Professional Documents
Culture Documents
(Compiler:MargaretDickerson)
PARTSOFSPEECHaretheeightclassesintowhichwordsaregroupedaccording
to[their]function,place,meaninganduseinasentence.
Wordstraditionallygroupedintoeightclassesorpartsofspeechinclude:
nouns,verbs,adverbs,adjectives,pronouns,
prepositions,conjunctions,andinterjections.
Nouns,adjectives,verbs,andadverbs(calledvocabularyorlexicalwords)...make
upmorethan99percentofallwordslistedinthedictionary(Hodges,et.al.12).
Dictionariescontainmorenounsthananyotherkindofword;theyarethemostfrequent
elementinEnglishexpression(Morsberger40).
However,pronouns,prepositions,andconjunctionsalthoughsmallinnumberare
alsoimportantbecausethesewordsareusedoverandoverinourwritingandspeaking.
Prepositionsandconjunctions(calledfunctionorstructurewords)connectandrelateto
otherpartsofspeech.Oftheeightwordclasses,onlythreeprepositions,conjunctions,
andinterjectionsdonotchangetheirform.
FORMCHANGE
Formchangeorinflectionisachangeintheformofavocabularyorlexical(ofor
pertainingtothewordsorvocabularyofaspecificlanguage)wordtoshowaspecific
meaningorgrammaticalrelationshiptoanotherwordorgroupofwords.
Examples: verbgrasp,grasps,grasped
nouncat,cats,cat'scats'
pronounI,me,my,mine,we,us,our,ours
adjectivelight,lighter,lightest
adverbcarefully,morecarefully,mostcarefully
FORMVERSUSFUNCTION
Manywordscannotbeconfinedtoonepartofspeech,butfunctioninseveralcapacities.
Forinstance,dogthoughconventionallylabeledanoun,canbeusedasanadjective
(dogbiscuit),andadverbialprefix(dogtired),atransitiveverb(doghis
footsteps),oraninterjection(hotdog!).
Anotherexample: water =noun
waterthegrass=transitiveverb
hismouthwatered=intransitiveverb
waterbuffalo=adjective
watertight=adverbialprefix
Revised2/16/07
NOUNS
Anounnamesaperson,place,thing,oridea.
N N N
Example: Repetitiondoesnottransformalieintotruth.
Nounscanbedescribedas:
a) thekindofwordthatisoftenmarkedwithanarticle(aspoon,
anapple,thenewspaper);
b) thekindofwordthatcanusuallybemadeplural(onekitten,
twokittens)orpossessive(thekitten'spaw);
c) thekindofwordthatcanfilloneofthesepositionsinasentence:
subject,directobject,indirectobject,subjectcomplement,
Objectcomplement,objectofthepreposition.
ProperNounsandCommonNouns:
Propernounsarethenamesofspecificpersons,places,andthings.Allothernounsare
commonnouns.
(Examples)
ProperNouns CommonNouns
BookofJeremiah abook
Father(usedasaname) myfather
LakeSuperior alake
Biologyl0l biology
DeclarationofIndependence atreaty
Exercise:Insertanounintoeachofthefollowingblanks.
1. Theshoplifterstolea_______________fromthesportsstore.
2. __________________threwthefootballtome.
3. Confusingmessageswerescrawledonthe_______________.
4. A__________________crashedthroughthewindow.
5. Givethe___________________toSusan.
Revised2/16/07
CollectiveNouns
Acollectivenounstandsforagroupusuallyofpeople,sometimesofanimalsbutitis
notatrueplural.Collectivescanworkwitheithersingularorpluralverbs,orpronouns,
withoutchangingtheirform.
Ifacollectiveworksasasingleunit,ittakesasingularverborsingular
pronountorefertoit.Iftheindividualsareworkingseparately,thenoun
takespluralverbsorpronouns.
Examples: Thejurywasagreedonitsverdict.
(juryactingaltogether;
singularverbandpossessivepronoun)
Thejurywerearguingabouttheirviews.
(individualsonjurysayingdifferentthings;
treatedasplural)
CommonCollectiveNouns
Exercise:Labelcolaboveeachcollectivenoun.Keepinmind
thatcapitalizednounscanbeconsideredonepropernoun
andthatagroupofpeoplemayhaveacapitalizedtitle.
1. Thiscompanyhasdecidedtoencouragecarpooling.
2. Eachfamilymustworkoutascheduleforusingthefamilycar.
3. SouthernCollegewillgraduate200studentsinJanuary.
4. Eachclassdecoratesaroomofthecollegefortheholidays.
5. TheStatemayvotetochargeforparkingattheirworkplace.
Revised2/16/07
PossessiveNouns:
Possessivenounsarenounformsthatshowownership,possession,and
similarrelationships.
Basicrule:Watchfortwonounsinarow,withansonthefirstone.
Ifanounfollowsanothernounornounphraseinasentence,thefirst
nounisusuallyapossessiveandneedsanapostrophebeforeorafterthes.
Basicrule:Tochangesingularnounsintoplurals,andmakethempossessive:
Puttheapostropheonthelastnoun,movetheothernountofollowit,and
removeof.Addsifyouneedthesound.
Exercise: Placeapostropheswhereneededinthesentences.
1. Thestudentsmindsarenotfullyontheirworkthisweek.
2.Sallyseyeshaveadreamylook.
3.Tomshandsareidlysketchingreindeer.
4. Theteachersdeskiscoveredwithdecorations.
5.Somepeoplebelievethatstudentstestscoreshavefallenin
years.
6. Atriptothecountrywouldntbecompletewithoutastopat
JoansCafandDeli.
7. Theviewsfromthemountains1300footsummitcantbe
surpassed;youllseeawildernessstretchingoutbefore
youreyesineverydirection.
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PRONOUNS
Apronounisawordusedinplaceofanoun.Usuallythepronoun
substitutesforaspecificnoun,knownasitsantecedent,whichmeans
thewordsbefore.
Pronounsmustagreeinnumber(sheorthey),inperson,(I,you,him),
andingender(he,she,it)withtheirantecedents.
Herearesomecommonpersonalpronouns:
I me my,mine
you you your,yours
he him his
she her her,hers
it it its
we us our,ours
they them their,theirs
Thesubjectpronouns(exceptit)endinlongvowels,makingthemeasytopronounce
withverbs.Mostofthepronounswithminthemareobjectpronouns,whichareused
attheendsofphrases,wherethemiseasytopronounce.
TypesofPronouns:
Demonstrative:Refertothings(this,that,these,those)
Intensive:Endinself,selves(myself,itself,herself,himself,yourself)
Indefinite:Indefinitereferencetonouns(each,one,all,anybody,
some,everyone)
Interrogative:Usedinquestions(who,which,what,whose,whom)
Personal:Refertopeopleorthings(I,you,he,she,it,we,they)
Possessive:Doesnottakeanapostrophe(its,her,theirs)
Reciprocal:Referbacktoindividualpartsofpluralterms
(eachother,oneanother)
Reflexive:Intensifynounstheyreferbackto(yourselves,themselves)
Relative:Relateddependentclausetoanoun
(who,which,that,what,whom)
Revised2/16/07
Exercise:Circlethecorrectpronounsintheparentheses.
1. WhenRichardand(I/me)wenttoapplyforjobs,welookedfor
(them/they)inthenewspaperadvertisements.
2. Ceciliasaidthatshewantedtobeawordprocessor,but(I/me)was
moreinterestedinjobsthatmighttake(I/me)overseas.
3.(She/Her)appliedforacomputerjobwhen(I/me)found(it/them)
inanadvertisement.
4.Everyonewhoappliedexcept(she/her)didn'tknowWordPerfect.
5. Theinterviewerssaid(they/them)wantedanexperiencedworkerforthe
job,but(he/they)couldn'tfindanyone.
6.BothCeciliaand(I/me)hadexcellenttraininginourbusinessclasses.
7.TherewasgreatcompetitionbetweenJonathanand(I/me).
8.Allof(us/we)hadgoodreferences.
9.Nowit'stimefor(us/we)tocelebrate.
10.(SheandI)(Herandme)havebothbeenselectedfornewjobs.
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ADJECTIVES
Amodifierthatdescribesnounsandpronouns.Anadjectiveusuallyanswersoneofthese
questions:Whichone?Whatkindof?Howmany?
Examples: thetameelephant(whichelephant?)
rarevaluableold(whatkindofstamps?)
sixteencandles(howmanycandles?)
KindsofAdjectives:
Therearethreekindsofadjectives:descriptive(graysky,beautifulgarden),proper
(Buddhist,Italian)andlimitingorpossessive:theseadjectivesdonotdescribequalities,
butinsteadidentifyorspecifythewordstheymodify:
(thissky,mygarden,itsname)
Adjectivescanalsobedefinedaccordingtotheirformandtheirtypicalpositionina
sentence:
thekindofwordthatusuallycomesbeforeanounina
nounphrase(afriskypuppy,anamiableyoungman);
thekindofwordthatcanfollowalinkingverbanddescribe
thesubject(theshipwasunsinkable;talkischeap);
thekindofwordthatwhenderivedfromanotherpartof
speechtypicallytakesoneoftheseendings:wonderful,
courteous,lucky,foolish,pleasurable,colonial,helpless,
defensible,urgent,disgusting,friendly,spectacular,secretive.
AdjectivesasComplements:
Subjectcomplements:Whenanadjectivefunctionsasasubjectcomplement,
itdescribesthesubject:Example:Justiceisblind.
Objectcomplements:Whenanadjectivefunctionsasanobjectcomplement,
itdescribesthedirectobject.
good
Example:Lauralookedwellinhernewraincoat.
Note: Donotrepeatanobjectoradverbinanadjectiveclause.
Why?Whenarelativepronounfunctionsastheobjectofaverbortheobjectofa
preposition,donotaddanotherwordwiththesamefunctionlaterintheclause.
Revised2/16/07
Example:Thepuppyranafterthecarthatwewereridinginit.
Revised2/16/07
Note: Adjectivesdonotchangeform:singular plural
newstudentnewstudents
tallboy tallboys
happyman happymen
Note:Whenanounfollowsanadjective,useanbeforetheadjectiveiftheadjective
beginswithavowelsound:
Example:He'saninterestingactor.
Note: Useabeforetheadjectiveiftheadjectivebeginswitha
consonantsound:
Example:She'sastrongathlete.
Note: Donotuseaoranwhentheadjectiveisnotfollowedbyanoun:
Example:Itisimportant.
Heistall.
AdjectiveForms:
Adjectives(andadverbs)appearinthreeforms:positive,comparative,
andsuperlative.Thepositiveorsimpleformistheformmostcommonly
usedinspeechandwriting.Thecomparativeandsuperlativeformsof
adjectives(andadverbs)areusedtomakecomparisons:
Note: Usethecomparativetocomparetwothings,thesuperlativetocomparethree
things.
Examples: HebrewisamucholderlanguagethanEnglish.
(adjectivecomparative)
Chineseisoneoftheworld'soldestlanguages.
(adjectivesuperlative)
Revised2/16/07
Exercise:
Underlinetheadjectivesinthefollowingsentences.
Example:Johnhasaterribletemper.
1. Vandalscoveredthenewcarwithblackpaint.
2. Scientistsareconstantlylookingfornewmethodsofspacetravel.
3. Thebrokenwristwatchneedsanewwindingstem.
4. Proficientsecretariesareinvaluableemployees.
5. Communitycollegesprovideaccessibleandeconomicaleducation.
6. Threemenwerewashingtheoldtruck.
7. Statecollegesanduniversitiesarethebackboneofhighereducation.
8. RalphKincaidisanoutstandingstudentbutpoorathlete.
9. Wouldyouratherhaveacrystalmicrophoneoradynamicmicrophone?
10. DukeUniversityisafineexampleoftheprivatecollegesinthiscountry.
Revised2/16/07
VERBS
Averbisawordthatindicatesactionorexistence,expressingwhatasubjectdoesoris.
FormsofaVerb:
VerbCharacteristics
PrimaryVerbForms:
AllEnglishverbs,withtheexceptionofbe,havefiveprimaryforms:
Revised2/16/07
Thebaseform(simpleform)isusedforthepresenttensewhenthesubjectoftheverbis:
I,you,we,they,orapluralnoun.
Example:Italkandyoulisten.
Thepresenttense(orsform)indicatesactioninthepresentwhenthesubjectisthird
personsingular(he,she,itorasingularnoun).
Example:Hewalkswhileshetalks.
Thepresentparticipleindicatescontinuingaction,creatingbyaddingingtothebase
formoftheverb.Inordertofunctionasthemainverbinasentence,aparticiplemustbe
accompaniedbyaformoftheverbbe.
Example:Maryislookingforalargeapartment.
Whenapresentparticiplefunctionsasthegrammaticalsubjectorobjectinasentence,it
isagerund.
Example:Swimmingisgoodexercise.(Swimming=subject)
Jonathanenjoyedfishing.(fishing=directobjectof
enjoyed)
Apresentparticiplecanalsofunctionasanadjectiveinasentence.
Example:Thedefensefurnishedsupportingevidence.
(supportingmodifiesevidence)
Thepasttenseusuallyindicatesactionthatoccurredinthepast.Averb'spasttensecan
almostalwaysberecognizedbyitsdoredending.Thepasttensedoesnotchangeform
toindicatepersonornumber.
Example:Richardagreedwithheraboutthecostofthecar.
Someirregularverbsformtheirpasttenseinotherwaysandarecalledirregularverbs.
Example:HisparentswenttoParisandsawtheEiffelTower.
Thepastparticipleisidenticaltothepasttenseformoftheverb,exceptinsome
irregularverbs.Likethepresentparticiple,thepastparticiplemustbeaccompaniedbya
formoftheverbbetofunctionasthemainverbinthesentence,anddoesnotchange
formtoindicatepersonornumber.Thepastparticipleisapartintheperfectverbtenses,
andthepassivevoiceverbs.Itcanalsofunctionasanadjective.
Examples:Eachhadwaitedfortheotherperson.
(pastperfecttense)
Nearlyeveryonewashelpedatthescene.
(passivevoiceverb)
OnlyoccasionallywillIeatanovercookedsteak.
(adjective)
Revised2/16/07
AuxiliaryVerbForms:
Someverbsdonotmakesenseasmainverbsofasentencewithouttheaidof
anauxiliaryverb(orahelpingverb).Themostcommonauxiliaryverbsare
be,have,do.Formsofbe,have,do:
Present Past Past
BaseForm PresentTense Participle Tense Participle
be Iam being I/he/she/itwasbeen
he/she/itis we/you/theywere
we/you/theyare
Alinkingverbjoinsthesubjectofasentencetoasentencecomplement,whichdescribes
orrenamesthesubject.Linkingverbsusuallydescribestatesofbeing,notactions.
Examples:
Columbuswasanexplorerwithaplan.
KingFerdinandremaineduncertain.
QueenIsabellafeltconfidentaboutColumbus
chancesofsuccess.
Commonlinkingverbsincludeallformsoftheverbbe:
am,is,was,are,were,be,being,andbeen.
Transitive/intransitiveVerbs:
Atransitiveverbtransfersitsactionfromasubjecttoadirectobject.
Example:Angelaclimbedthemountain.
Anintransitiveverbdoesnottakeadirectobject.
Example:Angelaclimbedexpertly.
Revised2/16/07
Revised2/16/07
Verbals:
Verbalsareverbformsthattypicallyendiningored.Verbalscanfunctionas"nouns"
(skiingisfun)orasmodifiers(thestolengoods)(thedesiretosucceed).
Averbalcannotstandaloneasthemainverbinasentence.
(theclownsmiling)(thebooksread)arenotcompletesentencesbutsentence
fragments.Averbalmustalwaysbeaccompaniedbyanauxiliaryverbwhenit
servesasthepredicateofasentence.
EXERCISESUSINGVERBS
PracticeSentences:
Inthefollowingsentences,underlinethecorrectprincipalpartoftheverb.
Example:I(showed,shown)thephotographsatthemeeting.
1. Thesunhasnot(rose,risen)yetthismorning.
2. Thechild(threw,thrown)theballwell.
3. Ihave(chose,chosen)mylife'spartner.
4. Joeis(search,searching)diligentlyforajob.
5. Thepriceofthestockhas(fallen,falling).
6. Myteam(lead,led)inthetournament.
7. Iam(return,returning)homesoon.
8. Jim(eat,ate)quickly.
9. Theneighborshave(brought,brung)mefood.
Revised2/16/07
Revised2/16/07
PREPOSITIONS
Aprepositionisawordplacedbeforeanounorpronountoformaphrasemodifying
anotherwordinasentence.
Examples:inthehouse,tothestore,overthehill
Example:Ajourneyofathousandmilesbegins
withasinglestep.
CommonPrepositions:
MultiplewordPrepositions:
Note:Prepositionalphrasesmaycontaintwoormorenounsorpronouns,plusa
conjunctionsuchasand.
Revised2/16/07
Exerciseusingprepositionsandprepositionalphrases:
Directions:Underlineprepositionsandplace(parentheses)aroundprepositional
phrases.
1. Inthewinter,campingrequirescarefulplanningandextragear.
2. Youneedspecialsleepingbagsforbelowzerotemperatures.
3. Mostpeoplereservetentswithwoodenfloorsforwintercamping.
4. Theygreatlyprefercampsitesnearhotshowersandindoorplumbing.
5. Onthebreakfasttable,thedrinkingwaterfreezes.
6. Yourmilkandmeatwillbequitecoldwithoutanicechest.
7. Crosscountryskiingisnowverypopularinthemountains.
8. Thissportwillexerciseeverymuscleinyourbody.
9. Youskidownonesmallhill;thenyoustruggleupthenexthill.
10. Aftertheskiing,youwantaverywarmfireandsomehotcocoa.
11. Haveyoureadanygoodbooksaboutwildanimalslately?
12. Mostcountiesaretryingtosavethenaturalenvironmentandthe
animalslivinginit.
13. ThegrizzlybearisnearlyextinctinNorthAmerica,exceptinAlaska.
14. Manypeopleliketogoontripstoseeanimalsintheirnaturalhabitats.
15. Infiftyyears,wemayhavenomorewildanimalslikethezebra,giraffe,
elephant,orrhinoceros.
Revised2/16/07
CONJUNCTIONS
Aconjunctionisanywordthatispowerfulenoughtoconnectsentences.Todecide
whetherawordcanfunctionasaconjunction,tryusingittojointwoshortsentences:
Examples: ShestudiesEnglishconstantly,and
sheknowsitbettereveryday.
IwenttothestorebecauseIneededsomesupplies.
MainCoordinatingConjunctions:
For But So
And Or
Nor Yet
Thesemaincoordinatingconjunctionsjoinindependentclauses(possiblesentences)
tocreateacompoundsentence.
Asecondtypeofconjunctionisthesubordinatingconjunction,whichjoinsa
subjectverbcombinationtoanothersubjectverbcombination,butmakesonepart
subordinatetoordependentupontheother.Theseconjunctionstakepossible
sentencesandturnthemintosubsentences,somethinglessthansentences,called
subordinateordependentclauses.
MainSubordinatingConjunctions:
Note:Someofthesewordsalsofunctionasprepositions;however,whenthey
areNOTjoiningsentences,theyfunctionasprepositions.
CorrelativeConjunctions:
Correlative(fromcorelated)conjunctions,thethirdtypeofconjunctions,
comeinpairs.Theyareusedtojoinequalwords,phrases,orclauses(possible
sentences)withoneconjunctionbeforeonepartandtheotherbeforetheotherpart.
Revised2/16/07
Exercise:UsingConnectors(PrepositionsandConjunctions):
Directions:Putprepositionalphrasesin(parentheses),andunderlineconjunctions.
1. Areyouagoodswimmer?
2. Swimmingisgoodexerciseforthewholebody.
3. Manypeoplelearnswimmingwhentheyareveryyoung.
4. Theirparentshaveswimmingpools,ortheyaretakentopublicpools
orthehomesoffriends.
5. Smallbabiesautomaticallyholdtheirbreathunderwaterforshortperiods
oftime.
6. Someadultsareafraidofthewater,becausetheyhadfrightening
experienceswhentheywereyoung.
7. Theycanstilllearnswimming,iftheygotoclassesattheY.
8. Swimmingnotonlyisfunbutalsoincreasessafety.
9. Allnonswimmersshouldlearndrownproofingswimmingand
floatingonthesurfaceforfairlylongperiodsoftime.
10. Withtheproperequipment,mostpeoplecanenjoyboththebeautiful
underwatersceneryandthetropicalfishinwarmvacationwaters.
Revised2/16/07
INTERJECTIONS
Interjectionsarewordsorsmallgroupsofwordsthatareusedbeforeexclamationpoints
toexpressstrongfeelingofanykind.
Ifanexclamatorygroupofwordsistooshorttobecalledasentence,callitan
interjection,andwriteitseparatelyfromthemainsentence.
Examples: Congratulations!You'vejustwonthe
lottery!
Oh,Sure!Thatcomesineveryone'smail!
Notmine!Doyoureallybelievethat?
Note: Usetheexclamationpointsparingly.Overusediminishesitsvalue.Acomma
isbetteraftermildinterjections.
Aperiodisbetteraftermildlyexclamatoryexpressions.
Example:Herefusedit.
Aperiodisbetteraftermildimperatives[requestorcommand]
Example:Refusetheoffer.
Exercise:Addexclamationpoints(interjections),otherendingpunctuation,and
capitalletterswherenecessaryinthesentences.
1. Wowwhatatimethatwas
2. Don'truninthestreet
3. Stop
4. Cantyoustopthatirritatingnoise
5. Faroutyoureallydiditthattime
6. Ofcoursenot
7. Ithoughtthosegrapeswereripe
Revised2/16/07
ADVERBS
Anadverbisawordthatdescribesaverb,anadjective,oranotheradverb.Mostadverbs
willendinly.
Examples: Thepastrychefcarefullyspreadraspberryfrostingoverthecake.
(Theadverbcarefullydescribestheverbspread.)
Thatlampshinesverybrightly.
(Theadverbverydescribestheadverbbrightly.)
Note:Becarefultouseanadverbnotanadjectiveafteranactionverb.
Comparethefollowing;
Incorrect Correct
Thebosssneezedloudathisdesk. Thebosssneezedloudlyathisdesk.
(loudisanadjective)
Speakslowduringyourlecture. Speakslowlyduringyourlecture.
(slowisanadjective)
Rule:Adverbsaddtoactionverbs.Adverbsshowhow,when,where,orwhyactions
aredone.Lookatthesentenceanddecide:Istheverbdoingsomethingorbeing
something?Ifitisdoing,youneedanadverb;ittellshow,when,where,orhowmuchis
happening.
PlacementofAdverbs:
Adverbsmodifyingverbsappearinvariouspositionsatthebeginningorendofthe
sentence,beforeoraftertheverb,orbetweenahelpingverbanditsmainverb.
Example:
Slowly,wedrovealongtherainslickroad.
Maryhandledthechinadishverycarefully.
Martinalwayswinsourtennismatches.
Chrisisrarelylateforourluncheondates.
Mydaughterhasoftenspokenofyou.
Anadverbmaybeplacedatthebeginningorattheendofthesentenceorbeforethe
verb.Itcannotappearaftertheverbbecausetheverbisfollowedbythedirectobjectthe
gift.
Correct:Carefully,Motherwrappedthegift.
Correct:Motherwrappedthegiftcarefully.
Correct:Mothercarefullywrappedthegift.
Revised2/16/07
Anadverbmaynotbeplacedbetweenaverbanditsdirectobject.
Incorrect:Motherwrappedcarefullythegift.
WordsIntroducingAdverbClauses
SubordinatingConjunctions:after,although,as,asif,because,before,even
though,if,inorderthat,ratherthan,since,sothat,than,that,though,unless,until,
when,where,whether,while.
AdverbialPrepositionalPhrases
Adverbialprepositionalphrasesthatmodifytheverbcanappearnearly
anywhereinasentence.
Donotjudgeabookbyitscover.
Tyrannywillintimeleadtorevolution.
Totheantafewdropsofrainareaflood.
Adverbialwordgroupsusuallyansweroneofthesequestions:When?Where?
How?Why?Underwhatconditions?Towhatdegree?
Donotjudgeabookhow?Byitscover.
Tyrannywillleadtorevolutionwhen?Intime.
Afewdropsofrainareafloodunderwhatconditions.Toanant.
UsingIrregularComparativeandSuperlativeFormsofAdverbs
Someadverbs(andadjectives)changeformtoindicatetheircomparativeand
superlativedegrees.Examplesofirregularmodifiersarelistedbelow:
Exercise:
Underlinetheappropriatemodifier(adverb)ineachofthefollowingsentences.
Example:Theiractionscourageous/courageouslybenefitedmanylives.
1. Thesnowbeganfallinglight/lightlyandthensteady/steadilyintensified.
2. Remembertodriveslow/slowlythroughDevilsPass.
Revised2/16/07
3. Theywerechargedwithdisorder/disorderlyconduct.
4. Edithguessedcorrect/correctlythatshehadbeengiventhejob.
5. Ouraccountantmadeacostly/costmistakeonourtaxreturn.
6. Weweremorethanslight/slightlyupsetwithhim.
7. Wheneverabirdscreechedloudly/loud,heshiveredviolent/violently.
8. Heactedheroic/heroicallywhencalledupontoaidtheaccidentvictims.
9. Theblanketshergrandmotherwovesoskillful/skillfullywerebeautiful.
10.Theyawaitedthereturnoftheirancestralartifactseager/eagerly.
AdverbClauses
Adverbclausesusuallymodifyverbs,inwhichcasetheymayappearnearlyanywherein
asentence:atthebeginning,attheend,orinthemiddle.Likeotheradverbialword
groups,theytellwhen,where,whyunderwhatconditions,ortowhatdegreean
actionorasituationexisted.
Examples:
Whenthewellisdry,weknowthevalueofwater.
Venicewouldbeafinecityifthecanalswereonlydrained.
Unlikeadjectiveclauses,adverbclausesarefrequentlymovable.Wecanmovethe
adverbclausewithoutaffectingthemeaningofthesentence:
Weknowthevalueofwaterwhenthewellisdry.
Ifthecanalswereonlydrained,Venicewouldbeafinecity.
Usinggood/wellandbad/badly
Somewritersconfusetheadjectivegoodwiththeadverbwellandtheadjectivebad
withtheadverbbadly.Rule:Usetheadjectivesgoodandbadtomodifynounsor
pronouns:agoodtimeabadplay.Usetheadverbswellandbadlytomodify
verbs,adjectives,orotheradverbs:shespeakswell;hehearsbadly.
Exercises:Inthefollowingsentences,correctthemisuseofgood/wellorbad/badly.
Somesentencesmaybecorrectaswritten.
Example: Shenolongerskatesgood.
Corrected: Shenolongerskateswell.
Revised2/16/07
1. Itwasagoodtime;itwasabadtime.
2. Itdidnotgogood;itdidnotgobadly.
3. Itcouldhavegonebetter,butitwasnotbadly.
4. Theyinvestedtheirmoneygood,sogoodtheydoubledtheirinvestment.
AvoidingDoubleNegatives
Adoublenegativeisanonstandardformusingtwonegativeswhereonlyoneis
necessary.AlthoughfewspeakersofEnglishwouldmisunderstandIdonothaveno
money,thestatementisnonstandardbecauseitcontainstwonegativesandonlyoneis
necessary.Theadverbsbarely,scarcely,andhardlyandtheprepositionbut
(meaningexcept)arenegativeandshouldnotbeusedwithothernegatives.
AlthoughdoublenegativeswereonceacceptableinEnglish(Shakespeareusedthemfor
emphasis),usingtheminyourwritingmayleadyourreaderstobelieveyouarecareless.
Therefore,reviseanydoublenegativesusedinyourwriting.
Revised2/16/07
SelectedResources
Aaron,JaneE.TheLittle,BrownCompactHandbook,3rded.NewYork:
AddisonWesleyEducationPublications,Inc.,1998.
DiYanni,RobertandPatC.HoyII.TheScribnerHandbookforWriters.
Boston:AllynandBacon,1998.
Ebest,SallyBarr,etal.WritingfromAtoZ.MountainView,Ca.:Mayfield
PublishingCompany,1997.
Embree,JeanAnderson.PracticalEnglishGrammar.MountainView,Ca.:
MayfieldPublishingCompany,1997.
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