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Grammar

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Grammar

  • = is from the Greek "art of letters" (words)

Article purpose

  • this article focuses on sentences and sentence parts, including:
    • sentence definition
    • clauses & phrases
    • types of nouns, verbs, adjectives and modifiers & their use in a sentence

Note: "punctuation" and "parts of speech" are sub-categories of "grammar"

Other related categories:

Note on abbreviations

  • IC = "independent clause"
  • DC = "dependent clause"
  • SV = "subject + verb"
  • SVO = "subject + verb + object"
  • CB = College Board


Sentence

  • a complete and grammatically correct thought that contains at a minimum a subject (or an implied subject) and a verb or predicate
    • i.e., "I shop." = a complete sentence and thought.
    • "Go!" = the subject, usually, "you" is implied
      • this form of a command is called an "imperative" or "exclamatory" sentence.
  • sentence complexity is created around the core Subject Verb Object/Predicate by adding:
    • clauses
    • modifiers
    • phrases
    • prepositions, etc.

Constituents

  • constituent = a word or words that creates a unique grammatical unit in a sentence
    • word origin:
      • con- = with
      • stitu = from PIE -sta and Latin statuare for "to stand"
      • -ent = having the condition of (the suffix indicates a noun)
  • constituent parts of a sentence are those that we can consider coherent elements or groupings within a sentence
    • constituent parts operates as an heirarchy
      • i.e,. "Sam and I" = noun phrase that is made up of a noun + a conjunction + a noun

Categories of sentence purposes

  • declarative sentence
    • makes a statement
    • most sentences are declarative in that they state something
  • exclamatory sentence
    • = a statement of urgency or emotion
      • also called an "exclamation"
    • ex. "That really hurt!"
  • interrogative sentence
    • = a question or a request
    • ex. "Is it raining?"
    • may include rhetorical questions, such as, "Why does it have to rain now?" which may also be considered declarative
  • imperative sentence
    • = a or command
      • ex., "Get to work!"
    • may also be an exclamatory statement
      • ex. "No!"

case

  • case = circumstance or situation
  • dictionary definition of "case"
    • Inflected forms of a noun, adjective or pronoun that express the semantic relation of the word to others in the sentence
  • in grammar, then, case is the "circumstance" of a word, how it is "situated" in a sentence
    • case indicates the form and relationship of certain words
    • case regards nouns, adjectives and verbs
    • "inflected" means changed or emphasized
    • word "inflections" are changes in a word according to chase
      • who v. whom, or I go v. he goes
      • the change at the end of the word, its stem, is an inflection

subjective v. objective case

  • subjective = a point of view, an opinion
  • objective = without opinion, a universal point of view

common errors of subjective v. objective case

  • "between you and I"= incorrect
    • "between" is a preposition, which uses the objective case of the noun
    • thus it should be, "between you and me"
  • "she told you and I to be quiet" = incorrect
    • "she" = subject, "you" = the object ("she told you" or "she told me")
  • "who do you love = incorrect and kinda correct
    • "who" is an object, so should be "whom"
    • however, common use of this expression has made "who do you love" an idiomatic expression

Subject

  • one of two parts of a sentence or a clause
    • subject + predicate (verb)
  • the subject is the "doer" of the
  • here we will look at the roles and forms of a subject in a sentence

subject complement

  • adds information to a subject following a linking verb (is, seems, sounds, etc.)
    • the word that follows the linking verb "complements" or "completes" the subect
      • "It was late"
      • "Gillian is a doctor"

subject phrase

  • the subject of a sentence may not logically be a single word
  • a "subject phrase" is two or more words that collectively act as the "doer" or subject of a sentence
    • ex. "The conditions are poor" is a complete sentence and thought, but lacks important details as to "conditions" of what?"
      • so a more complete "subject phrase" might be,
        • "The weather conditions are poor"
        • "The conditions of those teams are poor"
        • "Being smart helps on that test"

Object

  • the recipient of the actions
  • objects follow "transitive" verbs, which indicate an action that necessarily "acts" upon something
    • ex. "I hit the ball"
      • hit = transitive verb (requires an object)
      • ball = the recipient of the action

object complement

  • a word that modifies an object
  • object complements follow verbs that express both an object of an action and a recipient of that action
    • such as, appoint, call, create, declare, direct, elect, tell
      • The committee appointed her president
      • My mom declared the cookies out of bounds

>> to complete


Predicate

  • from Latin praedicatum for "something declared"
    • in logic, the "predicate" is the underlying claim or basis for a contention or proposition
  • there are several definitions of "predicate" in grammar
    1. the verb of a subject, also called a a "simple predicate"
    2. the verb of a subject and additional direct information about the subject
    3. everything in a complete sentence except the subject, also called a a "complete predicate"
  • generally, the predicate expresses the action of the subject and the result of that action

Verb

  • the subject is the "doer" of the
  • see Parts of Speech for list of sentence parts
  • here we will look at the roles and forms of a subject in a sentence

linking verb

  • "link" a subject to something about that subject that is not a direct action
  • linking verbs are:
    • "to be" and all of its "auxiliary verb" forms, am/is/are, was/were, has/have been, is/are being, might be, could, should, might, must
    • to become, to seem
  • ex.:
    • "Thank God it is Friday!"
    • "The kids are hungry"

Template:Clause (grammar)

Phrase

absolute phrase

  • modifies the main clause of a sentence
    • and not just a single word
  • contains a noun and an adjective
    • the adjective can be a prepositional phrase or a past or present participle adjective
  • absolute phrases add non-essential information to a sentence

adjective phrase

  • two or more words that act as an adjective
  • ex.
    • can also be compound words, such as "well-adjusted"
      • well-adjusted = an adjective made up of "well" (adverb) + "adjusted" (past participle)

adverb phrase or adverbial phrase

  • two or more words that operate as an adverb to modify an action
  • examples:
    • I'm staying until closing"
    • She'll be there in a minute*
      • * note that when a prepositional phrase acts as an adverb, it is technically an adverbial phrase
    • He ran very quickly

appositive phrase

>> to do

complement or requisite phrase

  • a word, phrase or clause that is necessary, or required, to complete an idea or sentence
    • complements are not separated from the main clause by punctuation

infinitive phrase

  • infinitives = "to" form of a verb
    • but that acts as a noun, adjective or adverb
      • ex. "I decided to go to the park"
        • "to go" is an infinitive phrase that acts as the direct object of the subject-verb "I decided"
        • i.e. it is the object of what "I decided"
        • "to the park" is prepositional phrase that acts like an adverb that describes "to go", as in "where [I decided] to go"
      • ex. "The teacher reminded the class to study for the test tomorrow"
        • "the class" is the object of "the teacher reminded" and "to study" is an adverb that describes the verb "reminded"
          • "to study" may also be seen as a "object complement" in that it serves as the object of "reminded the class"
  • note: sometimes the "to" is dropped although the verb is still an infinitive:
    • ex. "The waiter made me wait"
      • "wait" can be a noun, but here it is acting as an infinitive verb (the action "to wait")
  • see: Infinitives (owl.purdue.edu)

introductory phrase

  • introduces a main clause
  • generally followed by a comma to separate it from the main clause
  • types of introductory phrases
    • absolute phrase (Tools in hand, I went to work without reading the manual)
    • appositive phrase (Quite useful, the manual is a must-read)
    • infinitive phrase (To know how, you need to read the manual)
    • participial phrase (Not knowing how, I had to read the manual)
    • prepositional phrase (Inside the box, you will find the manual)

noun phrase

  • two or more words that together act as a noun
    • noun phrases may include modifiers or determiners
      • the little dog
      • my little dog
    • noun phrases may be the subject or object of a sentence:
      • "The little dog begged for a bone"
      • "I ordered the little dog to sit"
    • noun phrases are easy to see as they include a noun and together act like a noun
      • test out a noun phrase by replacing the phrase with a pronoun:
        • "The little dog begged for a bone"= "He begged for a bone"
        • "I ordered him to sit"
    • gerund phrases are more difficult to distinguish
      • especially as to if the gerund is acting as a noun or an adjective/adverb
  • gerund phrases are noun phrases:
    • a gerund phrase may include an object of the gerund, adjectives, infinitive or a prepositional phrase, ex.:
      • "Watching my boring professor drone on about grammar leaves me bored beyond crying"
        • the gerund "watching" is the subject
          • note that "crying" is gerund, as well
    • when the gerund phrase becomes descriptive, it becomes a participial or adjective phrase:
      • "Running with the ball, he scored!" = "running" describes "he", thus it is an adjective
        • if the present participle cannot be replaced by a distinct noun, then it is an adjective and not a gerund (noun)
          • we cannot say, "running with the ball scored" so "running" = a present participle adjective not a gerund
        • see also, "He scored running with the ball"
        • or, "He scored 12 points running with the ball"
          • in both cases the present participle acts as a modifier (adjective or adverb)
      • it's easier to see with this gerund phrase:
        • "The doctor said smoking is bad" = gerund phrase as direct object
  • see Gerund Phrase (gingersoftware.com)

participial or participle phrase

  • a type of adjective phrase
  • participial phrases "show" (describe, act as modifier) rather than "tell" (show action)
  • uses the -ing or -ed form of a verb that acts as an adjective
    • note that the "-ing" form of a verb can also be a verb (participle) or a noun (gerund)
  • frequently serves as an introductory or concluding phrase that qualifies or adds meaning to the main clause
    • ex. "Thinking I was late, I rushed to work."
      • "thinking" = present participle of the verb "to think"
      • the present participle (-ing form) acts as an adjective
      • so the phrase, "Thinking I was late" is an adjective phrase (using a participial) that adds descriptive information to the main clause, "I rushed to work"
    • or can also follow the main clause, as in : "I rushed to work, thinking I was late"\

prepositional phrase

  • introduced by a preposition, which creates a relationship to a noun or a verb
    • ex. of, by, for, on, etc.
  • prepositional phrases act as either adjectives or adverbs
    • i.e, they add information to or modify a noun or a verb
  • adjective ex:
    • "Books on sailing are fun to read"
      • "on sailing" describes the types of books that are "fun to read"
  • adverb ex.:
    • "Stephanie rode her bicycle to the store"
      • "to the store" = adverb to describe where Stephanie rode

verb phrase

  • two or more verbs that act as a single verb
    • = main verb + a helping or "auxiliary" verb
    • ex, "I couldn't have eaten any more cake if I tried"
      • "eat" = the main verb
      • "couldn't" and "have" = helping / auxiliary verbs
      • note: "if I tried" is an adverb clause (describes "could have eaten")
        • = a clause because it has a subject, "I" and a verb, "tried"
        • = a subordinate clause bc of the subordinating conjunction, "if", which makes the clause, "I tried" into an incomplete thought

Style & usage

periods

Grammar lesson plans

  • Understanding sentence cores & how to build out ideas into complex sentences
    • students are to write a series of three or four simple statements of fact.
      • such as,
        • I like dogs.
        • I have a dog.
        • My dog's name is Dudu.
        • Dudu is fun to play with.
      • students are then to combine these thoughts two at a time by employing sentence parts such as pronouns, conjunctions, and subordinating conjunctions, such as:
        • "Since I like dogs, I have one."
        • "My dog's name is Dudu, and she is fun to play with"
      • then combine those sentences/ ideas into a single, complex sentence:
          • Since I like dogs, I have one named Dudu who is fun to play with"
  • Language and the law:
  • Create courtroom scenario in which precision or imprecision in words, syntax, and grammar would change the outcome of the case

Conjunction

  • conjunctions conjoin, combine or coordinate words and phrases (clauses)

conjunctions that combine words =

  • coordinators
    • coordinate or combine individual words or phrases:
      • as in:
        • apples and oranges are similar and distinct fruits
        • I only like apples or oranges that are ripe
  • correlative conjunction
    • creates a combination or contrast of actions or ideas:
    • and, or, neither, nor, etc.

conjunctions that combine sentence parts

    • coordinating conjunction
    • subordinating conjunction (SWABI)

conjunctions that coordinate or conjoin ideas

Introductory clauses & phrases

introductory clause

  • provides information or context to set up a dominant clause
  • = a dependent clause (does not stand as a complete sentence)
  • usually begin with a subordinating conjunction
    • ex. "If you want to do well on the test, use the study guide"

introductory phrase

Modifiers

  • modifiers change or add or "modify" the meaning of a word or sentence
  • modifiers provide or extent additional meaning to the reader
  • types of modifiers
    • adjectives
    • prepositions
      • prepositional phrases
    • adverbs
    • verbs as modifiers
      • participle phrase
  • other
    • adjective clause
    • infinitive phrase
    • adverbial clause
    • absolute phrase
    • Nouns as modifiers

intensifiers

  • enhance or strengthen the meaning of a word
    • (opposite of qualifiers which limit the meaning of a word)
  • intensifiers are adverbs (which modify verbs and adjectives), such as "he ran very fast" or "he was very late"
  • intensifiers can also act as adjectives in order to intensify an noun,
    • as in "a total lie"
  • types of intensifiers:
    • positive intensifiers:
      • very, extremely, absolutely, greatly, totally, highly, particularly, seriously, etc.
    • negative intensifiers:
      • never, at all, dangerously, never, etc.
    • intensifiers that can be both positive or negative:
      • awfully, completely

Sources for modifiers, qualifiers & intensifiers

qualifiers

  • qualifiers limit, or "qualify," the meaning of a word
  • types of qualifiers:

>> to do

modifier errors: dangling modifiers

  • a modifier that has no word or phrase to modify
    • i.e., it stands by itself, which is inherently illogical since a modifier must have something to modify
    • usually, dangling modifiers occur with participial phrases (using the -ing present participle) or prepositional phrases
    • dangling modifiers frequently mistake the target of the modification, such as modifying one thing, then discussing another
    • examples:
    • wrong: While playing around, it was late
      • correct: While playing around, I noticed it was late"
    • wrong: Driving to school, I forgot my homework
      • correct: Driving to school, I realized I forgot my homework

modifier errors: misplaced modifiers

  • a modifier that is next to or seemingly modifies the word or phrase
  • examples.
    • wrong: The student failed the test in the back of the class
      • correct: The student in the back of the class failed the test
    • wrong: The teacher gave a grade to the student that was really good
      • correct: The teacher gave a really good grade to the student

modifier errors: pre and post adverbs

  • modifier placement can change the meaning of a sentence:
  • example:
    • The student almost failed every test
    • v. The student failed almost every test
      • here the modifier "almost" is an adverb
    • The mechanic only works on trucks on Tuesdays
      • = on Tuesdays the mechanic works on trucks and nothing else
    • v. The mechanic works on trucks only on Tuesdays
      • = it is only on Tuesdays that the mechanic will work on trucks (but might also work on cars, as well)

Sentence diagramming

The diagrammed sentence is build around the core subject-verb
The diagrammed sentence is build around the core subject-verb

vocabulary & definitions

Attributive

Appositive

Clause

Colloquial

Denotation and Connotation

  • denotation = literal meaning of a word
  • connotation = associations wit words
    • generally positive or negative associations

Idiom/ Idiomatic

Phrase

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