ELEMETNTS OF EFFECTIVE

WRITING

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GRAMMAR AND USAGE
 Agreement of subject and verb
Ex: here is the file you were looking
for
why have these letters not been
posted?
one of the vice-presidents has
resigned

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CLASSIFICATION OF THE SUBJECT
 Un/countable nouns
 Collective nouns
 Indefinite pronouns
 Compound subject
 Words in part or portion
 Words indicating amount
 The word number
 There/it in subject position

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COUNTABLE NOUNS
 Ex: seventy students are sitting in
front of me
seventy five chairs are enough
Two pairs of clothes are enough
for this journey

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UNCOUNTABLE
NOUNS

uncountable nouns take a

singular/plural verb
Ex: advice is more easily given than
taken
the furniture you wish to buy is
very expensive

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MORE…
 The acoustics of the new auditorium
are excellent
 The proceeds of this programme go
to local charities
 Your belongings are in the hotel
 His goods were stolen in transit

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COLLECTIVE
NOUNS
 refers to a group or collection of people
committee, jury, faculty
 if the group is referred to as a singular
noun, then it takes a singular verb
if it is referred to in plural, then it takes a
plural verb
Ex: The committee has/have submitted
their report
The jury has/have given their verdict

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INDEFINITE
PRONOUNS
 Pronouns that do not refer to any
particular person
Ex: anybody/anyone
everything/another
neither/nobody
anything/none
everybody/someone/somebody

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EXAMPLES
…
 Everybody is entitled to one
month’s salary as bonus.
 Nobody knows what the future has
in store for him/her
 Either of the proposals is acceptable
to me
 Neither of the resolutions moved by
us was passed
 Each of us is required to attend the
meeting
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COMPOUND SUBJECT
 When a subject contains more than
one word but refers to one person,
idea or unit
Ex: many a student has joined the
organisation
every clerk and assistant is
expected to know typing
bread and utter is our sole
concern
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MORE…
 Neither the chairman nor the
members have turned up for the
meeting
 Neither members nor the chairman
has turned up for the meeting
 Either you or he has to finish the
work
 Either he or you have to finish the
work
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WORDS THAT INDICATE PART OR PORTION

Ex: half the job was completed within

two days
half the jobs were completed
within two days
two thirds of the employees are
in favour of this proposal
two thirds of the poll is rotten
some of the files are missing
some of the money is missing

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WORDS THAT INDICATE AMOUNT
 Ten thousand rupees is a lot of
money
 Three miles a day is a good walk
 Hundreds of people were present at
the meeting
 Thousands of people have gathered
to welcome him home

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THE WORD NUMBER
 preceded by the it takes a singular verb
 Preceded by a it takes a plural verb

Ex: the number of people who attended the

meeting was huge
the number of crimes in Delhi is
increasing
a number of meetings were held to
discuss the issue
a number of books are missing from
the library

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INTRODUCTORY THERE
 depends upon the true subject
Ex: there are various methods of
collecting data
there is no need for typing this
report

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INTRODUCTORY IT
 It always takes a singular verb
irrespective of the subject
Ex: it is the people who matter in
democracy
it is the fundamentals that matter

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QUESTIONS?

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