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I hope this helps you. Perhaps there is someone out there can explain this
better in terms of grammar.
TO VERBS
FOR VERBS
ball.
TO VERBS
FOR VERBS
GO TO EXPRESSIONS
GO FOR EXPRESSIONS
go to
go to
go to
go to
go to
go to
go to
go to
go to
go to
etc.
work
school
bed
church
town
court
pieces
hell
Porto Alegre
the bank, go to the office,
I AM very confused about the use of to and for. Can you tell me when to use them and give some
examples?
2) Can I use American English in writing essays for the SPM exam?
3) Which one is correct: I havent did this before, I havent done this before, I didnt do this
before or I havent do this before? Why?
4) For plural, should I say others people, other peoples or just other people?
6) Ive seen and heard I really am sorry in books and movies but when I write that in an essay, my
teacher says it should be I am really sorry. So, which one should I use?
Form 5 student
1) To and for are very common words and have many meanings in English. It would take me too
long to explain all the uses of to and for to you.
I can think of one area, though, where a learner can be confused about which of these words to use
as a preposition, for example in these sentences:
a) I gave a book to my mother.
b) I bought a book for my mother.
In a), to is used to indicate someone who receives something. In b) for indicates who is
intended to have something, for example, you bought the book to give to your mother on her
birthday. But for in b) can also mean in order to help, meaning that you bought the book not to
give as a present for your mother, but because your mother wanted the book but didnt have the
time to go to the bookshoop. So, she gave you some money and you bought the book in order to
help her.
2) Youll have to ask your teacher about that. She should know the SPM requirements. But let me
quote what I wrote in answer to another student:
From what I know of English language examiners in Malaysia nowadays, they would be happy if you
write in either style, or a mixture of both, as long as you write good English. But dont mistake an
informal American style for an acceptable American style: words like gonna, wanna, dude or
dawg should not be used.
3) I havent done this before. is correct. In British English, when before is used as an adverb to
mean at an earlier time than now, the present perfect tense is used. This tense consists of:
has/have or hasnt/havent (havent) + past participle of main verb (done).
4) Other people is the right thing to say. People is the plural form of person.
5) Both expressions are used. I think there is a difference of degree between them. I really am
sorry is more emphatic than I am really sorry.
Here are more examples of the latter, from the Internet, to add to what youve read and heard:
I really am sorry if people were denied their vote because of decisions that people made and
because of any failure of administration. (Des Browne, Scottish Secretary in the British cabinet)
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/scotland/7057818.stm
I really am sorry to hear about all your problems. (David, a doctor)
http://www.netdoctor.co.uk/ate/depression/204725.html
Only one employee?
THIS sign (above) was recently erected at a public car park in Bayan Baru, Penang, presumably by
a multinational company.
Is there only one employee working for Motorola? Also, does it mean that the employee has a visible
sticker on his/her body?
What do you think?
Belinda, Penang.
Question structure
1. WHATS the difference between how much profit can we make and how much profit we can
make?
2. Can I use how much profit we can make as a question?
3. Is there any sentence structure or pattern in a question?
4. Is Do you know ... a question?
Ashley Tan
Let me answer your Question 3 first in order to clarify my answers to your other questions. Yes,
there are question structures in English. A question has a different word order from a statement, and
often begins with the auxiliary verb do (in its many forms) or wh question words such as how,
how much how many, what, why and where.
1. How much profit we can make is not a question but can be part of a statement such as I am not
certain how much profit we can make. Here, the word order in we can make is: subject (we) +
verb (can make). The verb is in two parts, the modal auxiliary verb can and the main verb make.
How much profit can we make? stands by itself as a question. Here, the word order of the subject
and verb is: modal auxiliary verb (can) + subject (we) + main verb (make).
If the verb used does not have a modal auxiliary verb before it, we use a form of do with the main
verb (except if the main verb is be), e.g.
a) How much profit did we make? OR
b) Did we make a profit? (a question which does not use a wh question word).
Note that the word order in both a) and b) is: auxiliary verb (did) + subject (we) + main verb (make),
which is the same order as in How much profit can we make?. The only difference is that can is
a modal auxiliary verb, but did is only an auxiliary verb, not a modal.
2. No we cant, as I have explained in my answer to your Question 1.
4. Do you know ... can begin a question, but it is not a complete question. To complete it, you can
say, for example: Do you know her? or Do you know that tomorrow is a holiday?
Note that the word order in do you know is also auxiliary verb (do) + subject (you) + main verb
(know), which is the basic word order of the subject and verb in a question.
Is he dont know right?
THROUGHOUT my whole life, I had thought a singular verb comes after a singular noun. Then I
came across a singular noun that seemed to match with a plural verb in a line from Carrie
Underwoods song Before He Cheats and he dont know.
Is this a grammatical error or is it valid?
Marcus Lim, Penang
In current formal usage, dont is a contraction of the negative plural verb do not.
However, in older, dialect and non-standard usage, it was/is also used as the contraction of does
not.
According to the online Merriam-Webster Dictionary, Dont is the earliest attested contraction of
does not and until about 1900 was the standard spoken form in the United States (it survived as
spoken standard longer in British English).
The same dictionary also says that It is sometimes used consciously, like aint, to gain an informal
effect.
http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/don%27t
That is why, perhaps, it is used in the lyrics of Carrie Underwoods song.
Correct paragraph?
1. IS the paragraph below grammatically correct?
I felt relieved totally at that point. I mean everyone knows the feeling of relief. But, when youre in a
situation literally meaning life or death, and you cheated death. You would know that nothing tastes
sweeter than that.
2. Which of these sentences is correct?
a. Basically, what I felt was relieved and joy.
b. Basically, the feeling I was relieved and joy.
3. Should it be The award goes to James and Lisa. or The awards go to James and Lisa.?
Isaac
1. Not entirely. It can be improved to read:
I felt totally relieved at that point. I mean, everyone knows the feeling of relief. But when
youd been in a situation that had literally meant life or death, and you cheated death, you
would know that nothing tastes sweeter than that.
2. Neither is correct. The correct versions are:
a. Basically, what I felt were relief and joy.
b. Basically, the feelings I had were relief and joy.
3. It depends on how many awards there are. If there are two, it should be The awards go to
James and Lisa. If James and Lisa share one award, it should be The award goes to James and
Lisa.
Introduction: This page contains some basic information about sentence structure (syntax) and
sentence types. It also includes examples of common sentence problems in written English. ESL
students who understand the information on this page and follow the advice have a better chance
of writing well.
[Note to teachers/advanced students] [Presentation mode]
Definition: Linguists have problems in agreeing how to define the word sentence. For this web
page, sentence will be taken to mean: 'a sequence of words whose first word starts with a capital
letter and whose last word is followed by an end punctuation mark (period/full stop or question
mark or exclamamtion mark)'. On the basis of this definition, some of the sentences written by
ESL students (indeed by all writers) will be correct, and other sentences will be problematic.
Good readers (teachers, for example!) can quickly see the difference between a correct and a
problematic sentence.
Subject/predicate: All sentences are about something or someone. The something or someone
that the sentence is about is called the subject of the sentence. In the following sentences the
subjects are shown in red. Note how the subject is often, but not always, the first thing in the
sentence.
The old hotel at the end of the street is going to be knocked down to make
way for a new supermarket.
Sitting in a tree at the bottom of the garden was a huge black bird with long
blue tail feathers.
The grade 7 Korean boy who has just started at FIS speaks excellent English.
Before giving a test the teacher should make sure that the students are wellprepared.
The predicate contains information about the someone or something that is the subject. The
example sentences above are shown again, this time with the predicate marked in green.
The old hotel at the end of the street is going to be knocked down to
make way for a new supermarket.
Sitting in a tree at the bottom of the garden was a huge black bird with
long blue tail feathers.
The grade 7 Korean boy who has just started at FIS speaks excellent
English.
Before giving a test the teacher should make sure that the students
are well-prepared.
Simple subject/predicate: As you can see from the example sentences above both the subject
and the predicate can consist of many words. The simple subject is the main word in the subject,
and the simple predicate is the main word in the predicate. The simple subject is always a
noun/pronoun and the simple predicate is always a verb.
In the following sentences the simple subject is shown in red and the simple predicate is shown
in green.
The young girl with the long black hair fell from her bike yesterday in heavy
rain.
At the back of the line in the cafeteria yesterday was a large brown dog with
a yellow collar around its neck!
Sitting in a tree at the bottom of the garden was a huge black bird with long
blue tail feathers.
From the last three examples sentences above you will notice that the simple
subjects and simple predicates can be more than one word.
+
Advice: To write strong, clear sentences you must know who or what you are writing about
(subject) and what you want to say about them or it (predicate). Your writing will be more
interesting if the subject is not the first thing in every sentence you write.
Sentence types: One way to categorize sentences is by the clauses they contain. (A clause is a
part of a sentence containing a subject and a predicate.) Here are the 4 sentence types:
Our school basketball team lost their last game of the season 75-68.
The old hotel opposite the bus station in the center of the town is probably going to
be knocked down at the end of next year.
+
A tree fell onto the school roof in a storm, but none of the students was injured.
+
None of the students were injured when the tree fell through the school
roof.
I don't like dogs, and my sister doesn't like cats because they make her
sneeze.
You can write on paper, but using a computer is better as you can
easily correct your mistakes.
A tree fell onto the school roof in a storm, but none of the students was injured
although many of them were in classrooms at the top of the building.
+
Advice: Writing that contains mostly short, simple sentences can be uninteresting or even
irritating to read. Writing that consists of mostly long, complex sentences is usually difficult to
read. Good writers, therefore, use a variety of sentence types. They also occasionally start
complex (or compound-complex) sentences with the dependent clause and not the independent
clause. In the following examples the dependent clause is shown in red:
Because the road was icy and the driver was going too fast, he was unable to
brake in time when a fox ran into the road in front of him.
Problematic 'sentences': To write a correct sentence, you need to have a good understanding of
what a sentence is. Students who don't have this understanding, or don't take care, often include
problem sentences in their writing. Native English speakers are just as likely to write problem
sentences as ESL students. There are three main types of problem sentence:
Run-on sentences: These are two sentences that the writer has not
separated with an end punctuation mark, or has not joined with a
conjunction. (Click the following run-ons to see where they should be
separated into two sentences.)
o
I went to Paris in the vacation it is the most beautiful place I have ever
visited.
It's never too late to learn to swim you never know when you may fall
from a boat.
If you're going to the shops can you buy me some eggs and flour I
want to make a cake.
I like our new math teacher, she always explains the work very clearly.
He was late to school again, his bus got caught in heavy traffic.
Advice: It is helpful to read your written work aloud. When you speak, you will
make natural pauses to mark the end of your sentences or clauses. If there is no
corresponding end punctuation mark in your writing, you can be almost certain that
you have written a run-on sentence.
+
I don't think I'm going to get a good grade. Because I didn't study.
She got angry and shouted at the teacher. Which wasn't a very good
idea.
He watched TV for an hour and then went to bed. After falling asleep
on the sofa.
She got up and ran out of the library. Slamming the door behind her.
After riding my bike without problems for over a year, the chain broke.
40 kilometers from my house!
John usually gets up before 7 o'clock, but yesterday his alarm clock did
not ring, so he was still asleep when his boss called him at 10.30 to ask
where he was and tell him that he would lose his job if he was late
again.
Although the blue whale has been protected for over 30 years and its
numbers are increasing, especially in the North Pacific, where whale
hunting has been banned, it is still at risk of extinction as its habitat is
being polluted by waste from oil tankers and its main food, the
plankton, is being killed off by harmful rays from the sun, which can
penetrate the earth's atmosphere because there is a huge hole in the
ozone layer over Antarctica.
Advice: A rambling sentence is quite easy to spot. You have almost certainly written one
if your sentence contains more than 3 or 4 conjunctions. If you read the sentence aloud
and run out of breath before reaching the end of it, you have written a rambling sentence.
If your sentence stretches over many lines of writing, you have certainly written a
rambling sentence and most probably a run-on sentence too.
Unlike run-ons or fragments, rambling sentences are not wrong, but they are tiresome for
the reader and one of the signs of a poor writer. You should avoid them.
Do a quiz to identify problematic sentences.
General advice: If you are not sure whether you have written a good, correct sentence, ask your
teacher! And remember: The more you read in English, the better a writer you will become. This
is because reading good writing provides you with models of English sentence structure that will
have a positive influence on your own written work.
Note: Good writing consists not only of a string of varied, correctly-structured sentences. The
sentences must also lead from one to the next so that the text is cohesive and the writer's ideas
are coherent. For information on these two important concepts, go to the Language words for
non-language teachers page and click on Cohesion.
There are links to more sentence identification and sentence building exercises on
the Writing Index of this website.
Word order
Most English sentences (clauses) conform to the SVO word order. This means that the Subject
comes before the Verb, which comes before the Object. Examples:
I (S) bought (V) a new computer (O).
It is more complicated when an indirect object (I) is added to the sentence. In this case the word
order depends a.) on whether the direct and indirect objects are nouns or pronouns, and b.) on
whether the indirect object is preceded by the word to. Here are the basic rules:
Many English sentences also contain adverbials. The problem for the English learner is that some
adverbials can be located in different places within the sentence, while other adverbials must
appear in one place only. For example, it is correct to say both: I very quickly did my
homework .. and I did my homework very quickly .., but only I did my homework in a hurry .. is
possible. I in a hurry did my homework .. is wrong.
Learners who want to get their English word order right should ask a native speaker.
Alternatively, they can consult a good usage guide such as Swan's Modern English Usage or
'google' the sentence/clause.*
* For example, the learner might not know which of the following sentences contains the more
normal word order: "a. I want to get this right .." or "b. I want to get right this ..". If he or she
enters the words into Google, the results are: sentence a - 731 hits; sentence b - 0 hits. The
correct choice is clear!
Do a quiz on word order: quiz 1 - quiz 2.
Inflections
War does not determine who is right - only who is left.
Bertrand Russell
Inflection is the name for the extra letter or letters added to nouns, verbs and adjectives in their
different grammatical forms. Nouns are inflected in the plural, verbs are inflected in the various
tenses, and adjectives are inflected in the comparative/superlative. Here are some of the most
important inflection rules:
Original word type
Inflection Rule
Examples
party parties
study studies
cry cries
try tried
happy happier
easy easiest
carry carrying
try trying
buy buys
play played
die dying
lie lying
ride riding
love loving
write writing
provide providing
hit hitting
stop stopped
wet wetter
fat fattest
begin beginning
prefer preferred
happen happening
visit visited
Tense selector
This page will help you to choose the right tense (verb form) to convey various
meanings.
Click the tense link for more information and examples.
present
simple
present
simple
Do you smoke?
Water freezes at 0
Celsius.
express an intention
about the future
express an untrue or
unlikely thought about the
past (conditional 3)
express an untrue or
unlikely thought about the
present (conditional 2)
express annoyance at
going to
past perfect
past simple
present
continuous
talking.
repeated actions
make a prediction
about the future
refer to a future
scheduled event
will
present
simple
present
summarize the plot of a
simple
book or film
past
continuous
present
continuous
I threw my calculator
away because it wasn't
working properly
present
perfect
past perfect
present
perfect
present
continuous
present
simple
past simple
present
simple
beer ..
make them seem more
interesting
present
simple
So I go up to him and
knock his hat off ..
Agreement
"Agreement is the word for the correct matching of the subject and the verb in a
sentence."
Agreement is the word for the correct matching of the subject and the verb in a sentence.
(Another way to say this is that the subject and verb go together.) English has very few verb
endings and the only one that learners really have to worry about is the -s ending in the present
simple tense. As an example let's look at the verb to work:
Singular
Plural
1st person
I work
We work
2nd person
You work
You work
3rd person
He works
She works
It works
They work
It can be seen that the -s is needed in the 3rd person singular*. It has to be: My father works in a
bank. My mother drinks green tea for breakfast every day. Oil floats on water.
Of course, the same rule applies when the 3rd person subject is a pronoun. So you have to say:
He works in a bank. She drinks green tea for breakfast every day. It floats on water.
You also need to remember the -s in sentences with relative pronouns. So, for example, it must
be: Do you know the man who lives in the next apartment? A carnivore is an animal that eats
other animals. And don't forget the -s when the verb is used as an auxiliary: Does your mother
like English food? She has forgotten her homework again.
Learners often make agreement mistakes when the noun is unexpectedly singular or plural. So,
for example, everybody, news and data are singular, whereas people, police and jeans are plural:
Similar mistakes of agreement occur between such nouns and their pronouns. It has to be:
You need to buy some new jeans. Those are too tight!
The police? They are never here when you need them.
Do a quiz on agreement.
Some/any
War does not determine who is right - only who is left.
Bertrand Russell
The words some and any are used when the speaker cannot specify or does not need/want to
specify a number or an exact amount. Compare the following sentences:
- I saw seven deer when riding my bike in the forest yesterday. (It is important that
you know how many deer I saw.)
- I saw some deer when riding my bike in the forest yesterday. (I don't know exactly
how many deer I saw. Or: It is not important that you know exactly how many deer I
saw.)
The "rules" that follow apply also to words containing some and any: somebody/anybody,
something/anything, etc.
In general, some is used in positive sentences:
I got some nice presents for Christmas this year.
Look! There are some large black birds on the roof of the church.
You have some butter on your chin.
In fact, the use of some/any is a little more complicated. Following are two common occasions
when the above "rules" are "broken":
1. We can use some in questions when offering/requesting:
2. We use any in positive sentences when we mean it doesn't matter which ..:
You can come and ask for my help any time.
Relative clauses
Relative clauses are clauses starting with the relative pronouns who*, that, which, whose, where,
when. They are most often used to define or identify the noun that precedes them. Here are some
examples:
* There is a relative pronoun whom, which can be used as the object of the relative clause. For
example: My science teacher is a person whom I like very much. To many people the word whom
nows sounds old-fashioned, and it is rarely used in spoken English.
Relative pronoun
a person
who(m)/that, whose
a thing
which/that, whose
Examples
- Do you know the girl who ..
- He was a man that ..
- An orphan is a child whose parents ..
- Do you have a computer which ..
- The oak a tree that ..
- This is a book whose author ..
Note 1: The relative pronoun whose is used in place of the possessive pronoun. It must be
followed by a noun. Example: There's a boy in grade 8 whose father is a professional tennis
player. (There's a boy in grade 8. His father is a professional tennis player.)
Note 2: The relative pronouns where and when are used with place and time nouns. Examples:
FIS is a school where children from more than 50 countries are educated. 2001 was the year
when terrorists attacked the Twin Towers in New York.
Some relative clauses are not used to define or identify the preceding noun but to give extra
information about it. Here are some examples:
My ESL teacher, who came to Germany in 1986, likes to ride his mountain bike.
The heavy rain, which was unusual for the time of year, destroyed most of the plants in
my garden.
Einstein, who was born in Germany, is famous for his theory of relativity.
The boy, whose parents both work as teachers at the school, started a fire in the
classroom.
My mother's company, which makes mobile phones, is moving soon from Frankfurt to
London.
Note 1: Relative clauses which give extra information, as in the example sentences above, must
be separated off by commas.
Note 2: The relative pronoun that cannot be used to introduce an extra-information (nondefining) clause about a person. Wrong: Neil Armstrong, that was born in 1930, was the first
man to stand on the moon. Correct: Neil Armstrong, who was born in 1930, was the first man to
stand on the moon.
There are two common occasions, particularly in spoken English, when the relative pronoun is
omitted:
1. When the pronoun is the object of the relative clause. In the following sentences the pronoun
that can be left out is enclosed in (brackets):
Note: You cannot omit the relative pronoun a.) if it starts a non-defining relative clause, or, b.) if
it is the subject of a defining relative clause. For example, who is necessary in the following
sentence: What's the name of the girl who won the tennis tournament?
2. When the relative clause contains a present or past participle and the auxiliary verb to be. In
such cases both relative pronoun and auxiliary can be left out:
The family (that is) living in the next house comes from Slovenia.
Most of the parents (who were) invited to the conference did not come.
Anyone (that is) caught writing on the walls will be expelled from school.
Building a Sentence
What makes a complete sentence?
Simple Sentences
Compound Sentences
Complex Sentences
The anatomy of a sentence
Verbs
Subjects
Predicates
More Advanced Terminology
Objects
Transitive/Intransitive
Adverbials
Complements
Building a sentence
A sentence is a group of words which starts with a capital letter and ends with a full stop (.),
question mark (?) or exclamation mark (!). A sentence contains or implies a predicate and a
subject.
Sentences contain clauses.
Simple sentences have one clause.
Compound sentences and complex sentences have two or more clauses.
Sentences can contain subjects and objects.
The subject in a sentence is generally the person or thing carrying out an action. The object in
a sentence is involved in an action but does not carry it out, the object comes after the verb.
For example:
The boy climbed a tree.
If you want to say more about the subject (the boy) or the object (the tree), you can add an
adjective.
For example:
The young boy climbed a tall tree.
If you want to say more about how he climbed the tree you can use an adverb.
For example:
The young boy quickly climbed a tall tree.
The sentence becomes more interesting as it gives the reader or listener more information.
There are more things you can add to enrich your sentence.
Parts of a sentence
Description
Adjective
Adverb
Article
a, an - indefinite articles
the - definite articles
Conjunction
Interjection
Noun
Names things
Preposition
Pronoun
Verb
For example:
What makes a complete sentence?
Jill reads.
The brown dog with the red collar always barks loudly.
Compound Sentences
My friend enjoyed the film, but she didn't like the actor.
Complex Sentences
The verb is the fundamental part of the sentence. The rest of the
sentence, with the exception of the subject, depends very much
on the verb. It is important to have a good knowledge of the
forms used after each verb (verb patterns), for example: to tell
[someone] TO DO [something]
Here we can see that the verb to tell is followed immediately by a
person (the indirect object, explained later), an infinitive with 'to',
and, possibly, an object for the verb you substitute for DO.
Verbs also show a state of being. Such verbs, called BE VERBS
or LINKING VERBS, include words such as: am, is, are, was,
were, be, been, being, became, seem, appear, and sometimes
verbs of the senses like tastes, feels, looks, hears, and smells.
For example:
"Beer and wine are my favourite drinks." The verb "are" is a linking
(be) verb.
When you analyze a sentence, first identify the verb. The verb
names and asserts the action or state of the sentence.
For example:
eat, sleep, run, jump, study, think, digest, shout, walk ....
The Subject
Once you determine the verb, ask a wh...? question of the verb.
This will locate the subject(s).
For example:
The Predicate
"He opened the door. "- here the door is the direct object as it is the
thing being affected by the verb to open.
" I gave him the book." - here him (he)is the indirect object as he is
the beneficiary of the action.
Verbs that have an object are called transitive verbs e.g. eat,
drive, give.
For example:
Adverbials
to go [somewhere]
to put [something][somewhere]
Complement
He is Spanish.
The important thing is to be consistent in your use of the form - nothing is writ in stone!
Using the Apostrophe with Plural Nouns
Confusion arises when the apostrophe is used with a plural noun.
At the zoo, the children were most interested in seeing the lions' den.
More than one lion owns the den, so we add the apostrophe after the 's' (this is the den of the lions).
So, the general rule is:
For words which form their plural by changing internal letters (instead of adding 's'), the apostrophe
comes before the 's'.
It was the children's turn to wash up.
Children is already a plural word, so we don't need to make it doubly plural by adding 's' apostrophe;
however, we do need to indicate the idea of ownership, so we use apostrophe 's'.
Some other words which follow this rule are: men, women, people.
How to Use the Apostrophe with Double Possession
When you have 'double possession' - when two or more people (or subjects) own one item and both (or
all) of their names are mentioned, the apostrophe is applied only to the second (or last) name.
We had coffee at Ermintrude and Marmaduke's mansion.
When you're using names that end in -S, you follow the same rules as with any other name and add
apostrophe S:
Chris's car, Bridget Jones's Diary.
The apostrophe is also used with many expressions of time (to show that the time period owns the other
noun):
an hour's time; a year's holiday
When NOT to Use the Apostrophe
BUT notice that we do not use the apostrophe with possessive pronouns (remember, these are the little
guys who step in and lend a paw to nouns).
After dinner at Marmaduke's restaurant, we went back to his place for coffee.
The bird's feathers were ruffled. (The bird owns the feathers.)
The bird ruffled its feathers. (The bird owns the feathers, but the pronoun its is being used instead of the
noun, so there is NO apostrophe.
You'll see it's and its used incorrectly nearly every single day and in places where it should never happen.
An easy way to make sure you never confuse the two is to ask yourself (do this quietly, you don't want to
alarm those around you), if the words it is can be substituted in the sentence- if the answer is yes, then
whack in the old apostrophe.
If the answer is no, then sit on your hands so you won't be tempted.
The bird ruffled its (it is?) feathers. (NO)
It's (it is?) a lovely day. (YES)
Tips for Using the Apostrophe Correctly
To summarise, here is a good way to check if you need an apostrophe - for future reference:
If you can substitute the use of "of" then you use the apostrophe.
The rules for apostrophes vary with the type of word. Learn where to put apostrophes so that your writing
is clear and correct. In short, apostrophes are frequently used to indicate possession and in contractions,
but generally not to pluralize.
English Punctuation
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[edit]
1.
Steps
Avoid using an apostrophe to indicate a plural. The incorrect use of an apostrophe to form the
plural is called the greengrocer's apostrophe, since grocers are often the worst (or at least the most
visible) offenders. If you have more than one apple, then write apples, not apple's. If you cannot
replace the word with "his," "her," "their" or "its" and if it isn't a contraction, then an apostrophe should
not be used.
o
People often forget the rules when a word ends in a vowel, such as the word "mango."
Many people write "mango's" instead of "mangos" or "mangoes".
An exception to this use is in the case of making a single letter plural. Therefore, Why are
there so many I's in the word "indivisibility"? is correct. This is simply for clarity reasons, so the
reader does not mistake it for the word "is." However, in modern usage, the preference is to avoid
inserting an apostrophe and instead surround the single letter in quotation marks before pluralizing
it: Why are there so many "I"s in the word "indivisibility"?
Similarly, apostrophes can be used when talking about a word (e.g., this list contains a lot
of do's and don't's) but quotation marks can make it clearer ("do"s and "don't"s).
2.
An exception can also be made for numbers and abbreviations, although some consider
this old fashioned, illogical and unnecessary.
Use apostrophes to indicate possession. There are two basic methods that make use of an
apostrophe in constructing the possessive. Most words use an apostrophe followed by an "s" at the
end of the word, although many situations require simply an apostrophe.
o
Place an apostrophe before the "s" when you are indicating a singular possessive,
unless the name or word ends in "s," in which case either is correct. (James's dog or James'
dog, Dickens' novel or Dickens's novel)
"Jacob's shoes are very cool." The shoes belong to Jacob (singular: one
person).
"I found the dog's old bone buried in the backyard." The bone belongs to the dog
(singular: a single dog).
Place an apostrophe after the "s" when you are dealing with a possessive plural case
that has an "s" at the end (e.g., book to books, tree to trees). But if the word is plural without an "s"
at the end, this rule does not apply; add an apostrophe and an "s" as if the word were singular.
"Look at all of the sailors' boats!" The boats belong to the sailors (plural: there is
more than one sailor).
"The children's dresses were pink and frilly." The dresses belong to the children,
but since the word children is already plural without having to add an "s" at the end, this is an
exception.
3.
4.
Be aware of the its/it's trap. Use an apostrophe with the word "it" only when you want to
indicate a contraction for "it is" or "it has." Its is a pronoun, and pronouns have their own possessive
form that does not use an apostrophe. For example, "That noise? It's just the dog eating its bone."
This may seem confusing, but it follows the same pattern as other possessive pronouns: his, hers, its,
yours, ours, theirs.
[edit]
Tips
For singular names ending in "s," the Chicago Manual of Style adds an "s" after the apostrophe,
as in "Charles's bike." If your work or assignment requires you to adhere to one convention or another,
then do so. Otherwise, either form is acceptable so long as it is consistent throughout a single piece of
written work.
"Apple's 89 a pound," literally means that "apple" owns "89 a pound" (the possessive) or "Apple
is 89 a pound" (a contraction).
The Elements of Style by Strunk and White is a very short and handy guide to writing and
punctuation. Keep a copy of this book nearby when you're writing and refer to it if you're unsure about
usage.
If you want to write about a party given by Luke and Ashley Smart and all their children, write "the
Smarts' party" (Smarts is a plural, then add the possessive apostrophe).
If you have trouble applying the rules for a possessive, rephrase the sentence to use "of" and
place the apostrophe after the word in question. For instance: "Look at all of the sailors' boats!"
becomes "Look at all of the boats of the sailors" and you can place the apostrophe after "sailors" to
make "sailors'". Or, "The children's dresses were pink and frilly." becomes "The dresses of the
children..." and so the apostrophe goes after "children" to make "children's".
If ever in doubt, always remember that apostrophes are almost always used in nouns to show
possession. Avoid using apostrophes for anything else.
[edit]
Warnings
Throwing in apostrophes willy-nilly quickly shows that the writer does not understand the rules
about possessives, contractions, and plurals. If in doubt, err on the side of leaving out the apostrophe.
Don't put an apostrophe within your name on your return address label. If your surname is
"Greenwood," then "The Greenwoods" is correct, while "the Greenwood's" is incorrect. "The
Greenwoods" indicates the residence of more than one person with the surname Greenwood, not
some sort of possession.
Never write "her's." Her's is not a word, just as you would not write "him's". Recall that possessive
pronouns do not need an apostrophe: his, hers, its, yours, ours, theirs.
When a word ends in "y," as in "try," take extra care when changing the verb form. For example,
"try" does not become "try's". "Tries" is correct.
Do not use apostrophes or quotation marks for emphasis. For example, take a billboard that says:
Joe Schmo, the "best" realtor in town! It makes the word "best" appear sarcastic, and untrue, rather
than emphasized.
1. The apostrophe (') has two functions. It indicates both the possessive case and
contractions. This might seem simple, but it causes a lot of problems.
my sister's hat.
4. When the possessors are plural, the apostrophe is placed after the final 's':
The girls' bicycles
my cousins' parents.
(It is often said that the choice between the two should be made on how the word is pronounced.)
Coopers Wines.
8. Note that the apostrophe is not required where a word has been formed by omitting its first
part:
bus
phone
NOT
NOT
'bus
'phone
10. The possessive of classical names ending in es is often formed by the apostrophe alone:
Demosthenes' speeches
Sophocles' plays
Xerxes' campaigns
11. French names ending in an unpronounced s or x follow the normal rule, taking an apostrophe
and an s:
Rabelais's comedy
Malraux's novels
Contractions
In formal prose we would write She has told him, but when speaking we would say She's told
him. The apostrophe is used to indicate the missing letters.
1. I am (I'm) - He is (he's) - You are (You're).
2. Note the difference between it's (it is) and its (belonging to it).
3. Notice too that the term its' does not exist.
4. It's may also be a contraction of 'it has' - 'It's been a pleasure meeting you'.
General
1. When items are described by an acronym or an abbreviation, there is no need to add an
apostrophe to denote the plural:
MP (military police)
sixteen MPs
PC (personal computer)
MB (megabyte)
a network of PCs
100 MB
2. But the apostrophe should be used in any expression which includes an element of possession:
MPs' salaries
a PC's capacity
3. The apostrophe is not normally used after a noun which has an adjectival rather than a
possessive sense
ladies toilet
Rates Office
students union
4. You should avoid the use of contractions in essays and formal writing.
(1 Ratings)
One of the beautiful things about the English language is its incredibly rich and varied
vocabulary. However, the downside is that similar words can be confused and therefore
misused. Two such terms are "let" and "leave." Follow the steps below to understand
their differences in meaning so that you will always use let and leave correctly.
Difficulty: Easy
Instructions
1.
Step 1
Understand the meanings of each word. While both terms have more than one
meaning, it is when their definitions overlap about getting or giving permission where
confusion occurs. The formal construction "by your leave" means "with your
permission" and is correct usage. However, when you talk about allowing or not
something, the rule of thumb is to always use "let." For example, "Ann's mother lets
her stay out until midnight" is correct, not "Ann's mother leaves her stay out until
midnight." "Leave" implies movement. That is, someone going away or something
staying behind. Examples include "He must leave right after dinner" or "Leave that
book on the desk for me."
2.
Step 2
See if there is an infinitive like "to" in the sentence, since this can make it tricky.
However, the same rules apply. Determine whether the main point of the sentence is
about allowing something. If so, use "let." If the main point of the sentence is about
someone departing a place or something/someone staying in a place, use "leave."
For example, "Leave the others to follow us" versus "Please let me go to the dance"
can be tricky. However, "Leave the others" is a clue that someone is going and
someone else is staying. Likewise, "let me go" indicates that the speaker is asking
or demanding to be allowed to do something.
3.
Step 3
Know when "let" and "leave" are interchangeable. The imperative statements "Leave
the cat alone" and "Let the cat alone" have the same meaning and they are both
grammatically sound.
Let me carry that box of papers for you. It's very heavy.
Why don't you let him walk home by himself from school now? He's eleven years
old after all
Let is also frequently used in the expression let's (let us) to introduce a suggestion. Note
that negative sentences with let's can be formed in two possible ways:
Let's finish the video tomorrow, shall we? I'm tired and I want to go to bed.
Let's not be late home tonight. It's Monday tomorrow after all.
Don't let's get too stressed about this. I know the car is damaged, but it's only a
piece of metal.
to write?
Is there
study!!!
I need
to help me carry these bags, they are way too heavy for me.
problems.
to help me.
much bigger.
in.
about London.
Could
I write, I have to do
to improve
(verbessern) my writing.
Does
The compounds of some and any behave in the same way as some and any, that is to say, some-,
in affirmative sentences and, any-, in negatives and questions, although we use some- in the
interrogative to offer something, to ask for something or when we expect a positive response, as we
saw in the previous unit. Examples:
I saw somebody there.
I did not see anybody there.
Did you see anybody there?
Would you like something better?
Instead of I did not see anybody there, we can say I saw nobody there, but we cannot use two
negative words: *I did not see nobody there.
Anybody, nobody and somebody mean the same as anyone, no-one and nobody respectively.
No-one can also be written no one.
Any can also mean "every" or "it does not matter which / who":
You can take any pencil.
Anybody can do it. It's very easy.
Exercises:
Fill in the gaps with somebody, anybody, nobody, something, anything, nothing, somewhere,
anywhere or nowhere.
1. I know __________ about this issue that you may find interesting, but if I tell you, you must
promise to keep it (a) secret.
2. __________ lives here. There is no water.
3. I spent the night __________ near the beach.
4. __________ could have jumped over this wall, and stole your rake. It's very low.
5. __________ scares him. He's very brave.
Key: (Please remember that instead of anybody, nobody and somebody, you may use anyone,
no-one and someone respectively.)
1. something
2. Nobody (Nothing is also possible if we wish to make it more drastic.)
3. somewhere
4. Anybody
5. Nothing / Nobody (The first alternative may be better, but it depends on the context.)
6. nowhere, somewhere
7. something
8. something
9. somewhere
10. anything
11. somebody
12. anywhere
13. anything, Nobody
14. anybody
15. Somebody
16. Somebody
17. Something, something
18. somewhere
19. Anywhere
20. anybody, anybody
little, much, neither, nobody, no one, nothing, one, other, somebody, someone,
something
Plural:
Singular
or Plural
For example:
!Note
See if you can make sense of these:Somebody, Everybody, Anybody, and Nobody
Now they all worked in the same company, and their company
held a competition: Who could produce the best logo?
Everybody had a good idea. Nobody thought nobody would
follow it through. Somebody thought anybody could work on it.
Anybody thought everybody should do it. Eveybody thought
someone would do it. So nobody did anything. Everybody
thought anybody could win something. Anybody thought
somebody should win. Somebody thought everybody would
win. Nobody thought nobody would win. What did they win?
Nothing!
The Adjective Clause
SUBJECT
VERB
VERB
An adjective clause does not express a complete thought, so it cannot stand alone as a sentence.
To avoid writing a fragment, you must connect each adjective clause to a main clause. Read
the examples below. Notice that the adjective clause follows the word that it describes.
Diane felt manipulated by her beagle Santana, whose big, brown
eyes pleaded for another cookie .
Chewing with her mouth open is one reason why Fred cannot
stand sitting across from his sister Melanie .
Growling ferociously, Oreo and Skeeter, Madison's two dogs,
competed for the hardboiled egg that bounced across the kitchen
floor.
Punctuating adjective clauses can be tricky. For each sentence, you will have to decide if the
adjective clause is essential or nonessential and then use commas accordingly.
Essential clauses do not require commas. An adjective clause is essential when you need the
information it provides. Look at this example:
The vegetables that people leave uneaten are often the most
nutritious.
Vegetables is nonspecific. To know which ones we are talking about, we must have the
information in the adjective clause. Thus, the adjective clause is essential and requires no
commas.
If, however, we eliminate vegetables and choose a more specific noun instead, the adjective
clause becomes nonessential and does require commas to separate it from the rest of the
sentence. Read this revision:
Broccoli, which people often leave uneaten, is very nutritious.
Adjective Clauses
At a certain point in your writing in English, you should be able to identify every
sentence you write as simple, compound, or complex. Two additional structures,
adjective clauses and appositives, will give you a much greater sentence variety
within which to accomplish your writing objectives. This page contains a small
amount of information about adjective clauses along with just ten very difficult
exercises. First, we will define what adjective clauses are and how they work.
An adjective clause is a dependent clause that modifies a noun. It is possible to
combine the following two sentences to form one sentence containing an adjective
clause:
The children are going to visit the museum.
They are on the bus.
The children who are on the bus are going to visit the museum.
| adjective clause |
In the sentence above, there are two other ways to write the sentence correctly
using the second sentence as the adjective clause.
The children that are on the bus are going to visit the museum.
The children
on the bus
are going to visit the museum.
Some other sentences can be combined into a sentence using adjective clauses in a
variety of ways, and they are all correct. Note the variety of ways in which the
following two sentences can be combined.
The church is old.
My grandparents were married there.
The church
The church
The church
The church
The church
In the sentences above, the adjective clauses are underlined. All answers are
correct. Note the use of the word "in" and how and where it is used.
IMPORTANT NOTE ABOUT PUNCTUATION
Managing simple, compound, and complex sentences, and then adding adjective
clauses into the mix can result in some confusing situations regarding punctuation.
There are some specific rules when punctuation is permissible or required around
adjective clauses (when the information in the adjective clause is non-essential
information); however, in my composition classes, I insist that students NOT use
commas around adjective clauses for several reasons.
First, non-essential information should generally be avoided in academic writing,
at least in the short essays required for these composition classes. Thus, not
including the commas will more often be right than wrong.
Second, my Spanish speaking students have a natural tendency to write long
sentences using many commas inappropriately. By not using commas around
adjective clauses, students can perhaps more readily recognize when a period is
required.
Third, I believe it is easier to learn to apply commas later when they are required
than the other way around. Indiscriminate use of commas is a hard habit to undo
in my experience. Therefore do not use commas around adjective clauses, at least
for one semester.
Are you ready to take the quiz?
This quiz is very difficult. These sentences are actually the hardest I could find (in
the sense that you need to know ALL the rules in order to get them all correct), so
please follow the directions carefully.
1. Do not use commas in any of the completed sentences.
2. Make adjective clauses of the second sentence in every case. (Obviously, any of
these sentences could be written using the first sentence as the adjective clause;
however, making adjective clauses of the second sentence is harder because it
requires knowledge of all the "rules" of writing adjective clauses.)
3. Spell correctly! This quiz is "graded" by computer, so any spelling mistake or
punctuation error, like forgetting a period at the end of a sentence, will be
counted wrong.
Adjective Clauses
Introduction
When you are sure that you understand the topic, you can go on to the exercises.
Adjective Clauses
See The Sentence for definitions of sentence, clause, and dependent clause.
There are three basic types of dependent clauses: adjective clauses, adverb clauses, and noun
clauses. (Adjective clauses are also called relative clauses.)
This page contains information about adjective clauses. Also see Adverb Clauses and Noun
Clauses.
A. Adjective clauses perform the same function in sentences that adjectives do: they modify
nouns.
The teacher has a car. (Car is a noun.)
Its a new car. (New is an adjective which modifies car.)
The car that she is driving is not hers.
(That she is driving is an adjective clause which modifies car. Its a clause because it has a
subject (she) and a predicate (is driving); its an adjective clause because it modifies a noun.)
Note that adjectives usually precede the nouns they modify; adjective clauses always follow
the nouns they modify.
B. A sentence which contains one adjective clause and one independent clause is the result
of combining two clauses which contain a repeated noun. You can combine two independent
clauses to make one sentence containing an adjective clause by following these steps:
1. You must have two clauses which contain a repeated noun (or pronoun, or noun and pronoun
which refer to the same thing). Here are two examples:
The book is on the table. + I like the book.
The man is here. + The man wants the book.
2. Delete the repeated noun and replace it with a relative pronoun in the clause you want to
make dependent. See C. below for information on relative pronouns.
The book is on the table. + I like which
The man is here. + who wants the book
3. Move the relative pronoun to the beginning of its clause (if it is not already there). The clause
is now an adjective clause.
The book is on the table. + which I like
4. Put the adjective clause immediately after the noun phrase it modifies (the repeated noun):
The book which I like is on the table.
The man who wants the book is here.
WHEN replaces a time (in + year, in + month, on + day,...). It cannot be a subject. It can be
omitted. Here is an example with when:
I will never forget the day. + I graduated on that day.=
I will never forget the day when I graduated.
WHERE replaces a place (in + country, in + city, at + school,...). It cannot be a subject. It can be
omitted but a preposition (at, in, to) usually must be added. Here is an example with where:
The building is new. + He works in the building. =
The building where he works is new.
2. A nonrestrictive adjective clause gives additional information about the noun it modifies but
is not necessary to identify that noun. If a nonrestrictive adjective clause is removed from a
sentence, the meaning of the main clause does not change. A nonrestrictive adjective clause is
separated from the main clause by a comma or commas. The relative pronoun that cannot be
used in nonrestrictive adjective clauses. The relative pronoun cannot be omitted from a
nonrestrictive clause. Here is an example:
Billy, who couldnt swim, should not have jumped into the ocean.
E. Adjective clauses can often be reduced to phrases. The relative pronoun (RP) must be the
subject of the verb in the adjective clause. Adjective clauses can be reduced to phrases in two
different ways depending on the verb in the adjective clause.
1. RP + BE = 0
People who are living in glass houses should not throw stones. (clause)
People living in glass houses should not throw stones. (phrase)
Mary applied for a job that was advertised in the paper. (clause)
Mary applied for a job advertised in the paper. (phrase)
See The Sentence for definitions of sentence, clause, and dependent clause.
This page contains information about noun clauses. Also see Adjective Clauses and Adverb
Clauses.
A. Noun clauses perform the same functions in sentences that nouns do:
A noun clause can be a subject of a verb:
What Billy did shocked his friends.
B. You can combine two independent clauses by changing one to a noun clause and using it
in one of the ways listed above. The choice of the noun clause marker (see below) depends on
the type of clause you are changing to a noun clause:
To change a statement to a noun clause use that:
I know + Billy made a mistake =
I know that Billy made a mistake.
C. The subordinators in noun clauses are called noun clause markers. Here is a list of the
noun clause markers:
that
if, whether
Wh-words: how, what, when, where, which, who, whom, whose, why
Wh-ever words: however, whatever, whenever, wherever, whichever, whoever, whomever
D. Except for that, noun clause markers cannot be omitted. Only that can be omitted, but it
can be omitted only if it is not the first word in a sentence:
correct:
Billys friends didnt know that he couldnt swim.
correct:
Billys friends didnt know he couldnt swim.
correct:
Billys mistake was that he refused to take lessons.
correct:
Billys mistake was he refused to take lessons.
correct:
That Billy jumped off the pier surprised everyone.
not correct:
* Billy jumped off the pier surprised everyone.
E. Statement word order is always used in a noun clause, even if the main clause is a
question:
not correct:
* Do you know what time is it? (Question word order: is it)
correct:
Do you know what time it is? (Statement word order: it is)
not correct:
* Everybody wondered where did Billy go. (Question word order: did Billy go)
correct:
Everybody wondered where Billy went. (Statement word order: Billy went)
When the main verb (the verb in the independent clause) is past, the verb in the noun clause is:
was/were going to or would + BASE if its action/state is later
He thought that the exam the following week was going to be hard.
He thought that the exam the following week would be hard.
past if its action/state is at the same time
He thought that Mary was taking the exam then.
If the action/state of the noun clause is still in the future (that is, after the writer has written the
sentence), then a future verb can be used even if the main verb is past.
The astronaut said that people will live on other planets someday.
If the action/state of the noun clause continues in the present (that is, at the time the writer is
writing the sentence) or if the noun clause expresses a general truth or fact, the simple present
tense can be used even if the main verb is past.
We learned that English is not easy.
The boys knew that the sun rises in the east.
G. Here are some examples of sentences which contain one noun clause (underlined) and
one independent clause:
Noun clauses as subjects of verbs:
That George learned how to swim is a miracle.
Whether Fred can get a better job is not certain.
What Mary said confused her parents.
However you learn to spell is OK with me.
The question is whether other boys will try the same thing.
The winner will be whoever runs fastest.
See The Sentence for definitions of sentence, clause, and dependent clause.
A. Adverb clauses show relationships such as time, cause and effect, contrast, and
condition. (See Conditional Sentences for more information on this type of adverb clause.)
B. A sentence which contains one adverb clause and one independent clause is the result of
combining two clauses which have one of the relationships above. You can combine two
independent clauses to make one sentence which contains an adverb clause by following these
steps:
1. You must have two clauses which have one of the relationships in A above:
Billy couldnt swim.
2. Add a subordinating conjunction to the beginning of the clause you want to make
dependent:
Although Billy couldnt swim
He jumped off the pier.
3. Place the two clauses next to each other. Usually, the order of the clauses is not important.
When the adverb clause precedes the independent clause, the two clauses are usually separated
by a comma:
Although Billy couldnt swim, he jumped off the pier.
When the independent clause precedes the adverb clause, there is usually no comma:
Billy jumped off the pier although he couldnt swim.
C. The subordinators in adverb clauses are called subordinating conjunctions. They cannot
be omitted. They cannot be subjects. Here are some of the subordinating conjunctions:
Time: after, before, when, while, as, by the time, whenever, since, until, as soon as, once, as
long as
Cause and effect: because, since, now that, as, as long as, inasmuch as, so (that), in order
that
Contrast: although, even though, though, whereas, while
Condition: if, unless, only if, whether or not, even if, providing (that), provided (that), in case, in
the event (that). See Conditional Sentences.
D. Here are some examples of sentences which contain one adverb clause (underlined) and
one independent clause. The two sentences in each pair have the same meaning:
After he took lessons, George could swim well.
George could swim well after he took lessons.
An Introduction to
We can tell almost instinctively that brother and car are the same type of
word, and also that brother and drives are different types of words. By this
we mean that brother and car belong to the same word class. Similarly,
when we recognise that brother and drives are different types, we mean
that they belong to different word classes. We recognise seven MAJOR
word classes:
Verb
Noun
Determiner
Adjective
Adverb
Preposition
Conjunction
You may find that other grammars recognise different word classes
from the ones listed here. They may also define the boundaries
between the classes in different ways. In some grammars, for
instance, pronouns are treated as a separate word class, whereas
we treat them as a subclass of nouns. A difference like this should
not cause confusion. Instead, it highlights an important principle in
grammar, known as GRADIENCE. This refers to the fact that the
boundaries between the word classes are not absolutely fixed. Many
word classes share characteristics with others, and there is
considerable overlap between some of the classes. In other words,
the boundaries are "fuzzy", so different grammars draw them in
different places.
We will discuss each of the major word classes in turn. Then we will
look briefly at some MINOR word classes. But first, let us consider
how we distinguish between word classes in general.
1. Meaning
Using this criterion, we generalize about the kind of meanings that words
convey. For example, we could group together the words brother and car,
as well as David, house, and London, on the basis that they all refer to
people, places, or things. In fact, this has traditionally been a popular
approach to determining members of the class of nouns. It has also been
applied to verbs, by saying that they denote some kind of "action", like
cook, drive, eat, run, shout, walk.
On the basis of this replacement test, we can conclude that all of these
words belong to the same class, that of "action" words, or verbs.
Many words also take what are called INFLECTIONS, that is, regular
changes in their form under certain conditions. For example, nouns can
take a plural inflection, usually by adding an -s at the end:
car -- cars
dinner -- dinners
book -- books
And we can see that cook is a noun in [2] because it takes the plural -s
inflection
The cooks are on holiday
If we really need to, we can also apply a replacement test, based on our
first criterion, replacing cook in each sentence with "similar" words:
Notice that we can replace verbs with verbs, and nouns with nouns,
but we cannot replace verbs with nouns or nouns with verbs:
You will see here that each italicised word can belong to more than one
word class. However, they only belong to one word class at a time,
depending on how they are used. So it is quite wrong to say, for example,
"cook is a verb". Instead, we have to say something like "cook is a verb in
the sentence I cook dinner every Sunday, but it is a noun in The cook is on
holiday".
Of the three criteria for word classes that we have discussed here,
the Internet Grammar will emphasise the second and third - the form
of words, and how they are positioned or how they function in
sentences.
Some word classes are OPEN, that is, new words can be added to
the class as the need arises. The class of nouns, for instance, is
potentially infinite, since it is continually being expanded as new
scientific discoveries are made, new products are developed, and
new ideas are explored. In the late twentieth century, for example,
developments in computer technology have given rise to many new
nouns:
Internet, website, URL, CD-ROM, email, newsgroup, bitmap, modem, multimedia
Prefix
Meaning
Useage
ab,abs
from, away
from
to, forward
ambi
both
an, a
without
ante
before
anti
against,
opposite
opposite
arch
chief, first
be
over,
thoroughly
bi
two
cata
down
circum
around
with, together
contra, contro
against
de
down, away
demi
partly, half
di
two
dia
across
dis, dif
not, apart
disagree
dys
faulty, bad
ex, e
out
beyond,
outside
extra, extro
Suffix List
Suffix
Meaning
Useage
able, ible
portable able to be
carried, legible able to be
read
ac, ic
like, pertaining to
acious, icious
full of
al
pertaining to
full of
eloquent pertaining to
fluid, effective speech,
suppliant pleader,
verdant green
dictionary book
connected with words,
honorary
ate
ation
exasperation irritation
irritation annoyance
ant, ent
ary
cy
democracy government
ruled by people
obstinacy stubbornness
escent
evanescent tending to
vanish pubescent
arriving at puberty
terrific arousing great
fear
fic
fy
iferous
pestiferous carrying
disease vociferous
having a loud voice
il, ile
civil polite
ism
ist
ity
sagacity wisdom
ive
quantitative concerned
with number or volume
harmonize make
harmonious enfranchise
make free
oid
ose
magnify enlarge
ize, ise
osis
psychosis diseased
mental condition
hypnosis condition of
induced sleep
ous
tude
fortitude state of
strength certitude state
of sureness
Meaning
Examples
a, an
not, without
ab, abs
act, ag:
am, ami
love, like
ambul
to walk
anim
ante
before
anti, ant
against, opposite
to originate, to
increase
to hear
auto
self
autonomous, autoimmune
-acy, -cy
-age
Noun: activity, or
result of action
-al
-an
Noun: person
-ance, -ence
-ancy, -ency
-ant, -ent
Noun: an agent,
something that
performs the action
-ate
-ation
Noun: action,
resulting state
-ate
Verb: cause to be
-able, -ible
Adjective: worth,
ability
solvable, incredible
Adjective: quality,
relation
Adjective: kind of
agent, indication
-ar, -ary
Adjective:
spectacular, unitary
resembling, related to
-ate
Adjective: kind of
state
inviolate
bene
bi, bine
two
bio, bi
life
biography, biology
bibli, biblio
book
bibliophile, bibliography
brev
short
down, with
ceas, cede,
ceed, cess
to go, to yield
cent
hundred
centr
center
chron
time
cide, cis
to kill, to cut
circum
around
clam, claim
shout
clin
lean, bend
with, together
com, con
fully
cogn, gnos
know to know
corp
body
cort
escort, cortage
correct
cred
to believe
cycl
circle, wheel
de
dec
ten
dec, dign
suitable
dei, div
God
demo
people
di
two
dia
through, across,
between
say, speak
dit
give
doc, doct
teach, prove
dog, dox
thought, idea
duc, duct
to lead, pull
-dom
ecto
outside, external
endo
inside, withing
equi
equal
en, em
enamor, empower
epi
epilogue
ev, et
time, age
medieval, eternal
exter, extra
-er, -or
-ed
attained
-en
Verb: to cause to
become
moisten
-er, -or
Verb: action
ponder, clamor
-ed
-en
Adjective: material
silken
-er
Adjective:
comparative
brighter
-est
fa, fess
speak
make do, do
femto
quadrillionth
femtosecond
fer
bear, carry
belief, faith
fig
shape, form
flect, flex
to bend
flict
strike
flow
for, fore
before
form
shape
format, formulate
fort
strength
fuge
flee
fuse
pour
-ful
Noun: an amount or
quanity that fills
mouthful
-ful
Adjective: having,
giving, marked by
fanciful
-fold
Adverb: in a manner
fourfold
of, marked by
-fy
make
gen, gin
geo
earth
geography
giga
billion
gigabyte, gigaflop
gor
to gather, to bring
together
category, categorize
grad, gress,
gree
to gather, to bring
together
graph, gram,
graf
to write, draw
hale
brathe
her, hes
to stick
adhere, hesitate
hetero
other
six
homo
same
hyper
over, above
not
instead, import
infra
beneath
infrared, infrastructure
inter
between, among
intro
into, within
it
go
-ian, an
-ia
Noun: names,
diseases
phobia
-iatry
psychiatry
-ic, ics
arithmetic, economics
-ice
Noun: act
malice
-ing
-ion
Noun: condition or
action
abduction
-ism
Noun: doctrine,
belief, action or
conduct
formalism
-ist
Noun: person or
member
podiatrist
-ite
-ity, ty
-ive
Noun: condition
native
-ify
Verb: cause
specify
-ing
Verb: present
depicting
participle
-ize
Verb: cause
fantasize
-ic
Adjective: quality,
relation
generic
-ile
-ing
Adjective: activity
-ish
-ive, -ative,
-itive
jac, ject
to throw
judice
judge
cohering
labor
work
law
lide
strike
loc
place, area
location, locally
log
logic
light
lude
play
-less
Adjective: without,
missing
motiveless
-ly
Adverb: in the
manner of
fluently
mal
bad, badly
man, manu
hand, make, do
manage, management
main
bide
metr
admeasure
mega
great, million
mem
recall, remember
memory, commemorate
ment
mind
mental, mention
min
little, small
meso
middle
meta
beyond, change
micro
millionth
microgram, microvolt
mill, kilo
thousand
milli
thousandth
mis
mit, miss
to send
mono
one
morph
shape
multi
many
-ment
Noun: condition or
result
document
nano
billionth
nanosecond, nanobucks
nasc, nat,
gnant, nai
to be born
nom, nym
name
nominate, synonym
non
nine
nonagon
non
not
nov
new
novice, novelty
-ness
Noun: state,
condition, quality
kindness
oct
eight
omni
all
oper
work
operate, opus
over
excessive, above
-or
Noun: condition or
activity
valor
-ory
territory
serves for
-ous, -eous,
-ose, -ious
pair, pare
arrange
para
beside
ped, pod
foot
pel, puls
drive, push
repel, pulse
pend, pond,
pens
to hang, weigh
suspend, append
per
through, intensive
peri
around
phan, phas,
phen, fan,
phant, fant
phantom, fantasy
phe
speak
phil
love
philosopher
phon
sound
phot
light
pico
trillionth
picofarad, picocurie
pict
picture, depict
pli, ply
fold
plore
weep
poly
many
pon, pos
put, place
port
to carry
post
after, behind
postpone, postdate
pre, pur
before
precede
prim, prin
first
pro
for, foward
propel
psych
mind
psychology
pute
think
quat, quad
four
quadrangle, quadruplets
quint, penta
five
quip
ship
quir, quis,
quest, quer
seek, ask
re
back, again
retro
backwards
rupt
break
sanct
holy
sci, scio
to know
conscious, science
scrib, script
to write
se
secede
sect, sec
cut
sent, sens
feel, think
sentiment, sensation
semi
half
sept
seven
septet, septennial
serve
keep
sist
soci
to join, companions
sociable, society
sol
alone
solitary, isolate
sper
hope
spir
breath, soul
respiration, inspire
stand, stant,
stab, stat, stan, stand
sti, sta, st, stead
strain, strict,
string, stige
bind, pull
stru, struct,
stroy, stry
build
super, supra
over, above
syn, sym
-ship
Noun: status,
condition
-ster
person
touch
tect, teg
cover
tele
relationship
contend, extensive
tera
trillion
terabyte, teraflop
term
exterminate, terminal
terr
earth
territory, terrain
test
see, witness
attest, testify
tire
draw, pull
theo, the
God
therm
heat
thermometer, thermal
twist
trans
across, beyond,
change
tri
three
tribute
give
un
uni
one
unti
before
-ure
vac
empty
vade
go
veh, vect
to carry
vacant, vacuum
vector, vehicle, convection, vehement
ven, vent
come
ver
true
verify
verb, verv
word
vert, vers
to turn, change
vi
way
see
vit, viv
life
voc, voke
call
vocal, revoke
roll, turn
with
against
-ward
Adverb: in a direction
homeward
or manner
-wise
Adverb: in the
manner of, with
regard to
-y
Noun: state,
condition, result of an society, victory
activity
-y
timewise
Meaning
Example
-able
able to be
manageable
-ible
defensible
-al
relating to
regal
-ance
resistance
-ence
independence
-ic
heroic
-ion
state of
union
-ism
quality of
patriotism
-hood
brotherhood
-ity
legality
-ment
puzzlement
-er
one who
writer
-or
advisor
-ite
Mennonite
-y
full of
-ful
soapy
wishful
When a group of letters having a special meaning appears at the beginning of a word, we
call that group of letters a prefix. Following is a list of 10 prefixes all dealing with counting.
Additional prefixes can be found on the handout Vocabulary Builder.
Prefix
Meaning
Example
uni-
one
unicycle
mono-
one
monologue
auto-
self
autobiography
duo-
two
duodecimal
bi-
two
bifocal
tri-
three
tripod
penta-
five
pentagon
hexa-
six
hexadecimal
poly-
many
polygon
multi-
many
multicolored