Stella Maris College High School Unit ENGLISH III Reviewer 1st Trimestral Exams GRAMMAR CONCEPTS A sentence

e has two componentsa SUBJECT, and a PREDICATE. It also has a complete thought. Subject: the doer of the action or the topic in the sentence Predicate: what the doer is performing or something that describes the topic Examples of sentences: 1. Mrs. Torres told us to sit still. (The verb told was performed by the noun Mrs. Torres. Therefore, the subject is Mrs. Torres. The complete predicate is told us to sit still.) 2. Lora is now a registered nurse. (Is talks about a state of being. Lora, the noun, is described by the phrase a registered nurse.) A phrase lacks either a subject or a predicate. Examples of phrases: beneath the staircase She jumped There are two types of clausesdependent and independent clauses. Dependent clauses are indicated by subordinating conjunctions like and, with, or, while, because, for, although and meanwhile. These clauses cant stand alone. Independent clauses can be considered sentences. These clauses can stand alone. Infinitives, gerunds, participles These three are called verbals, words that look like verbs but function differently in sentences. Infinitives and gerunds become subjects (doers/topics) or predicates (receivers of action). Participles become adjectives.
1. Infinitives are characterized by the following sentence structure:

To + base form of verb + linking verb (is, are, was, were) + predicate *REMEMBER: to + noun = preposition to + verb = infinitive
2. Gerunds are characterized by the following sentence structure:

Base form of verb + -ing + linking verb + predicate

3. Participles describe nouns and pronouns in sentences. Present

participles are always in ing form. Past participles are in ed form if they are regular verbs. However, some verbs have irregular forms when turned into past participles. Examples of these are break (broke past tense, broken past participle) and take (took past tense, taken past participle) Examples of participles: 1. The ground where Jesus stood is considered holy. Where Jesus stood is an adjective that describes the word ground. In this phrase, stood is a past participle, not a verb.
2. Frozen in place, she turned to face her mother.

The phrase frozen in place describes the pronoun she. Agreement (S-V and P-A) A. Subject-Verb Agreement Matching a verb with its subject in terms of number and person. Person: first (I or we), second (you) or third (he, she, it, they) Number: singular or plural BASIC RULES OF AGREEMENT 1. A singular subject needs a singular verb 2. A plural subject needs a plural verb Those kids listen attentively. (LISTEN is plural verbs retain base form when plural) That kid listens attentively. (LISTENS is singular verbs have s when singular) *remember: Verbs have s when in singular form SPECIAL RULES OF AGREEMENT a. Collective nouns -Are singular or plural depending on use Singular: When thought of as one entity Our parish has plenty of projects lined up this year. Plural: When members are considered individually Our parish (referring to members) have been active in outreach programs. b. Common and proper nouns ending in s or ics Are always thought of as one entity, and takes a plural verb Example: Genetics is an interesting field of specialization. The United Arab Emirates remains to be a prime source of petroleum.

c. Titles of works Takes singular verbs even when plural in form Example: Desperate Housewives was responsible for Teri Hatchers fame. F.R.I.E.N.D.S. still airs in many countries to this day. d. Nouns occurring in pairs Take the singular when the noun pair is present & plural when pair is absent Example: The pair of pants is on discount. The pants are on discount. e. Numbers A number, is plural; The number is singular. Examples: A number of students give their opinions regularly. The number of students gives us a clue to how many people can be accommodated. Amount of money, time, distance, speed, or weight follows this structure: Number + plural noun + singular verb Examples: A thousand yen is not a lot of money. Eighty kilometers per hour is the speed limit on the expressway. Arithmetic operations take singular. f. Quantifiers Take singular verbs: Every, each, eitheror, neithernor Examples: Every student was required to attend the ceremony. Each passage has its own entrance and exit. Take plural verbs: Enough, all, no, none, some, any, both Examples: None of them were thinking of what might happen. Some people prefer the sunset to the sunrise. g. More than one subject in a sentence As a rule, always take the number of the subject closest to the verb Examples: The adviser and their members plan on going on a trip. The parents and friends of Mika are celebrating today. B. Pronoun-Antecedent Agreement Remember to match the antecedent to the pronoun it modifies. Things to look after: gender, person and number
Nominative (Pronoun as Subject) I You He She It We They Objective (Pronoun as Object) Me You Him Her It Us Them Possessive (Ownership) My, Mine Your, Yours His Her, Hers Its Our, Ours Their, Theirs

Who Whoever

Whom Whomever

Whose Whoever

Remember: The antecedent of a pronoun might be in a previous sentence. Example: Marla is my best friend. She is one of my first friends in school. Countries, ships and schools are referred to as she. Example: The MV Atalanta has gone on her first trip today. Traditionally, masculine pronouns are used to refer to mixed groups or groups in which the gender is unknown. However, using he or she or they is now accepted. Example: The Marauders have decided on their headquarters. Use the pronouns I, me, my and mine last if they occur in a series. Example: Ms. Solis made Chantal, Rika and I stay after class. Revising Sentences Determine the words that make the sentence lengthy. Prefer bought to purchased, and after to subsequent. Isolate the long words and think of short synonyms. Eliminate adjectives and adverbs when possible.
Use active instead of passive voice.

ACTIVE VOICE: When the sentence follows the structure doer + verb + receiver. (The doer is the subject of the sentence) Example: The dog bit the little child. PASSIVE VOICE: When the sentence follows the structure receiver + verb + doer. (The receiver is the subject of the sentence) Example: The little child was bitten by the dog. COMMONLY USED WORDY PHRASES 1. In my own personal opinion 2. Due to the fact that 3. In close proximity to 4. With reference to the fact that 5. Within the realm of possibility 6. In some cases 7. Subsequent to 8.
Come to the conclusion that

SHORTER VERSIONS
I believe/think Because Near Concerning/about It is Possible/possibly Sometimes After Decide Suggest

1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8.

9.

9.

Put forward the idea that