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7/30/2019 Grammarics' Pictorial Guide Volume 1 Sample Pages
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42 concepts
covered
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© 2012-13 Grammarics.
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced,
stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by
any means, without the prior written permission of the
authors, except in the case of brief quotations employed in
critical articles or reviews.
The authors have made every effort to ensure the accuracy
of the information herein. However, the information
contained in this book is sold without warranty, eitherexpress or implied. Neither the author, nor its dealers or
distributors, will be held liable for any damages caused
either directly or indirectly by the instructions contained in
this book.
Version 1.1
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Introduction
Grammarics are pictorial representations of rules of English
grammar, punctuation and word usage.
Grammarics was created to overcome the problems that people
face in learning English grammar.
All of the rules are explained through pictorial
representations to create visual reinforcement and also to
provide an element of fun to the learning process.
The concepts have been explained in an easy-to-
understand language, with minimal use of technical terms.
Instead of creating a tome, we have focused on only those
concepts that are commonly confused by most people.
This e-book contains pictorial explanations for 42 concepts acrosspunctuation, grammar, and word usage that are commonly
confused by people.
This is the first volume of our e-book series. Please visit our
website http://www.grammarics.com and subscribe to our blog to
receive updates on future releases.
If there are any errors, then please point it out to us by writing to
us at [email protected].
We would greatly appreciate it if you could send us your feedback
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Content (Page 1 of 2)
1. Comma In Direct Address 07
2. The Oxford Comma 08
3. Apostrophes To Show Possession 09
4. Apostrophes In Plurals of Nouns 10
5. Singular vs. Plural Possession 11
6. Joint vs. Separate Possession 12
7. Excessive Use Of Exclamation Points 13
8. Misplaced Modifiers 14
9. Dangling Modifiers 15
10. Faulty Comparisons 16
11. Subject-Verb Agreement: Singular Subjects Joined By And 17
12. Subject-Verb Agreement: Plural Subjects Joined By And 18
13. Subject-Verb Agreement: Singular Subjects Joined By Or / Nor 19
14. Subject-Verb Agreement: Plural Subjects Joined By Or / Nor 20
15. Vague Pronoun Reference 21
16. Correct Use of Only 22
17. Correct Use of Almost 23
18. Correct Use of Literally 24
19. You’re vs. Your 25
20. It’s vs. Its 26
21. They’re vs. There vs. Their 27
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22. Less vs. Fewer 28
23. Irregardless 29
24. Loose vs. Lose 30
25. Who vs. Whom 31
26. Stationary vs. Stationery 32
27. Lie vs. Lay 33
28. Emigrate vs. Immigrate 34
29. A lot vs. Alot 35
30. As well vs. Aswell 36
31. Device vs. Devise 37
32. Desert vs. Dessert 38
33. Dairy vs. Diary 39
34. Weak vs. Week 40
35. Gorilla vs. Guerrilla 41
36. Ascent vs. Assent 42
37. Brake vs. Break 43
38. Peak vs. Peek 44
39. Hanger vs. Hangar 45
40. License vs. Licence 46
41. Practice vs. Practise 47
42. Inquiry vs. Enquiry 48
Content (Page 2 of 2)
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Comma In Direct Address1
8© www.grammarics.com
Let’s eat, Grandpa. Let’s eat Grandpa.
In a nutshell
Commas are used to set off names (or words used in place of names) when
addressing people directly in a sentence. Follow these rules for applyingcommas in direct address.
If the name comes first, it is followed by a comma.
Grandpa, I want to eat a truck-load of ice.
Sam, I want to eat a truck-load of ice.
If the name comes at the end of the sentence, the comma precedes the
name.
I want to eat a truck-load of ice, Grandpa.
I want to eat a truck-load of ice, Sam.
If the name comes in the middle of the sentence, surround it with
commas.
What I said, Grandpa, is that I want to eat a truck-load of ice.
What I said, Sam, is that I want to eat a truck-load of ice.
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The Oxford Comma2
9© www.grammarics.com
With the Oxford comma Without the Oxford comma
In a nutshell
The Oxford comma (also known as serial comma or Harvard comma) is a
comma that is used before and/or in a list containing three or more items.
I like to eat nails, glass, and shoes.
I hate people who do not like to eat nails, glass, or shoes.
In some cases, the Oxford comma helps avoid ambiguity in a sentence.
I would like to thank my parents, Nelson Mandela and Dalai Lama.
[Without the Oxford comma, it would appear as if Nelson Mandela and DalaiLama are the parents of the writer.]
The Oxford comma is a highly debated topic among grammarians. For every
six proponents of the Oxford comma, you will find half-a-dozen opponents.
Use your judgement – use the Oxford comma if it helps avoid ambiguity in a
sentence.
Among those who came to watch the show
were the president’s two daughters,
Bill Clinton, and George Bush.
Among those who came to watch the show
were the president’s two daughters,
Bill Clinton and George Bush.
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Joint vs. Separate Possession6
10© www.grammarics.com
John and Henry’s dogs. John’s and Henry’s dogs.
In a nutshell
If you’re trying to show possession and you have two subjects, you have to
decide if the two subjects possess something together or separately.
If the two subjects share the possession (joint possession), then you use only
one ’s at the end of the second subject. In the first sentence, ’s is applied only
after Henry, since John and Henry jointly possess the dogs.
If the two subjects possess the item separately, then you use ’s at the end of
each subject. In the second sentence, ’s is applied after Henry, as well as
John, since the dogs are owned separately by each of them.
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Misplaced Modifiers8
11© www.grammarics.com
Covered with hot melting
cheese I ate the pizza.
I ate the pizza covered with
hot melting cheese.
In a nutshell
To modify is to change or add to the meaning of another word. A modifier is a
word or group of words that does this.
Modifiers need to be used carefully, else they may cause unintended humor
or confusion. Modifiers are like teenagers – they fall in love with whatever
they are next to.
The golden rule of placing modifiers: place the modifier as close as is possible
to the word or phrase that it seeks to modify (this will solve the issue in mostcases).
In the above sentence, covered with hot melting cheese (the modifier) seeks
to modify pizza and not the person eating it. Placing the modifier closer to
the word pizza clarifies that the pizza, and not I, is covered with hot melting
cheese.
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Faulty Comparisons10
12© www.grammarics.com
Sally’s dog, like Emily, has
long drooping ears.
Sally’s dog, like Emily’s, has
long drooping ears.
In a nutshell
Faulty comparisons occur when two things are compared inappropriately or
in a way that could confuse readers / listeners.
Often, the comparison will sound as though it's acceptable, but will be
missing a few necessary words.
The shirt you are wearing looks like my brother.
[Here, the shirt is being compared to the brother and not to the
brother’s shirt.]
The shirt you are wearing looks like my brother’s.
The shirt you are wearing looks like my brother’s shirt.
[Both of the above forms are correct. The 's after brother refers to the
brother's shirt and therefore, it is correct.]
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Correct Use Of Literally
13© www.grammarics.com
In a nutshell
The word literally means actually. It's used to indicate that something is being
described the way it happened, without any exaggeration.
Don’t use the word literally to gain emphasis or for added effect. It should be
used to convey facts.
If you want to use a word to create emphasis, try figuratively or metaphorically.
It is raining cats and dogs. It is literally raining cats and dogs.
18
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Emigrate vs. Immigrate
14© www.grammarics.com
Emigrate Immigrate
In a nutshell
To emigrate is to leave your country to reside in another country.
To immigrate is to enter and reside in a new country.
Mnemonic: people who emigrate exit a country, and both emigrate
and exit start with e.
28
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Desert vs. Dessert
15© www.grammarics.com
Desert Dessert
In a nutshell
Desert (with one s) is a dry, arid place.
Dessert (with two s’s) is a sweet dish that’s had at the end of a meal.
Mnemonic: The two s’s in dessert stand for sweet stuff.
32
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