Adjectives and adverbs are absolutely a necessary component of writing.

g. Its fine to say that they just add details, but the details are what completes the communication of information to the reader. hey help the reader create an image and understand precisely what the writer is saying. As a general rule, its easy to identify adjectives !which modify nouns" and adverbs !which modify verbs". he only caution one must e#ercise is in not confusing the two, as is commonly done in casual speech. $e careful, for e#ample, not to use the adjective good when you should use the adverb well. %hat are adjectives& Adjectives are descriptive words which are used to add detail to a sentence. hey can give important or necessary information !e.g. Please hand me the blue paper", or they can just ma'e the sentence more interesting or detailed !e.g. A frigid, icy, painfully cold wind blew around the town". Adjectives modify !describe" nouns. Adjectives can usually be identified by as'ing what: he girl is beautiful. %hat is the girl& (hes beautiful. %hat are adverbs& Adverbs are descriptive words which are used to add detail to a sentence. hey can give important or necessary information !e.g. Please hand me the scalpel now", or they can just ma'e the sentence more interesting or detailed !e.g. A wind blew violently and unceasingly around the town". Adverbs usually modify verbs, and they fre)uently end in *ly. Adverbs can be identified by how or where or when: he dog ran )uic'ly. +ow did the dog run& It ran quickly. ,ses of adjectives Adjectives can tell the reader how much or how many of something youre tal'ing about, which thing you want passed to you, or which 'ind you want. -lease use three white flowers in the arrangement. Three and white are modifying flowers. If you are using multiple adjectives which are commonly put together, theres no need for a comma between the adjectives. .oo' at that sweet little puppy/ If the adjectives arent usually used together, separate them with a comma or conjunction. Im loo'ing for a small, good*tempered dog to 'eep as a pet. 0y new dog is small and good*tempered.

Adjectives usually go before the noun !e.g. small child" unless one of the following verbs are involved1 be, feel, taste, smell, sound, look, appear, seem. In these cases, the adjectives wor' more li'e adverbs. he child is small. he child seems small. ,ses of adverbs Adverbs answer the )uestion how !e.g. How is the dog running?", as well as when, and where. he dog ran )uic'ly. Quickly is modifying the verb ran. he adverb doesnt have to go after the verb2 feel free to vary the sentence structure to ma'e it more interesting for your reader1 (ilently, the girl snuc' past her parents room. Adverbs can also modify adjectives and other adverbs. he dog ran fairly )uic'ly. he adverb fairly is modifying the other adverb quickly. he weather report is almost always right. he adverb almost is modifying the adverb always. he woman is )uite pretty. he adverb quite is modifying the adjective pretty. his boo' is more interesting than the last one. he adverb more is modifying the adjective interesting. Adjectives modify nouns Adjectives are words which modify !describe" a noun3 not verbs or adverbs or other adjectives. he girl is beautiful. Beautiful is modifying the noun girl. om .ongboat was not a bad runner. !adjective" Its easy to identify the adjective in this sentence. he foundation seems good. !adjective used as adverb" his descriptive word is a little more difficult. 4ven though good is usually an adjective, its modifying seems (+ow does the foundation seem& It seems good. so its an adverb. %e cant answer the )uestion

what is the foundation because we havent sha'en it around and tested it yet, so we dont 'now if its good foundation or bad foundation3 well find out for sure if the building falls down. N.B. (ometimes it may loo' li'e an adjective is modifying another adjective, as in the case of dark blue or bright yellow, but this is because modern writing has removed the hyphen from a compound adjective. he proper form is dark!blue and bright!yellow. he evolution of 4nglish will eventually change the rules so an adjective can modify another adjective, but formal writing standards dont allow it yet. Adverbs modify verbs, adjectives, and other adverbs Adverbs are words which modify !adds description to" a verb. 5ften but not always they end in *ly. om .ongboat did not run badly. !adverb" Its easy to identify the adverb in this sentence. hat ca'e loo's good. !adjective used as adverb" 0y elderly neighbor loo's well. !adverb" hese two descriptive words are a little more difficult. 4ven though good is usually an adjective, its modifying looks !+ow does the ca'e look& It loo's good." so its an adverb. %e cant answer the )uestion what is the ca'e because we havent tasted it yet, so we dont 'now if its good ca'e or bad ca'e. Adverbs can also modify adjectives and other adverbs. he woman is )uite pretty. his boo' is more interesting than the last one. he weather report is almost always right. he adverb almost is modifying the adverb always, and theyre both modifying right. Adverbs and 6ouns Adverbs can occasionally modify nouns. he effect is creative and informal, and is best not used in formal writing. I have lots of homewor'. he adverb lots is modifying homework, telling the reader how much you have. +owever, brea'ing grammar rules does wonders for adding emphasis1 his boo' is altogether madness. "ltogether is an adverb. heres no argument here as to what the spea'er thin's of the boo'. Im feeling more li'e myself after a hot bath. #ore like myself is an adverb phrase which is modifying feeling, even though it loo's li'e more is modifying the pronoun myself.

7ou should assess your own writing based on the audience1 would your reader find this sentence structure interesting or disconcerting& Adjectives and 8erbs here are two things to consider when contemplating the relationship between adjectives and verbs. he first is that adjectives can come after the verb1 he roc' star was cra9y. he cats tail is long. I am furious with my business partner. he coo'ies smell awesome/ hat shirt loo's great on you. 6ote that these are forms of to be or sense verbs: to look, to seem, to appear, to taste, to sound, to feel, to smell, etc. If these verbs are modifying the noun in front of them, an adjective will always be re)uired so the noun is properly modified. he second thing to consider is verbs that turn into adjectives2 these are called participles. ,sually, the verb has *ing tac'ed onto the end of the root form, or its the past tense. he adjective can be placed before the noun or after the verb. he smiling baby is really cute. $miling is used as an adjective here, as is cute. his is my new washing machine. %ashing is acting li'e an adjective for machine. his is my bro'en washing machine. his washing machine is bro'en. Broken is an adjective which is modifying washing machine. In the summer, fro9en popsicles are refreshing. he secretary handed the boss the translated document. After washing all the teacups, she found a forgotten one in the living room. An Adjective with the 8erb o $e If the verb to be is modifying the noun which is before it, you will always need an adjective after to be. :or instance1 he homeless man was hungry. he young 'ids will be tired after their field trip.

Its alright to have multiple adjectives both before and after to be1 he old homeless man was cold and hungry. All the young 'ids will be tired and cran'y after their field trip. 0a'e sure the verb is actually a form of to be in past, present or future tense rather than a verb tense using to be. If you have were going !e.g. The kids were going home after their field trip ", theres no need for an adjective after the verb to be2 thats the place for an adverb. 0isuse of "like he word alike is an adverb !even though it seems li'e an adjective", and shouldnt be used to modify a noun2 instead, use an adjective !perhaps same or similar". 0y girlfriend and I have an ali'e hairstyle. $ecause hairstyle is being modified, an adjective is re)uired here1 0y girlfriend and I have the same hairstyle. 0y girlfriend and I have a similar hairstyle. If you really want to use the word alike, change the wording of your sentence1 5ur hairstyles are ali'e. his sentence wor's because alike is modifying are, not hairstyles. 0isuse of $ame he adjective same should modify a noun. If same is modifying a verb, consider changing same to alike or similarly. It is common for people and their pets to loo' same. (ame could modify people or pets, but not loo'2 use an adverb instead. It is common for people and their pets to loo' ali'e. 5f course, theres always the to be;sense verb rule to be considered1 hey are the same. here may be situations where the to be;sense verb rule doesnt apply !4nglish is notorious for brea'ing rules", so try a couple of wordings to see which sounds better. In situations where youre writing informally, its alright to use same after a verb. 0isuse of &nlike he adjective unlike does not ma'e sense if used before a singular noun, because it is used in comparisons2 a different adjective !e.g. different, dissimilar, contradictory, opposite " should be used instead. +owever unlike may be used before plural nouns. (ome people would attempt to be polite, and describe her as an unli'e person.

&nlike is inappropriate in this sentence because there is no comparison being made. It would be better to describe her as an unusual person, or a unique person. heir unli'e perspectives clash. $ecause a comparison is being made between the two perspectives !a plural noun", unlike is appropriately used. <emember that unlike can only modify a plural noun, so loo' for one in your sentence "nymore vs. "ny #ore Any more hese two words are the traditional e#pression in 4nglish and may be preferable for formal writing, particularly in a negative e#pression when meaning any longer. I do not care for this author any more. I do not care for this author any longer. he two adverbs are interchangeable, and you can use them in formal and informal writing. Anymore =ialogue is not considered a reasonable method of education anymore. "nymore is a modern term !an evolution of any more" which may not be acceptable in the eyes of some readers. >onsider your audience carefully before using this adverb. %hile certain dialects may use anymore at the beginning of a sentence !Anymore one can buy anything online", this is not considered acceptable in formal writing. In fact, its a fairly rare usage, so you may want to remove it from your writing altogether unless youre writing for a very specific audience. "nytime vs. "ny Time As 4nglish is an ever*evolving language, words are often caught mid*change. he adverb anytime is currently evolving2 in common usage, it may be written as one word, but in formal communication it should be left as two words. ?uotation mar's may be used any time a character is spea'ing. his sentence is obviously formal, so a compound word would be inappropriate here. 0y new bicycle allows me to go anywhere, anytime. In this sentence, anytime is acceptable as a compound word because the sentence in informal2 its not the 'ind of thing one would write in an essay or proposal. "nyway, "nyways, or "ny %ay Anyways

he adverb anyways is e#tremely informal, and indicates the spea'er is resuming a narrative thread or changing the topic of discussion. Its not a word you should use in formal writing. I never did understand numbers very well. Anyways, Ive decided to move from financing into tech support. Anyway "nyway can be used to mean in any case. his adverb is acceptable in formal writing, but intentions may be better e#pressed by the use of a variation of in any case. >onsider your audience when choosing the adverb. -aris is e#pensive, but many people would li'e to vacation there, anyway. -aris is e#pensive, but many people would li'e to vacation there, in any case. Any way %hen written as two words, any way can be replaced by in any manner or by by any means. o get students to read, teachers often bribe them any way they can. o get students to read, teachers often bribe them in any manner they can. o get students to read, teachers often bribe them by any means they can. All of these adverbs are acceptable in formal writing. I dont mind staying home from the party because I dont feel all that well, any way. $ecause any way cannot be replaced with in any manner, it should be written as one word1 anyway. 'veryday vs. 'very (ay Everyday@@ "s an adjective, this adverb means common or informal. 'veryday is perfectly acceptable in formal writing. It is not appropriate to wear everyday clothes to ones convocation. Every day@@ This adverbial phrase can be replaced by each day. This term may also be used in formal writing. t is not synonymous with everyday. +omewor' must be left in the professors mailbo# every day. +omewor' must be left in the professors mailbo# each day. +omewor' must not be left on the professors lectern everyday. $ecause everyday cannot be replaced with each day, we 'now this usage is incorrect 'veryone vs. 'very )ne

Everyone he pronoun everyone may be replaced by everybody. It is used to refer to all the people in a group. he new protocols will affect everyone positively. he new protocols will affect everybody positively. Every one %ritten as two words, every one refers to each individual who ma'es up a group, and means each person. 0y mother would li'e to than' every one who offered assistance during her illness. 0y mother would li'e to than' each person who offered assistance during her illness. :or emphasis, you can also add each to the sentence1 (tudents may e#cel if each and every one is treated with dignity and respect. 4very ime 'verytime should be written as two separate words1 every time. %hile some compound words li'e everywhere and everyone have become commonplace in the 4nglish language everytime is not considered an acceptable compound word. 7ou dont need to remind me to do the dishes everytime. 7ou dont need to remind me to do the dishes every time. 4very time we breathe, we inhale pollutants. $ometime, $ometimes, and $ome Time All three of these adverbs are considered acceptable for formal writing. !ome time %hen using some time, some is an adjective. It is describing the amount of time, and fre)uently implies a long period. :or some time, the world has been 'nown to be round. +e has been studying Aramaic for some time. It can also imply a fairly specific amount of time1 I re)uire another couple of hours to finish this project today. I re)uire some time to finish this project today. !ometime

%hen written as one word, this adverb implies a vague time in the future. It can fre)uently be replaced by someday. he cure for cancer will be found sometime. Ill get around to finishing that boo' sometime later. Aive me a call sometime, and well have coffee. !ometimes %hen written as one word and ending in s, this adverb implies occasionally. (ometimes, I just dont understand what that man is saying. 4nglish grammar sometimes follows its own rules, and sometimes it doesnt. %ith (ense 8erbs :ollowing a verb which refers to the senses !e.g. see or seem, taste, feel, sound", be sure to use an adjective to describe the noun in the clause, instead of an adverb. (he felt badly about her behavior last evening. Badly is an adverb, which shouldnt be used after felt. (he felt bad about her behavior last evening. he house appears sound, but it hasnt been inspected yet. he house appears soundly, but it hasnt been inspected yet. hat old meat smells funnily. hat old mead smells funny. E"ception# %hen using the verb to look to mean to see with one*s eyes, as opposed to to seem or to appear, use an adverb to describe the verb. I loo'ed )uic'ly at the mans face. he verb to look is used to mean to see with one*s eyes, and so an adverb is used. I loo'ed terrible after the long ordeal. he verb to look is used to mean to appear or to seem, so an adjective is used. =ouble 6egatives, Involving 6egative %ords and Adverbs >ertain adverbs which infer little, few or not often shouldnt be used in the same clause as a negative word, as this creates a double negative. (uch adverbs include1 scarcely, hardly, barely, rarely, and seldom he employees never scarcely had personal time, as the project deadline loomed.

he employees scarcely had personal time, as the project deadline loomed. 0y professor doesnt rarely loo' at the wor' we hand in, but he doesnt send it to his assistant, either. 0y professor rarely loo's at the wor' we hand in, but he doesnt send it to his assistant, either. he vocalist barely achieved the proper note. 0isuse of #uch %hen referring to a noun, if one can count multiples of that noun, its considered a countable noun. If the )uantity is generally too many or too difficult to count, its called an uncountable noun. :or e#ample, a grain of sand is countable !one grain of sand, two grains of sand", but sand itself is uncountable. :or countable nouns, use the adjective many. :or uncountable nouns, use the term much. +ow much shoes are in this store& (hoes are countable, even if there are billions and billions of shoes2 use the adjective many to modify shoes. +ow many shoes are in this store& +ow much are the shoes in this store& Are they e#pensive& In this sentence, how much is referring to the price of the shoes, not the )uantity. (ome nouns can be countable or uncountable. here are many wines for sale. his sentence refers to the different types of wine which are available for sale. here are many wine for sale. here is much wine for sale. his sentence refers to the )uantity of wine which is available for sale. #isuse of #any :or countable nouns, use the term, many. :or uncountable nouns, use the term, much. I cant attend the party because I have too many stuff to do. $tuff is an uncountable noun, so it cant be used with the adjective many. I cant attend the party because I have too much stuff to do. (ome nouns can be countable or uncountable. here are many wines for sale. his sentence refers to the different types of wine which are available for sale. here are many wine for sale.

here is much wine for sale. his sentence refers to the )uantity of wine which is available for sale. #any %ithout a =irect 6oun #any and much are be used as adjectives. %hen used to modify another adjective, much is used because the second adjective is always uncountable, just li'e a noun. 0ost of the time, it is used this way in comparisons, so loo' for words li'e more and less, or suffi#es li'e *ier. he white cat is many more amusing than the brown cat. 0any is modifying more, but more is uncountable, so the first adjective needs to be changed to much. he white cat is much more amusing than the brown cat. Are these purple jeans many less e#pensive than the blac' ones& Are these purple jeans much less e#pensive than the blac' ones& om is many funnier than 0ary. om is much funnier than 0ary Agreement 4rrors Adjectives such as many, several, few, and enough should be used to modify plural nouns. (ingular nouns may be modified by words such as a, one, the,or that. he man reacted )uic'ly, with few consideration for his own safety. +onsideration is a singular noun, and it cant be used with few. he man reacted )uic'ly, with little consideration for his own safety. he man reacted )uic'ly, with no consideration for his own safety. +owever, thoughts is plural, so it can be used with few. he man reacted )uic'ly, with few thoughts for his own safety. =o you have enough pac'et of sugar& In this sentence, well have to change the noun to ma'e it agree with the adjective enough. %e can use a countable or uncountable noun, just not a singular noun. =o you have enough pac'ets of sugar& =o you have enough sugar& 0isuse of ,ike and "s. he confusion in using like or as is caused by a lac' of understanding of the words role. ,ike is used as a preposition, telling where, when or how the noun in the sentence is doing whatever it may be doing.

"s is used li'e a conjunction, joining two clauses. A general rule*of*thumb is that like should be followed by an object !to ma'e a prepositional phrase", and as should be followed by a clause containing a verb. $ike 0ost of the time, li'e compares two things. Imagine a grown woman acting as a child. +ere, were comparing two things !the woman and the child", so like should be used. Imagine a grown woman acting li'e a child. he same goes for this ne#t sentence where were comparing the mother and the girl1 he little girl, as her mother, has bright red hair. 4ven though this sentence has a verb after as, the verb has belongs to the first clause, The little girl has bright red hair. %e need the adverb like to modify her mother. he little girl, li'e her mother, has bright red hair. As :re)uently, as can be replaced by the way. 6o one ma'es chocolate ca'e li'e my mother does. $ecause there is a verb after like !does", the conjunction as should be used. Its easy to say that about this sentence because as can be replaced by the way. 6o one ma'es chocolate ca'e the way my mother does. 6o one ma'es chocolate ca'e as my mother does. +e cant play cric'et li'e he used to. At first glance, there appears to be no verb after like. +owever, when spea'ing, we often leave out verbs which are already implied. he implied verb is play, as in he used to play cricket. ,ike should be changed to as. +e cant play cric'et as he used to before he got so old. )ther and "nother If the noun is singular, we use another to modify it2 if it is plural, we use other. "nother means one other, so it should only be used with the singular. If the weather doesnt change soon, we may have a drought in another parts of the country. "nother is modifying parts which is a plural noun so we have to change something. If the weather doesnt change soon, we may have a drought in another part of the country. If the weather doesnt change soon, we may have a drought in other parts of the country.

I want to learn from many another teachers, not just one. I want to learn from many other teachers, not just one. An Adverb $etween a 8erb and Its =irect 5bject An adverb should not be placed between the verb it is modifying, and the direct object !whatever the verb may be modifying". 0ost adverbs end in *ly, but not all of them, so they can be difficult to identify. $e sure to loo' for words which may be nouns or adjectives but are acting li'e adverbs. he woman applied smoothly the lipstic'. he adverb !smoothly" should not be between the verb !applied" and the direct object !the lipstick". %e need to re*write the sentence so the adverb is in the right spot, preferably right beside the verb. he woman applied the lipstic' smoothly. !better" he woman smoothly applied the lipstic'. !best" I poured slowly the mil' into the glass. I poured the mil' into the glass slowly. !better" I slowly poured the mil' into the glass. !best" <emember to loo' for adverbs that dont end in *ly. 0ary just went yesterday to the mar'et. 0ary just went to the mar'et yesterday. %rong -articiple (ee1 Adjectives and 8erbs 8erbs can be used as adjectives2 this is called a participle. (ome e#amples of participles are The -lying (utchman and a loved one. -articiples can be either the past*tense form of the verb or the progressive tense !ending in *ing". here is no clear way to determine which verb uses which form !although intransitive verbs do not use the progressive tense". (ome verbs can use both but each will have a different meaning. he dog loo's li'e a sleeped baby. he dog loo's li'e a sleeping baby. I saw a really bored movie last night. he participle should be boring2 movies cannot be bored. I saw a really boring movie last night 0a'e sure you have the right verb form1 participles dont use the present tense. he frighten girl ran away from the dog.

he frightened girl ran away from the dog. >ommon 4rrors in 4nglish1 Bad or Badly $ad is an adjective2 badly is an adverb. =ont get them confused. I did bad on my 4nglish e#am. I did badly on my 4nglish e#am. $y the time the speech ended, he wanted to go home bad. his sentence is possible, if he wants to become a criminal before going home. !-erhaps hes going to murder the spea'er&" $y the time the speech ended, he badly wanted to go home. $ut3 remember the rule about sense verbs. If you want to tal' about how something loo's or smells, or how someone feels, use bad. (he felt bad about forgetting her brothers birthday. >ommon 4rrors in 4nglish1 .ood or %ell .ood is an adjective2 well is an adverb but can also be used as an adjective. =id you do good on your e#am& =id you do well on your e#am& =id you do a good job on your e#am& .ood is modifying job not the verb to do. hats well ca'e. hats good ca'e. hat ca'e tastes good. <emember the rule about sense verbs& $ecause tastes is used, we need an adjective instead of an adverb. he same rule applies to to be. $e good/ his sentence refers to your behaviour. As an adjective, well is also used to mean in good health, so dont get it confused with the adverb. $e well. his sentence refers to your health and well*being. >ommon 4rrors in 4nglish1 $ure or $urely

$ure is an adjective2 surely is an adverb. Are you sure the lecture is today& 0ary is surely finished the painting by now. (urely, 0ary will be finished the painting tomorrow. his is sure to be the best party ever. +ere, sure to be is an idiomatic phrase which is modifying party, so its wor'ing li'e an adjective. >ommon 4rrors in 4nglish1 /ear or /early /early is an adverb, which means almost2 near is a fle#ible little word which can be an adjective, verb, adverb or preposition. I have nearly finished this essay. !adverb" Is the par' near the school& !adverb" As we neared the restaurant, we could hear the loud music and voices. !verb" %e have a house on the near side of the la'e. !adjective" >omparative and (uperlative Adjectives Adjectives can be used to compare two things, or more than two things. %omparatives %hen comparing two things, youre li'ely to get adjectives li'e smaller, bigger, taller, more interesting, and less e0pensive. 6otice the *er ending, and the words more and less. 0a'e sure you have used the proper ending, or the proper comparative adjective. 0i'e is more funny than Isaac. 0i'e is funnier than Isaac. 6otice the spelling change for adjectives ending in *y1 the comparative ends in *ier. his boo' is boringer than the last one. his boo' is more boring than the last one. Advertising encourages women to be more thin. Advertising encourages women to be thinner. !uperlatives %hen comparing more than two things, youll get words li'e smallest, biggest, tallest, most interesting, and least interesting. 6otice the *est ending, and the words most and least. 0a'e sure you use the proper ending or superlative adjective. :re)uently, youll find the article the before the superlative !e.g. the coldest winter".

0artha is the elder of the four sisters. If there were only two sisters, we could use the comparative elder here. $ecause there are four sisters, we need a superlative. 0artha is the eldest of the four sisters. I thin' his last boo' is his least interesting2 his third boo' was the most interesting. hat must be the weirdest play ever written. <emember that adjectives which end in *y have their spelling changed if *est is added. hat is the sleepyest puppy of the litter. hat is the sleepiest puppy of the litter. >ompound Adjectives >ompound adjectives are usually hyphenated !although we sometimes dont bother putting in the hyphen unless we need it for purposes of comprehension". $ritish and American 4nglish differ greatly on this, so its safer to put the hyphen in if youre writing for $ritish readers. (he doesnt have any post*secondary education, but she is very well*read. I prefer the light blue sweater. 0r. .a'e is teaching an under*water photography course. heir courses are sub*standard. 7ou dont need to hyphenate them if theyre capitali9ed, though. =id you get the (uper*(aver coupons& =id you get the (uper (aver coupons& 7ou can also create a compound adjective by combining an adverb and an adjective. Again, the $ritish sometimes hyphenate these, while the Americans dont usually bother. (he is a remar'ably*intelligent girl. +e loo's li'e a well*fed baby. %hile formal writing is not li'ely to use compound adjectives li'e the following ones, you can use them in less*formal compositions and creative writing. ?uotation mar's or italics can be used. (he gave me a youre gonna die loo'. +es away so often, he was given an in absentia award. nterjections .i'e, dude/ %hoa/

his sentence is linguistically incomprehensible !i.e. we cant understand what is being discussed", but we understand the tone it implies1 the spea'er is clearly wor'ed up about something. %e dont 'now whether the spea'er is happy or angry, but if we heard this sentence while wal'ing down the street, wed all turn our heads and loo' to see what e#citing thing is happening. Incomprehensible sounds such as B%hoa/B are used in the above sentence or words used out of conte#t have a grammatical term for them1 interjections. Interjections are usually found at the beginning of the sentence, as we use the interjection either to get someones attention ! Hey !atch out "" or to give ourselves time to thin' about the real words !#h, yum This burnt, over$salted cake is utterly scrumptious " %hat Are Interjections& Interjections are words li'e wow and yay. heyre sounds we ma'e to convey e#treme emotion or to create emphasis when were tal'ing, sometimes when we cant thin' of a good way to e#press ourselves. he problem with interjections is that, because theyre technically meaningless, they re)uire a great deal of conte#t to be understood. :or instance, hey can mean hello, or that*s great, or stop doing that. +ey/ +ow are you& +ey/ hats an awesome hat/ +ey/ >ut that out/ Interjections are fre)uently followed by an e#clamation mar'. Interjections !and e#clamation mar's" are generally frowned upon in formal writing. Interjections are not grammatically connected to any part of the sentence !i.e. they dont modify a verb or a noun, etc." hey can be removed without creating confusion. ,ses of Interjections Interjections are used to communicate an e#treme emotion which is difficult to verbali9e, or to get someones attention. heyre usually found at the beginning of the sentence. $ecause they are not grammatically connected to the rest of the sentence, they are often followed by an e#clamation mar' !or sometimes a comma". Aee, I love old movies/ %hoa/ hats a lot of homewor'/ 5h, drat/ It seems we forgot to pay the electrical bill. (ometimes, we use a word which usually has meaning, but in the conte#t of the sentence its merely for emphasis. %hat was I tal'ing about& 5h, yes, now I remember3. +ere, yes is not actually being use as an affirmation !to answer yes to a )uestion". Its just an interjection. %e thought 0a# wasnt coming to the family reunion and then, good lord, there he was/

.ood lord isnt being used to address any god2 its just adding emphasis to the fact that 0a# had une#pectedly arrived at the family reunion. Interjections .ist +ere are some e#amples of interjections1

aha, ahem, ahh, ahoy, alas, arrggh, aw bam, bingo, blah, boo, bravo, brrr dang, drat, darn, duh ee', eh, encore, eure'a fiddlestic's gad9oo's, gee, gee whi9, golly, goodbye, goodness, good grief, gosh ha*ha, hallelujah, hello, hey, hmm, holy buc'ets, holy cow, holy smo'es, hot dog, huh, humph, hurray oh, oh dear, oh my, oh well, ooops, ouch, ow phew, phooey, pooh rats shh, shoo, shuc's than's, there, tut*tut uh*huh, uh*oh, ugh wahoo, well, whoa, whoops, wow yeah, yes, yi'es, yippee, yo, yuc'

Articles here are only three articles1 the, a and an. hey are very small words which cause very large problems if used incorrectly. If, for e#ample, you wanted someone to hand you the boo', but you accidentally said a boo', the other person might ta'e some time to go shopping for a boo' they thought youd li'e. %hile one can never have too many boo's, wor' doesnt get done if we go boo' shopping every time we need to loo' up a word in the dictionary. ,se of an article can also change the meaning of the noun1 dinner C the evening meal a dinner C an evening meal held for some 'ind of event the dinner C a specific evening meal which was held for some 'ind of event %hat Are Articles& he articles in 4nglish are the !definite article", a, and an !indefinite articles". Articles define a noun as specific or unspecific. After the long day, the cup of tea tastes particularly good. $y using the, weve shown that it was one specific day that was long, and one specific cup of tea that tasted good. After a long day, a cup of tea tastes particularly good.

$y using a, weve created a general statement, saying that any cup of tea would taste good after any long day. ,ses of Articles Articles are used to differentiate between things or ideas usually e#pressed by nouns. he spea'er;writer may be referring to a specific thing or idea, or a general one. %e use the to refer to specific nouns, either singular or plural. -lease hand me the boo' thats on the table. -lease hand me all the boo's that are on the tables. " and an are used to refer non*specific nouns. -lease hand me a boo'2 any boo' will do. -lease hand me an autobiography2 any autobiography will do. Articles should be placed just in front of the noun theyre modifying. +owever, if the noun is also being modified by one or more adjectives, the article should go in front of the adjective!s". -lease fetch me a sweater. -lease fetch me the brown sweater. -lease fetch me the fu99y blue sweater. "n should be used before any noun or any adjective modifying the noun which begins with a vowel or a voiceless +. +e is a man. +e is an ugly man. +e is an honest man. Articles can also be used when emphasi9ing a point. +e had a hard time with the e#am. +e had the hardest time with the e#am. 5bviously, using the definite article the ma'es the point very clear. =efinite Article1 The he definite article refers to a noun, either in the singular or plural. It can be used with uncountable nouns. The refers to a specific thing or )uantity. It should be placed before the noun, or before the adjective which directly modifies the noun. -lease give me the hammer. -lease give me the red hammer2 the blue one is too small.

-lease give me the nail. -lease give me the large nail2 its the only one strong enough to hold up this painting. -lease give me the hammer and the nail. Indefinite Articles1 " and "n he indefinite articles are used when we are referring to an unspecified thing or )uantity. %e use them when we dont 'now !or dont care" which thing were tal'ing about. here once was a sheep. I dont 'now which sheep it was dont 'now its name or where its from, or anything about it so I cant say the sheep. %e use a before nouns or adjectives which begin with a consonant, or when , sounds li'e a 7, or 5 sounds li'e a %. A cat A dog A university A young puppy A one*eyed pirate %e use an before words which begin with a vowel sound or a soft + sound. An egg An hour*glass An anti)ue nec'lace his rule also applies to acronyms. A (ociety of %riters member was )uoted in the article. A (.5.%. member was )uoted in the article. An (.5.%. member was )uoted in the article. $ecause ( sounds li'e it begins with a vowel !ess", an should be used in front of it. The ,sed %ith "ll In 4nglish, the should not come before the word all. hey may be used separately, or combined into all the. At the all birthday parties, food and drin's are served to the guests. his could be written as1 at birthday parties3, at all birthday parties3, or at all the birthday parties3.

0y father as'ed me to ta'e the all boo's off the dining room table. 0y father as'ed me to ta'e all the boo's off the dining room table. ,nnecessary =efinite Article If the noun is general, an indefinite article or possibly no article may be used. ,se the utensil when eating the dinner. ,se the for' when eating your dinner. ,se a utensil when eating dinner. Aive me the liberty or give me the death. Aive me liberty or give me death. <emember that a noun which has been previously mentioned must be modified by a direct article2 however, if the noun is just popping up for the first time, an indirect article should be used. A child is riding a bicycle along a sidewal'2 the child is wearing the helmet. he first the !in the second clause" is correct because child has already been mentioned2 we 'now the writer is tal'ing specifically about the child who is riding a bicycle. he second the should be replaced by an indefinite article !a" because we dont 'now which helmet the child is wearing. N.B. (ometimes the article will change the meaning of the sentence. :or instance, if I wrote % need to buy a new pen for the school", it might imply that I have bro'en one of the schools pens and need to replace it. +owever, if I am buying it for myself to use in school, the should be removed from the sentence1 % need to buy a new pen for school&" #ost1$ome1"ll )f D -lural 6oun %ithout The %hen using the phrases most of, some of, and all of, put the definite article the before the plural noun which is being modified by the phrase. I want to clean all of rooms in the house before the guests arrive. he phrase all of should be followed by the article the. I want to clean all of the rooms in the house before the guests arrive. 0ost of people are careful of their health in the winter. 0ost of the people are careful of their health in the winter. (ome of vegetables are fresh, but some are fro9en. (ome of the vegetables are fresh, but some are fro9en. ,sing Articles %ith -ronouns A pronoun is used to modify a noun2 an article is also used to modify a noun. If both are used to modify the same noun, the reader will become confused. -ronouns are words li'e he, 2, we, our, it, her, and their. Articles should not be used to modify pronouns.

%hy are you reading the my boo'& The and my should not be used together. %hy are you reading my boo'& Aetting on the train, she gave her tic'et to a him. Aetting on the train, she gave her tic'et to him. Aetting on the train, she gave her tic'et to a tic'et man. Indefinite Article %ith ,ncountable 6oun ,ncountable nouns are nouns which are difficult or impossible to count. ,ncountable nouns include untouchable things !information, air", things li'e li)uids !milk, wine", and things which are too large or numerous to count !e'uipment, sand, wood". $ecause these things cant be counted, singular articles li'e a or an should not be used to modify them. ,ncountable nouns can be modified by words li'e some. Alternately, the uncountable noun can be changed to a countable noun. -lease give me a water. &ater is an uncountable noun, and should not be used with the indefinite article, a. -lease give me some water. -lease give me a bottle of water. -lease give me an ice. -lease give me an ice cube. -lease give me some ice. N.B. =epending on the conte#t, some nouns can be countable or uncountable !e.g. hair, noise, time" %e need a light in this room. %e need some light in this room. Indefinite Article %ith A -lural 6oun he indefinite articles, a and an, are used to modify singular nouns. %hen using a plural noun, these two articles are unnecessary. I have a boo's in my loc'er. I have boo's in my loc'er. I have a boo' in my loc'er. It is also unnecessary to use an indefinite article if there is an adjective in front of a plural noun. %hen he is in public, he does an embarrassing things.

%hen he is in public, he does embarrassing things. %hen he is in public, he does an embarrassing thing. N.B. %hen selecting courses, there are a many options to choose from. " is not necessary in this sentence and should be removed. +owever, should you want to refer to the specific )uantity of options, the sentence can be rephrased to use the definite article the1 7ou may select courses from the many options.
,nnecessary article Articles are generally used to refer to specific plural or singular nouns. -lural countable nouns and mass nouns !words which are used as general terms e.g. animals, people, sadness" do not always re)uire an article. here are no rules to clearly identify when to use an article and when not to2 the meaning of the word demonstrates the need for an article. >ows li'e to bas' in the sun. +ows is a mass noun2 all the cows li'e to bas' in the sun. $un re)uires a definite article because there is only one sun. he cows in the field li'e to bas' in the sun. +ere, were tal'ing about a specific group of cows. All over the world, humans are searching for the happiness. he article before happiness is not re)uired because happiness is used as a mass noun. All over the world, humans are searching for happiness. All over the world, humans are searching for the happiness they believe they deserve. $ecause happiness in this sentence is a specific 'ind of happiness the 'ind they believe they deserve the article is re)uired before happiness. :armers would do well to arrange for e#tra the stores of cattle feed this winter. $ecause e0tra is already modifying the mass noun stores, the article is not re)uired before stores. Aeographical ,se of =efinite Article The 4nglish uses the definite article the in front of some geographical names but not in front of others. If in doubt, your best bet is to loo' it up in a dictionary or online. +eres a general list of guidelines1 'o not use the before the name of#

most countries or territories !e.g. >anada, >hina, 6ew Eealand" towns, cities or states !e.g. 5ttawa, -aris, >alifornia; streets !e.g. :ront (treet, .a'eview Avenue, =ogwood >rescent" la'es !e.g. .a'e 5ntario, .a'e -lacid, $ear .a'e" bays, where the term bay comes after the name !e.g. the $ay of :undy" mountains !e.g. 0ount 4verest, 0ount Filimanjaro"

continents !e.g. 6orth America, Africa" islands !e.g. :iji Islands, -rince 4dward Island"

'o use the before the name of#

rivers, oceans, seas !e.g. the 0ississippi <iver, the Atlantic 5cean, the 0editerranean" bays, where the term bay comes first !e.g. the $ay of :undy, the $ay of $engal" gulfs and peninsulas !e.g. the -ersian Aulf, the Arabian -eninsula" mountain ranges !e.g. the <oc'ies, the =olomites, the .aurentians" points on the globe !e.g. the 4)uator, the 6orth -ole" geographical areas !e.g. the 0iddle 4ast, the (outh" deserts and forests !e.g. the Aobi =esert, the $lac' :orest"

N.B. .anguage is always changing. :ifty years ago, Argentina was 'nown as the "rgentine, and the Balkan 2slands always had the definite article in front of it. In many places, formal writing may accept the use of the word "rgentina, and people may say, I come from $al'an Islands. 5mission of Articles =ont use articles with1 languages and nationalities !e.g. >hinese, 4nglish, :rench, (panish" N.B. If you put an article in front of these words, it refers to the people of that country. sports !e.g. diving, baseball, s'iing" academic subjects !e.g. chemistry, 4nglish, philosophy" I li'e to play the baseball. (ports dont re)uire an article before them. I li'e to play baseball. I li'e to play with a baseball $ecause were tal'ing about the actual ball !not the sport", an article is re)uired. I li'e to study 4nglish. his sentence refers to the 4nglish language. I li'e to study the 4nglish. his sentence because of the article refers to the 4nglish people. %onjunctions +ave you seen how children write when theyre first learning& hey write in short little sentences that sound rather robotic1 0y name is Anna. I am five years old. I am a girl. I have a mother. I have a father. I have a brother. I have a cat. I li'e hot dogs. %hen they get a little older, they learn to connect some of those sentences so its not so choppy1

0y name is Anna, and I am five years old. I am a girl. I have a mother, a father, a brother, and a cat. I li'e hot dogs. 6otice the use of and2 thats the magic 'ey to not sounding li'e a robot. "nd is a conjunction2 conjunctions are one of the things we use to connect ideas to create a smoothly flowing sentence which is clearly understandable to the reader. >onjunctions are great things, but you can have too much of a good thing. %hen conjunctions are overused, you have run*on sentences. %hat Are >onjunctions >onjunctions are little words li'e and, but, and or. heyre used to connect concepts, clauses, or parts of sentences. I was going to see a movie, but Ive changed my mind. (he couldnt decide if she wanted the lemon tea or the rosehip tea. ,ses of >onjunctions >onjunctions connect thoughts, ideas, actions, nouns, clauses, etc. 0artha went to the mar'et and bought fresh vegetables. In this sentence, the conjunction and connects the two things 0artha did. 0artha went to the mar'et, and I went to the hardware store. +ere, and connects two sentences, preventing the choppiness which would arise if we used too many short sentences. >onjunctions can also ma'e lists. I cant decide between the blue shirt and the red shirt. %e barbe)ued hamburgers, hotdogs, and sausages. %hen using a conjunction, ma'e sure that the parts which are being joined by the conjunction have a parallel structure !i.e. that they use the same verb forms, etc." I wor'ed )uic'ly yet am careful. "m careful is not in the same form as quickly2 this creates faulty parallelism. he verbs need to be in the same form. I wor'ed )uic'ly yet carefully. he two adverbs modify the verb worked. I am )uic' yet careful. he two adjectives modify the pronoun 2. >oordinating >onjunctions

he coordinating conjunctions are conjunctions that join two independent clauses, or two nouns, or two verbs, etc. 7ou can remember the coordinating conjunctions with the acronym :A6$57(. :or And 6or $ut 5r 7et (o <un and hide/ he coordinating conjunction connects the two verbs. %e didnt have much money, but we were happy. +ere are two contrasting states of being1 not having much money, and being happy. %e didnt have much money or much food. I had chocolate ca'e, and 0ichael had carrot ca'e. 6ote the commas before the coordinating conjunctions which separate two independent clauses. >orrelative >onjunctions >orrelative conjunctions are pairs of conjunctions that wor' together. (ome e#amples are either1or, neither1nor and not only1but. 6ot only am I finished studying for 4nglish, but Im also finished my history essay. I am finished both my 4nglish essay and my history essay. 0a'e sure that you use both conjunctions when writing. (ometimes when we spea', we get a little la9y2 dont leave a clause unfinished or else youll have a problem with faulty parallelism. 7ou could use either. his is alright for conversation because youll have something in front of you to point to, giving you a visual clue. 7ou could use either the spoon. his is an unfinished sentence2 there is a problem with faulty parallelism here. 7ou could use either the spoon or the for'. his sentence is perfect because it lists both things to be used. (ubordinating >onjunctions

(ubordinating conjunctions show a relationship between an independent and a dependent clause2 some of the relationships can be cause*and*effect, and contrast. (ome e#amples of subordinating conjunctions are because, since, as, although, though, while, and whereas. I can stay out until the cloc' stri'es twelve. +ere, the subordinating conjunction is connecting the two ideas1 2 can stay out and the clock strikes twelve. +e can leave the house as long as he has cleaned his room. he teacher said that he was ama9ingly creative. he subordinating conjunction doesnt need to go in the middle of the sentence. It must be part of the dependent clause, but it doesnt matter whether the clause is the first or second on in the sentence. $efore he leaves, ma'e sure his room is clean. If the dependent clause comes first, youll need a comma2 if the independent clause comes first, you probably wont need a comma. I dran' a glass of water because I was thirsty. $ecause I was thirsty, I dran' a glass of water. %hen she as'ed why I wanted a glass of water, I could only answer $ecause, because I was so thirsty. Ive used a comma in this sentence only to separate the repeated because2 this ma'es it clearer to the reader. >onjunctive Adverbs >onjunctive adverbs are adverbs which join two clauses2 some e#amples of are also, besides, accordingly, finally, subsequently, therefore, thus, meanwhile, moreover, nonetheless, instead, however, indeed, hence, consequently, similarly and still. >onjunctive adverbs fre)uently !but not necessarily" have a semi*colon before them. As theyre conjunctions !i.e. words that join two thoughts or ideas", its best not to use them at the beginning of a sentence. -lease close the outer door2 otherwise, the cold air comes in. :irst feed the horses2 ne#t, please feed the chic'ens. >onjunctive adverbs can also put a little brea' in the sentence, providing emphasis. he new building will, furthermore, provide storage facilities as well as meeting space. he commas are used around the conjunctive adverb for emphasis. If the interruption in the sentence should be wea'er, just leave out the commas. he new building will furthermore provide storage facilities as well as meeting space. (tarting a (entence with a >onjunction If a conjunction is used at the beginning of a sentence, the reader may be loo'ing for an idea to connect to the sentence. %hile using a conjunction at the beginning of a sentence can add emphasis, its an informal means of doing so. 7ou can use it in creative or personal writing, but its not recommended for formal writing. 0any people fear crashing in an airplane. $ut riding in a car is actually more dangerous.

$eginning the second sentence with the conjunction but is not a good idea. It would be better to connect the sentences with a comma and but. 0any people fear crashing in an airplane, but riding in a car is actually more dangerous. And when using the subjunctive, be sure to use it properly. %e can ta'e out the and at the beginning of the sentence2 it serves no purpose. N.B. %hile the subject is a matter of debate, beginning a sentence with words li'e however and on the other hand is fre)uently frowned upon. It may be safer to connect the sentences with a semi*colon. I li'e the blue shirt2 however, the red one is nice, too. >onjunctions .ist %oordinating %onjunctions for, and, nor, but, or, yet, so %orrelative %onjunctions both;and, either;or, neither;nor, not only;but, whether;or !ome !ubordinating %onjunctions after, although, as, as if, as long as, as much as, as soon as, as though, because, before, by the time, even if, even though, if, in order that, in case, in the event that, inasmuch, just in case, lest , now that, once, only, only if, provided that, since, so, supposing, that, than, that, though, till !or Gtil", unless, until, when, whenever, where, whereas, wherever, whether or not, while -repositions 8ampires/ Eombies/ %erewolves/ %here&/ $ehind you/ han' goodness for prepositions. Imagine not 'nowing where the danger lay3. -repositions tell us where or when something is in relation to something else. %hen monsters are snea'ing up, its good to have these special words to tell us where those monsters are1 are they behind us or in front of us2 are they near or far2 will they be arriving in three seconds or at midnight& :re)uently, prepositions are used to tell us where one noun is in relation to another !e.g. The coffee is on the table beside you&" hey can also be used to contrast ideas !e.g. !e went for a walk despite the rain&" -repositions can modify nouns and any word which is modifying a noun !pronouns, adjectives, verbs, etc." %hat Are -repositions& -repositions are little words that tell where or when something is. %rite your name on the line. -lace the spoon above the plate.. here are coo'ies in the jar.

he 'ids stayed up until midnight. ,ses of -repositions -repositions define direction, time, location, and spatial relationships. 'irection1 At the end of the hall, turn to the left& Time1 !e(ve been working since early this morning& $ocation1 !e saw a movie at the theater& !pace1 The dog under the table& >ommon -repositions +eres a list of some common prepositions1 about, above, across, after, against, along, among, around, at, before, behind, below, beneath, beside, between, beyond, but, by, despite, down, during, e0cept, for, from, in, inside, into, like, near, of, off, on, onto, out, outside, over, past, since, through, throughout, till, to, toward, under, underneath, until, up, upon, with, within, without -repositions of ime and -lace hese prepositions have dual roles, telling both time and place. At he class is at H ocloc'. !time" 0eet me at the school. !place" 5n he election is on hursday. !time" Is your name on the ballot& !place" In (pring officially begins in three days. !time" %ere still up to our 'nees in snow. !place" -repositions of =irection -repositions of direction tell you where to go or where to put something. (ome e#amples are to, on, onto, in, and into. Its time to go to class. -ut on your gloves and shoes. 0a'e sure your boo's are in your bac'pac'. -ush your way onto the crowded subway platform. =uring the journey, get your mind into learning mode. ,sing 5nto and Into

hese are old prepositions which are still in common usage. hey are both used with verbs that imply some sort of movement or progress. he plane landed onto the runway. To land is not a verb which necessarily re)uires movement2 its referring to the moment when the plane actually stops on the runway. he plane landed on the runway. he plane glided onto the runway. .liding most certainly implies motion, so we can use onto with it. he caterpillar changed in a butterfly. he caterpillar changed into a butterfly. 2nto can usually be replaced by in. -ut the boo' in the bo#. -ut the boo' into the bo#. Its a little more difficult to replace onto with on2 it sounds aw'ward. %e )uic'ly moved the conversation onto a new subject. %e )uic'ly moved the conversation on a new subject. In 4nglish, it can be a little confusing to decide when to use in and when to use on. Im in the car2 Ill be home in a minute. Its logical to be in a car. Im on the bus2 Ill be home in a minute. Im on the train2 Ill be home in a minute. Im on the plane2 Ill be home in a few hours. Its not so logical to be on a bus or a train or a plane, yet thats the way we say it. %hile you are on the plane, i.e. inside the plane, there is also a logo on the plane, and two wings on the plane, though theyre not inside with you. %hen in doubt, loo' up the proper term in a dictionary. -repositions of (patial <elationship he following are some prepositions which describe spatial relationships where something is in relation to something else: above, across, against, ahead of, along, among, around, behind, below, beneath, beside, between, from, in front of, inside, near, off, out of, through, toward, under, within. here is a small pla)ue under the painting. he dog ran ahead of its owner. here is a space between his front teeth.

>ome sit near the fire. %here the hec' did you come from& 6ouns and -repositions 6ouns and prepositions often wor' together in common phrases1 e.g. for e0ample, on vacation, by chance, on purpose, by accident, difference between, on strike, a solution to . >an we find solution to this problem& here is currently a great demand for organic products. Its the season for celebration/ %hats the cause of this brouhaha& >ommon Adjective and -reposition >ombinations Adjectives and prepositions are commonly used in phrases. he adjective usually goes before the preposition. Im really e#cited about this project/ +e was found guilty of fraud and ta# evasion. (tudents often get worried about writing e#ams. 0ary wont have children2 she is in love with her blac' lab. he world felt sorry for the victims of the tsunami. (ome other e#amples would be famous for, opposed to, responsible to , and responsible for. >ommon 8erb and -reposition >ombinations 8erbs and prepositions are also used in common phrases. he verb generally goes in front of the preposition. =o you agree with the new guidelines& =o you agree to the new guidelines& 7ou get what you pay for. his novel gave me a lot to thin' about. Its easy to fall in love with big, silly dogs. I have no doubt about the outcome of the vote. <oc' on, dude/ he verb and the preposition may be separated, especially if the sentence is formally written so the preposition isnt at the end. =idnt I warn you about leaving things until the last minute& o whom does this boo' belong& !%ho does this boo' belong to&"

>ould you please e#plain this math problem to me& To e0plain something to someone is a common phrase which will always be separated by the something. (ome other e#amples of verb;preposition combinations are ask for, depend on, look after, wait for, rely on, dream on, lead on, do something for someone, be careful of, be careful with, be disappointed by, boast about, complain about, in conclusion, and search for. 4nding a (entence with a -reposition Its a common refrain1 6ever end a sentence with a preposition/ In conversation and informal writing, ending a sentence with a preposition is perfectly acceptable. Its only in formal writing that we still follow the rule. %hich bo# should this go into& Into which bo# should this go& >ome in. >ome into the house. %hen I glanced at the table, I saw the dog was hiding beneath. %hen I glanced at the table, I saw the dog was hiding beneath it. he things I have to put up with3. he preposition at the end of this sentence is alright because the phrase put up with is an informal phrase which we wouldnt use in formal writing. ,nnecessary -reposition 0odern 4nglish has changed to the point where once*necessary prepositions are now considered unnecessary. ,se of unnecessary prepositions creates wordiness, and can give a somewhat childish )uality to the writing. %hile use of these prepositions is not grammatically incorrect, its better to tighten up your writing as much as possible. %here did that report go to& Its unnecessary to use to at the end. %here did that report go& >ould you get that bo# off of the table& >ould you get that bo# off the table& Anne met up with 0ary at the party. heres a two*fer here. Anne met 0ary at the party. %here would we find the information at& %here would we find the information& $rea' it up into smaller sections.

$rea' it into smaller sections. >ould you please carry this bo# to downstairs& >ould you please carry this bo# downstairs& he winner was awarded with a gold medal. he winner was awarded a gold medal. 6ouns =uring the IJKLs, HLs and JLs, there was a famous 8 program called $choolhouse 3ock. 0ost of us who grew up in 6orth America at that time can still sing the songs2 if you as' us what a noun is, well sing, Its a person, place or thing, yeah/ A person, place or thing is probably the best definition for the word noun. 4nglish is a noun*based language2 its estimated that about MLN of the language is nouns. %hen children are learning to spea', they can say Apple& and well 'now what they mean. his applies to most of our communication1 if we have the noun, we can get the gist of any sentence, and the verbs, adjectives, etc. are merely e#tra bits for conte#t. $ecause nouns are the main part of a sentence, all the other words wor' to describe that noun and what its doing or whats being done to it. %hat Are 6ouns& he easy way to remember nouns is that they refer to a person, place or thing. 4ven intangible or abstract concepts li'e ideas or thoughts are things. A mother 6orth America he table A plan A wish he use of nouns is fairly obvious2 its difficult to ma'e an actual mista'e with a noun. 4rrors usually involve the words around the noun, or perhaps a singular;plural mista'e. 0ost nouns which refer to people are gender neutral !teacher, doctor, lawyer" but a few are gender specific !actor;actress, waiter;waitress". 0odern 4nglish has adjusted to accommodate gender2 a fireman is male, a firewoman is female, and a firefighter is gender neutral. ,ses of 6ouns In a sentence, nouns can play the role of subject, direct object, indirect object, subject complement, object complement, appositive, or adjective. 0aria is happy. #aria is the subject. Aive the boo's to her. Books is a direct object2 her is the indirect object. 0ary is a teacher.

Teacher is a subject complement. I now pronounce you husband and wife. 4usband and wife are object complements. 0y brother 0ichael is si# years old. #ichael is an appositive. +e is a speed demon. $peed is a noun which is modifying demon2 speed is acting li'e an adjective. -lural 6ouns o ma'e regular nouns plural, add *s to the end. >at cats +ouse houses If the singular noun ends in *s, add *es to the end to plurali9e it. russ trusses $us buses If the noun ends with *f or *fe, the f is often changed to *ve. %ife wives %olf wolves E"ception1 roof roofs If the singular noun ends in *y, change the ending to *ies. >ity cities -uppy puppies If the singular noun ends in *o, add *es to ma'e it plural. -otato potatoes omato tomatoes If the singular noun ends in *us, the plural ending is fre)uently *i. >actus cacti 5ctopus octopi If the singular noun ends in *is, the plural ending is *es. Analysis Analyses

4llipsis 4llipses If the singular noun ends in *on, the plural ending is *a. -henomenon phenomena >riterion criteria Irregular nouns should be chec'ed in the dictionary because they follow no specific rules. >hild children Aoose geese 0an men (ome nouns dont change at all when theyre plurali9ed1 (heep 0oose 7ou need to see these nouns in conte#t to understand whether theyre singular or plural. 0ar' caught one fish, but I caught three fish. ypes of 6ouns

Abstract nouns >ollective nouns >ommon nouns >oncrete nouns Aeneric nouns >ountable and uncountable nouns -ossessive nouns -roper nouns Irregular nouns >ompound nouns

Abstract 6ouns An abstract noun is a noun which cannot be identified using one of the five senses !taste, touch, sight, hearing, smelling". %e cant imagine the courage it too' to do that. +ourage is an abstract noun. he stupidity of the dinosaurs is assumed because of their relatively small brains. +igher education is strongly recommended >ollective 6ouns he term collective nouns refers to a noun which is refers to a group of nouns. he nouns can be people, places or things. (ome collective nouns are non*specific and can refer to any noun !e.g. group1 group of people, group of

photographs, group of chairs", and some can refer to only one thing !e.g. a pride of lions2 you cant have a pride of chairs or a pride of birds". +and me that bou)uet of flowers, please. he teacher brought in a bunch of boo's for us to loo' at. he grandmother fed her grandson a whole pile of coo'ies. he collective noun may mean something entirely different when used as a common noun1 heres a murder of crows in that field. +ave a loo' at that school of fish. Ale# wal'ed right into a bed of sna'es. Aenerally, collective nouns are followed by of1 e.g. a herd of cows. (ometimes, though, we get la9y and leave out the of 555. :or instance, we would usually just say an audience because we 'now that an audience is comprised of people !not too many 0artians in an audience, one hopes". %e will side with the majority !of voters". -lease hand these papers out to the class !of students". In formal writing, collective nouns can be replaced by a singular pronoun. he herd is going to the watering hole. he herd are going to the watering hole. >ommon 6ouns >ommon nouns are words for people, places or things that arent specific !as opposed to a proper noun which refers to only one person, place or thing". >ommon nouns can be countable or uncountable, singular or plural. here are cows are in the field. %e dont 'now which cows those are, nor do we 'now the name of the field2 these are common nouns because they can be replaced with any other cows and any other field, and the sentence would retain the same meaning. I need some paper. %ould someone please answer the phone& =oes anyone have any ideas& %here is that boo' I was reading& 4ven though Im loo'ing for a specific boo', I havent used the name of that boo', i.e. the title, so the first letter should remain in lower case. %here is .ord of the :lies& he title is a proper noun, not a common noun. >oncrete 6ouns

A concrete noun is a noun which can be identified through one of the five senses !taste, touch, sight, hearing, smell". %ould someone please answer the phone& -hone is a concrete noun1 I can touch it, see it, hear it, and maybe even smell it or taste it. %hat is that noise& 4ven though noise cant be touched and the noise may even be coming from several places I can hear the noise, so its a concrete noun. After his retirement, 0r. $ond pursued his dream of photographing rainbows. 3ainbows is a concrete noun1 it can be seen. #r. Bond is also a concrete noun, but dream and retirement are not. !(ee Abstract 6ouns." Aeneric 6ouns Aeneric nouns are nouns which are part of a generic statement. heyre different from definite nouns !e.g. the book" and indefinite nouns !e.g. a book" in that the sentence theyre must be a blan'et statement or )uestion. Aeneric nouns can be singular or plural. 0a'e sure the verb which is modifying the generic noun agrees with the generic noun !e.g. the gang of boys was, the gangs of boys were" he opposite of generic nouns is collective nouns !see >ollective 6ouns". If it refers to a specific group, its not generic. he pride of lions are cats. 6ride is a collective noun which is modifying lions2 cats is generic. >ats are animals. $oth cat and animals are generic nouns. A cat is an animal. =espite the indefinite article, this noun is still generic because were not tal'ing about a specific cat. he cat has been an integral part of civili9ation. %hile there is a definite article in front of cat, this sentence refers to cats in a general sense, so its a generic noun. >ivili9ation has always included cats. >ountable and ,ncountable 6ouns >ountable 6ouns >ountable nouns are nouns which can be counted, even if the number might be e#traordinarily high !li'e counting all the people in the world". >ountable nouns can be used with a)an, the, some, any, a few, and many. +ere is a cat. +at is singular and obviously countable. +ere are a few cats.

+ere are some cats. (ome more e#amples of countable nouns would be house, idea, hand, car, flower, and paper. ,ncountable 6ouns ,ncountable nouns are nouns which come in a state or )uantity which is impossible to count2 li)uids are uncountable, as are things which act li'e li)uids ! sand, air" heyre always considered to be singular, and can be used with a, some, any, a little, and much. An I.?. test measures intelligence. 2ntelligence is an uncountable noun. (tudents dont seem to have many homewor' these days. $ecause homework is an uncountable noun, it should be modified by much or a lot of. (tudents dont seem to have much homewor' these days. A lot of e)uipment is re)uired to play hoc'ey safely. (ome more e#amples of uncountable nouns would be water, soil, love, literature, and dust. $oth >ountable and ,ncountable (ome nouns can be both countable and uncountable1 e.g. light, hair, room, gear, art, and science. =id you have a good time at the party& +ere, time is countable !a time". I dont thin' I have time to do my hair before I leave. In this sentence, time is uncountable. here is some juice on the table. here are some juices on the table. -ossessive 6ouns -ossessive nouns are nouns which possess something2 i.e. they have something. 5f course, the thing the noun possesses is another noun. 7ou can identify a possessive noun by the apostrophe2 most nouns show the possessive with an apostrophe and an s. he cats toy was missing. he cat possesses the toy, and we denote this by use of *Gs at the end of cat. Is this $randons boo'& I pulled a feather from the gooses tail. If the noun ends in an s, we generally use only an apostrophe after the noun, although it is acceptable to use *Gs. he problem is that it loo's funny with all those (s, which would detract from reading. Ive been invited to the boss(s house for dinner.

Ive been invited to the boss house for dinner. he trainer flipped a fish into the walrus open mouth. -roper 6ouns -roper nouns are the names of specific people or places. hey should always begin with a capital. -lease give this to 0ary, not to Anna. Aeorge is going to >alifornia. Amsterdam is the capital of the 6etherlands. he girls name is >atherine. +atherine is a proper noun because its the name of a specific girl. .irl is not a proper noun. !(ee >ommon 6ouns." Irregular 6ouns Irregular nouns are nouns which dont follow a spelling pattern when plurali9ed. >hild children (ee -lural 6ouns. >ompound 6ouns >ompound nouns are words where two nouns have been stuc' together to ma'e a new noun. >ompound nouns should be written as one word, without a hyphen. here are many different brands of toothpaste. tooth D paste C toothpaste !a compound noun" -olishing the silver candlestic's is a dull chore. %e ma'e chocolate cupca'es for the party. %hen we moved, we had a whole truc'load of furniture. 6oun (trings A long string of nouns one noun after the other ma'es for difficult reading. his includes nouns that are bing used as adjectives. his happens fre)uently in cases where technical jargon is used. ,nnecessary nouns can be removed, or perhaps some of the nouns can be changed to verbs or adjectives. he company is considering branching into electromagnetic radiation assistive astronomical technology. ,m3 what& 5nly someone who is in this field would be able to understand this noun string without re*reading the sentence several times. he company is considering branching into an astronomical technology which would aid in the study of electromagnetic radiation. his is better2 the sentence uses the same number of nouns, but the noun string has been split up so the reader can easily process the information.

he city could certainly use a fleet of public operation transportation vehicles. he city could certainly use a fleet for public transport. 4ven turning one noun into a verb !transportation1transport" or turning one noun into a clear adjective !public operation1public" ma'es this sentence a little simpler to understand. 6otice, also, that we have bro'en up the nouns to ma'e the sentence clearer. 6ouns with Adjectives and Adverbs Nouns should be modified by adjectives) not by adverbs. hat man is the most sanctimoniously person I have ever met. he adverb sanctimoniously is modifying the noun man2 it should be changed to an adjective. hat man is the most sanctimonious person I have ever met. %hile waiting for his life to unfold, 0artin was an an#iously person2 this changed after he met his wife. %hile waiting for his life to unfold, 0artin was an an#ious person2 this changed after he met his wife. he dress was an ugly dress, perhaps the ugliest ever to e#ist. =espite ending in *ly, the word ugly is an adjective and can be used to modify the noun dress. 6oun and -ronoun Agreement1 hese; hose he demonstrative pronouns these and those are plural pronouns, and should refer to plural nouns. 0ista'es fre)uently occur in situations where many things are put into one group, such as a pair of shoes, or a bag of marbles. In such cases, the pronoun should agree with pair, or bag. 0ista'es can also occur when an accent or dialect ma'es this and these sound similar2 while this can be charming to hear, it is considered incorrect in formal writing. -lease move these bo# of boo's to the other table. he pronoun should refer to the bo0, not the books. -lease move this bo# of boo's to the other table. %hat is all these noise& 4ven though there may be several sources of noise, the verb is tells the reader that the sentence should be in the singular. %hat is all this noise& >ountable and ,ncountable 6ouns with Adjectives *!ee %ountable and +ncountable Nouns, hese adjectives can be used with plural countable nouns1 :ew he manager had a few inspiration for the project. 2nspiration is uncountable, so it cant be used with few. %e need to find a countable noun to use with few.

he manager had a few inspired ideas for the project. 2deas is countable, so we can use that with few. %e can change inspiration to an adjective so the meaning is still there. 0any I have many boo's. If a lot of or lots of is used with a countable noun, it means many. I have lots of boo's. hese adjectives can be used with uncountable nouns1 .ittle (he got little sleep last night. A little bit of (he only got a little bit of sleep last night. 0uch (he didnt get much sleep last night. If a lot of or lots of is used with an uncountable noun, it means much. (he didnt get a lot of sleep last night. (he hopes to get lots of sleep tonight. hese adjective can be used with both countable plural nouns and uncountable nouns1 (ome >ould we please have some bottles of water& >ould we please have some water& Bottles is countable, and water is uncountable. Any =o we have any bottles of water& =o we have any water& -lenty of %e have plenty of water bottles. %e have plenty of water. 4nough

=o we have enough water bottles& =o we have enough water& 6o I just chec'ed1 we have no water bottles. I just chec'ed1 we have no water. >apitali9ation of 6ouns 6ouns get capitali9ed when theyre at the beginning of a sentence, or if theyre proper nouns. he red s)uirrel is endangered. <ed s)uirrels are endangered. +ow many coo'ies do you want, Andrew& (ome nouns can be common or proper2 capitali9e the proper nouns and leave the common nouns in lower case. 0y mother made me a ca'e. 0other made me a ca'e. =id you ma'e me a ca'e, 0other& he 4arth is round. (pades are for digging in the earth. -ronouns ?ueen 8ictoria of 4ngland used to refer to herself in third*person1 he ?ueen wishes to ta'e a wal'. %eird. %hatever happened to I want to ta'e a wal'& ,sing pronouns reduces the use of nouns, which can start to sound repetitive and mechanical. Imagine if you had to use your name every time you referred to yourself. 7oud sound as odd as ?ueen 8ictoria. -lease pass 0ar' the potatoes. 0ar' li'es the potatoes. he potatoes are tasty. If we replace the #arks with 2, and a couple of the potatoes with them, things sound much more natural. 5ne of the pitfalls of pronouns is using the wrong one. 6on*4nglish spea'ers who are accustomed to a gender* neutral language find it difficult to 'eep he and she straight. Its important, though1 people get rather upset when you get their gender wrong. %hat Are -ronouns -ronouns are words which replace a noun1 I , me, she, we, they, who, that, yours, his, her, etc. -ronouns should only be used if the name of the person !or group of people", place !or places", or thing !or things" has been previously mentioned in the paragraph. If its not clear which thing the pronoun is modifying, the reader can get )uite confused. ,ses of -ronouns %e use pronouns so we dont have to repeat the noun2 it ma'es it sound a little better when were tal'ing about one subject for several sentences.

%hen 0ichael first started 0ichaels new job, 0ichael was a little apprehensive. After all, 0ichael had just finished 0ichaels post*secondary education, and 0ichael suddenly felt 0ichael hadnt learned anything about the real world. %hen 0ichael first started his new job, he was a little apprehensive. After all, he had just finished his post* secondary education, and he suddenly felt he hadnt learned anything about the real world. 7ou can see how the use of pronouns ma'es the paragraph sound less repetitive. 6otice, though, that 0ichaels name has to be mentioned at the beginning of the paragraph2 otherwise, we wouldnt 'now which man was being discussed. -ronouns can be subjects or objects, or show possession. -ronouns can also be used to name something un'nown or unspecified1 someone, something, anyone, anything, etc. (omeone is up to something here2 I just 'now it. -ronoun >ase !ubjective he subjective, or nominative, pronouns are 2, you !singular", he)she)it, we, you !plural", they and who. he subjective pronouns are the subjects of the sentence. I have a big chocolate bar. 7ou have some ice cream. +e has a ca'e. %e could have a party. hey could come, too. %ho should be invited& .bjective he objective, or dative, case pronouns are me, you !singular", him)her, us, you !plural", them and whom. %e use the objective case when something is being done to !or given to, etc." someone. Aive the chocolate to me, please& %hy should I give it to you& 7ou could give it to him, instead. -lease share it with all of us& =o we have to share it with them& -ossessive he possessive pronouns are mine, my, your, yours, his, hers, its, their, theirs, our and ours. he possessive pronouns shows that something !or someone" belongs to someone !or something". hats my shirt.

hat shirt is mine. he house is theirs. Its their house. he dog is scratching its ear. Its scratching its ear. 6otice that the first pronoun is part of a contraction, it*s, which is short for it is. he possessive pronoun doesnt have an apostrophe. ypes of -ronouns

=emonstrative Indefinite Intensive Interrogative 5bject (ubject -ersonal -ossessive <eciprocal <efle#ive <elative

=emonstrative -ronouns =emonstrative pronouns are easy to remember because they are often accompanied by a demonstration1 when we spea', we use our hands to show them. :or the demonstrative pronouns this, that, these, and those, we point with our finger or gesture with our hands in the general direction of the thing were tal'ing about. :or the demonstrative pronouns none and neither, we often ma'e a gesture implying rejection or emptiness. This1 singular and close to the spea'er Ill have this little chocolate ca'e. That1 singular and relatively far away from the spea'er Ill also have that strawberry ca'e, the one on the bottom shelf. These1 plural and close to the spea'er Ill have three of these walnut biscuits. Those1 plural and relatively far away from the spea'er Are those butter tarts& Ill have four of those, please. +ow many sugar*free, all*natural coo'ies& 6one, than's. Indefinite -ronouns Indefinite pronouns are words li'e a few, some, several, any, most, other, some, each, everything, none, neither and either. Indefinite pronouns are always singular. he pronoun or verb which refers to the indefinite pronoun should also be in the singular.

(omething on my computer is ma'ing it slow. 4ach scientific invention was presented by its inventor. 6one shall pass/ =oes anybody 'now anyone who 'nows anything about whats going on& 5ne )ne is the only indefinite personal pronoun. Its a good one to use in formal writing where you would usually use 2 or you. 5ne might have a hard time understanding business jargon. !formal" 7ou might have a hard time understanding business jargon. !informal" he table was arranged in such a way that it would be easy for one to )uic'ly gather information. o ensure a space is available, one must ma'e reservations OP hours in advance. Intensive -ronouns Intensive pronouns use refle#ive pronouns to add emphasis to the subject of the sentence. he intensive;refle#ive pronouns are myself, yourself, himself, herself, itself, ourselves, yourselves and themselves. 7oull usually find the intensive pronoun right after the noun or pronoun its modifying, but not necessarily. he way to identify an intensive pronoun is to remove it from the sentence2 if its an intensive pronoun, the sentence will still ma'e sense. If the sentence no longer ma'es sense, its a refle#ive pronoun. =id you yourself ma'e the ca'e& he sentence would still ma'e sense if we removed yourself1 (id you make the cake7 I myself li'e a little stroll after dinner. %e went to hear the man himself spea'. he author approved the boo' cover herself. Interrogative -ronouns Interrogative pronouns are used to as' a )uestion. ,sually, theres no antecedent !if there was, there would be no need to as' the )uestion". he interrogative pronouns are who, which, what, whom, and whose. 7oull usually find interrogative pronouns at the beginning of the sentence. %ho is going on the trip to India& %ith whom will you be going to India& %hich house is yours& %hat did you do& %hose pen is this& 5bject -ronouns

he objective pronouns are1 me, you, him, her, it, us and them. 5bjective pronouns receive the action the verb suggests2 loo' for a preposition which modifies the pronoun. Qulia doesnt want to go on a date with him. %hen youre finished reading the boo', give it to me. he old woman was staring at her. If youre loo'ing for creativity, youll find it in us. 5ne of the most common mista'es made when using objective pronouns is when using the compound subject you and me. $ecause you is the same in the subjective and the objective case, people get confused between 2 and me. he way to chec' this is to remove the second*person pronoun. %hen hes finished reading the boo', hell give it to you or I. If the sentence read 3hell give it to I, we would 'now it was wrong. %e could also loo' for the preposition1 or. %hen hes finished reading the boo', hell give it to you or me. (ubject -ronouns he subjective pronouns are 2, you, he, she, it, we and they. (ubjective pronouns are used to replace the name of a person and do the action the verb suggests. (hould I go pic' up the pi99a now& %e li'e the new 4nglish professor. Its easy. %hat will they do now that the house is sold& %ould you prefer tea or coffee& 5ne of the most common mista'es made when using subjective pronouns is when using the compound subject you and 2. $ecause you is the same in the subjective and the objective case, people get confused between 2 and me. he way to chec' this is to remove the second*person pronoun. (hould you and me go pic' up the pi99a now& If the sentence read (hould me go pic' up the pi99a&, we would 'now it was wrong. %e could also loo' for the preposition1 there isnt one. (hould you and I go pic' up the pi99a now& -ersonal -ronouns -ersonal pronouns are pronouns which replace the name of a person or a group of people.

:irst person singular1 2, me, my, mine, myself (econd person singular1 you, yours, your, yourself hird person singular masculine1 he, him, his, himself hird person singular feminine1 she, her, hers, herself hird person singular neutral1 one, it, its !note the lac' of apostrophe", itself :irst person plural1 we, us, our, ours, ourselves

(econd person plural1 you, your, yours, yourselves hird person plural !gender neutral"1 they, them, theirs, their, themselves

-ossessive -ronouns -ossessive pronouns refer to something which belongs to someone or something. hey can ta'e the place of both the pronoun and the noun which is possessed, and theyre generally found at the end of the clause or sentence. he possessive pronouns are mine, yours, his, hers, ours, yours, theirs and whose. he green shirt is mine2 the red one is his. he first clause mentions the subject !the green shirt", and the possessive pronoun mine ma'es it clear that the spea'er owns the shirt2 the second clause uses the pronoun one to replace shirt, and the pronoun his to show the red shirt belongs to some man who has been previously mentioned !or otherwise clarified1 the spea'er could be pointing to him". he green shirt is mine2 the red is his. his sentence is a little more informal, but its still perfectly clear. After the hurricane, the survivors rescued whatever was theirs. hat house is ours. %hose pen is this& -ossessive determiners -ossessive determiners replace just the person who owns the item. hey must always be followed by a noun. he possessive determiners are my, your, his, her, its, our, your, and their. 0y house or yours& #y is the possessive determiner, which is followed by the noun house. he woman fluffed up her hair. he bird added a small stic' to its nest. %here did your brother get to now& =id they get their ta#*return yet& <eciprocal -ronouns <eciprocal pronouns are used when two or more people or things are doing the same thing, and e#periencing the same conse)uences. he reciprocal pronouns are each other and one another. 'ach other is used when there are only two people. he boys made rude sounds and laughed at each other. (ha'e hands with each other and ma'e up. )ne another is an indefinite refle#ive pronoun which is used when there are three or more people, or when its unclear how many people will be involved. At >hristmas, people give gifts to one another.

.ove one another. <efle#ive -ronouns <efle#ive pronouns are used when a person or thing is referring to the same person or thing. he refle#ive pronouns are myself, yourself, himself, herself, itself, ourselves, yourselves, and themselves. I dont li'e wor'ing in groups2 I prefer to wor' by myself. he child is learning to dress herself. It was hard to pull off the jo'e without laughing at ourselves. he dog shoo' itself after bounding out of the la'e. $y doing most of the wor' themselves, self*publishing authors retain creative control over their wor'. <elative -ronouns <elative pronouns connect one phrase or clause to another one, creating whats called a relative sentence. <elative pronouns can also add more information about the subject. hey can be used as an appositive. +eres a )uic' list1 who, whoever, whom, whomever, which, whose, and that. he person who made the mess should clean it up. 0ichael, who owns the house, grows pri9e*winning roses. he raccoon that bit the child is being tested for rabies. he comma, which is commonly misused, is a necessary punctuation mar'. -ronoun <eference -ronouns refer to a noun2 in a sentence, it should always be clear as to which noun the pronoun is modifying. If the reader has to spend time guessing which pronoun refers to which noun, they may give up reading. he mother called the daughter bac' to clean up her mess. =id the daughter not do her dishes& %as the mother a slob who thought her daughter should clean up after her& %hich female does the pronoun her refer to& %hen the daughter made a mess, the mother called her bac' to clean it up. 4ven with two pronouns, the references in this sentence are clear. $uddy put a bullet in his gun and shot it. =id $uddy shoot the gun or the bullet& %henever 0ar' feeds the baby, he eats too much. -ronouns and Antecedents %hen a pronoun replaces a noun, the noun is called an antecedent. 5n 0ichaels first day of wor', he was a little nervous. #ichael is the antecedent, and he is the pronoun.

he antecedent doesnt have to go before the pronoun. 5n his first day of wor', 0ichael was a little nervous. It should always be clear as to what the antecedent is !see -ronoun <eference", and the verb which modifies the antecedent must agree with it. -roblems tend to arise with words li'e everyone and someone, and phrases li'e one of the boys. 5ne of the cats li'e to eat the goldfish. $ecause were tal'ing about only one of the cats, the verb needs to be singular. 5ne of the cats li'es to eat the goldfish. 4verybody should do what he is good at. echnically, he or she is the only correct pronoun for the antecedent everybody because its singular. +owever, if you need something gender neutral, modern 4nglish permits the use of the plural pronoun they. 4verybody should do what they are good at. %ho and %hom %ho is a subjective pronoun2 it should be used to refer to the subject of a sentence. %hom is an objective pronoun2 it should be used to refer to the object of a sentence. If youre stuc', you can try this formula1 if the pronoun can be replaced by he or she, then use who. if the pronoun can be replaced by him or her, then use whom !you can also loo' for the preposition". %hom is the project leader& If we replaced whom with him, the sentence would be obviously incorrect. As well, theres no preposition. %ho is the project leader& +e who gossips may soon find the tables turned. %ho did this painting& o %hom It 0ay >oncern1 6ote the preposition, to. %ith whom should I spea' about this problem& %hom did you meet yesterday& 4ven though theres no preposition, we need to objective case in this sentence2 thin' of it this way1 %hom did you meet with yesterday& .ist of -ronouns any, anybody, anyone, anything, either, he, her, hers, herself, him, himself, his, I, it, its, itself, me, mine, my, myself, neither, none, one, oneself, our, ours, ourselves, she, someone, something, that, their, theirs, them, themselves, these, they, this, those, we, what, whatever, which, whichever, who, whoever, whom, whomever, you, you, your, your, yours, yourself, yourselves

/erbs 8erbs are the second*most important words in 4nglish, ne#t to nouns. !A sentence must have both a noun and a verb in order to be a proper sentence." 8erbs can describe physical actions li'e movement, less concrete actions li'e thin'ing and feeling, and that utterly awesome state of being, as e#plained by the verb to be1 %here are you going& %hat are you doing& %ho are you& 5n top of all these, verbs can tell us when something is happening. 4nglish spea'ers depend on the verb tenses to give a temporal conte#t !time" to the sentence. %hat Are 8erbs 8erbs are action words1 thats a rather simplified e#planation but its the clearest one. 8erbs tell you what the subject of the sentence is up to. om is funny. he verb is tells us what om is doing1 hes being funny. 8erbs dont have to be just one word2 they can have up to four parts. he cat is purring. %hen we were going to wor', it began to rain. he boy must have been doing something terrible to ma'e his mother that upset. he parts of the verb can also be separated by other words !usually adverbs". I have always li'ed that painting. %hy do you not li'e to eat chocolate& 8erbs can also be contracted, either with a noun or an adverb. Ive always li'ed that painting. =ont you li'e it& %heres Andrew& ,ses of 8erbs 8erbs tell you whats actually happening in the sentence, what the subject is doing or having done to it. 5f course, when you thin' about all the things that can happen, and all the things that subjects are capable of doing, you can see the astonishing potential range of actions. here are two specific uses for verbs. he first is to put a motionless noun into motion, or to change its motion. Annie went to the mar'et. %ent gets Annie moving out the door and doing the shopping.

Annie went to the mar'et, and then she stopped in at the boo'store. :irst Annie does the shopping, and then she goes to do more interesting errands. 0ar' lifted the roc'. %e washed the car. he girls played games all day. hese 'inds of verbs are called action verbs. If you can do it, its an action verb. he second use for a noun is to lin' the subject of the sentence to something which describes the subject. If you cant do it, its probably a lin'ing verb. I am tired. Its difficult to am, so this is li'ely a lin'ing verb. Its connecting the subject 2 to the state of being tired. 0ain 8erbs he main verb is also called the le0ical verb. his term refers to the important verb in the sentence, the one which shows the action of the subject. 0ain verbs can stand alone, or they can be helped along by some other little verbs !a.'.a. au#iliary verbs". I was happy. In this sentence, was is the main verb. I was feeling happy. In this sentence, feeling is the main verb and was is the au#iliary verb. I must have been feeling happy. -eeling is still the main verb. If I were to be fired, I would be unhappy. %here did they go& %hat are we going to do& Be, have and do can be used as main verbs, even though they dont involve physical activity. +elping 8erbs !Au#iliary 8erbs" +elping verbs or au0iliary verbs are the little verbs which go along with the main verb. +elping verbs dont show the action of the subject, they just show the tense of the verb. 0att used to li'e playing golf. he main verb is like, and used to is the helping verb which tells us it was in the past. %hat did you do on your holidays& he cat was playing with string.

onight, it will be snowing. %hen we were growing up, we li'ed to play in the par'. +elping verbs are also used in conditional sentences2 these verbs help to create the state of condition. If you wor' hard, you should get to wherever you want to be. Ale# might come over tomorrow, if he gets his essay finished. Active 8erbs Active verbs are used when writing in the active voice. In the active voice, the emphasis is on the subject which is doing the action. Any tense can be used with active verbs. he teacher taught the students. he woman wal'ed the dog. 7ou should write the essay. %e must have wal'ed for three hours. here will be snow tomorrow. -assive 8erbs -assive verbs are used in the passive voice, where the emphasis is on what is being done to the object of the sentence. he 'ey word by can often be used to identify the passive voice. Any tense can be used with passive verbs. he students were being taught by the teacher. 6otice the word by, which clues us in to the passive voice. he dog was being wal'ed by the woman. he essay should have been written by you, not by your friend. he fire department has been notified. 8erb enses 8erbs come in three tenses1 past, present, future. he past is used to describe things that have already happened !e.g. earlier in the day, yesterday, last week, three years ago ". he present tense is used to describe things that are happening right now, or things that are continuous. he future tense describes things that have yet to happen !e.g. later, tomorrow, ne*t week, ne*t year, three years from now ". The -resent Tenses

(imple present -resent perfect -resent continuous -resent perfect continuous

The -ast Tenses

(imple past -ast perfect -ast continuous -ast perfect continuous

The 0uture Tenses

(imple :uture :uture perfect :uture continuous :uture perfect continuous

(imple -resent ense !-resent Indefinite" he simple present tense is the one which we use when an action is happening right now, or when it happens regularly !or unceasingly, which is why its sometimes called present indefinite". he simple present tense is formed by using the root form or by adding *s or *es to the end, depending on the person. <egular 8erbs In present tense, regular verbs use the root form, e#cept for third person singular !which ends in *s". :irst person singular1 I write (econd person singular1 7ou write hird person singular1 +e;she;it writes !note the *s" :irst person plural1 %e write (econd person plural1 7ou write hird person plural1 hey write I write grammar boo's. his sentence implies that I write grammar boo's on a regular basis, perhaps as a career. Anna writes the letter. his sentence could be from a narrative, telling a story about what Anna is doing right now. +ere are some other e#amples1 I go, you go, he;she;it goes, we go, you go, they go I see, you see, he;she;it sees, we see, you see, they see I learn, you learn, he;she;it learns, we learn, you learn, they learn Irregular 8erbs Irregular present tense verbs are things li'e to be, which change for each person. :irst person singular1 I am (econd person singular1 7ou are

hird person singular1 +e;she;it is :irst person plural1 %e are (econd person plural1 7ou are hird person plural1 hey are I am OL years old. 7ou are OL years old. +e is OL years old. (imple -ast ense he simple past refers to things that have already happened, and are finished doing their thing. %orld %ar II was from IJRJ*IJPM. 0om coo'ed supper. I did the dishes. 0argaret aced her math e#am. 1egular /erbs <egular verbs are changed to the simple past by adding *ed to the end of the root form. If the verb already ends in *e, we just add *d.

-lay played ype typed .isten listened -ush pushed .ove loved

rregular /erbs Irregular verbs follow no pattern when they change to the simple past tense. 7oull have to chec' a dictionary if youre unsure as to what the past tense might be.

(ee saw $uild built Ao went =o did .eap leapt <ise rose =ig dug

(ome verbs dont change from their present form.

-ut put >ut cut (et set >ost cost

+it hit

(imple :uture ense he simple future is the tense we use when something will begin and end later. Its created by putting will in front of the root word. I will learn a new language. Annie will ma'e a ca'e. he cat will sleep all day. %ill you come to the beach with us& %ho will become the ne#t president& -resent -erfect ense he present perfect is used when an action began in the past yet is still relevant. Its created by using the present tense of have D the past participle. I have seen 7ou have seen +e;she;it has seen %e have seen 7ou have seen hey have seen 0artha has as'ed for the day off. &ho +as (een the &ind is an e#cellent boo'. hey have slept in because its (aturday morning. <emember to loo' out for irregular past participles. +e has drunk all the mil' again. he dogs have lain down in front of the fire. 7ouve left your umbrella behind. -ast -erfect ense he past perfect tense is used to show that one action in a sentence finishes before a second action begins. %ords li'e before and after are indicators that the past perfect tense may be used2 however, there are no strict rules for this situation. 7ou must choose the best verb tense for your sentence. he past perfect is created by using 2 had, you had, he1she had, we had, you had or they had D past participle. $oth of these sentences are correct.

After he tied his shoes, he left the house. After he had tied his shoes, he left the house. he maitre d poured the dessert wine, but not until the ca'e had been cut. he baby ripped the boo' before the mother had noticed him playing with it. :uture -erfect ense he future perfect is used to tal' about an action that will be finished before something else happens in the future. Its made by using will D have D the past participle. .oo' for 'ey words which suggest the action is in the future, such as later, tomorrow, ne0t week and ne0t year. I promise I will have this finished by the end of today. +opefully, the prospectors will have found gold before winter comes. %ill you have sha'en that cold by ne#t wee', do you thin'& %e will have eaten all the food by the time he arrives. <emember to chec' for irregular past participles. -resent >ontinuous ense !-resent -rogressive ense" %hen something is happening at the same time were tal'ing about it, thats when we use the present continuous tense. %e form it by using the present tense of be D present participle !the root word D *ing". (he is washing the car as we spea'. Are you coming with us to the party& %here are we going& I am not arguing with you2 I am discussing the matter with you. <emember not to use the present continuous tense with non*action verbs li'e seem and know. hese verbs should use the simple present. (he is seeming tense. (he seems tense. -ast >ontinuous ense !-ast -rogressive ense" he past continuous tense is used to refer to several temporal situations. Its made with the past tense of be D the present participle !the root word C *ing". 6arrative in past tense. It was raining. he water was pouring down in sheets and the passersby were getting wetter with every step, despite their umbrellas. %hen one action is happening at the time of another particular time. It was raining at noon. It was raining during lunch.

%hen one action is happening at the same time as another. It was raining while I was out wal'ing. <emember not to use the past continuous tense with non*action verbs li'e seem and know. hese verbs should use the simple past. I was 'nowing my neighbour )uite well. I 'new my neighbour )uite well. :uture >ontinuous ense !:uture -rogressive ense" he future continuous relates one action in the future to another specific action or time. Its formed this way1 will D be D present participle !root word D *ing". %e will be going to the gym after wor'. %ill you be joining us& At M a.m. tomorrow, they will be departing Alas'a. Ill be returning home ne#t hursday. <emember not to use the future continuous tense with non*action verbs li'e seem and know2 include be in this list for future continuous tense. hese verbs should use the simple future. (he will be being here at R1LL. (he will be here at R1LL. -resent -erfect >ontinuous ense !-resent -erfect -rogressive ense he present perfect continuous is used with actions that began in the past and are still continuing. he formula for present perfect continuous is present tense of have D been D present participle !root D *ing". 7oull most often see this verb tense used with the words for and since. %hat have you been doing since I last saw you& %eve been moving house. here are still bo#es to unpac'. heyve been watching 8 for three hours now. he car has been sitting in the garage, unused, since last month. +as 0ary been going to all her classes& <emember not to use the present perfect continuous tense with non*action verbs li'e be, seem, and know. hese verbs should use the present perfect. 0ary has been seeming tired. 0ary has seemed tired. -ast -erfect >ontinuous ense !-ast -erfect -rogressive ense"

he past perfect continuous is written by using the past tense of have D been D present participle. Its used when one activity in the past was happening before or after another activity had ta'en place. .oo' for the words for, since, and before. he car had been sitting in the garage, unused, for a month. It was M ocloc'2 his parents had been waiting for him since O ocloc'. $efore they immigrated, my father had been wor'ing as a surgeon and my mother had been training to be a psychiatrist. %ed been wal'ing for only M minutes when the rain started. <emember not to use the past perfect continuous tense with non*action verbs li'e be, seem, and know. hese verbs should use the past perfect. he baby had been being cran'y all night. he baby had been cran'y all night. :uture -erfect >ontinuous ense !:uture -erfect -rogressive ense" he future perfect continuous tense is used much li'e the future perfect, but one of the actions is li'ely to continue beyond the other. It can also be used when one action will be continuing at a certain time in the future. >reate the future perfect continuous this way1 will D have D been D present participle !root D *ing". .oo' for 'ey words li'e in and by. In (eptember, I will have been going to school for P;M of my life. $y OLIM, you will have been living in 0e#ico longer than youve lived anywhere else. $y the end of this month, she will have been wor'ing long enough to get benefits. In three months, they will have been seeing each other for a year. <emember not to use the future perfect continuous tense with non*action verbs li'e be, seem and know. hese verbs should use the future perfect. omorrow, I will have been being here for a wee'. omorrow, I will have been here for a wee'. 8erb ense >onsistency 8erb tense consistency refers to 'eeping the same tense throughout a clause. %e dont want to have one time period being described in two different tenses. If you have two or more time periods, start a new clause or a new sentence. 0ar' finished his essay, tidies his room, and went out for supper. -inished and went are in past tense, but tidies is in present tense. .ogistically, this cant happen. %e could fi# this in a couple of different ways1 0ar' finished his essay, tidied his room, and went out for supper. 0ar' finished his essay and went out for supper, and now he is tidying his room. he winds along the coast blow the trees over when the weather got bad.

he winds along the coast blow the trees over when the weather gets bad. he winds along the coast blew the trees over when the weather got bad. Im eating the ca'e which I made this morning. he verb tense consistency in this sentence is logical, as the ca'e must be made before it can be eaten. (till, we use two clauses to show the different tenses. (e)uence of enses he rules governing verb tenses are dictated by logic2 an action in the future obviously cannot happen before an action in the past. In writing, its a matter of loo'ing at your clauses and sentences, and determining when each action is happening. he past must come before the present, and the present before the future, etc. -ay particular attention to the verb se)uence when you have a dependent clause before the independent clause, or a result clause before the if clause. %hen the independent clause is in the past tense, the dependent clause may be written in the past or possibly the present !see 4#ceptions", but not the future. he cat was bathing because his feet are dirty. $ecause the tense of the independent clause is in the past ! was bathing", the verb in the second clause !are" is in the wrong tense. he cat was bathing because his feet were dirty. he cat is bathing because his feet are dirty. E"ceptions# here are two e#ceptions to this rule1 for cases involving universal 'nowledge 4ven the early doctors 'new that the washing of hands prevents infection. when using a modal which has no past tense form >ould you please help me move this boo'shelf& 5f course, this doesnt mean that the actual verbs have to be in chronological order, just the actions. %e can put the dependent clause at the beginning of the sentence. Athena will continue to learn 4nglish when she gets to the (tates. Its alright to have the future tense !will continue" before the present tense !gets" because the temporal conjunction when shows that the second action actually happens first. %atch out for conditional clauses, too. %ell go for a wal' if the weather held. he future tense of the result clause is too distant from the past tense of the if clause. %ell go for a wal' if the weather holds. 8erb :orms here are up to M forms for each verb 1 root, third!person singular, present participle, past, and past participle.

1oot he root form of the verb is the absolute base form2 from here, the verb cant get any smaller. here are no endings, and nothing in front of it. he root form is usually the easiest form to figure out1 its the infinitive form with to removed1

o see see o be be o wear wear o go go

he root form is used to create most other forms of verbs. I am going to school. %hat did you do yesterday& he girl showed her mother the picture she did in school. +e had eaten three hamburgers. Third person singular he third person singular !he)she)it)one" is the one which tends to be different from other conjugations. he regular verbs end in *s !or possibly *es". +e sees (he watches It thin's 5ne does he main irregular verb to be concerned with for this form is the verb to be. +e is (he is It is 5ne is -resent participle he present participle is the root word D *ing. Its used in the past, present, and future progressive tenses.

>ome coming =raw drawing %ash washing (wear swearing

%hat are we doing today& Andrew is meeting with the professor after class.

heyve been living in >olumbia for three years. 6e#t month, the company will be merging with their former competitor. -ast and -ast participle he past and past participle for regular verbs is the root word D *ed. Its only used with the past tenses.

.oo' loo'ed ouch touched >lean cleaned >oo' coo'ed

%e shopped for hours on (aturday afternoon. he boo's were stac'ed on the shelf. +e had played computer games for the whole wee'end. he past participle can be difficult to determine for some irregular verbs. Its best to loo' these ones up in a dictionary if youre at all unsure of the past participle. +ere are a few e#amples of irregular verbs1 <oot (imple -ast -ast -articiple (ing (ang (ung (ee (aw (een :all :ell :allen Aive Aave Aiven Ao %ent Aone I had forgiven him for his un'ind words. %e made paper flowers to decorate the walls. (imon had lit candles all around the room. 8erb >onjugation 8erb conjugation refers to how a verb changes to show a different person, tense, number or mood. =ifferent person In 4nglish, we have S different persons 1 first person singular !I", second person singular !you", third person singular !he;she;it;one", first person plural !we", second person plural !you" and third person plural !they". %e must conjugate a verb for each person. he verb to be is a particularly notable verb for conjungation because its so irregular. I am 7ou are +e;she;it;one is %e are 7ou are hey are

=ifferent tense %e can also conjugate for the different tenses !past, present, future". I was, I am, I will be 7ou were, you are, you will be +e was, he is, he will be %e were, we are, we will be hey were, they are, they will be If I was as'ed to conjugate the verb to go in present continuous, it would loo' li'e this 1 I am going 7ou are going +e;she;it;one is going %e are going 7ou are going hey are going If I was as'ed to conjugate the verb to live in future perfect continuous, it would loo' li'e this 1 I will have been living 7ou will have been living +e;she;it;they will have been living %e will have been living 7ou will have been living hey will have been living ypes of 8erbs

<egular verbs Irregular verbs >onditional verbs 0odal verbs (ubjunctive mood ransitive verbs Intransitive verbs -hrasal verbs .in'ing verbs >ompound verbs Imperative verbs <efle#ive verbs

>ausative verbs

<egular 8erbs <egular verbs are the ones that follow a pattern when theyre changed to a different person or tense. hey have up to P different forms1 root, third*person singular present !which is usually the same as the root but with the *s added at the end", present participle, and past and past participle !which are the same". 6eed needs needing needed needed 6otice how the past and past participle are the same form. al' tal's tal'ing tal'ed tal'ed >all calls calling called called Add adds adding added added %or' wor's wor'ing wor'ed wor'ed -resent tense regular verbs dont have *s !or *es" added to the end of the root word for anything e#cept the third* person singular. 0y cat does whatever he wants, not what I want him to do. hey shop at the big mar'et, but he shops at the little one. <egular verbs also have *ed !or *d if the verb already ends in *e" added to them to change them into past tense. .augh laughed -ush pushed <est rested Irregular 8erbs Irregular verbs blow all the grammar rules out of the water. Ironically, there are a lot of irregular verbs in 4nglish. hey generally have M different forms1 root, third*person singular present, present participle, past, and past participle. he irregularities often show up in the past and past participle forms. %a'e wa'es wa'ing wo'e wo'en (ing sings singing sang sung (hrin' shrin's shrin'ing shran' shrun' (teal steals stealing stole stolen <un runs running ran run !notice how the past participle is the same as the root word" $ecause the irregular verbs dont follow any rules, youll have to consult a dictionary if youre unsure of them. >onditional 8erbs

>onditional verbs are used to create conditional sentences. 5f course, there are other words which contribute to ma'ing a sentence conditional, but the verb tenses are 'ey. he au#iliary verbs li'e can1could, will1would, and might are also 'ey. >onditional verbs can be used in past, present or future tense. If my cousin had been just a little taller, he could have been a bas'etball player. If my cousin were just a little taller, he could have been a bas'etball player. %ere is a conditional verb because its used to form the subjunctive. If I had enough money, I would travel around the world. %ell come help you move if we can borrow a truc'. (ometimes, there conditional tone will be created by the ju#taposition of verb tenses. In this sentence, the present tense ma'es the future tense conditional !but they need the word if to complete the tone". If Ale# finishes his essay, hell come over tomorrow. 0odal 8erbs 0odal verbs are verbs which modify another verb, and imply the possibility or probability of something happening. 0odal verbs are words li'e can, will, could, must, would, might and should. After a modal verb, the root form of the word is generally used. he infinitive is not used after a modal verb. %e would to study more of (ha'espeares wor's if we had the boo's. %e would study more of (ha'espeares wor's if we had the boo's. E"ception# he phrase ought to is considered a modal verb. In this case, the to belongs with the ought, and is not considered part of the infinitive. -et owners ought to vaccinate all their outdoor pets. -et owners ought not let their unvaccinated pets out of doors. -et owners ought not to let their unvaccinated pets out of doors. 0odal verbs are always written in the root form, and do not re)uire special endings to identify tense or person. he president oughted to have approved larger holiday bonuses last year. he president ought to have approved larger holiday bonuses last year. &e never use more than one modal verb in a clause. (hould he must finish the report by tomorrow2 (hould he finish the report by tomorrow2 0ust he finish the report by tomorrow2 (ubjunctive 0ood he subjunctive is usually the third*person form of the verb with the *s dropped. %hen using the verb to be in the subjunctive, the present tense is be, and the past tense is were.

he subjunctive is used after certain e#pressions which imply a good or bad )uality, or an imperative, and which create a strong mood. he subjunctive verb often comes after an e#pression which can be followed by the word that !e.g. it is best that, and it is essential that". It is recommended that he uses the subjunctive properly. It is recommended that he use the subjunctive properly. It is vital that I be at my best at all times. he present tense be is used here because its an indefinite time period !see (imple -resent". he subjunctive is usually used with verbs li'e desire, ask, and require, where whatever is desired or as'ed or re)uired may not actually be done. 0aya insisted that the student see' the aid of a tutor. It was proposed by the gunman that the victim remain lying on the ground. >onditional sentences can also use the subjunctive. If there were a )ui9 tomorrow, I would study tonight. ransitive 8erbs ransitive verbs are used with an object. 7ou can tell its a transitive verb if another noun is involved in the action. (he wal'ed the dog. heres an object here1 the dog. In this sentence, walked is transitive. (he wal'ed in the par'. In this sentence, walked only refers to the subject, so its intransitive. +ere are some more sentences using transitive verbs1 he shelf is holding a vase and a few boo's. I love teaching students. (end me a postcard from Australia/ he uncle too' his niece to the 9oo. N.B. A lot of 4nglish verbs can be transitive or intransitive, depending on the meaning. .oo' for the object to clearly identify a transitive verb. Intransitive 8erbs Intransitive verbs are not used with an object2 they relate only to the subject. (he wal'ed the dog. heres an object here1 the dog. In this sentence, wal'ed is transitive. (he wal'ed in the par'.

In this sentence, walked only refers to the subject, so its intransitive. +ere are some more sentences using intransitive verbs1 he plane lands at P1LL. %hen do you have to leave& I enjoy s'iing. he puppy loo'ed cute when he snee9ed. N.B. A lot of 4nglish verbs can be transitive or intransitive, depending on the meaning. o clearly identify an intransitive verb, ma'e sure theres no object in the clause. -hrasal 8erbs -hrasal verbs are verbs which are used with another word !an adverb or preposition" to create a commonly used phrase. %ait/ I just thought of a good e#ample / $ringing up a child is a lot of wor'. If you dont 'now how to spell it, loo' it up in the dictionary. I dont 'now the answer 2 let me chec' into it. 0y dog ran away. (ome ofther e#amples of phrasal verbs are run into, make up, get around to, pass away, take after , and turn off. .in'ing 8erbs .in'ing verbs are the opposite of action verbs2 they dont create any movement or action, but they connect the subject to the subject complement. !A subject complement adds more information about the subject." .oo' for the verb in the sentence. If you cant actually do the action, its probably a lin'ing verb. he soup smells good. !lin'ing verb" I smell something good. !action verb" I am tired. To be is a lin'ing verb. In this sentence, it connects 2 with tired. he child became cran'y just before supper. he happy woman felt li'e dancing. (eeming happy, the boy wal'ed home with his new puppy. $eeming is the lin'ing verb, as it lin's happiness to the boy who is wal'ing with his puppy. >ompound 8erbs

>ompound verb merely refers to a subject doing more than one thing. >ompound verbs are connected by conjunctions and commas. I ba'ed bread and made soup. he subject 2 does two things1 bake and make2 these are compound verbs. %e ate potatoes chips and dran' soda. he 'ids painted pictures, played games, and had a water fight. 0ary should have danced or sung a song, but not both. Imperative 8erbs Imperative verbs are verbs which create an imperative sentence, i.e. a sentence that gives an order. It will always sound li'e the spea'er is bossing someone around. Imperative verbs dont leave room for )uestions or discussion, even if the sentence has a polite tone. ,se the root form of the verb to create the imperative. Aive me that boo'/ >lean your room/ =o your homewor'. a'e the dog for a wal', please. =ont touch that/ =o come to visit us whenever youre in town. -ush/ <efle#ive 8erbs <efle#ive verbs are verbs which are used with a refle#ive pronoun ! myself, yourself, himself, herself, itself, oneself, ourselves, yourselves, themselves". =ont climb too high or you will hurt yourself. %riting a resume is just li'e trying to sell oneself. 0artha wasnt actually dieting, but she was denying herself desserts. he nice thing about being self*employed is that I get to pay myself. >ausative 8erbs >ausative verbs cause an action to happen, either by allowing it to happen or by forcing it to happen. ,et, make, and have are causative verbs. I had the house painted. he house didnt get painted all by itself2 someone had to cause the painting to happen. %e insisted that she ta'e the rest of the day off to recover from her cold.

(he made me do it/ Anna couldnt get the ban' to reimburse her for their error. hey should have this place cleaned up a little.