Parts of Speech

A part of speech (also called a word class) is a category that describes the role a word
plays in a sentence. There are traditionally eight parts of speech:
● Noun- refers to a person, concept, place or thing
● Pronoun- used in place of a noun
● Verb- describes an action, occurrence or state of being
● Adjective- modifies a noun or pronoun
● Adverb- can modify a verb, adjective, adverb or the whole sentence
● Preposition- used to show the relationship between the different parts of a
sentence
● Conjunction- connects different parts of a sentence
● Interjection- used in isolation to express a feeling, give a command, or greet
someone

Nouns

Types of Nouns:
● Common nouns (used to refer to non-specific people, concepts, places and
things)
○ Only capitalised when they are at the start of a sentence eg. city
● Proper nouns (used to refer to specific people, concepts, places and things)
○ Always capitalised eg. New York
● Collective nouns (used to refer to a group of people or things)
○ Eg. team, band, herd
● Countable and uncountable nouns (referring to things that can or can not be
counted)
○ Countable: Eg. facts, apples, pens
○ Uncountable: Eg. advice, rest, sleep
● Concrete nouns (refer to physical objects, places or individuals: things or
people that can be observed with the senses)
○ Eg. hill, zebra, Dorothy
● Abstract nouns (refer to concepts, ideas, feelings and processes that can’t be
physically located)
○ Eg. grammar, happiness, relaxation
● Gerunds (a noun that is identical to the past participle form of a verb (verb +
ing)
○ Eg. sunbathing, reading

Verbs
A verb describes the actions of a subject. It denotes an activity, occurrence or state of
being. Verbs indicate what a subject is doing. Every complete sentence must contain
at least one verb.
Verbs can change form depending on subject (e.g., first person singular), tense (e.g.,
simple past), mood (e.g., interrogative), and voice (e.g., passive voice).

Types of verbs:

1. Transitive verb: A transitive verb is a verb that acts on someone or something

and therefore takes a direct object (the thing being acted upon).
2. Intransitive verb: Intransitive verbs do not act on someone or something and
therefore do not take a direct object. While an intransitive verb does not take a
direct object, it can be used along with an adverb or adverbial phrase (as can a
transitive verb).
3. Finite verb: A finite verb is a verb that is conjugated with the subject in a
sentence. It is the main verb of a clause and it expresses a specific action or
state of being. Finite verbs are usually in the present, past, and future tenses.
They are conjugated with the subject and indicate the number and person of
the subject. Finite verbs are also known as "main verbs" or "lexical verbs".
a. I am running. She was walking. They will go.
4. Non-finite verb: Nonfinite verbs are not conjugated with the subject in a
sentence. They are not in a specific tense and do not indicate the person,
number, or tense of the subject.
a. To run, having walked, going

Verbs are also conjugated based on tense. There are three main tenses in English:

● Past (an action has taken place)

● Present (an action is taking place)
● Future (an action will take place)
Each tense has a simple, progressive, perfect, and perfect progressive aspect with its
own rules for conjugation.

The forms a verb takes in each aspect depend on the subject and on whether the verb
is regular or irregular. Below is a table illustrating the various forms the regular verb
“look” takes in the first person singular when conjugated.
Regular verbs follow the standard conjugation rules for English verbs—most verbs
are regular. A verb is considered regular if its simple past and past participle are
formed by adding the suffix “-ed” (or “-d” if the word already ends in the letter “e”).

Example: Past simple and past participle of “finish” in a sentence

● Sarah finished her work.
● Claude had finished his dinner when James called.
● Jock has finished writing in his journal.
● Tina will have finished her course by the end of next month.

Irregular verbs form their simple past and past participles in some way other than by
adding the suffix “-ed.” (Eg: swam and swum for swimming)

Pronouns

A pronoun is a word used in place of a noun. Like nouns, pronouns can refer to
people, places, concepts and things.
● Personal pronouns (used in place of the proper name of a person)
○ Eg; her, him, she, they, it
● Demonstrative pronouns (used to refer to specific things and indicate their
relative position)
○ That, this, there
● Interrogative pronouns (used to introduce questions about things, people, and
ownership
○ Who, whose, when, where
Tenses

1. Past tense: The past tense is used to describe an activity or an event that has
happened in the past or a past state of being and needs to include a time
marker for when the event or action took place.

● Structural formula: Subject + verb (2nd form) + object.

● Examples:
● We met yesterday.
● He bought a new laptop last week.

2. Present tense: The simple present tense or present tense is one of the most
basic tenses in English. We use present tense to talk about something that is
currently going on, something that is habitually performed, or a state that
generally or currently exists.

● Structural formula: Subject + verb (s/es) + object.

● Examples:
● She lives in Spain.
● Bob drives a taxi.
 3. Future tense: The future tense is a verb tense used to describe an event or
action that has not yet happened and is expected to happen in the future.

● Structural formula: Subject + shall/will+ verb (s/es) + object.

● Example:
● He will be here soon.
●

Apart from the three main types of tenses - present, past, and future - there are
different subtypes of tenses which are mentioned below.

Past continuous tense

The past continuous tense is used to describe events or actions that have already
occurred in the past. It's employed to describe any action which has happened in the
past.

Structural formula:

Subject + helping verb (was/were) + verb (ing) + object.

Examples:

I was watching TV.

We were sleeping.
She wasn’t eating her lunch.
Past perfect tense
The past perfect tense is used to describe an event that occurred before a completed
action in the past.

Structural formula:

Subject + had + verb (ed) + object.

Examples:

He had gone when she became ill.

She had not lived in New York.
They had not been married long when I was born.
Past perfect continuous tense
The past perfect continuous tense represents any action or event that started in the
past and sometimes continued into another action or another time.

Structural formula:
Subject + had been + Verb (ing) + object (optional) + time of action.

Examples:

We had been playing games for 6 hours when Dad came home.
She had been reading magazines for 1 month before she decided to apply for the job.
Had she been washing dishes all day?
Present continuous tense
The present continuous tense is used to talk about the ongoing actions, events, or
conditions that are still not finished.

Structural formula:

Subject + helping verb (is / am/ are) + main verb (ing) + object.

Examples:

She is playing basketball.

Birds are flying in the sky.
I’m learning English.
Present perfect tense
The present perfect tense is used to describe a situation or event that has already
occurred but has immediate ramifications. The present perfect tense can be used to
describe experiences, and situations that occurred in the past but still have an
influence on the present. We don't use it with time markers.

Structural formula:

Subject + helping verb (have/has) + verb (ed) + object.

Examples:

She has not finished her work yet.

I have seen that movie twice.
We have visited LA several times.
Present perfect continuous tense
The present perfect continuous tense shows a situation that has started in the past
and continues in the present.

Structural formula:

Subject + helping verb (have/has) + been + verb (ing) + object (optional) + since /
for + time duration + object.
Examples:

I have been learning English for many years.

He has been working here since 2010.
We have been saving money.
Future continuous tense
The future continuous tense is used to describe an ongoing action that will occur or
occur in the future.

Structural formula:

Subject + shall/will be + verb (ing) + object.

Example:

He will be coming to visit us next week.

She will be watching TV.
He will be writing a letter to Mary.
Future perfect tense
The future perfect is used to describe an action that will be completed between now
and a certain point in the future.

Structural formula:

Subject + shall/will + have + verb (3rd form) + object.

Examples:

They will have finished the film before we get home.

She will have cleaned the house by 9pm.
Future perfect continuous tense
We use the future perfect continuous to focus on the duration of an action before a
specific time in the future.

Structural formula:

Subject + shall/will + have been + verb (ing) + object (optional) + time instant.

Examples:

He will have been studying hard for 2 weeks before the exam.
By the time the alarm goes off, we will have been sleeping for 8 hours.
Subject-Verb Agreement

Subjects and verbs must agree in number. In addition to the explanations on this
page, also see the post on Subject—Verb Agreement.

If the subject is singular, the verb must be singular too.

Example: She writes every day.
Exception: When using the singular "they," use plural verb forms.
Example: The participant expressed satisfaction with their job. They are currently in
a managerial role at the organization.

If the subject is plural, the verb must also be plural.

Example: They write every day.

Sometimes, however, it seems a bit more complicated than this.

When the subject of the sentence is composed of two or more nouns or pronouns
connected by and, use a plural verb.
Example: The doctoral student and the committee members write every day.

Example: The percentage of employees who called in sick and the number of
employees who left their jobs within 2 years are reflective of the level of job
satisfaction.

When there is one subject and more than one verb, the verbs throughout the
sentence must agree with the subject.
Example: Interviews are one way to collect data and allow researchers to gain an
in-depth understanding of participants.

Example: An assumption is something that is generally accepted as true and is an

important consideration when conducting a doctoral study.

When a phrase comes between the subject and the verb, remember that the verb still
agrees with the subject, not the noun or pronoun in the phrase following the subject
of the sentence.
Example: The student, as well as the committee members, is excited.

Example: The student with all the master’s degrees is very motivated.

Example: Strategies that the teacher uses to encourage classroom participation

include using small groups and clarifying expectations.

Example: The focus of the interviews was nine purposively selected participants.
When two or more singular nouns or pronouns are connected by "or" or "nor," use a
singular verb.
Example: The chairperson or the CEO approves the proposal before proceeding.

When a compound subject contains both a singular and a plural noun or pronoun
joined by "or" or "nor," the verb should agree with the part of the subject that is
closest to the verb. This is also called the rule of proximity.
Example: The student or the committee members write every day.

Example: The committee members or the student writes every day.

The words and phrases "each," "each one," "either," "neither," "everyone,"
"everybody," "anyone," "anybody," "nobody," "somebody," "someone," and "no one"
are singular and require a singular verb.
Example: Each of the participants was willing to be recorded.

Example: Neither alternative hypothesis was accepted.

Example: I will offer a $5 gift card to everybody who participates in the study.

Example: No one was available to meet with me at the preferred times.

Noncount nouns take a singular verb.

Example: Education is the key to success.

Example: Diabetes affects many people around the world.

Example: The information obtained from the business owners was relevant to
include in the study.

Example: The research I found on the topic was limited.

Some countable nouns in English such as earnings, goods, odds, surroundings,

proceeds, contents, and valuables only have a plural form and take a plural verb.
Example: The earnings for this quarter exceed expectations.

Example: The proceeds from the sale go to support the homeless population in the
city.

Example: Locally produced goods have the advantage of shorter supply chains.

In sentences beginning with "there is" or "there are," the subject follows the verb.
Since "there" is not the subject, the verb agrees with what follows the verb.
Example: There is little administrative support.

Example: There are many factors affecting teacher retention.

Collective nouns are words that imply more than one person but are considered
singular and take a singular verb. Some examples are "group," "team," "committee,"
"family," and "class."
Example: The group meets every week.

Example: The committee agrees on the quality of the writing.

However, the plural verb is used if the focus is on the individuals in the group. This is
much less common.

Example: The committee participate in various volunteer activities in their private

lives.

Modal Auxilliaries
A modal auxiliary is an auxiliary verb (such as can, must, might, may) that is
characteristically used with a verb of predication and expresses a modal modification
and that in English differs formally from other verbs in lacking -s and -ing forms.

A small group of auxiliary verbs, called the modal verbs (or modal auxiliary verbs,
modal auxiliaries, or simply modals) are only used in combination with ordinary
verbs. A modal verb changes the other verb's meaning to something different from
simple fact. Modals may express permission, ability, prediction, possibility, or
necessity.

The principal modal verbs are: can, could, may, might, must, ought, shall, should,
will, and would.

The modal verbs are different from ordinary verbs in several ways: 1) they have no
inflections at all; that is, they lack an -ing form, an -ed form, and even an -s form for
the third-person singular; 2) a modal verb is always followed by the infinitive form of
a verb (unless that verb has already been stated) but never follows another verb; 3)
modal verbs do not follow to and are not followed by to. (Ought to, like the
near-modal verb have to, is a special case.)

Modal auxiliary verbs (also called simply modal verbs) help to clarify the context of a
sentence. They express possibility (e.g., “might”), ability (e.g., “can”), permission
(e.g., “may”), and necessity (e.g., “must”). The modal verb “will” is used to form all
future tenses.

While regular auxiliary verbs follow subject-verb agreement, modal auxiliary verbs
never change form. In sentences containing modal verbs, the main verb typically
takes the infinitive form (e.g., “he can sing”).

In their simple form, modal verbs normally refer to present or future time:
● I must be nearly there by now.
● I might arrive a bit later than I'd anticipated.
● A trip like this can take hours more than one expects.

Adverbs

An adverb is a word that can modify a verb, adjective, adverb, or sentence. Adverbs
are often formed by adding “-ly” to the end of an adjective (e.g., “slow” becomes
“slowly”), although not all adverbs have this ending, and not all words with this
ending are adverbs.

There are numerous types of adverbs, including adverbs of manner (used to describe
how something occurs), adverbs of degree (used to indicate extent or degree), and
adverbs of place (used to describe the location of an action or event). Eg: rudely,
quite, outside respectively.

Examples:
●

Adjectives

An adjective is a word that describes a noun or pronoun. Adjectives can be

attributive, appearing before a noun (e.g., “a red hat”), or predicative, appearing after
a noun with the use of a linking verb like “to be” (e.g., “the hat is red”).

Adjectives can also have a comparative function. Comparative adjectives compare

two or more things. Superlative adjectives describe something as having the most or
least of a specific characteristic.

Eg: laziest, sleepiest, smaller, bigger, smoother, charming, red, manipulative

Articles
An article is a word that modifies a noun by indicating whether it is specific or
general.

The definite article the is used to refer to a specific version of a noun. The can be used
with all countable and uncountable nouns (e.g., “the door,” “the energy,” “the
mountains”).
The indefinite articles a and an refer to general or unspecific nouns. The indefinite
articles can only be used with singular countable nouns (e.g., “a poster,” “an engine”).

Determiners

Determiners are words used to specify a noun or a noun phrase. Within a sentence,
determiners always precede (come before) a noun or a noun phrase. Singular nouns
always need a determiner. For plural or uncountable nouns, the use of determiners is
optional.
Determiners usually used for singular countable nouns are ‘each, every, everyone,
any, someone, anybody, nowhere’ etc.
Determiners usually used for plural countable nouns are ‘all, some, many, several, a
lot of, a great number of’ etc.
Determiners usually used for uncountable nouns are ‘all, some, any, much, a lot of,
lots of, a little, a great deal of’ etc.
Definite articles are normally used as determiners when talking about a familiar
subject, as well as uncountable nouns. (Eg: the storm, the future etc.)
Indefinite articles are normally used to address a random or non-specific subject.
(Eg: a soup, a purse, a coin)

Their functions are:

● They determine or ‘mark’ nouns, in terms of quality or possession
● They establish a context and give a reference to the noun
● They specify or quantify the noun or noun phrase that they precede.

Types of Determiners:
● Articles: a, an, the
● Possessives: my, your, its, his, her, ou, their, whose, etc.
● Quantifiers: some, most, many, any, enough, little, few, much, each, every, etc.
● Numbers
○ Cardinal: one, two, three, first, hundredth etc.
○ Ordinal: first, next, last etc.
● Interrogatives: whose, which, what etc.
● Quantifying phrases: a lot of, a bit of, a couple of, none of the, a good deal of,
a lack of, etc.
 ● Demonstratives: this, that, these, those, whatever, etc.
● Distributives: all, each, either, neither, every etc.
● Pre-determiners: such, what, rather, quite, both, half, double etc.
● Differentiators: other, another etc.

Pick out the determiners from the following sentences.

1. My elder brother showed me another way of solving the same problem.

2. Policy-making is quite a difficult task.
3. I know a couple of agents who can do this for free.
4. Whose idea was that?
5. A few drops of vinegar can change the taste of a dish completely.
6. Publishing the blog was her decision.
7. None of the atoms are reactive.
8. You should wear those sunglasses more often.
9. She had decorated every corner of the house by herself.
10. Excavating through the rock was their next challenge.

Prepositions

A preposition is a word (e.g., “at”) or phrase (e.g., “on top of”) used to show the
relationship between the different parts of a sentence. Prepositions can be used to
indicate aspects such as time, place, and direction.

Eg: at, on, to, from, in, etc.

Conjunctions

A conjunction is a word used to connect different parts of a sentence (e.g., words,

phrases, or clauses).

The main types of conjunctions are coordinating conjunctions (used to connect items
that are grammatically equal eg. and), subordinating conjunctions (used to introduce
a dependent clause eg. because), and correlative conjunctions (used in pairs to join
grammatically equal parts of a sentence eg. either, or).

Types of Sentences

There are four kinds of sentences based on their function, such as making a
statement or asking a question. These kinds of sentences are usually distinguished by
their end of sentence punctuation, whether a period, question mark, or exclamation
mark. We discuss these kinds of sentences in detail below, but here’s a short list:

● Declarative
○ Declarative sentences are a good place to start because they’re the
standard. Essentially, a declarative sentence is a simple statement used
to communicate a fact, an opinion, an observation, or an explanation.
○ Declarative sentences always end in a period.
○ Eg: Bears don’t eat when they hibernate.
○ He didn’t like the movie as much as his partner did.
● Interrogative
○ Questions are known formally as interrogative sentences. These
sentences request more information in the form of answers, usually to
confirm something or fill in missing information. Interrogative
sentences can be tricky because they sometimes require putting the
verb before the subject or using an auxiliary verb like do.
○ Interrogative sentences end with a question mark.
○ Eg: When is your next class?
○ Who goes there?
○ Did you see the fireworks last night?
● Imperative
○ Imperative sentences are commands, instructions, or advice you give to
others to tell them what to do. In imperative sentences, the subject is
often assumed. It’s usually obvious that the subject is whomever the
sentence is directed at, so the subject can be dropped and the reader
can assume the missing subject is you.
○ Imperative sentences usually end in a period, but they can also use an
exclamation point if they’re emphatic.
○ Eg: Sweep the floor before you mop it.
○ Don’t hang up!
○ Please type these notes and then email me a copy.
● Exclamatory
○ Usually, exclamatory sentences behave just like declarative sentences,
except with more emotion or urgency. Exclamatory sentences also
include interjections like “Ouch!” or “Yippee!” to convey sudden
emotion.
○ We show this extra emotion with an exclamation mark, also known as
an exclamation point, at the end of the sentence.
○ Eg: I ate a snail!
○ The parking lot was on fire!
○ Myra had the baby!
Transformation of Sentences

Tranformation of a sentence means changing its form without altering its sense or
meaning. Knowledge of sentence transformation helps us to expand our usage skills
by testing various ways of presenting a sentence without changing its actual
meaning.
There are several ways in which a sentence can be transformed:
● Assertive- Exclamatory
● Affirmative-Negative
● Assertive-Interrogative
● Interchange of Degree of Comparison
● Active-Passive
● Simple Sentences
● Complex Sentences
● Compound Sentences

Simple Sentence:
A simple sentence is a sentence that consists of just one independent clause.
● Examples: The value of exercise is great.
● He confessed his fault.
● I saw a wounded bird.
Compound Sentence:
A sentence which is a combination of two simple sentences of equal rank is called a
compound sentence.
● Examples: Gagan went to market and bought some vegetables.
● We informed him about it but he failed to understand.
● You must not be late or you will be punished.
Complex Sentence:
A complex sentence is a sentence that contains an independent clause and one or
more
dependent clauses.
● Example: He confessed that he was guilty of his illegal act.
● I found the book which I had lost.
● The reply which you have made is foolish.
● He saw a man who was caught by the policewhile robbing gold ornaments.

Transforming Simple Sentences into Complex Sentences:

Converting Simple Sentences into Complex Sentences can be done easily. And this
can be done by simply expanding a word or a phrase into a clause. Moreover, we can
do the same thing when we want to change the Complex Sentences into Simple
Sentences. And this can be done by eliminating a clause into a word or a phrase.
● He confessed his crime. (Simple sentence)
● He confessed that he was guilty. (Complex sentence)
Here we expanded the noun ‘his crime’ into the noun clause ‘that he was guilty’
 ● He bought his uncle’s factory. (Simple sentence)
● He bought the factory that belonged to his uncle.
Here we expanded the noun phrase ‘his uncle’s factory’ into the adjective clause ‘that
belonged to his uncle’

Simple to Compound:
If the simple sentence is stating that a person is doing two things one after another,
the compound sentence will mention the first thing before the second thing and join
them with a conjunction-“and” and the tense will be same as of doing the second
thing

(Refer to document sent alongside for detailed rules and examples)

Question Tag

We can add question tags like isn't it?, can you? or didn't they? to a statement to
make it into a question. Question tags are more common in speaking than writing.

We often use question tags when we expect the listener to agree with our statement.
In this case, when the statement is positive, we use a negative question tag.

If there is an auxiliary verb in the statement, we use it to form the question tag.
● I don't need to finish this today, do I?
● James is working on that, isn't he?

Sometimes there is no auxiliary verb already in the statement. For example, when:
... the verb in the statement is present simple or past simple and is positive. Here we
use don't, doesn't or didn't:
● Jenni eats cheese, doesn't she?
● I said that already, didn't I?

Question Formation

To make questions, we often put the verb before the subject. This is called inversion.
Eg: Am I late?
Can I help?
Is she sleeping?

If there is a question word (why, what, where, how, etc.), it goes before the verb.
Where did she go?
How do you shave?
Why are you late?
How did the interview go?
This is true for sentences with be, sentences that have auxiliary verbs (e.g. They are
waiting. She has finished.) and sentences with modal verbs (can, will, should, might,
etc.).

In some questions, who or what is the subject of the verb. There is no inversion of
subject and verb in these questions.
Eg: Who broke the window?

Clauses

A clause is a group of words that contains a subject and a verb that have a
relationship. This relationship is crucial; a clause conveys information about what
that subject is or isn’t doing rather than simply being a random grouping of words.
Because a clause expresses an action or a state of being, a clause can often—but not
always—function as an independent sentence.

A sentence can have just one clause or it can have multiple clauses. The only defining
characteristic of a clause is that it must contain a related subject and verb. Clauses
play a variety of roles in English and because of this, there are numerous ways to
structure and combine them.

When it comes to expressing a complete thought, a clause falls between a phrase and
a sentence. In many cases, a clause can function as its own sentence. A phrase, in
contrast, can’t. Here’s a quick look at the difference between a phrase and a clause:

Phrase: Meows so loudly

Clause: That cat meows so loudly.

In this example, the clause can be an independent sentence. It can also be part of a
complex sentence. For example:

That cat meows so loudly when she wants to eat.

Clauses can perform three distinct functions: They can operate as adverbs,
adjectives, or nouns.

Here’s an example of a noun clause:

She completely understood everything he said.

In this example, everything he said is a dependent clause that acts as a noun because
it communicates the specific “thing” that she, the subject of the sentence,
understands. Everything he said can be replaced with his explanation and the
sentence still makes perfect sense:

She completely understood his explanation.

To test whether a clause is a noun clause, try swapping it out for a noun. If your
sentence still makes sense, you’ve got a noun clause. Here are two more examples of
noun clauses illustrated through swapped-in nouns:

They remembered what the keynote speaker covered.

They remembered the keynote speaker’s presentation.
I don’t know how the company handles onboarding.
I don’t know their onboarding process.
Just like a noun clause is a clause taking on a noun’s role, an adverbial clause is a
clause acting as an adverb. For example:

She fixed the sink without facing difficulty.

She fixed the sink easily.
They spent four years living outside the United States.
They spent four years living abroad.
The pool was installed after they built the deck.
The pool was installed later.
Based on the other two categories, we bet you can guess how an adjective clause
works. In case you can’t, here it is: An adjective clause acts as an adjective in its
sentence. Here are a few examples with adjectives swapped in to illustrate them:

My friend who rides a motorcycle said it’s a great weekend to ride.

My motorcyclist friend said it’s a great weekend to ride.
No matter what time of day we visit, we always run into the dog that barks.
No matter what time of day we visit, we always run into the loud dog.
Types of clauses
Independent clauses
An independent clause is a clause that can stand on its own as a distinct sentence.
Take a look at these examples:

I love eating cookies.

My dog barks a lot.
The kids ate lunch.
His truck is green.
As you can see, independent clauses aren’t long or complex sentences. They can
certainly be part of complex sentences, but by definition, they are known as simple
sentences. Other types of sentences include complex sentences, compound
sentences, and compound-complex sentences. Each type of sentence is created by a
unique combination of independent and dependent clauses. We’ll get into the ways
to combine clauses to create different kinds of sentences shortly.
Dependent clauses
In contrast, a dependent clause is not a complete sentence. Dependent clauses are
sometimes known as subordinate clauses. As their name implies, these clauses
depend on independent clauses to clearly express ideas. Here are a few examples of
dependent clauses:

When I grow up
Although he sings well
The mouse that was hiding
To turn these dependent clauses into full sentences, you need to combine them with
independent clauses:

When I grow up, I want to be a doctor.

Although he sings well, he hates karaoke.
I searched through the basement and found the mouse that was hiding.
Take a look at these three sentences and see if you can pick out the differences
between the first two and the last one.

In the first two examples, the dependent clause comes before the independent clause
and the two clauses are separated by commas. Keep this in mind when you’re
writing: Whenever the dependent clause comes first in a complex sentence, it’s
followed by a comma.

When you want to write a sentence that’s more than one independent clause, you
need to combine clauses. Every sentence you write includes at least one independent
clause. The other clauses in your sentence determine how you can combine them
with your independent clause.

A sentence that includes two or more independent clauses is known as a compound

sentence. In a compound sentence, the clauses are joined by a comma paired with a
coordinating conjunction, a semicolon, or a colon. This kind of combination is known
as coordination. Take a look at these examples of compound sentences:

I love drinking soda, but I know it’s bad for my teeth.

Maria loved hosting dinner parties; her friends enjoyed her cooking.
We danced until the band finished playing: they played until midnight.
When all of your clauses are independent clauses, you can combine them using a
coordinating conjunction. In English, the coordinating conjunctions are:
● for
● and
● Nor
● But
● Or
 ● Yet
● so

If you need to combine a dependent clause with an independent clause, you need a
subordinating conjunction. There are a lot more subordinating conjunctions than
there are coordinating conjunctions, and they can be divided into categories
according to their function.

A sentence that includes an independent clause and one or more dependent clauses
is known as a complex sentence, and a sentence that includes two or more
independent clauses and at least one dependent clause is known as a
compound-complex sentence. In either of these kinds of sentences, the
subordinating conjunction signifies the beginning of the dependent clause. Here are
a few examples:

● The fun can begin now that the clown is here.

● While we slept, the plane reached its destination.
● Before you leave, remember to take a goodie bag!
● The pool is open daily until the temperature drops.

As you can see in these examples, when the dependent clause comes first, it needs to
be followed by a comma.

Subordinating conjunctions aren’t the only way to add a dependent clause to a

sentence. Dependent clauses can also start with relative pronouns or relative
adverbs.

Relative pronouns include that, whose, whom, who, and which. Take a look at how
these dependent clauses that begin with relative pronouns work in sentences:

● The guy who shouted all night made it impossible to fall asleep.
● Pac’s, that restaurant with the arcade, is the best restaurant in town.

Relative adverbs include where, when, how, and why. Here are a few relative
adverb-led dependent clauses at work:

● The traffic jam is the reason why we were late.

● I have no idea when my hose stopped working.

A dependent clause is of three types:

● Adjective clause
○ Is a group of words that contains a subject and a predicate of its
own, and does the work like an adjective in a sentence
 ○ Eg: This is a resort that we saw on the TV.
○ The lady who was our tour guide was an American.
● Adverb clause
○ A group of words which has a subject and a predicate of its own
and does the work of an adverb in the sentence. It is introduced
with subordinating conjunctions like : because, although, when,
if, until, as if etc.
○ Eg: When the sun set, he returned home.
○ We are kind to you because you are kind to us.
○ The sheep went wherever the shepherd went.
● Noun clause
○ A group of words which contains a subject and predicate of its
own and does the work of a noun. It is introduced by
subordinators as - how, whatever, who, what etc. This sort of
clause functions as the complement of the verb, subject, or
object of a verb.
○ Eg: What she says is not acceptable.
○ Pay careful attention to what I am about to say.
○ They asked who was in the committee.

Punctuations

Punctuation is a set of symbols that separates and gives meaning to words. It tells
readers where to pause, what words are quotations, and more. When you use the
correct punctuation, you convey your intended message clearly to your audience.

In addition to closing sentences, we also use full stops in initials for personal names:
G. W. Dwyer, David A. Johnston

Full stops are also used after abbreviations, although this practice is becoming less
common: Arr. (arrival); etc. (etcetera); Dr. (doctor); Prof. (professor)

We use question marks to make clear that what is said is a question. When we use a
question mark, we do not use a full stop.

We use exclamation marks to indicate an exclamative clause or expression in

informal writing. When we want to emphasise something in informal writing, we
sometimes use more than one exclamation mark: ‘Listen!’

We use commas to separate a list of similar words or phrases:

It’s important to write in clear, simple, accurate words.

They were more friendly, more talkative, more open than last time we met them.

We do not normally use a comma before and at the end of a list of single words:

They travelled through Bulgaria, Slovakia, the Czech Republic and Poland.
American English does use a comma in lists before and:
We took bread, cheese, and fruit with us.

We use commas to separate words or phrases that mark where the voice would pause
slightly:

I can’t tell you now. However, all will be revealed tomorrow at midday.
We had, in fact, lost all of our money.
James, our guide, will accompany you on the boat across to the island.

When main clauses are separated by and, or, but, we don’t normally use a comma if
the clauses have the same subject. However, we sometimes use commas if the clauses
have different subjects:

They were very friendly and invited us to their villa in Portugal. (same subject)
Footballers these days earn more money but they are fitter and play many more
matches. (same subject)
It was an expensive hotel in the centre of Stockholm, but we decided it was worth the
money. (different subjects)

When a subordinate clause comes before the main clause, we commonly use a
comma to separate the clauses. However, we do not always do this in short
sentences:

If you get lost in the city centre, please don’t hesitate to text us or phone us.
If you get lost just phone us.

When we use subordinate or non-finite comment clauses to give further details or

more information, we commonly use commas to separate the clauses:

You do need to wear a darker jacket, if I may say so.

To be honest, I thought they were very very rude.
We use colons to introduce lists:

There are three main reasons for the success of the government: economic, social
and political.

We also use colons to indicate a subtitle or to indicate a subdivision of a topic:

Life in Provence: A Personal View

We often use colons to introduce direct speech:

Then he said: ‘I really cannot help you in any way.’

We commonly use a colon between sentences when the second sentence explains or
justifies the first sentence:

Try to keep your flat clean and tidy: it will sell more easily.

We use semi-colons instead of full stops to separate two main clauses. In such cases,
the clauses are related in meaning but are separated grammatically:

Spanish is spoken throughout South America; in Brazil the main language is

Portuguese.

Semi-colons are not commonly used in contemporary English. Full stops and
commas are more common.

Quotation marks in English are ‘…’ or “…”. In direct speech, we enclose what is said
within a pair of single or double quotation marks, although single quotation marks
are becoming more common. Direct speech begins with a capital letter and can be
preceded by a comma or a colon:

She said, “Where can we find a nice Indian restaurant?” (or She said: ‘Where can we
find a nice Indian restaurant?’)

We can put the reporting clause in three different positions. Note the position of
commas and full stops here:

The fitness trainer said, ‘Don’t try to do too much when you begin.’ (quotation mark
after comma introducing speech and after full stop)

‘Don’t try to do too much when you begin,’ the fitness trainer said. (comma before
closing quotation mark)

‘Don’t try to do too much,’ the fitness trainer said, ‘when you begin.’ (commas
separating the reporting clause)

When we use direct speech inside direct speech, we use either single quotation marks
inside double quotation marks, or double quotation marks inside single quotation
marks:
“It was getting really cold,” he said, “and they were saying ‘When can we go back
home?’”

Jaya said, ‘They were getting really excited and were shouting “Come on!”’.

We commonly use question marks inside the quotation marks unless the question is
part of the reporting clause:
‘Why don’t they know who is responsible?’ they asked.

So did they really say ‘We will win every match for the next three weeks’?

We also use single quotation marks to draw attention to a word. We can use
quotation marks in this way when we want to question the exact meaning of the
word:

I am very disappointed by his ‘apology’. I don’t think he meant it at all.

NEW ‘WAR’ OVER NORTH SEA FISHING PLANS

We sometimes use quotation marks to refer to the titles of books, newspapers,

magazines, films, songs, poems, videos, CDs, etc:

There’s a special report all about it in ‘The Daily Mail’.

We can use italics instead of quotation marks for these citations:

There’s a special report all about it in The Daily Mail.

Articles or chapters within books, or titles of short stories, are normally punctuated
by single quotation marks:

The longest chapter in the book is the last one called ‘The Future of Africa’.

Punctuation marks:
● Comma: ‘,’
● Period/full stop: ‘.’
● Colon: ‘:’
● Ellipsis: ‘...’
● Semi-colon: ;
● Apostrophe: ’
● Hyphen: –
● Dash: ‘-’
● Quotation marks: ‘ ‘, “ “
 ● Question mark:’?’
● Exclamation mark: ‘!’
● Parentheses and brackets: ‘} ]’

Active-Passive Voice

Voice refers to the form of a verb that indicates when a grammatical subject performs
the action or is the receiver of the action. When a sentence is written in the active
voice, the subject performs the action; in the passive voice, the subject receives the
action.

Active verbs are stronger and usually more emphatic than forms of the verb “be” or
verbs in the passive voice.

Active: The award-winning chef prepares each meal with loving care.
Passive: Each meal is prepared with loving care by the award-winning chef.

In the above example of an active sentence, the simple subject is “chef” and
“prepares” is the verb: the chef prepares “each meal with loving care.” In the passive
sentence, “meal” is the simple subject and “is prepared” is the verb: each meal is
prepared “by the award-winning chef.” In effect, the object of the active sentence
becomes the subject in the passive sentence. Although both sentences have the same
basic components, their structure makes them different from each other. Active
sentences are about what people (or things) do, while passive sentences are about
what happens to people (or things).

Direct and Indirect Speech

Direct speech repeats, or quotes, the exact words spoken. When we use direct speech
in writing, we place the words spoken between quotation marks (" ") and there is no
change in these words. We may be reporting something that's being said NOW (for
example a telephone conversation), or telling someone later about a previous
conversation.
Reported or indirect speech is usually used to talk about the past, so we normally
change the tense of the words spoken. We use reporting verbs like 'say', 'tell', 'ask',
and we may use the word 'that' to introduce the reported words. Inverted commas
are not used.

Direct speech repeats the exact words the person used, or how we remember their
words: Barbara said, “I didn't realise it was midnight.” In indirect speech, the
original speaker's words are changed. Barbara said she hadn't realised it was
midnight.

In indirect speech, we often use a tense which is 'further back' in the past (e.g.
worked) than the tense originally used (e.g. work). This is called 'backshift'. We also
may need to change other words that were used, for example pronouns. When we
backshift, present simple changes to past simple, present continuous changes to past
continuous and present perfect changes to past perfect.

'I travel a lot in my job.'

Jamila said that she travelled a lot in her job.

'The baby's sleeping!'

He told me the baby was sleeping.

'I've hurt my leg.'

She said she'd hurt her leg.

If what the speaker has said is still true or relevant, it's not always necessary to
change the tense. This might happen when the speaker has used a present tense.

'I go to the gym next to your house.'

Jenny told me that she goes to the gym next to my house. I'm thinking about going
with her.

'I'm working in Italy for the next six months.'

He told me he's working in Italy for the next six months. Maybe I should visit him!

'I've broken my arm!'

She said she's broken her arm, so she won't be at work this week.

Pronouns also usually change in indirect speech.

'I enjoy working in my garden,' said Bob.

Bob said that he enjoyed working in his garden.

'We played tennis for our school,' said Alina.

Alina told me they'd played tennis for their school.

However, if you are the person or one of the people who spoke, then the pronouns
don't change.

'I'm working on my thesis,' I said.

I told her that I was working on my thesis.
'We want our jobs back!' we said.
We said that we wanted our jobs back.

Homographs/Homonyms and Homophones

Homonyms are words that are pronounced and spelled the same, but have different
meanings.
● Eg: lead
○ Lead: to initiate an action or an example for others to follow
○ Lead: chemical element

Homophones are words that have the same pronunciation, but different meanings,
origins or spellings.
● Eg: new and knew
● Bare and bare
● Sea and see
● Ate and eight

Collocations

a word or phrase that is often used with another word or phrase, in a way that sounds
correct to people who have spoken the language all their lives, but might not be
expected from the meaning:
● In the phrase "a hard frost", "hard" is a collocation of "frost" and "strong"
would not sound natural

It therefore also refers to a group of two or more words that are almost always put
together to create a specific meaning. Using a different combination of words sounds
unnatural or awkward. Some common collocations are:
● to make a mistake, but not to do a mistake
● A big decision, but not a large decision
● Lions roar
● Excruciating pain
● Commit suicide

Compound Words

A compound word is where two or more root words are merged into a new and
different word. There are three different kinds of compound words:
 ● Open: appear as two words separated by space, but the splitting of the two
words or switching their grammatical positions will alter the meaning of the
word. Eg: living room, full moon, real estate, ice cream etc.
● Closed: when smaller words come together to form a larger,
differently-intended word with no space in between. Eg: railroad, waistcoat,
sunflower etc.
● Hyphenated: compound words are often hyphenated if its to modify another
noun. Hyphens are also typically used when a compound adjective is placed
before a participle, or a word formed from a verb. These words also modify a
noun. For example, “record-breaking snow” where the adjective comes before
the present participle, and they both describe the noun “snow.”Eg: long-term,
mother-in-law, merry-go-round, check-in etc.

Prefixes and Suffixes

Prefixes are one- to three-syllable affixes added to the beginning of a base word to
slightly change its meaning. For example, adding the prefix im- to the base word
possible creates a new word, impossible, which means “not possible.”

Prefixes and suffixes are types of affixes, which are morphemes added to a base word
to modify its meaning. Prefixes are added to the beginning of a word, while suffixes
are added to the end.

Prefixes always have the same meaning no matter what base word they’re attached
to. For example, the prefix re- always means “to do something again”: when used in
reread, it means “to read again”; when it’s used in rebuild, it means “to build again.”

Prefixes are used mainly to shorten phrases into a single word. For example, instead
of saying that someone is “achieving more than expected,” you can say simply that
they’re “overachieving,” thanks to the prefix over-. In writing, prefixes are one of the
best ways to streamline text and make it more potent.

Prefixes: Examples
● Over- overachieving
● Un- unhappy
● Dis- dissatisfied
● Down- download
● Ex- exclude, export
● Fore- forecast
● Inter- international
●

Suffixes: Examples
● Ful- hurtful, painful, grateful
 ● Ment- statement, government, entitlement
● Ity- ability, dexterity, hilarity
● Dom- boredom, freedom, kingdom

Synonyms

Synonyms are words that have an exact or similar meaning as another word or
phrase in the same language.
● For example: shut and close
● Grace and elegance
● Fluency and eloquence
● Music and song

Antonyms

Antonyms are words with opposite meanings. Two words are antonyms of each other
if they mean the opposite.
Eg: hot- cold, light- dark, gloomy- bright etc.