Theories & Applications

in Grammar
Mekayssi Anas
 GRAMMAR

Theories & Applications in

Grammar

Edited by
MEKAYSSI ANAS
2021-2022

©MEKAYSSI ANAS – Old school Printing

Depot legal: 299 / 3902

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Content
Introduction
CHAPTER 1
1. Parts of Speech (Lexical Categories)
2. Functions of Parts of Speech
3. Types of Phrases & their Functions
• Noun phrase
• Appositive phrase
• Absolute phrase
• Adverbial phrase
• Adjectival phrase
• Prepositional phrase
• Verbal phrase
• Infinitive phrase
• Participial phrase
• Gerund phrase
• Verb phrase
4. Types of Clauses & their Functions
• Noun Clause
• Adjectival Clause
• Adverbial Clause
• Differences & Similarities between Clauses
5. Types of Sentences & their Functions
• Simple sentence
• Compound Sentence
• Complex Sentence
• Compound-Complex Sentence
6. Elementary & Upper intermediate Exercises
CHAPTER 2
1. Advanced Parts of Speech
1. Predicate & Predicator
2. Canonical & Non-canonical Clauses
3. Adjuncts & their Forms
4. Complex Clause

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 • Content Clause
• Relative Clause
• Defining & non-defining RC
• Identifying & Classifying RC
• Content vs Relative clause
• Relative or Content clause
5. Functions of the word « That »
6. Fronting
7. Ergative & Ambitransitive verbs
8. Flat Adverb
9. Common mistakes in grammar
10. Elementary & Upper Intermediate
Exercises
CHAPTER 3
1. Figures of Speech (Rhetorical Devices)
2. Advance Exercises
Correction of exercises Chapter 1 (page 92)
Correction of exercises Chapter 2 (page121)
Correction of exercises Chapter 3 (page 128)

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 INTRODUCTION
Have you ever considered how important simple grammar is? To
be honest, grammar is very simple, especially if people concentrate
on the basics and fundamentals of it. However, we cannot deny that
there are some complex points that people may encounter while
learning it. For example, they may come across many ambiguous
names and systems in some grammar books, such as the Matrix
clause, Content clause, Ergative verbs, and so on. As a result, our
goal is not only to make grammar simple, but also to lift the veil on
those ambiguous points and make them as clear as possible. Before
we begin explaining the more difficult aspects of grammar, people
should first understand the fundamentals, as I previously
recommended. So, we'll start with the fundamentals and work our
way up to the more complex ones.

CHAPTER 1
PARTS OF SPEECH
Abbreviations of Grammatical terms
Adj Adjective Indirect Object
AdjP Adjective Phrase P Predicator
Predicative
AdvP Adverb Phrase PC
Complement
C,Comp Complement PP Preposition Phrase
Determinative Pred Comp Predicative
DP
Phrase Complement
N Noun Prep Preposition
Nom Nominal S, Subj Subject
NP Noun Phrase V Verb
0 Object VP Verb Phrase
Od Direct Object

I. What are Parts of Speech?

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 Parts of speech play a vital role in every language in this world. They are
very crucial because they help us in making and writing sentences with different
styles. According to some grammarians, there are eight kinds of parts of speech:
nouns, adjectives, adverbs, verbs, prepositions, conjunctions, interjections, and
pronouns.

A. Nouns
Nouns are the most common parts of speech in languages. We use
them to name people, things, places, and so on. They are eight
types:
Proper noun A specific person, place or thing New York, Texas,
Ahmed..
Common A general person, place or thing People, crocodile,
noun dog…
Collective Group of things Army, Orchestra,
noun team…
Abstract noun Cannot be seen, felt, heard, smelled or tasted Love, motherhood…
Concrete Can be seen, felt, heard, smelled or tasted Beach, food, wood
noun
Uncountable Cannot be counted Butter, milk, money
noun
Countable Can be counted Bananas, apples…
noun
Compound Two or more words that create one noun Computer game, post
noun office

The other types of Parts of Speech According to The College of Saint Rose Writing Center, 2008;

Words that replace a I, you, him, her, me,

Pronouns noun that has already this, that, they, which,
been mentioned. she, he

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 Words that convey
walk, go, sing, are,
Verbs action, a state of being,
seem, sleep
or existence.
Words that describe beautiful, green, angry,
Adjectives
nouns and pronouns. necessary
Words that modify
verbs, adjectives, or
other adverbs. They gracefully, very, too,
answer the questions: loudly, finally
Adverbs
“When?”, “Where?”,
“Why?”, “How?”, “How
much?”, and “In what
way?”
Words that link nouns
on, in, over, under,
Prepositions or pronouns to other
within
words within a sentence
Words that link other
Conjunctions words, phrases, or
clauses in a sentence.
a. Coordinating Words that link for, and, nor, but, or,
Conjunctions independent clauses. yet, so
Words that link
b. Subordinating although, because,
dependent clauses with
Conjunctions whether, while
independent clauses.
Words that are used as
Interjections exclamations or to Hey! Oh! Darn! Wow!
express feeling.

II. What are Parts of Sentences?

They are categories of words or group of words that make up a sentence. These
categories are subjects, predicates, objects, complements, phrases, and clauses.
part of Sentence Definition Examples
Word or word group in The teacher grades
Subject
a sentence that performs fairly.

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 the action expressed in
the predicate.
Word or word group The students worked
Predicate that expresses a certain very hard on their
action or state of being. papers.
Nouns or pronouns that
receive the action or
Object
complete the meaning of
a verb.
Receive the action or
The professor wrote a
complete the meaning of
book about the Civil
a. Direct Objects a verb and answer the
War. (I.e., wrote what?
questions: “What?” or
Wrote a book).
“Whom?”
Words that follow
transitive verbs and The tutor gave me
come before direct feedback that was
b. Indirect Objects objects. They answer the helpful. (i.e. gave
questions: “To what?”, feedback to whom?
“For whom?”, or “To Gave me feedback).
whom?”
The young boy ran in
c. Object of Nouns or pronouns that
the hall. (in is the
Prepositions follow the preposition.
preposition)
Word or word group
that completes the
Complements
meaning of a subject,
object, or verb.
Subject modifiers that
follow linking verbs. As
She is an engineer.
nouns, they are known
a. Subject (Predicate noun)
as predicate nouns. As
Complements He was discouraged.
adjectives, they are
(Predicate adjective)
known as predicate
adjectives.
b. Object Modify or refer to the The town pronounced
Complements direct object. John a hero.
Tutoring gives students
time to reflect on their
The direct or indirect
c. Verb Complements own work.
objects of a verb.
(Students is the indirect
object and time is the

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 direct object of the verb
“gives.”)

III. Functions of Parts of Speech:

a) Functions of Nouns:
Every part of speech I mentioned above has its function. As an example, nouns
can function as a subject (S), direct object (Od), object complement (C), indirect
object (Oi) and object of a preposition. The following examples will illustrate
them more; (the underlined words are the nouns)
1. Ahmed is my brother. Functions as subject
2. Yusuf can play football. Functions as direct object
3. Mark loaned John forty pennies. Functions as indirect object
4. They called Ashraf the tiger. Functions as object Complement
5. The book is on the table. Functions as an object of pre “on”
If we see the example (1), we are going to detect that the noun “Ahmed” is the
subject of the verb “is”; in example (2), the noun “football” is the direct object
of the main verb “play”; in example (3) the noun “John” is the indirect object, in
example (4), the noun “Tiger” is the object complement of the noun “Ashraf”;
and in the last example, the noun “the table” functions as an object of the
preposition «on”
Notice that each noun in the examples above is a thing. Therefore, they function
as nouns. They are not modifiers.
b) Functions of Pronouns:
Pronouns divide into nine categories: Personal pronouns, relative
pronouns, demonstrative pronouns, possessive pronouns, indefinite pronouns,
reflexive and intensive pronouns, interrogative pronouns, etc.
Pronouns have five functions; subject, object, a complement of a verb, object of
a preposition, and indirect object. Notice the following examples: ( the
underlined words are the Pronoun)
She was eating toast. Functions as subject
Nicholas loves her. Functions as a direct object

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She brings him to the zoo. Functions as indirect object
My mother bought a gift for me. Functions as an object of pre” for”
The professor was he. Functions as subject complement
There is also another function which is name Apposition to a noun”. An
apposition to a noun means renaming the noun with a pronoun. For instance,
we consider the following example as an apposition to a noun. “The women,
those who speak about their rights, are powerful”; in this example, the
underlined pronoun is only renaming the noun “women”; therefore, we call it
apposition to a noun. (The pronoun “those” is the Apposition to the noun
“women”)
c. Functions of verbs:
The grammarians consider verbs as the hearts of the sentences, and there are
three functions: verbs stating a fact, verbs imposing limits, and verbs expressing
a request or a command.
1. Verbs stating facts mean the indicative verbs. For example;
She drinks Soda.
They arrested her.
We will go with her.

2. Verbs imposing limit mean conditional verbs. As an example;

If my brother worked hard this semester, he would pass the exam.
Amjad could have been a good player if he had trained well.

3. Verbs expressing a request or a command are imperative verbs. For

instance, do what I said!

c) Functions of Adjectives:
One of the most famous modifiers that people use in their writings is
adjectives. Adjectives usually occur before the nouns they modify. They
function as a modifier because they describe and modify “nouns” and
“pronouns”; Notice the following examples;

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He is a handsome person.

The car was so expensive to buy.

People are not smart these days.

If you read the sentences, you will find that the underlined adjectives are
modifying and describing a thing, which is either a noun or pronoun. For
example, in the first sentence, the adjective “handsome” is modifying the
personal pronoun “He”; in the second example, the adjective “expensive” is
describing the common noun “car”; and in the last sentence, the adjective
“smart” is describing the common noun “people”.
d. Functions of Adverbs
Adverbs are words that modify verbs, adjectives, or other adverbs. They answer
the questions: “When?”, “Where?”, “Why?”, “How?”, “How much?”, and “In
what way?” see the examples below;

Oussama speaks Spanish fluently.

She is really beautiful.

You should run very quickly if you want to bring it.

Notice that all the sentences above have an adverb, but they differ in their
functions. For instance, in the first example, the adverb “fluently” is modifying
the verb “speaks”; in the second example, the adverb “really” is describing the
adjective “beautiful”; and in the last example, the adverb is modifying the
adverb “quickly”. So, from these examples, we can understand that adverb has
three essential functions; describing a verb, describing an adjective, and
describing another adverb.

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Note well that sometimes an adverb can describe a whole main clause. For
instance, “Actually, he turned his brother-in-law in for seeing him assault a
customer". In this latter example, we can notice that the adverb of
opinion “Actually” modifies the entire main clause, which is "he turned his
brother-in-law in for seeing him assault a customer”. It gives us more details
about his brother.
e. Functions of prepositions
We use prepositions to link nouns and pronouns to other words in a sentence.
They also allow the nouns in a phrase to describe and modify another word
within a sentence. A preposition is always followed by a noun or a pronoun,
such as (in the box, on the table, for me, to her, etc.) note the following
examples; (the underlined items are preposition, and the double-underlined
words are nouns and pronouns).
She is in the corner of the house.
I’m in love with her, Mr. Jack.
The book is beneath the chair.

Notice that every preposition in the sentences is followed by a noun or a

pronoun. In example number 1, the prepositions “in” & “of” are both of them
followed by the nouns “the corner/ the house”; in example 2, the prepositions
“in & with” are followed by the noun love and the pronoun “her”, and in the last
example, the preposition “beneath” is also followed by the noun “the chair”.
d) Functions of Conjunctions
Conjunctions are one of the most important parts of speech. We use them to link
and connect two independent clauses or to combine an independent with
dependent clauses. In grammar, there are two categories of conjunctions;
Coordinating Conjunctions & subordinating conjunctions.
Each one of them has its function. For example, we use Coordinating
Conjunctions to relate two independent clauses together by using (FANBOYS).
See the following examples;
Liza is doing her homework, and Tom is watering the grass.
Independent clause C.C Independent clause

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I hate eating apples, yet I eat one.
Independent clause C.C Independent clause

Also, we use subordinating conjunctions as linking words. We utilize them to

combine an independent with a dependent clause. See the following examples;
While my brother was playing video games, my father was reading a novel.
Sub. C Dependent clause independent clause

Although my brother was sick, he went to school.

Sub.C Dependent clause independent clause

e) Function of Interjections:
We use interjections so as to express our reactions & feelings, such as Wow,
Ugh, Yo! And so on. Notice the following examples;
Wow! this car is extremely wonderful.
Ugh! That was so disgusting.

f. Types of Phrases & Clauses:

Group of related words
Phrases without subjects or
predicates.
This consists of a
The animals slept in the
a. Prepositional Phrases preposition and an object,
barn.
and is usually a modifier.
Phrases that consist of a
Joan and Ken adopted a
b. Verb Phrases verb and other words in the
baby from Russia.
predicate of a sentence.
Phrases formed from a
c. Verbal Phrases verbal (a word originating
from a verb).

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 She seemed to enjoy the
Phrases consisting of
movie the teacher played in
i. Infinitive phrases infinitives and objects, plus
class.
their modifiers.
(to enjoy is the infinitive)
I noticed the students
Phrases consisting of
pretending to do their
participles, their objects, and
ii. Participle phrases homework were all in Mr.
modifiers. The phrases act
Smith’s class.
as adjectives.
(pretending is the participle)
Biking on a busy street can
Phrases consisting of
be
iii. Gerund phrases gerunds and their objects.
dangerous.
The phrases act as nouns.
(Biking is the gerund)
Related words containing
subjects and predicates that
Clauses
are either sentences or parts
of sentences.
a. Main (independent) Clauses that are able to The student completed his
clauses stand alone in a sentence. paper on time.
b. Subordinate The student completed his
Clauses that can’t stand
(dependent) paper on time because he
alone in a sentence.
clauses started it early.

A. What is a Phrase?
According to some grammarians, a phrase is a group of words that adds
meaning to a sentence. It cannot be a sentence since it is not a complete
thought with subject, verb, and object. As an example;
We saw a beautiful sunset.
To eat a lot of chocolate is dangerous.
Ahmed was so angry about his poor marks.
Jogging in the morning is very useful.
All the underlined items are phrases, but each one of them has its name. For
instance, the first one is a noun phrase; the second one is an adjectival

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 phrase; the third one is an adverbial phrase, and the last one is a
prepositional phrase. Notice that all of them do not contain a subject or a
verb. There are just a group of words.

B. Types of Phrases:

1. Noun Phrases
Noun phrases are groups of two or more words within a sentence that function
grammatically as nouns. They consist of a noun and other words that modify the
noun. Some grammarians also consider a single-word noun to be a noun phrase,
while more traditional grammars hold that a phrase must be made up of two or
more words.

a. Form of NP:
Noun phrases consist of four essential elements; determiner, pre-modifier,
head (noun), and post-modifier.
FORM:

DETERMINER + PRE- MODIFIER + HEAD (NOUN) + POST MODIFIER

Determiners are:
-Articles: a- an – the -Adjectives (gold...) -Noun -Prep Phrase
-Demonstratives (this, that) - Participle(ing-ed.) -Adj Phrase
-Numerals (two, five, etc.) - C. Nouns (a post office...) -Relative C
-Possessives (my, their, etc.) - Apposition
-Quantifiers (some, many, etc.).
-Interrogative (what- whose- which…)

All my handsome students in the park

1) Determiners

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We use a determiner to identify, specify, or quantify a noun. One of the famous
determiners which people use in their writings is “Articles”; See the following
examples;
“The black box is under the tree”; in this example, the determiner “the” is
specifying which box I’m talking about; that is why I utilized an definite article.
❖ Types of determiners
There are three types of determiners; pre-determiners, central determiners, and
post- determiners.

Pre- determiners are:

• Multipliers: Twice, three times…

• Fractions: Half, one fourth…

• Intensifiers: What, such, rather, quite…

• Other words: both, all…

Central Determiners are:

• Articles: a-an – the
• Demonstrative adjectives: This- that – those – these
• Possessive pronouns: my- your – she – our…
Post- Determiners are:
• Cardinal numbers: one-two- eight…

• Ordinal numbers: first- second – twenty…

• General ordinals: last- next – previous…

• Quantifiers: Few- several – many…

2) Premodifiers
Premodifiers are always followed by the head of a noun phrase. They can
function as an adjective (Attributive adj), participle with –ing & -ed form, and
compound words. To illustrate more, notice the following examples;

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These huge mountains are very dangerous to climb.
Det NP Head
Adj

The underlined noun phrase contains from the determiner “these”; the
attributive adjective “huge”; and then the head noun “mountains”; Notice that
the ADJ “huge” is describing the head “mountains".

All these interesting books are mine.

Pre.Det Adj

Central. Det Head

Notice that even though we have two or three determiners within a noun phrase,
we consider them as one determiner. See the following example;
Example: All these two books are boring.
Determiner

The analysis of the three structures above;

1- These + huge + mountains
Determiner + premodifier + head

2- All these + interesting + books

Determiner premodifier head

3- All these two + books

Determiner + head

3) Head

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Nouns are words that indicate a person, place, or thing. In a sentence, nouns can
function as the subject or the object of a verb. Nouns can also follow linking
verbs to rename or re-identify the subject of a sentence or clause; these are
known as predicate nouns.

4) Postmodifiers
A postmodifier is the opposite of premodifier. It always comes after the head of
a noun phrase. It can be as a prepositional phrase, adjectival phrase, relative
clause, or as an apposition. See the following examples; (the underlined items
are postmodifiers)

1- The phone which is on the table is yours.

2- The black cat under the chair is so aggressive.

3- The man responsible for all these problems was arrested yesterday.

4- Yusuf, the engineer, is my brother.

The underlined postmodifiers are all them modifying and describing their
nouns. In the first example, the relative clause functions as an adjective
describing the noun “Phone”; in the second example, the prepositional phrase
functions as an adjective modifying the noun “Cat”, in the third example; the
adjectival phrase functions as an adjective describing the noun” man”, and in
the last example the appositive phrase functions adjective because it describes
and gives us more details about the noun “Yusuf”.

❖ One Dependency vs Two Way Dependency

1- One Dependency = Modifier+ head:
- It means that the modifier depends on the head.
- Modifiers can be omissible
- Some modifiers come before the head= pre-modifier
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 - Some others come after the head= post-modifier
2- Two-way dependency = Head+ complement:
- Complements are obligatory. We need them to complete the meaning of a
phrase.
- The head always precedes the complement, and it is obligatory element in
every phrase.
❖ The Difference between Post-Modifiers & Complements

Noun phrases: complements

Complements come immediately after the head in a noun phrase. They are
prepositional phrases or clauses which are necessary to complete the meaning of
the noun. Without the complement, we wouldn’t understand what the noun was
referring to.

pre-
head complement type
head

prepositional
a rise in inflation
phrase

prepositional
a feeling of fear and loneliness
phrase

that schools should control their own

the idea clause
finances

the fact that the planet is getting warmer clause

Examples:
A rise in inflation is likely in the coming months.
The idea that schools should control their own finances is not a new one.
The fact that the planet is getting warmer is no longer disputed.

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Noun phrases: postmodifiers
Postmodifiers come after the head in a noun phrase. They consist of adverb
phrases, prepositional phrases and clauses. Postmodifiers give extra or specific
information about the noun (e.g., place, possession, identifying features). Unlike
complements, they are not necessary to complete the meaning.

pre-head head postmodifier type

an old cottage nearby adverb phrase

a tall man with grey hair prepositional phrase

that
table she bought last year clause
antique

prepositional phrase (on my

on my desk that
the parcel desk) + clause (that Philip left
Philip left for you
for you)

prepositional phrase (in the black

in the black dress
the woman dress) + clause (talking to
talking to Marcus
Marcus)

Postmodifiers usually come after any complement in the noun phrase.

pre-
head complement postmodifier
head

that he was a car which appeared in several

the claim
thief newspapers

a feeling of hope that everyone shared

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Noun phrases : complements or postmodifiers?
Complements are necessary to complete the meaning of a noun.
Postmodifiers are not necessary; they give extra information about the
noun which helps to identify it or locate it in some way. (The
complement and the postmodifier are underlined below.)

Compare

Complement postmodifier

The tall woman in the red skirt

We all felt a sense of despair. talking to Paula is a colleague of
mine.

The postmodifiers in the red

The head sense needs more
skirt and talking to Paula help us
information to complete its
to identify the woman but they are
meaning. If we only said We all
not necessary. The meaning (The
felt a sense, the meaning would
tall woman is a colleague of
not be complete; we need the
mine.) would be complete without
complement.
them.

b. Functions of NP
In English grammar, Noun phrases can function as subject, direct object,
indirect object, object complement, object of a preposition, subject complement.
Examples; (the underlined words are noun phrases)
Mohamed is so clever. Functions as a subject
I like the person who loves to dress well. Functions as a direct object
He gives her a ring. Functions as an indirect object
The company called Ahmed the boss Functions as an object complement
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She brought some followers to Mr. John Functions as an object of pre “to”
Sara is our leader in our club. Functions as a subject complement

• NOTE WELL; an infinitive phrase also can function as a noun phrase.

It can be a subject or an object.

• Example: To study hard is a wonderful thing. (To study hard is an

infinitive phrase functioning as the subject of the verb “is”).

• They want to eat Tacos (To eat Tacos is an infinitive phrase functioning
as the direct object of the verb "want" and consequently is a noun
phrase).

2. Appositive Phrases
An appositive phrase can be considered as a renaming of a noun phrase. It has
the same structure of a noun phrase. See the example below;
Example: Mark, the person who loves to work hard, died yesterday.
The underlined phrase is a noun phrase, but especially an appositive phrase
because it renames and describes the noun “Mark”. It gives us more details
about him. (Use commas in appositive phrases if the noun identified)

3. Absolute phrases
Absolute phrases are a group of words that grammatically function as an adverb
modifying an entire independent clause. A lot of novelists utilize this type of
phrase in their writings to make their narration perfect. Notice the following
examples;

Independent clause Noun modifier

Ahmed rides a bike, his hands waving in the air.

The underlined absolute phrase functions as an adverb describing the whole
independent clause “Ahmed rides a bike”.

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Another example: Her heart broken ; she did not see her father.
Head modifier independent clause

The underlined absolute phrase functions as an adverb modifying the entire

independent clause “she did not see her father.”

4. Adverbial Phrases
An adverbial phrase is a group of words that functions as an adverb within a
sentence. We utilize ADVPs to modify and describe other expressions, such as
adjectives, adverbs, verbs, and sometimes an entire clause. Adverbial phrases
divide into two parts; modifier adverbs & complement adverbs. Notice the
following examples;
1- Modifier Adverbs:
Mohamed usually plays tennis on Monday.
The phrase “On Monday” is an adverbial phrase because it shows us when
Mohamed plays his favorite sport. Notice that it is only extra information, and
we can remove it without affecting the meaning. Most people will think that
“On Monday” is a prepositional phrase. Yes, it is. Adverbial phrases can have
the same form of prepositional phrases, so you can call them either adverbial
phrases or prepositional phrases. Both of them are correct.

Another Example;
The man was shouting very loudly.
The phrase “very loudly” is an adverbial phrase functions as an adverbial phrase
of degree. Notice that the adverb “very” is describing and modifying the adverb
“loudly”.

2- Complement Adverbs
We use complement adverbs to complete the meaning of a clause. For instance,
“She was living in the dark”. The adverbial phrase “in the dark” cannot be

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removed from the sentence because if we delete it, we will have a fragment
sentence. So, complement adverbs are very necessary for a sentence.
Note well that there are three kinds of adverbials; Adjuncts, Disjunct and
Conjunct.

➢ Adjunct: Adjunct adverbial phrases provide only additional and extra

information. For example, “He runs ten miles every day in the
morning”. The adjunct phrase “in the morning” is only additional
information. We can remove it without affecting the meaning.

➢ Disjunct: We use adverbial disjuncts to give an opinion or an evolution of

something by using some adverbs, such as (, probably, maybe, and so on.
For instance, “Fortunately, we see them in the club”. The underlined
disjunct adverb functions as an adverbial phrase because it modifies the
whole clause. (Always use a comma if you want to use disjunct adverbs.)

➢ Conjunct: We use adverbial conjuncts as connector words, such as

(however, furthermore, besides, etc. As an example, “My friend did not
work hard this semester. As a result, he did not pass the exam”. The
adverbial conjunct “As a result” is used as a linking word between the
main clauses.
The main difference between adverbial disjuncts & adverbial conjuncts is
that conjunct means conjoined, whereas disjunct means separated.

➢ Obligatory adverbials are adverbials that render a sentence

ungrammatical and meaningless if removed. John put the flowers
in a vase. Notice that if we remove " in a vase", the meaning will
be meaningless

5. Adjectival Phrases:
An adjectival phrase is a group of words that functions as an adjective within
a sentence, such as “so wonderful”, “very smart”, and so on.
Examples of Adjectival phrases:

1- This juice is extremely fabulous.

Head

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As we know, adjectives always function as a modifier because they describe a
thing (noun or pronoun). So, in this latter example, the adjectival phrase
“extremely fabulous” functions as an adjective describing the noun “juice”.”
2- A very big Jellyfish stunned me on my hand.
Head

The adjectival phrase “very big” functions as an adjective, and it describes the
noun “jellyfish”.

6. Prepositional phrases
A prepositional phrase consists of a preposition and an object and is usually a
modifier. It can function as an adverb or adjective. See the examples below
The super market in the corner has all what you need.
head PP

The prepositional phrase “in the corner” is functioning as an adjective

describing the noun “supermarket.

He sings his favorite song with pleasure.

head PP

The prepositional phrase “with pleasure” is functioning as an adverb modifying

the verb “sings”.

Sometimes, preposition phrases can function as a noun, but usually as a subject.

Example: Behind the scene was everything obvious.
head PP

The prepositional phrase “behind the scene” is functioning as a subject of the

verb “was”.

7. Verbal Phrases

21
Verbal phrases are phrases formed from a verbal (a word originating from a
verb). There are three categories of verbal phrases; infinitive phrase, gerund
phrase, and participial phrase.

A. Infinitive phrase:
An infinitive phrase is a phrase consisting of infinitives and objects, plus their
modifiers. Infinitive phrases are very flexible in their functions. They can
function as subject, direct object, subject complement, adverb (adjective),
adverb (verb), adjective, extraposed subject, and extraposed direct object.
Notice the examples below;
1. To work hard is a very important thing. Functions as a subject
2. She wants to see her husband. Functions as a direct object
3. She went to the shop to buy some milk. Function as an adverb
4. We were unhappy to see them sad. Functions as an adverb (Adj)
5. Do you need something to drink? Functions as an adjective
6. It is very dangerous to climb this mountain. Functions as an extraposed S
7. She considers it unnecessary to prepare dinner. Functions as an extraposed O
8. His dream is to travel to Texas. Functions as a subj Comp

NOTE WELL: The infinitive phrase in number 3 is functioning as an adverb

because it modifies the verb “went”. It answers why she went to the shop.
The infinitive phrase number 4 is also functioning as an adverb, but it is
describing the adjective “unhappy”.
In examples number 6&7, the infinitive phrases function as extraposition. We
use extraposition when we replace the subject or the direct object with a dummy
pronoun, such as “It”.
Notice that infinitive phrases can function as a (subject, direct object, and
extraposition) or as a modifier (adverb and adjective).

B. Participial phrases (Verbs+ Ing or ed)

22
Participial phrases are phrases consisting of participles (-Ing // -ed), their
objects, and modifiers. They always function as an adjective but sometimes as
an adverb (rarely). Notice the following examples;
1. At about half past nine Napoleon, wearing an old bowler hat of Mr. Jones’s,
was distinctly seen to emerge from the back door.
The underlined participial phrase “wearing an old bowler hat of Mr. Jones’s” is
functioning as an adjective and it is describing the noun “Napoleon”. It comes
between two commas because it is a nonrestrictive participial phrase. (It can be
removed).

2. Not having any egg, my mother could not prepare the cake.

The underlined participial phrase functions as an adverb because it answers

why she could not prepare the cake. It does not describe a noun or a
pronoun.

Remember that participial always functions as an adjective, but sometimes

may function as an adverb, as we have recently seen.

3. Mr. John, dressed in white, is my boss.

The non-defining participial phrase “dressed in white” functions as an adjective
describing the noun” Mr. John”. We call it non-defining because it is just extra
information.

C. Gerund Phrases (Verb + Ing)

Gerund phrases are phrases consisting of gerunds (Verb + Ing) and their objects.
It functions as a noun but not as a modifier. Gerund phrase has four functions
as illustrated in the following examples;

Smoking is dangerous. Functions as a subject (S)

I like eating seafood. Function as a direct object (Oi)

23
Her favorite sport is swimming Functions as a subject complement
She writes her topic by using a laptop. Functions as the object of pre “by”
Notice that all the gerund phrases are functioning as a noun. They do not
describe something in a sentence.
Note Well: Although participial and gerund have the same form, which is (verb
+Ing), they differ in their functions. A participial is always functioning as an
adjective. They describe nouns and pronouns, whereas gerund is always
considering as a noun and not a modifier.

D. Verb Phrases

1. What is a verb phrase?

A verb phrase consists of a main verb alone or the main verb plus any modal
and/or auxiliary verbs. The main verb always comes last in the verb phrase:
(MO = modal verb; AUX = auxiliary verb; MV= main verb)
Examples of the verb phrase:

Main verb

She drinks water.

Modal verb main verb

Mohamed can do it.

Model verb Aux verb main verb

Yusuf would have played this match.

Model verb Aux verb Aux verb main verb

Ahmed would have been doing this work for five hours.

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 2. Types of verb phrases
In English grammar, there are two categories of VP; Simple verb phrase &
Complex verb phrase.
❖ Simple VP
A simple verb phrase always has a main verb. Notice the following examples;
MV

He rents his house to someone. Simple VP

VP
MV

The doctor advised her to sleep well. Simple VP

VP

❖ Complex VP
A complex verb phrase can contain a main verb with auxiliary and modal verb.
(MO + AUX + MV) See the following examples;
Mo mv

She could not do it without her brother. Complex VP

Mo aux mv

You should have visited a doctor. Complex VP

Model verb Aux verb Aux verb main verb

Ahmed would have been doing this work for five hours. Complex VP

3. Types of verbs

25
There are three types of verbs:
• Action verbs (which can be transitive or intransitive),
• Modal verbs (sometimes called helping verbs), and
• Auxiliary verbs (sometimes called linking verbs).

1. What is an Action Verb?

When a person or thing is doing something, we call it an action verb. Action
verbs are the best ones to use in your writing to move your story forward and
create tension. They can be split into two categories:
❖ Transitive verbs.
These verbs are always followed by a noun that’s receiving the action, called
the direct object.
He pushes the door.
The verb is “pushes,” and the noun that’s receiving this action is “the door”.

Sometimes an object can be indirect, such as when you’re expressing to whom

the action is being done.
She told me the secret.
The verb “told” has two objects: one is indirect “me” and one is direct (the
secret).

❖ Intransitive verbs.
Intransitive verbs are not requiring a direct object or indirect object. They can
stand alone with them. Notice the example below
The baby cried.
The verb “cried” does not need an object to complete the meaning. So, it is an
intransitive verb.
To distinguish between transitive and intransitive verbs always search about the
direct object. (With object is transitive. Without object is intransitive.)

26
 2. What is a Modal Verb?

Modal verbs help us understand more about the verb in question. They give us
hints, for example, on the possibility of something happening (can, may, could
etc.) or time (has, did, was, etc.). When you add a modal or helping verb to your
sentence, you’ve created a verb phrase. Notice the following examples;

Mo Mv

I could not do it without you.

“Could not” is the helping verb of the main verb “do”.

The following words always function as modal verbs, or helping verbs:

• can • could • may • might • must • ought to • shall • should • will • would
In addition, you can have helping verbs consisting of the forms of to be, to do,
and to have.
Mo mv
Ben Yamen was playing football when you came.

Mo mv
I have not finished yet.

3. What is an Auxiliary Verb?

They are linking verbs which connect the subject of a sentence to a noun or
adjective that describes the subject. The noun or adjective is called the “subject
complement.” See the examples below:

Aux subject complement (predicate noun)

My wife is a doctor

27
 Aux subject complement (predicate adjective)
They were happy

Notice that the most common linking verb is the various forms of “to be” (am,
are, is, was, were, etc.).
❖ List of auxiliary verbs that describe the subject:
To appear, stay, fall, get, come, become, act, remain, smell, taste, indicate,
seem, grow, go, feel, sound…

Notice the difference between aux verb & main verb.

Aux
Aux: the cake smelled good.

Action: I Mv
smelled the cake.

4. Finite and non-finite verbs (tensed and non-tensed)

1. Finite verbs show agreement with a subject and express tense.
Examples:

Tensed verb

She did not want to talk with her.

Tensed verb

I am going to visit her tomorrow.

28
2. Non-finite verbs do not show distinction in tense and cannot stand alone as
the main verb in a sentence. They have two different forms, the infinitive (1.to
infinitive and 2. bare infinitive) and the participle (3-ing participle and 4–ed
participle).

Examples:
Non- finite verb

I hate to eat omelet.

Non- finite verb

The girl setting there is my sister.

Non- finite verb

Swimming is very useful.

Non- finite verb

The man dressed in black is my teacher.

IV. Verb Complementation

The verb phrase in English can be intensive or extensive.

1. Intensive verbs
Intensive verbs require a subject complement (Cs) as in;

Intensive v subject complement

He is a lawyer
Intensive.v subject complement

She feels ill

29
 Intensive.v subject complement

They seem happy

Notice that the most frequent verb of this category is the verb “to be” which is
also called a Copular verb.
Intensive verbs divide into two types of copular verbs:
• Current Copular Verbs as in:
Marry is a dentist now.

• Resulting Copular Verbs as in:

He became unhappy when he saw her.

❖ Intensive verb complementation

Intensive verb complementation can be as a complement or as a
predication adjunct (Obligatory).
Complements:
She was sad
ADJP
He was aware of doing that.
Comp of ADJ within Cs
This room is the guest bedroom.
NP
The problem was that it cost a lot.
Finite clause
I am very eager to meet you.
Non-finite clause

30
As a predication adjunct:
He was in class.
Predication adjunct

2. Extensive verbs
Extensive verbs are sub-categorized into intransitive and transitive verbs.
2.1. Intransitive verbs
Intransitive verbs do not take a direct object or subject attribute in the sentence.
Form: (SUBJECT + VERB.)
Examples:

Subject verb

Yusuf laughed.

2.2. Transitive verbs

A transitive verb is followed by an object. The verb has its action conveyed to
the object. Form: SUBJECT + VERB + OBJECT
Subj verb object

Mohamed buys a book.

The meaning of a transitive verb is incomplete without a direct object, as in the

following examples:
Incomplete: She likes

Complete: She likes apples.

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Transitive verbs divide into three types:

❖ Mono-transitive: SUBJECT + VERB +OBJECT

She + speaks + Spanish

❖ Di-transitive: SUBJECT + VERB + Oi + Od

He gave his dog meat
Dative case
He gave meat to his dog
Dative case
The dative case refers to the case used for a noun or pronoun that is an indirect
object.

❖ Complex transitive: SUBJECT + VERB + Od + OBJECT COMP

Ahmed called his sister a lady.

A.Mono-transitive Complementation
The object of a mono-transitive verb can take these forms:

- Noun phrase
Sara bought a flower.
They did not notice the mistake.

- Finite clause
Mustapha did not know that his cat was ill.

32
 - Non-finite clause
I like to play football.

B. Di-transitive Complementation
Di-transitive complementation involves two objects: an indirect object and a
direct object. The direct object can take these forms:
- Noun Phrase

I sent her a book

- Non-finite clause

Mr. John advised us to work hard.

- Finite clause

He questioned her if she could do that or not.

- Prepositional verbs

They blamed him for the damage

C.Complex transitive Complementation

- Adjectival object
She considers herself unworthy.

- Nominal complement
The king designated Ahmed his minister.
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 - Obligatory adverbials (adverbial complements)
Susan put her phone on the table. (Notice that if we remove it, it will be
meaningless.)

Non-finite clause
- I saw the boy carrying a heavy bag.

❖ Prepositional vs phrasal verbs

1. Prepositional Verbs
Prepositional verbs are verbs in which the Preposition and the NP function as
an object. Notice the following examples;
Verb preposition NP

He referred to that article

This verb requires a PP. So, the PP is considered an object rather than an
adverbial. The object “that article” can be passivized. So, it is a real object.
That article was referred to by (him) optional.
Notice that we cannot separate the verb and the preposition. We cannot say: He
referred that article to*

2. Phrasal verbs (verb +particle)

Phrasal verbs must be distinguished from prepositional verbs and from verbs
with an adverbial. Examples of phrasal verbs are: bring up, turn in, take off, and
switch on.
Verb particle (adverb)

He turned off the light.

34
 Verb particle (adverb)

She takes off her jacket.

Notice that the phrasal verb above can be separated, so we can say:
He turne the light off.
d
She takes her jacket off.

Also, we have another structure of phrasal verbs which is (verb +particle

+preposition)

Verb particle preposition

His father always taught him not to look down on those people with less. It
cannot be separated because it has a preposition.

C. Clauses:

1. What is a clause?
Clauses are related words containing subjects and predicates that are either
sentences or parts of sentences. There are two major types of clauses;
independent clause & dependent clause.

A. Independent Clause
An independent clause (main clause) is a clause that contains a subject and
predicate. It can stand alone in a sentence because it is a complete thought.
Example;
This boy is my brother. Independent clause
Sally can play guitar well. Independent clause
She understood. Independent clause

35
 B. Dependent Clause
A dependent clause (subordinate clause) is a clause that has a subject and
predicate, but it does not complete a thought. It cannot stand alone in a
sentence.
Example;
Although Bob has a lot of money, he does not want to buy this car.
The underlined clause is a dependent clause starting with the subordinate
conjunction “Although”. It is not a complete thought & it cannot stand alone.
See the following examples;
If she had had money, she could have bought an Ice-cream.
You have to work hard in order to attain you goal.

2. Types of Clauses
There are many types of clauses, but in this chapter, we are going to focus on
three types; Noun clauses, adjectival clauses, and adverbial clauses.
A. Noun clauses
A noun clause is a dependent clause that contains a subject and a verb. It
functions as a noun in a sentence, and it cannot stand alone because it is not a
complete thought. (It must always be paired with an independent (main)
clause.)
Clauses, in general, are always starting with a relative pronoun (although, when,
that, so as to…) or an interrogative pronoun (what, where, how, why…)
NB: Noun clauses usually start with the following words;
(Where-why- -that- -whether-who-whom-which-what-how), or (wherever-
whoever-whomever-whichever-whatever-whenever-however…) Notice the
following examples;
She wants to understand why she did it.
She thinks that her mother went to the shop.
Whether she marry me or not is up to her.
I like what she does.

36
 ❖ Functions of Noun Clauses
Noun clauses can function as subject, direct object, object of a preposition,
subject complement. Notice the examples bellow;

Nobody likes what she did. Functions as a direct object

What he wrote was so powerful. Functions as a subject
She discusses about what is mental illness. Functions as an OBP “about”
The question is what pollution is. Functions as a subject comp

Notice that all the underlined noun clauses are usually (but not always)
beginning with an interrogative pronoun, especially with the pronoun “what”.

There is also a subclass of noun clauses called “That clause”. It considers as a

noun clause, and it has seven functions; Subject, subject complement, direct
object, adjective complement within-subject complement, noun complement
within the noun phrase, and extraposition. Notice the following examples;

That she has a boyfriend was obvious. Functions as a subject

I think that gymnastics is very easy. Functions as a direct object
The bad thing is that you never care. Functions as subject Comp
It was obvious that she wanted more. Functions as an Adj comp

It was only his appearance that was a little altered.

The underline noun clause functions as a noun complement within NP.
It is unimportant that your mother buys butter.
This noun clause functions as an extraposed subject because we replace the
whole clause with the dummy pronoun “it”. It was like that at the beginning
“That your mother buys butter is unimportant”.

B. Adverbial Clauses

37
Adverbial clauses always start with a subordinating conjunction, such as (even
though, as, as soon as, because, since, when, while, whereas, and so on). To
spot the form of an adverbial clause is very easy. Search about subordinating
clauses within the sentence, and then you will know the form. See the examples
below;

Sub. C

After his hoof had healed up, Boxer worked harder than ever.
Adverbial clause

Sub. C adverbial clause

When he braced his muscles against the weight of some vast boulder ,
it seemed that nothing kept him on his feet except the will to continue.
(Animal Farm)

Sub. C

There were many more creatures on the farm now, though the
increase was not as great as had been expected in earlier years.
Adverbial clause

❖ Functions of Adverbial clauses

There are many functions of adverbial clauses; Adverbial clause of time, place,
concession, condition, purpose and so on. Notice the following examples;

After his hoof had healed up, Boxer worked harder than ever.
The underlined clause is an adverbial clause functions as an adverbial clause of
time or we can say as an adjunct of time. (the word "after" refers to time)

As soon as they were so covered, they were burnt in the furnace.

38
The underlined clause is an adverbial clause functions as an adverbial clause of
time or we can say as an adjunct of time. (The word "as soon as" refers to time)

There were many more creatures on the farm now, though the increase was not
as great as had been expected in earlier years.
The underlined clause is an adverbial clause functions as an adverbial clause of
concession or we can say as an adjunct of concession. (The word "though"
refers to concession)

If she did not work hard, she would not pass the exam.
The underlined clause is an adverbial clause functions as an adverbial clause of
condition or we can say as an adjunct of condition. (The word "if" refers to
condition)
Notice that every subordinating conjunction has its function.

C. Adjectival Clauses (Relative clauses)

Adjective clauses (also called relative clauses) are dependent clauses that
modify or give further information about nouns and pronouns. They are
introduced by the relative pronouns who, whom, whose, that, and which. They
can function as subject, direct object, and object of a preposition. Notice the
following examples;
❖ Functions of Adjectival clauses
Relative pronoun

The person who wants to talk with me is my brother.

Adjectival clause

The underlined adjective clause functions as the subject of the verb “is”. Also, it
functions as a modifier because it describes the noun “person”.

Relative pronoun

I found the man that was responsible.

Adjectival clause

39
The underlined adjective clause functions as the direct object of the verb
“found”, but especially object complement because it describes the noun “man”.

Preposition relative pronoun

She is the girl to whom I will marry.

Adjectival clause

The underlined adjective clause functions as the object of the preposition “to”
and it describes the noun “girl”.

❖ Restrictive Vs non-restrictive adjectival clauses :

1. Restrictive relative clause

We use restrictive relative clause to identify or to describe a person who is it.
They are also known as defining clauses.
Example: The game which we played yesterday was so bad.
The underlined relative clause is essential information because it gives us more
details about the game. (No commas)

2. Non-restrictive relative clause

Nonrestrictive relative clauses are not used to identify something, but simply
add extra information. They are also called nonessential.

Example: The white panda, which lives in South Africa, eats apples.
Notice that the underlined nonrestrictive relative clause is only extra
information because the white panda is already defined
To distinguish between them, read the table below;

40
 Non-defining R.C Defining R.C

Extra information Essential information

Commas No commas

The sentence means the same without Sentence has different meaning without
it. it.
That That

❖ Differences between clauses

1. Noun clause is introduced by conjunctive words like- that, how,
what, where, etc.
2. On the other hand, adjective clause is introduced with relative
pronouns and adverbs like — which, who, that, when, where, how,
why, etc.
3. Noun clause is used as the noun in the sentence; whereas, adjective
clause plays the role of adjective.
4. Comma isn’t essential before noun clause, but in the non-restrictive
adjective clause, comma is used.
5. In the noun clause, antecedent isn’t required, but in the adjective
clause, without antecedents, clause hardly make sense.
6. Adjective clause is also called relative clause, as it is introduced by
relative pronouns and adverbs.

❖ Similarities between clauses

1. Both noun and adjective clauses are subordinating, dependent
clauses.
2. They cannot make complete sense without main clause.
3. Subordinating clauses are used to form complex and mixed
sentences.
41
EXAMPLES:
1. Examples of Noun clause
• I do not know how he solved the problem.
• She announces that she is not going to support our proposal.
• I thought that he might help us.
• Can you tell me when the delayed train will arrive?
• I know that he is innocent.
• Wherever we decide to go is fine for everyone.
2. Noun clause as a subject
• Why he is so late is yet to be known.
• What she planned was great surprise for us.
• Wherever we went to visit was memorable.
• Which goal is pursued is yet to be decided?
• Whoever aspires to join should declare immediately.
• That they are in trouble was completely unknown to me.
3. Noun clause as an object
• I don’t know when we are going to leave.
• Everyone knows that this is big game for us.
• She is so weak in math. she will pay whomever you ask to teach
$200 per month.
4. Noun clause as object of infinitive
• Don’t wait. We have to purchase whatever is left.
• I want to learn how they assemble so quickly.
5. Noun clause as object of preposition

42
 • It is true that your success in this exam depends on how you
prepare in the last month.
• Be aware about what you have learned so far.
6. Subject complement
• My advice is that you should keep patience in crisis.
• Antarctica is where everyone wants to go once in life.
• Magician is who shows miracle.
7. As an adjective complement
• I am impressed that that you started an NGO.

2. Examples of Adjective clauses:

1. Adjective clause by relative pronouns
• The pen which you gifted me, is now lost. (Broken clause with
comma)
• The lake, which we saw last time, is totally dried. (Broken
clauses)
• This is the bike that we used for riding. (Restrictive clause)
• I always remember the people who helped us in need.
(Restrictive clause)
• Equatorial forests, which are the storehouse of diverse species,
are on the verge of degradation. (non-restrictive clause)
• I saw a sensitive person who was serving selflessly for poor
people. (Restrictive clause)
• He is the man whose pocket was lost. (restrictive)
• You know the farmer whom we helped. (restrictive)

2. Adjective clause by relative adverbs

43
 • This is the place where I learned to drive. (Restrictive clause)
• I think it was Sunday, when we went for picnic. (non-restrictive
clause)
• August 15th is the day when India got freedom. (Restrictive
clause)
• June, when monsoon arrives, is the best month to swim. (Broken
clause)
• Antarctica where temperature is too low is the best place for
polar bear. (Restrictive clause)
• Equatorial region, where rainfall is heavy, is the difficult place
to live. (Broken clause)
• The Seagram Ashram where Mahatma Gandhi lived is a very
inspirational place. (Restrictive clause)
• I think there must be some problem why she refused to go. (Restrictive
clause)

D. Types of sentences
1. What is a sentence?
A sentence is a complete set of words that conveys meaning. It can
communicate a statement as “she was playing”, an exclamation as
(what a wonderful day!), a question (Where is the mistake?), and a
command (Give me a paper.)

2. Types of Sentences
Simple Sentences: A simple sentence contains one independent
clause. See the following examples:
John eats an apple. Simple sentence
Where do you live? Simple sentence

44
She ate her lunch, took a walk, and went back to work.
Notice that although we have three verbs in this latter
sentence, it is still a simple sentence because we have only
one doer.
Compound Sentences: A compound sentence contains two
independent clauses joined by a coordinating conjunction, such as
(for, and, nor, but, or, yet, so). The abbreviation (FANBOYS) often
links the two independent clauses and is proceeded by a comma.
Notice the examples below:
My mother washed the dishes , my father cleaned the room.
and
Independent clause C.conj Independent C

She wanted to go on vacation , so she saved up her money.

Independent clause C.conj Independent C

Complex Sentence: A complex sentence contains one independent

clause and one or more dependent clauses. A complex sentence will
include at least one subordinating conjunction. Notice the following
examples:
Although Mark did not attend lectures, he passed the exam.
Sub. C dependent clause Independent C

As John was arriving to work, he realized he forgot his lunch.

Sub. C dependent C Independent C

Compound-Complex Sentences: A compound-complex sentence

combines complex sentence and compound sentence forms. It
45
contains one or more independent clauses and one or more dependent
clauses. See the following examples;
If he got the job, he would have to commute 50 miles to work, so he decided
the job was not worth it.
Sub. C Dependent C Independent C C.C Independent c

Although she felt guilty for missing her friend’s birthday, she took her out to
dinner the next day, and they had a great time
Sub.C C.C independent clause dependent clause independent clause

3. Functions of Sentences
There are four functions of sentences. Declarative, imperative,
interrogative and exclamatory.
1. Declarative: A declarative sentence always offers opinions, or
provides explanations. See the examples:
-The room smells clean.
-Sara is sick; therefore, she is not at school today.
-It is a nice day

2. Imperative: We use an imperative sentence when we convey a

command or request.
- Bring me some coffee.
-Do your homework.
- Be nice to your friends.

3. Interrogative: An interrogative sentence can be either affirmative or

negative.
-Who did you give the last cookie to?
-Why was she so grumpy yesterday?
46
-Where did I leave my car keys?

4. Exclamatory: An exclamation sentence is a statement that presents

an exclamation.
-"Ugh! Why are you yelling at me?"
- What a wonderful car!

47
 Elementary & Upper Intermediate
EXERCISES
Exercise 1: Identify the form and the function of the underlined parts
of speech.
For example: She is the best teacher in our university.
Answer; The word “best” is an adjective describing the noun
teacher; the preposition “in” functions as a linking word in the
sentence, and the noun “university” functions as an object of the
preposition “in”.

1. Man is the only creature that consumes without producing.

2. He does not give milk, he does not lay eggs, he is too weak to
pull the plough, and he cannot run fast enough to catch rabbits.
3. I am old and my voice is hoarse, but when I have taught you the
tune, you can sing it better for yourselves.
4. The animals were thoroughly frightened.
5. In the evening Squealer called them together, and with an
alarmed expression on his face told them that he had some
serious news to report.

Exercise 2: Identify the parts of speech of the underlined words in

italics. Use the table below for your answer:
Text: I continued my caresses, and, when I prepared to go home,
the animal evinced a disposition to accompany me. I permitted it to do
so; occasionally stooping and patting it as I proceeded. When it
reached the house, it domesticated itself at once, and became
immediately a great favorite with my wife.

48
 NOUN PRONOUN ADJ ADV PREPOSITION conjunction VERB

2
3

Exercise 3: Write four complete sentences by using the

following structure;
Example: Subjcet + Adverb + verb + pronoun.
Answer: She really likes it.

1- Subject + verb + preposition + common noun

2- Preposition+ common noun + subject+ verb + preposition+
common noun
3- Subject + verb + adverb + adjective.
4- Subject +verb + object + coordinating conjunction+ subject +
verb +object.
Exercise 4: Identify the form and function of the underlined
parts of speech.
1. Did you read the last book of Tamim- Al Barghouti?
2. I have neither been there nor done that
3. Wherever you go, you can always find good people.
4. I learned English because I studied very hard.
5. I walked to the fridge because I was hungry.
6. We met a boy carrying a heavy bag.
7. You should give up smoking.
8. He was playing computer game at that moment.
9. She is extremely happy today.

49
 10.Are those storm clouds along the horizon.

Exercise 5: Identify the form and function of the underlined

items in the following sentences.
1. The man standing over there is my brother.
2. Getting a promotion is exciting.
3. Manny argued strongly against recounting the vote.
4. She organized a boycott to make a statement.
5. My wife, the love of my life, is also my best friend.
6. I waited for a while.
7. I know the man who stole the watch.
8. Do you know what time it is?
9. While I was playing football, my father was watering the grass.
10.She was aware that the company didn’t need her.

Exercise 6: Illustrate the following structure with examples.

1. Determiner (plural) + premodifier (present participle) + head
(plural) + postmodifier (prepositional phrase).

Exercise 7: Identify the form and function of the underlined

parts of speech.
1. Most of the time, swimming at the beach is safe.
2. Joe doesn't like getting up early on Saturdays.
3. After saving the dog's life, the young man was given an award.
4. Henry brought Jeri a ring to show his love.
5. The best plumber to call is Mr. Jones.
6. She learned to read and write English in Kenya.
7. To pay that much money for a television is foolish.
8. Today, I consider myself the luckiest man on the face of the earth.
9. The cupcake with sprinkles is yours.
50
10. The rabbits hopped through the garden.
11. He leads a life full of wickedness.
12. He refused to answer the question.
13. Lisa gave the little boy a candy.
14. Jeff rode on a skate board.
15. The baby, crying loudly and continuously, kept her parents up
all night.
16. The sports car drove the long and winding road.
17. Pulling an all-nighter did not improve his test scores.
18. I tried to see the stage, but I was too short.
19. An honorable thing is to donate time or money
20. The Florida panther, the state animal of Florida, is an
endangered species.
21. She drove the car with high speed.
22. Whether Roman accepts the job or not is his business.
23. They now understand that you should not cheat on a test.
24. Darla's excuse for being late was that she forgot to set her alarm.
25. They're perfectly happy where they live now.
26. Josephine is not responsible for what Alex decided to do.
27. “I will arrive when dinner is ready.”
28. “He said he’ll go whenever you decide it’s time to leave.”
29. “Animals are cute while they’re young.”
30. The money which you gave me has been stolen.
31. He is the man who helped me find my way to your house
yesterday.
32. The boy threw himself on the ground.
Exercise 8: Analyze and identify the elements of the following
sentences:
1. The best player won a prize.
2. That old lady is easy to convince.
3. Finally, the manager convinced them that his decision was right.

51
Exercise 9: Identify the form and function of the underline
items in the following sentences:
1. The king ordered that the traitor should be put to death.
2. He said that he would not go.
3. That he is not interested in the offer is known to us.
4. He said that he was not feeling well.
5. I cannot trust what he says.
6. I don’t know where he has gone.
7. He asked whether the servant had polished his shoes.
8. The news that he is alive has been confirmed.
9. The belief that the soul is immortal is almost universal.
10. It is certain that we will have to admit defeat.
11. It was fortunate that he was present.
12. The report that only ten persons were killed in the riots is not true.
13. While the cat's away, the mice will play.
14. A lie travels around the world while truth is putting her boots on.
15. Where there is love, I will be there.
16. Memory is deceptive because it is colored by today's events.
17. Never look down on anybody unless you're helping him up.
18. You have to kiss a lot of toads before you find a handsome prince.
19. Whenever you find yourself on the side of the majority, it is time
to pause and reflect.
20. Life happens when you are making other plans.
21. As soon as you forbid something, you make it extraordinarily
appealing.

52
Exercise 10: Identify the form and function of the underline items in
the following sentences:

1) The green and red balloons look perfect.

2) Jenny gave the neatly packed gift box to her mother.
3) The end of the story was quite a surprise.
4) My old book of maps is in this rack.
5) Kylie gifted us her hand-made greeting cards.
6) Can we adopt that little brown spotted dog?
7) It was a typically lazy Sunday afternoon.
8) The multi-talented child artist was a treat to watch.
9) It was a very old joke.
10) Ben rode on his new foam surfboard.

Exercise11:
I. Analyze the following text syntactically.

A squat grey building of only thirty-four storeys over the main

entrance are the words, Central London Hatchery and Conditioning
Center, and, in a shield, the world state’s motto, Community, Identity,
Stability. The enormous room on the ground floor forced towards the
north. Cold for all the summer beyond the panes, for all the typical
heat of the room itself, a harsh thin light glared through the windows,
hungrily seeking some draped lay figure, some pallid shape of
academic goose- flesh , but finding only the glass and nickel and
bleakly shining porcela in of a laboratory . Winteriness responded to
wintriness . The overall of the workers were white, their hands gloved
with a pale corpse-colored rubber. The light was frozen, dead, a ghost.
Only from the yellow barrels of the microscopes did it borrow a
53
certain rich living substance, lying along the polished tubes like
butter, streak often luscious streak in long recession down the work
tildes.

II. Identify the form and function of the underlined items of the
following sentences.
1. Each year Merriweather tried to find more
deductions for his tax return.
2. To patch the hole in the tire, the mechanic inserted
a plug.
3. Eric's desire to do everything perfectly will
eventually frustrate him.
4. Yesterday Smith exercised all day to lose some
weight before the wedding.
5. His only ambition was to succeed at his job.
6. To attempt an explanation for this phenomenon
would do little good.
7. Bill opened the door to let me into the room
8. To take that chance, you must be very sure of
yourself.
9. If I move my head, I feel dizzy.
10. I found the perfect present to give my mother.
11. Disappointed, Tom left the room.
12. The conductor stepped to the podium.
13. Marianne was in a very good mood.

III. Identify the parts of speech of the underlined words. Use the
table below for your answer:

54
 In this final part of the story the narrator admits his failure to
bring his wrath under control. Indeed, he has always been shown
to be at the mercy of psychopathic violence, one of the main
themes of the story. It becomes clear that the thin thread that
ties him to the world of humanity is becoming flimsier as he
fails to tame the unruly beast that misguides his actions. He
seems to foreground human frailty and sorrow when he displays
himself to be trapped in a maze where the exit to safety and
peace of mind is hard to be found. He is gripped by extreme
irrationality and wildness that catapult him to a space located far
beyond the boundaries of humanity. In fact, his psychological
state acquires significance, especially when he is depicted to be
more beastly and savage than the helpless beasts that have to
bear the brunt of his mood swings.

NOUN PRONOUN ADJ ADV PREPOSITION DETERMINER VERB

Exercise 12:
TASK ONE: Identify the form and functions of the italicized Parts of Speech.
TASK TWO: Analyze the underlined items syntactically.

It was a pleasure to burn

It was a pleasure to see things eaten, to see things blackened and
changed. With the brass nozzle in his fists, with this great python
spitting its venomous kerosene upon the world, the blood pounded in
his head, and his hands were the hands of some amazing conductor

55
playing all the symphonies of blazing and burning to bring down the
tatters and charcoal ruins of history. With his symbolic helmet
numbered 451 on his stolid head, and his eyes all orange flame with
the thought of what came next, he flicked the igniter and the house
jumped up in a gorging fire that burned the evening sky red and
yellow and black. He strode in a swarm of fireflies. He wanted above
all, like the old joke, to shove a marshmallow on a stick in the
furnace, while the flapping pigeon- winged books died on the porch
and lawn of the house. While the books went up in sparkling whirls
and blew away on a wind turned dark with burning. Montag grinned
the fierce grin of all men singed and driven back by flame. He knew
that when he returned to the firehouse, he might wink at himself, a
minister man, burnt corked, in the mirror. Later, going to sleep, he
would feel the fiery smile still gripped by his face musdes, in the dark.
It never went away, that smile, it never ever went away, as long as he
remembered. He hung up his back-beetle-colored helmet and shined
it, he hung his flameproof jacket neatly; he showered luxuriously, and
then, whistling, hands in pockets, walked across the upper floor of the
fire station and fell down the hole. At the last moment, when disaster
seemed positive, he pulled his hands from his pockets and broke his
fall by grasping the golden pole. He slid to a squeaking halt, the heels
one inch from the concrete floor downstairs.

Exercise 13: Read the following sentences and mark whether

Declarative, Interrogative, Imperative or Exclamatory.
1. Do you drink milk daily?
2. Stars are twinkling in the sky.
3. Ah! What a lovely rose.
4. Let us go for a river bath.
5. Let us go to the river to swim.
6. The train is not running on time.

56
 7. Where has Rohan gone?
8. Call in the doctor please.
9. Kindly lend me your book.
10. I like this book.

Exercise 14: Identify the sentence type. Circle any coordinating or

subordinating conjunctions. Underline independent clauses once and
dependent clauses twice. Then, explain what function the sentence is
performing.

1. Harry Potter was rejected from many publishers before J.K.

Rowling found success.
Sentence type:
Function:
2. Even though the patients showed various symptoms, the clinical
study found that lack of sleep contributes to the inability to focus,
irritability, and poorer health.
Sentence type:
Function:
3. More and more students are relying on online databases to find
sources.
Sentence type:
Function:
4. The business analysts proposed higher numbers for next quarter,
and they expect to exceed those numbers the following quarter.
Sentence type:
Function:

57
 4. Homeless teens face intense obstacles, but when it comes to
schooling, they do have the chance to receive an education if they
enroll in a special program.
Sentence type:
Function:

Exercise 15:
1. Identify the following highlighted items.

a. Dreaming about mice is my cat Mocha’s favorite hobby.

b. Kevin wants to make the world a better place.
c. Lying on his bed, Richard felt better.
d. Ted sneezed in church.
e. Dr. Tucker planned to have read that book.

2. Identify the function of the underlined dependent clauses.

a. When my father called from Israel, Mother threw down her
knitting and hurried to answer the phone.
b. The prom, which is usually held in May, was delayed by the late
snowstorm.
c. Whoever adjusted my seat must have been tall.

3. True or False: All of the following are independent clauses.

a. Sherry smiled.
b. The Russian impressionist collection, with all their dramatic colors
and themes.

58
c. To have been loved is to have known joy and pain

4. Underline the complete subject in the following sentences.

a. My cousin Andy, a shy man, was married last summer.
b. The office will be closed on Thursday.
c. Get ready!

Exercise 16: Analyze each sentence into its clauses and state the
type of each clause – main clause, adverbial clause (of reason,
concession and so on), relative clause, complement clause. (Add
functions)

1. Jane believes that the earrings she got from Susan are really silver.
2. I’ll believe it when I see it.
3. If you think Scotland are ever going to win the European
Championship, you must be a real optimist.
4. The article in which the theory was put forward is now
unobtainable.
5. That Helen is to marry the man she met on holiday has surprised
all her friends.
6. Celia did not say that you could keep the book that you borrowed.
7. Because you are flying non-stop, you will probably have severe
jet lag.
8. He promised that he would be here on time, though I find it
difficult to rely on him.
9. The woman whose car you think you have dented is our MP.
10. That you don’t like my home-made vodka I find difficult to
believe.
11. Since you think you are ready to sit the test, come along
tomorrow.
12. We regret that the plan is impracticable.
13. They accept the theory that the world is flat.
14. They accept the theory that the group proposed.

59
15. Did Fiona say who would be at the party?
16. Which of the candidates will be elected is quite unpredictable.
17. It is believed by some historians that Napoleon was poisoned.
18. We know that she wrote several novels and threw them away.
19. The editors who ignored the ban and printed the story might find
themselves in prison.
20. If you go walking on the hills in winter and do not take proper
equipment, you are asking for trouble.

Exercise 17: Identify the constituents of the following Noun

phrases.
1- The best thing we can do to help the environment
2- The claim that food restaurant should be reduced
3- All the great prizes won by our team
Exercise 18: Identify the subject, main verb, and verb
complementation in these sentences. Specify the type of the main verb
in each sentence.
1- The employer can watch a candidate react to pressure.
2- The stress interview gives the potential employer a chance to
watch a candidate react to pressure.
3- An extrovert seems a person whose energies are activated by
being with others.
4- Some find the internet a waste of time and energy.
5- I do not understand why you find that funny.
6- She is thinking about what he said.
7- Some consider the computer a machine that thinks.
8- They robbed her of her bracelet.
9- Her youngest child grew mature.
10- He grew his beard.

60
Exercise 19: Answer the following questions.
1. What is a predicate adjunct?
2. Write three sentences including the following clauses:
- An adverbial clause
- An Adjectival clause
3. What is an attributive adjective? Give an example.
Exercise 20: Answer the following questions.
1. What are the criteria used to distinguish between non-finite &
finite clause.
2. What is the difference between a complex sentence and
compound- complex sentence? Illustrate this with examples.
3. What are the types of noun phrases pre-modifier? Give
examples.
4. List and definite the types of adverbials. Give examples.
5. What is an embedded clause?

61
 CHAPTER TWO
Advanced Parts of Speech
After we knew what parts of speech are and how we can break down any
sentence into phrases and clauses, now we are going to see some complex
points in grammar. The first thing that we must cast light on it is the elementary
type of clause, which is the canonical clause. Before we start giving examples
about how canonical clauses look, we must know what predicate & predicator
are.

❖ Predicate
A predicate is a part of a sentence or clause, as we saw before. It tells us what
the subject does or is. Notice the following examples;
Sally published her first book.
Subj predicate (VP)

Ali Clay was a real champion in boxing.

Subj Predicate (VP)

Notice that the predicate is everything that is not the subject. It only specifies
what the subject is or does.

❖ Predicator
A predictor is the head of the VP or the sentence. We also call it the main verb
of the verb phrase. See the example below;
Subj predicator (main verb)
Richard failed in his last exam.
Predicate (VP)

62
Subj predicator (main verb)

Mark Twin was a great satirical writer.

Predicate (VP)

Diagraming first clause structure:

Example 1: Sally published her first book.
Clause
Subject (NP) Predicate (VP)
Predicator (V) Object (NP)

Sally published her first book.

❖ Canonical Clause
A canonical clause is an independent clause that contains a verb as the head. In
canonical clauses, the verb is the essential element in identifying the rest of the
clause’s form. Notice the following examples;
Samira established her own company. Canonical Clause
Latifa is traveling to Canada tomorrow. Canonical Clause
Luffy is the best character in One Piece. Canonical Clause
They built this church in 2000 Canonical Clause
Notice that all the canonical clauses above are simple sentences (Affirmative
and declarative.)
Also, we have non-canonical clauses, which are the opposite of the canonical
clauses.
❖ Non- Canonical Clause
Non-canonical clauses can be interrogative, negative, subordinate clauses,
passive sentences and so on. Notice the examples below;
Samira has not established her own company. Non-canonical clause
Is Latifa traveling to Canada tomorrow? Non- canonical clause

63
They said that Luffy is the best character in One Piece. Non-canonical clause
This church was built in 2000. Non- canonical clause
Now, we can notice the difference between canonical clauses, which are always
simple sentences, and non-canonical clauses, which are the other types of
sentences.

❖ The Five Types of Canonical clauses

As we have seen, all canonical clauses contain a subject and a predictor, but
they may differ in their structure. We can distinguish five major structures for
canonical clauses based on which internal complements are present:
Name Structure Examples
Ordinary Intransitive Subject + Predicate She understood.
Complex Intransitive Subj + Predicate+ PC Henry feels sad.
Ordinary Monotransitive Subj + Pred + Od I like her.
Complex Transitive Subj + Pred + Od + PC She made him angry.
Di-Transitive Subj + Pred+ Oi + Od We give them fruit.

Notice that the five structures above are all simple sentences, but there are
different in their structures. Ordinary intransitive canonical clauses contain S+P;
Complex intransitive contains S+P+PC; Ordinary monotransitive contains
S+P+Od; Complex transitive contains S+P+Od+PC, and Di-transitive contains
S+P+Oi+Od.
❖ Adjuncts
An adjunct is one of the most famous elements that you may face during
learning grammar. It is not an essential component in a sentence because it is
only extra information, and it can be removed without affecting the meaning.
Adjunct of time, place, reason, purpose, and many of them are kinds of adjunct.
See the following examples below to understand more;
Adjunct of concession Although he was ill, he went to school.
Adjunct of reason Because it was expensive, he didn’t buy it.
Adjunct of result He worked hard in order to invent it.
Adjunct of condition If it rains a lot, the meeting will be canceled.

64
Adjunct of place She begot her first child in a cave.
Adjunct of time We saw her two days ago.
Adjunct of degree She was as intelligent as she was brilliant.

We can remove all the adjuncts (adverbial phrases) without affecting the
meaning of the other main clauses.
❖ Form of adjuncts;
An adjunct can be a prepositional phrase, adverbial phrase, noun phrase, non-
finite clause, and finite clause. Notice the following examples;
Prepositional phrase They arrested the thief at seven o’clock.
Adverb phrase He did not play the game very well.
Noun phrase He tuned on the radio several times.
Finite clause She did not see him when he did it.
Non-finite clause Mrs. Lisa, dressing red shirt, is my teacher.
As we know, adjuncts usually have the form of prepositional phrases or
adverbial phrases, but sometimes they can be as noun phrases, finite clauses, or
non-finite clauses, and they will not change the meaning if we remove them.

IV. Complex Clause

A complex clause consists of a subordinate and a matrix clause (independent
clause). It can be the first time that you face this name, which is the matrix
clause. Many linguistics prefer to call an independent clause a matrix clause,
especially if we combine it with a subordinate clause. To illustrate more, see the
following examples;

Simple clause Complex clause

She did not wash the dishes. I knew that she didn’t wash the dishes.
Matrix Clause Subordinate clause
(Independent clause)

65
They were playing in this field. This is the field, they were playing in.
Matrix Clause Subordinate clause
(Independent clause)

She explained the lessons. She explained the lessons by giving examples
Matrix clause subordinate clause
(Independent clause)

Notice that all the matrix clauses are independent because they are the higher
level in the sentences while the subordinate clauses are the lower level. (They
cannot stand alone without a matrix.). So, Subordinate clauses in the examples
above are characteristically functioning as a dependent within the larger
constructions (matrix+ sub.c.).

1- The three kinds of subordinate clauses

Subordinate clauses divide into three major types; relative clause, comparative
clause, and content clause. See the following examples;
1. Relative clauses
This is the teacher who killed his wife.
Matrix clause head subordinate clause (relative clause)

2. Comparative clause

A lot of people came than had thought.

Matrix clause Head Subordinate clause (comparative clause)

3. Content clause
I do not think that gymnastics is very easy.
Matrix Head Subordinate clause (content clause)

All the underlined subordinate clauses are embedded within the sentences. To
illustrate more, in the first example, the subordinate clause “who killed his
wife” is embedded as a relative clause; in the second example, the subordinate
clause “than had thought” is embedded as a comparative clause, and in the last

66
example, the subordinate clause “that gymnastics is very easy” is embedded as a
content clause.

1- Content clause
It is essential to know what a content clause is because it is not like a relative
clause as most people think. According to the Danish linguist Otto Jespersen, a
content clause is a dependent clause that adds and provides information or
content in the complex clause. Notice the following examples;

He announced that her mother was so clever.

The underlined clause is a content clause functions as a direct object of the verb
announced. Notice that the content clause is like the noun clause. The difference
is only in the naming.

That I made a mistake, I did not notice.

The underlined content clause functions as a subject.

Note well that content clauses always function as a noun. They are not
modifiers. They can be either subject, object etc.
2- Relative clause

Relative clauses are a special kind of subordinate clause, and they function as a
modifier to a noun. See the examples below;
Anaphorically related to

She was the narrator who murdered the black cat.

Antecedent relative pronoun relative clause

Anaphorically related to

The car which my father bought was stolen.

Antecedent relative pronoun relative clause

67
The relationship between the relative pronoun and its antecedent is called
anaphora. This latter is a rhetorical device in which we repeat a word or an
expression at the beginning of a sentence or a clause. So, in example one, the
relative pronoun is the repetition of the noun “narrator” because it renames it,
and in example two, the relative pronoun “which” is only a repetition of the
noun “car”. (“Who” is anaphorically related to the narrator, and “which”
anaphorically related to the car.)
❖ Defining & non-defining clause
We can differentiate these two types on three levels. Syntax, interpretation, and
intonation.

In syntax & interpretation;

The non-defining clause usually starts with Wh but not with a bare relative
clause. Its function is to add extra information. (non-essential information)

Defining clauses always function as a modifier of the head noun. (Essential

information)

in intonation & punctuation;

Defining clauses always have a large construction without commas. (There is no

stopping during speaking)

Non- defining clauses are set to part; spoken as a separate intonation unit. (With
commas)

See the difference in the following examples:

My brother who is a teacher will not come to the funeral.

The underlined relative clause is defining the noun “brother”; It means that I
have a lot of brothers.

My brother, who is a teacher, will not come to the funeral.

The underlined relative clause is defining the noun “brother”; but it means that I
have only one brother.

68
 3- Identifying & Classifying Relative clauses
As we know, articles are one of the most famous determiners that can identify
or classify a noun. Sometimes, relative clauses can identify or classify its noun
in the sentence as illustrated in the following example;

Identifying article

She is the girl whom I married last year.

Relative clause

Classifying article

She is a girl whom I married last year.

Relative clause

Notice that both of them are the same in structure, but they differ in meaning. In
the first example, we mean only one girl that I married last year and not three or
five girls, that is why we used the article “the” to identify which girl; in the
second example, we mean that not only one girl I married last year but maybe
three girls or more. Therefore, I used the article “a” to classify the noun girl.
Another example;
This is the car which my sister bought yesterday.
This is a car which my sister bought yesterday.

These examples above may sound the same, but they are different in meaning.
In example one, the article “the” is identifying which car she bought because it
is already identified, whereas, in example two, the article “a” is only classifying
one of the cars that my sister bought.
Summary:
Identifying clauses= “the” = concert= we already know the thing= already in
existence.
Classifying clause=” a” must be many of things=not specific.

69
 4- Content clause vs Relative clause
To distinguish between content clause and relative clause, notice the following
examples;

I think that Yusuf is the best player in the team.

Matrix conjunction content clause

You can 't ignore the fact that he was drunk.

Matrix conjunction content clause

I found the man that was responsible.

Matrix relative pronoun relative clause

I liked the film which I saw yesterday.

Matrix relative pronoun relative clause

The difference between relative and content clause is in the function of the word
“that”. If the clause has the word "that" as a conjunction, it is a content clause
because it only links between the matrix and the subordinate clause. However, if
the word “that” functions as a relative pronoun within a clause, it is a relative
clause.
The second difference between them is that the content clauses always function
as a noun, and they can be subject or direct objects while relative clauses are
always modifiers. They describe a thing as in examples number 4 & 3.
5- Relative clause or content clause?
Sometimes, you may find some ambiguous sentences as the following example;

They were very surprised by the news that they had won.
Matrix content clause

70
She spent the money that she had won.
Matrix relative clause

Note well that there is a big difference between the above sentences. In the first
example, the content clause functions as an appositive, so the word “that” is a
subordinating conjunction, not a relative pronoun. It does not describe the news,
and it is only a linking word in the sentence; in the second example, we have the
opposite of the content clause. The relative clause functions as an adjectival
clause describing the noun money, and the word “that” is a relative pronoun, not
a conjunction.
Summary of the Content clause: The content clause always introduces by the
subordinating conjunction “that” (optional), and it predominantly functions
as a complement of a verb.
Summary of relative clause: relative clauses are a special kind of subordinate
clause, and they function as a modifier to a noun.

6- Functions of “That”
There are four functions of the word “That”. It can function as a determiner,
relative pronoun, intensifier, and conjunction. See the following examples;
1. That as a determiner
One of the most famous use of that is as a determiner. See the following
examples;
If she refused that person, she would regret it one day.
Determiner

The word “that” in this sentence functions as a determiner modifying the noun
person.
2. That as a relative pronoun

The man that was sitting there was my uncle.

Relative pronoun

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The word “that” in this sentence is functioning as a relative pronoun, and the
entire clause modifying the noun “man”
3. That as an adverb (intensifier)
It was not that difficult as you said.
Adverb (intensifier)

The underlined word “that “functions as an adverb describing the adjective

“difficult”. We call it an intensifier in the sentence because it gives us the
degree of how much was difficult.

Quick summary about adverbs as intensifiers & downtoners

Adverbs of degree can divide into two types; intensifiers & downtoners;
- Intensifiers are the adverbs that make adjectives, verbs, or other adverbs
strong. Very big, really big…
- Downtoners is the opposite of the intensifiers. They make adjectives, verbs,
and other adverbs weak.
Notice the following examples;
She is very beautiful. Intensifier
It is really hard. Intensifier
I’m not very exhausted. downtoner
It was a pretty bad downtoner
Intensifiers: extremely, incredibly, very, so, really, quite…
Downtoners: pretty, fairly, not very, kind of, sort of…
Diagram of intensifiers;

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 intensifiers

Amplifiers Emphasizers downtoners

Boosters (very, so, extremely…) (Definitely, certainly…) - Approximators

Maximizers (completely, fully…) - Compromisers
- Diminishers
- Minimizers
Approximators (almost, approximately, roughly, nearly…)
Compromisers (kind of, sort of…)
Diminishers (barely, rarely, less…)
Minimizers (hardly, seldom, simply just…)

4. That as a conjunction

Our neighbors announced that the thief escaped through the window.
Sub Conjunction

The underlined subordinating conjunction “that” functions as a linking word.

V. Fronting
Fronting means when we put something at the front of the sentence, such as
prepositional phrases, adverbials, and so on. It is a style of communication, and
it allows the speaker to place attention at the beginning of a sentence to make a
story more compelling. See the following examples;
NB: in fronting, we deal only with some verbs, such as sit, stand, lay, hang,
come and go. These list verbs are usually inverted.
1- Fronted prepositional phrase.
When we put a prepositional phrase at the beginning of the sentence, we usually
inverted the verbs. Notice the following example;

73
At the bus stop stood my brother.
PP inversion

In the example above, we inverted the whole sentence. In the ordinary sentence,
we will say “my brother stood at the bus station”.

Within the black box sat the cat.

PP inversion

Also, in this example, we inverted the verb & the subject. in the ordinary
sentence, we will say “the cat sat within the black box”.
2- PP + can or could be seen or heard

Form the top of the mountain could be seen a burst of wonderful sunshine.
PP inversion

(A burst of wonderful sunshine could be seen from the top of the mountain.)
Ordinary Sentence

Near the station could be heard the music.

PP inversion
(The music could be heard within the station.) = ordinary sentence.

3- PP (movement: run, move, walk…)

Under the sun’s rays walked my sister.

PP inversion
(My sister walked under the sun’s ryas.) ordinary sentence

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 4- Fronted Adverbials
Unexpectedly, Jhon screamed.
Dis Adv
(Jhon screamed unexpectedly.)

5- What Cleft
What impressed me was her reaction.
NC
Her reaction was what impressed me.
6- Worth (+ gerund/ Noun phrase)

Worth a look are the Atlas Mountains.

The Atlas Mountains are worth a look.

Worth a try is the beef Camel.

The beef Camel is worth a try.
7- The + comparative…. the + comparative

The more Physics I study, the more bored I feel.

The more I study Physics, the more I feel bored.
8- Subject/ subject complement

A professor, doctor and politician was Mr. Philip.

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Mr. Philip was a professor, doctor and politician.

The greatest human in this world is prophet Muhammed peace be upon him.
Prophet Muhammed peace be upon him is the greatest human in this world.

9- Fronted Participles+ to be

Carrying the heavy bag was my brother.

My brother was carrying the heavy bag.

Hidden in the box was my white cat.

My white cat was hidden in the box.

Located in the far corner was a small table.

A small table was located in the far corner.

10- Direct Speech (Object, subject + verb)

“I am going to the shop”, said James
The ordinary structure: James said, “I’m going to the shop.

11- Fronted Also

Also in my country were three forests

The ordinary structure: Three forests were also in my country.

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Notice that we can also use (Also + Participle)
Also hidden in the box was my white cat.
12- (How + Adjective+ to be+ Subject)

How beautiful was Sara.

13- (What + NP + to be + Subject)

What a bad piece of writing was his essay.

14- That Clause

That she doesn’t understand my problem is obvious.
Notice that if we want to say the ordinary sentence, we need to put the dummy
pronoun “it” at the beginning of the sentence. “It is obvious that she does not
understand my problem”.
15- To + Infinitive phrase
To travel to Texas was his dream.
The ordinary structure: His dream was to travel to Texas.
16- Wh clause
How she persuaded them, I do not know.
I do not know how she persuaded them.
What she said, nobody knew.
The ordinary sentence: Nobody knew what she said. Note well that if we want to
front an object, we will need a comma before the subject and verb.

Cleft Sentences
A Cleft sentence means when we cut a sentence into two parts. We use cleft
sentences so as to combine old information with new ones. There are three types
of it;

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1- IT Cleft: (MAIN + SUB)

-Are you playing Naruto?

- No, it is a football game that I’m playing.
Independent clause Noun clause

Notice that we cleft this sentence into two parts. Independent clause///noun
clause. if we say I’m playing a football game, it is not a cleft sentence.

1- What cleft (NC+ BE+ NC)

NC BE NC
What I want to know is how she did it.
in this example, we split the noun clauses by using the linking verb “BE”. We
cannot say I want to know how she did it because it is not a cleft sentence.

2- All Cleft
All I know is he would not have hurt anyone.
Notice that we can invert the sentence above, so we can say “he would not have
hurt anyone is all what I know”.
Summary of cleft sentences: cleft sentences aid us to focus or emphases on a
specific part of the sentence. We called it cleft sentences because they consist of
two parts. For instance, in the first example, the emphasis is on the first part
which is “it is a football game” because it is the new information, and the
relative clause “that I’m playing is already understood.
In the second example, the emphasis is on the first noun clause because the
second NC is old information. she did what she did, and the new information is
how she did it. (NB; clauses can be inverted, so the emphasis can be on both of
them, depending on the place.)
In the third example, the focus is on the clause “he would not have hurt
anyone”, and the second clause “all what I know” is old information.
(Something which is already known.)
VI. Ergative verbs & Ambitransitive

78
 Ambitranstive can be divided into two types; transitive(S+P+Od) &
intransitive(S+V) verbs.
Examples of transitive & intransitive verbs:
1- They gave her a flower. (S+P+Oi+Od)
2- She cried. (S+V)
Ambitransitive verbs examples:
I read. (S+P)
I read the novel. (S+P+Od)
However, we use Ergative verbs when we change the object of the transitive to
the object of the intransitive. (Od of transitive = Od of intransitive). Ergative
verbs are important when passive voice is used. See the examples below;
Marry closed the window.
The window closed. Ergative verb
Ergative verb

The window was closed by Marry. Passive voice

Notice that the direct object of transitive becomes the direct object of
intransitive.

VII. Flat Adverb (bare adv)

Hundreds of years, a lot of writers used adverbs as the same form of adjectives.
For example, they used to write words like (bright, quick, slow, sharp, and so
on) as adverbs. See the following examples,
Go slow / breath deep/ run quick…

Notice that we can use those adverbs as adjectives without changing the
meaning. So, if we say (Go slowly or go slow), they have the same meaning,
and their grammatical structure is correct.
NB: Do not use Flat Adverbs in academic writings.

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 Common Mistakes in Grammar
In this Chapter, we are going to correct some common mistakes that
people usually make in grammar.

Incorrect Correct
1- He said me/ he told that* He said that/ He told me
that.
2- I think yes or I think no* I think so /I do not think so.
3- I make something bad* I do something bad.
4- She is so bad women* She is such a bad woman.
5- they are good in physics* They are good at physics.
6- I have been in Morocco* I have been to Morocco.
7- She gave me 10 DH. I spent them on Ice Cream.
This example above is totally incorrect because the noun “money” is
uncountable noun. Therefore, we cannot say “spent them*”, but we
can say “I spent it on Ice Cream”.
8- From the one hand* On the one hand.
9- Informations, knowledges, researches, advices, evidences.
All these words above cannot take the plural form. They are
uncountable nouns, so we must remove the letter “S” so as to fix
them. (Information, knowledge, research, advice, evidence)
10- The most part of the cake* The most of the cake.
11-20 millions/ 200 hundreds* 20 million / 200 hundred.
12- He is not so slow as the others He is not as slow as the
others.
13- I’m agree / I’m not agree* I do agree / I do not agree.

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14- they did not came* they did not come. (did+inf).
15- I look forward to play with you*
Notice that in this example the words “look forward to” is a phrasal
verb, which has the second structure of it. (verb+ particle preposition).
So, since we have a preposition within the phrasal verb, the following
word must be noun. (gerund). The correct answer is “I look forward
to playing with you”.
16- I cannot play football.
- So can I*.
This is really a typical mistake. In this example, we need to say
“Neither can I” to agree with the negative form “cannot”.
17- Last week, I must go to office* Last week, I had to go to
office.
18- I have not a car* I do not have a car.
19- tomorrow will come my sister* tomorrow my sister will come.
20- the movie was really board* the movie was really boring.
Only people are interested, bored, fascinated, not things. (Ing form
with things//// ed with people)
21- she cannot do something with papers* she cannot do anything…
Remember that in negative sentences, we should use “any” not some.
22- I became to hit him* I started to hit him.
Remember “that” is usually followed by a noun not a verb, so we can
say “she became a doctor”.
23- She will be in hospital during 2 days.
The preposition “during” is incorrect because we cannot use it with
numbers. Therefore, we need to use “for” since it is for number.
24- How to say “Pool” in Arabic? How do I say “pool” …?

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 Elementary & Upper Intermediate
EXERCISES
Exercise 1: Classify the following subordinate clauses (underlined) as
finite or non-finite.
1- They told us not to start without them.
2- Why people behave like that is a mystery to me.
3- They insisted that everyone have equal voting rights.
4- We object to their being given special privileges.
5- Everyone knows you cringe when she walks by.

Exercise 2: Identify the type of the underlined adverbs

(adjunct, disjunct or conjunct) .
1. It is almost always this warm in Texas.
2. Frankly, Martha is a bit scary.
3. If she starts singing again, then I’m not staying.
4. She often plays the piano alone.
5. I love chocolate; however, I’m allergic to it.
6. She told him the instructions repeatedly, yet he just sat there.
7. His mom told him to come home before dark.
8. Although he was an actor, he could sing well, too.
9. She yelled his name loudly.
10.Fortunately, no one was hurt.

Exercise 3: Identify the form and the function of the word “That”
That's my friend Tom over there.
Doug knew that he needed to hurry up.
That is a pencil you have in your hand.
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Tom bought the apples that the man was selling.
Peter invited the boy that was new in class.
That is my house on the corner of the street.
Jennifer hinted that she would be late for class.
The teacher suggested that we finish our homework.

Exercise 5: Underline the elements you think have been fronted.

Slowly, he walked into the room. Occupying almost the whole of one
wall was an enormous fireplace and in front of the fire lay an equally
enormous dog. A cat was sleeping peacefully next to the dog. In the
middle of the room was a table, and lying on the table were two
letters, clearly addressed to him. He opened one of them, glanced at it
quickly and threw it on the fire. The second he read more carefully
before putting it into his pocket.
At that moment the door opened and there stood Fiona, his ex-wife,
which was something of a surprise, to put it mildly. How she had got
into the house, he had no idea. That she was even in Britain came as a
bit of a shock; he had thought her to be in Paris. She was a clothes
designer, and to further her career in the fashion world, she had
moved there some time before. And further her career she had
certainly done; these days he could hardly open a paper without
seeing her name.
But to see her acting as if she owned the place didn’t really surprise
him. For her, it was typical. Much more surprising was the way she
was dressed - in a smart business two-piece suit. He couldn't
remember ever having seen her in a suit before. Particularly
impressive was the slim leather briefcase she held in her gloved hand.
Not quite so reassuring, however, was the gigantic suitcase she was
towing behind her; a flying visit this was obviously not. But strange
though it sounds, he was really rather pleased to see her.

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Exercise 6: Identify the verb, subject complement, direct object,
indirect object and object complement in the following sentences.
1. George is the captain.
2. The judge pronounced the judgment.
3. My sister looked worried.
4. Parents should be kind to their children.
5. Mother brought us tea.
6. The officer asked him several questions.
7. Let us send him our greetings.
8. We should keep our surroundings clean.
9. My aunt has brought me a computer.
10. The class elected Martin their monitor.
11. Our visit made the host happy.
12. This book is interesting.

Exercise 7:
1. What is a verb phrase?
2. How many types we have in transitive verbs?
3. What types of verbs?
4. What is the difference between di-transitive & complex transitive?
5. Distinguish between action & auxiliary verb by giving two
examples?
6. What is the difference between intensive & extensive verbs? Give
two examples?
7. What are the complementation of Mono-transitive & Complex
transitive?

84
8. What is a predicate adjective?
9. What is the main difference between prepositional & phrasal verb?
10. What are the two structures of phrasal verb? Give two examples?

Exercise 8: Illustrate the following structures with examples.

1. S + V + Oi + Finite clause
2. S + V + Od + Adj Comp
3. S + V + Od + Obligatory Adv
4. S + intensive verb + subject complement(adj)

Exercise 9: List three functions of Noun clause illustrating with

examples.

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 SUMMARY

so when proper common I/ she Her/ him

coord/ Sub Subject /object
Count/ Uncount concert/abstract

Wow! / Hey! pronouns reflexive

interpunctions nouns demonstrative

emotions Things Nouns possessive

conjunctions relative
join clauses PARTS quantifier
Time/ place OF
SPEECH
Prepositions
In, of, for, to… Adjectives
Modifiers Actions modify
Adverbs trans, intra, ditra
Modify Verbs Nouns / Pronouns

(Verbs, adjectives,
adverbs, sentences)
Action verb
Aux verb
Modal verb

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87
 CHAPTER THREE
Figures of speech
Rhetorical Devices
In English language, rhetorical devices are one of the most styles that
authors and novelists use in order to induce and convince readers.
Therefore, in this chapter, we are going to illustrate some rhetorical
devices with literary examples.
➢ Asyndeton (Asyndetism)
An Asyndetism is a figure of speech in which we use coordinating
conjunctions, such as “but”, “and”, “so” in a sentence or we omit
them. There are three types of Asyndetism;

▪ Asyndetic: It means when we do not use any conjunction in the

sentence.
Example: I do not like apples, she does like oranges.
▪ Syndetic: It means when we use only one conjunction and
usually it comes at the end of the sentence.
Examp le: My father is reading a newspaper, my mother is cooking
dinner, and my brother is playing football.
▪ Polysyndetic: it means when we utilize many commas.
Example: My father is reading newspaper and my mother is cooking
dinner and my brother is playing football.

Literary Examples of Asyndeton:

Syndetic “With the ring of light from his lantern dancing from side
to side, he lurched across the yard, kicked off his boots at the back
door, drew himself a last glass of beer from the barrel in the scullery,
and made his way up to bed”. “Animal farm”

88
Asyndetic “Some say that the place was bewitched by a high
German doctor, during the early days of the settlement; others, that
an old Indian chief, the prophet or wizard of his tribe, held his
powwows there before the country was discovered by Master
Hendrick Hudson”. “Sleepy Hallow”
Polysyndetic “I got into my old rags and my sugar-hogshead again,
and was free and satisfied. But Tom Sawyer, he hunted me up and
said he was going to start a band of robbers, and I might join if I
would go back to the widow and be respectable. So, I went back”.
“The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn”.

➢ Anecdote
Anecdote is when a narrator uses a brief tale or story in order to
highlight or emphasize on something during narration. This brief
story is usually told by a character.
Examples of Anecdote in literature:
“I took a wrong turn on the way to the bathroom and found myself in
a beautifully proportioned room I had never seen before, containing a
really rather magnificent collection of chamber pots”. Harry Potter.
“Many years had elapsed during which nothing of Comb ray, save
what was comprised in the theatre and the drama of my going to bed
there, had any existence for me, when one day in winter, as I came
home, my mother, seeing that I was cold, offered me some tea, a thing
I did not ordinarily take” Swan’s way

➢ Anaphora
As we have seen before in chapter two, Anaphora is when we repeat
the same word or phrase at the beginning of a clause or a sentence.
Examples in literature:

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“It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of
wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it
was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of Light, it was the
season of Darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of
despair”. “A tale of two cities”.

Our knowledge has made us cynical. Our cleverness, hard and

unkind. We think too much and feel too little. More than machinery
we need humanity. More than cleverness we need kindness and
gentleness. “Charlee Chaplin”

➢ Analogy
Simile and Metaphor are both types of Analogy. We use Simile &
Metaphor when we compare two things that are alike in some points.
Examples in literature
“Grave men, near death, who see with blinding sight
Blind eyes could blaze like meteors and be gay,
Rage, rage against the dying of the light”.
“Comrade,” said Snowball, “those ribbons that you are so devoted to
are the badge of slavery. Can you not understand that liberty is worth
more than ribbons?” Animal Farm

➢ Anadiplosis
Anadiplosis is the repetition of the word from the end of one sentence
to the beginning of the next.
Examples in literature:
“Fear leads to anger. Anger leads to hate. Hate leads to suffering.”

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“Once you change your philosophy , you change your thought pattern.
Once you change your thought pattern , you change your attitude .
Once you change your attitude , it changes your behavior pattern and
then you go on into some action”.

➢ Alliteration
is - the repetition of usually initial consonant sounds in two or more
neighboring words or syllables (such as wild and woolly, threatening
throngs).
Example: It was dark, deep and dangerous.
➢ Assonance
Assonance is when we repeat the same sound of a vowel and not a
consonant.
Example: The doom, gloom of the room.
➢ Onomatopoeia
Onomatopoeia is when we have a couple of words that have same
sound and meaning.
Examples: splash. plop, plop, fizz, fizz
Notice that all these sounds above are referring to the sound of water.
Example: mew, purr, meow, hiss, yowl-moo, low, bawl (calf), bellow
(bull)
All the sounds above are animal sounds, and they have the same
meaning of the animals.
➢ Oxymoron
Oxymoron is a style of contradictory between two or three words.
Example: There was deafening silence

91
Notice that the word silence does not make sense with the word
deafening because how can silence be deafening
➢ Analepsis
We use analepsis so as to narrate something in the past. It is a
technique that involves interruption of the chronological
sequence of events by interjection of events or scenes of
earlier occurrence. “FLASHBACK”
A great example is when the unreliable narrator in the black
cat narrated his story by using flashback.
“FOR the wildest yet most homely narrative which I am about to pen,
I neither expect nor solicit belief. Mad indeed would I be to expect it,
in a case where my very senses reject their own evidence. Yet, mad
am I not—and very surely do I not dream. But to-morrow I die, and
to-day I would unburden my soul. My immediate purpose is to place
before the world, plainly, succinctly, and without comment, a series of
mere household events. In their consequences, these
events have terrified—have tortured—have destroyed me. Yet I will
not attempt to expound them… » Edgar Allan Poe.
➢ Epistrophe
Repetition of a word or expression at the end of successive phrases, clauses,
sentences, or verses especially for rhetorical or poetic effect
Examples: of the people, by the people, for the people
“It was the best of times , it was the worst of times…we had everything before
us, we had nothing before us …” Charles Dickens

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 Advanced Exercises
Exercise 1: identify one rhetorical device in the following literary
works?

1- We shall not flag or fail. We shall go on to the end. We shall fight

in France, we shall fight on the seas and oceans, we shall fight with
growing confidence and growing strength in the air, we shall defend
our island, whatever the cost may be, we shall fight on the beaches,
we shall fight on the landing grounds, we shall fight in the fields and
in the streets, we shall fight in the hills. We shall never surrender. —
Winston Churchill
2- I heard a Fly buzz – when I died –
The Stillness in the Room
Was like the Stillness in the Air –
Between the Heaves of Storm
3- What I present here is what I remember of the letter, and what I
remember of the letter I remember verbatim
4- My mistress’ eyes are nothing like the sun;
Coral is far more red than her lips’ red;
If snow be white, why then her breasts are done;
If hairs be wires, black wires grow on her head.
5. The picnic had shrimp cocktail, and pears, and grape soda, and
crackers and cheese, and some red wine, and, what else? Lots of stuff!

Exercise 2:
1. Choose the best alliteration definition:
A. The repetition of vowel sounds in close proximity.
B. The repetition of consonant sounds at the beginning of nearby
words.
C. The repetition of consonant sounds in unstressed syllables.

93
2. Which of these lines from Edgar Allen Poe’s “The Raven” contains
alliteration?
A. Once upon a midnight dreary, while I pondered, weak and weary,
B. “’Tis some visitor,” I muttered, “tapping at my chamber door—
C. Quoth the Raven “Nevermore.”

3. Is the following line from Romeo and Juliet an example of

alliteration, consonance, or assonance?
“For men so old as we to keep the peace.”
A. Alliteration
B. Consonance
C. Assonance

Which of the following statements is the correct analogy

definition?
A. A short story with no hidden meanings or deeper significance.
B. A juxtaposition of two things that have nothing in common.
C. A comparison of two things.

Which of the following statements is the best polysyndeton

definition?
A. A sentence in which multiple conjunctions are used where they are
accurate, yet not necessary.
B. A statement in which conjunctions are used improperly.
C. A group of related clauses that are not joined by any conjunctions at
all

94
 Correction of Elementary & Upper
Intermediate exercises
Chapter 1
Correction of exercise 1
1. Man is the only creature that consumes without producing.
Answer: The noun “man” is a common noun functions as subject of
the verb “is”. The word “only” is an adjective modifying the noun
creature. The preposition “without” is only a linking word.

2. He does not give milk, he does not lay eggs, he is too weak to
pull the plough, and he cannot run fast enough to catch rabbits.
Answer: The word “eggs is a common noun functions as direct
object. The word “he” is a personal pronoun functions as subject of
the verb “is”. The word “weak” is an adjective describing the
pronoun “he”. The word “fast” is an adverb modifying the verb
“run”. The word “rabbits” is a common noun functions as direct
object.
3. I am old and my voice is hoarse, but when I have taught you the
tune, you can sing it better for yourselves.
Answer: the word “old” is an adj describing the pronoun “I”. the
word “hoarse” is an adj describing the noun “voice”. The word
“you” is a pronoun functions as indirect object. The word “better”
is an adj describing the pronoun “it”. the word “yourself” is a
pronoun functions as an object of the preposition “for”.
4. The animals were thoroughly frightened.
Answer: the word “thoroughly is an adv describing the adjective
frightened. The adj frightened is an adj describing the common
noun animals.

95
 5. In the evening Squealer called them together, and with an
alarmed expression on his face told them that he had some
serious news to report.
Answer: the word “in” is a preposition. The word “them” is a
pronoun functions as a direct object. The word “alarmed” is an
adjective describing the noun expression. The word “his” is a
pronoun functions as an object of the preposition “on”. the word
“serious” is an adj modifying the noun news.

Correction of exercise 2:
Text: I continued my caresses, and, when I prepared to go home, the
animal evinced a disposition to accompany me. I permitted it to do so;
occasionally stooping and patting it as I proceeded. When it reached
the house, it domesticated itself at once, and became immediately a
great favorite with my wife.
NOUN PRONOUN ADJ ADV PREPOSITION CONJUNCTION VERB
1 Caresses Itself occasionally At When evinced

2 House My stooping immediately with and

3 Once patting
4 Favorite
5

Correction of exercise 3
1- Subject + verb + preposition + common noun
Ahmed was on the bus.
2- Preposition+ common noun + subject+ verb + preposition+
common noun
On Sunday, Mary will go to the shop.
3- Subject + verb + adverb + adjective.

96
The exam is very difficult.
4- Subject +verb + object + coordinating conjunction+ subject +
verb +object.
Yusuf is playing tennis, and Sara is watching him.
Correction of exercise 4:
1. Did you read the last book of Tamim- Al Barghouti?
Form: proper noun
Function: object of preposition “of”
2. I have neither been there nor done that
Form: indefinite pronoun
Function: splitting the aspect and tense and making sentence negative.
3. Wherever you go, you can always find good people.
Form: Adjective
Function: modifying the noun people
4. I learned English because I studied very hard.
Form: Adverb
Function: modifying the adj hard
5. I walked to the fridge because I was hungry.
Form: common noun
Function: object of preposition “to”
6. We met a boy carrying a heavy bag.
Form: participle (adjective)
Function: modifying the boy.
7. You should give up smoking.
Form: Gerund
Function: direct object
8. He was playing computer game at that moment.
Form: Compound noun
Function: direct object
9. She is extremely happy today.
Form: adverb
Function: describing adjective

97
 10.Are those storm clouds along the horizon.
Form: Common noun
Function: object of the preposition “along”
Correction of exercise 5
1. The man standing over there is my brother.
Form: Noun phrase
Function: Subject of the verb “is”
2. Getting a promotion is exciting.
Form: Gerund phrase
Function: subject of the verb “is”
3. Manny argued strongly against recounting the vote.
Form: Gerund phrase
Function: object of the preposition “Against”
4. She organized a boycott to make a statement.
Form: infinitive phrase
Function: Adverb describing the verb “organized”
5. My wife, the love of my life, is also my best friend.
Form: Appositive phrase
Function: subject
6. I waited for a while.
Form: prepositional phrase
Function: adverb describing the verb “waited”.
7. I know the man who stole the watch.
Form: relative clause
Function: describing the noun man
8. Do you know what time it is?
Form: noun clause
Function: direct object
9. While I was playing football, my father was watering the grass.
Form: adverbial clause
Function: adjunct of time
10.She was aware that the company didn’t need her.
Form: Noun clause
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Function: Adjective complement within complement of subject (Cs)

Correction of exercise 6
Determiner (plural) + premodifier (present participle) + head (plural)
+ postmodifier (prepositional phrase).

These + interesting + books + on the table.

Correction of exercise 7
1. Most of the time, swimming at the beach is safe.
Form: Gerund phrase
Function: subject of the verb “is”
2. Joe doesn’t like getting up early on Saturdays.
Form: Gerund phrase
Function: direct object
3. After saving the dog’s life, the young man was given an award.
Form: Prepositional phrase
Function: adverb
4. Henry brought Jeri a ring to show his love.
Form: Infinitive phrase
Function: Adverb modifying the verb “brought”
5. The best plumber to call is Mr. Jones.
Form: infinitive phrase
Function: adjective describing the noun plumber.
6. She learned to read and write English in Kenya.
Form: Infinitive phrase
Function: Direct object
7. To pay that much money for a television is foolish.
Form: infinitive phrase
Function: subject of the verb “is”
8. Today, I consider myself the luckiest man on the face of the earth.
Form: prepositional phrase (On the face)
Function: adjective describing the noun man
Form: prepositional phrase (of the earth)

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Function: adjective describing the noun “face”
9. The cupcake with sprinkles is yours.
Form: prepositional phrase
Function: describing the noun cupcake
10. The rabbits hopped through the garden.
Form: prepositional phrase
Function: adverb describing the verb hopped
10. He leads a life full of wickedness.
Form: Adjectival phrase
Function: describing the noun life.
11. He refused to answer the question.
Form: infinitive phrase
Function: direct object
12. Lisa gave the little boy a candy.
Form: Noun phrase
Function: indirect object
13. Jeff rode on a skate board.
Form: noun phrase
Function: direct object
12. The baby, crying loudly and continuously, kept her parents up
all night.
Form: participial phrase
Function: adjective describing the noun baby
13. The sports car drove the long and winding road.
Form: noun phrase (The sports car)
Function: subject
Form: noun phrase (the long and winding road)
Function: direct object
13. Pulling an all-nighter did not improve his test scores.
Form: Gerund phrase
Function: subject
14. I tried to see the stage, but I was too short.
Form: infinitive phrase
Function: direct object

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15. An honorable thing is to donate time or money
Form: infinitive phrase
Function: subject complement
16. The Florida panther, the state animal of Florida, is an
endangered species.
Form: Appositive phrase
Function: subject
17. She drove the car with high speed.
Form: prepositional phrase
Function: adverb describing the verb drove
18. Whether Roman accepts the job or not is his business.
Form: noun clause
Function: subject of the verb “is”
19. They now understand that you should not cheat on a test.
Form: noun clause (that clause)
Function: direct object
20. Darla’s excuse for being late was that she forgot to set her
alarm.
Form: that clause
Function: subject complement
21. They’re perfectly happy where they live now.
Form: Noun clause
Function: Adjective complement
22. Josephine is not responsible for what Alex decided to do.
Form: Noun clause
Function: object of the preposition “for”
23. “I will arrive when dinner is ready.”
Form: adverbial clause
Function: adjunct of time
24. “He said he’ll go whenever you decide it’s time to leave.”
Form: Noun clause
Function: direct object
25. “Animals are cute while they’re young.”
Form: adverbial clause

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Function: adjunct of time
26. The money which you gave me has been stolen.
Form: relative clause
Function: adjective describing the noun money
27. He is the man who helped me find my way to your house
yesterday.
Form: relative clause
Function: adjective modifying the noun man
28. The boy threw himself on the ground.
Form: prepositional phrase
Function: adverb modifying the verb threw

Correction of exercise 8
1. The king ordered that the traitor should be put to death.
Noun clause functions as direct object

2. He said that he would not go.

Noun clause functions as direct object

3. That he is not interested in the offer is known to us.

Noun clause functions as subject of the verb “is”

4. He said that he was not feeling well.

Noun clause functions as direct object

5. I cannot trust what he says.

Noun clause functions as direct object

6. I don’t know where he has gone.

Noun clause functions as direct object

7. He asked whether the servant had polished his shoes.

Noun clause functions as direct object

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8. The news that he is alive has been confirmed.
Relative clause functions as an adjective modifying the noun news

9. The belief that the soul is immortal is almost universal.

Relative clause functions as an adjective describing the noun belief

10. It is certain that we will have to admit defeat.

Noun clause functions as subject complement (Extraposition) (Adj
comp)

11. It was fortunate that he was present.

Noun clause functions as subject complement (Extraposition) (Adj
Comp)

12. The report that only ten persons were killed in the riots is not true.
Relative clause functions as an adjective describing the noun report

13. While the cat’s away, the mice will play.

Adverbial clause functions as an adjunct of time

14. A lie travels around the world while truth is putting her boots on.
Adverbial clause functions as an adjunct of time

15. Where there is love, I will be there.

Adverbial clause functions as adjunct of time

16. Memory is deceptive because it is colored by today’s events.

Adverbial clause functions as an adjunct of reason

17. Never look down on anybody unless you’re helping him up.
Adverbial clause functions as an adjunct of condition

18. You have to kiss a lot of toads before you find a handsome prince.
Adverbial clause functions as an adjunct of time

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19. Whenever you find yourself on the side of the majority, it is time
to pause and reflect.
Adverbial clause functions as an adjunct of time

20. Life happens when you are making other plans.

Noun clause functions as direct object

21. As soon as you forbid something, you make it extraordinarily

appealing.
Adverbial clause functions as an adjunct of time

Correction of exercise 9
1. The best player won a prize.

Det Adj Noun verb Det noun

2. That old lady is easy to convince.

Det Adj noun V Adj To +inf
3. Finally, the manager convinced them that his decision was right.
Dis adv det noun MV pronoun Conj pro noun v Adj

Correction of exercise 10:

1) The green and red balloons look perfect.
Noun phrase functions as a subject
2) Jenny gave the neatly packed gift box to her mother.
Noun phrase functions as a direct object
3) The end of the story was quite a surprise.
Noun phrase functions as a subject
4) My old book of maps is in this rack.
Noun phrase functions as subject
5) Kylie gifted us her hand-made greeting cards.
Noun phrase functions as a direct object
6) Can we adopt that little brown spotted dog?

104
Noun phrase functions as a direct object
7) It was a typically lazy Sunday afternoon.
Noun phrase functions as subject complement
8) The multi-talented child artist was a treat to watch.
Noun phrase functions as a subject
9) It was a very old joke.
Noun phrase functions as a subject complement
10) Ben rode on his new foam surfboard.
Noun phrase functions as a direct object
Correction of exercise 11:
Exercise 1:
A squat grey buildings of only thirty-four storeys over the main
entrance are the words, Central London Hatchery and Conditioning
Center, and, in a shield, the world state’s motto, Community, Identity,
Stability. The enormous room on the ground floor forced towards the
north. Cold for all the summer beyond the panes, for all the typical
heat of the room itself, a harsh thin light glared through the windows,
hungrily seeking some draped lay figure, some pallid shape of
academic goose- flesh , but finding only the glass and nickel and
bleakly shining porcela in of a laboratory . Winteriness responded to
wintriness . The overall of the workers were white, their hands gloved
with a pale corpse-colored rubber. The light was frozen, dead, a ghost.
Only from the yellow barrels of the microscopes did it borrow a
certain rich living substance, lying along the polished tubes like
butter, streak often luscious streak in long recession down the work
tildes.

Correction:

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Paragraph one: A squat grey buildings of only thirty-four storeys over the main
entrance are the words, Central London Hatchery and Conditioning Center, and,
in a shield, the world state’s motto, Community, Identity, Stability:
1. A squat grey building of only thirty-four storeys over the main entrance:
It is a Noun phrase functions as subject.
2. Squat grey: adjective modifies the noun building
3. Only: It is an adverb and it describes the adjective Thirty-four
4. Thirty-four: it is an adjective and it modifies the noun storeys.
5. Storeys: it is a common noun functions as an object of the preposition
“of”
6. Over the main entrance: it is a prepositional phrase functions as an
adjective and it modifies the noun storeys.
7. The words: it is a noun phrase functions as subject complement of the
verb “are” (predicate noun)
8. Central London Hatchery and Conditioning Center: appositive phrase
functions as subject complement of the verb “are” (predicate noun)
9. In a shield: it is a prepositional phrase functions as an adjective and it
describes the noun building.
10.The world state’s motto: it is a noun phrase functions as subject
complement of the verb “are”
11.Community, Identity, Stability: it is an appositive phrase functions as
subject complement of the verb «are”

Paragraph two: The enormous room on the ground floor forced towards the
north. Cold for all the summer beyond the panes, for all the typical heat of the
room itself, a harsh thin light glared through the windows, hungrily seeking
some draped lay figure, some pallid shape of academic goose- flesh , but finding
only the glass and nickel and bleakly shining porcelain of a laboratory.
Winteriness responded to wintriness. The overall of the workers were white,
their hands gloved with a pale corpse-colored rubber. The light was frozen,
dead, a ghost. Only from the yellow barrels of the microscopes did it borrow a
certain rich living substance, lying along the polished tubes like butter, streak
often luscious streak in long recession down the work tildes.

1. The enormous room on the ground floor: it is a noun phrase functions as

subject.

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2. On the ground floor: prepositional phrase functions as an adjective
modifying the noun room.
3. Cold: adjective describing the room
4. Cold for all the summer beyond the panes: It an adjectival phrase
functions as an adjective and it describes the noun room. (It answers
when and where)
5. For all the typical heat of the room itself: it is an adjectival phrase and it
modifies the noun room.
6. a harsh thin light: it is a noun phrase functions as subject of the verb
“glared”
7. thin: adjective describing the noun “light”
8. through the window: prepositional phrase functions as an adverb
modifying the verb “glared”
9. hungrily: adverb describing the participle “seeking”
10.seeking: a participle functions as an adjective describing the noun “light”
11.Lay: it is a participle functions as an adjective describing the noun figure.
12.Of academic goose-flesh: prepositional phrase functions as an adjective
describing the noun shape
13.Academic: adjective describing the compound noun goose-flesh.
14.Goose-flesh: compound noun functions as an object of the preposition
“ of”
15. Bleakly: adverb describing the adjective “shining”
16. shining porcelain of a laboratory: participial phrase functions as adjective
describing the noun laboratory
17.a laboratory: noun phrase functions as an object of the preposition “of”
18.wintriness: noun functions as an object of the preposition “ to”
19.The overall of the workers: noun phrase functions as subject
20.Over the workers: prepositional phrase functions as an adjective
describing the noun overall.
21.White: adjective functions as subject complement (predicate adjective)
22.their hands gloved with a pale corpse-colored rubber: it is an absolute
phrase functions as an adverb describing the whole independent clause
“The overall of the workers were white”
23. gloved: past participle functions as an adjective describing the noun
hands
24. with a pale corpse-colored rubber: prepositional phrase functions as an
adverb describing the adjective “gloved”

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 25. Light: common noun functions as subject
26. Frozen: adjective (past participle) functions as subject complement
27.Dead: adjective functions as subject complement
28.A ghost: noun functions as subject complement
29. lying along the polished tubes like butter: participial phrase functions as
an adjective describing the noun “Light”
30. streak often luscious streak in long recession down the work tildes: It is
an absolute phrase functions as an adverb describing the whole
independent clause “Only from the yellow barrels of the microscopes did
it borrow a certain rich living substance”
31. in long recession down the work tildes: prepositional phrase functions as
an adjective describing the noun “streak”
Exercise 2:
1. Each year Merriweather tried to find more deductions
for his tax return.
2. To patch the hole in the tire, the mechanic inserted
a plug.
3. Eric’s desire to do everything perfectly will
eventually frustrate him.
4. Yesterday Smith exercised all day to lose some
weight before the wedding.
5. His only ambition was to succeed at his job.
6. To attempt an explanation for this phenomenon
would do little good.
7. Bill opened the door to let me into the room
8. To take that chance, you must be very sure of
yourself.
9. If I move my head, I feel dizzy.
10. I found the perfect present to give my mother.
11. Disappointed, Tom left the room.
12. The conductor stepped to the podium.
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13. Marianne was in a very good mood.
Correction:
Each year Merriweather tried to find more deductions for his tax
return:
The infinitive phrase is to find more deductions for his tax return.
(Nominal – direct object))
To patch the hole in the tire, the mechanic inserted a plug :
The infinitive phrase is to patch a hole in the tire. (adverbial)
Eric’s desire to do everything perfectly will eventually frustrate him:
the infinitive phrase is to do everything perfectly. (adjectival)
Yesterday Smith exercised all day to lose some weight before the
wedding:
The infinitive phrase is to lose some weight before the wedding.
(adverbial)
His only ambition was to succeed at his job:
The infinitive phrase is to succeed at his job. (Nominal – subjective
complement)
To attempt an explanation for this phenomenon would do little good:
The infinitive phrase is to attempt an explanation for this
phenomenon. (Nominal – subject)
Bill opened the door to let me into the room:
The infinitive phrase to let me into the room (adverbially)
To take that chance, you must be very sure of yourself:
to take that chance is the infinitive phrase functions adverbially.
If I move my head, I feel dizzy:
adverbial clause functions as an adjunct or adverbial clause of
condition.

109
I found the perfect present to give my mother:
infinitive phrase functions adjectivally.
Disappointed, Tom left the room:
participle functions as an adjective describing Tom
The conductor stepped to the podium:
prepositional phrase functions as an adverb describing the verb
“stepped”
Marianne was in a very good mood:
prepositional phrase functions as an adjective describing the verb
“Marianne”
Exercise 3:
In this final part of the story the narrator admits his failure to
bring his wrath under control. Indeed, he has always been shown
to be at the mercy of psychopathic violence, one of the main
themes of the story. It becomes clear that the thin thread that
ties him to the world of humanity is becoming flimsier as he
fails to tame the unruly beast that misguides his actions. He
seems to foreground human frailty and sorrow when he displays
himself to be trapped in a maze where the exit to safety and
peace of mind is hard to be found. He is gripped by extreme
irrationality and wildness that catapult him to a space located far
beyond the boundaries of humanity. In fact, his psychological
state acquires significance, especially when he is depicted to be
more beastly and savage than the helpless beasts that have to
bear the brunt of his mood swings.

Correction:

NOUN PRONOUN ADJ ADV PREPOSITION DETERMINER VERB

1 Part His Thin Indeed In That as Conj becomes

110
 2 Failure gripped Always Under tame
3 Wrath savage Extreme Beyond misguides
4 Mercy Psychopathic catapult
5 One Burnt acquires
Flimsier Unruly
Beast
Frailty
Sorrow
Irrationality
Wildness
Fact
Significance

Correction of exercise 12:

TASK ONE: Identify the form and functions of the italicized Parts of Speech.
TASK TWO: Analyze the underlined items syntactically.

It was a pleasure to burn

It was a pleasure to see things eaten, to see things blackened and
changed. With the brass nozzle in his fists, with this great python
spitting its venomous kerosene upon the world, the blood pounded in
his head, and his hands were the hands of some amazing conductor
playing all the symphonies of blazing and burning to bring down the
tatters and charcoal ruins of history. With his symbolic helmet
numbered 451 on his stolid head, and his eyes all orange flame with
the thought of what came next, he flicked the igniter and the house
jumped up in a gorging fire that burned the evening sky red and
yellow and black. He strode in a swarm of fireflies. He wanted above
all, like the old joke, to shove a marshmallow on a stick in the
furnace, while the flapping pigeon- winged books died on the porch
and lawn of the house. While the books went up in sparkling whirls
111
and blew away on a wind turned dark with burning. Montag grinned
the fierce grin of all men singed and driven back by flame. He knew
that when he returned to the firehouse, he might wink at himself, a
minister man, burnt corked, in the mirror. Later, going to sleep, he
would feel the fiery smile still gripped by his face musdes, in the dark.
It never went away, that smile, it never ever went away, as long as he
remembered. He hung up his back-beetle-colored helmet and shined
it, he hung his flameproof jacket neatly; he showered luxuriously, and
then, whistling, hands in pockets, walked across the upper floor of the
fire station and fell down the hole. At the last moment, when disaster
seemed positive, he pulled his hands from his pockets and broke his
fall by grasping the golden pole. He slid to a squeaking halt, the heels
one inch from the concrete floor downstairs.

Correction:
1. It was a pleasure to burn
Infinitive phrase functions as an extraposed subject.
2. It was a pleasure to see things eaten, to see things blackened and
changed.
“To see things & to see things blackened and changed” are infinitive
phrases function as extraposition. (The word “eaten” is an adjective
describing the noun things; the words “blackened & changed are
adjectives modifying the noun “things”.
3. With the brass nozzle in his fists, with this great python spitting its
venomous kerosene upon the world.
“With the brass nozzle in his fists, with this great python” are
prepositional phrases function as an adverb because the tell us the
manner; “spitting its venomous kerosene upon the world” is a
participial phrase modifying the noun “python”.
4. playing all the symphonies of blazing and burning to bring down
the tatters and charcoal ruins of history

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“Playing all the symphonies of blazing and burning” is a participial
phrase functions as an adj modifying the noun “conductor”; “to
bring down the tatters and charcoal ruins of history” is an infinitive
phrase functions as an adverb modifying the participial phrase
“Playing all the symphonies of blazing and burning”; the words
blazing & burning are gerunds function as an object of the
preposition “of”
5. the word “symbolic” is an adj modifying the noun “helmet”.
6. “numbered 451 on his stolid head” is a participial phrase functions
as an adj modifying the noun “helmet”
7. with the thought is a prepositional phrase functions as an adj
modifying the noun “eyes”. “What came next” is a noun clause
functions as an object of the preposition “of”
8. he flicked the igniter and the house jumped up in a gorging fire that
burned the evening sky red and yellow and black. He strode in a
swarm of fireflies. He wanted above all, like the old joke, to shove a
marshmallow on a stick in the furnace, while the flapping pigeon-
winged books died on the porch and lawn of the house.
That burned the evening sky red and yellow and black is relative
clause modifying the noun “fire”; a swarm of fireflies is a noun
phrase functions as an object of the preposition “in”; to shove a
marshmallow on a stick in the furnace is an infinitive phrase functions
as an adverb modifying the verb “wanted”; while the flapping
pigeon- winged books died on the porch and lawn of the house is an
adverbial clause functions as an adjunct of time.
9. While the books went up in sparkling whirls and blew away on a
wind turned dark with burning is an adverbial clause functions as an
adjunct of time.
10. singed and driven back by flame is a participial phrase functions
as an adj modifying the noun men; He knew that when he returned to
the firehouse:

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Notice that in this sentence, we have two clauses;
1- That when he returned to the firehouse: noun clause functions as a
direct object (The word “that” functions as a conjunction)
2- When he returned to the firehouse: adverbial clause functions as
an adjunct of time.

11. a minister man is an appositive phrase renaming the pronoun

“himself”; burnt corked are adjectives modifying the noun” man”
12. going to sleep is a participial phrase describing the pronoun “he”
13. gripped by his face musdes is a participial phrase functions as an
adj modifying the noun “smile”
14. in the dark. It never went away, that smile, it never ever went
away, as long as he remembered. He hung up his back-beetle-colored
helmet and shined it, he hung his flameproof jacket neatly; he
showered luxuriously, and then, whistling, hands in pockets, walked
across the upper floor of the fire station and fell down the hole. At the
last moment, when disaster seemed positive, he pulled his hands from
his pockets and broke his fall by grasping the golden pole. He slid to a
squeaking halt, the heels one inch from the concrete floor downstairs.
1- “That smile” is an appositive phrase function as an extraposed
subject. (the word “beetle-colored” is an adj modifying the
back) (the word “away” is an adv modifying the verb went)
2- “as long as he remembered” is an adverbial clause functions as an
adjunct of time.
3. “hands in pockets” is an absolute phrase functions as an adverb
describing the independent clause “he showered luxuriously, and
then, whistling” (the word “whistling” & “luxuriously” are
adjectives describing the pronoun “he”)
4. “At the last moment” is an adverbial phrase functions as an adverb
describing the clause “when disaster seemed positive, he pulled his

114
hands from his pockets and broke his fall by grasping the golden
pole”
5. “when disaster seemed positive” is an adverbial clause functions
as an adjunct of time.
6. “grasping the golden pole” is a gerund phrase functions as an
object of the preposition “by”.
7. “the heels one inch from the concrete floor downstairs” is ana
absolute phrase functions as an adverb describing the entire clause
“he slid to a squeaking halt” (the word “squeaking” is an adj
modifying the noun “halt”.
Correction of exercise 13
1. Do you drink milk daily? Interrogative S
2. Stars are twinkling in the sky. Declarative S
3. Ah! What a lovely rose. Exclamatory S
4. Let us go for a river bath. Imperative S
5. Let us go to the river to swim. Imperative S
6. The train is not running on time. Declarative S
7. Where has Rohan gone? Interrogative S
8. Call in the doctor please. Imperative S
9. Kindly lend me your book. Imperative S
10. I like this book. Declarative S

Correction of exercise 14
1. Complex; convey a chain of events
2. Complex; compare/contrast ideas
3. Simple; declare a simple statement
4. Compound; combine similar ideas
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5. Compound-complex; elaborate on a claim, cause/effect

Correction of exercise 15
1. a. gerund phrase b. infinitive phrase c. participial phrase d.
prepositional phrase. e. infinitive phrase.
2. a. Adverb b. Adjective c. Noun.
3. a. True b. False c. True.
4. a. My cousin Andy, a shy young man b. The office c. You (implied
subject).

Correction of exercise 16
1. Jane believes that the earrings she got from Susan are really silver.
Form: Noun clause
Function: subject of the verb “are”

2. I’ll believe it when I see it.

Form: adverbial clause
Function: adverbial clause of time

3. If you think Scotland are ever going to win the European

Championship, you must be a real optimist.
Form: adverbial clause
Function: adverbial clause of condition

4. The article in which the theory was put forward is now

unobtainable.
Form: relative clause
Function: describing the noun article

5. That Helen is to marry the man she met on holiday has surprised
all her friends.

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Form: Noun clause
Function: subject of the verb “has surprised”

6. Celia did not say that you could keep the book that you borrowed.
From: Noun clause
Function: direct object

7. Because you are flying non-stop, you will probably have severe
jet lag.
Form: Adverbial clause
Function: adverbial clause of reason

8. He promised that he would be here on time, though I find it

difficult to rely on him.
Form: noun clause
Function: direct object
Form: adverbial clause
Function: adverbial clause of concession

9. The woman whose car you think you have dented is our MP.
Form: relative clause
Function: adjective modifying the noun “woman”

10. That you don’t like my home-made vodka I find difficult to

believe.
Form: Noun clause
Function: direct object because the subject and the direct object are
inverted. (I find difficult to believe That you don’t like my home-made
vodka)

11. Since you think you are ready to sit the test, come along
tomorrow.
Form: adverbial clause
Function: adverbial clause of time

12. We regret that the plan is impracticable.

Form: noun clause

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Function: subject of the verb “is”

13. They accept the theory that the world is flat.

Form: noun clause
Function: subject of the verb “is”

14. They accept the theory that the group proposed.

Form: relative clause
Function: adjective describing the noun theory

15. Did Fiona say who would be at the party?

Form: noun clause
Function: direct object

16. Which of the candidates will be elected is quite unpredictable.

Form: Noun clause
Function: subject of the verb “is”

17. It is believed by some historians that Napoleon was poisoned.

Form: noun clause
Function: extraposed subject

18. We know that she wrote several novels and threw them away.
Form: noun clause
Function: direct object

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19. The editors who ignored the ban and printed the story might find
themselves in prison.
Form: relative clause
Function: adjective describing the noun “editors”

20. If you go walking on the hills in winter and do not take proper
equipment, you are asking for trouble.
Form: adverbial clause
Function: adverbial clause of condition

Correction of exercises 17/18/19/ 20

Exercise 17: Identify the constituents of the following Noun

phrases.
1. The best thing we can do to help the environment
The word “the” is a central-determiner. The word “best” is the
premodifier of the head noun “thing”. The clause “we can do to help
the environmental” is the postmodifier of the head noun “thing”, and
it is a relative clause. Notice that the relative pronoun “that” was
removed because it was optional.
2. The claim that food restaurant should be reduced
The word “the” is a central-determiner and the word “claim” is the
head noun. The clause “that food restaurant should be reduced” is the
postmodifier of the head noun “claim”, and it is a noun clause because
we cannot replace the subordinating conjunction “that” with the
relative pronoun “which”. Therefore, we cannot say; the claim which
food restaurant should be reduced*

119
3. All the great prizes won by our team
The word “all” is a pre-determiner, and the word “the” is a central-
determiner. The word “great” is the premodifier of the head noun
“prizes”. The phrase “won by our team” is a participial phrase, and it
is the postmodifier of the head noun “prizes”.

Exercise 18: Identify the subject, main verb, and verb

complementation in these sentences. Specify the type of the main verb
in each sentence.
1. The employer: subject/ can “watch”: main verb/ verb
complementation: a candidate as Od & react to pressure as Co

2. The stress interview: subject / gives: main verb / the potential

employer: Oi / a chance: Od / to watch a candidate react to pressure:
Co

3. An extrovert: subject/ seems: main verb/ a person whose energies

are activated by being with others: subject comp

4. Some: subject / find: main verb/ the internet: Od/ a waste of time
and energy: Co

5. I: subject / do not “understand”: main verb/ why you find that

funny: Od

6. She: subject/ is “thinking”: main verb/ about what he said: Od

7. Some: S/ consider: MV/ the computer: Od / a machine that thinks:

Co

8. They: S/ robbed: MV/ her: Od/ of her bracelet: Co

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9. Her youngest child: S / grew: MV / mature: Subject comp

10. He: S / grew: MV / his beard: Subject Comp

Exercise 19: Answer the following questions.

1. What is a predicate adjunct?
It is a word or phrase that completes the predicate of the sentence.

2. Write three sentences including the following clauses:

- An adverbial clause
Show Simon your project when he arrives.
- An Adjectival clause
Dogs that have rolled in mud are not allowed upstairs.

3. What is an attributive adjective? Give an example.

An attributive adjective is an adjective that is directly adjacent to the
noun or pronoun it modifies. An attributive adjective is not separated
from a noun by a linking verb. In English, attributive adjectives
usually come directly before the noun they modify.
Examples: This wonderful car is mine

Exercise 20: Answer the following questions.

1. What are the criteria used to distinguish between non-finite & finite
clause.
The main difference between finite and nonfinite verbs is that finite
verbs act as the main verb whereas nonfinite verbs or verbals don’t
act as a verb in a sentence. (Finite verb: tensed – nonfinite verb: non-
tensed).

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2. What is the difference between a complex sentence and compound-
complex sentence? Illustrate this with examples.
-Complex sentence: one independent clause & one dependent clause
or more joined by subordinating conjunctions.
Example: See the page 42
-Compound & compound-complex sentence: two independent clauses
& one dependent clause or more.
Example: See the page 42

3. What are the types of noun phrases pre-modifier? Give examples.

- Adjective : The great book
- Participial : This interesting music
- Compound Noun : The computer game
4. List and definite three types of adverbials. Give examples.
• Adjunct: Adjunct adverbial phrases provide only additional and
extra information. For example, “He runs ten miles every day in
the morning”. The adjunct phrase “in the morning” is only
additional information. We can remove it without affecting the
meaning.

• Disjunct: We use adverbial disjuncts to give an opinion or an

evolution of something by using some adverbs, such as (,
probably, maybe, and so on. For instance, “Fortunately, we see
them in the club”. The underlined disjunct adverb functions as
an adverbial phrase because it modifies the whole clause.
(Always use a comma if you want to use disjunct adverbs.)

• Conjunct: We use adverbial conjuncts as connector words, such

as (however, furthermore, besides, etc. As an example, “My
friend did not work hard this semester. As a result, he did not

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 pass the exam”. The adverbial conjunct “As a result” is used as
a linking word between the main clauses.

5. What is an embedded clause?

An embedded clause is a type of subordinate clause which is used to
add more information to a sentence.

Example: The giraffe towered over the other animals.

Note Well: Embedded clauses usually begin with the words who,
where or which. They are usually separated from the main clause by
using commas on either side.

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 Correction of Elementary & Upper
Intermediate exercises
Chapter 2

Correction of exercise 1
They told us not to start without them.
Non-finite clause
2- Why people behave like that is a mystery to me.
Finite clause
3- They insisted that everyone have equal voting rights.
Finite clause
4- We object to their being given special privileges.
Nonfinite clause
5- Everyone knows you cringe when she walks by.
Finite clause

Correction of exercise 2
1. It is almost always this warm in Texas.
No one of them
2. Frankly, Martha is a bit scary.
Disjunct adverb
3. If she starts singing again, then I’m not staying.
Conjunct adverb
4. She often plays the piano alone.

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Adjunct adverb.
5. I love chocolate; however, I’m allergic to it.
Conjunct adverb.
6. She told him the instructions repeatedly, yet he just sat there.
Conjunct adverb
7. His mom told him to come home before dark.
Adjunct adverb
8. Although he was an actor, he could sing well, too.
Disjunct adverb
9. She yelled his name loudly.
Adjunct adverb
10.Fortunately, no one was hurt.
Disjunct adverb
Correction of exercise 3
That’s my friend Tom over there.
It functions as a pronoun
Doug knew that he needed to hurry up.
It functions as a subordinating conjunction
That is a pencil you have in your hand.
It functions as a pronoun
Tom bought the apples that the man was selling.
It functions as a relative pronoun
Peter invited the boy that was new in class.
It functions as a relative pronoun
That is my house on the corner of the street.

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It functions as a pronoun
Jennifer hinted that she would be late for class.
It functions as a subordinating conjunction
The teacher suggested that we finish our homework.
It functions as a subordinating conjunction

Correction of exercise 4

Slowly, he walked into the room. Occupying almost the whole of one
wall was an enormous fireplace and in front of the fire lay an equally
enormous dog. A cat was sleeping peacefully next to the dog. In the
middle of the room was a table, and lying on the table were two
letters, clearly addressed to him. He opened one of them, glanced at it
quickly and threw it on the fire. The second he read more carefully
before putting it into his pocket.
At that moment the door opened and there stood Fiona, his ex-wife,
which was something of a surprise, to put it mildly. How she had got
into the house, he had no idea. That she was even in Britain came as a
bit of a shock; he had thought her to be in Paris. She was a clothes
designer, and to further her career in the fashion world, she had
moved there some time before. And further her career she had
certainly done; these days he could hardly open a paper without
seeing her name.
But to see her acting as if she owned the place didn’t really surprise
him. For her, it was typical. Much more surprising was the way she
was dressed – in a smart business two-piece suit. He couldn’t
remember ever having seen her in a suit before. Particularly
impressive was the slim leather briefcase she held in her gloved hand.
Not quite so reassuring, however, was the gigantic suitcase she was

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towing behind her; a flying visit this was obviously not. But strange
though it sounds, he was really rather pleased to see her.
Correction of exercise 5
1. Verb – is; subject complement – the captain
2. Verb – pronounced; object – the judgment
3. Verb – looked; subject complement – worried
4. Verb – should be; subject complement – kind
5. Verb – brought; direct object – tea; indirect object – us
6. Verb – asked; direct object – several questions; indirect object –
him
7. Verb – send; direct object – our greetings; indirect object – him
8. Verb – should keep; object – our surroundings; object complement
– clean
9. Verb – has brought; indirect object – me; direct object – a computer
10. Verb – elected; object – Martin; object complement – their
monitor
11. Verb – made; object – the host; object complement – happy
12. Verb – is; subject complement – interesting
Exercise 7:
1. What is a verb phrase?
A verb phrase consists of a main verb alone or the main verb plus
any modal and/or auxiliary verbs. The main verb always comes last
in the verb phrase.
2. How many types we have in transitive verbs?
There are three types of transitive verbs: Mono-transitive (S+ V +
Od); Di-transitive (S+ V + Oi +Od); Complex-transitive (S + V + Od
+ CO)

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3. What types of verbs?
There are three types of verbs:
• Action verbs (which can be transitive or intransitive),
• Modal verbs (sometimes called helping verbs), and
• Auxiliary verbs (sometimes called linking verbs).
4. What is the difference between di-transitive & complex transitive?
The main difference between these two types is only in the structure:
Complex-transitive (S + V + Od + CO); Di-transitive (S+ V + Oi
+Od
5. Distinguish between action & auxiliary verb by giving two
examples?
An action verb is a word that expresses an action that the subject of
a sentence does, did in the past or will do in the future ......An
auxiliary verb, also referred to as a helping verb, is one that is the
part of a verb phrase that helps the main verb.
Examples:
Aux
Auxiliary verb: She is a teacher.
MO(Aux) main verb
Auxiliary verb: He could play Basketball.
Combination

Action verb
Action verb: She broke the car.

6. What is the difference between intensive & extensive verbs? Give

two examples?
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Extensive verbs are sub-categorized into intransitive and transitive
verbs. Intensive verbs require a subject complement (Cs).
7. What are the complementation of Mono-transitive & Complex
transitive?
Mono-transitive complementation:
Noun phrase, finite clause, non-finite clause.
Complex transitive:
Adj object, nominal comp, Obligatory Adj, non-finite clause
8. What is a predicate adjective?
A predicate adjective is an adjective that follows a linking verb and
modifies the subject of the linking verb.
9. What is the main difference between prepositional & phrasal verb?
The main difference between phrasal verbs and prepositional verbs
is that phrasal verbs are separable whereas prepositional verbs are
inseparable.
10. What are the two structures of phrasal verb? Give two examples?
The first one: (Verb + Particle); Hold up a minute.
The second one: (Verb + Particle+ Preposition): I look forward to
hearing from you.

Exercise 8: Illustrate the following structures.

1. S + V + Oi + Finite clause
My teacher asked me if the exam was easy or not.
2. S + V + Od + Adj object
They made Sara unhappy.
3. S + V + Od + Obligatory Adv
I put the book on my desk.
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4. S + intensive verb + subject complement(adj)
She is strong.

Exercise 9: List three functions of Noun clause illustrating with

examples.
1- Noun clause as a direct object: She said that her father was sick.
2- Noun clause as a subject: What he wrote was so powerful.
3- Noun clause as an object of a preposition: She discusses about
what is mental illness

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 Correction of Advanced Exercises
Exercise 1:
1- We shall not flag or fail. We shall go on to the end. We shall fight in France,
we shall fight on the seas and oceans, we shall fight with growing confidence
and growing strength in the air, we shall defend our island, whatever the cost
may be, we shall fight on the beaches, we shall fight on the landing grounds,
we shall fight in the fields and in the streets, we shall fight in the hills. We shall
never surrender. — Winston Churchill
➢ Anaphora
2- I heard a Fly buzz – when I died –
The Stillness in the Room
Was like the Stillness in the Air –
Between the Heaves of Storm
➢ Onomatopoeia
3- What I present here is what I remember of the letter, and what I remember of
the letter I remember verbatim
➢ Anadiploses
4- My mistress’ eyes are nothing like the sun;
Coral is far more red than her lips’ red;
If snow be white, why then her breasts are done;
If hairs be wires, black wires grow on her head.
➢ Simile
5. The picnic had shrimp cocktail, and pears, and grape soda, an crackers and
cheese, and some red wine, and, what else? Lots of stuff! d

➢ Polysyndeton

Correction of exercise 2
1. Choose the best alliteration definition:
A. The repetition of vowel sounds in close proximity.
B. The repetition of consonant sounds at the beginning of nearby

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words.
C. The repetition of consonant sounds in unstressed syllables.

2. Which of these lines from Edgar Allen Poe’s “The Raven” contains
alliteration?
A. Once upon a midnight dreary, while I pondered, weak and weary,
B. “’Tis some visitor,” I muttered, “tapping at my chamber door—
C. Quoth the Raven “Nevermore.”

3. Is the following line from Romeo and Juliet an example of

alliteration, consonance, or assonance?
“For men so old as we to keep the peace.”
A. Alliteration
B. Consonance
C. Assonance

Which of the following statements is the correct analogy

definition?
A. A short story with no hidden meanings or deeper significance.
B. A juxtaposition of two things that have nothing in common.
C. A comparison of two things.

Which of the following statements is the best polysyndeton

definition?
A. A sentence in which multiple conjunctions are used where they are
accurate, yet not necessary.
B. A statement in which conjunctions are used improperly.
C. A group of related clauses that are not joined by any conjunctions at
all

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References:
Mrskypeelessons.
The College of Saint Rose Writing Center, 2000.
Basic Grammar / By Chandrakant Ingle.
merriam-webster.com/words-at-play/rhetorical-devices-list-examples
dictionary.cambridge.org/grammar/british-grammar/noun-phrases-dependent-words

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What exactly are parts of speech? How do we recognize them, and how do they work?
“Theories & Applications in Grammar” was written and organized solely to answer and
simplify these questions for you. After completing Chapters one and two, you will be able
to divide any sentence into phrases and clauses. Each chapter is jam-packed with practical
and challenging exercises. These exercises will assess your knowledge of nouns, adverbs,
adjectives, and so on. at the end of this book, you will learn about rhetorical devices and
how writers use them in their writings.

22 21 / 22 22

One day Noun was bored so went search for some verb. On the way he asked pronoun to
help him and replace him in places where he can’t search himself, seeing the enthusiasm of
Noun, pronoun joined him and promised to replace him whenever required.. Both together
searching for verb, met adjective who encouraged them with his ability, hence noun and
pronoun requested adjective to join the troop, as a chief advisor.. Adjective readily joined the
troop.. Finally three of them found Verb, but that was not end, rather a new beginning, because
verb was so full of activities and never static so there came a need for someone to keep
an eye on verb, so was Adverb appointed, Adverb kept adding something to the verb to allow
easy detection.. once settled Nouns grew exponentially in numbers and thier came a need of
someone to tell the position of each noun in relation to other noun.. So Prepositions joined
the troup just to propose the position.

Mekayssi Anas