26
Grammar
To use grammar correctly, you need to understand the eight parts of speech and the role each plays in a sentence. The eight parts of speech are noun, pronoun, verb, adjective, adverb, preposition, conjunction, and interjection. See also the Parts of Speech Chart.
In this chapter
Noun
A noun is a word that names something.
People: Angela Merkel, politician
Places: South Africa, nation
Things: National Geographic, magazine
Ideas: business ethics, value system
Classes of Nouns
Nouns are divided into five classes: proper, common, concrete, abstract, and collective.
Proper Noun
A proper noun names a specific person, place, thing, or idea and is always capitalized.
Bill Gates
Nasdaq Stock Market
Shanghai Tower
World Federalism
Common Noun
A common noun is a general name for a person, a place, a thing, or an idea and is lowercased.
entrepreneur
stock exchange
sky scraper
ideology
Concrete Noun
A concrete noun names something tangible. It can be seen, touched, heard, smelled, or tasted.
odor
desk
piano
Yosemite
Lake Erie
Alabama
Abstract Noun
An abstract noun names something that cannot be seen, touched, heard, smelled, or tasted. It is usually an idea, a condition, or a feeling.
War on Poverty
democracy
Buddhism
freedom
success
happiness
Collective Noun
A collective noun names a group or a unit. Collective nouns can be used in either the singular or the plural form. (See also Number of a Noun.)
herd
Green Bay Packers
committee
staff
Human Resources Department
Forms of Nouns
Nouns are grouped according to their gender, case, and number.
Gender of Noun
Gender of a noun indicates whether a noun is masculine, feminine, neuter, or indefinite. (Also see more on inclusive language.)
Masculine: father, nephew, buck, drake, Latino
Feminine: sister, niece, doe, hen, Latina
Neuter (without sex): rock, keyboard, lake
Indefinite (masculine or feminine): mayor, firefighter, deer, Latinx
Case of a Noun
Case tells how a noun functions in a sentence. Three cases of nouns are nominative, possessive, and objective.
Nominative case describes a noun used as the subject of a clause.
Bill Gates heads a multibillion-dollar software company that he founded.
Nominative case also describes a noun when it is used as a predicate noun (or predicate nominative). A predicate noun follows a form of the be verb (for example, is, are, was, were, been) and repeats or renames the subject.
Business handbooks are useful tools for every office.
Possessive case describes a noun that shows possession or ownership. A possessive noun functions as an adjective.
An employee’s desk is a construction site.
Objective case describes a noun used as a direct object, an indirect object, or an object of a preposition.
The delete key can give writers nightmares. (Nightmares is the direct object of can give; writers is the indirect object.)
But writing without a delete key is also scary. (Delete key is the object of the preposition, without.)
Number of a Noun
Number indicates whether a noun is singular or plural. (See Agreement of Subject and Verb.)
A singular noun refers to one person, place, thing, or idea.
supervisor
warehouse
monitor
A plural noun refers to more than one person, place, thing, or idea.
secretaries
closets
calculators
A Closer Look
When it comes to their number, some nouns are not what they appear to be. For example, earnings refers to a single thing, but it is actually a plural noun.Our third-quarter earnings were better than expected.
Singular nouns that appear to be plural:economics, news, mathematics, mumps, measles, lens, summons
Plural nouns that refer to a single thing:assets, earnings, media, premises, proceeds, scissors, trousers, goods, grounds, thanks, dues
Nouns that can be singular or plural (depending upon how they are used):corps, headquarters, gross, means, ethics, data, species, series, class, group, staff, company, committee, board, public
Pronoun
I
you
she
it
that
myself
someone
who
Almost all pronouns have antecedents. An antecedent is the noun that the pronoun refers to or replaces.
The workers acted as though they had forgotten the proper procedure. (Workers is the antecedent of they.)
Classes of Pronouns
All pronouns fall into one of seven classes: personal, relative, interrogative, demonstrative, indefinite, reflexive, and intensive.
Personal Pronoun
A personal pronoun (I, you, he, she, it) takes the place of a noun.
Rita Worth is a CEO; she likes to go fishing on her days off.
Relative Pronoun
A relative pronoun (who, whose, whom, which, that) introduces a clause related to another word in the sentence.
The person who leaves last should lock the office door. (The clause beginning with who describes person.)
Interrogative Pronoun
An interrogative pronoun (who, whose, whom, which, what) introduces a question.
Who will write the report?
Demonstrative Pronoun
A demonstrative pronoun (this, that, these, those) points out something.
This is great! These are our best year-end numbers ever.
Indefinite Pronoun
An indefinite pronoun (all, another, any, anyone, anything, both, each, either, everyone, few, many, most, neither, none, no one, one, several, some) refers to an unspecified person, thing, or group.
All are invited to the seminar.
Reflexive Pronoun
A reflexive pronoun (myself, yourself, himself) refers to the subject or the doer of the action.
Letta drives herself too hard.
Intensive Pronoun
An intensive pronoun is a reflexive pronoun (myself, yourself, himself) that is used only to emphasize the noun or pronoun it refers to.
The club members themselves voted yes on this proposition.
Pronoun Chart
Classes of Pronouns
Personal
I, me, my, mine, we, us, our, ours, you, your, yours, they, them, their, theirs, he, him, his, she, her, hers, it, its
Relative
who, whose, whom, which, what, that, whoever, whatever, whomever
Interrogative
who, whose, whom, which, what, whoever, whatever, whomever
Demonstrative
this, that, these, those
Indefinite
all |
everybody |
no one |
another |
everyone |
nothing |
any |
everything |
one |
anybody |
few |
other |
anyone |
many |
several |
anything |
most |
some |
both |
much |
somebody |
each |
neither |
someone |
each one |
nobody |
something |
either |
none |
such |
Reflexive and Intensive
myself, himself, herself, itself, yourself, themselves, ourselves, yourselves
Forms of Personal Pronouns
The form of a personal pronoun indicates its number (singular or plural), its person (first, second, or third), its case (nominative, possessive, or objective), and its gender (masculine, feminine, or neuter).
Number of a Pronoun
The number of a pronoun can be either singular or plural. Singular personal pronouns include I, you, he, she, it. Plural personal pronouns include we, you, they. Notice that the pronoun you can be singular or plural.
Have you (singular) completed the tax forms?
Looking at the applicants, he said, “I will contact each of you (plural) within a week.”
Person of a Pronoun
The person of a pronoun indicates whether that pronoun is speaking, is spoken to, or is spoken about. (See also Forms of Pronouns.)
Singular |
Plural |
|
First Person |
I (am) |
we (are) |
Second Person |
you (are) |
you (are) |
Third Person |
he / she / it (is) |
they (are) |
Case of a Pronoun
The case of a pronoun indicates how it is used in a sentence. There are three cases of personal pronouns: nominative (or subjective), objective, and possessive.
Nominative case pronouns are used in two ways—as subjects and as subject complements (following the linking verbs am, is, are, was, were, be, being, been).
I appreciate a pat on the back when I deserve it. (subjects)
It was Adam’s idea, so the real hero is he. (subject complement)
Objective case pronouns are used in three ways—as direct objects, indirect objects, and objects of prepositions.
Alex saw it. (direct object)
Max handed her two cups. (indirect object)
The manager talked with him. (object of a preposition)
Incorrect: Maria and me arrived early.
Correct: Maria and I arrived early.
Possessive case pronouns are used to show possession or ownership.
Their parents have been business partners for years.
Gender of a Pronoun
The gender of a pronoun can be masculine, feminine, or neuter.
He told her about it.
Forms of Pronouns
Forms of Singular Pronouns |
|||
Subj. |
Poss. |
Obj. |
|
First Person |
I | my, mine | me |
Second Person |
you | your, yours | you |
Third Person |
he she it |
his her, hers its |
him her it |
Forms of Plural Pronouns |
|||
Subj. |
Poss. |
Obj. |
|
First Person |
we | our, ours | us |
Second Person |
you | your, yours | you |
Third Person |
they | their, theirs | them |
A Closer Look
A pronoun must agree with its antecedent in number, person, and gender. (See Agreement of Pronoun and Antecedent.)Nicole greeted the committee with her distinctive smile. (Both the pronoun her and its antecedent Nicole are singular, third person, and feminine.)
Verb
A verb expresses either action (run, flip, twist) or state of being (is, are, seem). The different forms of a verb indicate its number (singular or plural); person (first, second, or third); voice (active or passive); and tense (present, past, future, present perfect, past perfect, or future perfect).
Number and Person of a Verb
Number indicates whether a verb is singular or plural. Person indicates whether the verb is correctly used with a first-, second-, or third-person subject.
Singular |
Plural |
|
First Person |
(I) am. |
(We) are. |
Second Person |
(You) are. |
(You) are. |
Third Person |
(She) is. |
(They) are. |
Voice of a Verb
Voice of a verb indicates whether the subject acts or is acted upon.
Active Voice
Active voice means that the subject does the action of the verb.
The partners debated the proposal.
Active sentences are concise and direct: The subject does the action of the verb, and often a direct object receives the action.
Passive Voice
Passive voice means that the subject receives the action of the verb. (Passive verbs always begin with a form of “be”—am, is, are, was, were, be, being, been, etc.)
Many topics were discussed by the committee.
Passive sentences are indirect: The subject receives the action of the verb, and the doer of the action often appears in a prepositional phrase that begins with by. To convert a passive sentence to an active sentence, ask yourself, “Who or what is doing the action of the verb?” and make your answer into the subject of the rewritten sentence. Often, the previous subject becomes the direct object.
The committee discussed many topics.
Active and Passive Voice
Tense of a Verb
The tense of a verb indicates when the action is taking place or when the condition exists.
Present Tense
Present tense indicates action that is happening at the present time or that happens continually.
More people work in the service industry than in any other industry.
Past Tense
Past tense indicates action that was completed in the past.
In the early twentieth century, heavy industry employed most of the workforce.
Future Tense
Future tense indicates action that will take place in the future.
Many workers wonder if Social Security will survive baby-boomer retirees.
Present Perfect Tense
Present perfect tense indicates action that began in the past but continues in the present or is completed in the present.
Lately, airlines have struggled with rising costs and fewer customers.
Past Perfect Tense
Past perfect tense indicates a past action that began and was completed in the past.
The investors had expected to see returns.
Future Perfect Tense
Future perfect tense indicates action that will begin in and be completed by a specific time in the future.
By the end of December, the company will have been sold.
Active and Passive Verbs Through the Tenses
| Active Voice | ||
| Tense | Singular | Plural |
| Present | I see you see he/she/it sees |
we see you see they see |
| Past | I saw you saw he saw |
we saw you saw they saw |
| Future | I will see you will see he will see |
we will see you will see they will see |
| Present Perfect | I have seen you have seen he has seen |
we have seen you have seen they have seen |
| Past Perfect | I had seen you had seen he had seen |
we had seen you had seen they had seen |
| Future Perfect | I will have seen you will have seen he will have seen |
we will have seen you will have seen they will have seen |
| Passive Voice | ||
| Tense | Singular | Plural |
| Present | I am seen you are seen he/she/it is seen |
we are seen you are seen they are seen |
| Past | I was seen you were seen It was seen |
we were seen you were seen they were seen |
| Future | I will be seen you will be seen it will be seen |
we will be seen you will be seen they will be seen |
| Present Perfect | I have been seen you have been seen it has been seen |
we have been seen you have been seen they have been seen |
| Past Perfect | I had been seen you had been seen it had been seen |
we had been seen you had been seen they had been seen |
| Future Perfect | I will have been seen you will have been seen it will have been seen |
we will have been seen you will have been seen they will have been seen |
Classes of Verbs
Verbs can be divided into these classes: auxiliary (or helping), linking, transitive, and intransitive.
Auxiliary Verbs
Auxiliary verbs (am, is, are, was, were, can, could, will, would, shall, should, etc.) help to form some of the tenses and the voice of the main verb.
Forming tense:
I enjoy skiing. (present tense verb)
I will enjoy skiing. (future tense verb formed by adding the auxiliary verb will)
Forming voice:
The gang devoured your salad! (active voice verb)
Your salad was devoured in no time! (passive voice verb formed by adding the auxiliary verb was)
Linking Verbs
A linking verb is a special type of intransitive verb that links a subject to its complement—a noun, a pronoun, or an adjective in the predicate of a sentence.
Poorly organized reports are not very helpful. (The subject reports is linked to the predicate adjective helpful.)
Incorrect: This is her. (A linking verb cannot connect the objective pronoun her to the subjective pronoun this.)
Correct: This is she. (A linking verb can connect the subjective pronoun she to the subjective pronoun this.)
Common Linking Verbs: am, is, are, was, were, be, being, been, smell, look, seem, grow, become, appear, sound, taste, feel, remain
Transitive Verbs
A transitive verb indicates action transferred to an object (or, in the passive voice, the subject). In the active voice, a transitive verb transfers its action to a direct object.
Many people enjoy their jobs. (Jobs is the direct object of the verb enjoy.)
A transitive verb may also have an indirect object, which receives the action indirectly.
Samantha gave Matthew a reassuring glance. (Glance is the direct object of the verb gave, and Matthew is the indirect object.)
In the passive voice, a transitive verb transfers the action to the subject of the sentence.
An attempt to fix the copier was made by the receptionist. (The subject attempt receives the action of the verb was made.)
Intransitive Verbs
An intransitive verb indicates action that is not transferred to anyone or anything. This verb does not need a direct object.
The worst public speakers mumble and dawdle.
Special Verb Forms
A verbal is derived from a verb but functions as a noun, an adjective, or an adverb. There are three types of verbals: gerunds, infinitives, and participles. (See also Verbal Phrases.)
Gerund
A gerund ends in ing and is used as a noun.
Arriving at work on time is important. (subject)
Another key to success is accomplishing your tasks. (predicate noun)
Infinitive
An infinitive is usually introduced by the word “to” and can be used as a noun, an adjective, or an adverb.
To write well is not always easy. (noun)
This is an important point to remember. (adjective)
Writers are wise to practice their writing often. (adverb)
Participle
A participle ends in ing or ed and is used as an adjective.
That employee making clay models is very creative. The completed models will be on display in the coming weeks. (Making modifies employee; completed modifies models.)
Common Irregular Verbs
| Present Tense | Past Tense | Past Participle |
| am, be | was, were | been |
| arise | arose | arisen |
| bear | bore | borne |
| begin | began | begun |
| bind | bound | bound |
| bite | bit | bitten, bit |
| blow | blew | blown |
| break | broke | broken |
| bring | brought | brought |
| build | built | built |
| burst | burst | burst |
| catch | caught | caught |
| choose | chose | chosen |
| cling | clung | clung |
| come | came | come |
| deal | dealt | dealt |
| dive | dived, dove | dived |
| do | did | done |
| draw | drew | drawn |
| dream | dreamed | dreamed |
| dreamt | dreamt | |
| drink | drank | drunk |
| drive | drove | driven |
| eat | ate | eaten |
| fall | fell | fallen |
| feed | fed | fed |
| fight | fought | fought |
| find | found | found |
| flee | fled | fled |
| fly | flew | flown |
| forbid | forbade | forbidden |
| forgive | forgave | forgiven |
| freeze | froze | frozen |
| give | gave | given |
| go | went | gone |
| grow | grew | grown |
| hang (execute) | hanged | hanged |
| hang (suspend) | hung | hung |
| hide | hid | hidden |
| know | knew | known |
| lay (put) | laid | laid |
| lead | led | led |
| lend | lent | lent |
| lie (deceive) | lied | lied |
| lie (recline) | lay | lain |
| light | lit, lighted | lit, lighted |
| mistake | mistook | mistaken |
| prove | proved | proved, proven |
| ride | rode | ridden |
| ring | rang | rung |
| rise (get up) | rose | risen |
| run | ran | run |
| see | saw | seen |
| seek | sought | sought |
| set (place) | set | set |
| shake | shook | shaken |
| shine (emit light) | shone | shone |
| show | showed | shown |
| shrink | shrank | shrunk |
| sing | sang | sung |
| sink | sank | sunk |
| sit | sat | sat |
| slay | slew | slain |
| speak | spoke | spoken |
| spring | sprang | sprung |
| steal | stole | stolen |
| strike | struck | struck, stricken |
| swear | swore | sworn |
| swim | swam | swum |
| swing | swung | swung |
| take | took | taken |
| tear | tore | torn |
| throw | threw | thrown |
| wake | woke, waked | woken, waked |
| wear | wore | worn |
| weave | wove | woven |
| wring | wrung | wrung |
| write | wrote | written |
Irregular Verbs
Adjective
An adjective is a word that describes, limits, or in any other way modifies a noun or a pronoun. (The articles a, an, and the are adjectives.) Adjectives can appear in different positions. They often come before the words they modify; but as predicate adjectives, they come after the words they modify.
The beautiful day ended with Marcia in tears. She was overjoyed. (The and beautiful modify the noun day; overjoyed is a predicate adjective and modifies the pronoun she.)
Common and Proper Adjectives
Like nouns, adjectives can be common (lowercased) or proper (capitalized).
The professors at Oxford University agreed that Americanized English was unusual.
A Closer Look
Don’t add adjectives to nouns that don’t need them. The adjectives listed below are unnecessary and only repeat what the noun already says.basic necessities, end result, exact replica, final outcome, foreign imports, free gift, joint cooperation, mutual cooperation, past history, sum total
Forms of Adjectives
Adjectives have three forms: positive, comparative, and superlative.
Positive Adjective
The positive form describes without making any comparisons.
Good employees are important assets.
Comparative Adjective
The comparative form (-er, more, or less) compares two persons, places, things, or ideas.
Good employees are a more important assets than good buildings.
Superlative Adjective
The superlative form (-est, most, or least) compares three or more persons, places, things, or ideas.
Good employees are the most important assets a business can possess.
Forms of Adjectives
| Positive | Comparative | Superlative |
| good | better | best |
| bad | worse | worst |
| cold | colder | coldest |
| crabby | crabbier | crabbiest |
| impressive | more impressive | most impressive |
Adverb
An adverb is a word that modifies a verb (or verbal), an adjective, or another adverb. Adverbs tell how, when, where, why, how often, or how much. (Not and never are adverbs.)
The business was sold quickly. (Quickly modifies the verb was sold.)
The staff was extremely concerned. (Extremely modifies the adjective concerned.)
Management moved very quickly to reassign employees. (Very modifies the adverb quickly, which modifies the verb moved.)
deep, deeply; tight, tightly; loud, loudly
A Closer Look
Adverbs can be placed in different positions in a sentence. Usually, they appear in front of the words they modify, but they can correctly follow the words as well. Caution: Adverbs should not be placed between a verb and its direct object.The secretary carefully prepared the report. (adverb before the verb)
The secretary prepared the report carefully. (adverb after the verb and its direct object)
If the problem isn’t addressed, these customers will definitely leave. (adverb between verbs)
Forms of Adverbs
Adverbs have three forms: positive, comparative, and superlative.
Positive Adverb
The positive form describes an action without making any comparisons.
This copier operates efficiently.
Comparative Adverb
The comparative form (-er, more, or less) compares the actions of two persons, places, things, or ideas.
This copier operates more efficiently than the one downstairs.
Superlative Adverb
The superlative form (-est, most, or least) compares the actions of three or more persons, places, things, or ideas.
This copier operates most efficiently of all the copiers in the building.
Special Adverb Form
Conjunctive Adverbs
A conjunctive adverb can both modify and connect words, phrases, and clauses. It can be used at the beginning, in the middle, or at the end of a sentence.
Consequently, we believe the profit/earnings ratio will not meet our expectations. We do wish, however, to evaluate your stock again in six months. We will buy another stock instead.
Preposition
A preposition is a word (or word group) used in front of a noun or a pronoun to form a phrase that modifies some other word in the sentence.
The paperwork has been piled onto the file cabinet. (The preposition onto begins a phrase that acts as an adverb modifying the verb has been piled.)
Prepositional Phrase
A prepositional phrase consists of a preposition, the object of that preposition, and the modifiers of the object.
The flowers on the luncheon table are wilted. (preposition on, object table, and modifiers the and luncheon)
Common Prepositions
| aboard | contrary to | onto |
| about | despite | on top of |
| above | down | opposite |
| according to | down from | out |
| across | due to | out of |
| across from | during | outside |
| after | except | outside of |
| against | except for | over |
| ahead of | excepting | over to |
| along | for | owing to |
| alongside | from | past |
| alongside of | from among | prior to |
| along with | from between | regarding |
| amid | from under | round |
| among | in | round about |
| apart from | in addition to | save |
| around | in back of | since |
| as | in behalf of | subsequent to |
| as for | in case of | together with |
| aside from | in front of | through |
| at | in place of | throughout |
| away from | in regard to | till |
| back of | inside | to |
| because of | inside of | toward |
| before | in spite of | under |
| behind | instead of | underneath |
| below | into | unlike |
| beneath | like | until |
| beside | near | unto |
| besides | near to | up |
| between | notwith- standing |
upon |
| beyond | of | up to |
| by | off | via |
| by means of | on | with |
| concerning | on account of | within |
| considering | on behalf of | without |
Conjunction
A conjunction is the part of speech used to connect words, phrases, clauses, or sentences. Used properly, conjunctions can add continuity to your writing.
Kinds of Conjunctions
Subordinating Conjunction
Subordinating conjunctions connect a dependent clause to an independent clause, completing the meaning of the dependent clause.
If the trailer is still here tomorrow, it will be impounded. (The dependent clause if the trailer is still here tomorrow depends on the rest of the sentence to complete its meaning.)
Correlative Conjunction
Correlative conjunctions are always used in pairs, linking items of equal weight.
She decided to neither buy nor lease a new car.
Coordinating Conjunction
Coordinating conjunctions connect grammatically equivalent elements, that is, a word to a word, a phrase to a phrase, or a clause to a clause.
“It’s not the most intellectual job in the world, but I do have to know the letters.”
—Vanna White
Kinds of Conjunctions
Coordinating
and, but, or, nor, for, yet, so
Correlative
either, or; neither, nor; not only, but also; both, and; whether, or; though, yet
Subordinating
after, although, as, as long as, as though, because, before, if, in order that, provided that, since, so that, that, though, till, unless, until, when, where, whereas, while
Interjection
An interjection is a word or phrase that expresses strong emotion or surprise. Punctuation (usually a comma or an exclamation point) sets off an interjection from the rest of the sentence.
Help! The elevator is stuck!
Oh my, that happens often.
Parts of Speech
A noun is a word that names something: a person, a place, a thing, or an idea.
Donald Trump/president
China/country
Discover/magazine
Christianity/religion
A pronoun is a word used in place of a noun.
I
you
she
it
which
themselves
me
that
he
they
whoever
whatever
my
mine
ours
A verb is a word that expresses action or state of being.
fight
walk
drive
rip
dive
jump
play
write
lift
type
call
work
is
are
was
were
An adjective describes or modifies a noun or pronoun. (The articles a, an, and the are adjectives.)
good
bad
tall
wide
clear
fast
An adverb modifies a verb, an adjective, or another adverb. An adverb tells how, when, where, why, how often, or how much. (Not and never are adverbs.)
tomorrow
near
far
perfectly
well
completely
surely
regularly
greatly
partly
slowly
quickly
A preposition is a word (or group of words) used in front of a noun or a pronoun to form a phrase that modifies some other word in the sentence.
above
across
after
away from
by
for
from
in
of
off
on
out
over
through
to
until
up
with
A conjunction connects individual words or groups of words.
and
but
or
nor
for
yet
so
because
when
though
whereas
while
An interjection expresses strong emotion or surprise.
Help!
Yikes!
Wow!
A noun is a word that names something: a person, a place, a thing, or an idea.
Donald Trump/president
China/country
Discover/magazine
Christianity/religion
A pronoun is a word used in place of a noun.
I
you
she
it
which
themselves
me
that
he
they
whoever
whatever
my
mine
ours
A verb is a word that expresses action or state of being.
fight
walk
drive
rip
dive
jump
play
write
lift
type
call
work
is
are
was
were
An adjective describes or modifies a noun or pronoun. (The articles a, an, and the are adjectives.)
good
bad
tall
wide
clear
fast
An adverb modifies a verb, an adjective, or another adverb. An adverb tells how, when, where, why, how often, or how much. (Not and never are adverbs.)
tomorrow
near
far
perfectly
well
completely
surely
regularly
greatly
partly
slowly
quickly
A preposition is a word (or group of words) used in front of a noun or a pronoun to form a phrase that modifies some other word in the sentence.
above
across
after
away from
by
for
from
in
of
off
on
out
over
through
to
until
up
with
A conjunction connects individual words or groups of words.
and
but
or
nor
for
yet
so
because
when
though
whereas
while
An interjection expresses strong emotion or surprise.
Help!
Yikes!
Wow!