View source for Grammar for high school admissions tests

General notes about high school admissions tests grammar/ usage sections

* given 4 possible answers, if you see that an answer is clearly wrong, then you know that the other possible answers are correct
* therefore, you can use the 3 correct answers as examples of correct usage/grammar on other questions

== Sentence ==

=== sentence ===

* = a grammatically complete thought
** contains a finite verb (= a verb that has a subject)
** makes a complete thought
*** ''The dog plays.'' 
**** as opposed to ''Since the dog plays  <<'' not a complete thought
* a sentence can be a combination of '''clauses''' and '''phrases'''
** but every sentence has at its basis a subject and verb (finite verb)
** <u>note</u>: commands or "imperative" verbs are finite verbs, even if the subject is unstated (it is assumed)
*** ex.:''Go home!''  = ''[you] Go home!''
*** this concept will note be on a high school admissions test, but it may be on a college admissions test

* see Verb section for more on finite and non-finite verbs

== Clause ==
* part of a sentence that contains a '''finite verb'''

* if the clause could be a sentence by itself, it is an '''independent clause (IC)'''
* if the clause cannot be a sentence by itself, it is a '''dependent clause (DC)'''

=== independent clause (IC) ===
* a part of a sentence that contains a finite verb and can be a sentence by itself
* an independent clause that is by itself is a sentence
** ex. '''''The dog plays happily''', since I gave him a bone''
*** "The dog plays happily" could be a complete sentence if by itself, so it is an IC
*** "since I gave him a bone" would not be a complete sentence if by itself, so it is a DC
*** by adding the dependent clause, "since I gave him a bone," we create a larger sentence.

==== coordinating conjunction ====

* = FANBOYS
* "coordinates" like sentence parts
* combines
** ICs, nouns and nouns, verbs and verbs, DCs and DCs, etc.
*** it always joins "coordinate" or like sentence parts
* note that transition words are NOT coordinating conjunctions
** ''as ,however, nevertheless, etc.'' ARE NOT coordinating conunctions
** they are conjunctive adverbs
*** which means that they set up a contrast or comparison of verbs / predicates
** RULE: however is NOT  coordinating conjunction
** so do not use it to combines ICs
*** ''I am hungry, however, I don't have money for lunch'' = incorrect
*** needs a period or semicolon: 
**** ''I am hungry; however, I don't have money for lunch'' = correct
**** ''I am hungry. However, I don't have money for lunch'' = correct

==== dependent clause (DC) ====

* a part of a sentence that contains a finite verb but cannot be a sentence by itself
* ex. ''The dog plays happily, '''since I gave him a bone'''''
* <u>to test</u>:
** if the clause by itself leaves a question or remains an inconmplete thought, it is a dependent clause
*** ''Since it is raining.''
**** it contains a finite verb, ("is" with its subject "it"), so it is a clause
**** but "Since it is raining" is not a complete thought or sentence
***** leaves the reader wondering, "since what?"
**** so it is a dependent clause

=== types of dependent clauses ===

* '''subordinate clause'''
** created by a '''subordinating conjunction'''
*** ''although, as, because, since, until, when, whereas, etc.'' 
*** note that these are adverbs, so subordinate clauses are also called adverb or adverbial clause
* '''relative clause'''
** created by a '''relative pronoun'''
*** that, which, who
** see also section on restrictive and non-restrictive commas
* "noun clause" is another type of clause that is not imeasured on high school or college assessment tests
** FYI, a noun clause is a clause that acts like a single thing as either subject or object
*** '''''The main thing I like about that professor''' is her attitude.'' << '''noun clause''' (finite verb "is")

== Phrase ==
* two or more words that <u>do not contain a finite verb</u>
* important phrases for the high school entrance exam include
** '''attributive noun phrase''' 
*** two nouns next to one another, with one noun giving an "attribute" to the other
**** ''dog food, wine glass''
** '''appositive phrase''' 
*** "apposotion" = next to, set beside by way of explanation
*** = a parenthetical phrase to add information to another word or part of a sentence
**** ex. ''Steve, '''my next door neighbor,''' is friendly''
*** note that appositive phrases can come at the beginning or end of a sentence
**** ''A '''world expert physician''', Dr. Goesa performed a postocalaptia, '''a groundbreaking operation.'''''
**** ''Dr. Goesa,'''a world expert physician''', performed a postocalaptia, '''a groundbreaking operation.'''''
** '''prepositional phrase'''
*** adds information to a noun or verb 
**** ''He hit the ball '''out of the park'''''
**** ''Thinking '''about math''' gives me a headache''

== Clause parts ==

* there are four or five parts of a clause (depending on who you ask)
** subject, verb, object, complement, and adjunct
** here, we will discuss verb as basis of a predicate, which can include objects, complements and adjuncts

=== subject ===

* the actor or doer of a sentence
* a subject ALWAYS has a finite verb that matches to it
** ''The kid wins''  v. ''The kids won''
*** kid = singular; "wins" = singular verb conjugation
*** kids = plural; "win" = plural verb conjugation

{| class="wikitable"
|+Subject-verb matching: "to win"
!
!Singular
!
!
!Plural
!
|-
|First person
|''I''
|''win''
|
|''We''
|''win''
|-
|Second person
|''You''
|''win''
|
|''You (pural)''
|''win''
|-
|Third person
|''He/ She / It''
|''wins''
|
|''They''
|''win''
|}

=== predicate ===
* the verb and its direct modifiers, objects and complements
* '''finite verbs''' form the basis of a predicate

=== complement ===

* adds additional information to a noun 
** can be either to a subject or object
* "complement" means to "go along with," "coordinate with"
* complements can be adjectives, adverbs or nouns, as well as phrases

* ex: ''The dog is '''nice'''''
**"nice" is not the object of the linking verb "is"
**''My friend considers her brother '''crazy'''''
***"crazy" is the object complement to "brother"
**''The book is '''on the table'''''
***"on the table" (prepositional phrase) is the subject complement

=== object ===

* the recipient of an action
* note that complements are similar, but add information and are not the result of the verb's action

==== direct object ====

* the direct recipient of the action
** ''She kicked the '''ball''' over the fence''

==== indirect object ====

* a noun that is the indirect recipient of an action
** ''ex. I gave the '''dog''' a bone''
*** the bone is what "I gave" (result of the action, thus direct object)
*** the dog is the secondary effect or recipient of the verb (indirect object)

* to test: 
** if the object can be restated with "to" or "for" after the direct object, it is an indirect object:
*** ''The teacher taught the class grammar'' 
*** ''= The teacher taught grammar to the class''

*ex: sentence with direct and indirect objects

{| class="wikitable"
|+''School provides students an education''
!subject
!verb
!direct object
!indirect object
|-
|school
|provides
|education
|[for] students
|}
==== note on objects of non-finite verbs ====

* non-finite verbs do not have subjects, but they can have objects
** high school admissions tests will not test student comprehension of this concept
* ex. sentence with gerund (non-finite verb as a noun) that has an object:
** note that the finite verb of this sentence is "provides" and its subject is the gerund (non-finite verb as noun) "attending"
{| class="wikitable"
|+''Attending school provides students an education''
!subject
!object of gerund
!verb
!direct object
!indirect object
|-
|Attending
|school
|provides
|education
|[for] students
|-
| colspan="5" |note: "attending" may also be seen as a present participle adjective modifier of the subject "school"
|}

== Verbs ==
for other notes, please see Sentence construction and Sentence parts sections above for:

* objects
* linking verbs and complements

=== finite verb ===
* verb that has a subject
* finite verbs form the <u>predicate</u>
** '''predicate''' = the verb and its direct modifiers, objects & complements

=== non-finite verb ===

* verb that does not have a subject
* non-finite verbs include
** '''present participle adjective''': ''That '''boring''' class is tedious''
** '''gerund''' (present participle as a noun): ''Cooking is a good skill to have''
** '''past participle adjective''': ''The comedian left the audience'' 
**infinitive: can be an adjective, adverb, or noun
***the concept of infinitives will not be measured on the high school entrance exam

* non-finite verbs act as adjectives, adverbs, or nouns
** they DO NOT directly indicate an action by someone or something
** however, they <u>indicate</u> a sense of an action
=== subject-verb matching (conjugation) ===

* finite verbs match the subject case
* "conjugation" means the form of a verb to match the subject, especially pronouns
* test: when considering subject-verb matching, run through conjugation of the pronouns, ''I, you, it, we, they''
** ''I go, you go, it goes, we go, they go''

{| class="wikitable"
|+Singular v. Plural "to see"
!Singular
!
!
!Plural
!
|-
|''I''
|''see''
|
|''We''
|''see''
|-
|''You''
|''see''
|
|''You (pural)''
|''see''
|-
|''He/ She / It''
|''sees''
|
|''They''
|''see''
|}

=== tense ===
* verbs can show past, present and future and various aspects of those
* verbs "inflect" or change according to tense
** or use an "auxiliary" or "helper" verb to indicte tense
*** ''I am, I was, I had been, I will be, etc.''

=== maintaining parallel verb tense ===

* if a sentence contains two tenses, it is likely incorrect
** ex. ''The bird flew around the house, then it flies away''
*** = incorrect because it the tense shifts from past "flew" to present "flies" in the same sentence, which does not make sense
** <u>to test</u>: match the finite verb tense to another finite verb in the sentence or in a nearby sentence 
* <u>note</u>: a sentence may contain a different tenses
** usually it will be in the subjunctive form, which means suggesting a possibility or "if this then that" scenario
*** ex. 
**** ''Since I studied hard, I will get a good grade.''
***** = past tense + future tense (the future is conditional/depends on the past action)
**** ''If I get a good grade, my mom will buy me a new phone.''
***** = present tense + future tense (the future is conditional/depends on the present action)

=== participle ===

* see also non-finite verb section

* participle is the form of a verb that creates the '''''-ing''''' or '''''-ed''''' form of the verb
** present continuous: ''I '''am speaking''' to the clerk.''
** simple past (or preterite): ''We '''discussed''' what we could do about it''
*** note that many verbs, such "to speak," have irregular participles: as in ''I spoke to the clerk''
** present participle adjective: ''The girl '''whispering''' to him was really loud.''
** gerund (present participle noun): '''''Whispering''' loudly isn't actually '''whispering'''''
** past participle adjective: ''The topic '''discussed''' was grammar'' 
* the participle is also used in the '''perfect tenses'''

=== participle phrases ===

* students will improve reading comprehension and usage scores by identifying participle or participial phrases
* a phrase does not have a finite-verb
* present or past participles can create adjectives that create "participle phrases"
* participle phrases add information to an IC without having to use another clause
** ex.
*** '''''Having done the research''', he aced the lab test''  << present participle adjective phrase
*** ''I sneezed all day, '''suffering from allergies'''  << present participle adjective phrase''
*** ''The turkey was delicious, '''cooked to perfection'''''.  << past participle adjective phrase
* <u>note</u>: high school entrance exams will not measure this concept directly, but it is helpful for students to recognize 

=== perfect tenses ===

* "perfect" tense means that the action has a specific duration (i.e., it is complete)
* <u>note</u>: 
** high school and college admissions tests may require identifying correct subject-verb match in the perfect tenses

==== present perfect ====

* = the action happened in the past and is still happening and/or is still part of the present (without reference to the future) 

* uses "'''have'''" and "'''has'''" +  the simple past (past participle) form of the verb
** ''We have gone to France''
*** = we went to France and it is still part of who we are
** ''He has talked about going to France''
*** = he did in the past and is still talking about going to France
* note: the present perfect does not use "'''''of'''''"
** ''She '''should of''' asked for one'' << incorrect
** correct = ''She should have asked for one.''

{| class="wikitable"
|+Present perfect: "have" and "has"
!pronoun
!auxiliary verb 
!past participle
!----
!subject
!auxiliary verb
!past participle
|-
| colspan="7" |<u>Regular verb</u>: "wonder"
|-
|''I''
|''have''
|''wondered''
|
|''We''
|''have''
|''wondered''
|-
|''You''
|''have''
|''wondered''
|
|''You (plural)''
|''have''
|''wondered''
|-
|''He / She / It''
|'''''has'''''
|''wondered''
|
|''They''
|''have''
|''wondered''
|}

* <u>note</u>: the present perfect uses the past tense auxiliary verb (have/has), but the tense is still <u>present tense</u>

==== past perfect ====
* uses "'''had'''" +  the simple past (past participle) form of the verb
** "had" is the same for all cases (
* indicates an action that was ongoing in the past and stopped happening in the past
** ''I '''had played''' piano in the past, but I couldn't touch it now''
{| class="wikitable"
|+Past Perfect
!Singular
!Plural
|-
|''I had played''
|''We had played''
|-
|''You had played''
|''You (plural) had played''
|-
|''He/ She / It had played''
|''They had played''
|}

==== future perfect ====
* uses "'''will have'''" and +  the simple past (past participle) form of the verb
* indicates an action that will commence at some point in the future 
** ''By next Tuesday, I '''will have walked''' twelve miles''

== Verbs forms to know ==
{| class="wikitable"
|+Irregular verbs to know
!verb
!present
!simple past
!present participle
!past participle
!perfect tense
! style="background-color:#b3b3b3" |incorrect 
participle
|-
|be
|am/are/is
|was
|being
|been
|have/has been
|style="background-color:#cccccc"| n/a
|-
|begin
|begin
|began
|beginning
|begun
|have/has begun
|style="background-color:#cccccc"|have/has began
|-
|break
|break
|broke
|breaking
|broken
|have/has broken
|style="background-color:#cccccc"|have/has broke
|-
|drink
|drink
|drank
|drinking
|drunk  ("drunken" is also used as 
past participle adjective
|have/has drunk
|style="background-color:#cccccc"|have/has drank
|-
|drive
|drive
|drove
|driving
|driven
|have/has driven
|style="background-color:#cccccc"|have/has drove
|-
|forget
|forget
|forgot
|forgetting
|forgotten
|have/has forgotten
|style="background-color:#cccccc"|have/has forgot
|-
|go
|go/goes
|went
|going
|gone
|have/has gone
|style="background-color:#cccccc" |have/has went
|-
|grow
|grow/grows
|grew
|growing
|grown
|have/has grown
|style="background-color:#cccccc" |have/has grew
|-
|hang
|
|hang/hung
|
|
|
|
|-
|lend
|lend
|lent
|lending
|lent
|have/has lent
| style="background-color:#cccccc" |have/has lended
|-
|swim
|swim
|swam
|swimming
|swum
|have/has swum
|style="background-color:#cccccc" |have//has swam
|-
|write
|write
|wrote
|writing
|written
|have/has written
|style="background-color:#cccccc"|have/has wrote
|}

== Verb mixups ==

=== lie v. lay: ===
* lie = to put oneself down
** or be in the position of lying down

* lay = to put down
** especially regarding an object 
{| class="wikitable"
|+
!present
!simple past
!present participle
!past participle
!perfect tense
|-
|lie
|lay or lied
|lying
|lied/ lain
|have/has lied (or lain)
|-
|lay
|laid
|laying
|laid
|have/has laid
|}

=== may v. please ===
= modal verbs (express possibility) that change the meaning of another verb
* may = indicates possibility or a request for permission (usually of oneself)
** ''May I have a couple more donuts?''
* please = a polite command or request (usually of someone else_
** ''Please leave me alone!''
* rule:
** may is used to ask for permission
** please is used to make a request
* ex.:
** ''Please pass the salt'' = correct
** ''May you pass the sale'' = incorrect

=== may v. can ===

* please = asks for permission, or makes a reques
* can = indicates ability 
** if the sentence is a request, use "may" instead of "can"

=== teach v. learn ===

* teach = to provide learning
* learn = to receive or engage in learning
* ex. ''The student learned from what the teacher taught''

== Punctuation ==

=== apostrophe ===
<u>does 3 things</u>: 

'''1. creates possessive noun'''

* rule: only nouns can possess nouns 
** however, an adjective may come be between the nouns:
*** ex. ''A guitar's top string is the thickest'' <<"top" = adjective that describes "string"
* test: if the possessive word is followed by a word that is not a noun or an adjective that modifies another noun, it is wrong:
** ex. ''The company's bought the workers new uniforms''  << incorrect
*** the "company" cannot possess the verb "bought"

* singular possession. ''Owen's parents are nice''  << singular "Owen"
* plural possession: ''The students' teacher is not so nice''  << plural "students"
** note that some words are plural, so the possessive form will be '''''<nowiki/>'s''''' as opposed to '''''s''''''
*** ''That's the children's playground'' << children = plural, so the apostrophe goes before the '''s'''
** similar words include, men, women, 
* note: compound possessives rule:
** if the compound possessors both possess the same thing, only the second noun uses the apostrophe
*** ex. ''Maria's and Joey's mother is nice''  << = they both have the same mother
** if the compound possessors both posses something similar but not the exact same thing, both take the possessive
*** ex. Maria's and Joey's mothers are nice << = they both have nice mothers but not the same mother

'''2. creates contraction'''

* spoken English joins certain words to sound like a single word, which is represented in writing as a contraction
* the high school admissions test will use contractions only when testing homophones
** such as ''they're v. their v. there'', or ''its v. its''' 
* contractions are used in standard written English for
** contracting "is" and "are" 
*** ''it is > it's, they are >> they're'' 

* contracting auxiliary and modal verbs with "not"
** ''would not >> wouldn't, can not >> can't, will not won't'' 

* contracting "is" on relative pronouns
** ''that's easy, who's going?'' 
*** = that is easy, who is going 
** <u>note</u>: neither high school nor college admissions tests will use an apostrophe as a contraction for "is" or "are" with common nouns
*** ex.  ''That elephant's big'' (with the 's" marking a slurred "is" sound in spoken
*** or,   ''Those elephants'r big'' (with the 's" marking a slurred "is" sound in spoken

3. indicate plurality 

* ex. "1960's",

* the high school admissions test will not measure for this use of the apostrophe

=== colon ===
<u>does 1 thing</u>:

1. sets up an example or explanation, following an independent clause (IC)

* rules: 
** colons <u>must be preceded</u> by an IC
** <u>can be</u> followed by any grammatical form or punctuation, except another colon
*** ''Given so little time they did what they could''':''' cooking, cleaning and straightening things up''
*** ''Given so little time they did what they could''':''' they cooked, cleaned, and straightened things up''
** a colon would not follow "such as" since "such as" does the same thing as a colon
*** "such as" would be preceded by a comma if non-restrictive
**** ''I like playing board games, such as chess or checkers''
**** ''Doctors such as Dr. Jones are very caring'' 
* <u>note</u>: colons are not measured on high school entrance exams

=== comma ===
<u>does 6 things</u>:

'''1. combines independent clauses (IC) with coordinating conjunction (cc)''' 

* coordinating conjunction (cc) = FANBOYS (For, And, Nor, But, Or, Yet, So)

* rule: comma + cc to combine IC
* test: if both clauses could be sentence by themselves (each contains a finite verb and makes a complete thought)

'''2. combines phrases or dependent DC w/ IC''' 

* rule: a sentence must contain a finite verb, which forms a clause, so anything added to the clause that does not contain a finite verb is a phrase
* ex. 
** <u>dependent clause</u>: '''''Seeing how it's late already''', we'll just skip lunch.''
** <u>phrase</u>: '''''Arriving so late''', we'll have to skip lunch.''
*** "arriving" = a verb, but it does not have a subject, so it is <u>non-finite</u> (it is a present participle adjective)
** phrase: '''''On Tuesdays before noon''', we get to swim at the pool''

'''3. creates lists'''

* lists must be of the same grammatical form
** i.e., a list is of nouns, verbs, adjectives, etc. , and not a mix of them
*** ''Cows, sheep, and are all farm animals.''
* note on "Oxford Comma"
** = the comma between the second-to-last item in a list and the "and" (cc) that combines the last item in the list
*** it is correct to have a comma or not have a comma separating the second-to-last:
**** ''Cows, sheep and are all farm animals.''
**** ''Cows, sheep, and are all farm animals.''

'''4. sets up quotation'''

* comma separates a direct quotation from it's introduction
** ''The clown said, "I feel funny."''
** ''"I feel funny," said the clown.''

'''5. set aside parenthetical information (appositives, relative clauses, etc.)'''

* ex. 
** ''Steve, my neighbor, is not very nice.''
** ''Steve, who is my neighbor, is not very nice''

'''6. separate dates and place names'''

* month, day, year : ''We took the test on April 11, 2023.''
* month day, year, in the middle of a sentence
** O''n April 11, 2023, we took the test''
* no comma for Month Year: ''We took the test in April 2023.''

=== dash ===
<u>does 2 things</u>:

1. acts like a colon

* rule: if acting like a colon, there will be a single dash preceded by an IC

2. acts like parentheses

* rule: if acting like parentheses, there will be two dashes

<u>does 2 things</u>: 

'''1. direct quotation'''

* = the specific words attributed to someone
** ''He said, "I do say."'' 

* see rules for commas above when using quotation marks

'''2. indicate sarcasm or other reference'''

* ''She is my "best friend"... not.''

* will note be measured on high school or college entrance exams

=== parentheses ===
<u>does 1 thing</u>:

* sets aside information <u>outside of the grammatical flow</u> of a sentence
** i.e., the parentheses can interrupt other sentence parts:
** ex.  
*** ''Birds (avian creatures) are amazing''
*** normally, we would not want to separate the subject "birds" from the verb "are" but the parentheses can do that to add important information to the sentence
*** note that pairs of commas and dashes work similarly:
**** ''Birds, avian creatures,are amazing''
**** ''Birds-- avian creatures -- are amazing''

* pairs of commas and dashes can act like parentheses

=== quotation marks ===
*indicate a direct statement by a particular speaker
*a comma separates a direct quotation from it's introduction:
** ''The clown said, "I feel funny."''
** ''"I feel funny," said the clown.''

* rules: 
** uses quotation marks around the quoted words
** first word of the quotation is capitalized
*** He said, "I say."
** if the quotation ends a sentence, it will be followed by a period (often but not always inside the quotation mark)
** the name of the speaker may also follow the quotation
*** ''"A hammer can fix anything," he said, wryly.''
** if a question, will have a question mark
*** ''The clown asked, "Why are you so funny?"''
** if the speaker name is after a quoted question, the question mark replaces the comma:
*** ''"Why are you so funny?" the clown asked.''
** exclamation points also replace the comma in a quotation 
* <u>note</u>: if the quoted portion is a fragment of a larger written quotation, the first word is not capitalized
** but that will not be measured on high school admissions tests

=== semicolon ===
<u>does 2 things</u>:

'''1. combines independent clauses'''

* test: 
** replace the semicoln with a period and see if both sides could stand as a sentence by themselves . If not, it is wrong.
** if the semicolon separates (or combines) two distinct subject-verb combinations AND each could be a sentence by itself, then the semicolon is correct

'''2. acts as a "super comma"'''

* a super comma is a list of examples separated by semicolons
** ex.  ''We're heading to Europe this summer: Florence, Italy; Valencia, Spain; and Munich, Germany.''

*<u>note</u>: this use will not appear on high school entrance exam, but it may appear on a college entrance exam

== Comma and no comma with phrases and clauses ==

* restrictive elements are not separated by commas
* commas separate non-restrictive elements
** non-restrictive = not essential to the meaning of the sentence

=== subordinate clause ===
= a form of a dependent clause

* subordinate clauses (a form of a dependent clause) are generally <u>non-restrictive</u>:
** ''I took the test yesterday, although I was tired.''
** ''Although I was tired, I took the test.''
* subordinating conjunctions create subordinate clauses (a form of a dependent clause)
** ''although, because, since, while, etc.''
** note that the "subordinating conjunction" is also called a "dependent marker" or "dependent word"

=== when, because ===
= are subordinating conjunctions (among many others)

* can be either restrictive or non-restrictive
** ''The car ran out of gas '''because I forgot to fill it'''''
** ''I ran out of gas''', because I'm always forgetting.''''' 
** '''''When you leave,''' don't forget to turn out the lights.''
** ''Don't forget to turn out the lights '''when you leave.'''''

=== relative clause ===
= a form of a dependent clause

= clause that follows a relative pronoun, ''that, where, which, who, whose''

* relative clauses can be either <u>restrictive</u> or <u>non-restrictive</u>
** '''''that'' <u>is always restrictiv</u>e''' (no comma)
*** ''The cat '''that got stuck on the roof''' was hers''
*** ''Five things '''that you need''' to learn are...'' 
** '''''which''''' can be either restrictive or non-restrictive
** if "which" can be replaced by "that" it is restrictive (no comma)
*** The cat which got stuck on the roof was hers
** but "which" can also be non-restrictive
*** if it cannot be replaced by "that" it is non-restrictive
*** ex. ''The cat''', which is hers,''' got stuck on the roof.''  << correct
*** ex. ''The cat''', that is hers,''' got stuck on the roof.''  << incorrect, so use "which" and commas
** when '''''which''''' follows an independent clause it is usually non-restrictive
*** ''Roads across deserts are straight for miles''', which makes you sleepy'''''
*** Five beavers live under the dam''''', which they made from my favorite tree.'''''
** '''''who, whose''''' can be either restrictive or non-restrictive
*** ''The guy '''who always wins''' just won again.''
*** ''That kid, '''who should know better''', did it again''
* note that the relative pronoun can be either a "dependent word" that serves as a conjunction
** ''He turned out the lights, '''which he usually forgets to to.'''''
*** which = relative pronoun and dependent word that combines the two clauses
* or as the subject of the relative clause
** ''Don't forget to turn off the lights, '''which saves energy'''''
*** which = relative pronoun and subject of the relative clause "which saves energy")

== Noun ==

=== proper noun capitalization ===

* proper noun = capitalized names for people, places, titles, organizations, etc. 
* formal titles are capitalized
** the high school admissions test may show a two-word proper noun with one word capitalized but not another
*** ex.: 
**** ''Dr. tom Jones is a famous physician'' << incorrect
**** ''University of missouri'' << incorrect
** note that "the" is not capitalized for proper names
*** ''the Navy'' (correct) v. ''The Navy'' (incorrect)
*** ''the Nationals'' (correct) v. ''The Commanders'' (incorrect)
* generic or general professions or titles <u>are NOT</u> capitalized:
** ''My favorite Pitcher was Jim Palmer'' << incorrect 
** ''Jim Palmer was a great Pitcher for the Baltimore Orioles'' << incorrect 
* seasons are NOT capitalized
** We go to Maine in the summer

=== attributive noun ===

* = nouns that modify another noun
** but are not adjectives
* '''''dog''' food, '''wine''' class, '''government''' class, '''class''' government''

* these nouns modify the 2nd noun 
* called "attributive" because they convey an "attribute" to the second noun

* the attributive noun is singular (almost always)
** bc it's acting like an adjective (which doesn't change plurality)
*** i.e., ''red shoes'' instead of ''reds shoes'' (incorrect)
**** so ''dog food'' instead of ''dogs food'' (incorrect)

* the attributive noun is ALWAYS next to the noun it modifies
** ''big dog bone'' instead of ''dog big bone'' (incorrect)

== Pronoun ==

=== personal pronoun subjective & objective case ===
{| class="wikitable"
|+
!Subjective
!Example
!Objective 
!Example
|-
|I
|''You and I won''
|me
|''They beat you and me''
|-
|you
|''You and I won''
|you
|''They beat you and me''
|-
|he / she/ it
|''He and you won''
|him / her/ it
|''They beat you and her''
|-
|we
|''We beat them''
|us
|''They beat us''
|-
|they
|''They beat us''
|them
|''We beat them''
|}
To test the case of the pronoun in compound subjects or objects:

* remove the first noun and test the pronoun
** ''Steve and I went to the park.''versus
** ''Steve and me went to the park''
** <u>remove</u> "Steve"
*** ''Me went to the park'' = incorrec
** ''She gave Joey and me a bad grade.''
** ''She gave Joey and I a bad grade''
** <u>remove</u> "Joey"
*** ''She gave I a bad grade'' = incorrect

* <u>common wrong pronoun answers include:</u>
** Us kids are going  << should be "We kids are going"
*** <u>to test</u>:  remove "kids" and you have "Us are going" = incorrect
**** thus, "We are going" works

=== personal pronouns and prepositions ===

* prepositions create a prep phrase

* prepositional phrases consist of 
** preposition + object (noun or noun phrase)

* prepositional phrases always use the OBJECTIVE CASE of personal pronouns
** ''Between you and I, grammar sucks''. versus:
** ''Between you and me, grammar sucks.''
***
** <u>remove</u> "you" and replace "between" with "for"
*** can also be read, ''For you and me, grammar sucks''
*** ''For I, grammar sucks'' << incorrect (subjective case)
*** ''For me, grammar sucks'' << correct (objectives case)
** ''The car stopped right in front of the dog and he.''
** ''The car stopped right in front of the dog and him.''
*** remove "the dog"
*** ''The car stopped right in front of he.'' << incorrect (subjective case)
*** ''The car stopped right in front of him.'' << correct (objective case

=== indefinite pronouns ===

* refer to a person, thing, amount, etc. in general (''any, none, some'') or to all of something (''all, both, each'')

* indefinite pronouns can be singular or plural, depending on wether they refer to one or many/all of something
* the high school admissions test may include subject-verb mismatch when using indefinite pronouns

{| class="wikitable"
|+Singular Indefinite Pronouns
! colspan="4" |third person singular conjugation = ''"s"'' as in ''it goes, it is, it seems''
|-
!indefinite pronoun
!as pronoun
!with preposition
!as determiner
|-
|anyone / anything
|''anything will do'' 
|''n/a''
|''n/a''
|-
|''each''
|''each goes well'' 
|''each of them goes well''
|''each dress is pretty''
|-
|''either''
|''either works''
|''either of them works''
|''either choice will do''
|-
|''every / everyone / everything''
|''everyone wants some''
|''everyone of them wants some''
|''every child loves candy''
|-
|''much''
|''much is missing''
|''much of that is gone''
|''much fun was had''
|-
|''neither''
|''neither agrees''
|''neither of them agrees''
|''neither witness agrees''
|-
|''no one''
|''no one feels''
|''n/a''
|''n/a''
|-
|''nothing''
|''nothing is good''
|''n/a''
|''n/a''
|-
|''one / someone''
|''one wants''
|''one of them wants''
|''one boy wants''
|}
{| class="wikitable"
|+Plural Indefinite Pronouns
! colspan="4" |third person plural conjugation = ''they are, they go, they believe (no "s")''
|-
!indefinite pronoun
!pronoun example 
!with preposition
!as determiner
|-
|all
|all are fine
|all of them are fine
|all choices work
|-
|both
|''both are fine''
|both of them are fine
|both choices work
|-
|few
|''few go there''
|few of them go 
|few people go
|-
|many
|''many are the brave''
|many of them are
|many people are
|-
|others
|''others know enough''
|
|
|-
|several
|several are bringing lunch
|
|
|-
|
|
|
|
|}
{| class="wikitable"
|+Singular or Plural Indefinite Pronouns
! colspan="3" |third person plural conjugation = ''they are, they go, they believe (no "s")''
|-
!indefinite pronoun
!singular
!plural
|-
|all
|''all is well here''
|all are well
|-
|any
|''any of them is fine''
|any of them are okay
|-
|most
|the most works
|most work
|-
|none
|''none goes well'' 
|none go well
|-
|some
|some is enough
|some are not enough
|-
|
|
|
|}

* '''''each, every, few, some,''''' etc. can be either a determiner (modifier) or pronoun
** as determiners, these words modify a noun:
*** ''every person thinks so, few people think so''
*** some bees sting, all vehicles 
** as pronouns, they are the subject of a sentence

== Adjective ==

=== cumulative v. coordinate adjectives ===

* cumulative adjectives = no comma separating them
* the 1st adjective modifies the 2nd adj + the noun
** ex.  ''stupid smart people'' 
*** = "smart people" who are stupid
*** ''expensive small gift''
**** = expensive "small gift"
** ''small expensive gift''
*** = small "expensive gift"
* coordinate adjectives = have a comma separating them 
** ex. big, red balloon
*** = the balloon is both big and red balloon
*** ''red, big balloon = big, red balloon = big & red ballon''
** test: if the adjectives are coordinate, then
*** you can add a coordinating conjunction, such as "and" in between them
*** you can switch them
**** and it means the same thing

== Adverb ==

* adverb modifies a verb, adjective or other adverb
* in the high school entrance exam, the adverb may be measured by <u>confusion with an adjective</u>
* ex. 
** ''She ran home quick'' << incorrect, as "quick" modifies the verb "ran" so it needs to be the adverb, "quickly"
** ''She ran home quickly'' << correct
** ''He yelled angry at the man'' << incorrect as "angry" is an adjective, which modifies a noun
** ''He yelled angrily'' << correct
*** or ''He is angry'' << the adjective "angry" is the subject complement connected by the linking verb "is"

* adverbs that do not use the '''''-ly'''''

{| class="wikitable"
|+
!adverb
!adjective
|-
|better
|better
|-
|fast
|fast
|-
|hard
|hard
|-
|late
|late
|}

== prepositions ==

* prepositions create a "prepositional phrase" that adds information to a noun, verb, or a sentence, generally
** prepositional phrase = <u>preposition</u> + <u>object of the preposition</u>
* prepositions create a relationship between the modified element and the <u>object of the preposition</u>
** that relationship depends on the preposition
** i.e. the prepositions relate their objects to the rest of the sentence
** prepositions include:
*** '''''about, above, among, at, before, between, by, down, during, for, in, into, near, next to, on, out, out of, to, toward, until, up, upon'''''

{| class="wikitable"
!Subject-Verb
!preposition
!object 
!incorrect preposition
|-
|
| colspan="2" | -- prepositional phrase --
|
|-
|''We sat''
|'''''in'''''
|''the grandstand''
|''We sat '''for''' the grandstand''
|-
|''Every afternoon we go''
|'''''to''''' 
|''the bakery''
|''Every afternoon we go '''on''' the bakery''
|-
|''The shady spot is''
|'''''under''''' 
|''the tree''
|''The shady spot is '''over''' the tree''
|-
|''Stop reading''
|'''''at'''''
|''the chapter's end'' 
|''Stop reading '''for''' the chapter's end''
|}

== homophones ==
* words that sound the same (or about the same) but spell and mean differently

* high school assessment tests will commonly use:
* '''''accept, except'''''
** accept = verb, to welcome or admit
*** ''The school '''accepted''' me!''
** except = adverb, indicating not included; used similarly to "but"
*** ''Every school '''except''' one accepted me.''
* '''''I have, I'd'''''
* '''''its, it's''''' 
** ''its'' = singular possessive pronoun
** ''it's'' = contraction of "it is"
* '''''there, they're, their'''''
** ''there'' = indicates specificity or location
** ''they're'' = contraction of "they are"
** ''their'' = plural possessive pronoun
* '''''then, than'''''
** ''then'' = indicates a chronology (next) or a prior time ("since then")
** ''than'' = makes a comparison
* '''''to, too, two'''''
** ''to'' = preposition (or particle) indicating a direction or purpose
** ''too'' = also 
*** ''two'' = 2
* '''''wear, we're, were, where'''''
** ''wear'' = to have clothes on
** ''we're'' = contraction of "we are"
** ''were'' = plural simple past tense of "to be"
** ''where'' = indicates location or situation
* '''''who's, whose'''''
** ''who's'' = contraction for "who is"
** ''whose'' = possessive form of the pronoun "who"
* '''''you're, your'''''
** you're = contraction for "you are"
** your = possessive form of "you"
* others may include:
** '''''capital, capitol'''''
*** ''capital'' = the offical or main city or place of a state or country
**** can also mean: "money," "head of" 
*** ''capitol'' = the building in which the government resides or operates
** '''''site, cite, sight'''''
** '''''fare, fair'''''
** '''''peace, piece'''''
* note: compare to ''homonyms'', which are words that spell the same but pronounce or mean differently
** ex. "bark" can mean the sound a dog makes or the skin of a tree
** high school and college admissions tests will not measure this concept

== Redundancy ==

* in word usage and writing, we want to avoid unnecessary <u>repetition</u> (redundancy) of words or ideas
* '''''again, also, back'''''
** ''The clerk refunded '''back''' the money''  << refund = to give back, so "back" is redundant
** ''In addition, we '''also''' saw the zebras.''  << in addition = also, so "also" is redundant

* <u>note</u>: college admissions tests will also test for redundancy, such as:
** ''Runoff water storage also increases savings on water costs.''  << where "savings" and "costs" are rendundant

== Misc concepts, skills & words ==

=== double negative ===

* look for negative words that create a "double" or redundant negative
* usually the first nagative will be hiddent in a contraction
** ''didn't, couldn't, won't,'' etc. 
* ex. 
** ''She coudn't find it no where'' <<incorrect double negative
** ''Janie didn't see nobody'' << incorrect double negative

=== either/or vs. neither/nor ===

* when '''either''' & '''neither''' are conjunctions, they require a matching counterpart

* thus we have 
** ''either ... or'' 
*** = positive, or affirming 
*** ''I'd be glad to have either this or that.''
** ''neither ... nor''  
*** = negative or negating
*** ''We saw neither fish nor fowl.''
* note: either and neither have other grammatical functions (adverb, pronoun), but the high school placement test will not specifically measure those uses 
** just know that ''either'' goes with ''or'' and ''neither'' goes with ''nor''

**

=== many v. much ===

* '''many''' is for nouns that can be counted
** ''He's owns many shoes.''
* '''much''' is used for nouns that cannot be counted (non-count nouns)
** ''There is much work to do.''
** Noncount nouns include
*** ''art, electricity, happiness, money, music, rice, water, etc.''
*** note that these non-count nouns are singular ("art is...")

=== nothing v. any ===

* '''''nothing''''' indicates an absence of something 
* '''''any''''' indicates a lack of or generality of something
** ''are there any people here?'' < asks if anyone is possibly there?
** ''nothing is going on'' << indicates an absolute absence

=== questions ===

* a narrator may ask a question that seems like a spoken quotation, but it may not need quotation marks
** ex.''What are we doing next?''
*** as opposed to
*** ''"What are we doing next?" Steve asked''
**** note that the question mark replaces the comma
* tests may present a question that contains an error in "has" or "had" for a question
** turn the question into a statement and see if the subect-verb match is correct
** ex
*** ''Have you seen my friends?''
**** = You have seen my friends  
*** ''How long has they been working on it?'' 
**** ''They has been working on it'' << <u>incorrect</u> (needs the plural auxiliary verb "have")

=== quotation marks not needed ===

* a thought or narrated statement does not need quotation marks
** quotation marks separate words distinctly stated by someone other than the narrator or author
** so the narrator or author can say something or say something someone else said without quotation marks
** ex.
*** ''Mr. Jackson told us to sit down.''
*** ''If you're hungry, let me know.''
* commands with a stated name do not need quotation marks:
** ''Jerry, leave your paper right there.''

* when a relative clause is employed following "stated" or "said," the quotation mark is not needed:
** ex.  ''She said the test was super easy''
*** = ''She said [that] the test was super easy''
**** so quotation marks are not necessary

=== "that there" error ===

* ''That there dog is mean''  << incorrect because "that" and "there" are used incorrectly as adverbs to modify noun

* it could be written:
** ''That dog there is mean'' 
*** "there" is now an adverb modifying the verb "is" 
*** and "that" is a determiner (indicates a specific dog, as in "that one")

* or, if "that" is used as a relative pronoun:
** ''What he means to say is '''that''' there are too many to choose from.'' < "that" = relative pronoun, and "there" is an adverb

[[Category:Language Arts]]
[[Category:Grammar]]