S UBJECTS , V ERBS

AND

O BJECTS

action is performed, i.e. if a certain condition is true, a certain result occurs. There are four types of commonly used conditionals in English that are differentiated on the basis of the degree of possibility implied by each conditional: the first conditional, the second conditional, the third conditional and the zero conditional. First Conditional This conditional is used to talk about future events that might happen. It uses the present tense to discuss the possible future event. For e.g.:

Subjects, verbs and objects are the basic units of any sentence; to be able to identify them and use them correctly is the one of the first steps to writing and speaking good English. A sentence, of course, is the conventional unit of connected speech and writing: it is a grouping of words that together make sense as a statement, question, command or exclamation. Sentences Begin with a capitalised letter, Conclude with a full stop, a question mark or an exclamation mark, And are, at the most basic level, comprised of a subject and a predicate, or verb. The subject is generally a noun, a noun phrase, or pronoun, about which something is said in the predicate, which usually follows it. Take the following sentence: The dog barked. Here, the subject is the dog, and the verb barked describes what it is/was doing. The place of the noun in the sentence as the subject can be taken by noun phrases, such asthe five dogs, or by pronouns, such as I, you, he and she. Another role played by nouns in sentences is that of the object: that which, directly or indirectly, receives the action performed by the subject. For example: The dog barked at the postman. Here, the postman is obviously the object: that which the subjects action (the barking of the dog) is directed at. In this role too, pronouns such as they, it, us, them, me, etc can replace nouns. To conclude, let us analyse another sentence and see if we can identify the subject-verb-object pattern: Rita was furious with me. Here, 1. was acts as the verb that links the subject, Rita, 2. with the adjective furious, 3. and together they establish the relationship between the subject and the object, me (used in place of the narrators name). CONDITIONALS Conditionals are structures in English that establish what will happen if a certain event takes place or

If it rains, we will have to cancel the picnic. If you come with me, I will make it worth your while. If I go abroad, I will get something back for you. If you want until 1pm, you can go back with him. If you visit Paris, you must see the Eiffel Tower.

Second Conditional This conditional is used to talk about unreal possibility or impossible events; they establish the course of action that would follow, were something to happen hypothetically. For e.g.:

If I had a million dollars, I would buy a penthouse on Park Avenue. I could stop working if I won the lottery. If I were well-versed in the subject, I would help you with your assignment. If I were you, I would ask her to marry me. What would you do if it were to rain later?

Third Conditional This conditionals talks about the past, unlike the first and second which discuss events in the real or unreal future. These conditions, too, are therefore impossible, because they have either already occurred or might have occurred but wont anymore. For e.g.:

If I had studied a little more in college, life would have been easier. If we had gotten to the airport on time, we would have caught our flight.

I could have asked him about the matter if he had shown up. The uses of the indefinite article are as follows:

Sometimes the if clause is merely implied, as in:

a. To refer to some member of a group, class or

category. For e.g. He is a doctor(profession)/an Indian (nationality)/a Hindu (religion).

I would have done it. (...if you had asked me to) I wouldnt have allowed it. (...if it had been tried with me)

b. To refer to a kind of, or example of something.

For e.g. He has a large nose/a thick beard/a strange aunt.

Zero Conditional The zero conditional discusses an absolute certainty; the result of the condition is always true. The most common types of zero conditionals are scientific facts, like If you cool water to zero degrees, it turns into ice.

c. Preceding singular nouns, with the words what

and such. For e.g. What a car! Oh, thats such a shame!

d. To mean one object, whether a person or thing.

For e.g. The thieves stole a necklace and a portrait.

Zero conditionals, therefore, do not deal with the future or the past; they simply deal with facts. The if in these conditionals can be replaced with when: When you cool water to zero degrees, it turns into ice. DETERMINERS Determiners are a kind of noun modifier; they precede and are necessarily followed by nouns. While adjectives perform a similar function, the term determiner refers to a relatively limited set of wellestablished words that can be said to mark nouns. The function of determiners is to express reference; i.e. they clarify what a noun is referring to. For e.g. when one says that box, the listener knows which box is being referred to. There are many types of determiners:

e. To refer to something that is being mentioned for

the first time. For e.g. There was a chill in the air. Note:

a. We usually
say a hundred, a thousand, a million, etc.

b. A is not indiscriminately used to refer to

singular objects; one is used when emphasis is required. For e.g. There is only one way out of this mess. Definite Article The is known as the definite article in English. Its uses are as follows:

1. Articles
There are three articles: a, an, and the.

a. When something is being referred to that has

already been mentioned. For e.g. I saw a pretty

Indefinite Articles A and an are indefinite articles that serve the same purpose, but they cannot be used interchangeably, because a is only used before words that begin with consonants, and an is used only before words that begin with vowels. (Note: an before h when it is silent, as in hour and honour; a before u and eu when they sound like you, as in European and university.

girl at the mall today. The pretty girl did not, however, see me.

b. When both parties involved in the conversation

are aware of what is being discussed. For e.g. Where is the restroom?

c. To refer to unique objects. For e.g. the sun,

the moon, the Earth, the Taj Mahal.

d. With superlatives and ordinal numbers (numbers

used to rank a set of objects). For e.g.Mt Everest is the tallest mountain on earth, Neil Armstrong was the first man on the moon.

These three words can be used in the following ways:

All + uncountable noun Don Bradman is the greatest batsman of all time. the + uncountable noun/countable noun in plural form We have all the time in the world. All the people in the hall went quiet. my, your, etc + uncountable noun/countable noun in plural form All my life I have been waiting for this moment. All you friends

e. To refer to groups of people, geographical areas

and oceans, and with decades or groups of years. For e.g. the Americans, the Sahara/Pacific, the fifties/sixities/seventies/eighties.

2. Quantifiers
See article.

3. Demonstratives
This, that, these and those are known are demonstratives; they describe the position of an object, seen from the speakers viewpoint.

This and these (used for singular and plural nouns respectively) refer to objects that close by. For e.g. Whose car is this? Whose cars are these?

have been invited to the party. this, that + uncountable noun/these, those + countable noun in plural form Look at all this

That and those (used for singular and plural nouns respectively) refer to objects that are further away. The closeness can be physical or psychological. For e.g. Who lives in that house?

dust! I do not have time for all these formalities. Both + the /my, your, etc/these, those + countable noun in plural form (note: used only when two objects are being referred to) Both the dogs have passed away. Both my ankles have been hurting since I jumped from the balcony. Both these books must be returned within the week. Half + a + uncountable noun We bought half a

4. Numbers
Numbers are cardinal (one, two, three, etc) and ordinal (first, second, third, etc). Cardinal numbers are adjectives that indicate quantity (There are fives apples on the table), and ordinal numbers indicate rank or order (This is the first time for me on a plane).

5. Distributives
The words all, both, half, each, every, eith er and neither are known as distributives.

All, Both, Half

kilo of rice.

the/my, your, etc/this, that, these, those + noun Half the village perished in the floods. I spent half my inheritance on travelling the world. You may have half (of) this cake. Only half (of) those points are relevant. Each, Every, Either, Neither See articles. Q UANTIFIERS

Which and whose are defining words; they indicate which thing or person is being referred to.

This is the house which I used to live in as a child. This is the man whose window you broke.

9. Question words
See the article on question words Quantifiers form a sub-class under determiners; they are adjectives or phrases that serve to answer two possible questions: How many? and How much? For e.g. a few, a little, much, many, most, some, any, enough, etc are quantifiers. Quantifiers that describe quantity

6. Possessives
Possessive pronouns and adjectives indicate who an object belongs to.

The pronouns are mine (first person: This car is mine = I own this car) yours (second person: This car is yours = You own this car) his, hers, and its (third person: This cars is his/hers = He/she owns this car).

Words and phrases that describe quantity include a little, none, a few, etc. Some of these are used only with countable nouns (the ones that answer the question How many? such as a few, a number of, several, etc), some only with uncountable nouns (the ones that answer the question How much? such as a little, a bit of, etc) and some with both (the ones that answer both questions, such as no/none, some, a lot of, etc).

The corresponding adjectives are my your his, her, and it Quantifiers that express attitude The words few and little and the phrases a few and a little serve to describe the speakers attitude to the quantity being described. The first two carry negatives suggestions, whereas the second two carry positive suggestions. For e.g. the phrase I have little timemeans that the speaker hardly has time, whereas the phrase I have a little time means that while the speaker may not have all the time in the world, s/he has enough for the purpose at hand.

7. Difference words
Other and another are difference words; they refer to something different, or remaining, or more. Other is used with singular and plural nouns, whileanother is used strictly with singular nouns. What other colours can I get this in? Is there another colour that this is available in?

Enough Enough is used to indicate the necessary amount or quantity; it is placed before nouns. For e.g. There is enough time, You have enough money, Is there enough food?, etc.

8. Defining words

Comparative quantifiers There are ten comparative or grade quantifiers: much, many, more, most, few, fewer, fewest, little, less, and least.

The chairman requests that all members of the board be present at the meeting.

I demand that he provide us with a full explanation.

Much, many, more and most chart, in ascending order, increase; much is used only with uncountable nouns, many only with plural countable nouns, and more and most with both.

As you can see, the structure that the subjunctive takes is generally as follows: [subject] (I) [verb] (demand) that [object] (he) [subjunctive] (provide)... The verbs that are commonly used before subjunctives are advise, ask, beg, decide,

I have much time. < I have more time. < I have the most time. I have many apples. < I have more apples. < I have the most apples.

decree, desire, dictate, insist, intend, move, order, petition, propose, recommend, request, require, resolve, suggest, urge, and vote. Another pattern exists as well, in which that is preceded by an expression rather than the verb. For

Few, fewer, fewest, little, less and least chart decrease. The first three (in descending order) are used only with countable plural nouns. The second three (in descending order) are used only with uncountable nouns.

e.g. in the sentence It is essential that the goods be delivered on time, it is essential is the expression. The expressions that are commonly used with subjunctives are it is desirable/imperative/essential/necessary/impo rtant, etc.

He has few friends. > He has fewer friends. > He has the fewest friends. He has little time. > He has less time. > He has the least time. S UBJUNCTIVE The subjunctive is a verb form in English that is relatively rare, but is structurally very simple. It is a special kind of present tense; for all verbs except the past tense of be (were), the subjunctive is the same as the infinitive without to. Therefore, the subjunctive is simply the basic verb form (for e.g., do, work, demand, hire), with the difference that no s is added to the verb when it is used with the third person singular. For e.g. in the sentence I suggested that he take the matter to the proper authorities, take is the subjunctive. The subjunctive is used more often in American and written than in British and spoken English. It is used generally when talking about something that may or may not happen; it could be something that the speaker wants, hopes for, expects, or imagines. The following are more examples of subjunctives: If I were king, there would be no more famines.

Now, in the example If I were king..., there seems to be a slight problem, which is that king is a singular noun, so the verb preceding it should, it appears, be was, not were. However, this construction does not use was. Were is the past subjunctive of be, and is formally always with if, and certain other words/phrases, such as I wish and as if; it is simply a quirk of the language. The following are more examples of the same: If I were you, I would take a stand on the issue. If he were not so intelligent, I would have fired him for his insolence. DIRECT
AND

I wish she werent so dull. REPORTED SPEECH

There are two ways in language of conveying what someone else has said: direct/quotedspeech and indirect/reported speech. The former, direct/quoted speech, involves quoting the exact words uttered by the person, within quotation marks. For example She said, I wont be coming home tonight. is an example of direct speech.

Indirect/reported speech, on the other hand, does not have to be within quotes or word-for-word. In fact, unless one is relaying the exact words spoken, one should never use quotation marks. For example, She told us that she wouldnt be coming home that night is an example of reported speech. Note that the verb tense necessarily changes in reported speech. This is because when we report speech, we are talking, obviously, about something that was said in the past. Hence, it becomes necessary to use the past tense of the verb. DIRECT SPEECH He said, Im fine. He said, Ive been married for 3 years. He said, I went to the theatre yesterday. REPORTED SPEECH He said that he was fine. He said that he had been married for 3 years. He said that he had gone to the theatre the day before. He said that the show was already underway when the chief guest arrived. (no change in tense)

Dependent clauses, on the other hand, do not express a complete thought and thus cannot function as sentences. For e.g. 'When Ram left to buy supplies' cannot be a sentence because it is an incomplete thought. What happened when Ram went to the shop? Here, when functions as a dependent marker word; this term refers to words which, when added to the beginnings of independent clauses or sentences, transform them into dependent clauses. Other examples of dependent marker words are after, although, as, as if, because, before, if, in order to, since, though, unless, until, whatever, when, whenever, whether, and while. Dependent clauses, thus, need to be combined with independent clauses to form full sentences. For e.g., 'When Ram left to buy supplies, Rohan snuck in and stole the money' is a complete sentence. G RAMMAR RULES: AVOID
THESE COMMON ERRORS

Here is a list of 5 of the most common grammatical He said, The show was already underway when the chief guest arrived. mistakes that are made by English speakers/writers. This list is merely a quick glance; these matters are dealt with in detail as well, in appropriate sections.

1. Subject Verb Agreement: Learners often get

confused with using the appropriate form of the

Another thing to note is that modal verbs (will, can, must, shall, may) also change, taking their past tense forms (would, could, had to, should, might). This also means that would, could, should, might and ought to do not change forms when reported. I NDEPENDENT AND DEPENDENT CLAUSES A clause is a grouping of words in English that contains a subject and a verb. Clauses are the building blocks of sentences. They can be of two types: independent and dependent. It is important for the purpose of sentence formation to be able to recognise independent and dependent clauses. Independent clauses are clauses that express a complete thought. They can function as sentences. For e.g. 'Ram left to buy supplies' is an independent clause, and if you end it with a full stop, it becomes a sentence.

verb with the subject of the sentence. For example, I live in India and He lives in India is the correct subject verb agreement of the verb to live.

2. Possessive Nouns: Non-native speakers of the

English are unsure about showing possession while writing or speaking in English. For example, The book belonging to the girl can also be referred to as The girls book See also: Possessive Nouns

3. Comparison of adjectives: We add er to

compare short adjectives and we add more for longer adjectives like handsome and intelligent. See also: Comparison of Adjectives

4. Punctuation mistakes: Punctuation errors, too,

are very common, especially in the use of semicolons and commas. See also: Punctuation Rules

Bi

Two, Twice

Biannual

Occurring twice in a year Bigamy Being

married twice Bio Life Biology Study of

5. Singular and Plural: Many new learners make

mistakes in forming the plural form of singular nouns. See also: How to make plurals I MPROVING VOCABULARY BY LEARNING ROOT W ORDS The English language has its roots in languages like Greek and Latin. An understanding of the common root words will help us make educated guesses about the meaning of new words and substantially strengthen our vocabulary. Given below is a list of commonly used root words, their meaning and some examples of words formed using these root words. Root Words Exercise 1 Root Words Exercise 2 ROOT Ambi MEANING Both EXAMPLE WORDS Ambidextrous

living things Biohazard Risk to

living things Cardio Heart Cardiology

Branch of medicine dealing with the heart Cardiovascular

Pertaining to the heart and blood vessels Cent Hundred Centenary

Hundredth Anniversary Centenarian

Person who is hundred or more years old Cert Sure Certificate

Use both hands well Ambiguity Double

Document attesting a fact like birth, death, graduation, marriage etc Certitude Feeling

meaning, can be interpreted in more than one way Aqua Water Aquarium Artificial Chrono Time

of certainty Chronology Study

environment for water plants and animals Aquatic Plant or

of events in the order of their occurrence Chronograph

animal living in water Art Skill Artistic Natural

Instrument that records time with high accuracy Counter Contrary Counter-intuitive

skill in art Artisan Skilled

manual work Auto Self Automatic

Contrary to intuition Counter-productive

Working by itself Autonomous De Remove

Having the opposite effect as intended Detoxify Remove

Having self-government

the poisonous substances

Dethrone

Hex

Six

Hexagon Figure

Remove from the throne Dem People Democracy

with six sides Hexavalent

Having a valency of six Inter Between Interconnect

System of government elected by the people Demography -

Connect with each other Interdepend

Statistics of births, deaths, mortality etc. of people Derm Skin Dermatologist Iso Equal

Depend on each other Isosceles Triangle

Doctor specialized in the study of skin disorders Dermatitis

having two equal sides Isobar Line on

map connecting points of equal barometer pressures Jud Law Judiciary

Inflammation of the skin Flor Flower Florist Person

who sells flowers Floral Decorated

Collective of judges Judgement

with flowers Gastro Stomach Gastritis Kilo Thousand

Decision of a court Kilogram

Inflammation of the stomach lining Gastroenterologist Lacto Milk

Thousand grams litres from mil Lactose Sugar Lactic Obtained Kilolitre Thousand

Doctor specialized in the study of stomach and intestinal disorders Grat Pleasing Gratify Delight or Mal Bad

occurring in milk Malevolent

please someone Gratuity Tip, Wishing bad things on others Hepa Liver Hepatitis Malice Intention

token of appreciation

Inflammation of the liver Hepatic Relating Mort Death

to do evil Mortuary Place

to the liver Hept Seven Heptagon Figure

where dead bodies are kept until they are cremated or buried Mortician -

with seven sides Heptathlon

Athletic event having seven events Narr Tell

Undertaker Narrate - To tell a

story Narrator - Person

Polygamy Having

more than one husband or wife at the same time Psych Mind Psychiatry Study

who tells a story. Nov New Novelty Newness

or originality Oct Eight Novice - Beginner Octagon Figure Quad Four

of mental diseases Psych Prepare

oneself mentally for a task with eight sides Octave Stanza of Quadruple

Increase four times Quadrangle

eight lines Ocu Eye Ocular Connected Quin Five

Figure having four sides with the eyes Oculist Specialist Quintuple

Increase five times Quintuplet Five

in the medical treatment of eye disorders Omni All Omnipresent Semi Half

children born at the same time

Present everywhere at the same time Omnivorous

Semi-circle Half

of a circle Semiaquatic

Eating all kinds of foods Ortho Straight Orthodontics Sept Seven

Animal living partly on land and partly in water

Dealing with straightening of teeth Orthopaedics

Septuplet Seven

children born at the same time Septuagenarian

Dealing with the straightening of bones Pan All Panorama An allTrans Across

People aged before 70 and 79

around view Pandemic

Transpacific

Across the Pacific Ocean Transnational

Prevalent all over a country or world Ped Foot Pedicure Tri Three

Across national boundaries Triangle Figure

Treatment of the feet Pedal Foot

with three sides Triathlon - Athletic

operated lever Poly Many Polygon Figure Uni One

event having three events Unitarian People

with many sides

who believes God is one

person kind Unique One of a

under -with

below

Underground,undersell

Against/back In good condition

Withdraw, withhold

Vince

Conquer

Invincible One -wel Welcome, welfare

who cannot be conquered Convince

Persuade a person SUFFIXES P REFIXES Prefixes are placed before the words to modify their meanings; like suffixes, they are groups of letters that rarely serve a purpose unless attached to a word. Here is a list of commonly used prefixes to give you an idea of how to identify them. Suffix Prefi x -a -al -be -by -for -fore -gain -in -mis -over -out -to Meaning Examples -able/ible On/in/out/from all by Be/on the side through before against in wrong Above/beyond out this Not/to reverse an action Away, aboard, arise, alight -ac/-ic Alone, already -acy Below, before Bypass, byword forget, forgive -al Forecast, foresee -ance/Gainsay Inside, income Mislead, mistake -eer/-er/overflow, overcharge Outside, outcome -escent Today, tonight -esque Unkind, untie like/reminiscent of picturesque, Kafkaesque becoming, to be or person who mountaineer, writer,counsellor adolescent, fluorescent ence state/quality of being state/quality of being maintenance, permanence related to logical, philosophical -acious/icious state/quality of being privacy, legitimacy like/related to cardiac, Nordic Meaning Examples Suffixes are placed after words to modify their meanings; like prefixes, they are groups of letters that rarely serve a purpose unless attached to a word. Here is a list of some of them to give you an idea of how to identify suffixes.

capable of

portable, legible

full of

gracious, malicious

-dom

freedom, kingdom

-un

-fy

to make containing, yielding make, become

magnify, electrify vociferous, carboniferous civilise, terrorise hellish, fiendish favouritism, communism chemist, florist

of these symbols help express the intended meaning of the sentence. In spoken English, punctuation marks denote the pauses and intonations to be used when reading aloud. Incorrect punctuation can change the meaning of a

-iferous

-ise

sentence. The sentences, Women, without her man, is nothing and Woman: without her, man is nothing is

-ish

having qualities of

an often used example of how the incorrect use of punctuation marks can alter the meaning a sentence. SYMBOLS OF PUNCTUATION Some of the commonly used punctuation marks are Full Stop - (.) Usually used at the end of a sentence. Question Mark - (?) Usually used at the end of an

-ism

doctrine, belief, practice person who state/quality of being without state/quality of

-ist

interrogative sentence to form a question. Comma - (,) - Usually used to denote a pause in a

-ity

ingenuity, oddity

sentence. Exclamation Mark - (!) - Used to denote shock,

-less

brainless, endless enjoyment, embankment, abridgement thinness, loneliness celluloid, ovoid adipose, verbose hypnosis, psychosis illustrious, nauseous friendship, membership torsion, transition

surprise, anger or a raised voice. Colon and Semi Colon Apostrophe - (') - Used to show possession or for contraction of word. PUNCTUATION RULES - AVOID
THESE COMMON ERRORS

-ment

being, result of action, process

-ness -oid -ose -osis -ous

state of being like full of condition full of

Punctuation is a very important aspect of writing; good writing presupposes correct punctuation. Incorrect punctuation is the sign of weak writing, or carelessness. But this sort of thing is eminently avoidable, because punctuation is quite simple to master. Here are some basic rules to keep in mind:

1. Every sentence must end with a full stop. 2. Proper nouns (names of people, places, brands,
etc, i.e. unique instances of a class)

-ship

position held

must always be capitalised.

3. When you use opening quotation marks, do not

-sion/tion state/quality of being state/quality of being characterised by forget to use closing quotation marks at the end of the quoted word or phrase. 4. Quotation marks are when quoting or sometimes fortitude, certitude to convey irony, not for emphasis; emphasis is conveyed by emboldening or italicisation, followed by an exclamation mark.

-tude

-y

funny, greedy

PUNCTUATION MARKS Punctuation marks are important for both written and spoken English. In written English, the correct usage

5. Do not use an apostrophe when you are

pluralising a word. The plural of toy is toys,

nottoys. Apostrophes are used to form contractions (it is = its) and indicate possession.

Pluralisation in English can be a bit of a tricky game, and as with any language the key to mastering this aspect lies in practice through reading and conversing until the variations that appear unpredictable in the beginning become second nature, a matter of habit. Having said that, there are certain generally applicable principles that make the task easier by giving us a broad idea of how common words are pluralised. Let us take a look at these. For most nouns, add an s at the end of the word. SINGULAR Car Desk Tree Ball Hand PLURAL Cars Desks Trees Balls Hands

6. The ellipsis, used to indicate variously the

intentional omission of a section of text, an unfinished thought, and a trailing off into silence, consists of only 3 dots. It is pointless to add more dots to an ellipsis. This is excessive punctuation, which is in other words incorrect punctuation. 7. As per the rules of British English, any punctuation mark that is not part of a quoted section of text must be placed outside the quotation marks. However, in the case of direct speech, punctuation marks must be enclosed within the quotation marks.

8. Do not link independent clauses with commas.

Independent clauses are groupings of words that can stand alone as sentences. For example, in He knew how to drive, that he didnt do it very often was a matter more nerves, not inability both the parts before and after the comma are full sentences. In such cases, the comma is not the correct punctuation mark of connection. In needs to be replaced with a semicolon (;). The sentence becomes: He knew how to drive; that he didnt do it very often was matter of nerves, not inability.

For nouns that end with s, x, z, ch, or sh, add es at the end of the word. SINGULAR Boss Box Boxes Topaz Topazes Leech Leeches Dish Dishes PLURAL Bosses

For some words that end with o, add es at the end of the word. SINGULAR PLURAL Tomato Tomatoes Potato Potatoes Echo Hero Echoes Heroes

9. Use a comma after the introductory element of a

sentence. The introductory element is a word or a phrase that begins a sentence by providing background, or simply modifies it. For example, Honestly I dont know how I managed to escape is wrong, because the word honestly modifies the sentence. Hence, it should be Honestly, I dont know how I managed to escape.

For some words that end with o, add s at the end of the word. SINGULAR Photo Piano Logo PLURAL Photos Pianos Logos Radios

HOW

TO MAKE PLURALS

Radio

For some words ending with f, replace the f with a v and add es at the end of the word. SINGULAR Thief Loaf Half Calf Leaf PLURAL Thieves Loaves Halves Calves Leaves ADJECTIVES

Goose Man Foot

Geese Men Feet

An adjective is a word used to describe a noun. TYPES OF ADJECTIVES Following are the kinds of adjectives which are commonly used:

1. Adjectives of Quality:
o Adjectives of Quality answer the question Of what kind

For some words ending with f, add an s at the end of the word. SINGULAR Reef Roof Chef PLURAL Reefs Roofs Chefs

o Beautiful

Examples : Large, Small, Intelligent,

2. Adjectives of Quantity:
o Adjectives of Quantity answer the question How much o Enough Examples : Some, Little, Any,

For some words ending with ife, replace the f with a v and add an s at the end of the word. SINGULAR Wife Life Knife PLURAL Wives Lives Knives

3. Adjectives of Number:
o Adjectives of Number answer the question How many o Examples : Two, Seven, Second,

For common nouns ending with a consonant followed by y, replace the y with an i and add es at the end of the word. SINGULAR Nappy Poppy Poppies Fly Penny Pennies Sty Some nouns are the same in both forms. SINGULAR Fish Sheep Deer Tuna Trout PLURAL Fish Sheep Deer Tuna Trout Sties Flies PLURAL Nappies

Third

4. Demonstrative Adjectives:
o Demonstrative Adjectives answer the question Which o Examples : This, That, These, Those

5. Interrogative Adjectives:
o Interrogative Adjectives are used to ask questions about a noun. o Examples : What, Which, Whose

Adjective Exercise 1 Adjective Exercise 2 LIST OF ADJECTIVES, ADJECTIVE EXAMPLES

For some nouns, other letters must be replaced or added, sometimes changing the words completely. SINGULAR Person Ox Child PLURAL People Oxen Children

Abundant Accurate Addicted Adorable

Elderly Elegant Embarrassed Empty

Nasty Naughty Nervous New

Big Adventurous Encouraging Afraid Aggressive Alcoholic Alert Aloof Ambitious Ancient Angry Animated Annoying Anxious Arrogant Ashamed Attractive Auspicious Awesome Awful Bad Bashful Beautiful Belligerent Beneficial Best Enthusiastic Excellent Exciting Expensive Fabulous Fair Faithful Famous Fancy Fantastic Fast Fearful Fearless Fertile Filthy Foolish Forgetful Friendly Funny Gentle Glamorous Glorious Gorgeous Noisy Nutritious Obedient Obese Obnoxious Old Overconfident Peaceful Pink Polite Poor Powerful Precious Pretty Proud Quick Quiet Rapid Rare Red Remarkable Responsible Rich Romantic Bitter Bizarre Black Blue Boring Brainy Bright Broad Broken Busy Calm Capable Careful Careless Caring Cautious Charming Cheap Cheerful Chubby Clean Clever Clumsy Cold

Graceful Grateful Great Greedy Green Handsome Happy Harsh Healthy Heavy Helpful Hilarious Historical Horrible Hot Huge Humorous Hungry Ignorant Illegal Imaginary Impolite Important Impossible Innocent

Royal Rude Scintillating Secretive Selfish Serious Sharp Shiny Shocking Short Shy Silly Sincere Skinny Slim Slow Small Soft Spicy Spiritual Splendid Strong Successful Sweet Talented

Colorful Comfortable Concerned Confused Crowded Cruel Curious Curly Cute Damaged Dangerous Dark Deep Defective Delicate Delicious Depressed Determined Different Dirty Disgusting Dry Dusty Early Educated

Intelligent Interesting Jealous Jolly Juicy Juvenile Kind Large Legal Light Literate Little Lively Lonely Loud Lovely Lucky Macho Magical Magnificent Massive Mature Mean Messy Modern

Tall Tasty Tense Terrible Terrific Thick Thin Tiny

Efficient COMPARISON
OF

Narrow ADJECTIVES

Zealous

Ram is tall. Shyam is taller than Ram. Mohan is the tallest of the three.

In the second sentence, the word taller is the comparative form of the adjective. The comparative form of the adjective denotes a higher degree of the adjective tall when two people or things are compared.

In the third sentence, the word tallest is the Ugly Unique Untidy Upset Victorious RULE 1 Violent Vulgar Warm Weak Wealthy Wide Wise Witty Wonderful Wise Wiser Wisest Worried Young Youthful RULE 3 Large Larger Largest Nice Nicer Nicest Fine Finer - Finest For most adjectives, er is added for the comparative form and est for the superlative form. superlative form of the adjective. The superlative form of the adjective denotes the highest degree of the adjective tall when more than two people or things are compared.

Here are some simple rules to keep in mind when forming comparatives and superlatives.

Tall Taller Tallest Strong Stronger Strongest Short Shorter Shorter Kind Kinder - Kindest

RULE 2

For adjectives ending with e, r is added for the comparative form and st for the superlative form.

Frequently For adjectives ending with y, y is removed and ier is added for comparative form and iest for the superlative form.

3.

Adverbs of Place: These adverbs

are used to answer the question where. Examples : Out, In, Forward, Everywhere

Lazy Lazier Laziest Crazy Crazier Craziest Wealthy Wealthier Wealthiest Heavy Heavier - Heaviest

4.

Adverbs of Manner: These adverbs

are used to answer the question how. Examples : Honestly, Bravely, Happily

RULE 4

5.

Adverbs of Degree:These adverbs

are used to answer the question how Usually for longer adjectives, more + adjective is used for comparative form and most + adjective is used for superlative form. much or to what extent. Examples : Fully, Partly, Altogether, Almost

6.
Handsome More Handsome Most Handsome Beautiful More Beautiful Most Beautiful Intelligent More Intelligent Most Intelligent Difficult More Difficult Most Difficult

Adverbs of Affirmation and

Negation: These adverbs are used to confirm or deny. Examples : Certainly, Surely, Absolutely

7.
RULE 5

Adverbs of Reason: These adverbs

are used to give the reason. Examples : Therefore, Hence

Irregular Adjectives: There are some irregular adjectives for which the comparative and superlative form follow no particular rule. Adverbs Exercise 1 Adverbs Exercise 2 LIST OF ADVERBS, ADVERB EXAMPLES

Good Better Best Bad Worse Worst Many More Most Little Less - Least ADVERBS An adverb is a word which modifies the meaning of a verb, adjective or another adverb. TYPES OF ADVERBS There are seven classes of commonly used adverbs: Accidentally Always Angrily Arrogantly Badly Beautifully Bitterly Happily Highly Honestly Hopelessly Immediately Innocently Instantly Interestingly Jealously Really Regularly Reluctantly Repeatedly Rudely Sadly Safely Seldom Selfishly

1.

Adverbs of Time: These adverbs are

used to answer the question when. Examples : Now, Yesterday, Today, Once

2.

Adverbs of Frequency: These Blindly Boldly

adverbs are used to answer the question how often. Examples : Seldom, Rarely, Often,

Bravely Briefly Busily Carefully Certainly Clearly Courageously Cruelly Curiously Daily Delightfully Easily Enthusiastically Eventually Exactly Excitedly Extremely Fairly Faithfully Fast Foolishly Fortunately Frankly Generally Generously

Joyfully Kindly Lazily Less Loudly Lovingly Loyally Madly More Mysteriously Naturally Nearly Nervously Never Obediently Officially Often Openly Painfully Patiently Politely Poorly Positively Properly Quickly

Seriously Silently Slowly Softly Sometimes Soon Strictly Suddenly Surprisingly Sweetly Terribly Thankfully Thoughtfully Tomorrow Unexpectedly Unfortunately Urgently Usually Valiantly Very Violently Well Wisely Yearly Yesterday

Gently Gracefully PLACEMENT

OF

Quietly Rarely ADVERBS

Adverbs can be used in diverse ways, which means that they are very flexible in sentences; they can be moved around quite a bit without causing any grammatical irregularities. Take a look at the following sentence: The speaker grimly faced the audience. The adverb in this sentence is grimly; moving it around a little, we get The speaker faced the audience grimly. There is nothing wrong with either sentence. What this goes to show is that an adverb can be positioned at multiple points in a sentence, and the guide below will help you decide where your chosen adverb should go:

Adverbs used to begin sentences/clauses Connecting adverbs To place an adverb at the beginning of a sentence or clause is also known as initial position adverb placement, and the adverbs that are commonly used in these positions are known as connecting adverbs, such as: Consequently However Next Still Then These adverbs are known as connecting adverbs, quite simply, because they are used at the beginnings of phrases and sentences to connect them to what has been said before. For e.g.: I did not care for her tone. However, I let it go. I began to dislike my course within months having signed up for it. Consequently, I never did well. That was the Medieval section of the museum; next, we have the Industrial Revolution.

Adverbs of time

Time adverbs, like tomorrow, yesterday and sometimes, are among the most flexible of all adverbs, and can often take initial position. For e.g.:

Adverbs of place are used to describe the place where an event occurs, and are also positioned at the ends of sentences or clauses. For e.g.: Father is sleeping upstairs.

Yesterday I was very busy, which is why I was unable to meet you. Tomorrow I am leaving for Calcutta. Sometimes we feel as if we do not belong in this group. north.

In a couple of days I will be travelling

Adverbs of time Adverbs of time, as discussed earlier, can also find their ways to the ends of sentences or clauses. For

Adverbs in the middle Focusing adverbs Focusing adverbs are those adverbs that emphasise a part of the clause or sentence to which they belong, and are generally used mid-sentence. Focusing adverbs include adverbs of frequency (often, rarely, never, always, etc), adverbs of certainty (perhaps, probably, certainly, maybe, etc) and adverbs of comment (adverbs that are used to express opinion, such as smartly, responsibly, intelligently, etc). For e.g.:

e.g.: I leave tomorrow afternoon.

Also see FORMING ADVERBS

FROM

ADJECTIVES

Here are some guidelines on forming adverbs from adjectives: 1. In a large number of the cases, the adverb can be formed by simply adding -ly to the adjective. ADJECTIVE ADVERB

You are always late. I will probably be absent at the party. He acted responsibly by informing the authorities about the wallet he had found.

Cheap Cheaply Quick Quickly Strong

Note: Adverbs of frequency are used before the main verb, not the auxiliary verb.

Strongly

2. If the adjective ends in with y, replace the y Adverbs to end sentences This is the most common position for adverbs in sentences. Adverbs of manner Adverbs of manner are used to describe how something is done, and are generally placed at the ends of sentences or clauses. For e.g.: He wrote the answers correctly. His stammer caused him to speak haltingly. with an i and add -ly. ADJECTIVE ADVERB Ready Readily Merry Merrily Easy

Easily

Adverbs of place 3. If the adjective ends with -le, replace the e at the end with y.

ADJECTIVE ADVERB Understandable Understandably Forcible Forcibly Possible Possibly

Lets watch a movie. This sentence refers to watching any movie and not a particular one.

The is known as a definite article because it is used in relation to a particular thing or person. The dog attacked me and ran. Notice how the reference is not left indefinite. It is clear that a particular dog is being spoken about. A

4. If the adjective ends with -ic, add -ally. ADJECTIVE ADVERB Idiotic Idiotically Tragic Tragically Basic Basically An exception to this rule is public, whose adverbial form is publicly.

particular dog attacked the speaker. I finally got the dress we liked This refers to a particular dress and not just any dress. Let us take one more example to ensure clarity. Please give me a pencil. This is in reference to any pencil. Please give me the pencil. This is in reference to a particular pencil, a pencil that has either been previously spoken about or is visible to both.

USAGE OF A AND AN 5. Some adjectives do not change form at all. ADJECTIVE ADVERB Fast Fast Straight Straight Hard Hard Indefinite articles a/an are used as follows. a is used before a word beginning with a consonant sound. Consonant letters in the English alphabet are B, C, D, F, G, H, J, K, L, M,N, P, Q, R, S, T, V,W, X,Y, Z. A boy, a cat, a dog, a fight, a gym, a horse, a joke, a kite, a lion, a mirror, a noise, a pin, a quilt etc. an is used before a word beginning with a vowel sound. Vowel letters in the English alphabet are A, E, I, O, U. An apple, an elephant, an idiot, an orange, an 6. In the case of the adjective good, the corresponding adverb is well. ARTICLES The English language utilises two articles: a/an and The. a/an are known as indefinite articles because the identity of the thing or person being spoken about is left indefinite. They refer to any member of a group. An apple a day keeps the doctor away. You may have heard this many times; as you might have realised, it does not refer to a particular apple but to any apple. umbrella. As mentioned earlier, usage is on the basis of sound and not only the letter the word starts with. Let me explain. An hour An honest man A one eyed dog Do these seem wrong to you? Theyre not and the reason is simply that usage is on the basis of sound. The words 'hour' and 'honest' both begin with a vowel sound, as the consonant 'h' is not pronounced. Similarly, the word 'one' begins with the

consonant sound of 'w' and hence is written as 'a one eyed dog', not 'an one eyed dog'.

Airport Ambulance

Girl Glass Gold Grass Greece Guitar Hair

Oyster Painting Parrot Pencil Piano Pillow Pizza

NOUNS A noun is a word used as the name of a person, place or thing. TYPES OF NOUNS There are four kinds of nouns which are commonly used: Apple Animal Answer

1.

Proper Nouns:Proper Noun is the

name of a particular person or place. Proper nouns always begin with a capital letter. Examples : Sita, Rajesh, Delhi, Kanpur

Army Australia Balloon

Hamburger Planet Helicopter Helmet Holiday Honey Horse Hospital House Hydrogen Ice Insect Insurance Iron Island Jackal Jelly Jewellery Jordan Plastic Portugal Potato Queen Quill Rain Rainbow Raincoat Refrigerator Restaurant River Rocket Room Rose Russia Sandwich School

2.

Common Nouns:Common Noun is a Banana Battery Beach Beard

name given in common to every person or thing of the group. Common nouns begin with a capital letter only if it is the first word of the sentence. Examples : Girl, Boy, City, Tiger

3.

Collective Nouns:Collective Nouns Bed Belgium Boy Branch Breakfast Brother Camera Candle Car Caravan Carpet Cartoon

are those nouns that denote a group of people, animals, objects, concepts or ideas as a single entity. Examples : Army of Soldiers, Class of Students, Crew of Sailors, Band of Musicians

4.

Abstract Nouns: Abstract Noun is the

name of a quality, action or state. You cannot see, hear, smell or taste an abstract noun. Examples : Kindness, Loyalty, Childhood, Sickness, Laughter

LIST OF NOUNS, NOUN EXAMPLES Nouns Exercise 1 Actor Garden Oil

Advertiseme Gas nt Afternoon Ghost

Orange

Oxygen China

Church Crayon Crowd Daughter Death Denmark Diamond Dinner Disease Doctor Dog Dream Dress Easter Egg Eggplant Egypt Elephant Energy Engine England Evening Eye Family Finland

Juice Kangaroo King Kitchen Kite Knife Lamp Lawyer Leather Library Lighter Lion Lizard Lock London Lunch Machine Magazine Magician

Scooter Shampoo Shoe Soccer Spoon Stone Sugar Sweden Teacher Telephone

Fish Flag Flower Football Forest Fountain France Furniture Garage

Motorcycle Whale Nail Napkin Needle Nest Nigeria Night Notebook Ocean Window Wire Xylophone Yacht Yak Zebra Zoo

COLLECTIVE NOUNS Television Tent Thailand Tomato Toothbrush Traffic Train Truck Uganda Collective nouns are those nouns that denote a group of people, animals, objects, concepts or ideas as a single entity.

These collective nouns are commonly used under the category of people. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. A class of students. An army of soldiers. A choir of singers. A crew of sailors. A band of musicians. A bunch of crooks. A crowd of people/spectators. A gang of thieves. A group of dancers. A team of players. A troupe of artists/dancers. A pack of thieves. A staff of employees. A regiment of soldiers. A tribe of natives. An audience of listeners. A panel of experts. A gang of labourers. A flock of tourists. A board of directors.

Manchester Umbrella Market Match Van Vase

11. 12. 13. 14. 15. 16. 17. 18. 19.

Microphone Vegetable Monkey Morning Vulture Wall

20.

Collective Nouns Exercise 1 Collective Nouns Exercise 2 The following collective nouns are used for animals. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. A catch of fish. An army of ants. A flight of birds. A flock of birds. A haul of fish. A flock of sheep. A herd of

17. 18. 19. 20.

A chest of drawers. A pack of lies. A range of mountains. A cloud of dust.

Collective nouns are endless and these are just a list of those used more often. As you continue to work on improving your English, you will stumble across many more. Be sure to add them to your list and use them as frequently as you can. USING NOUNS
TO

SHOW POSSESSION

deer/cattle/elephants/goats/buffaloes. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. 13. 14. 15. 16. 17. 18. 19. 20. A hive of bees. A litter of cubs. A host of sparrows. A team of horses. A troop of lions. A zoo of wild animals. A pack of wolves. A litter of puppies/kittens. A swarm of bees/ants/rats/flies. A team of horses/ducks/oxen. A murder of crows. A kennel of dogs. A pack of hounds.

Possessive nouns are those nouns that show possession. Possessive Nouns are used to show ownership. A noun is possessive only when a phrase can be modified to say that an idea or commodity belongs to something or someone. Possessive nouns are an integral part of learning English, use them as often as you can to gain confidence.

In the singular form, the possessive case is formed by adding 's to the noun. The clothes of the girl.

The girls clothes. The toys of the boy.

The following collective nouns are used for things. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. A group of islands. A galaxy of stars. A wad of notes. A forest of trees. A stack of wood. A fleet of ships. A string of pearls. An album of

The boys toys. Mary goes to this school.

This is Marys school. Kings castle, grandfathers stick, my dogs bowl and all of the above are formed by adding the 's. Modify the following sentences by using the apostrophe (') to show possession: The kings servants. The computers cover. My phones charger. The servants of the king. Cover of the computer. The charger of my phone.

stamps/autographs/photographs. 9. 10. 11. 12. 13. 14. 15. 16. A hedge of bushes. A library of books. A basket of fruit. A bowl of rice. A pack of cards. A pair of shoes. A bouquet of flowers. A bunch of keys.

For certain words, instead of 's, only ' is used to avoid a hissing noise. Keep this is mind when using possessive nouns. Some examples would be: Boss office. Dr.Briuss house.

For goodness sake.

Note:

There are two rules to follow in case the noun is in plural form. If the noun ends in s then the possessive case

1. In general, like adjectives, nouns being used as

adjectives are used in the singular form, although in the case of certain words, like clothes, customs, sports, etc, an exception is made.

is formed by adding the apostrophe E.g. the donkeys tail, the boys hostel, the cousins aunt. If the noun does not end in s then the

2. Multiple nouns can also be used as adjectives,

as in school cricket team coach. VERBS A verb is a word that describes an action or occurrence or indicates a state of being. TYPES OF VERBS We can divide verbs into transitive and intransitive verbs. Transitive Verbs: These verbs involve a direct object. Example 1: The boy throws the ball. Here throws is the verb and ball is the direct object. Example 2: The man reads the book. Here reads is the verb and book is the direct object

possessive case is formed by adding 's. E.g. the childrens park, the mens room. Its simple as long as you know the plural form of the noun. The plural form of god will be gods and so the apostrophe will be used after 's' (gods). In case of nouns like woman, the plural form is women and so the apostrophe followed by 's' will be utilized(womens). Add the apostrophe in the following sentences. Our cousins short uncle.

(Apostrophe can be before or after 's') Businessmens briefcase.

(Businessmens) The ladies washroom. (Ladies) Intransitive Verbs: These verbs do not involve a direct object. Example 1: The boy throws. Here the verb throws is used intransitively. Example 2: The man reads quickly. Here the verb reads is used intransitively. LIST OF VERBS, VERB EXAMPLES

Here are some more examples to show you other possible cases. Alex and Philips shop. (Two nouns are used

closely and showing joint possession; here, the apostrophe will be used with the second noun) Shakespeares and Wordsworths works.

(Two nouns are used together yet separate possession is implied thus the apostrophe is used with both nouns) NOUNS AS ADJECTIVE Sometimes in the English language, a noun is used to describe another noun; in other words, the first noun performs the function of an adjective. Look at the following examples: Basketball coach here the noun basketball is being used to describe the noun coach Garment shop here the noun garment is being used to describe the noun shop Painting exhibition here the noun painting is being used to describe the noun exhibition

Accept Achieve Add Admire Admit Adopt Advise Agree

Disagree Drag Drive Drop Earn Eat Employ Encourage

Obey Offend Offer Open Paint Pay Pick Play

Bury Allow Announce Enjoy Establish Pray Print Pull Punch Punish Purchase Push Quit Race Read Relax Remember Reply Retire Rub See Select Sell Send Sing Snore Stand Stare Start Buy Call Catch Challenge Change Cheat Chew Choose Clap Clean Collect Compare Complain Confess Confuse Construct Control Copy Count Create Cry Damage Dance Deliver

Help Hit Hope Identify Interrupt Introduce Irritate Jump Keep Kick Kiss Laugh Learn Leave Lend Lie Like Listen Lose Love Make Marry Measure Meet Move

Stink Study Sweep Swim Take Talk Teach Tear Tell Thank Travel Type Understand Use Visit Wait Walk Want Warn Wed Weep Wink Worry Write Yell

Appreciate Estimate Approve Argue Arrive Ask Assist Attack Bake Bathe Be Beat Become Beg Behave Bet Boast Boil Borrow Breathe Bring Build Burn Exercise Expand Explain Fear Feel Fight Find Fly Forget Forgive Fry Gather Get Give Glow Greet Grow Guess Harass Hate Hear

Destroy REGULAR

Murder
AND I RREGULAR

Think VERBS Thought

The distinction between regular verbs and irregular verbs is a very simple one: Regular Verbs Those verbs that form their past participle with d or ed are regular verbs. These verbs do not undergo substantial changes while changing forms between tenses. 1. If the verb ends with a vowel, only d is added. For example: PRESENT TENSE PAST TENSE Share Shared Scare Scared Dare Dared 2. If the verb ends with a consonant, ed is added. For example: PRESENT TENSE PAST TENSE Want Wanted Shout Shouted Kill Killed Regular and Irregular Verbs Exercise 1 Regular and Irregular Verbs Exercise 2 Irregular Verbs Those verbs that undergo substantial changes when changing forms between tenses are irregular verbs. The changed forms of these verbs are often unrecognisably different from the originals. For example: PRESENT TENSE PAST TENSE Go Went Run Ran

There is no way to tell what form an irregular verb is going to take in a changed tense; the only option for an English speaker is to commit the changes to memory. With practice, it will become a matter of habit. FINITE
AND

NON-FINITE VERBS

Examine the following sentences: I drove to the concert. He broke the vase. She will take it off your hands soon. The verbs in the above sentences are drove, broke and take. These are finite verbs; verbs whose form is governed by the subject of the sentence. What this means is that these verbs change their form depending on person (first person, second person, third person, singular/plural) and tense. For example, drove is the past tense of drive. Thus, if sentence were to be in the present tense, it would be I drive.... Similarly, if I were to be replaced by he, it would be He drives. Finite verbs can form independent clauses, i.e. clauses that can work as complete sentences. Non-finite verbs, on the other hand, are those that do not change form based upon the subject. These are of three types:

1. Participle this includes the past and present

participles of verbs, which function as adjectives (the dying man, the sleeping giant, etc).

2. Gerund this refers to verbs (in their ing form)

that function as nouns (the writing on the wall, exercising is a necessary activity for continued good health).

3. Infinitive the verb in its basic form, often but

not necessarily preceded by to, functioning as noun (to finish the task without any more hitches was his goal), adjective (Im sorry, I have much work to do at the moment), or adverb (he called to discuss the matter).

PARTICIPLES , GERUNDS & I NFINITIVES Participles, gerunds and Infinitives are called verbals. Verbals are words which are formed from a verb but which function as a different part of speech.

Simple present: I am, he/she/it is, we/they are Simple past: I/he/she/it was, we/they were Past participle: been For compound tense (present/past continuous), use the -ing form of the full verb with the appropriate form

PARTICIPLE A participle is usually formed by adding ing or ed to a verb. It functions as an adjective.

of be. Present continuous: He is playing outside. Past continuous: He was playing outside. Present perfect continuous: He has been

Examples: The singing bird was the main attraction at the event. The injured man was waiting for the doctor.

playing outside. Past perfect continuous: He had been playing outside. For passive voice, use the past participle of the full

GERUND A gerund is formed by adding ing to a verb. It functions as a noun.

verb with the appropriate form of be. Simple past/present: The damage is/was done. Present/past perfect: The damage has

Examples: Sameer likes reading books. Smoking is prohibited in the hospital.

been/had been done. Future: The damage will be done. Have

INFINITIVE An infinitive is formed by using the word to plus the verb in its stem word. It functions as a noun, adjective or adverb.

Have is also both an auxiliary and a full verb, and is irregular as well. Simple present: I/you/we/they have, he/she/it has Simple past: had

Examples: He was made to clean his room. Shalini loves to talk.

Past participle: had It is used to form compound tenses in active and passive voice.

AUXILIARY VERBS There are 4 auxiliary verbs in the English language: Be Have Will Do

Compound Tenses - Active Voice: Present Perfect Simple: He has played outside. Past Perfect Simple: He had played outside. Present Perfect Continuous: He has been playing outside. Past Perfect Continuous: He had been playing outside Compound Tenses - Passive Voice: Present/Past Continuous: The house has/had been built.

Each of these is followed by another verb, known as the full verb, in order to form Questions Negative statements Compound tense Passive voice Auxiliary Verb Exercise Be Be can be used both as an auxiliary and as a full verb. It must first be noted that be is an irregular verb:

Will

Will functions only as an auxiliary verb, and is used to form the future tenses. It remains the same for all forms.

continuous (-ing) form. Here are some examples of Simple future: He will play outside. Future perfect: He will have played outside. stative verbs and instances of their correct and incorrect usage.

Do

STATIVE VERB Like Love Hate

CORRECT USAGE I like you. I love you. I hate you. It appears to be cloudy. I believe in God. This shoe fits me. This song sounds good.

INCORRECT USAGE I am liking you. I am loving you. I am hating you It is appearing to be cloudy. I am believing in God. This shoe is fitting me. This song is sounding good. I am remembering everything.

Do can be used as both an auxiliary and a full verb, and is irregular.

Simple present: I/we/you/they do, he/she/it/ does Simple past: did Past participle: did

Appear As an auxiliary, do is used in negative sentences and questions with most verbs (use the infinitive of the full verb) in simple past and simple present forms. Believe

Do in Negative Sentences: Fit Simple present: He does not play outside. Simple past: He did not play outside. Sound

Do in Questions: I remember everything.

Simple present: Does he play outside? Simple past: Did he play outside?

Remember

In the following four cases, do is not used in negative sentences or questions:

MODAL VERBS There are 10 modal verbs in the English language: Uses: 1. To indicate that something is probable or possible, or not so. For example: It is sunny today; it must be warm outside. = It is sunny today; it is probably warm outside. His mobile is not reachable; he may/might/could be travelling by metro. = His mobile is not Can Could May Might Will Would Must Shall Should Ought to

1. When the full verb is be: Are you alright? 2. The sentence already has an auxiliary verb: He is not playing outside.

3. The sentence contains a modal verb (can,

may, must, need, ought to, shall, should): We must not be caught. 4. The question asks for the subject: Who wrote that book? STATIVE VERBS Stative verbs are verbs that describe a state rather than an action. When describing states, they never the

reachable; it is possible that he is travelling by metro. This cant be our bill. = It is not possible that this is our bill. 2. Can and could are used to refer to skills and abilities. For example: He can cover a hundred metres in under ten seconds. My father could see perfectly before the age of fifty. I cant ride a horse. 3. Must is used to indicate that something is necessary or of extreme importance, and should is

above, across

2. Compound and Phrase Prepositions:

They are a group of words used like a single preposition. Examples - in regard to, according to, in favour of, because of, in order to

3. Participial Prepositions:
They are used without any noun or pronoun

used to suggest that something is advisable. For example: You must do your homework. You mustnt skip school. You should say sorry. You shouldnt smoke.

attached to them. Examples - considering, regarding, barring, concerning PREPOSITIONS

OF

PLACE

There are three prepositions of place: At At is used for a point:

4. Can, could and may are used to ask for, give and withhold permission. For example: Can I try my hand at it? Could we disperse early today? You may not enter the premises. 5. Will and would are used to refer to habits and inclinations. When I was a child, I would often climb trees. I will never refuse you anything. He would never do such a thing. These verbs differ from ordinary verbs in 3 respects. These differences can be observed in the examples given above:

At the end of the lane. At the door/entrance/exit. At the corner. At the desk.

Note: There are many standard expressions that are exceptions to this rule:

At home. At work. At school/college/university. At the side.

1. When used with the third person singular (he,

she), they dont require the addition of an s. 2. They can be used to form questions by inverting the structure of the sentence. 3. They can be followed directly by the verb, without the use of to. PREPOSITIONS A preposition is a word which shows the relation between the noun or pronoun and other words in the sentence. There are three kinds of prepositions which are commonly used: In

In is used for enclosed spaces:

In Mumbai/India. In the room. In the store. In my pocket/bag. In the building/tower.

1. Simple Prepositions:
Prepositions like for, by, at, on, of, off, with,

Note: There are some standard expressions that are an exception to this rule:

In the book/magazine/newspaper. In the sky.

Note: In the morning(s)/afternoon(s)/evening(s) are standard expressions that are exceptions in this case.

On On is used for surfaces: On On is used for days and dates: On the table. On the rug. On the floor. On the cover. On the page. Note: There are many standard expressions that are exceptions to this rule: PREPOSITIONS
OF

On Wednesday. On Wednesdays. On the 10 th of January On Christmas. MOVEMENT

On the bus/train/plane/ship. On the radio/television. On the left/right. On the way. PREPOSITIONS

OF

There are 9 prepositions that pertain to movement:

To To is used when there is a specific destination in mind. The destination can be a number of things:

T IME A place: Im going to the doctors. Can you direct me to the nearest post office?

There are three prepositions of time: At At is used for precise times:

At ten oclock. At 10.30am. At the moment/present/same time. At sunrise/sunset/noon/dinnertime/bedtime/dusk /dawn. A person: Note: At night is a standard expression that is an exception in this case. She came up to me. I go to my father for advice. An event: Are you going to the party? I have never been to a concert.

In In is used for months, years, decades, centuries, and long periods of time:

A position: The bathroom is to your left. Keep to the left.

In January. In 1991. In the 70s. In this century. In the Dark Ages.

Towards Towards is used in the following instances: When one has movement in a particular direction in mind, rather than simply a destination: He was walking menacingly towards me.

We went to the restaurant Or to refer to a position, in relation to a direction from the point of view of the speaker: He was sitting with his back towards me. Over Over is used in the following instances: across the road.

To describe somethings position when it is above Through Through refers to the following types of movement: something else: The bottle is in the cabinet over the sink in the kitchen. Within a space, which can be thought of as surrounding, enclosing or around the object: The train went through the tunnel. To describe somethings position when it covers a surface: A white cloth had been spread over the corpse. Movement across something, i.e. from one side of it the other: He cut through the gauze. Along Along is used to describe:

Into Into refers to the following types of movement: Movement from the outside to the inside of something that can be imagined as surrounding, enclosing or around the object: He got into the car.

Movement in a line: We walked along the river.

The collective position of a group of things that are in a line: He lived one of the houses along the river.

Movement causing something to hit something else: He swerved into the tree. In In is used in the following instances: Across Across is used to describe: Somethings position in relation to the area or space or place surrounding it: Movement from one end of something to the other: He walked across the road. He strode across the bridge. garage. Somethings position when it stretches over the surface it is on: There was a barricade across the road. cabinet. To express towards the inside of something: Put the pickle in the We are going to have our picnic in the park. I left my car in the

To describe somethings position when it is at the opposite end from ones position:

On On is used in the following instances:

To describe somethings position in relation to a surface: There was an array of food on the table.

A conjunction is a word which joins two sentences to complete their meaning. There are two kinds of conjunctions:

1.

Co-ordinating Conjunctions: When

the conjunction is used to join two To describe movement in the direction of a surface: The rain falling on the roof kept me from sleeping. PRONOUNS A pronoun is a word used instead of a noun. There are six kinds of commonly used pronouns: statements of equal importance, the conjunction is said to be a co-ordinating conjunction. Examples : and, but, or, not, for, either, neither

1. Personal Pronouns: Personal Pronouns are

used are substitutes for proper or common nouns. Examples : I, he, she, mine, his, her, they, their

2.

Subordinating Conjunctions: When

the conjunction joins two statements, one of which depends on the other for its full meaning, the conjunction is said to be a subordinating conjunction. Examples : before, after, since, because, if, though, which, who

2. Demonstrative Pronouns: Demonstrative

Pronouns are used to point out objects Examples: this, that, these, those

3. Indefinite Pronouns: Pronouns which refer to

things in a general way and not to someone or something in particular. Examples: nobody, somebody, everybody, one (should not lie)

Conjunctions Exercise 1 Conjunctions Exercise 2 Here are some examples of the use of conjuctions

Preeti is weak in Physics. Shalini is weak in Physics. Preeti and Shalini are weak in Physics.

4. Distributive Pronouns: Pronouns which refer

to persons or things one at a time are called Distributive pronouns. Examples: each, either, neither

My sister went to the market. I went to the market. My sister and I went to the market.

It was cold. I wore a sweater. It was cold so I wore a sweater.

5. Relative Pronouns: A pronoun that relates a

subordinate clause to the rest of the sentence is called a relative pronoun. Examples: who - (Raj is the boy) who (did the work) whose (Raj is the boy) whose (books were lost)

I will be late. There is a lot of traffic today I will be late because there is a lot of traffic today.

Manoj studied hard. Manoj failed in his exams. Manoj studied hard but he failed in his exams. I NTERJECTION

6. Interrogative Pronouns: Pronouns used for

asking questions are called Interrogative Pronouns. Examples : what, which, who, whose, whom CONJUNCTIONS

An interjection is a word which expresses sudden feeling or emotion. There are five kinds of interjections:

1.

Interjections to express greeting.

Examples : Hello!

2.

Interjections to express joy.

Examples : Hurray!

3.

Interjections to express approval.

Example : Bravo!

4.

Interjections to express surprise.

Example : Oh!

5.

Interjections to express grief.

Example : Alas!

Here are some examples of the use of interjections

Hello! My name is Amit. Hurray! We won the match. Bravo! That was a great goal. Oh! I didnt expect to see you here. Alas! I failed in the examination. a