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 English has two types of articles:

definite and indefinite.
 The definite article is the word the.
 It limits the meaning of a noun to one
particular thing.
Example:
 Please give me the hammer.
 Please give me the red hammer; the blue one is
too small.
 The indefinite article takes two forms.
 It’s the word a when it precedes a word that
begins with a consonant.
 It’s the word an when it precedes a word that
begins with a vowel or vowel sound.
  Transitional Devices
 Transitional devices are words or phrases that help carry a
thought from one sentence to another, from one idea to another, or
from one paragraph to another.
 Examples:
 To add:
 and, again, and then, besides, equally important, finally, further,
furthermore, nor, too, next, lastly, what's more, moreover, in
addition, first (second, etc.)
 To show exception:
 yet, still, however, nevertheless, in spite of, despite, of course,
once in a while, sometimes
 To Summarize or Conclude:
 in brief, on the whole, summing up, to conclude, in conclusion, as
I have shown, as I have said, hence, therefore, accordingly, thus,
as a result, consequently
 There are a few exceptions to the general rule of
using a before words that start with consonants
and an before words that begin with vowels.

Examples:
 Incorrect: My mother is a honest woman.
 Correct: My mother is an honest woman.
 Incorrect: She is an United States senator.
 Correct: She is a United States senator.
 This holds true with acronyms and initialisms,
too: an LCD display, a UK-based company, an HR
department, a URL.
 The best way to remember the seven
coordinating conjunctions is by using the
acronym FANBOYS:
 Fanboys is the easiest to remember: For, an,
nor, but, or, yet, so
 Example:

 We were out of milk, so I went to the store to

buy some.
 He seemed poorly groomed yet well
mannered.
 To Give an Example:
 for example, for instance, in this case, in
another case, on this occasion, in this situation,
take the case of, to demonstrate, to illustrate, as
an illustration, to illustrate
 To Show Time:
 immediately, thereafter, soon, after a few
hours, finally, then, later, previously, formerly,
first (second, etc.), next, and then
 To add:
 and, again, and then, besides, equally important, finally,
further, furthermore, nor, too, next, lastly, what's more,
moreover, in addition, first (second, etc.)
 To Summarize or Conclude:
 in brief, on the whole, summing up, to conclude, in
conclusion, as I have shown, as I have said, hence, therefore,
accordingly, thus, as a result, consequently
 To Show Sequence:
 first, second, third, and so forth. A, B, C, and so forth. next,
then, following this, at this time, now, at this point, after,
afterward, subsequently, finally, consequently, previously,
before this, simultaneously, concurrently, thus, therefore,
hence, next, and then, soon
 Conditional sentences are statements discussing known
factors or hypothetical situations and their consequences.
 Complete conditional sentences contain a
conditional clause (often referred to as the if-clause) and the
consequence.
 Example:
 If I study hard for the test, then I would have a better chance
of passing.
 If I carefully read the customer’s concern, I would be better
informed to find the correct solution.
 If I come early to work every day, then I would not have my
coach yelling at me all the time.
 Since the agents aren’t coming today, I will work 3 hours of
OT.
 When the conditional clause is at the end of the
sentence:
 Example:

 I would have a better chance of passing if I

study for the test.
 I will provide better first contact resolution if I
take a little more time to read the customer’s
concern.
 I will work more OT since the agents aren’t
able to come to work today.
 The apostrophe has three uses:
 To form possessives of nouns
 To show the omission of letters
 To indicate certain plurals of lowercase letters

 Forming Possessives of Nouns

 Example:

 the boy's hat = the hat of the boy

 three days' journey = journey of three days
 add 's to the singular form of the word (even if it ends in -s):
 the owner's car

James's hat (James' hat is also acceptable. For plural, proper nouns that are
possessive, use an apostrophe after the 's':
 The Eggleses' presentation was good. The Eggleses are a husband and
wife consultant team.)

 add 's to the plural forms that do not end in -s:

 the children's game
the geese's honking
 add ' to the end of plural nouns that end in -s:
 two cats' toys
three friends' letters
the countries' laws
 add 's to the end of compound words:
 my brother-in-law's money
 Showing omission of letters
 Example:

 don't = do not
I'm = I am
he'll = he will
who's = who is
shouldn't = should not
didn't = did not
could've= could have (NOT "could of"!)
'60 = 1960
 A gerund is a verbal that ends in -ing and
functions as a noun.
 The term verbal indicates that a gerund, like the
other two kinds of verbals, is based on a verb
and therefore expresses action or a state of
being.
 However, since a gerund functions as a noun, it
occupies some positions in a sentence that a
noun ordinarily would, for example: subject,
direct object, subject complement, and object of
preposition.
  Gerund as subject:
 Traveling might satisfy your desire for new
experiences. (Traveling is the gerund.)
 The study abroad program might satisfy your
desire for new experiences. (The gerund has
been removed.)
  Gerund as direct object:
 They do not appreciate my singing. (The
gerund is singing.)
 They do not appreciate my assistance. (The
gerund has been removed)
 Gerund as subject complement:

 My cat's favorite activity is sleeping. (The

gerund is sleeping.)
 My cat's favorite food is salmon. (The gerund
has been removed.)
  Gerund as object of preposition:
 The police arrested him for speeding. (The gerund
is speeding.)
 The police arrested him for criminal activity. (The
gerund has been removed.)
 Points to remember:

 A gerund is a verbal ending in -ing that is used as a

noun.
 A gerund phrase consists of a gerund plus modifier(s),
object(s), and/or complement(s).
 Gerunds and gerund phrases virtually never require
punctuation.
 An infinitive is a verbal consisting of the word
to plus a verb (in its simplest "stem" form) and
functioning as a noun, adjective, or adverb.
 The term verbal indicates that an infinitive, like
the other two kinds of verbals, is based on a
verb and therefore expresses action or a state of
being.
 Although an infinitive is easy to locate because
of the to + verb form, deciding what function it
has in a sentence can sometimes be confusing.
  Examples:
 To wait seemed foolish when decisive action was required.
(subject)
 Everyone wanted to go. (direct object)
 His ambition is to fly. (subject complement)
 He lacked the strength to resist. (adjective)
 We must study to learn. (adverb)
 Be sure not to confuse an infinitive—a verbal consisting of to
plus a verb—with a prepositional phrase beginning with to,
which consists of to plus a noun or pronoun and any
modifiers.
 Infinitives: to fly, to draw, to become, to enter, to stand, to
catch, to belong
 Prepositional Phrases: to him, to the committee, to my
house, to the mountains, to us, to this address
 An Infinitive Phrase is a group of words
consisting of an infinitive and the modifier(s)
and/or (pro)noun(s) or noun phrase(s) that
function as the actor(s), direct object(s), indirect
object(s), or complement(s) of the action or
state expressed in the infinitive, such as:
 Example:

 We intended to leave early.

 The infinitive phrase functions as the direct
object of the verb intended.
to leave (infinitive)
early (adverb)
 Example:
 I have a paper to write before class.

 The infinitive phrase functions as an adjective

modifying paper.
to write (infinitive)
before class (prepositional phrase as adverb)
 Example:
 Phil agreed to give me a ride.
 The infinitive phrase functions as the direct
object of the verb agreed.
to give (infinitive)
me (indirect object of action expressed in
infinitive)
a ride (direct object of action expressed in
infinitive)
 Example:

 They asked me to bring some food.

 The infinitive phrase functions as the direct
object of the verb asked.
me (actor or "subject" of infinitive phrase)
to bring (infinitive)
some food (direct object of action expressed in
infinitive)
 Example:

 Everyone wanted Carol to be the captain of the

team.
 The infinitive phrase functions as the direct
object of the verb wanted.
Carol (actor or "subject" of infinitive phrase)
to be (infinitive)
the captain (subject complement for Carol, via
state of being expressed in infinitive)
of the team (prepositional phrase as adjective)