Noun/Pronoun

Is a word, phrase or clause that names person, place, thing, idea.

It’s connected to the shape and number of noun, plural or singular form (Book, Fish, Police, Jury,
Furniture) – countable or uncountable (Sugar, Time, Ice, etc.)

Be careful of a prepositional phrase in determining singular or plural ( one of, either of, much of,
etc.)-singular (both of, several of)-plural. (some of, all of, most of, a lot of, ) – depend on noun form.
* A lot of work was too easy
* A lot of the people were angry
Verb
Is a word, phrase or clause that expresses an action or occupation performed by subject/actor
Verb forms are connected to the times of action (tenses) which revealed root, Past, Past participle
and Present participle. Be careful of regular and irregular verb form in English!
• Rudi is in his room completing his assignment.
• I am surprised of his coming
ADJECTIVE
An adjective is a word which describes a noun or pronoun either by pointing out one of its qualities
or by limiting its reference.
Two main types :
Descriptive adjectives
An expensive commodity (what kind of commodity? Expensive commodity)
A silly argument (what kind of argument? Silly argument)
Limiting adjectives (also known as determiners)
This person (which person? This person)
Two handles (how many handles? Two handles)
The first argument (which argument? The first argument)
Be careful of verbs that need adj. for their complement:
• He considered that all effort done as useless (considered as)
• The invention of rockets has made moon-landing possible (make something)

ADVERB

An adverb is a word that may be used to give more information about: a verb ( e.g. runs quickly), an
adjective (e.g. very interesting), another adverb (e.g. very beautifully), a conjunction (e.g. only
because), a preposition (e.g. only after), an entire sentence (e.g. Surprisingly, she recovered.)

Most adverb are formed from adjectives + ly e.g. badly, slowly, truly, happily, etc
Sentence has a subject and a verb
(A sentence in English must have at least one subject and one verb)
Therefore, we should be able to do following:
1. Be sure the sentence has a subject and a verb
2. Be careful of objects of preposition and appositives
3. Be careful of present and past participles when you’re looking for the verb
 : ……….was backed up for miles on the freeway
(Yesterday; In the morning; Traffic; Cars)
 Engineers………..for work on the new space programs
(necessary; are needed; hopefully; next month)
 The boy……….going to the movies with a friend
(he is; he always was; is relaxing; will be)
Be Careful of objects of Preposition –
If a word is an object of a preposition, it is not the subject.

(An object of a preposition is a noun or pronoun that comes after a preposition, such as in, at, of, to,
by, behind, on, and so on, to form a prepositional phrase)

(After his exams) Doni will take a trip (by boat)

* With his friend……..found the movie theater

(has; he; later; when)

* The interviews by radio broadcasters………live by the station

(carrying; were carried; is; finally)
Be Careful of Appositives – it is not the subject generally set off from the noun with commas. Can be
mistaken for the subject of a sentence because it has the same meaning

Mirnawati, the best student in the class, got an A on the exam.

The underlined word can be recognized as an appositives because of the noun student and
commas.

* ………., George, is attending the lecture.

(Right now; happily; Because of the time; My friend)

* The only entrance to the building, ……… was kept locked at all times.
(at last; the door; orderly; it)
Present Participles (-ing form) – it can be either a part of the verb or an adjective .

1. Part of the verb when it is accompanied by “be”

(The boy is standing in the corner)
2. As an Adjective when it is not accompanied by “be”
(The boy standing in the corner was naughty)

* The child ………playing in the yard is my son.

(now; is; he; was)

* The companies offering the lowest price will have the most customers. (the underlined is
adjective)
Past Participles (verb that appears with have or be-third form) – it can be either a part of the verb or
an adjective .

* The family has purchased a television (verb)

* The television purchased yesterday was expensive (Adj.)
- The poem was written by Paul (Verb)
- The poem written by Paul appeared in the magazine (adj.)

The packages……..mailed at the post office will arrive today

(have; were; them; just)

* The car listed in the advertisement had already stalled. (the underlined is adjective)

SENTENCES WITH MULTIPLE CLAUSES

A clause is a group of words containing a subject and a verb. Some clauses can stand alone as a
sentence (independent clause). Many sentences in English have more than one clause. *Tom loves
Erica, and she loves him
We must check:
1. Every subject has a verb and every verb has a subject.
2. Various clauses in the sentence are correctly joined.
USE COORDINATE CONNECTORS CORRECTLY
When you have two clauses in a sentence, you must connect the clauses correctly by using : and,
but, or, nor, so, yet, for, because , a comma (,),etc.
Ex:
 Tom is singing and Paul is dancing
 Tom is tall, but Paul is short.
 Tom must write the letter, or Paul will do it
 Tom is tired, yet he is not going to sleep
1. A power failure occurred, ……..the lamps went out.
a. then c. later
b. so d. next
ADVERB “TIME” CONNECTORS
1. I will sign the check before you leave.
2. Before you leave, I will sign the check.
When connector comes at the beginning of the sentence, a comma (‘) is required in the middle of
the sentence.
Ex:……….was late, I missed the appointment.
a. I c. The Train
b. Because d. Since he
These are the other adverb time connectors:
After, as, as long as, as soon as, by the time, once, since, until, when, whenever, while.
* The mother is going to be quite upset with her son as long as he misbehaves so much.
USE OTHER ADVERB CONECTORS CORRECTLY
Adverb clauses can also express a number of other ideas such as :
1. Contrast ( although, even though, though, while , whereas)
2. Condition (If, in case, provided/providing, unless, whether)
3. Manner ( as, in that)
4. Place (where, wherever)
Ex: You will get a good grade on the exam provided………..
a. studying c. to study
b. study d. you study
Remember ! A connector must be followed by a subject and a verb.
• Bob went to school even though he felt sick.
• Even though Bob felt sick, he went to school.
• It is impossible to enter that program if you lack experience as a teacher.
USE NOUN CLAUSE CONECTORS CORRECTLY
A noun clause is a clause that functions as a noun. It is used as:
1. an object of a verb (I know when he will arrive)
2. object of a preposition (I am concerned about when he will arrive)
3. the subject of the sentence. (When he will arrive is not important)

Ex: ……..was late caused many problems.

a. That he c. There
b. The driver d. Because
Remember ! (was and caused) can be as verbs.
 • I know what you did. (as object of a verb)
• What you did was wrong.(as subject of the sentence)
• When the season starts is determined by the weather.
USE NOUN CLAUSE CONECTOR/SUBJECTS CORRECTLY
A noun clause connector can also be the subject of the clause at the same time.
Whoever is coming to the party must bring a gift.
The word “whoever” serves two functions (subject “is” and the connector that joins the two clauses)
Ex: ……..was on TV made me angry.
a. It c. What
b. The story d. When
Remember ! (was and made) can be as verbs.
The other words of the connector:
Who, whoever, what, whatever, which, whichever.
USE ADJECTIVE CLAUSE CONECTORS CORRECTLY
An ADJCTIVE CLAUSE is a clause that describes a noun.
The woman is filling the glass that she put on the table.
The glass that she put on the table contains milk
Ex:The gift ……..selected for the bride was rather expensive.
a. because c. since
b. was d. which we
Forms of Adjective clause connectors:
*whom (for people)
*which (for things)
*that (for people or things)
I liked the book which you recommended
The book which you recommended was interesting.
USE ADJECTIVE CLAUSE CONECTOR/SUBJECTS CORRECTLY
An Adj. connector can also be the subject of the clause at the same time.
The woman is filling the glass that she put on the table.
The glass that she put on the table contains milk
……..is on the table has four sections.
a. The notebook c. Because the notebook
b. The notebook which d. In the notebook
Remember ! (is and has are verbs) – “table” is object of preposition
 She needs a secretary who types fast.
 A secretary who types fast is invaluable.
 The ice cream that is served in the restaurant has a smooth, creamy texture.
SENTENCES WITH REDUCED CLAUSES
It is possible in English for a clause to appear in a reduced form.
My friend should be on the train which is arriving at the station now.
(Reduced adjective clause)

Although it was not really difficult, the exam took a lot of time
(Reduced adverb clause)
REDUCED ADJECTIVE CLAUSES
 To reduce an Adjective clause, omit the Adj. clause connector/subject and the be-verb.
The woman who is waving to us is the tour guide
The letter which was written last week arrived today
 If there is no be-verb, omit the connector / subject and change the main verb into the -ing
form.
I don’t understand the article which appears in today’s paper
I don’t understand the article appearing in today’s paper
 Only reduce an Adj. clause if the connector/subject is directly followed by the verb. In other
words, if the connector is also a subject.
The woman that I just met is the tour guide (does not reduce)
The letter which you sent me arrived yesterday.(does not reduce)
 If an adjective clause is set off with commas, the reduced clause can be moved to the front
of the sentence.
 The White House, which is located in Washington, is the home of the president.
 The White House, located in Washington, is the home of the president.
 Located in Washington, The White House is the home of the president.
USE REDUCED ADVERB CLAUSES CORRECTLY
Adverb Clause can also appear in a reduced form. The adverb connector remains, but subject and
be-verb are omitted.
 Although he is rather unwell, the lecturer will take part in the meeting.
 When you are ready, you can begin your speech.
 If There is no be-verb in the adverb clause, the subject is omitted and the main verb is
changed into the -ing form.
 Although he feels/feeling rather sick, the lecturer will take part in the meeting.
 When you give/giving your speech, you should speak loudly
UNREDUCED ADVERB CLAUSES
It should be noted that not all Adverb Clause can appear in a reduced form. A number of The adverb
clauses can only be reduced if the verb is in passive form.
 Once you submit your thesis, you will graduate.
(active-does not reduce)
 Once it is submitted, your thesis will be reviewed.
(passive - does reduce)
 When you are finished with the report, you are free to leave.