropriate form on the line provided.

________ 1. The people in the seats around me did not appreciate mysinging along with the star.

________ 2. Wilma never ceases to be amazed by you swimming everymorning at sunrise.

________ 3. We weren’t sure how Helen and Patrice felt, but we knew thatHarry endorsed Robert’s running for Congress.

________ 4. Although she is a very charitable person, Claire was not pleasedabout him winning the award.

________ 5. The team’s jogging a mile a day helped increase endurance.

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Lesson 50

Infinitives and Infinitive PhrasesInfinitives. An infinitive, the form of a verb used with to, can function aseither a noun or a modifier.

To refuse is foolish. [noun, subject]The last gymnast to perform injured herself. [adjective, modifying gymnast]Kathy took the lessons to learn even more about Irish history. [adverbmodifying took]

Infinitives may contain the auxiliaries be and have.

Deion asked to be dismissed.That work was to have been finished.

Infinitive phrases. An infinitive phrase consists of an infinitive with itsmodifiers and complements. The entire phrase can function as either a nounor a modifier.

Stuart didn’t want to fail either course, chemistry or geology.

Here is another example of an infinitive phrase used as a noun.

Loretta is trying to do her homework. [direct object]

The sentence below contains an infinitive used as a modifier.

Kathy took the lessons to learn even more about Irish history. [adverbmodifying took: the infinitive gives the reason]

Distinguishing infinitives from prepositional phrases. The italicizedphrases in the following sentences all begin with to, but only the first is aninfinitive phrase. The other two are prepositional phrases.

Caroline worked all week to prepare her bicycle for the race.We went to a boring party last night.Tad’s friends often come to him for advice.

Infinitives with subjects. In the sentences that follow, the direct object ofthe verb is the infinitive plus its subject. The subject, here printed in boldface,performs the action of the infinitive, which has been printed in italics. In thisconstruction, if the subject is a pronoun it must appear in the objective case.

John wanted us to return all the merchandise.

Infinitives with subjects often occur after the following verbs:

persuade ask command allow believe expectteach beg order enable consider liketell request send permit know want

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The infinitive without to. Sometimes an infinite does not contain theintroductory word to. This form of the infinitive (often called the simpleinfinitive) appears after the prepositions but, except, and besides.

He didn’t do anything but [to] complain.

The infinitive without to also follows the verbs help, let, make, need, and dare, aswell as verbs of the senses (such as feel, hear, watch).

Exercise AUnderline the infinitives or infinitive phrases. On the line, write whether itfunctions as a noun (N), an adjective (ADJ), or an adverb (AD).

________ 1. Luis used all his strength to haul the shark onto the deck.

________ 2. Despite her quiet manner, Carline Vandergrift is not a person tobe ignored.

________ 3. Dolphins evidently like to play with divers.

________ 4. There is no reason to disbelieve Paul’s story.

________ 5. The archaeologist’s desire to illuminate the past was forgottenin her greed for gold.

________ 6. Admirers thronged around to congratulate the ballerina.

________ 7. The first sailor to be rescued from the flaming tanker thankedthe pilot and crew of the helicopter.

________ 8. Marshal Gorelik wanted to pursue the enemy.

________ 9. The rebel leader was condemned to a terrible fate—to belocked forever in an iron mask.

________ 10. Debra’s plan to learn and to demonstrate Stone Age methods oftool-making was enthusiastically approved by her history teacher.

Exercise BFor each infinitive in the list, write three sentences. In the first sentence, usethe infinitive as a noun; in the second, use it as an adjective; and in the third,use it as an adverb. You may use infinitive phrases.

Example: to dryAnswer: To dry that blouse in the sunlight might fade it.

Hal’s offer to dry the dishes every evening for two weeks was nottaken seriously.Arnie used his new handkerchief to dry the bench.

1. to gather

2. to learn

3. to buy

4. to scream

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Lesson 51

Combining Sentences with ModifiersWhen two or more sentences contain the same subject or predicate, theirmodifiers can often be combined.

The bear is brown. The bear is shaggy. The bear is clumsy.

The bear is brown, shaggy, and clumsy.The clumsy brown bear is shaggy.The shaggy brown bear is clumsy.

When the three adjectives brown, shaggy, and clumsy are combined in the firstsentence, they have equal emphasis. The second and third sentences show thatadjective modifiers can be combined in other ways. When they are separated,the adjective that follows the linking verb is usually emphasized.

Adverb modifiers can also be combined.

The bear moved slowly. It moved awkwardly. It moved heavily.The bear moved slowly, awkwardly, and heavily.

Phrases can be combined as modifiers as well. Notice how theprepositional phrases are combined in the following sentences.

The bear lumbered through the woods. The bear lumbered into thecampground.The bear lumbered through the woods and into the campground.

An adverb can also be combined with a preposition.

The bear stood alertly. The bear stood beside a tent.The bear stood alertly beside a tent.

ExerciseOn the lines below, rewrite the sentences, combining adverbs, phrases, andprepositions as modifiers.

1. He was experienced in boating. He knew how to sail our boat.

2. The policeman was busy. He was investigating an auto accident. He wasinvestigating for the police department.

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3. Patrick sat in the reclining chair. He fell asleep immediately.

4. Antoinette whispered in my ear. She whispered so no one else would hear.

5. His study proved that a minority of people vote. It also proved that mostpeople don’t know what the issues are.

6. We lived in Boston for five years. Then we moved to Florida.

7. We went to the theater in a cab. We returned home in a cab.

8. The doctor walked down the hospital hallway. He entered the patient’sroom.

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Lesson 52

Prepositions and Prepositional PhrasesWhat Prepositions Do

A preposition is a word used to show the relationship of a noun orpronoun to some other word in the sentence. That noun or pronoun, whichalways comes after the preposition, is called the object of the preposition.The preposition, its object, and any words that modify the object make up theprepositional phrase.

The words listed here are among the more commonly used prepositions.Notice that a preposition may be made up of more than one word.

above behind from overafter between in througharound by in front of tillat down of tobecause of for on with

Exercise AWrite the preposition or prepositions in each sentence on the line. The figuresin parentheses tell how many prepositions each sentence contains.

1. The train for Calgary left an hour behind schedule. (2)

2. The quarrel among the actors started during rehearsal. (2)

3. As a child the trumpeter had discovered a battered bugle underneathsome old clothes piled inside a musty closet. (3)

4. Under the pen name A. M. Barnard, Louisa May Alcott wrote stories ofmystery and horror. (2)

5. Every day from the end of school until dusk, the child practiced tennisagainst a playground wall. (4)

Prepositional Phrases: Adjective and AdverbPrepositional phrases function as single units, usually as modifiers.

Kit bought the diary with the green silk cover.Ariana rested in the hammock.

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In the first sentence the prepositional phrase tells which diary. Because itmodifies a noun, the phrase is working as an adjective. In the second sentencethe prepositional phrase tells where Ariana rested. Because this phrase modifiesa verb, it functions as an adverb.

Exercise BEach of the following sentences contains one prepositional phrase. Underlinethe phrase and on the line to the left of the sentence, write whether it serves asan adjective (ADJ) or an adverb (AD).

________ 1. The mansion on the proposed highway route is a landmark.

________ 2. The Azores Islands were settled before Columbus’s birth.

________ 3. That critic’s opinion of modern music is prejudiced.

________ 4. Famous authors may hide minor works behind pen names.

________ 5. Boneshakers were early bicycles with huge front wheels.

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Lesson 53

Preposition or Adverb?Because many words can be used either as prepositions or as adverbs, andbecause both prepositional phrases and adverbs are often placed near verbs, itis sometimes difficult to distinguish between these two parts of speech. Oneway is to look for words that could be objects of a preposition.

Preposition: A monorail runs around the entire nature preserve. [Theobject of around is preserve.]

Adverb: Blocked by the chasm, the climbers turned around wearily.[Around is followed by another adverb, not by an object.]

Another test is to try separating a word from those that follow it. If it is apreposition, it will not make sense without its object; if it still makes sensewhen moved, it is probably an adverb.

Adverb: The naval cadets had never climbed a mast before.Shifted: The naval cadets had never before climbed a mast.

ExerciseOn the line next to the numbers below the passage, tell whether each word initalics is being used as a preposition or an adverb. There are twentyprepositions and five adverbs.

Example: An English team (1) under Robert Falcon Scott reached thesouth Pole (2) soon (3) after the Norwegian Amundsen.

Answer: 1. preposition2. adverb3. preposition

The British explorer Sir Ernest Shackleton and two companions onceslid three thousand feet (1) down an ice cliff. The cliff stretched (2) across eachmountain pass they tried to climb (3) over. They were seeking help (4) for theother members of Shackleton’s 1914 expedition (5) to Antarctica. Originally,this group had planned to march (6) through the entire frozen continent, acrossing no one had attempted (7) before. But six weeks after they entered theicy Weddell Sea, the channels froze and their ship, Endurance, was locked (8)inside. (9) By July, 1915, ice had crushed the hull and the ship began to slide(10) beneath the ice floes. (11) During the next nine months, the crew driftedalong (12) with the ice pack or laboriously hauled three lifeboats (13) overjagged floes. April of 1916 found the exhausted explorers camped (14) onElephant Island. Shackleton and five others, (15) in a frail twenty-two footopen boat, braved eight hundred miles of stormy ocean (16) betweenElephant Island and the nearest inhabited island, South Georgia. Seventeendays later, they had somehow sailed (17) across, beaching their boat (18) uponthe deserted south coast of South Georgia. But eighteen miles of unchartedmountains still separated them (19) from potential rescuers. (20) Among thesepeaks Shackleton and his two companions encountered the unclimbable ice

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cliff. They coiled their climbing rope (21) beneath them (22) as a sled anddesperately launched themselves (23) downward. Miraculously, (24) instead ofsudden death they suffered mere scrapes and bruises. A few hours later theytottered (25) into Stromness Bay and safety.

1.

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Lesson 54

ConjunctionsTypes of Conjunctions

The word junction means a joining. The purpose of conjunctions is to joinwords or word groups in a sentence. To join words or word groups that dosimilar work in a sentence, we use coordinate conjunctions like and, but, or,nor, yet, for, and so.

Orlando and Kathleen are friends. [joins two nouns]The road is muddy yet passable. [joins two adjectives]The river flows into the swamp but not out of it. [joins two prepositionalphrases]We left the fair, for we were worn out. [joins two clauses]

Correlative conjunctions are conjunctions used in pairs.

We’ll camp either in Yosemite or in Yellowstone next year.His part of the program was both interesting and brief.She wrote not only a novel but also a book.

Subordinate conjunctions are used to link subordinate clauses with the mainclauses that they refer to.

The nurse came as soon as the patient cried out.No one should use that bridge unless it is reinforced.

Among the most common subordinate conjunctions are:

after because since unlessalthough before though whereas how till whilethat if when whyas long as so that

Conjunctive AdverbsSometimes certain adverbs serve as conjunctions that join separate

statements by indicating the relationship between those statements. Adverbsare called conjunctive adverbs and frequently come after semicolons.

The neighbor’s dog howled all night; consequently, I didn’t get much sleep.[indicates a cause-effect relationship]

Other common conjunctive adverbs are accordingly, at last, besides, finally,furthermore, however, later, moreover, next, nonetheless, now, otherwise, still, then,and therefore.

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ExerciseEach numbered blank in the following passage represents one word. Write asuitable conjunction or conjunctive adverb in each blank.

Example: Leaders of search teams face a constant struggle to maintaingroup coordination (1) still stimulatingindividual creativity.

Answer: while

Many important devices were developed almost simultaneously by several

people working on their own (1) along similar lines. For instance, credit for creating the first recognizable typewriter belongs to

(2) an American and a Frenchman. Moreover, in 1714, acentury before their work, an Englishman named Henry Mill built what may

have been a primitive typewriter (3) might as easily have

been a stenciling machine. Neither a model (4) an

illustration of this device remains; (5) , it is impossible to

tell exactly what Mill patented. Such a history is typical of older inventions,

whether we consider the lead pencil (6) the printing press. One reason for this situation is an inventor’s natural desire for secrecy in

order to frustrate rivals (7) to protect patent rights. Another explanation is that in the past inventors could not easily keep up with

each other’s work (8) news traveled very slowly. But today most inventions are still developed in secret

(9) information now travels swiftly around the globe. However, modern researchers recognize the need

(10) to share resources or to accept a retarded rate of progress. A prime example of such cooperation is the joint space ventures

involving (11) only Russia and the United States,

(12) Japan, the European Space Agency,

(13) agencies of the United Nations. Modern research is too costly and complex for the lone backyard tinkerer;

(14) , our admiring nostalgia for that gallant hero lingers

on.

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Lesson 55

Identifying InterjectionsInterjections are words used to stand for a sound or to express emotions suchas joy, pain, shock, excitement, approval, or displeasure. Some commonly usedinterjections are listed below.

Ugh Ouch Phew Ah Oops Hey ShhYuk Wow Oh Alas Bam Psst Eek

Interjections may appear at the beginning or at the end of a sentence, orthey may stand alone. They are generally followed by a comma or anexclamation mark. Be careful not to overuse interjections.

Well, nobody told you to hit it that hard.Good grief! If I’d known ahead of time, I would have baked a cake.

ExerciseIdentify the interjection in the sentence and write it on the line. If there is nointerjection in the sentence, write None.

________ 1. Ah, I see that you have decided to take my advice.

________ 2. Phew! I thought that we would never get out of there alive!

________ 3. Oh, I know that the wound looks terrible, but it should quickly heal.

________ 4. What interesting bit of information have you brought us today,Halsey?

________ 5. Shh! I can’t hear a word the actors are saying.

________ 6. Psst, can you tell me what time the next bus arrives?

________ 7. Did you order the special of the day, Katie?

________ 8. Ugh, I forgot my geometry book for the second day in a row.

________ 9. Wow! Do you think Harris can get tickets to the concert for allof us?

________ 10. One minute I was dozing in the hammock, and the nextminute—Bam!—I heard the front door slam.

________ 11. Alas, we have no hope of finding the trail on our own.

________ 12. That will be super if Candace and her mother can join us forlunch!

________ 13. My, what an interesting painting!

________ 14. Hey! Did the radio announcer just say that the contest was over?

________ 15. Oh, I suppose Morris will appear as soon as he hears therefrigerator door open.

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Lesson 56

Capitalizing Proper Nouns and AdjectivesA proper noun names a particular person, place, or thing. All other nouns arecommon nouns. Compare the lists of common nouns and proper nouns below.Note that the common nouns name general categories while the proper nounsare specific.

Common nouns Proper nounsplayer Jeremy Elliscity Los Angelesteam Tigers

Study the seven categories of proper nouns below.

Category 1. Names of persons, initials, and words that show familyrelationships: Carson H. Pryor, Uncle Roddy, Mother.Note: Do not capitalize a word showing a family relationship when it ispreceded by a possessive pronoun or an article: a cousin, my mother, our aunt.

Category 2. Planets, geographic regions, continents, countries, states,provinces, cities, towns, streets, buildings, and monuments: Earth, the Midwest,Spain, the Statue of Liberty.Note: Do not capitalize east, west, north, or south when used as directions.Capitalize only the important words in a two-or-more-word noun.

Category 3. Bodies of water, islands, mountains, parks, and othergeographic features: Indian Ocean, Rocky Mountains, Grand Canyon, Gulf ofCalifornia.

Category 4. Clubs, companies, organizations, institutions, and governmentdepartments and agencies: Red Cross, Ace Realty Agency, Department of Labor,Senate.

Category 5. Historic periods, events, special occasions, holidays, months,and days: Middle Ages, Chinese New Year, September.Note: Do not capitalize the seasons: spring, summer, fall, winter.

Category 6. Nationalities and languages: Mexican, Swahili, French.

Category 7. Brands, particular cars, ships, trains, planes, spacecraft andother vehicles, and special awards: Orient Express, Cambell’s tea, Titanic, PulitzerPrize, Mariner 4.Note: Only product names and brand names are capitalized. In Cambell’s tea,Cambell’s is a brand name, so only Cambell’s is capitalized.

A proper adjective is an adjective formed from a proper noun. Like aproper noun, a proper adjective may consist of more than one word. It also iscapitalized, but the noun it modifies is not capitalized.

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Proper noun Proper adjectiveCanada Canadian sunsetCongress Congressional lobbyistLatin America Latin American novel

Sometimes a word that would be a proper adjective by itself combines withanother word to become a proper noun: American League (name of a particulargroup), British Columbia (name of a particular place), Congressional Record (nameof a particular thing). Sometimes a proper noun takes the place of a properadjective: Senate debate, Supreme Court decision, Texas cattle, United States policy.

ExerciseRewrite each sentence, adding all necessary capital letters.

1. The otis elevator company installed five elevators in the jackson building.

2. In mr. minkovich’s class, we studied the impact of the americanrevolutionary war on english culture.

3. So far, jerry has had good luck growing swedish ivy, african violets,christmas cactuses, and chinese evergreens.

4. What is the difference between gothic and romanesque styles ofarchitecture?

5. The greek general in the story prayed to a god of war, not the goddesshera.

6. Does your family prefer campbell’s or lipton’s onion soup?

7. On our way to mackinac island in lake huron, we stopped at the traversebay woolen company on the outskirts of ludington, michigan.

8. The biggest moment of the year in houghton was the picnic sponsored bythe sons of italy at riverview park.

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Lesson 57

Capitalizing TitlesAll titles are capitalized according to the same rule, whether they are titles ofbooks, films, articles, songs, or other works. Capitalize the first word, the lastword, and every important word in a title. (Unimportant words include and,the, and prepositions of fewer than five letters.) Study the following.

book: My Ántonianewspaper: The Westlake Picayunemagazine: National Geographicplay: Our Townfilm: Jurassic Parkwork of art: Distant Thunderpoem: “The Raven”story: “What Citizenship Means to Me”song: “Born To Run”TV program: “Friends”article: “Baking Better Bread”

Another kind of title is used with names of persons or in addressingpersons. These titles, some of which are abbreviated, are capitalized when theyprecede names of persons.

President TrumanMr. and Mrs. MaysDr. Abernathy

Titles not followed by names are capitalized when used in direct address inplace of a name, and also when they substitute for the names of highgovernment officials and other important persons. In all other cases, they arenot capitalized when used alone.

“Yes, Officer, I own the car you just ticketed.”The President met with the Secretary of Education.Has anyone tried to call the doctor?The company president met with her new secretary.

ExerciseRewrite the sentences, adding all necessary capital letters.

1. I’m afraid that coach younger has no use for an assistant coach who can’tdiscipline the players.

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2. Ed plans to do a long paper on the policies of president Eisenhower.

3. Alumni from Riverwoods High include two mayors, several universityprofessors, four newspaper editors, and, of course, governor ulerich.

4. In seventh grade, we were required to memorize either “my heart leapsup” or “I hear america singing.”

5. Mindy sang the title song from on a clear day you can see forever.

6. Kay informed Roland Kiley, the senator next door, that the secretary ofdefense was calling from Brussels.

7. One of the first to speak at the convention was doctor romo.

8. mrs. hughes spent the entire week discussing her favorite book by ernestHemingway, the old man and the sea.

9. As so many have done before them, the seniors will produce the musicalbye bye birdie in the spring.

10. Two reporters from the new hampshire news tried to get a statement fromchief detective coffman about the theft of the painting.

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Lesson 58

Using CommasCommas are punctuation marks used to indicate pauses between words orgroups of words. They are also used to clarify meaning. Study the rules aboutcomma use that follow.

Rule 1. Use commas to separate words or phrases in a series.

The play had lively, funny, and entertaining stories.Sign your name at the top, on the line, and at the bottom.

Rule 2. Use a comma before the conjunction in a compound sentence.Generally, omit the comma in a short compound sentence.

I stopped by to pick you up, but you had already left.Jim came by but I wasn’t home.

Rule 3. Use commas after introductory words and to set off interruptingwords or expressions. Use one comma if the interruption comes at thebeginning or end of the sentence. Use two commas if it comes in the middle.

Unfortunately, the picnic was canceled because of rain.Of course, we’ll try to schedule it for another weekend.Has everyone, by the way, signed up to bring food?

Rule 4. Use commas to set off a noun of direct address. Use one comma ifthe noun is the first or last word in the sentence. Use two commas if the nounis in the middle.

Please join us, Ann.I’m sorry, girls, but my feet hurt.

Rule 5. Use commas to set off appositives. Use one comma if the appositive is at the end of the sentence. Use two commas if it comes in themiddle.

Did you buy the fruit at Fruits and Veggies, the produce shop?My favorite fruit, peaches, was on sale.

Rule 6. Use commas to set off long introductory phrases and dependentclauses that are not essential to the sentence.

Sparkling in the light of the sun, the ocean looked beautiful.After they built a sand castle, they had a picnic.

Rule 7. Use a comma to set off the parts of a date. Use a comma between the day of the week and the month. Also use a comma between the date and the year. Within a sentence, put a comma after the year aswell.

My nephew was born on Friday, August 7, 1987, in New York.

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Rule 8. In an address, use a comma to separate the city and the state orcountry. If an address is within a sentence, use a comma after the name, thestreet address, and the town or city. Use a comma after the state or the ZIPCode, whichever comes last within a sentence.

Dale Granger450 Scott CourtRoselle, IL 60172

Mail the letter to Meg Foster, 10 Landview, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.I moved from Detroit, Michigan, to Milan, Ohio, two years ago.

Rule 9. Use a comma to separate numerals greater than three digits.

population: 100,000$16,666$14,787,629.35

Rule 10. Use a comma to set off a person’s last name when it comes beforethe first name.

The names on the list were Bender, Terry and Caldwell, Steve.

Rule 11. Use a comma after the greeting in a friendly letter and after theclosing in all letters.

Dear Uncle Carlo,Your friend,

ExerciseRewrite the following sentences, adding commas where necessary. If thesentence is correct, write Correct.

1. After looking in our new book on wildflowers we knew that the plant wascalled Pearly Everlasting.

2. When the cat scratched Josh winced.

3. Between his afternoon and early evening performances the pianist took anap.

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4. I put my hands over Stevie’s eyes for the child is easily frightened.

5. Veronica hates the entire East Coast yet she has never even been there.

6. One room contained a crystal chandelier leather-bound books in thebookcase a vase made from a thimble a chess set on its own stand and apair of eyeglasses on a table.

7. The tour director rounded up the tourists collected a dollar from eachexplained when the bus would leave and left the group on their own inthe museum.

8. We drove to Biloxi Mississippi in January and from there to Miami onFebruary 3 1995.

9. Have you been to Savannah Georgia to see the azaleas in bloom?

10. Will you be arriving on September 15 as usual?

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11. The average yearly wage at Bay Productions is $27000.

12. On August 15 1914 the first ship passed through the Panama Canal.

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Lesson 59

Semicolons and ColonsA complete stop at the end of a sentence is indicated by a period. A pausewithin a sentence is shown by a comma. Semicolons and colons also indicatepauses.

SemicolonsSemicolons are used to indicate more than a pause but less than a stop.

A. In compound sentences. A semicolon is used to separate the clauses of acompound sentence when these clauses are not joined by a coordinateconjunction.

The noted explorer Walter Nicholes has signed a contract with a majortelevision network; a series of one-hour programs in which he narrates hisadventures will be aired next fall.

When clauses in a compound sentence are joined by a conjunctive adverb(however, nevertheless, consequently, moreover, and so on), a semicolon is placedbefore the conjunctive adverb and a comma usually is placed after.

This apartment is too small to house any more pets; moreover, anotherdog would make your allergies even worse.

When there are commas within clauses joined by a coordinate conjunction, asemicolon—rather than a comma—may be used with the coordinate conjunction.

The waiter snapped at us, forgot to bring the soup, served the wrong saladdressing, and spilled coffee on me; but still he seemed to expect a tip.

B. In series. A semicolon is used instead of a comma between items in aseries if there are commas within the items.

Ryan, who was attending a ceramics class; Rebeckah, who was enrolled in aweaving class; and Lindsey, who was learning to make sculptures, had plansto start their own crafts shop in the spring.

ColonsWhen it is used in writing, a colon directs the reader’s attention to the

material that follows it. Colons are also used in the salutations of businessletters and in expressions of time.

A. In a list of appositives. The colon is used to introduce a list ofappositives at the end of a sentence.

This course will cover the major works of three writers: Margaret Atwood,Tom Wolfe, and John Irving.

B. In factual writing. In factual writing such as news reports, biographies,and other nonfiction, a colon is often used instead of a comma to introduce aformal or a long quotation.

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One government official, who wished to remain anonymous, said: “Noformal negotiations have begun, nor do I expect any to begin until after themiddle of next week.”

C. In business letters. A colon follows the salutation of a business letter.

Dear Madam: Dear Mr. Fagan:D. In expressions of time. A colon is used to separate hours from minuteswhen time is expressed in figures.

the 7:09 train my 8:30 class from 9:15 to 10:45

ExerciseRewrite each sentence on the lines provided, changing commas to semicolonsor to colons, if necessary. If a sentence is correct as written, write Correct.

1. Stephen’s father was for many years a referee at college basketball games,he has some interesting stories to tell.

2. Paul and I assembled the coffee table in exactly two and a half hours,however, we had six screws left over, and one leg was slightly askew.

3. According to the inspector, the checks were dated September 2, 1957,October 10, 1958, May 15, 1959, and June 11, 1959.

4. He was a distinguished looking gentleman with a brown tweed jacket anda leather attaché case, but his shoes were unpolished.

5. Dear Senator Krutch,I strongly disagree with your proposal to draft people over the age of

thirty-five.

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Lesson 60

Quotation MarksDirect quotations state the exact words of the speaker or writer and areenclosed in quotation marks.

Judith said, “I have to bathe my cat tonight.”

Indirect quotations do not state the exact words of the speaker or writerand so do not require quotation marks.

Judith said that she had to bathe her cat tonight.

Capitalizing and punctuating direct quotations. Direct quotations areenclosed in beginning (“) and ending (”) quotation marks. If a quotedstatement comes after unquoted words, place a comma before the quotation,capitalize the first word of the quotation, and place a period before the endquotation marks.

Jules said, “Mother is delighted that I did well on the exam.”

If a quoted statement comes before unquoted words, place a comma before theend quotation marks and a period at the end of the sentence.

“Mother is delighted that I did well on the exam,” Jules said.

If a quoted sentence is interrupted, place a comma before the first end marksand a comma before the second set of beginning marks. Do not capitalize thefirst word of the second part of the quotation.

“Mother is delighted,” Jules said, “that I did well on the exam.”

Questions and exclamations. If the quotation is a question or anexclamation, place the question mark or the exclamation mark before the endquotation marks.

“What have you got there?” Papa asked.“A report card with straight As!” David said.

If the entire sentence—quotation and all—is a question or an exclamation,place the necessary mark after the end quotation mark.

Did Michael say, “See you later”?And then she had the bad manners to say, “Shut up”!

Semicolons. Semicolons are always put outside the end quotation marks.

The driver shouted, “This bus will not move until everyone sits down”;however, he was shifting into first gear as he spoke.

Quotations of more than one statement. When a quotation consists ofmore than one statement, it is punctuated in the usual way if it is notinterrupted.

“He seems to be a nice, well-behaved dog. I don’t see why we can’t keephim,” Mother said.

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In an interrupted quotation, place periods after the unquoted words thatseparate two quoted statements, and capitalize the first word of the secondquotation because it is the beginning of a new sentence.

“He seems to be a nice, well-behaved dog,” Mother said. “I don’t see whywe can’t keep him.”

Quotation within a quotation. When a quotation appears within anotherquotation, single quotations marks (‘ ’) are used for the inner quotation anddouble quotation marks for the outer quotation.

“I recall my grandmother’s favorite saying, ‘We live in hope,’” the speakerbegan. [Single quotation marks indicate what the grandmother said; doublequotation marks what the speaker said.]

Titles. The titles of short stories, poems, essays, articles, chapters, songs,and episodes that are part of a television series are enclosed in quotationmarks. When such a title appears in a sentence, the rules already discussed inthis lesson apply.

ExerciseRewrite each sentence on your paper, placing quotation marks and otherpunctuation correctly. Capitalize where necessary. If a sentence is correct as itstands, write Correct.

1. You’ll continue to have these symptoms Dr. Cohen wearily explained untilyou move those gerbils out of your bedroom.

2. Who said We have met the enemy and they are ours?

3. I hate to spoil a good legend, but Marie Antoinette probably did not saylet them eat cake Mr. Bullock told the class.

4. Who can name the radio show that began This is London the host of thequiz show asked.

5. First on the program was Gordana Bajsanski, who gave a beautifulreading of a passage from the essay What Is an American?

6. The poetry exam will cover Christmas Eve Under Hooker’s Statue, ItBids Pretty Fair, The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock, and a poem thatwe have not discussed.

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Lesson 61

Other Punctuation MarksParentheses. Parentheses are used to enclose information that is notgrammatically part of a sentence.

A. Definition: Milt insisted on painting the barn oxblood (a deep red color).B. Explanation: My precocious little sister named her favorite doll LucretiaCoffin Mott (for the nineteenth-century reformer) and her stuffed bunnyNathaniel Hawthorne.C. Dates of birth and death: Emily Brontë (1818–1848), in her novelWuthering Heights, gave literature two of its most fascinating characters.D. Dates showing a span of time: The presidency of John F. Kennedy(1961–1963) was a time when many United States citizens felt idealism and asense of purpose.E. References to other sections of a text: Like greenstick fractures (seepages 617–624), this injury often occurs during childhood and earlyadolescence.

When the material enclosed in parentheses comes at a spot wherepunctuation is needed, the necessary punctuation mark is placed after theparentheses.

Jacques St. Hilde left the settlement with his wife (a cousin of theMaryland Warfields); their destination was uncertain and their resourcesalmost nonexistent.

When a sentence in parentheses appears within another sentence, a capitalletter and period are not used. But if the enclosed sentence is a question or anexclamation, a question mark or an exclamation mark is used.

I was so tired last evening (it had been an especially busy day at the lab)that I did not even check my mailbox.

Hyphens. A hyphen is a short horizontal line placed between syllables (partsof a word pronounced as units) and between some words. When part of a wordmust be carried over to the next line, a hyphen is used to indicate the divisionof the word. The break should always occur between syllables. Single lettersshould not be left at the end of the line.

Do not carry over syllables of only one or two letters.

Faulty: adverbi-al Faulty: cit-yImproved: adver-bial Improved: city [Do not break.]

Some compound words and words with certain prefixes and suffixes require hyphens.

Compound words: son-in-law, thirty-seven, poverty-strickenPrefixes: self-indulgent, great-grandson, mid-AugustSuffixes: mayor-elect, twenty-odd

If you have doubts about the spelling of such words, consult a dictionary.

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Dashes. The dash, which is twice as long as the hyphen, is used for an abruptchange in thought, with a series of appositives, and for special emphasis.

A. Abrupt change in thought: I bought a green shirt, some knee socks, anda—look at those two on the bicycle.B. Before and after a series of appositives: The girls—Loretta, Crystal,Karen Jones, and Karen Deems—had known each other since junior high.C. For special emphasis: I lost my watch at the pier at Redondo Beach lastsummer; two weeks ago I found it—the glass unbroken—in the sand at Playadel Rey.

Italics (Underline). Typeface that slants to the right is called italics. Intyping or writing, indicate italics by drawing a line under words to beitalicized. Italics are used in writing the following.

A. Full-length works: novels (The Great Gatsby), movies and plays(Breakfast at Tiffany’s, Ballad of the Sad Cafe), books (A Manual of Style, TheOfficial Movie Trivia Quiz Book), newspapers and magazines (Chicago Sun-Times, The New Yorker), long poems (Iliad), television or radio series, (Nova).B. Works of art: Mona Lisa, Brueghel’s The Fall of Icarus.C. Vessels: ships (Robert E. Lee), airplanes (Air Force One), spacecraft(Sputnik IV), submarines (U.S.S. George Washington).D. Words referred to as words: I have always had difficulty spelling receive.E. Foreign words or phrases: pax vobiscum, joie de vivre, agent provacateur. Exceptions: The Bible, New Testament, Old Testament, and books of theBible (Hebrews, Revelation) are not italicized.

Exercise ARewrite each sentence on your paper, inserting necessary punctuation.

1. During World War I, Rupert Brooke 1887–1915 wrote “The Soldier.”

2. The package arrived at the best possible time the last day of finals, and wehad quite a feast that evening.

3. Dry leaves, old newspapers, dust particles, and bits of trash everythingtook flight as high winds hit the city.

4. My father in law a man of many words, little patience, and less knowledgeof Dutch had a heated argument with a traffic policeman in Amsterdam.

Exercise BDraw a line under the titles or names that should be in italics. Insert quotationmarks where necessary.

1. Read Bookman in The Collected Short Stories of Anastacio Bueno, Jr.;while reading, pay attention to the way he uses the word adoption.

2. The Ambrose Shea sailed at midnight.

3. Carl Sandburg’s Chicago is included in his collection Chicago Poems.

4. The tragedy of the submarine Thresher still haunts us all.

5. The pièce de résistance was a seven-layer chocolate cake.

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Documents

4th Grade Homework Tasks