Parts of Speech

Study Unit
The Parts of Speech

By
Lisa Rowe Fraustino, Ph.D.
About the Author

Lisa Rowe Fraustino, Ph.D., received her doctorate in English from the State University of New York at Binghamton. She is a college instructor and a freelance writer and editor. She has published many stories and articles in national magazines, and she has written two young adult novels, Grass and Sky and Ash, both published by Orchard Books.
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Preview
Effective communication is a demand of contemporary work life. Its becoming increasingly important in our community and social lives, too. To communicate effectively, you must master the basic tool of communicationlanguage. The objective of Practical English is to improve your communication skills. By enhancing your language skills (grammar, punctuation, spelling, writing), expanding your vocabulary, and mastering pronunciation, you can improve the ways you acquire information. In a short time, youll notice an improvement in your spoken and written English. Youll be more precise, more persuasive, and more successful in your use of English. Youll soon discover that the study of language can be exciting. Youll experience the self-assurance that comes from the knowledge that youre able to express yourself forcefully. Above all, youll enjoy the pride of your achievement. Practical English is carefully structured for organized and orderly learning. The examples in this course are interesting and easy to digest. We begin with a careful look at the eight parts of speechthe basis of English grammar. When you complete this study unit, youll be able to Explain why language is important and describe what communication skills can do for you Name the eight parts of speech and describe their functions Explain how the eight parts of speech are organized to communicate meaning in phrases, clauses, and sentences Show how the part of speech of a word is determined by the way that word functions in a sentence Determine the part of speech of each word in a sentence Apply your language skills in conversation, vocabulary, word choice, spelling, pronunciation, and writing
Contents
HOW TO STUDY . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . GUIDE TO PRONUNCIATION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Sounds Syllables Stresses
1 2
THE POWER OF WORDS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . NOUNS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Types of Nouns What Nouns Do
4 8
PRONOUNS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
Types of Pronouns Antecedents
ADJECTIVES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26
Types of Adjectives Degrees of Comparison Pronoun or Adjective?
VERBS. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38
Types of Verbs Helping Verbs Four Principal Parts Verb Tenses Conjugating Verbs Voice in Verbs
ADVERBS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51
Two Positions of the Adverb Changing Adjectives to Adverbs Degrees of Comparison Adverb or Adjective?
PREPOSITIONS. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 58
Prepositional Relationships Prepositional Phrases
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Contents
CONJUNCTIONS AND INTERJECTIONS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62

Conjunctions Interjections
APPENDIX: IRREGULAR VERBS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69 ENGLISH IN ACTION ANSWERS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73 PRACTICE EXERCISE ANSWERS. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77
The Parts of Speech

HOW TO STUDY
You should work out a method of study to fit your background and experience. The following suggestions may help you find a successful study method: Read one section (a paragraph or a group of paragraphs) of this instruction text at a time. Think it over. If theres a word that you dont understand, use your dictionary to find out what it means. Make a list of the words and other items you need to learn. Work on these until youve mastered them. Reread the section of your study unit until youre sure youve mastered it. Continue in the same way, section by section, without skipping over anything. Each day, review the work of previous days before you begin any new work. The more often you review the material, the better youll know it. Because English has many words that are difficult to say aloud, pronunciation practice is important. Use the Guide to Pronunciation in this study unit to help you learn how to say new words. In your study units are practice exercises that have the titles Practice Exersise and English in Action. Read the directions for these several times. Make sure you understand the directions before you begin to work. You may find it encouraging to compare your English in Action and Practice Exercise answers from one study session to the next to see how much youve improved.
The Parts of Speech
GUIDE TO PRONUNCIATION
The spelling of a word in English isnt always the best guide to the correct pronunciation of that word. To pronounce a word correctly in English, you must know and be able to speak the sounds, syllables, and stresses in that word. You can learn that information in a dictionary. If you can speak the individual sounds of a word, recognize the syllables, and correctly stress each of its syllables, youll be able to pronounce that word.
Sounds
Of the 26 letters of the alphabet, five are vowels (a, e, i, o, and u). The letter y is also regarded as a vowel when it doesnt begin a word. All other letters are consonants. The letters of the alphabet are combined in various ways to make words. The ways of combining letters affect how the letters sound. Here are three guidelines to help you pronounce the sounds of a word: 1. Each vowel and consonant has a distinct sound, and some have several sounds. For example, the a in bat isnt said like the a in brake, and the g in gin is different from the g in get. 2. Sometimes two vowels or two consonants come together to make one sound. This combination is called a digraph. For example, the ch in check, the ph in phone, and the ea in meat are digraphs. 3. Some vowels, consonants, and digraphs are silent when they come before or follow certain letters. How is someone to know how to speak the sounds that make up a word? Thats where a dictionary can be useful. At the front of a dictionary (or sometimes at the bottom of each page) is a key to pronunciation. By using that key, you can learn how to say all the sounds of the language. You may have to devote several study sessions to master all the sounds. Once youve mastered those building blocks of sound, all the words in the language are within your reach. Say each of the sounds in your dictionarys key to pronunciation. Notice how each sound differs from the others in the key. Try to remember a key word in which each sound is contained, such as kitten for k. Once youre comfortable with the sounds of the language, you can focus on syllables.
The Parts of Speech
Syllables
A syllable is a unit of spoken language. It may consist of one or several letters. It usually contains one vowel sound. If you can recognize and pronounce the syllables of a word, chances are youll be able to say that word correctly. Here are some words that have only one syllable: cube, proud, bird, sing, port Here are some words that have two or more syllables: about, tiger, transparent, uncertain, vertical, geometry In this Guide to Pronunciation, we divide words into syllables by using dots. Many dictionaries also use dots to divide words into syllables. Also, we respell some words that may be new to you according to how they sound. For example, controversial (controVURshul)
Stresses
In any word with more than one syllable, one of the syllables has more emphasis. This force, or primary stress, on one syllable of a word is also called the accent. In the following words, the accented syllable, in bold capital letters, is the first syllable: APple, Over, CARrot Some words that have three or more syllables have more than one stressed syllable. The syllable with the strongest stress receives the accent. The syllable with lesser stress is said to have secondary stress. Weve printed the syllable that has secondary stress in bold lowercase type. The secondary stress isnt as strong as the primary stress, but its pronounced more strongly than the unstressed syllables in the word. laboratory (LABratory) Laboratory is accented on the first and third syllables. The primary stress is on the first syllable (LAB) and the secondary stress is on the third syllable (tor). In some words of three or more syllables, only one syllable is stressedthe one with the primary stress, or accent. The other syllables, in this case, have equal stress. penmanship (PENmanship)
The Parts of Speech
The second (man) and third (ship) syllables of the word penmanship both receive a weak stress. Here are some examples of words in the text of this course that have been divided into syllables and respelled according to the way each syllable sounds. The syllables with primary stress are in bold capital letters. The syllables with secondary stress are in bold lowercase type. reprehend (repriHEND) monosyllable (MAHNuhsihluhbuhl) All dictionaries dont use the same system for showing the stresses of syllables. You should get to know how the dictionary youre using shows stresses. To speak any word in the English language correctly, you must focus on the sounds, syllables, and stresses in that word. That information is available in a dictionary. A dictionary is a valuable tool for all speakers and writers. It can be the most useful book you have.
THE POWER OF WORDS

All over the world, we find stories about the magic power of words. A magician says Abracadabra! as he pulls a rabbit out of a hat. Open Sesame! opens the door of the robbers den for Ali Baba in Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves. We all know that words dont really have such magical powers. But words do have powera power that can work wonders. And, just as real magicians can learn to do what looks impossible, you can learn to use the power of words. With the right words, you can influence or inspire others. You can entertain, inform, convince, delight, fight back, help, or spur to action. In short, you can say anything you wish. Has a salesperson ever persuaded you to buy something that turned out to be a big disappointment? Do you sometimes find yourself on the losing end of arguments with people who have excellent speaking skills? Is it often difficult to know what people really mean? Why remain on the receiving end? Why not learn to use the power of words to reach your goals? If you expand your vocabulary and learn more effective language, youll experience a great feeling of self-assurance. This self-confidence will give impact and authority to your speaking and writing. Communication is the nerve system of todays workplace. The functions and activities of an organization are created, set in motion, and guided by speaking and writing.
The Parts of Speech
Language is the main expression of human thought. Most of our thinking consists of internal dialogue. We talk to ourselves silently. So, your ability to think depends, in part, on your word skills. As you develop your vocabulary and improve your command of English, youll sharpen your powers of perception. Anyone can merely walk around a golf course and hit a golf ball. A person doesnt have to know the names or numbers of the clubs, or their proper uses. It isnt even necessary to know the rules of the game. But if someone wishes to play with those who have learned the rules of golf and who know how to use each club, then that person follows their examples. Similarly, a person who wants merely to be understood can be understood without knowing the principles of speech. However, such a person will be at a disadvantage to those who have learned how to put words together. There are more than a dozen types of golf clubs. Each type is designed for certain situations. Likewise, our language contains several types of words. Each type is designed for specific uses. There are, however, only eight speech clubs, which are what we call the parts of speech (Figure 1).
FIGURE 1You can use the parts of speech like golf clubs for different situations.
The Parts of Speech
The eight parts of speech are nouns, pronouns, adjectives, verbs, adverbs, prepositions, conjunctions, and interjections. English grammar is an explanation of how the eight parts of speech are organized to communicate meaning. If you have trouble remembering the parts of speech and their functions, you might find it helpful to familiarize yourself with the ditty (a short song) in Figure 2.
FIGURE 2A Song for the Parts of Speech
Nouns name people, places, and things, such as Smith, Denver, potatoes, and wings. Pronouns are used in place of nouns I think, she sings, they work, and he frowns. Adjectives add something to the nouns, as inold New York and little towns. And dont forget that many, few, numbers and articles (a, an, and the) are adjectives, too. Verbs tell of action and state of being. To work, become, exist, and disturb each of these is called a verb. Adverbs can add much to the meaning of adjectives, as brightly gleaming. To verbs they also add a thought, as when we say, was nearly caught. And last, an adverb has the chore of modifying other adverbs as in You sing very well. Please sing more! Prepositions show relations, as with affection, or in the stations. Conjunctions are the joining words theyre the ties that bind day and night, calm but cold, dull or bright. Interjections are words that show sudden emotion, as Alas! Ah! 0h! Thus briefly does this ditty state the parts of speech, which total eight.
Just as certain golf clubs may be used for several types of play, a word may be used as different parts of speech. For instance, the word building may be a noun, a verb, or an adjective. The part of speech of a word depends on how its used in a sentence.
The Parts of Speech
Noun: We entered the building. Verb: They are building a new home. Adjective: We spoke with the building manager. Noun: The fire gives off plenty of light. Verb: Please light the fire. Adjective: The job requires some light typing. Often, a word changes form depending on its use. Noun: Michael had a fast car. Adjective: We never rode in Michaels car. Verb: The boat sank. Adjective: A sunken boat is hard to ride. Whenever you have doubts about the part of speech of a word, look it up in a dictionary. When using a dictionary, always check the part of speech of the word. You want to make sure you have the word you really want. Dictionaries often show the eight parts of speech with abbreviations. Abbreviations are short forms of a word (Figure 3).
FIGURE 3Common Dictionary Abbreviations for the Parts of Speech
n. pron. adj. v. adv. prep. conj. noun pronoun adjective verb adverb preposition conjunction
In the next section of the study unit, youll learn about nouns. But first, take a few moments to review what youve learned so far by completing Practice Exercise 1.
The Parts of Speech
Practice Exercise 1
At the end of each section of The Parts of Speech, youll be asked to check your understanding of what youve just read by completing a Practice Exercise. Writing the answers to these questions will help you review what youve learned so far. Please complete Practice Exercise 1 now. 1. In what ways can words be considered to have power? Note: Your answers may vary. If youre unsure of your answers, please review the text.
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2. How many parts of speech are there? Name them.

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3. Define grammar.
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Check your answers with those on page 77.
NOUNS
One of the first skills an infant learns is to name things, such as Mama, Dada, ball, and dog. The name of any person, place, thing, or quality is a noun. If you can touch it, see it, hear it, smell it, taste it, or have it, its probably a noun. Persons: boy, girl, nurse, assistant, operator, James Dean Places: earth, country, Main Street, Canada, Africa Things: airplane, money, veil, tornado, hawk, pearl, Statue of Liberty Qualities: honesty, beauty, truth
The Parts of Speech
Types of Nouns
Nouns can be put into five types. 1. Common 2. Proper 3. Collective 4. Abstract 5. Concrete Understanding these five types will help you to identify the nouns you find in sentences, and to write interesting and grammatically correct sentences.
Common Nouns
All nouns can be classified first as one of the first two types. They are all either common or proper. A common noun is a word that names any general type of person, place, thing, or animal (Figure 4).
FIGURE 4A common noun is a word such as building.
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The Parts of Speech
Persons: butcher, woman, teacher Places: town, desert, coast Things: glass, camera, dress Animals: tiger, parakeet, goldfish A woman in town has a glass with a goldfish painted on it.
Proper Nouns
Did you notice that some of the nouns in our examples begin with capital letters while others dont? Common nouns are general and arent capitalized, but proper nouns are specific names and are capitalized (Figure 5).
FIGURE 5A proper noun names something specific, like the Folger Memorial Library.
Common nouns: The girl returned the book to the library. Proper nouns: Sarah Wren returned The Adventures of Tom Sawyer to the Folger Memorial Library. In this case, Sarah Wren is a single proper noun. The Adventures of Tom Sawyer is one proper noun, and Folger Memorial Library is also a single proper noun. The remaining three types of nouns are collective, abstract, and concrete. These nouns are also common or proper, depending on whether theyre general or specific.
The Parts of Speech
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Collective Nouns
A collective noun names a group (Figure 6). Groups of people: team, jury, coalition, Congress Groups of animals: herd, flock, bevy, pride, litter Groups of things: bunch, bundle, deck, pack, box The jury used a pack of notebooks and a box of pencils.
FIGURE 6A collective noun such as crowd can name a group of people.
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The Parts of Speech
Abstract Nouns
Abstract nouns name qualities, conditions, ideas, and feelings that cant be identified by the senses of taste, touch, sight, sound, and smell (Figure 7).
FIGURE 7Love is an abstract noun.
Qualities: mercy, evil, goodness Conditions: purity, inferiority, perfection Ideas: subtraction, bondage, childhood Feelings: fear, sorrow, happiness, love Thank goodness he finally learned subtraction and no longer suffers from math inferiority.
Concrete Nouns
Concrete nouns are specific. You may see, taste, smell, hear, or touch the objects they identify (Figure 8). Things you can see: lamp, ice, hammer, ceiling, tree, Liberty Bell Things you can taste: coffee, pizza, lemon, potato, Pepsi-Cola Things you can smell: popcorn, gas, paint, mud, flowers Things you can hear: song, voice, horn, radio, band Things you can touch: book, hand, cup, animal, Ford I spilled a whole cup of coffee on my book.
The Parts of Speech
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FIGURE 8Hammer is a concrete noun.
What Nouns Do
Knowing what nouns do will help you recognize them. In sentences, nouns can Perform actions Complete actions Be the objects of actions A noun that performs an action is called a subject. John ran. Nouns that complete actions or have actions done to them are called objects. John visited Grandma. John gave Grandma a pie. Objects of prepositions are nouns that follow prepositions. In the following sentence, the preposition is on, and floor is its object. John dropped the pie on the floor.
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The Parts of Speech
Subject complements are words that follow linking verbs (such as is or are). A subject complement explains, renames, or describes a subject. My brother is a mechanic. One tip you can use to recognize nouns is to look for the words a, an, and the, which are called articles. Whenever you see a, an, or the, look for a noun to follow (Figure 9).
FIGURE 9Articles indicate that nouns are coming soon.
Please park the car in the garage. (The nouns are car and garage.) I would like a pear or an apple. (The nouns are pear and apple.) Well complete the process soon. (The noun is process.) Keep in mind that other words may crop up between the article and the noun. Please park the new car in the municipal garage. I would like a Bartlett pear or a Granny Smith apple. Well complete the screening process soon. Even with the extra words in between, car, garage, apple, pear, and process are still the nouns. Before moving on to study about pronouns, review what weve covered so far by doing English in Action 1, English in Action 2, and Practice Exercise 2.
The Parts of Speech
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English in Action 1
Read the following passage about computer files. Then, read the passage again. During the second reading, use a pencil to underline the nouns as you go. If finding nouns seems difficult, dont be worried! We dont expect you to be a perfect noun-spotter yet. After all, weve just started our journey through the eight parts of speech. But youll learn as you go, from your mistakes as well as from your successes.
All the information on a computer system is stored in computer files. To give you a better understanding of what a computer file is and how its stored by your computer, lets look at a typical paper file system. Most people store a variety of information, such as bills, receipts, special instructions, and manuals, either at work or at home. These items are kept for future use. Now, if we scatter these items across a table or desk, the information is very hard to find. Therefore, most people store items in individual file folders. People often attach labels to each folder, so its easy to determine whats in each file folder. The name on the label represents the information in the file. Labeling this way makes it easier to find information. Computer files are like paper files. Information thats used by a computer is stored in electronic files. Each file folder is given a name by the user. The name given to each computer file is called the filename.
English in Action 2
Notice the nouns around you. Look for nouns today wherever you go, in such places as Newspapers Checkbooks Letters Addresses Billboards Television shows Food containers Shopping lists Receipts
Write down at least 10 nouns each day for a week. Look your words up in a dictionary to make sure that youve identified them correctly as nouns.
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The Parts of Speech
Practice Exercise 2
Questions 19: After each of the following proper nouns, write a related common noun. Your answers may vary from the examples weve given here. If youre unsure of your answers, please review the text. Example: Proper noun Eiffel Tower Common noun monument
1. George Washington
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2. Sarah
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3. New York
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4. Tuesday
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5. April
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6. Tokyo
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7. The Wall Street Journal

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8. The Beatles
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9. National Coalition Against Censorship

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(Continued)
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Practice Exercise 2
Questions 1017: Rewrite the following sentences. Capitalize the proper nouns, and underline the common nouns. The first one is done for you as an example. 10. Early in april, paula and harry jones left on their trip. Early in April, Paula and Harry Jones left on their trip. ________________________________________________________________________________ 11. They drove their volvo to old bass lake.
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12. On their way to the lake, they stopped in toledo, ohio, and in chicago, illinois.
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13. The volvo was loaded with supplies, which included a tent, a stove, fishing gear, sleeping bags, and canned food.
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14. During their trip, paula and harry read magazines.

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15. Harry took copies of readers digest, popular mechanics, and sports illustrated.
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16. Time and newsweek were the magazines paula liked.

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17. On their return trip, they planned to visit the home of abraham lincoln in springfield.
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The Parts of Speech
PRONOUNS
What do you notice about the following sentence? Elizabeth said that Elizabeth needed to borrow Elizabeths brothers car if Elizabeth was going to arrive at Elizabeths job interview on time. The repetition of the noun Elizabeth gets irritating, doesnt it? The following sentence is better. Elizabeth said that she needed to borrow her brothers car if she was going to arrive at her job interview on time. She and her are pronouns, words that you can substitute for nouns. Like nouns, pronouns can be subjects, direct objects, indirect objects, or subject complements.
Types of Pronouns
Pronouns are classified according to the work they do. The following are the types of pronouns: Personal Possessive Demonstrative Interrogative Relative Indefinite Pronouns can often be classed in more than one type. For example, personal pronouns can also be possessive pronouns.
Personal Pronouns
Personal pronouns refer to People doing the speaking People being spoken to People or other nouns being spoken about
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First person pronouns indicate the speaker. I am wearing my coat. Please give me the umbrella. We put ours on the shelf. Give us our boots. Second person pronouns indicate the person spoken to. Did you put your coat in the closet? Please put yours on a hanger. Third person pronouns indicate the person or thing spoken of. He and his friend borrowed books. They went to visit her and him. She gave her book to him. It was wet and its pages were torn. Visit their home when the sky is clear. Figure 10 lists the personal pronouns.
FIGURE 10The personal pronouns refer to nouns speaking, being spoken to, or being spoken about. First person Second person Third person
PERSONAL PRONOUNS
I, me, mine, my, myself, we, us, our, ours, ourselves you, your, yours, yourself, yourselves he, him, his, himself, she, her, hers, herself, it, its, itself, they, them, their, theirs, themselves
Possessive Pronouns
Possessive pronouns are personal pronouns that show ownership (Figure 11).
FIGURE 11Possessive pronouns stand for a noun that owns something else.
POSSESSIVE PRONOUNS
First person Second person Third person mine, ours yours his, hers, its, theirs
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The Parts of Speech
Possessive noun: Here are Carlas glasses. Possessive pronoun: Here are hers. In the following sentence, the possessive noun Carlas and the possessive pronoun hers both refer to the noun glasses. Ellen found which glasses, Carlas, or hers? Notice that possessive pronouns are never spelled with an apostrophe. Incorrect: That dog of hers waggles its tail. Correct: That dog of hers waggles its tail. (Its is the contraction [shortened version] of it is. Hers is like his, neither have an apostrophe.)
Demonstrative Pronouns
Demonstrative pronouns are used to point out definite persons, places, things, or ideas (Figure 12).
FIGURE 12Demonstrative pronouns point out someone or something definite.
DEMONSTRATIVE PRONOUNS
this, these, that, those
These are my keys, and those are yours. This and these usually refer to something near at hand or recently mentioned. That and those refer to things farther away in thought and position. This goes right here, but that goes over there.
Interrogative Pronouns
Interrogative pronouns are used in asking questions (Figure 13).
FIGURE 13Interrogative pronouns can get you information.
INTERROGATIVE PRONOUNS
who, whose, whom, which, what
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What did you say? Who let the cat out of the bag?
Relative Pronouns
Relative pronouns show relationships by introducing a new idea into a sentence (Figure 14).
FIGURE 14Relative pronouns introduce a separate part of a sentence.
RELATIVE PRONOUNS
who, which, what, that, whose, whom, whoever, whosoever, whichever, whatever, whomever, whatsoever
The potatoes, which are fresh, are served baked, fried, or mashed. I have no idea what came over him. Go ahead and take whichever bunk you prefer. John, who has been my assistant for some time, will be working on your case. He told me that he could start right away.
Indefinite Pronouns
Indefinite pronouns refer to unspecified nouns, or sometimes just to things in general (Figure 15).
FIGURE 15Indefinite pronouns refer to nouns that arent specific.
INDEFINITE PRONOUNS
all, another, any, anybody, anyone, anything, both, each, each one, each other, either, everybody, everyone, everything, few, many, neither, nobody, none, no one, nothing, one, one another, other, others, several, some, somebody, someone, something
All of you are invited, and everyone may bring a guest. I see someone coming.
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The Parts of Speech
Antecedents
A pronoun should usually refer to a noun that came earlier. The person, place, thing, or idea that a pronoun replaces or refers back to is called its antecedent. Sometimes the antecedent appears in the same sentence as the pronoun. The potter scratched his name on the vase. Potter is the antecedent of the pronoun his. Sometimes the pronouns antecedent appears in an earlier sentence. Olivia was the last person to leave. She left the door open. The proper noun Olivia is the antecedent to the personal pronoun she. Each pronoun should agree with its antecedent in number and gender. For example, if the antecedent is one woman, then the pronoun could be she. If the antecedent is several people, then they could be a pronoun that refers back to them. When a pronoun refers to one person, place, thing, or idea, its singular in number. Some singular pronouns: I, she, her, him, it, and its When a word refers to more than one, its plural in number. Some plural pronouns: we, our, you, your, they, and their Gender can be feminine, masculine, or, if the pronoun refers to a noun thats not masculine or feminine, neuter. Feminine pronouns: she, her, and hers Masculine pronouns: he, him, and his Neuter pronouns: it, its, they, them, their, and theirs Indefinite pronouns are exceptions to the rules of antecedents. Indefinite pronouns are sometimes used when the speaker or writer cant identify a particular person, place, thing, or idea. Such pronouns dont always require an antecedent to make sense. Somebody left the door open. The sentence makes sense even though somebody has no antecedent. Somebody doesnt refer to any particular person. In the next section, well learn about adjectives. But first, take a few minutes to complete English in Action 3 and Practice Exercise 3.
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English in Action 3
Read the following passage on handwriting, and underline all the pronouns. Above each pronoun, write whether its personal, interrogative, indefinite, demonstrative, possessive, or relative.
What is the value of clear handwriting? Is yours as clear as it can be? Everyone knows clear handwriting is important for success in every kind of business, and that it is important in correspondence with relatives and friends. Anyone who will study and practice good hand writing for a reasonable time can acquire the skill. These are some of the things that you should keep in mind if you would like to improve yours. Good handwriting depends, first of all, on the correct position. What is the correct writing position? In time you will come to assume the right position without giving it thought, for the right position is whatever is easiest and most natural for each of us.
Practice Exercise 3
Questions 15: Underline the personal pronouns in the following sentences. Example: Dan will call you when he gets a chance. 1. Sam gave it to him on Monday, almost a week late. 2. Martha, will you please report to your station? 3. General MacArthur said, I shall return! 4. The employees have elected Jane president of the union, and by doing so they have shown complete trust in her. 5. We all wrote letters. Michael wrote in his, The family and I will see you on Friday. We go on vacation then.
(Continued)
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Practice Exercise 3
Questions 614: Write down the personal pronouns in each sentence. Tell whether each pronoun is in the first person, second person, or third person. (Reminder: Possessive pronouns are personal pronouns.) Example: Last night my friends came to the house to talk.
my, first person ________________________________________________________________________________ 6. We decided to take our vacations together.

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7. They took theirs at a later time last year, but this year they will take it earlier.
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8. I took mine quite early last year, but that can be changed, too.
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9. Your vacation was shorter than you intended.

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10. Do you think it could be a little longer this year?

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11. Between you and me, the friends were not sure they liked it, but they agreed to take a vote anyhow.
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12. We gave them paper and a pencil, and each wrote down her suggestion and gave her reason for it.
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13. Each friend read her own suggestion.

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14. I dont know how it happened, but they both had the same idea, and now we are going backpacking in the nearest mountains.
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(Continued)
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Practice Exercise 3
Questions 1523: Write down the pronouns you find in each sentence. Indicate whether each pronoun is personal, interrogative, indefinite, demonstrative, or relative. (Classify possessive pronouns as personal pronouns.) Example: To whom must you make your report? whom, interrogative you, personal your, personal ________________________________________________________________________________ 15. Any of several methods could be used to solve his problems.
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16. Those are unnecessary actions.

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17. That will be taken care of later.

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18. Somebody forgot his or her raincoat.

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19. Which did you give to them?

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20. The causes for which John fought are now dead.
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21. What are you planning to do now?

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22. I prefer doing that to making a speech before them.

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23. Bill asked, Whose is that?

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26
The Parts of Speech
ADJECTIVES
An adjective is a word that helps make a noun or pronoun more definite. Adjectives describe nouns and pronouns. We use adjectives in almost every sentence. They help us to make our speaking and writing more definite, more colorful, and more interesting (Figure 16). Adjectives help us paint word pictures by telling What kind Which one How much How many
FIGURE 16Adjectives can add color to a sentence.
Adjectives can also indicate Color Size Shape What kind? Steve gave us a rotten deal on the four-door sedan. Which one? We bought the last car on the lot. How much or how many? Besides the hefty price, it cost us countless headaches.
The Parts of Speech
27
Its easy to identify an adjective when its close to the noun it modifies, as shown in the following sentences. Your husband has painted a beautiful picture. My new employee shows great promise. Most of the time, adjectives appear directly in front of their nouns or pronouns. But you can also find adjectives after the words they describe. The car is useless.
Types of Adjectives
Some types of adjectives will seem familiar to you. Several types of adjectives resemble the types of nouns and pronouns.
Common and Proper Adjectives

The two major classifications of adjectives are common and proper. Common adjectives are general in nature. Julia had a bad case of the flu. Roger has a guard dog. Jess is a world-class athlete. Note: Notice that one of these examples includes an adjective thats spelled just like its noun and verb forms. Depending on how its used, the word guard can be an adjective, a noun, or a verb. Adjective: Roger owns a good guard dog. (Guard modifies the noun dog.) Noun: We are looking for a dog that is a good guard. Verb: Our two dogs guard the family very well. A proper adjective is formed from a proper noun, and it requires a capital letter. Julie had the Hong Kong flu. Roger has a German shepherd. Jess is an Olympian gymnast.
Articles
The articles are the most frequently used adjectives (Figure 17). Almost all sentences include at least one article. These words indicate that a noun will soon follow.
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The Parts of Speech
FIGURE 17Articles signal that nouns are coming.
ARTICLES
a, an, the
A woman rode an elephant. The audience applauded. Use an before words beginning with a vowel sound (The vowels are a, e, i, o, and u.). Use a before words beginning with a consonant sound (the rest of the alphabet). To know whether a word begins with a vowel or consonant sound, you often have to pronounce it. Dont just look at the spelling, or you might make a mistake. Examples: an apple a boy a cow a cold drink an eggplant a giraffe a hotel an honest man (because the h is silent) an igloo a drivers license a moonstone a queen a swift rowboat a shoulder an umbrella a xylophone an X ray (because X is pronounced ex, which begins with a vowel sound) a yacht
The Parts of Speech
29
Demonstrative Adjectives
The demonstrative adjectives point out specific persons, places, or things (Figure 18). This and that are singular, and they modify singular nouns. These and those are plural, and they modify plural nouns. Remember, these words can also be pronouns. You can tell a demonstrative adjective from a demonstrative pronoun because a noun soon follows a demonstrative adjective. Demonstrative pronouns stand on their own.
FIGURE 18Demonstrative adjectives point out a specific noun.
COMMONLY USED DEMONSTRATIVE ADJECTIVES

this, these, that, those
This book was a gift to me. (This modifies the noun book.) That question surprised us. (That modifies the noun question.) Please iron these shirts. (These modifies the noun shirts.) I would like three of those bicycle helmets. (Those modifies the noun helmets.)
Indefinite Adjectives
The indefinite adjectives also point out persons, places, or things. Theyre less specific than demonstrative adjectives (Figure 19). Like demonstrative adjectives, these words can also be pronouns. Some days are warmer than others. (Some modifies days.) The supervisor reminded them that every employee should try to do excellent work. (Every modifies employee.) Jim told us to use the other plan. (Other modifies plan.)
FIGURE 19Indefinite adjectives point out nouns, but are less specific than demonstrative adjectives.
COMMONLY USED INDEFINITE ADJECTIVES

each, one, another, many, no, either, some, few, several, any, neither, other, all, both, every
30
The Parts of Speech
Interrogative Adjectives
Interrogative adjectives are used to ask questions (Figure 20). These words can also be pronouns.
FIGURE 20Interrogative adjectives are adjectives that ask questions.
COMMONLY USED INTERROGATIVE ADJECTIVES

what, whose, which
What, whose, and which, when theyre used as interrogative adjectives, always modify the noun or pronoun that comes after them. What cities are you going to visit? (What modifies cities.) Whose hat do you like best? (Whose modifies hat.) In which direction is the wind blowing? (Which modifies direction.)
Possessive Adjectives
Possessive adjectives (Figure 21) indicate ownership or show possession. Theyre never spelled with an apostrophe. They modify nouns. Your hat is very interesting. The dog began to chase its tail. My house is white and their house is green.
FIGURE 21Possessive adjectives show that a noun belongs to someone or something.
POSSESSIVE ADJECTIVES
my, your, his, her, its, our, your, their
Possessive adjectives and articles a, an, and the arent interchangeable. The possessive adjective your, in particular, is used by some speakers and writers when an article is required. Use possessive adjectives only when its a clear case of ownership or possession. Incorrect: Your weather for the weekend isnt going to be very good. (One cant own the weather.) Correct: The weather for the weekend isnt going to be very good.
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Incorrect: This is your public library. Its an important local landmark. (One person doesnt own the library. It belongs to the community as a whole.) Correct: This is the public library. Its an important local landmark.
Degrees of Comparison
Adjectives are generally changed in form to show degrees of comparison. There are three degrees of comparison (Figure 22).
FIGURE 22This figure illustrates the three degrees of comparison of hot.
Positive, which is simply descriptive, as in This is a warm day. Comparative, which compares two things only, as in Monday was warmer than Tuesday. Superlative, which indicates an extreme, as in Today is the warmest day weve had in weeks. The usual way to form the comparative is to add -r or -er. Form the superlative by adding -st or -est (Figure 23). Many adjectives of two or more syllables would be awkward to pronounce if another syllable were added. Consider, for example, the word talented. Talenteder or talentedest would be a mouthful. Instead, form the comparative and superlative of such adjectives by using them with more or less, most or least. Clara is talented. Her older sister is more talented. Her younger sister is the most talented of the three. That leaves Clara the least talented in a talented family.
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The Parts of Speech
FIGURE 23The Three Degrees of Comparison for Adjectives
THREE DEGREES OF COMPARISON FOR ADJECTIVES POSITIVE

high large sweet sick
COMPARATIVE
higher larger sweeter sicker
SUPERLATIVE
highest largest sweetest sickest
A few adjectives change form completely when compared. You should memorize these forms to avoid using them incorrectly (Figure 24).
FIGURE 24These words have irregular comparative and superlative degrees.
IRREGULAR COMPARATIVE AND SUPERLATIVE DEGREES POSITIVE

bad good little, less many much
COMPARATIVE
worse better lesser more more
SUPERLATIVE
worst best least most most
Some adjectives cant logically be compared. Absolute adjectives (Figure 25) express qualities that are complete, so you cant use more or most with such words.
FIGURE 25Absolute adjectives cant be made into more than they already are.
ABSOLUTE ADJECTIVES
almighty, circular, complete, correct, dead, empty, endless, equal, eternal, ever or everlasting, exact, honest, infinite, matchless, omnipotent, omniscient, perfect, perpendicular, perpetual, right, round, single, square, supreme, triangular, unique, universal, wrong
The Parts of Speech
33
Either somethings correct, dead, or round, or else its not correct, dead, or round. Something cant be more or less correct, dead, or round. True, people do use such expressions as most unique, more honest, or more exact. But they arent saying what they really mean. Effective communicators choose words carefully to say precisely what they mean.
Pronoun or Adjective?
By now youve probably noticed that some adjectives have the same spellings as pronouns. The words this, that, these, and those, for example, can be either demonstrative adjectives or pronouns. The words many, all, and few can be either indefinite adjectives or pronouns. Similarly, the words what, whose, and which can be either interrogative adjectives or pronouns. You can tell those words apart if you pay close attention to how theyre used in a sentence (Figure 26).
FIGURE 26An adjective can accompany a noun, but a pronoun stands alone.
We like this hotel better than that inn. Which hotel?this hotel. Which inn?that inn. The words this and that are used here as adjectives. They modify the nouns hotel and inn. These are more important than those.
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The Parts of Speech
These and those are used here as pronouns. They stand on their own. They dont modify anything. Many are called, but few are chosen. Here, many and few are indefinite pronouns. Many people are called, but few people are chosen. Here, many and few are indefinite adjectives. They both modify the noun people. Whats good for one is good for all. Here, one and all are indefinite pronouns. All men are created equal. Here, all is an indefinite adjective. It modifies the noun men. To avoid confusing adjectives and pronouns, always remember that Pronouns take the place of nouns Adjectives generally modify nouns Before we continue to learn about verbs, pause for a moment to complete English in Action 4 and Practice Exercise 4.
English in Action 4
The sentences given below contain adjectives and pronouns that are spelled alike. Circle the demonstrative, indefinite, and interrogative adjectives in these sentences. Then, draw arrows from the adjectives to the nouns they modify. Also, underline the demonstrative, indefinite, and interrogative pronouns in these sentences. This exercise will allow you to determine if you understand the difference between adjectives and pronouns. 1. Many people, especially those who grew up before the age of the personal computer, dont understand how computers store information. 2. That information is stored in electronic files. Those files function much like file folders. 3. Each file is given a name. The name given to each, its filename, should represent the information found in the file.
(Continued)
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35
English in Action 4
4. What is the difference between the way a computer stores information and that used to store information in a conventional filing cabinet? 5. That explanation isnt as clear as the one all of us heard at the lecture yesterday. 6. Which flowers are the most beautiful? These lilies are very nice, but theyre less interesting than those. 7. Many houses are comfortable, but few are as comfortable as this cottage. 8. Many people were crowded into a very small space. All agreed that it was time to enlarge the office space. 9. Several examples are often helpful. Which example dont you understand? Check your answers with those on page 75.
Practice Exercise 4
Questions 110: Circle the nouns from each phrase, and underline the adjectives. 1. dark clouds 2. blazing sun 3. warm, windy weather 4. calm sea and blue sky
(Continued)
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The Parts of Speech
Practice Exercise 4
5. busy doctor 6. cheerful nurse 7. competent salesclerk 8. helpful typist 9. young, serious astronaut 10. carefree children and carefree mothers Questions 1120: List the adjectives you find in the following sentences. After each adjective, write the noun it modifies. 11. A strange light shone in the western sky.
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12. Our friend took a small boat down the turbulent river.
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13. By late August, the brief northern summer is finished.

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14. Stinging snow and strong winds lashed the brave rescuers.
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15. Quick and efficient workers cleared the long runway.

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16. Violent storms have affected the radio signals.

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17. Intensive study helped Heather to win the gold medal.

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(Continued)
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Practice Exercise 4
18. The silver rays of the bright moon were reflected in the clear waters of the little lake.
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19. The naval convoys brought in new supplies.

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20. Heavy sleds hauled the equipment across the frozen tundra.
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Questions 2135: Write the comparative and superlative forms for each of the adjectives listed. If the adjective cant be compared, write Absolute. 21. brave _______________________________________________________________________ 22. distinct _____________________________________________________________________ 23. bad_________________________________________________________________________ 24. high ________________________________________________________________________ 25. active _______________________________________________________________________ 26. long ________________________________________________________________________ 27. large________________________________________________________________________ 28. square ______________________________________________________________________ 29. beautiful ____________________________________________________________________ 30. eternal ______________________________________________________________________ 31. practical ____________________________________________________________________ 32. lazy ________________________________________________________________________ 33. little ________________________________________________________________________ 34. fat__________________________________________________________________________ 35. empty ______________________________________________________________________ Check your answers with those on page 78.
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The Parts of Speech
Verbs
A verb is a word used to express action (run, jump, think) or a state of being (be, seem). A verb helps to make a statement about the subject. It tells what the subject is doing or whats happening to the subject. The dogs run and jump. People seem happy when they think big. In these examples, dogs, people, and they are the subjects, and they do the actions of the verbs.
Types of Verbs
There are two main types of verbs, action and linking. Action verbs express physical or mental action (Figure 27). Physical action: The mechanic removed the engine. Mental action: The owner worried about the engine. Physical action verbs are easy to pick out because they express action. The dog ran. The coffee spilled. The sun shines.
FIGURE 27Action verbs can express physical and mental actions.
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Mental action verbs can be more difficult to pick out because you cant see or observe actions that take place in someones mind. Verbs like love, hope, trust, think, and understand are mental action verbs. Linking verbs dont express action at all. Instead, they link the subject and another word. These linking verbs simply express a state of being. The most common linking verb is the verb to be, in its various forms (Figure 28). The sky is clearing. I am happy.
FIGURE 28Linking verbs link a subject with another word.
LINKING VERBS
am, is, are, was, were, be, being, been
Helping Verbs
Emma will be swinging her golf club. The tree had been leaning for years before it fell. Josh is working in his garden. Nancy will be representing the company at the convention. In these examples, notice that the main verbs are with other verbsis working, had been leaning, will be representing. These other verbs are called helping verbs (Figure 29). Helping verbs can do many jobs in a sentence. They show shifts in tense, or time. Helping verbs also show the mood, or the tone of the verbwhether its a command (you will go), a possibility (you may go), or a wish (you should go). Figure 30 shows some of the most commonly used helping verbs. The verb to be in its various forms is the most frequently used helping verb. When a form of to be is followed by a main verb, its a helping verb. When to be is the main verb, its a linking verb. Helping verb: We will be leaving for vacation tomorrow. Linking verb: Next week at this time, we will be on vacation. In the first sentence, leaving shows the main action, and will be is just helping. But in the second section, will be is the main verb, and theres no other verb with it.
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The Parts of Speech
FIGURE 29A helping verb aids a main verb
FIGURE 30Helping verbs go with main verbs.
COMMONLY USED HELPING VERBS

am, is, are, was, were, be, being, been, has, have, had, shall, will, can, may, should, would, could, might, must, do, did, does
When youre finding the verbs in sentences, keep in mind that other parts of speech can come between helping verbs and main verbs. The complete verb consists of the main verb and its helping verbs. I will always love you. In this sentence, will love is the complete verb, even though the adverb always is between the two parts. You might as well go ahead without me. The complete verb is might go.
The Parts of Speech
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Four Principal Parts

Verbs have four principal parts: 1. Infinitive. The infinitive is the to form of the verb (to call, to walk, to love, and to hope). Infinitives often function as other parts of speech. 2. Present participle. The present participle ends in -ing (calling, walking, loving, and hoping). 3. Past tense. The past tense of regular verbs usually ends in -ed (called, walked, loved, and hoped). There are many other endings for irregular verbs (as in rode, sank, brought, forgave, and hid). 4. Past participle. The past participle of verbs commonly ends in -d, -ed, -n, or -en (held, called, torn, and forgiven). This is the form of the verb thats used with have, has, or had. The past participle forms the perfect tenses. Theres probably no rule in English that doesnt have exceptions. Those verbs that ignore the rules are called irregular verbs, and weve included the most common ones in an appendix at the end of this study unit.
Verb Tenses
Verbs take different forms to indicate the time of the actionwhether its happening now, already completed, or going to take place. This expression of time and action is called tense. English verbs have three simple tenses and three perfect tenses. The simple tenses are the present, past, and future. The regular form of a verb (the form you look up in the dictionary) is in the present tense. To form the simple present and past tenses, the main verb needs no helping verb. The future tense requires the helping verb will. Present tense: The loon cries mournfully. Past tense: The loon cried mournfully. Future tense: The loon will cry mournfully. The perfect tenses are the present perfect, past perfect, and future perfect. Perfect tenses require the helping verbs have, has, or had. They take the past participle of the main verb. Present perfect tense: The loon has cried mournfully. Past perfect tense: The loon had cried mournfully. Future perfect tense: The loon will have cried mournfully. The form of have may change for a plural subject. If the loon isnt alone in the present perfect tense, then the loons have cried.
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The Parts of Speech
When speaking or writing, be careful to stay in the proper verb tense. Use the present tense to describe current conditions and repeated procedures. Use the present perfect tense to indicate actions that happened in the past but are connected to the present. Present: The patient complains of pain in the knee. Present perfect: The patient has complained of pain in the knee for a week. (The complaining began in the past and continues into the present.) Use the past tense with events that happened completely in the past. Use the past perfect tense to indicate a connection between actions that happened in the past. Past: The patient complained of pain in the knee. (The complaint is over and done with.) Past perfect: The patient had complained of pain in the knee before she fell. (The fall occurred in the past, and the complaint occurred even before that.) Use the future tense for actions that will begin in the future. Use the future perfect tense to indicate a connection between events that will be completed in the future. Future: The patient will complain about pain after the surgery. (The surgery isnt completed yet.) Future perfect: The patient will have complained about pain before the nurse will offer medication. (The nurse will give medication only after the patient complains of pain.) In addition to the simple and perfect tenses, verbs take other forms. Progressive tenses show continuing action. To form the progressive, use the helping verb to be with the present participle of the main verb. Present progressive: The accountant is working now. Past progressive: The accountant was working yesterday. Future progressive: The accountant will be working tomorrow. Present perfect progressive: The accountant has been working all day. Past perfect progressive: The accountant had been working for hours before the others arrived. Future perfect progressive: The accountant will have been working for twelve hours before the day is finished. Now, review for a few minutes by completing English in Action 5.
The Parts of Speech
43
English in Action 5
The following passage is adapted from Common Sense by Thomas Paine. This publication did more than any other to persuade the colonial American population to separate from Great Britain. Underline each complete verbthe main verb and any helping verbs. Remember that other parts of speech sometimes come between helping verbs and main verbs. Then, on the lines provided, list each complete verb and indicate the tense.
Volumes have been written on the subject of the struggle between England and America. Men of all ranks have entered in the controversy. They have had different motives and various intentions. But all have been ineffective. The period of debate is closed. . . . I have heard it asserted by some that America has flourished under her former connection with Great Britain. Therefore, the same connection is necessary towards her future happiness, and it will always have the same effect. Nothing can be more false than this kind of argument. We may as well assert that because a child has thrived upon milk, it should never have meat. Or, what we do for the first twenty years of life is what we should do for the next twenty. . . . I answer roundly that America would have flourished as much, and probably much more, had no European power taken any notice of her. The trade and commerce by which she has enriched herself are the necessities of life. They will always have a market while eating is the custom in Europe.
________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________
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The Parts of Speech
Conjugating Verbs
To conjugate a verb, list all of the possible tenses of a verb, in singular and plural, and in first, second, and third person, using the proper verb endings and helping verbs. Figure 31 shows a conjugation of to wash.
SINGULAR PRESENT TENSE I wash you wash he/she/it washes PAST TENSE I washed you washed he/she/it washed FUTURE TENSE I will wash you will wash he/she/it will wash PRESENT PERFECT TENSE I have washed you have washed he/she/it has washed PAST PERFECT TENSE I had washed you had washed he/she/it had washed FUTURE PERFECT TENSE I will have washed you will have washed he/she/it will have washed
PLURAL
we wash you wash they wash
we washed you washed they washed
we will wash you will wash they will wash
we have washed you have washed they have washed
we had washed you had washed they had washed
we will have washed you will have washed they will have washed
FIGURE 31Conjugation of the Verb To Wash
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To be is the most useful and commonly used verb in English. Its a highly irregular verb. Its important to learn its principal parts and the various forms it can take as a main verb. Figure 32 shows a conjugation of to be.
SINGULAR PRESENT TENSE I am you are he/she/it is PAST TENSE I was you were he/she/it was FUTURE TENSE I will be you will be he/she/it will be PRESENT PERFECT TENSE I have been you have been he/she/it has been PAST PERFECT TENSE I had been you had been he/she/it had been FUTURE PERFECT TENSE I will have been you will have been he/she/it will have been
PLURAL
we are you are they are
we were you were they were
we will be you will be they will be
we have been you have been they have been
we had been you had been they had been
we will have been you will have been they will have been
FIGURE 32Conjugation of the Verb To Be
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The Parts of Speech
You should also know the conjugations of to have because, as you can see, to have is necessary to form the perfect tenses. Figure 33 shows a conjugation of to have.
SINGULAR PRESENT TENSE I have you have he/she/it has PAST TENSE I had you had he/she/it had FUTURE TENSE I will have you will have he/she/it will have PRESENT PERFECT TENSE I have had you have had he/she/it has had PAST PERFECT TENSE I had had you had had he/she/it had had FUTURE PERFECT TENSE I will have had you will have had he/she/it will have had
PLURAL
we have you have they have
we have you have they have
we will have you will have they will have
we have had you have had they have had
we had had you had had they had had
we will have had you will have had they will have had
FIGURE 33Conjugation of the Verb To Have
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English in Action 6 will help you review the information weve just covered.
English in Action 6
Conjugate the verb to wash into the six progressive tenses. Singular Present Progressive Tense
I _____________________________________ We ____________________________________ You __________________________________ You ____________________________________ He/She/It ____________________________ They____________________________________
Plural
Past Progressive Tense

Future Progressive Tense

Present Perfect Progressive Tense

Past Perfect Progressive Tense

Future Perfect Progressive Tense

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The Parts of Speech
Voice in Verbs
Verbs also have voice. In sentences with verbs in the active voice, the subject does something specific. The mother called the boy. In sentences with verbs in the passive voice, something is done to the subject. The boy was called by his mother. The telephone bill was paid last Tuesday. We have been told that youre not pleased with your car. The active voice is usually more direct and interesting than the passive voice. For that reason, many people try to avoid the passive voice in speaking and writing. Before we continue to the next section on adverbs, take a few moments to complete Practice Exercise 5.
Practice Exercise 5
Questions 19: For each sentence, write the verb. Then, write the word action, linking, or helping for each verb. Example: My children all enjoy music. ______________________________________________ enjoy, action 1. Daisy and Olivia play piano. ___________________________________________________ 2. Dan prefers the guitar. ________________________________________________________ 3. They are all talented musicians. ________________________________________________ 4. Daisys favorite composer is Chopin. ____________________________________________ 5. She likes Mozart, too. _________________________________________________________ 6. Olivia has been learning a Mozart sonata. ________________________________________ 7. She and Daisy perform duets as well. ___________________________________________ 8. Dan wishes he could play like Segovia. __________________________________________ 9. My childrens music fills the house with joy. _____________________________________
(Continued)
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Practice Exercise 5
Questions 1014: Give the correct form of the verb to be for the tense in parentheses. Example: Eric (past) was supposed to feed the hawk. 10. I (past) _______ late this morning. 11. The bus (future) _______ on time, so dont miss it. 12. Possibly the weather (future) _______ clear at bus time. 13. Often, many people (present) _______ late on a rainy day. 14. You (present) _______ never late, no matter what the weather (present) _______. Questions 1523: Rewrite each sentence in the tense indicated. Example: Frank writes home this evening. Frank is writing home this evening. Present progressive: ____________________________________________________________ 15. Mona Lisa smiles mysteriously. Past: ________________________________________________________________________ 16. The three of us plan on a picnic. Present perfect: ________________________________________________________________ 17. Both teams play a good game. Future: ______________________________________________________________________ 18. I expect to enjoy the beach. Past perfect: ___________________________________________________________________ 19. We pack sandwiches for lunch. Future progressive: _____________________________________________________________ 20. Ron forgets to feed the cat. Future perfect: _________________________________________________________________ 21. Anne stays home during her boyfriends trips. Past perfect progressive: _________________________________________________________ 22. The author promotes her book. Future perfect progressive: _______________________________________________________ 23. Cardinals nest in the shrubs. Present perfect progressive: ______________________________________________________
(Continued)
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The Parts of Speech
Practice Exercise 5
Questions 2437: Underline the correct irregular verb form in each sentence. Example: I havent ate/eaten any candy for weeks. 24. I saw/seen you coming long before you arrived. 25. The switchboard operator rung/rang the wrong extension. 26. Lee has often flew/flown on the company plane. 27. Mr. and Mrs. Lawson have went/gone to Canada for vacation. 28. Casey swung/swang the crane around. 29. You should have wrote/written the report long ago. 30. Have you ever swam/swum in a race? 31 The stock market grew/growed stronger each day.
32. The pond in front of the office has froze/frozen. 33. Our sales team has seldom been beat/beaten by our competitors. 34. Heavy rains have fallen/fell in the coastal area. 35. The commuter has ran/run to catch the train many times. 36. They havent spoke/spoken to each other for days. 37. He has threw/thrown away his last chance for a promotion. Check your answers with those on page 79.
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ADVERBS
An adverb is a word used primarily to modify verbs. But adverbs can also describe or explain adjectives or other adverbs. Whatever theyre modifying, adverbs answer the following questions: How? When? Where? Why? How much? How long? To what extent? In what direction? How? She responded intelligently. When? He will soon regret his decision. Where? The accident occurred nearby. How much? To what extent? We should always weigh our ideas. Heres an adverb modifying an adjective: An unusually fast learner, Kim Lu skipped two grades. What kind of a learner? A fast learnerfast is an adjective modifying the noun learner. How fast? Shes unusually fastunusually is an adverb modifying an adjective. Heres an adverb modifying another adverb: The records were stacked rather haphazardly. How were the records stacked? Haphazardly. How haphazardly? Rather haphazardly. Only an adverb can modify another adverb, so we know rather has to be an adverb. Whenever adverbs are used to modify adjectives or other adverbs, as in the two preceding examples, theyre called intensifiers. As you can see, adverbs are very good at answering questions (Figure 34). Adverbs are also sometimes used to ask questions. Where does your leg hurt? When are we going to arrive at the airport?
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The Parts of Speech
FIGURE 34Adverbs can help you answer questions.
Two Positions of the Adverb

Like an adjective, an adverb may be placed in either of two positions. 1. It may come before a verb, an adjective, or another adverb. 2. It may immediately follow the verb. Lets look at several sentences in which the adverbs follow the verbs they modify. Your son sings beautifully. In this sentence, the verb is sings. How does your son sing? The answer is beautifully. We know, then, that beautifully must be an adverb, modifying the verb sings. I will return tomorrow. The verb in this sentence is will return. When will you return? The answer is tomorrow. Tomorrow is an adverb modifying the verb will return. Elsa is going away. This sentence has is going as its verb. Where is Elsa going? The answer is away, which is an adverb modifying a verb. The dictionary is not on the shelf.
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In this sentence, the adverb not is placed after the verb is. In sentences in which the verb is in the present, past, or future perfect, the adverb not is placed between the helping verb and the past participle. The child has not cried all night. (Not comes between the helping verb has and the past participle cried.) Sometimes adverbs come before verbs. He quickly left the room. Here the verb is left. We ask how he left, and the answer is quickly. Now, lets look at some adverbs in another positionpreceding adjectives and other adverbs. Your extremely vivid report was enlightening. We can leave almost immediately. In the first sentence, the noun report is modified by the adjectives your and vivid. Vivid is given emphasis by the addition of the word extremely. Since only an adverb can modify an adjective, extremely must be an adverb. In the second sentence, the verb is can leave. When can we leave? The answer is almost immediately. The adverb immediately modifies the verb can leave. And the adverb almost modifies immediately.
Changing Adjectives to Adverbs

Did you notice anything similar about the adverbs unusually, haphazardly, intelligently, beautifully, and extremely? All end in -ly. Many, but not all, adverbs are formed by adding -ly to an adjective. Adjectives: quick, bad, quiet, real Adverbs: quickly, badly, quietly, really Note: All words ending in -ly arent adverbs. Many adjectives have an -ly endingas in her curly hair, his silly remarks, the ugly building, or the lively puppy. Adjectives and adverbs can look alike, and both are modifiers. Its easy to decide if you need an adjective or an adverb, if you remember how each performs in a sentence. An adjective modifies a noun or pronoun. An adverb modifies a verb, an adjective, or another adverb.
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The Parts of Speech
Which is correct? I am real/really pleased. Pleased is an adjective describing I. You need an adverb to modify an adjective. (How pleased am I?) Real is also an adjective, so the correct choice is really, an adverb. I am really pleased.
Degrees of Comparison
Adverbs, like adjectives, change to show different degrees of quality or quantity (Figure 35). This change in form is known as comparison. As in the comparison of adjectives, this involves three degreespositive, comparative, and superlative. Most adverbs require more to form the comparative degree and most to form the superlative.
FIGURE 35The Three Degrees of Comparison for Adverbs
THREE DEGREES OF COMPARISON FOR ADVERBS POSITIVE

quietly happily easily
COMPARATIVE
more quietly more happily easily
SUPERLATIVE
most quietly most happily most easily
Erica sang quietly, Shawna sang more quietly, and Karen sang most quietly. Some words can be either adjectives or adverbs, depending on usage. These words may also have the same comparative formsadding -er to the positive form to make the comparative, and adding -est to form the superlative (Figure 36).
FIGURE 36These are some words that can be used as adjectives or adverbs.
ADJECTIVES OR ADVERBS POSITIVE

fast early loud
COMPARATIVE
faster earlier louder
SUPERLATIVE
fastest earliest loudest
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55
Several words that may be used as either adjectives or adverbs change form when compared (Figure 37).
FIGURE 37These words change form when theyre compared.
COMPARED ADJECTIVES OR ADVERBS POSITIVE

bad little much well
COMPARATIVE
worse less more better
SUPERLATIVE
worst least most best
Note: Some natural adverbial superlatives that cant logically be compared, such as certainly, entirely, absolutely, fatally, and rather. If youve done something correctly, for instance, you cant do it more or most correctly.
Adverb or Adjective?
As youve perhaps noticed, the methods of comparing adverbs are the same as the methods of comparing adjectives. This similarity sometimes leads to the use of an adjective for an adverb, especially in the comparative form. Study the following pairs of sentences: Adjective: The best suggestion will be adopted. Best modifies the noun suggestion. Adverb: Which person sang best? Best is an adverb because it tells us how someone sang. Adjective: The desk is too wide for this space. Wide is an adjective that modifies the noun desk. (Also, too is an adverb modifying the adjective wide.) Adverb: Open the door wide. Wide is an adverb because it tells how the door should be opened. Adjective: The astronauts were prepared to enter deep space. What kind of space? Deep space. Deep is an adjective that modifies the noun space. Adverb: Sam jumped deep into the water. Deep modifies the verb jumped. It has to be an adverb. Adjectives cant modify verbs.
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The Parts of Speech
Adjective: Beths late husband, Donald, was a successful salesman and a talented painter. Late modifies husband. Late cant be an adverb here because adverbs cant modify nouns. Adverb: Stan always comes late to important meetings. Late tells us when Stan comes to the meetings. It modifies the verb comes and is an adverb. Some of these modifiers also have a second adverb form that ends in -ly. Brightly, closely, deeply, directly, hardly, highly, justly, lately, loudly, nearly, quickly, rightly, sharply, shortly, slowly, softly, tightly, widely, and wrongly are some words that have two adverbial forms. The adverb form ending in -ly often differs in meaning from the adverb without the -ly ending. Lately means not long ago. Shortly can mean soon. These meanings arent covered by the other forms, late and short. Lately, most of our programs have been running late. Weve temporarily fallen short on stock, but well be able to fill your order shortly. Now that weve learned much about adverbs, review this information by completing English in Action 7 and Practice Exercise 6.
English in Action 7
Examine the following sentences carefully. Select the correct word in each pair of choices. Think about why you picked your choice. Jot down some of your reasons on a separate sheet of paper. 1. Ted can lift that box easier/more easily than I.
________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________
2. I wish you would walk quieter/more quietly.

________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________
3. I can think clearer/more clearly when alone.

________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________
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Practice Exercise 6
Questions 111: Fill in each blank with the correct adverbial form of the word in parentheses. Example: We can ship our products more easily by truck than by train. (easy) 1. However, we can ship them _______ expensively by train. (little) 2. This letter will get there _______ if we send it on the fax machine. Regular mail and overnight express are both slower. (quick) 3. When this machine runs _______, the finished product is better. (slow) 4. Tim is the _______ critical person I have ever known. (little) 5. In fact, Tim is the _______ perfect person I know. (near) 6. You must turn the nut _______ than that, if you want it to stay. (tight) 7. You arent being careful enough. Handle the chemicals _______ so no one gets hurt. (proper) 8. That piece _______ resembles the broken part than the other one does. (close) 9. Bob drives the forklift truck _______ than Randy does. (carelessly) 10. However, Bob deals with customers _______ than Randy. (cheerful) 11. This is the _______ clamp-on device we have ever had to use. (loose) Questions 1220: Underline every adverb that you find in the following sentences. Under each adverb, write the word that the adverb modifies and the part of speech being modified. Remember that an adverb can modify a verb, an adjective, or another adverb. Example: We soon began to notice the first results of our gardening efforts.
________________________________________________________________________________ began, verb
12. Little green sprouts gently made their way through the soil.
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13. The leaves were very small, but we were not dismayed at their size.
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14. They had just reached a healthy size when we knew we had to thin the rows.
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15. We could hardly wait to enjoy the fruits of our labors.

________________________________________________________________________________
(Continued)
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Appendix A
Practice Exercise 6
16. Lettuce flourished and the radish leaves could be clearly seen in neat, straight rows.
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17. Suddenly we found that we were serving our produce proudly.

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18. Gradually the corn appeared and moved gently in the wind. 19. The sun and rain cooperatively alternated for a remarkably balanced growing season.
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20. We will often remember this project.

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PREPOSITIONS
A preposition is a word that shows the logical relationship between a noun or a pronoun and another word in a sentence. Substituting one preposition for another can make a big difference in meaning. To see this for yourself, hold a bottle in one hand, a pencil in the other. Now hold the pencil above or over the bottle, then on top of, on, or upon it. Next hold the pencil beneath or below the bottle, and then toward it. Put the pencil into the bottle, before or in front of it, and behind it. Now stand two bottles on a table and place the pencil between them. All of the italicized expressions in this paragraph are prepositions. Notice that two of them, on top of and in front of, are composed of more than one word.
Prepositional Relationships
If you remember that most prepositions show relationships, youll have no trouble recognizing them. Most prepositions, as in the bottle and pencil example, show position (Figure 38).
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FIGURE 38Prepositions often show position.
A cat crept under my bed. A cat pounced on my bed. A cat sat near my bed. Those sentences all show the position of the cat. But some prepositions dont indicate position. We have no mice because of the cat. We still have mice in spite of the cat. We have mice instead of a cat. These prepositions express logical relationships between ideas. Some prepositions show time relationships. The mice roam during the cats nap. The mice hide after the cats nap. Learn to recognize the words in Figures 39 and 40, which are commonly used as prepositions.
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The Parts of Speech
FIGURE 39Common Prepositions that Stand as One Word
SINGLE-WORD PREPOSITIONS
aboard, about, above, across, after, against, along, amid, among, around, at, before, behind, below, beneath, beside, between, beyond, but (except), by, down, during, except, for, from, in, into, like, near, of, off, on, over, past, since, through, throughout, to, toward, under, underneath, until, unto, up, upon, with, within, without
FIGURE 40Common Prepositions that Have More than One Word
COMPOUND PREPOSITIONS
as to, as for, as regards, apart from, by way of, contrary to, devoid of, from out, from beyond, instead of, in place of, in regard to, in reference to, on account of, out of, to the extent of, with respect to
Prepositional Phrases
A preposition is followed by a noun or pronoun thats called the object of the preposition. In the examples about the cats sleeping position, bed is the object of the preposition. The preposition, its object, and the other words that are between them make up a prepositional phrase. My dog chased the cat around the house. In this sentence, around is a preposition, house is the object of the preposition, and around the house is the complete prepositional phrase. Prepositional phrases are used in sentences as adjectives or adverbs. If the phrase modifies a noun or pronoun, its an adjectival phrase. If it modifies a verb, its an adverbial phrase. The words in a prepositional phrase act together as either an adjective or an adverb. Adjectival phrase: The office around the corner closed recently. Which office? Around the corner modifies the noun office.
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Adverbial phrase: The office recently moved around the corner. Where? Around the corner modifies the verb moved. Before we continue to the section on conjunctions and interjections, review what weve just covered by completing Practice Exercise 7.
Practice Exercise 7
Questions 19: Find the prepositional phrases in the following sentences. After each sentence, write the preposition and its object. On, Monday Example: On Monday we started early. ______________________________________________ 1. We were traveling to Chicago. _________________________________________________ 2. Although it is a distance, we went by car. ________________________________________ 3. By afternoon, it became very warm. _____________________________________________ 4. We stopped for lunch. ________________________________________________________ 5. We chose a cool spot near a river. _______________________________________________ 6. The sun sparkled on the water. _________________________________________________ 7. Our lunch stop refreshed us for the long trip. _____________________________________ 8. Finally we saw the skyline of Chicago. __________________________________________ 9. We were happy at the first motel. _______________________________________________ Questions 1014: After each sentence, write the word that the prepositional phrase modifies and the part of speech that the word is. Then, tell whether the phrase acts in the sentence as an adjective or as an adverb. left, verb, adverb Example: The school bus left at eight oclock._________________________________________ 10. The classes were all held in the morning. ________________________________________ 11. Work began promptly at nine oclock. ___________________________________________ 12. The students found the illustrations of the problem interesting and helpful.___________ 13. Teachers located materials on different topics. ____________________________________ 14. Classes like these kept the students busy. ________________________________________ Check your answers with those on page 80.
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The Parts of Speech
CONJUNCTIONS AND INTERJECTIONS

Conjunctions
Because the cars are coupled together, a railroad engine can pull many cars at one time (Figure 41). The engine is used efficiently, which saves time, money, and energy. Like railroad couplings, speech couplings, known as conjunctions, enable a sentence to convey several things at once. A conjunction joins words, groups of words, or sentences. It can also show relationships between ideas.
FIGURE 41Conjunctions link words together.
Types of Conjunctions
There are three kinds of conjunctions. 1. Coordinating 2. Correlative 3. Subordinating With coordinating conjunctions, you can join two or more words or ideas in one concise sentence (Figure 42). Consider, for example, these three sentences. We bought milk. We bought eggs. We forgot the bacon.
FIGURE 42Coordinating conjunctions join equal ideas.
COORDINATING CONJUNCTIONS
and, but, or, nor, for, so, yet
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These sentences total ten words. When you read them, they seem choppy. But look what happens when we put these ideas together with coordinating conjunctions: We bought milk and eggs, but forgot the bacon. This sentence has nine words and reads smoothly. Its more effective than the separate sentences because it shows the relationships between the ideas. Correlative conjunctions are found in pairs and have other words dividing them (Figure 43).
FIGURE 43Correlative conjunctions work in pairs.
CORRELATIVE CONJUNCTIONS
either/or, neither/nor, both/and, not only/but also
Either you come now or Im leaving without you. Subordinating conjunctions introduce adverbial clauses (Figure 44). A clause is a group of words that belong together and include a subject and a verb. Some subordinating conjunctions are single words. Others are phrasal, which means that they are a group of words that function as a single unit. Whenever my wife feels depressed, she makes rice pudding. Elderly people hate to be spoken to as if they were children.
FIGURE 44Subordinating conjunctions introduce adverbial clauses.
SUBORDINATING CONJUNCTIONS
after, although, as, as if, as long as, as soon as, as though, as well as, because, before, if, in order that, provided that, since, so that, supposing that, than, though, unless, until, when, whenever, where, wherever, while
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The Parts of Speech
Conjunction, or Something Else?

A word may serve as different parts of speech according to its function in a particular sentence. Many of the words weve listed here as conjunctions also serve as other parts of speech. For instance, after, as, before, until, and since may also function as prepositions or adverbs. Conjunction: The minutes will stand as read, since there are no objections. (The conjunction joins two clauses, the minutes will stand as read and there are no objections.) Adverb: It rained on Saturday, but the weather has been beautiful since. (The adverb since modifies the verb has been.) Preposition: Have you done business with his firm since the merger? (The preposition has the noun merger as its object.) Its easy to tell a prepositional phrase from an adverbial clause. A phrase doesnt have a subject and a verb, but a clause does. To identify a preposition, look right after the preposition for its object. To identify an adverbial clause, look for a noun or pronoun performing an action. Here are a few more examples to illustrate these differences. In the prepositional phrases, see if you can identify the object of the preposition. In the adverbial clauses, see if you can identify the subject-verb combination following the conjunction. Preposition: Please come after dinner. Conjunction: You may go after you have typed this letter. Preposition: Let me do that for you. Conjunction: I must leave now, for I am late. Preposition: The group will not meet until tomorrow. Conjunction: The game continued until it got dark.
Interjections
An interjection expresses emotion (Figure 45). It isnt related to other words in the sentence. Some words that are normally used as other parts of speech may be used as interjections if theyre spoken mainly to show emotion. In writing, an interjection is usually followed by an exclamation point (Figure 46). If, however, the interjection begins a sentence, then a comma may be used to separate the interjection from the rest of the sentence. The exclamation point then goes at the end of the sentence. Ouch, that hurts! Whew, that was a close call!
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FIGURE 45People use interjections to show their feelings.
In formal writing, the use of interjections is seldom appropriate. If youre an effective writer, you can make your points without interjections. But informal conversation is full of interjections. And so is dialogue in fiction and comics. Great!
FIGURE 46In writing, an interjection is often followed by an exclamation point.
INTERJECTIONS
Oh no! Wow! Good! Surprise! Help! Ouch! Cool!
Before completing this unit and taking the examination, review what youve learned by completing Practice Exercise 8.
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The Parts of Speech
Practice Exercise 8
Questions 19: Underline the conjunctions in the following sentences. Example: Please come an hour before the meeting, before the other participants arrive. 1. I left my car at the garage, but I will pick it up tonight. 2. Andrews and McMillan were the first two engineers at the company. 3. I will take our visitors to the theater, provided that you buy the tickets. 4. Commuting may get bad because either rain or snow is expected tonight. 5. The Barkers will be pleased if their dinner is a success. 6. We wont have the manuals on time unless we get them to the printer tomorrow morning. 7. Both typewriters and word processors are needed in many offices. 8. Richard will come early since he has to set up his projection equipment. 9. Rose will attend the conference, although she will arrive late. Questions 1014: Each of the following sentences contains an interjection, but the sentences are missing appropriate punctuation. Rewrite the sentences, underline the interjection, and add any missing punctuation. Oh, youve forgotten your keys! Example: Oh youve forgotten your keys! ____________________________________________ 10. Wow What are we going to do? ________________________________________________ 11. Goodness well have to wait for Ann Marie!______________________________________ 12. Well Why did you do such a thing? ____________________________________________ 13. Oh Elizabeth, please forgive me! _______________________________________________ 14. Oh forget it Were late already. ________________________________________________
(Continued)
The Parts of Speech
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Practice Exercise 8
Questions 15: Here is an opportunity for you to review the parts of speech. After the name of each part of speech, write the word or words that act as that part of speech in the following sentence. 15. Oh, I want a new coat and hat very badly for my birthday! Noun _______________________________________________________________________ Adjective ____________________________________________________________________ Pronoun _____________________________________________________________________ Verb ________________________________________________________________________ Adverb ______________________________________________________________________ Preposition __________________________________________________________________ Conjunction__________________________________________________________________ Interjection___________________________________________________________________ Check your answers with those on page 81.
If you missed any of the parts of speech, go back and review that part. Be sure that you have a clear idea of what each part of speech does. Now that youve completed this study unit on the eight parts of speech, you may wish to go back to the beginning and do all of the English in Actions and Practice Exercises over again. We bet youll be pleased to discover that youve learned a great deal!
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The Parts of Speech
NOTES
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Appendix: Irregular Verbs

Study the list in Figure 47. Quiz yourself to see how well you know these verbs. Check your work. Be sure you spelled all of the parts correctly. You may find it helpful to use each part of each verb in a sentence. Here are some examples Beat, beat, beaten Yesterday I beat Frederick at chess, but he has beaten me badly on previous occasions. High waves beat against the shore last night. Eat, ate, eaten The patient ate heartily at every mealtime. Have you eaten in our new cafeteria yet? Fall, fell, fallen She hurt her ankle when she fell. Most of the leaves have fallen from the trees. Lie, lay, lain To lie means to rest. (This verb should only have a subject and should not have an object.) I did not feel well and decided to lie down for a nap. They should have lain down if they were tired. Yesterday I lay in bed all day. Lay, laid, laid To lay means to place. It implies both an object and an agent or subject. Both dont have to be mentioned every time the verb is used. The boys laid their wet clothes on the bench in the hall. (The agent is boys; the direct object is clothes.) The bricklayers lay the bricks very carefully. (The agent is bricklayers, and bricks is the direct object of the verb lay.) You should not have laid the hammer on the glass table. (You is the agent or subject, and hammer is the direct object of the verb should have laid.)
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Present
Past
Past Participle (has, have, had) arisen beaten become begun blown broken brought built burst bought been able caught chosen come cost cut dealt dug dived done dragged drawn drunk driven eaten fallen fed felt fought found
Present Participle
arise beat become begin blow break bring build burst buy can catch choose come cost cut deal dig dive do drag draw drink drive eat fall feed feel fight find
arose beat became began blew broke brought built burst bought could caught chose came cost cut dealt dug dove did dragged drew drank drove ate fel fed felt fought found
arising beating becoming beginning blowing breaking bringing building bursting buying being able catching choosing coming costing cutting dealing digging diving doing dragging drawing drinking driving eating falling feeding feeling fighting finding
FIGURE 47Irregular verbs dont follow the usual patterns for their principal parts.
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fly forget forgive freeze get give go grow has have hear hide hit hold hurt keep know lay (to place) lead leave let lie (to rest) lose make meet pay put quit read ride ring rise run
flew forgot forgave froze got gave went grew had had heard hid hit held hurt kept knew laid led left let lay lost made met paid put quit read rode rang rose ran
flown forgotten forgiven frozen got (gotten) given gone grown had had heard hidden hit held hurt kept known laid led left let lain lost made met paid put quit read ridden rung risen run
flying forgetting forgiving freezing getting giving going growing having having hearing hiding hitting holding hurting keeping knowing laying leading leaving letting lying losing making meeting paying putting quitting reading riding ringing rising running
(Continued)
FIGURE 47Continued
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Present
Past
Past Participle (has, have, had)
Present Participle
say see seek sell send set shake shine show shut sing shrink sit sleep speak spend spring stand steal swim swing take teach tear tell think throw understand wake wear win
said saw sought sold sent set shook shone showed shut sang shrank sat slept spoke spent sprang stood stole swam swung took taught tore told thought threw understood woke (waked) wore won
said seen sought sold sent set shook shone shown (showed) shut sung shrunk sat slept spoken spent sprung stood stolen swum swung taken taught torn told thought thrown understood woken (waked) worn won
saying seeing seeking selling sending setting shaking shining showing shutting singing shrinking sitting sleeping speaking spending springing standing stealing swimming swinging taking teaching tearing telling thinking throwing understanding waking wearing winning
FIGURE 47Continued
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English in Action Answers
1
Weve underlined all the nouns in the passage. Have you underlined any words incorrectly? If so, thats okay. Simply look up any mistakes in a dictionary and identify its correct part of speech. All the information on a computer system is stored in computer files. To give you a better understanding of what a computer file is and how its stored by your computer, lets look at a typical paper file system. Most people store a variety of information, such as bills, receipts, special instructions, and manuals, either at work or at home. These items are kept for future use. Now, if we scatter these items acoss a table or desk, the information is very hard to find. Therefore, most people store items in individual file folders. People often attach labels to each folder, so its easy to tell whats in each file folder. The name on the label represents the information in the file. Labeling this way makes it easier to find information. Computer files are like paper files. Information thats used by a computer is stored in electronic files. Each file folder is given a name by the user. The name given to each computer file is called the filename.
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3
Weve underlined all the pronouns in the passage, and weve identified each pronoun by type. If youve circled a word thats not a pronoun, look it up in your dictionary to check the part of speech. interrogative possessive What is the value of clear handwriting? Is yours as clear as personal indefinite it can be? Everyone knows clear handwriting is important for personal success in every kind of business, and that it is important indefinite personal in correspondence with relatives and friends. Anyone who will study and practice good handwriting for a reasonable demonstrative indefinite time can acquire the skill. These are some of the things personal personal that you should keep in mind if you would like to improve possessive yours. Good handwriting depends, first of all, on the interrogative correct position. What is the correct writing position? In personal time you will come to assume the right position without personal relative giving it thought, for the right position is whatever is indefinite personal easiest and most natural for each of us.
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4
All of the demonstrative, indefinite, and interrogative adjectives in these sentences are circled, and the pronouns are underlined. For the adjectives, weve indicated the nouns they modify in parentheses. 1. Many (people) people, especially those who grew up before the age of the personal computer, dont understand how computers store information. 2. That (information) information is stored in electronic files. Those (files) files function much like file folders. 3. Each (file) file is given a name. The name given to each, its filename, should represent the information found in the file. 4. What is the difference between the way a computer stores information and that used to store information in a conventional filing cabinet? 5. That (explanation) explanation isnt as clear as the one all of us heard at the lecture yesterday. 6. Which (flowers) flowers are the most beautiful? These (lilies) lilies are very nice, but theyre less interesting than those. 7. Many (houses) houses are comfortable, but few are as comfortable as this (cottage) cottage. 8. Many (people) people were crowded into a very small space. All agreed that it was time to enlarge the office space. 9. Several (examples) examples are often helpful. Which (example) example dont you understand?
5
Volumes have been written on the subject of the struggle between England and America. Men of all ranks have entered in the controversy. They have had different motives and various intentions. But all have been ineffective. The period of debate is closed. I have heard it asserted by some that America has flourished under her former connection with Great Britain. Therefore, the same connection is necessary towards her future happiness, and it will always have the same effect. Nothing can be more false than this kind of argument. We may as well assert that because a child has thrived upon milk, it should never have meat. Or, what we do for the first twenty years of life is what we should do for the next twenty. . . . I answer roundly that America would have flourished as much, and probably much more, had no European power taken any notice of her. The trade and commerce by which she has enriched herself are the necessities of life. They will always have a market while eating is the custom in Europe.
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Complete verb and tense have been written, present perfect have entered, present perfect have had, present perfect have been, present perfect is, present (closed is an adjective that modifies period) have heard, present perfect asserted, past has flourished, present perfect is, present will have, future can be, present may assert, present has thrived, present perfect should have, present do, present is, present should do, present answer, present would have flourished, past perfect had taken, past perfect has enriched, present perfect are, present will have, future is, present
Past Perfect Progressive had been washing had been washing had been washing had been washing had been washing had been washing Future Perfect Progressive will have been washing will have been washing will have been washing will have been washing will have been washing will have been washing
7
1. We need a word or words that tell how Ted can lift the box. Words that answer that question are adverbs. But which expression is an adverb? Identify the adjective by using the two forms in a test sentence: Try to find an easier/more easily way to do that. Easier is an adjective, modifying the noun way. So, discard easier, which makes the sentence read, Ted can lift that box more easily than I. 2. We need a word that tells how I wish you would walk. We need an adverb. To identify and eliminate the adjective, place both expressions before a noun in a sentence: This is a quieter/more quietly room than I had before. Quieter is an adjective, modifying the noun room. Therefore, we cant use it as an adverb to modify the verb walk. Our sentence should read, I wish you would walk more quietly. 3. This sentence also needs to answer the question how. Again, select the word thats an adverb. Use a test sentence: A clearer/ more clearly explanation would be helpful. Here, clearer modifies the noun explanation and is, therefore, an adjective. Discard clearer. I can think more clearly when alone.
6
Present Progressive am washing are washing is washing Past Progressive was washing were washing was washing Future Progressive will be washing will be washing will be washing are washing are washing are washing were washing were washing were washing will be washing will be washing will be washing
Present Perfect Progressive have been washing have been washing have been washing have been washing has been washing have been washing
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Practice Exercise Answers

12. On their way to the lake, they stopped in Toledo, Ohio, and in Chicago, Illinois. 13. The Volvo was loaded with supplies, which included a tent, a stove, fishing gear, sleeping bags, and canned food. 14. During their trip, Paula and Harry read magazines. 15. Harry took copies of Readers Digest, Popular Mechanics, and Sports Illustrated. 16. Time and Newsweek were the magazines Paula liked. 17. On their return trip, they planned to visit the home of Abraham Lincoln in Springfield.
1
1. The right words can help us to achieve what may seem impossible. Words have the power to inspire, influence, entertain, convince, inform, delight, fight back, and much more. 2. There are eight parts of speech: noun, pronoun, adjective, verb, adverb, preposition, conjunction, and interjection. 3. Grammar is a set of rules that explains how the eight parts of speech are organized in phrases, clauses, and sentences to communicate meaning.
2 3
1. leader, general, man, president 2. girl, woman, female 3. city, state 4. day 5. month 6. city 7. newspaper, periodical, publication 8. singers, rock group, band 9. group, committee, organ 10. Early in April, Paula and Harry Jones left on their trip. 11. They drove their Volvo to Old Bass Lake. 1. it, him 2. you, your 3. I 4. they, her 5. We, his, I, you, We 6. We, first person our, first person 7. They, third person theirs, third person they, third person it, third person 8. I, first person mine, first person 9. Your, second person you, second person
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10. you, second person it, third person 11. you, second person me, first person they, third person it, third person they, third person 12. We, first person them, third person her, third person her, third person it, third person 13. her, third person 14. I, first person it, third person they, third person we, first person 15. Any, indefinite his, personal 16. Those, demonstrative 17. That, demonstrative 18. Somebody, indefinite his, personal her, personal 19. Which, interrogative you, personal them, personal 20. which, relative 21. What, interrogative you, personal 22. I, personal them, personal that, demonstrative 23. Whose, interrogative that, demonstrative 1. dark clouds 2. blazing sun
3. warm, windy weather 4. calm sea and blue sky 5. busy doctor 6. cheerful nurse 7. competent salesclerk 8. helpful typist 9. young, serious astronaut 10. carefree children and carefree mothers 11. A, light strange, light western, sky the, sky 12. Our, friend a, boat small, boat the, river turbulent, river 13. late, August the, summer brief, summer northern, summer 14. Stinging, snow strong, winds the, rescuers brave, rescuers 15. Quick, workers efficient, workers the, runway long, runway 16. Violent, storms the, signals radio, signals
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17. Intensive, study the, medal gold, medal 18. The, rays silver, rays the, moon bright, moon the, waters clear, waters the, lake little, lake 19. The, convoys naval, convoys new, supplies 20. Heavy, sleds the, equipment the, tundra frozen, tundra 21. braver, bravest 22. more distinct, most distinct 23. worse, worst 24. higher, highest 25. more active, most active 26. longer, longest 27. larger, largest 28. Absolute 29. more beautiful, most beautiful 30. Absolute 31. more practical, most practical 32. lazier, laziest 33. less, least 34. fatter, fattest 35. Absolute
5
1. play, action 2. prefers, action 3. are, linking 4. is, linking 5. likes, action 6. Has been, helping; learning, action 7. perform, action 8. wishes, action; could, helping; play, action 9. fills, action 10. was 11. will be 12. will be 13. are 14. are, is 15. Mona Lisa smiled mysteriously. 16. The three of us have planned on a picinic. 17. Both teams will play a good game. 18. I had expected to enjoy the beach. 19. We will be packing sandwiches for lunch. 20. Ron will have forgotten to feed the cat. 21. Anne had been staying home during her boyfriends trips. 22. The author will have been promoting her book. 23. Cardinals have been nesting in the shrubs. 24. saw 25. rang
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26. flown 27. gone 28. swung 29. written 30. swum 31. grew 32. frozen 33. beaten 34. fallen 35. run 36. spoken 37. thrown
12. gently, made, verb 13. very, small, adjective not, dismayed, verb 14. just, had reached, verb 15. hardly, could wait, verb 16. clearly, could be seen, verb 17. suddenly, found, verb proudly, were serving, verb 18. gradually, appeared, verb gently, moved, verb 19. cooperatively, alternated, verb remarkably, balanced, adjective 20. often, will remember, verb
7 6
1. to, Chicago 1. less 2. more quickly 3. slowly or more slowly 4. least 5. most nearly 6. tighter 7. properly 8. more closely 9. more carelessly 10. more cheerfully 11. loosest 2. by, car 3. by, afternoon 4. for, lunch 5. near, river 6. on, water 7. for, trip 8. of, Chicago 9. at, motel 10. were held, verb, adverb 11. began, verb, adverb 12. illustrations, noun, adjective 13. materials, noun, adjective 14. Classes, noun, adjective
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8
1. but 2. and 3. provided that 4. because, either, or 5. if 6. unless 7. Both, and 8. since 9. Although 10. Wow! What are we going to do? 11. Goodness, well have to wait for Ann Marie! 12. Well! Why did you do such a thing? 13. Oh, Elizabeth, please forgive me! 14. Oh, forget it! Were late already. 15. Noun: coat, hat, birthday Adjective: a, new, my Pronoun: I Verb: want Adverb: very, badly Preposition: for Conjunction: and Interjection: Oh

Parts of Speech

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Parts of Speech

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Study Unit

The Parts of Speech

Lisa Rowe Fraustino, Ph.D.

About the Author

THE POWER OF WORDS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . NOUNS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

CONJUNCTIONS AND INTERJECTIONS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62

APPENDIX: IRREGULAR VERBS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69 ENGLISH IN ACTION ANSWERS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73 PRACTICE EXERCISE ANSWERS. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77

The Parts of Speech

The Parts of Speech

The Parts of Speech

The Parts of Speech

THE POWER OF WORDS

The Parts of Speech

The Parts of Speech

The Parts of Speech

The Parts of Speech

2. How many parts of speech are there? Name them.

Check your answers with those on page 77.

The Parts of Speech

The Parts of Speech

The Parts of Speech

The Parts of Speech

The Parts of Speech

FIGURE 8Hammer is a concrete noun.

The Parts of Speech

The Parts of Speech

Check your answers with those on page 73.

The Parts of Speech

7. The Wall Street Journal

9. National Coalition Against Censorship

The Parts of Speech

14. During their trip, paula and harry read magazines.

16. Time and newsweek were the magazines paula liked.

Check your answers with those on page 77.

The Parts of Speech

The Parts of Speech

The Parts of Speech

The Parts of Speech

The Parts of Speech

The Parts of Speech

Check your answers with those on page 74.

The Parts of Speech

my, first person ________________________________________________________________________________ 6. We decided to take our vacations together.

9. Your vacation was shorter than you intended.

10. Do you think it could be a little longer this year?

13. Each friend read her own suggestion.

The Parts of Speech

16. Those are unnecessary actions.

17. That will be taken care of later.

18. Somebody forgot his or her raincoat.

19. Which did you give to them?

21. What are you planning to do now?

22. I prefer doing that to making a speech before them.

23. Bill asked, Whose is that?

Check your answers with those on page 77.

The Parts of Speech

The Parts of Speech

Common and Proper Adjectives

The Parts of Speech

FIGURE 17Articles signal that nouns are coming.

The Parts of Speech

COMMONLY USED DEMONSTRATIVE ADJECTIVES

COMMONLY USED INDEFINITE ADJECTIVES

The Parts of Speech