{"id":95,"date":"2024-05-28T23:28:27","date_gmt":"2024-05-28T23:28:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/karenmariepalmer.com\/theroughwritersguide\/chapter\/grammar-basics\/"},"modified":"2024-05-28T23:29:14","modified_gmt":"2024-05-28T23:29:14","slug":"grammar-basics","status":"publish","type":"chapter","link":"https:\/\/karenmariepalmer.com\/theroughwritersguide\/chapter\/grammar-basics\/","title":{"raw":"Grammar Basics: Understand the Vocabulary","rendered":"Grammar Basics: Understand the Vocabulary"},"content":{"raw":"\nThe first step in understanding the rules of grammar is to understand the vocabulary of grammar. In this chapter, we will be discussing the eight Parts of Speech<\/strong> in the English language, as well as the main Parts of a Sentence<\/strong>.\n

Parts of Speech<\/h1>\n

In English, words are used in one of eight parts of speech: noun, pronoun, adjective, verb, adverb, conjunction, preposition, and interjection.<\/p>\nhttps:\/\/youtu.be\/8WufgBjLp9Y\n

This table includes an explanation and examples of each of the eight parts of speech:<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
Part of Speech<\/strong><\/td>\nDescription<\/strong><\/td>\nSample Sentence<\/strong><\/td>\nExamples<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n
Noun<\/td>\nPerson, place, or thing<\/td>\nWow! After the game, silly Mary ate her apples and carrots quickly.<\/td>\ngame, Mary, apples, carrots<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Pronoun<\/td>\nTakes the place of a noun<\/td>\nWow! After the game, silly Mary ate her apples and carrots quickly.<\/td>\nher<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Adjective<\/td>\nDescribes a noun or pronoun<\/td>\nWow! After the game, silly Mary ate her apples and carrots quickly.<\/td>\nthe, silly<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Verb<\/td>\nShows action or state of being<\/td>\nWow! After the game, silly Mary ate her apples and carrots quickly.<\/td>\nate<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Adverb<\/td>\nDescribes a verb, another adverb, or an adjective and tells how, where, or when something is done<\/td>\nWow! After the game, silly Mary ate her apples and carrots quickly.<\/td>\nquickly<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Conjunction<\/td>\nJoins words, phrases, and clauses<\/td>\nWow! After the game, silly Mary ate her apples and carrots quickly.<\/td>\nand<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Preposition<\/td>\nFirst word in a phrase that indicates the relationship of the phrase to other words in the sentence<\/td>\nWow! After the game, silly Mary ate her apples and carrots quickly.<\/td>\nafter<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Interjection<\/td>\nA word that shows emotion and is not related to the rest of the sentence<\/td>\nWow! After the game, silly Mary ate her apples and carrots quickly.<\/td>\nWow!<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n \n
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Exercise 1<\/p>\n\n<\/header>\n

\n\nPractice identifying the Parts of Speech:\n\n[h5p id=\"7\"]<\/code>\n\n \n\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

Parts of a Sentence<\/span><\/h1>\nOnce you know the eight parts of speech, you can look at how those parts of speech work. In this section, we'll discuss the jobs the different parts of speech do in a sentence. Understanding how the parts of speech work\u2014what jobs they can do\u2014will expand your grammar vocabulary and help you to better understand how to correct your own writing, whether you are using a service like Grammarly or Turnitin or whether you are editing on your own.\n

Subject & Predicate<\/h2>\nEvery sentence must have a subject and a predicate (AKA a verb). The simple<\/strong> subject<\/strong> of a sentence is the noun, pronoun, phrase, or clause the sentence is about, and the simple<\/strong> predicate<\/strong> is action being done by the simple subject. We can also divide a sentence into the complete subject<\/strong> and the complete predicate<\/strong> by drawing a straight vertical line in between the simple subject and the simple predicate. In the examples below, the simple subject is in bold<\/strong> and the predicate is in bold italics<\/strong><\/em>:\n
\n\nEinstein\u2019s general theory<\/strong> of relativity |<\/strong> has been subjected<\/em><\/strong> to many tests of validity over the years.\n\nIn a secure landfill, the soil<\/strong> on top and the cover<\/strong> | block<\/em><\/strong> storm water intrusion into the landfill. (compound subject)<\/em>\n\nThe pressure<\/strong> | is maintained<\/em><\/strong> at about 2250 pounds per square inch <\/strong>then lowered<\/em><\/strong> to form steam at about 600 pounds per square inch. (compound predicate)<\/em>\n\n<\/div>\n

Direct Object<\/h2>\nA direct object\u2014a noun, pronoun, phrase, or clause acting as a noun\u2014takes the action of the main verb (e.g., the verb is happening to the object). A direct object can be identified by asking \"what?\" <\/em>about the verb\/predicate. In the example below, we would ask \u201cThe pencil contains what?\u201d The answer, \u201cworkings,\u201d is the direct object:\n
The housing assembly of a mechanical pencil<\/strong> |<\/strong> contains<\/strong><\/em> \\<\/strong> the mechanical workings<\/em> of the pencil.<\/div>\n

Subject Complement<\/h2>\nA subject complement functions a bit like a direct object. The difference is that a direct object follows an active verb\u2013a verb that denotes action, like eat, read, or drive\u2013and a subject complement follows a \u2018be\u2019 verb\u2013am, is, are, was, were, etc. In this case, the be verb acts as an equal sign in math (=). It tells us something about the subject of the sentence. A subject complement can be a noun, a pronoun, or an adjective.\n
\n\nThe dog is a male. (dog = male)\n\nThe dog is mine. (dog = mine)\n\nThe dog is hungry. (dog = hungry)\n\n<\/div>\n

Indirect Object<\/h2>\nAn indirect object\u2014a noun, pronoun, phrase, or clause acting as a noun\u2014receives the action expressed in the sentence. It can be identified by asking to<\/em> or for whom <\/em>of the direct object.<\/em> In the example below, we would ask \u201cFor whom is the walkway being designed?\u201d The answer, \u201ccitizens,\u201d is our indirect object.\n
\n\nThe company<\/strong> | is designing<\/em><\/strong> senior citizens<\/span> a new walkway<\/em> to the park area.\n\n<\/div>\n

Phrases and Clauses<\/h2>\nPhrases and clauses are groups of words that act as a unit and perform a single function within a sentence. A phrase may have a partial subject or verb but not both; a clause has both a subject and a verb. There are two types of clauses: independent and dependent. An independent clause is free to stand by itself\u2013it functions as a complete sentence. A dependent clause, however, is dependent on something else: it cannot stand on its own. Any clause with a subordinating conjunction (like when<\/em> or since<\/em>) is a dependent clause. For example, \u201cI was a little girl in 1995\u201d is an independent clause, but \u201cBecause I was a little girl in 1995\u201d is a dependent clause. Clauses that start with relative pronouns, like which<\/em>, <\/em>also become dependent clauses.\n\nhttps:\/\/youtu.be\/ROpRmlYJh3A\n

Adverbial Clause<\/h3>\nAn adverbial clause functions like an adverb. It modifies a verb, an adjective, or another adverb. For example, in the sentence, \u201cThe dog eats when he is hungry,\u201d the clause \u201cwhen he is hungry\u201d modifies the verb \u201ceats.\u201d It tells us when the dog eats. Because \u201cwhen he is hungry\u201d has both a subject and a verb, it is a clause, not a phrase. Since it can\u2019t stand along (it starts with a subordinating conjunction), it is a dependent clause.\n

Absolute Phrase<\/h3>\nAn absolute phrase is one of the more difficult parts of a sentence to identify. An absolute phrase modifies an entire sentence and typically has either a subject or a verb or a subject and a partial verb. The verb is often in gerund form, meaning it ends in \u201cing.\u201d\n
Having done his best, the student submitted his test.<\/div>\nIn this example, the phrase \u201cHaving done his best\u201d tells us about the subject, \u201cthe student,\u201d and about the predicate, \u201csubmitted his test.\u201d The phrase only has a predicate, so it is a phrase, not a clause. Since it modifies the entire sentence, it\u2019s an absolute phrase.\n

Noun Clause AKA Nominative Clause<\/h3>\nA noun clause is a dependent clause that functions like a noun in a sentence. It can take the place of a subject, an object of the preposition, or a direct object\u2013anything a noun can do, a noun clause can do.\n
The hungry teenager will eat whatever he finds.<\/div>\nThe complete subject is \u201cThe hungry teenager,\u201d and the predicate is \u201cwill eat.\u201d When we ask \u201cWill eat what?\u201d the answer is \u201cwhatever he finds.\u201d That means that \u201cwhatever he finds\u201d is the direct object. Since \u201cwhatever he finds\u201d has a subject and a verb itself, we know it is a clause. So, since we have a clause doing a noun job, we know we have a noun clause.\n

Prepositional Phrases<\/h2>\nA prepositional phrase is a group of words that behaves as an adjective or an adverb, modifying a noun or a verb. Prepositional phrases contain a preposition (a word that specifies place, direction, or time) and an object of the preposition (a noun phrase or pronoun that follows the preposition). In general, a prepositional phrase follows this format: Preposition + article\/adjective + noun\/pronoun. For example, \u201con the box\u201d is a prepositional phrase. In fact, if you think of all the things you can do in relation to a box, you'll gain a better understanding of how prepositional phrases function in a sentence.\n
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\"image\"<\/div>\n
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What can you do in relation to the box? You can go\u2026<\/div>\n
over the box, under the box, around the box, through the box, to the box, from the box, above the box, below the box, etc.<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\u201c3D Box<\/a>\u201d by kunal licensed under CC SA<\/a>.<\/em>\n\nThe following table lists some of the most common prepositions:\n
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\n
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\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
above<\/td>\nbeneath<\/td>\ninto<\/td>\ntoward<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
across<\/td>\nbeside<\/td>\nlike<\/td>\nunder<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
against<\/td>\nbetween<\/td>\nnear<\/td>\nunder<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
after<\/td>\nbeyond<\/td>\nnear<\/td>\nuntil<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
among<\/td>\nby<\/td>\non<\/td>\nup<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
around<\/td>\ndespite<\/td>\nover<\/td>\nwith<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
at<\/td>\nexcept<\/td>\npast<\/td>\nwithout<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
before<\/td>\nfor<\/td>\nsince<\/td>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
behind<\/td>\nfrom<\/td>\nthrough<\/td>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
below<\/td>\ninside<\/td>\nthroughout<\/td>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

Appositives<\/h2>\nAn appositive is a word or group of words that describes or renames a noun or pronoun. Incorporating appositives into your writing is a useful way of combining sentences that are too short and choppy. An appositive may be placed anywhere in a sentence, but it must come directly before or after the noun to which it refers:\n\nAppositive after noun<\/strong>: Scott, a poorly trained athlete, was not expected to win the race.\n\nAppositive before noun<\/strong>: A poorly trained athlete, Scott was not expected to win the race.\n\nUnlike relative clauses, appositives are always punctuated by a comma or a set commas.\n
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Exercise 2<\/p>\n\n<\/header>\n

\n\nComplete this quiz<\/a> for practice identifying parts of a sentence.\n\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n \n

Additional Resources:<\/h2>\nYou might also want to take a look at this video explaining the parts of a sentence:\n\n[embed]https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/jdNjmkEXwXY[\/embed]\n\n \n\n
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Attributions<\/h2>\n