Faculty of Arts and Humanities

Sultan Moulay Slimane University

MD2 :

Paragraph Writing
Semester 1
(Groups : 5 and 6)

Pr. Mohamed AMESNAOU

Academic Year
2022/2023

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Paragraph Writing
Syllabus

I - The Basic Grammar of Sentences

1 - Parts of speech
2 - The sentence
3 - The phrase
4 - The clause

II - Mechanics
1 - Capitalization
2 - Punctuation

III - Sentence Structure

1 - Sentence Fragments
2 - Comma splices
3 - Run-on Sentences
4 - Clear Pronoun Reference
5 - Shifts in sentences
6 - Placement of modifiers
7 - Parallelism

IV - Composition
The Paragraph
1 - Topic sentence
2 - Unity
3 - Coherence
4 - Development

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I - The Basic Grammar of Sentences A
- Definition of a sentence:
A sentence is a grammatically complete group of words that expresses a thought. To be
grammatically complete, a sentence must contain two major structural components: a subject
and a predicate. The subject identifies what the sentence is about, and the predicate says or asks
something about the subject or tells the subject to do something.

Examples:

Subject Predicate
We shall succeed.
I have a dream. Fez
is a big city.
You can’t do it.
The rain in Morocco stays mainly on the plain. Rex,
the enormous dragon, lived by the sea.

Exercise:
Identify the subject and predicate in each of the following sentences:

1 - One prisoner had been brought out of his cell.

2 - He set out for the gallows.
3 - He was an army doctor, with a gray toothbrush moustache and a gruff voice.
4 - The rest of us, magistrates and the like, followed behind.
5 - The dog answered the sound with a whine.
6 - The hangman, a gray-haired convict in the white uniform of the prison, was waiting beside
his machine.
7 - In spite of their sophisticated weapons, the blue soldiers could do nothing but retire from the
battlefield.

B - Parts of Speech
1 - Recognizing the Parts of speech:
- If the basic sentence parts are subjects and predicates, the central elements of subjects and
predicates are nouns and verbs. Example:

Subject Predicate noun verb

A solitary figure waited on the platform.

Many English words can function as more than one part of speech. The word book, for instance,
can function as a verb, as a noun, and as an adjective. Example:

He booked a room in that city’s luxurious hotel. (verb)

He has read a lot of good books. (noun)
He has a book knowledge in chemistry. (adjective)

2 – Noun
- A noun names a person, place, thing, or idea. Nouns can be divided into two broad categories:
proper nouns and common nouns.

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2a - A proper noun names a specific person, place, thing, or idea. A proper nouns is always
capitalized.
Ex:
Hardy, Morocco, Book, Intifada.

2b - A common noun names a person, place, thing, or idea, that is one of many others things in
a class. Most nouns are common.
Ex: girl - toy - sky - honesty.

2c - Noun features:
Nouns may be abstract or concrete. Abstract nouns name ideas, events and other things that are
intangible. Ex: joy - growth – motherhood – marriage.
Concrete nouns name things that are tangible, that can be touched or felt, seen or experienced
in some way. Ex: pen – woman – head –dog.
Nouns may be human or non-human (man – elephant), animate or inanimate (fish – rock),
feminine or masculine (lion – tigress).

2d - Noun functions:
Nouns have two basic functions: they may be subjects or objects.
As subject: The student answered the question.
As object, a noun completes the meaning of a verb or verbals or it joins with the preposition to
form a prepositional phrase:
Object of the verb: The president vetoed the tax reform bill.
Object of a verbal: I still plan to write a book someday.
Object of a preposition: I asked him to put the book on the desk.

2e - Noun Identifiers:
Nouns may be made plural adding an s or es: ( cat –cats), (hero – heroes, beach – beaches).
Some nouns are irregular, and their plurals are exceptions: ox: oxen, foot: feet, knife: knives.

Exercise: Identify the nouns in the following sentences.

- Worry will give ulcers.

- Her manner suggested that she was tired.
- The students do not like work as much as they like success.
- He has never read a book and he claims knowledge. - She is generous, but she refuses to offer
help.
- The university is the right place for one to enrich one’s knowledge.
- Come what may, I won’t comply.

3 - Verb: The verb is the heart of the sentence because it contributes to and affects meaning. It
is a word action. Verbs in English have four principal parts that form the basis of the tense
system: present, past, perfect, present participle.
Ex: Take - took - taken - taking
Tense refers to the way we indicate when an action occurs. In English, we really have only two
tenses, past and present, but we can add auxiliaries [helping verbs and modals] to make the
time and quality of the action more specific.

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3a - Auxiliary (helping verb): Auxiliaries are special verbs that work with the main verb of a
sentence; they are used to increase the range of the action expressed by the verb. In English
there are two kinds of auxiliaries: helping verbs and modals.

3aa – Helping verbs are forms of have and be used with the perfect and with the present
participle to change the quality rather than the time of the action.
Ex:
- Past: I saw all I wanted to see at the museum.
- Past perfect: I had seen all wanted to see at the museum.
Present perfect: Since I have seen all of these exhibits before, I will skip the museum tour.

Similarly, the addition of be changes the aspect of the action.

Ex:
- John watched TV for three hours.
- John has been watching TV for three hours.

3ab - Modals are special kinds of verbs used with any of the principal parts to express the mode
of the action. The modal indicates whether action is possible, permitted, required or desired:
can-could / may – might / must – ought / will – would / shall – should.

3b - Subject-verb-complement combinations: The verb-noun combinations are classified as

intransitive, transitive or linking:
When an action verb is complete without a complement, it is an intransitive verb:
Ex: They laughed - The man shrugged - They left
When an action verb requires a noun or nouns to complete its meaning, it is a transitive verb.
Ex: He ate a lot of cakes.
When the complement renames or modifies the subject, the verb is a linking verb. We have
two kinds of linking verbs in English: be verbs and verbs that deal with the senses or with
states of beings.
- Common linking verbs: appear, become, feel, grow, look, remain, seem, smell, sound, stay,
taste.
The linking verbs link to the subject a noun, pronoun, or adjective that describes or identifies
it. (The function of the linking verb is to show identity between the subject and complement.)
What makes the complement of a linking verb different from the complement of a transitive
verb is that it may be a noun (predicate nominative) or an adjective (predicate adjective).
Ex: be: Mary was sick. (S – LV – Comp) (PA)
This is she. (PN)
The man is our friend. (PN)
She looks serious. (PA)

3c - Verbals: Certain verb forms can serve as nouns and adjectives and adverbs. When a verb
functions as a different part of speech, it is called a verbal. We have three kinds of verbals:
participles, gerunds, and infinitives.

- Participle: a verb used as an adjective which modifies the noun serving as the subject.
Ex:
The evaporating mist made the morning seem muggy.
The tired man asked for water.

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- Gerund: a verb used as noun (ing form)
Ex:
Studying makes me sleep.

- Infinitive: An infinitive is formed by adding to to the present verb form. Infinitives function
as nouns, adjectives, or adverbs. Ex:
- Noun: To quit now would be unwise – He plans to read the novel.
- Adj: The best way to write is to isolate yourself from all distraction. - Adv: He is eating
heavier meals to gain weight.

Exercise: Identify the verbals in each of the following sentences.

1 – Fishing remains a rare sensational pleasure.

2 – concentrating on this essay can help you understand it more.
3 – To succeed I always depend on myslef.
4 – The sleeping hero fell down.
5 – The capacity to manipulates the genes of living things certainly represents an ethical crisis.
6 – His wish to promote his career is irrealistic.
8 – To travel now is always dangerous.
9 – He plans to commit suicide next year.

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4 – Adjectives: Adjectives are modifying words whose function is to restrict the
meaning of a noun by making it more specific, by describing it, or by indicating
its characteristics.
Modification occurs on the level of words, phrases, and clauses:
Ex:
- The healthy girl (word).
- The girl with the rosy cheeks (prepositonal phrase).
- The girl who sat in the dentist’s office (clause).
- The house where I live (clause).

- Single-word adjectives usually occur before the noun they modify.

Ex:
The sick child.

- Adjective phrases and clauses occur after the nouns they modify.
Ex:
The bird with the brilliant feathers.
The professor whose clothes seemed at least 10 years old.

- Predicate adjectives occur after to be and linking verbs.

Ex:
The meal was delicious.
I feel fine today.
His clothes look wrinkled.
She reamined despondent.

- There are various ways of forming adjectives beside the many words we
automatically qualify as adjectives, like: green, brown, first, ugly, etc. Adjectival
endings may be added to other parts of speech:
- y: sticky, gummy, sunny, chewy.
- ful: beautiful, bountiful, colorful, awful.
- ive: vindictive, instructive, conductive, restive.
- al: verbal, colonial, proverbial, herbal.
- ic: ironic, economic, metallic.

- Sometimes other parts of speech, such as nouns, serve as adjectives without

adding an ending:
College textbook.
Lawn mower.

- In this case the words tend frequently to be perceived as a single unit. (as a
compound noun)

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- Participles are used as adjectives:
The grieving man. The condemned prisoner.
The tired man. The assigned essay.

- The degree of modification can be altered through comparative and superlative

forms:

The tallest boy. The older brother. The happiest girl.

A most fortunate incident. The more appropriate word.

5 - Adverbs: Adverbs, like adjectives, are modfying words, phrases, or clauses.

They add specificity to the action in a sentence when they modify verbs, but they
can also modify adjectives and other adverbs.
Ex:
He writes carelessly.
I am terribly exhausted.
Contact lenses cost considerably more than glasses.

- Adverbs appear in many different positions in a sentence. When it occurs

at the beginning of a sentence, it is called a sentence modifier because it modifies
the whole sentence rather than the verb alone.
Ex:
Finally, my mother agreed to let me go.
Fortunately, she also agreed to help me pay my expenses.

- An adverb that modifies the verb can be moved closer to the verb without
making the sentence sound awkward, but the sentence adverb sounds best in initial
position.
Ex:
My mother agreed finally to let me go.
She also fortunately agreed to help me pay my expenses. (Awkward)

5a - Adverbs as transitional words: Sentence adverbs occur as transitional

words. Ex:
The wedding was scheduled to take place in her grandfather’s garden. The
reception, however, was to be held at the most elegant hotel in the city.

‘However’ links the two sentences by pointing back to the previous sentence and
by signalling to the reader that the second sentence is a contrast to the first. This
type of sentence adverb is a conjunctive adverb.
- Adverbs may occur as words, phrases, or clauses. The choice of one of these
affects the quality of the sentence.
Ex:

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 My brother plans to work in an oil field tomorrow.
during summer.
as soon as school is out.

5b - Adverb Forms: Adverbs occur in a variety of forms. Many words are

considered adverbs simply because they convey the sense of time or place: Ex:
still - now - today - only - there - south.

- But adverbs may be formed by adding ly to an adjective. These are

generally adverbs of manner because they tell how something is done: Ex: Quickly
– slowly – convincingly – hopefully.

- Like adjectives, adverbs also express degree through comparative and

superlative forms:
Ex: Most convincingly - more slowly - liveliest - lonelier.

5c - Intensifiers: There are some adverbs which modify other verbs and adjectives
by intensifying their meaning rather than by modifying them. These are called
intensifiers.
Ex:
We read the chapter fairly quickly.
Everyone agrees that she is a very brilliant student. He
is somewhat reluctant to talk about his past.
I’m quite sure I won’t be able to devote too much time to this.

Exercise: Pick out all the adverbs in the following sentences indicating what they
modify and identifying them as single words, phrasal, or clausal adverbs or as
intensifiers.

1 – A miniature study of Japanese loanwords will also be made.

2 – There are quite a large number of borrowed words in our language.
3 – When he first went to France communicating was rather difficult.
4 – To finish research on time, he plans to spend most of the weekend here.
5 – Unfortunately, our teacher didn’t curve the test grades.
6 – My chemistry professor plan to drop our lowest grade to reduce the effect of
our bad grades.
7 – He was up all night studying that exam. However, he’s sure he failed anyway.
8 – It is hard to think independently and to act individually in our society.

6 - Prepositions: A preposition is a word used to show the relation between the

object of the preposition and some other word(s) in the sentence. Prepositions
function as indicators of time, place, cause, manner, agency, association or other
relationships.
Ex:

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- She sat beside me at the movies.
- I work full time at this local drugstore.
- Both of us bought the same gift for you.

- The noun or pronoun that concludes the prepositional phrase is the object of
the preposition that begins the phrase.

Commonly Used Prepositions:

1 - About – above – across – after – against – along – amid – among – around -

at – before - behind – below – beneath – beside – besides – between – beyond –
but (except) – by - concerning – down – during – except – for –from - in – into –
like – of - off – on – onto - over – past - since – through – throughout – to –
toward(s) – under – underneath – until – up - upon – with – within – without.

- When the object of the prepositon is separated from the preposition, the sentence
may end in a preposition.
Ex:
- Who are you going to the party with ?
- Who are you mailing that to ?

6a - Verb particles: Certain prepositions have become so closely associated with

certain verbs that the verb and the preposition form a verb unit.
Ex:
- Would you look up this word ?
- Call me up when you want to talk.
- I can’t make out what number this is.

- up and out don’t function as ordinary prepositions because they don’t link an
object noun to another part of the sentence. They are bound to the verb in such
a way that they change its meaning.

Exercise:

1 - Write ten sentences, each containing a different one of the following

prepositions: for, into, up, down, against, at, with, through, over, in.
2 – Write sentences each containing one of the following verbs: put off – put on
– make up – set off – set out – bring about – carry out – care for – give up – give
away – look down on – look after – look over – come across, come up with – go
through – do without – run across (into) – bring up – call off – do up – hold up –
clear up – keep up – pull off - take down – take in – sort out think over – turn
down – make up for – look forward to – put up with – hang around - hold on –
grow up – drop in – turn up – show up – stand out.

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7 - Conjunctions: Conjunctions join words, phrases, and clauses. Cordinating
conjunctions join grammatically equal elements.
Ex:
- Mary and her teacher went out.
- They argued politely and earnestly.
- She tried to get her grade changed, but Dr Allen refused to do it.
- I love to sit on the patio early in the morning and late in the evening.

- In each of the above sentences the conjunction joins elements of the same
grammatical rank: two nouns, two adverbs, two independent clauses, two
adverb phrases.

7a - Coordinating conjunctions: There are only a few words that function as

coordinating conjunctions: and – but – for – or – nor – (sometimes so and yet).

7b - Correlative conjunctions: When coordinating conjunctions occur in pairs,

they are called correlative conjunctions.
Ex:

- Neither Tom nor mary is going.

- Not only did he fail his test, but he also missed the deadline for turning in his
English paper.

- Correlative conjunctions include either…or, neither…nor, not only…but also,

both…and, not…but.

7c - Subordinating conjunctions: Subordinating conjunctions join unequal

elements. Their function is to show a dependent relationship between clauses.
Ex:
- Because I was late three times, I was penalized one letter grade.
- Although I worked hard to make the canoe waterproof, it flooded when we
were in the middle of the lake.

7d - Words functioning as subordinating conjunctions: after – although – as –

as if – when – because – so(that) – before - how – whenever - wherever – while
– though – until – unless - eventhough – when – since – than – that (when
introducing noun clauses) – in order that – as much as – inasmuch as – provided
– if.

7e - Conjunctive adverb: Conjunctive adverbs are communication aids: they

make logical (not grammatical) relationships between sentences that would be
implicit otherwise. They are aids to coherence:
Ex:

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 - He had studied until 2 A.M. However, when he saw the test, he realised
that he had not studied enough.

Exercise: Identify the conjunctions in the following sentences as coordinating or

subordinating or as conjunctive adverbs:

1 – Political upheaval means that the issues must be dealt with and that
someone must rise to the occasion to decide upon the issues.
2 – Although many will disagree with this opinion, I believe that the Supreme
Court should hold a place today as one of the few respected and concerned
institutions in our country.
3 – Indeed, what history truly shows, if one can but see it, is that heroes also
have that special inner quality that sets them apart from the rest of mankind, that
makes them glow with an inner glory all their own.
4 – History shows that real heroes are not merely brave or courageous, for
bravery can be feigned and courage taken from a bottle.
5 – Most of the boys seem to know that what they are doing is wrong, but
they are too engrossed in their affairs to try to set themselves on the right path. 6
– If I am reading or studying an assignment, I try to concentrate very hard on it.
Sometimes, though, this is hard when I am reading or studying for a long period
of time.

– Interjections: Interjections are used to interrupt the usual grammatical flow of

the sentence. They are not grammatically bound to the sentences they appear in,
but they do add expressions of surprise, emotion, or anger. The commas set them
off from the rest of the sentence both grammatically and semantically: - Oh, I
didn’t know you were waiting for me. – Good grief, you won’t ever learn. Alas,
he was doomed to fail.

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The Phrase: Words in a sentence act not only individually but also in groups (as
modifier, subject, verb, object, or predicate nominative). The most common group
of related words is the phrase.
- A phrase is a group of words not containing a verb and its subject. A phrase is
used as a single part of speech.

1 - The Prepositional Phrase: The prepositional phrase is a group of words

beginning with a preposition and usually ending with a noun or pronoun.
Ex:
He left before breakfast.

- Prepositional phrases are usually used as modifiers – as adj or adv.

1a - The adjective phrase: An adjective phrase is a group of words headed by

an adjective that describes a noun or a pronoun.
Ex:
This house was the meeting place of several artists.
We are expecting some extremely cold days.
Dogs covered in mud are not allowed upstairs.

1b - The adverb Phrase is a group of words that functions as an adverb. Adverb

phrases contrast with adverb clauses and single-word adverbs. Unlike an adverbial
clause, an adverbial phrase does not contain a subject and a verb. An adverb
phrase modifies a verb, an adjective, or an other adverb.
- There are various ways in which an adverb can modify a verb. Ex:
She writes with precision. (how she writes)
She works in her room. (where she works)
She works for the exam. (why)
She is always busy in the afternoon. (When)

- The adverb phrase can modify an adjective. Ex:

He is obstinate to the extreme.
Adj Adv
- The adverb phrase can modify an adverb. Ex:
He threw the ball far to the left.
Adv Adv-phr

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2 - Verbal Phrases: They are called Verbal phrases because the most important
word in them is a verbal (formed from verbs). Most often they are used as other
parts of speech – as nouns, as adjectives, or as adverbs. They are of three kinds:
the participial phrase, the gerund phrase, and the infinitive phrase.

2a – The Participle and the Participle Phrase:

- A participle is a verb form used as an adjective modifying a noun or a pronoun.
Ex:
I saw him laughing. (pres-part)
The monkey, angered, threw stones at me. (past-part)

- When used in verb phrases, participles are considered part of the verb and not
adjectives:
He was running speedily.

2aa – Participle Phrase is a phrase containing a participle and any complements

or modifiers.
Ex:
Wiping his eyes, the men went to bed. (part-phr acting as an adj)
Part. + Compl.
Discouraged by his father, he dropped all his adventures.

2b – The Gerund and the Gerund Phrase:

- A gerund is a verb form ending in ing, used as noun.
Ex:
Smoking is bad.
They rejected my writing

2ba – The Gerund Phrase is a phrase consisting of a gerund and any

complements or modifiers.
Ex:
Extracting quotes from these books is a good way to back up your arguments.
Subject

2c – The Infinitive and The Infinitive Phrase:

- A infinitive is a verb form preceded by ‘to’. It is generally used as a noun, but
it may also be used as an adjective or an adverb.

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Ex:
To smoke is bad. (Noun)
We lacked the strength to resist. (adj)
We study to learn. (adv)

2ca – The infinitive Phrase consists of an infinitive and any complements or

modifiers.
Ex:
He plans to strike hard.
Inf-Phr, Obj of V plans

2d – The Appositive: An appositive is a noun or pronoun set beside another noun

or pronoun to identify it.
Ex:
My comrade, Ahmed, is intending to start computer science lessons
next week.

2da – The Appositive Phrase is a phrase consisting of an appositive and its

modifiers.
Ex:
The thief, a huge shabby man, stopped when the police came.

Exercise: Underline the adjective phrases, the adverb phrases, the appositive
phrases and the infinitive phrases in the following sentences.

1 - She always drives with care.

2 - The girl in brown frock is my sister.
3 - They were shouting in a loud voice.
4 - The train stopped at Victoria Terminus.
5 - He wants to travel.
6 - New Zealand, the first country to pass suffrage laws, granted voting rights to
women 27 years before the United States.

The Clause: A sentence is made up of single words, but also of word groups
functioning as single parts of speech. The phrase is one such word group and the
clause is another. A clause is a group of words containing a subject and a predicate
and used as part of a sentence.

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- Clauses are classified according to grammatical completeness. Those that can
stand alone if removed from their sentences are called independent clauses. Those
that do not express a complete thought and cannot stand alone are called
subordinate clauses.

1 - Independent Clauses:
Ex:
I play tennis, but he reads novels.
I will stop at the next bus station.
He is never satisfied.

2 - Subordinate Clauses:
Ex:
I will stop at the next bus station after I finish this phone call.
Even if he works hard, he is never satisfied.

- Because they are fragmentary and dependent, these clauses serve the main
clause as modifiers or as nouns. They are generally classified as noun clauses,
adjective clauses or adverb clauses.

2a - The Noun Clause is a clause used as a noun.

Ex:
Whoever goes out will catch a cold.
I like what people do not like.

2b - The Adjective Clause is a subordinate clause functioning as an adjective that

modifies a noun or a pronoun.
Ex:
My Brother who is studying in France arrived yesterday.
He is one whom everybody fears.

2c - The Adverb Clause is a sub-clause functioning as an adverb modifying

verbs, adjectives and adverbs.
Ex:
I am quite sure that he will come. (adj)
He studies better than all the rest. (adv)
He is frowning at me as if I were a thief. (verb)

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Exercise: Identify the dependent and independent clauses in the following
sentences.
1. Meg likes to go out for Japanese food, but Ryan prefers to dine at Thai
restaurants.
2. I will go to the party with you if you promise we’ll be home by 11:00 p.m.
3. The distance between the two towers is about 500 yards.
4. Melanie will sign the proposal that you prepared if you send it to her this week.
5. Whenever a new superhero movie comes out, David is among the first to see it
on opening weekend.

II - Mechanics

1 - Capitalization: Many uses of capital letters are conventions. Rules are

established by custom to become finally standardized. Variations and
inconstancies are common here and elsewhere. (In standard usage, for instance,
the names of seasons are not capitalized, but some Newspapers do capitalize
them.)

- Capitalize the first word in any sentence.

- Capitalize the first word of a line of poetry.
Ex:
A little learning is a dangerous thing;
Drink deep, or taste not the Pierian spring. (Wordsworth, ‘an essay on Criticism)
- Capitalization of a sentence following a colon is optional.
Ex:
He is convinced of the usefulness of his master’s argument: ‘‘The [or the]
significance of culture is to be derived from its power to resist.’’

- Capitalize proper nouns, those naming specific persons, places and things.
Ex:
Brahim Roudani – Morocco – Elkoutoubia, Golden Gate Bridge.

- Capitalize proper adjectives, those formed from proper nouns.

Ex
Moroccan – Orwellian.

- Capitalize the following:

- Names of individuals:
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 - Geographical names: Asia – Nepal – Pacific Ocean – Atlas Mountains.
- Structures and Monuments: Gateway Arch – Eiffel Tower – Ain Asserdoun.
- Ships, Trains, Aircrafts, and Spacecraft: S. S. Titanic, Spirit of St Louis –
Metroliner (Airbus) – Challenger – Discovery – Zarkaa Elyamama.
-Institutions, Organizations, and Business: Oxford University, Greene Peace,
General Motors Corporation.
- Historical Events, Eras, and Calendar Items: Industrial Revolution, Intifada –
Middle Ages – Sunday – May.
- Religion and Religious terms: Islam – Allah – Mohamed – Jesus Christ – God,
the Koran – the Bible – Muslims – Catholics – Alaksa Mosque – United
Methodist Church.
- Ethnic groups, Nationalities, and Languages: Afro-American – Aztec – Arab –
Berber – Slavic / Arabic – Chinese – Iraqi – French.
- Trade Names (The brand names of business products): Reeboks – Adidas –
Fiat.
- Capitalize titles of individuals used before a proper name. (When used alone or
following a proper name, most titles are not capitalized.)
Ex:
Professor Abdellah Tayeb. Abdellah Tayeb, the professor.
Doctor Ahmed Alami.
Governor Ann Richards.
Justice, O’connor.

- Capitalize academic institutions: University of California – Cadi Ayyad

University – English Department.
- Capitalize titles of works: Animal Farm – The Scarlet Letter.
- Capitalize I and O: Always capitalize the pronoun I and the interjection O:
I can do it.
Grant us peace, O Lord.
- Do not capitalize east, west, north and south when they indicate directions:
Turn west at the next street. – He headed east filled with the need to
explore.
- Capitalize them when they refer to or designate specific geographic regions:
The nation was at that time divided into three competing regions: the Northeast,
the South, and the West.
- Do not capitalize the seasons of the year: autumn, winter, spring, summer.

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Exercise: Capitalize words as needed in the following sentences.
Example:
t. s. Eliot, who wrote the waste land, was an editor at faber and faber.
T. S. Eliot, who wrote The Waste Land, was an editor at Faber and Faber.

1 - the town in the south where i was raised had a statue of a civil war soldier in
the center of main street.
2 - we had a choice of fast-food, chinese, or italian restaurants.
3 - the keynote address was given by ahmed hansali.
4 - in home before the dark, cheever tells how her father once panicked when
driving east on the tappan zee bridge over the hudson river.
5 - accepting an award for his score for the film the high and the mighty, dimitri
thanked beethoven, brahams, wagner, and alex.
6 - in this essay, i will be citing the works of vladimir nabokov, in particular his
novels pnin and lolita and his story ‘‘the vane sisters.’’
7 - the battle of lexington and concord was fought in april 1775.
8 - when i read she i realised some deliberately intent on demoting the orient and
the orientals.

19
2 - Punctuation: Punctuation marks replace the pauses and the changes in tone
and pitch of spoken language. They also indicate relationships among different
sentence elements. As a result, punctuation marks help clarify the meaning of
written material.

2a – Period (full stop):

- A period indicates a full stop at the end of a sentence.
- A period is used with an indirect question instead of a question mark.
Ex:
She asked if he attended the class.

- A period is used after an acceptable sentence fragment.

Ex:
Do you like tea? Undoubtedly.

- A period always goes inside quotation marks.

Ex:
“I’ve never read such stories.” That was his answer.

- Use periods after initials in names.

Ex:
H.G. Wells - W.B. Yeats.

- Use period with abbreviations.

Ex:
Gov. (for Governor) – Doc. – Mr.

2b – Comma: A comma can link, enclose, separate, and show omissions.

- Place a comma before a coordinating conjunction when it combines two
sentences. The comma can be omitted if the sentences are short.
- Use a comma to separate introductory elements from the rest of the sentence.
Ex:
After bathing, he felt refreshed.
(Comma can be omitted if the introductory clause is short: When you come I will
leave.)
- Commas separate items in a series:
Ex:

20
 I ate a big, wormless, and delicious apple. (The comma before the final item
is optional)

- Use a comma to separate two coordinate modifiers:

Ex:
Her realistic, faithful view helped to learn a lot.

- Commas appear after the street designation and the names of the cities, countries,
and states, except when the name of the state is followed by a zip code.
Ex:
He lives at 30 Peter Jones Street, Memphis, Tennessee 38118.
I’ll go to Paris, France, next week.

- Commas follow the date of the week, the day of the month, and the year.
Ex:
On Friday, April 4, 1986, He received my letter.
(With dates that include only the month and the year, commas are optional: In
June 1979 he visited London for the first time.)

- Use commas to set off nonrestrictive expressions from the rest of the sentence.
Ex:
George Orwell, disappointed by Western communism and imperialism,
opted for democratic socialism.

- Use commas to set off parenthetical expressions from the rest of the sentence (A
parenthetical expression is a word or word group that links one sentence to
another, provides emphasis, or makes an idea clear.
Ex:
All of my spare time is spent in reading. He, on the contrary, prefers to play
tennis.

- Use commas to set off names and titles of people being addressed directly.
Ex:
I want you, Ahmed, to come back next week.

- Use commas to set off abbreviations of degree titles and of Junior and Senior
following people’s names.

21
Ex:
Tell us, Captain, when we will sail.
Peter Alex, Ph.D., will be here tomorrow.
Harold Smith, Jr., works on that subject.

- Use commas to set off “echo questions” and “not phrases.”

Ex:
He realises, doesn’t he, that it is too late to travel.
Algebra, not chemistry, is my favorite subject.

- Use commas to set off adjectives that come after, rather than before the words
they modify.
Ex:
The road, muddy and rutted, is impassable.

2c – Semicolon: The semicolon is used to pronounce pauses in the flow of

sentences. Its main use is to separate independent clauses, which may or may not
be connected with a conjunctive adverb.

- Place a semicolon to join closely related sentences combined with a conjunctive

adverb.

Place a semicolon to join closely related sentences.

Use the semicolon to divide series in sentences that have several series.
Ex:
My duty as a secretary includes typing letters, memos, and purchase orders;
sorting, opening and delivering mail.

2d – Exclamation mark: Exclamation points are used to show surprise, anger,

and emphasis.
Ex:
She is dead! - No! I am not angry! - I’ll have to try again!

2e – Apostrophe:
- Use the apostrophe to show possession.
Ex:

22
 Barbara’s lifestyle.
John and Peter’s car.
John’s and Peter’s cars.
Singular nouns ending in “s” could take apostrophe and a new “s” for possession.
Ex:
The actress’s job.
But with plural nouns that in ‘‘s’’ use only an apostrophe: The students’ book.

2f - Brackets ([ ]):
- Brackets are used to set off material that is your own inside quotation marks.
Ex:
“The novel Jude the Obscure is interesting to read,” the man said.

2g - Quotation marks:
- Anything quoted word for word should be enclosed in quotation marks.
Ex:
He said, “The meal is wonderful.”
If the quotation is long, indent all of its lines. (If it exceeds four typed lines.
Format known as block quotation).

- Use single quotation marks for a quotation within a quotation.

Ex:
Peter asked, “did he say ‘come in’?”

- Use quotation marks to indicate titles of short stories, magazines and newspapers
articles, songs and TV. Programs. Ex : “The Fox” – “Time.”

- Always put colons and semicolons outside closing quotation marks.

Ex:
He said, “I’ll send him to hell”; that surprised me.
These are my “favourite fruits”: apples, peaches and strawberries.

For all other punctuation, if the punctuation is a part of the quotation place it inside
the quotation marks.

23
 2h - Dashes:
- Like colons, dashes (-) set off appositives, lists and explanations but are used in
less formal writing. A dash emphasises the material it sets off.
Ex:
Only one candidate showed up at the political rally – Ahmed Ibrahim.
(appositive)
The closet had only three garments – an out-at-the elbows sports coat, a pair
of blue jeans, and a tattered shirt. (a list)
I know why little Billy is fussing – he needs changing. (explanation).

- Dashes set off material that interrupts the flow of thought within a sentence.
Ex:
Her new car – didn’t she get it just three months ago? – has broken down
twice.

2i – Hyphens:
- Hyphens are used to join compound words.
Ex:
The greenish-yellow cloud. (adj)
Sister-in-law, good-for-nothing, man-about-town (expressions).
Twenty-one years (numbers).
Ex-teacher, all-knowing (prefix).
The chairperson-elect (suffix).

Exercise: Punctuate the following sentences correctly:

1 – In one of his famous poems frost asks why people need walls
2 – Unfortunately the door to the kennel had been left open
3 – Immigrants came here with high hopes but their illusions were often shattered
4 – The man with the green coat is the president of the association
5 – The Zunis an ancient tribe live in New Mexico
6 – Britain and France agreed to aid each other if one of them is attacked
7 – They found employment in truck driving farming and mining
8 – A prestigious car a large house and membership in an exclusive club are taken
as signs of success
9 – Ellen is an accomplished free-lance writer

24
10 – Some studies incidentally have shown that chocolate of all things helps to
prevent tooth decay
11 – Ozone is produced by dry cleaning for example
12 – The homeless are fellow citizens are they not
13 – Forward my mail to the Department of English Ohio State Columbus Ohio
43210 until further notice
14 – Martin Luther King Jr was one of this century’s orators
15 – No one becomes depraved all at once wrote Juvenal
16 – City life offers many advantages in many ways however life in a small town
is much more pleasant
17 – Kerosene solar power and electricity are popular sources of energy for
heating homes in New England the most popular however is wood
18 – Propaganda is defined as the spread of ideas to further a cause; therefore,
propaganda and advertisement are synonymous terms.
19 – Anthropology encompasses archaeology the study of ancient civilisations
through artefacts linguistics the study of the structure and development of
language and cultural anthropology the study of the way of life of various peoples
especially small nonindustrial societies
20 – Jackson’s most famous story is The Lottery it is a horrifying allegory about
the power of tradition and the search for scapegoats
21 – Look out The tide is coming fast
22 – Her daughters-in-laws birthdays both fall in July.
23 – Ahmed and Brahims program focus on ecological issues.
24 – Many Phds cannot find jobs as college teachers.
25 – The five Shakespeares in the essay were spelled five different ways.
26 – He smiled and said Son this is one incident that I will never forget
27 – Don’t compromise yourself said Andrew Bright you are all you’ve got
28 – She was in fourth grade or was it third when she became blind
29 – We began a series of workshops on nonviolence, and we repeatedly asked
ourselves Are you able to accept blows without retaliation

25
III – SENTENCE STRUCTURE:
1 – Sentence Fragments: Sentence fragments are groups of words punctuated as
sentences but lacking some element grammatically necessary to a sentence,
usually either subject or finite verb. In order to be complete a group of words must
have a subject, a finite verb and not just a verbal, and express a complete thought.
In general, a fragment can be revised by combining it with an independent clause
or by turning it into an independent clause.
Ex:
Fragment: The beaver dam holding back the shallow pond.
Revised: I saw the beaver dam holding back the shallow pond.
(combined with an independent clause I saw)
Revised: The beaver dam was holding back the shallow pond.
(turned into independent clause by adding was to participle
holding, making verb finite)

1a - The Phrase Fragment: Phrases, groups of words lacking either a subject, a

finite verb, or both, appear frequently as fragments. Most common are verbal
phrases, prepositional phrases, noun phrases, and appositive phrases.

1aa- Verbal-phrase fragments: Verbal-phrase fragments lack a finite verb and

often a subject. To revise, combine them with an independent clause or make them
a separate sentence.
Ex :
Fragment: Vivian stayed out of school for three months after Laurel was
born. To recuperate and to take care of her.
Revised: Vivian stayed out of school for three months after Laurel was
born to recuperate and to take care of her. (combined with
independent clause)
Revised: Vivian stayed out of school for three months after Laurel was
born. She did so to recuperate and to take care of her. (turned
into complete sentence)

1ab - Prepositional-phrase fragments: A prepositional phrase consists of a

preposition, its object and any modifiers of the object. Prepositional-phrase
fragments contain neither subjects nor finite verbs. Usually you can best revise
them by simply joining them to the independent clause containing the word they
modify.

26
Ex:
Fragment: Several civic groups are sponsoring public debates. With
discussions afterwards.
Revised: Several civic groups are sponsoring public debates with
discussions afterwards.

1ac - Noun-phrase fragments: A noun phrase consists of a noun together with

any adjectives, phrases, or clauses that modify it. Noun-phrase fragments contain
a subject but no finite verb, and they frequently appear before fragments
containing a verb and no subject. You can best revise such fragments by
combining them into one sentence containing both a subject and a verb.
Ex :
Fragment: His editorial making a plea for better facilities for severely
handicapped children. Pointed out that these facilities are
always located in poor areas.
Revised: In his editorial making a plea for better facilities for severely
handicapped children, he pointed out that these facilities are
always located in poor areas.
Revised: His editorial making a plea for better facilities for severely
handicapped children pointed out that these facilities are always
located in poor areas.

1ad- Appositive-phrase fragments: An appositive phrase is a noun phrase that

renames or describes another noun. You can revise appositive-phrase fragments
by joining them to the independent clause containing the noun to which the
appositive phrase refers to.
Ex:
Fragment: One of our nation’s most cherished dreams may be in danger.
The dream of a good education for every child.
Revised: One of our nation’s most cherished dreams, the dream of a good
education for every child, may be in danger.
Revised: One of our nation’s most cherished dreams may be in danger:
the dream of a good education for every child.

1b - The Compound-predicate Fragment: A compound predicate consists of

two or more verbs, along with their modifiers and objects, that have the same
subject. Compound-predicate fragments occur when one part of this predicate is

27
punctuated as a separate sentence although it lacks a subject. These fragments
usually begin with a conjunction. You can revise them by attaching them to the
independent clause that contains the rest of the predicate.
Ex:
Fragment: They sold their house. And moved into an apartment.
Revised: They sold their house and moved into an apartment.

1c - The Dependent-clause Fragment: Dependent-clause fragments cannot

stand alone as grammatically complete sentences. They should be combined with
the independent clause that precedes or that follows. Another way of revising
them is by deleting the subordinating word to create an independent clause.

Ex:
Fragment: If a woman chooses a less demanding career track. She
sacrifices some earning potential.
Revised: If a woman chooses a less demanding career track, she
sacrifices some earning potential.

Exercise: Revise each of the following items to eliminate sentence fragments.

Ex:
Fragment: Zineb looked close to tears. Standing with her head bowed.
Revised: Standing with her head bowed, Zineb looked close to tears.
Revised: Zineb looked close to tears. She was standing with her head
bowed.

1 – Small long-veined, fuzzy green leaves. Add to the appeal of this newly
developed variety of carrot.
2 – Living with gusto. That is what many Americans yearn for.
3 – The region has dry, sandy soil. Blown into strange formations by the ever-
present wind.
4 – The climbers had two choices. To go over a four-hundrerd-foot cliff or to
turn back. They decided to make the attempt.
5 – Connie picked up the cat and started playing with it. It scratched her neck.
With its sharp claws.
6 – The prime minister promoted one tax change. A reduction in the capital
gains tax.
7 – Organized crime has been able to attract graduates just as big business has.
With good pay and the best equipment money can buy.
28
8 – When Samir was in the fifth grade. His parents often left him with his sister.
9 – The protagonist comes to a decision. To leave his family.
10 – Fear, one of the basic emotions people have experienced throughout time.
11 – We were thankful for a hot shower. After a week in the wilderness.
12 – I plan to buy a computer. Which will help me organize my finances.
13 – Forster stopped writing novels after Passage to India. One of the greatest
novels of the twentieth century.
14 – This battery never runs out of water. Eliminating the possibility of ruined
clothing from battery acid.
15 – I loved Beloved. And thought Toni Morrison deserved the Pulitzer Prize.
16 – The president oppointed five members. Who drew up a set of bylaws.
17 – One might say that rebellion is normal. Because the younger generation often
rejects the ways of its elders.

29
2 - Punctuation Errors: Some sentence errors occur when you fail to use
punctuation marks to indicate relationships between sentences. The missing or the
misuse of punctuation marks makes the meaning lost or misunderstood.

2a - Comma splice: A comma splice occurs when you join two independent
clauses with a comma. An independent clause always demands a punctuation
mark that signals completion; it should thus end in a period, a semicolon, or a
comma.
Ex:
As a child, the alcoholic did not learn the things a child needs to learn,
thus his life was destined to go bad.

- You can correct the comma splice in one of the following ways:
- Rewrite the sentence as two independent clauses.
Ex:
As a child, the alcoholic did not learn the things a child needs to learn.
Thus, his life was destined to go bad.

- Assuming the ideas of the sentences are closely related, replace the comma
with a semicolon:
Ex:
As a child, the alcoholic did not learn the things a child needs to learn;
thus, his life was destined to go bad.

- Make one sentence dependent on the other through subordination:

Ex:
Since the alcoholic did not learn as a child the things children need to
know, his life was destined to go bad.

- join the independent clauses with the appropriate coordinating conjunction:

Ex:
As a child, the alcoholic did not learn the things a child needs to learn, and
so his life was destined to go bad.

2b - Run-on Sentences: Run-on sentences (or fused sentences) are much like
comma splices except that in this kind of error, all punctuation is omitted between
the independent clauses. A run-on sentence misleads the reader. With no period

30
or semicolon to mark the end of one sentence, we read the attached sentence as if
it were part of the first one.
Ex:
Universities are an important part of our world for it is their teaching of
our children that should someday bring about a better world.

- You can correct run-on sentences in several ways:

- Rewrite the run-on sentence as two separate sentences:

Ex:
Universities are an important part of our world. It is their teaching of our
children that should someday bring about a better world.

- Insert a semicolon between the fused sentences if the two sentences are closely
related in content.
Ex:
Universities are an important part of our world; it is their teaching of our
children that should someday bring about a better world.

- If the two sentences are joined by a coordinating conjunction, they must be

separated by a comma.
Ex:
Universities are an important part of our world, for it is their teaching of
our children that should someday bring about a better world.

- Use subordination to make one sentence dependent on the other.

Ex:
Universities are an important part of our world since their teaching of our
children may someday bring about a better world.

Exercise: I - Pick out the comma splices in the following sentences and rewrite
each sentence correctly.

1- A man with a higher education has a good opinion about himself, therefore
other people have a good opinion about him.
2 - She has a rare talent, it is to inspire anyone with the least interest to do anything
to keep on trying.

31
3 - Knowing the basics in their chosen fields gives students a head start when they
enter a job, otherwise they would have a hard time getting started.
4 - She is always smiling and joking, even when she is tired, she always seems to
have compassion for others and a ready smile.
5 - Common sense cannot be deduced, this is a trait learned through actual living
experiences.
6 - It is now the time since we know who the enemy is, we must begin a movement
of reform before we lose our identity.
7 - Amal didn’t hear about the meeting until Thursday, she had to change her
plans.
8 - In social studies this year we are studying about ways to solve our major
national problems, so far we have covered poverty, unemployment, inflation, and
pollution.
9 - Lovebirds are comical creatures, they are always busy rearranging objects in
their cages.
10 - Mexia, the botanical explorer, discovered rare tropical plants on her
expeditions to Mexico and South America, these discoveries were of great value
to science.
11 - Juan took an art elective and discovered he had talent, now he spends his
afternoons in the art room.
12 - At an advanced age she began to write the story of her colorfurl life, at least
she thought her life colorful.

II - Explain why the following sentences are run-on sentences. Rewrite each
correctly.

1 – The author believes that the job of a university is to teach students knowledge
and philosophy he also believes that the knowledge and philosophy they learn are
later mistaken for virtue and conscientiousness.
2 – Don’t get the wrong impression Ali is not a troublemaker he is genuinely sorry
for the trouble we have gotten into and will never make that mistake again.
3 – Some days I’ll start to clean to the extent of clearing a pathway to my bed I’m
usually in a cleaning mood but don’t really have the energy.
4 – This shows what a brave dog he was yet two nights later he was frightened by
our counselor’s guitar.
5 – The choice of a camera is difficult there are many good ones on the market.

32
6 – Too much sugar can make you feel lazy it interferes wit the brain’s production
of norepinephrine.
7 – Fruit juice will raise your blood sugar level juice will also replace liquids in
dehydrated body tissue.
8 – Primrose oil is rich in prostaglandins you can buy it at any health food store.
9 – Coffee won’t sober you up coffee is good for a hangover the caffeine helps
eliminate muscle aches.

33
3 - Clear Pronoun reference: In order to make the meaning of a pronoun clear,
it should refer clearly to its antecedent. The word to which the pronoun refers is
its antecedent.

3a - Avoid ambiguous reference: If more than one possible antecedent for a

personal pronoun appears in a sentence or passage, the pronoun should refer
clearly and unambiguously to only one of them.
Ex:
- Ambiguous: The meeting between Ali and Ahmed makes him compare
his own unsatisfying domestic life with one that is emotionally secure.
- Clear: The meeting between Ali and Ahmed makes Ali compare his own
unsatisfying domestic life with one that is emotionally secure.

3b - Avoid vague reference: Vague or general reference appears when a pronoun

refers ambiguously and confusingly to a general idea which is expressed vaguely.
Ex:
- Vague: She read a review of the book, which was confusing. (What does
which refer to: the review or the book?)
- Clear: She read a review of the book, but the review was confusing.

3c - Avoid weak reference: Weak reference occurs when the antecedent has not
been expressed but exists only in the writer’s mind.
Ex:
- Weak: She is a great believer in witchcraft, but she doubts that they ride
on broomsticks. (Here, the pronoun they has no antecedent. The writer has
witches in mind as the antecedent, but it does not appear at all.)
- Clear: She is a great believer in witchcraft, but she doubts that witches
ride on broomsticks.

3d - Avoid indefinite use of pronouns: In conversation, you and they are

frequently used in an indefinite sense as in the following expressions: you never
know, and on television they said. Such constructions are academically
inappropriate and informal. Be careful to use “you” to mean “you, the reader,”
and “they” only to refer to a clear antecedent.
Ex:
- Indefinite: Television commercials try to make you buy without thinking.
- Revised: Television commercials try to make viewers buy without
thinking.
- Indefinite: In France they allow dogs in most restaurants.
- Revised: Most restaurants in France allow dogs.

34
Exercise: Revise each of the following items to clarify pronoun reference.

1 – While Melinda was away, Nora found the ring she had lost.
2 – Anna smiled at her mother as she opened the birthday package.
3 – In many cases of child abuse, especially when the parents totally ignore their
children, they eventually become criminals.
4 – New England helped shape many aspects of American culture, including
education, religion, and government. As New Englanders moved west, they
carried its institutions with them.
5 – James told Allen that his mother was ill.
6 – In Texas, you often hear about the influence of big oil corporations.
7 – They said on the radio that somebody had won the lottery.
8 – A friend of mine recently had a conversation with a veteran that changed his
view of the Persian Gulf War.
9 – I take care not to get bundled up in the winter because it will be too hot when
you are indoors.
10 – Company policy prohibited smoking, which many employees resented.

35
4 - Sentence Shifts: A shift in writing is an abrupt change of some sort that results
in inconsistency. Shifts appear in tense, mood, and voice of verbs; in the person
and number of pronouns. They also appear in tone, diction and shift from direct
to indirect discourse.

4a - Shifts in tense: Tenses show when the action of the verb takes place. If the
verbs in a sentence or a passage refer to actions occuring at different times, they
may require different tenses: He had started the kennel because he had always
loved dogs. Be careful, however, not to change tenses unnecessarily, or in a way
that does not make sense: Clarissa yowled until her owner looks up. The shift in
tenses from past to present confuses readers, who are left to guess which tense is
the correct one.
Ex:
- Inconsistent: A very few countries produce almost all of the world’s
illegal drugs, but drug addiction affected many more countries.
- Revised: A very few countries produce almost all of the world’s illegal
drugs, but drug addiction affects many more countries.

4b- Shifts in mood: The mood of the verb indicates the attitude of the writers
toward what they are writing or saying. Be careful not to shift from one mood to
another without reason. The mood of a verb can be indicative (He closes the door),
imperative (Close the door), or subjunctive (If the door were closed,…). The
indicative mood is used to express a fact, opinion, or inquiry. The imperative is
used to express a command or a request, and the subjunctive is used to express a
wish, requirement, or condition contrary to fact.
Ex:
- Inconsistent: Keep your eye on the ball, and you should bend your knees.
(Shift from imperative to indicative)
- Revised: Keep your eye on the ball, and bend your knees.

4c - Shifts in voice: Voice is the feature of transitive verbs that tells whether the
subject is acting (he questions us) or being acted upon (he is questioned). When
the subject is acting, the verb is in the active
voice; when the subject is being acted upon, the verb is in the passive voice.
Unjustified shifts between the active voice and the passive are useless and
unnecessary. They often merely confuse readers.
Ex:
- Inconsistent: Although she confessed to the crime, her accomplice was
not identified by her.
- Revised: Although she confessed to the crime, she did not identify her
accomplice.

36
4d - Shifts in person and number: Do not shift unnecessarily between first
person (I, we), second person (you), and third person (he, she, it, or they) or
between singular and plural. Such shifts in person and number create confusion.
Ex:
- Inconsistent: One can do well in college if you budget your time carefully.
- Revised: One can do well in college if one budgets his or her time
carefully.
- Revised: You can do well in college if you budget your time carefully.
- Inconsistent: I have difficulty seeing another person’s position, especially
if their opinion contradicts mine.
- Revised: I have difficulty seeing another person’s position, especially if
his or her opinion contradicts mine.
- Revised: I have difficulty seeing other people’s positions, especially if
their opinion contradicts mine.

4e - Shifts between direct and indirect discourse: When you quote someone’s
exact words, setting them off in quotation marks, you are using direct discourse.
When, on the other hand, you report what someone says without repeating the
exact words, you are using indirect discourse. Shifts between direct and indirect
discourse in the same sentence can cause problems, especially with questions.
Ex:
- Inconsistent: Ferras asked what could he do to help.
- Revised: Ferras asked, “what can I do to help?”
- Revised: Ferras asked what he could do to help.

Exercise: Revise any of the following sentence in which you find unnecessary
shifts.

1 – The local newspaper covers campus events, but it did not appeal to many
student readers.
2 – The day is hot, stifling, and typical of July, a day when no one willingly
ventured out onto the burning asphalt.
3 – Then, suddenly, the big day arrives. The children were still a bit sleepy, for
their anticipation had kept them awake.
4 – A cloud of snow powder rose as skis and poles fly in every direction.
5 – Walk over to the field house, and then you should get in line.
6 – Place a test strip on the subject area; you should expose the test strip to light
and develop it for two and a half minutes.
6 – I think it is better that grandfather dies painlessly, bravely, and with dignity
than that he continues to live in terrible physical pain.
7 – Say no to drugs, and you should consider alcohol a drug, too!
8 – Although she enjoys rock music, jazz is preferred by her.
9 – I call it smooth, but it is seen as sneaky and devious by my parents.

37
10 – Once these shells housed creatures; now they are crushed by the waves.
11 – When a person goes to college, you face many new situations.
12 – Suddenly we heard an explosion of wings off to our right, and you could see
a hundred or more ducks lifting off the water.
13 – Workers with computer skills were in great demand, and a programmer could
almost name their salary.
14 – I liked the sense of individualism, the crowd yelling for you, and the feeling
that I was in command.
15 – New parents often find it hard to adjust to having a baby around; you can’t
just get up and go someplace.
16 – A person needs to feel that they are respected by others to perform well in a
leadership position.
17 – Nathaniel Hawthorne once stated that there was nothing he preferred to “my
own solitude.”
18 – The instructor told us, “Please read the next two stories before the next class”
and that she might give us a quiz on them.

38
5 - Placement of modifiers: To be effective the modifiers must be carefully
placed and must refer clearly and unambiguously to a word or some words in the
sentence.
5a - Misplaced modifiers: Misplaced modifiers are words, phrases, and clauses
that cause ambiguity or confusion because they are not placed as close to the
words they modify as they might be or because they could modify the words either
before or after them.
5aa- Misplaced words and phrases: In order to avoid confusion, place the
modifier close to the word or words to which it refers. Limiting modifiers like
almost, even, hardly, just, merely, nearly, only, scarcely, and simply should be
placed right before the words they modify. Putting such words in other positions
may produce not just ambiguity but a completely different meaning.
Ex:
- Ambiguous: The court only hears civil cases on Tuesdays. (Does the
writer mean that civil cases are the only cases heard on Tuesdays, or that
those are the only days when civil cases are heard? The other sentences
each express one of these meanings clearly.)
- Clear: The court hears only civil cases on Tuesdays.
- Clear: The court hears civil cases only on Tuesdays.

- Phrases also should ordinarily be placed close to the words they modify. The
most common type of modifier, the prepositional phrase, usually appears right
after the word it modifies.
Ex:
- Ambiguous: The runners stood ignoring the crowd in their lanes. (This
sentence implies that the crowd were in the lanes.)
- Revised: The runners stood in their lanes ignoring the crowd.

- Participial phrases usually appear right before or after the words they modify.
Ex:
- Ambiguous: I pointed out the moose head to my guests mounted on the
wall. (This sentence implies that the guests were mounted on the wall.)
- Revised: I pointed out to my guests the moose head mounted on the wall.
- Revised: I pointed out the moose head mounted on the wall to my guests.

5ab – Misplaced clauses: While you have more flexibility in the placement of
dependent clauses than of modifying words and phrases, you should still try

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whenever possible to place them close to whatever you wish them to modify. If
you do not, unintended meanings can result.
Ex:
- Misplaced: Nixon told reporters that he planned to get out of politics after
he lost the 1962 gubernatorial race. (The sentence implies that Nixon
planned to lose the race.)
- Revised: After he lost the 1962 gubernatorial race, Nixon told reporters
that he planned to get out of politics.

5b- Squinting modifiers: If a modifier could refer to either the word(s) before it
or the word(s) after it, it is called a squinting modifier.
Ex:
- Squinting: Students who practice writing often will benefit.
The modifier often might describe either practice or will benefit. That is,
the sentence might have either of the following meanings:
- Revised: Students who often practice writing will benefit.
- Revised: Students who practice writing will often benefit.

5c – Disruptive modifiers: Disruptive modifiers interrupt the connections

between parts of a grammatical structure or a sentence, making it hard for readers
to follow the progress of the thought. Be careful not to place modifiers in such a
way that they disrupt the normal grammatical flow of a sentence.

5ca- Modifiers splitting an infinitive: In general, do not split an infinitive by

placing a modifier between the to and the verb. Doing so makes it hard for readers
to recognize that the two go together.
Ex:
- Disruptive: Hitler expected the British to fairly quickly surrender.
- Revised: Hitler expected the British to surrender fairly quickly.

5cb- Modifiers between the parts of a verb phrase: A verb phrase consists of
a main verb together with one or more auxiliary verbs: had studied, will be
moving. Modifiers consisting of one or even two or three adverbs can often appear
between parts of a verb phrase without causing any awkwardness: He had very
seldom actually fired a gun in the line of duty. In general, however, do not
interrupt a verb phrase with modifiers that are phrases or clauses.

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Ex:
- Disruptive: Vegetables will, if they are cooked too long, lose most of their
nutritional value.
- Revised: Vegetables will lose most of their nutritional value if they are
cooked too long.
- Revised: If vegetables are cooked too long, they will lose most of their
nutritional value.

5cc- Modifiers between a subject and a verb: Adjective phrases and clauses
often appear between a subject and a verb: The books that the librarians had
decided were no longer useful were discarded. In general, however, do not use an
adverb clause or phrase in this position because it disrupts the natural progression
from subject to verb that readers expect.
Ex:
- Disruptive: The books, because the librarians had decided they were no
longer useful, were discarded.
- Revised: The books were discarded because the librarians had decided
they were no longer useful.

5cd- Modifiers between a verb and an object or subject complement: In

general, do not place an adverb phrase or clause between a verb and a direct object
or subject complement, because readers expect the object or complement to follow
directly after the verb.
Ex:
- Disruptive: He bought with his paycheck a second-hand car.
- Revised: He bought a second-hand car with his paycheck.
- Revised: With his paycheck he bought a second-hand car.

5d – Dangling modifiers: Dangling modifiers are words (usually adverbs),

phrases (prepositional or participial), and elliptical clauses (clauses from which a
word or words have been left out) that modify nothing in particular in the rest of
a sentence. They often seem to modify something that is suggested or implied but
not actually present in the sentence. Such modifiers are called dangling because
they hang loosely from the rest of the sentence, attached to no specific element.
They frequently appear at the beginnings or ends of sentences. To revise dangling
modifiers, you can change the subject of the main clause so that the modifier

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clearly refers to it, or you can change the dangling modifier itself into a phrase or
a non-elliptical clause that clearly modifies an existing part of the sentence.

5da- Dangling words and phrases:

- Dangling: As a young boy, his grandmother told stories of her years as a
country schoolteacher. (His grandmother was never a young boy.)
- Revised: As a young boy, he heard his grandmother tell stories of her years
as a country schoolteacher.
- Revised: When he was a young boy, he heard his grandmother tell stories
of her years as a country schoolteacher.

5db – Dangling elliptical clauses:

- Dangling: A rabbit’s teeth are never used for defense even when cornered.
(Is it the teeth that are cornered?)
- Revised: A rabbit’s teeth are never used for defense, even when the animal
is cornered.
- Revised: even when cornered, the rabbit never uses its teeth for defense.

Exercise: Revise each of the following sentences by moving any misplaced

modifiers.
1- Aliens are exploited by employers who are afraid of being deported.
2 – Sick and professional, the audience applauded the comedian’s routine.
3 – The city almost spent $2 million on the new stadium that opened last year.
4 – On the day in question, the patient was not normally able to breathe.
5 – The clothes were full of holes that I was giving away.
6 – Doctors recommended a new test for cancer, which was painless.
7 – The course we hoped would engross us completely bored us.
8 – He remembered vividly enjoying the sound of his friend laughing.
9 – The mayor promised after his re-election he would not raise taxes.
10 – The collector who owned the painting originally planned to leave to a
museum.
11 – Doctors can now restore limbs that have been served partially to
functioning condition.
12 – Rock festivals became during the 1960s a form of political protest.
13 – Eastern North America was, when Europeans arrived, peopled with
Indians.
14 – The exhibit, because of extensive publicity, attracted large audiences.

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15 – The architect wanted to eventually design public buildings.
16 – Watching television news, an impression is given of constant disaster.
17 – Interviewing grieving relatives, no consideration is shown for their privacy.
18 – To provide comic relief, heat waves and blizzards are attributed to the
weather forecaster.
19 – When cycling through southern France, the Roman ruins impressed me.
20 – However unhappy, my part-time job is something I have to put up with.
21 – A waiter’s job can become very stressful when faced with a busy restaurant
full of hungry people.
22 – No matter how costly, my family insists on a college education.
23 – The speaker said when he finished his talk he would answer questions.
24 – Revolving out of control, the maintenance worker shut down the tribune.
25 – The bank offered flood assistance to the homeowners underwritten by the
federal government.
26 – I know that investment would pay off in a dramatic way before I decided to
buy the stock.
27 – Bookstores sold, in the first week after publication, fifty thousand copies.
28 – Chosen for their looks, the newscaster’s journalistic credentials are often
weak.

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6 - Parallelism: Parallelism in sentence structure exists when two or more
sentence elements of equal rank are similarily expressed. Stating equal and closely
related ideas in parallel constructions often adds clarity and smoothness to writing.

Kinds of parallel structure:

6a – Parallel structure in a series: All items in a series should be in a parallel
form - all nouns, all prepositional phrases, all adverb clauses, and so on. Such
parallelism makes a series both graceful and easy to follow.
Ex:
- The quarter horse skipped, pranced, and absolutely sashayed onto the
track. (verbs)
- Three subjects guaranteed to cause a fight are politics, religion, and
money. (nouns)
- The car rolled down the hill, over the lawn, and into the swimming pool.
(prepositional phrases)
- As more and more antismoking laws are passed, we see legions of
potential non-smokers munching Nicorette, gnawing peppermints, chewing
pencils, knitting sweaters, or practicing self-hypnotism. (participial
phrases)
- Pushing a pen or pencil, pounding a typewriter, or punching a word
processor just does not appeal to me. (gerund phrases)

When parallel elements are not presented in a parallel grammatical form, the result
can be awkward and even difficult to follow.
Ex:
- Nonparallel: The duties of the job included baby-sitting, house-cleaning,
and the preparation of the meals.
- Parallel: The duties of the job included baby-sitting, house-cleaning, and
preparing the meals.

6b – Parallel structures with pairs: One common use of parallel structure occurs
in the pairing of two ideas. The more nearly parallel the two structures are, the
stronger the connections of the ideas will be.
Parallel structures are especially appropriate when two ideas are being compared
or contrasted.
Ex:
- History became popular, and historians became alarmed.

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When two clauses in a sentence express compared or contrasted ideas in exactly
or almost exactly parallel structures, they produce a balanced sentence, one with
two parts that ‘‘mirror’’ each other. Balanced sentences create an especially
forceful impression.
Ex:
- Mankind must put an end to war, or war will put an end to mankind.
- There is much in your book that is original and valuable – but what is
original is not valuable, and what is valuable is not original.

6c – With coordinating conjunctions: In general, use the same grammatical

structure on both sides of any of the coordinating conjunctions – and, but, or, nor,
for, so, yet.
Ex:
- We performed whenever folks would listen and wherever they would pay.
When elements connected by a coordinating conjunction are not parallel in
form, the relationship of the elements can be hard to see:
- Nonparallel: Ask a friend in your class or who is good at math to help you.
- Parallel: Ask a friend who is in your class or who is good at math to help
you.
- Parallel: Ask a friend who is in your class or is good at math to help you.

6ca – With correlative conjunctions: Use the same structure after both parts of
a correlative conjunction – either...or, neither…nor, not…but, not only…but also,
just as…so, whether…or.
Ex:
- The organization provided both scholarships for young artists and grants
for established ones.
- Nonparallel: I wanted not only to go away to school but also to New
England.
- Parallel: I wanted to go away not only to school but also to New England.

6d – Inclusion of all the necessary words in a parallel structure: In addition to

making parallel elements grammatically similar, be careful to include any words
– prepositions, articles, verb forms, and so on – that are necessary for clarity,
grammar or idiom.
Ex:

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 - Confusing: We considered moving to a small town in the Southwest or
Mexico.
- Clear: We considered moving to a small town in the Southwest or to
Mexico.
- Clear: We considered moving to a small town in the Southwest or in
Mexico.
- Ungrammatical: I had never before and would never again see such a sight.
- Grammatical: I had never before seen and would never again see such a
sight.

Exercise: Revise the following sentences to eliminate any errors in parallel

structure.
1 – Brahim had studied archery, forestry, and how to treat wild animals.
2 – I remember the sticky, humid afternoons with the air as heavy as a wool
blanket, my body dripping with sweat, how my sandy mouth yearned for an ice-
cold glass of water.
3 – I will always remember how the girls dressed in green plaid skirts and the boys
wearing green plaid ties.
4 – It was a question of either reducing their staff, or they had to somehow find
new customs for their baked potatoes.
5 – To need a new pair of shoes and not bieng able to afford them is enough to
make anybody sensitive.
6 – I’ll never forget the good times we had – skiing, the swims, and especially that
you taught me the basics of how to windsurf.
7 – Too many students come to college only for fun, to find a husband or wife, or
in order to to put off having to go to work.
8 – There are two types of wallflowers: the male wallflower is known as the nerd,
and the female, who is known as the sleeve.
9 – Her job was to show new products, help Nabil with sales, and an opportunity
to be part of advertising.
10 – The Greek system not only provides the individual with a circle of friends
but also it contributes to the development of leadership skills.
11 – Stress can result in low self-esteem, total frustration, being unable to sleep,
nervous breakdown, or eventually in suicide.

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