DIFFERENCE OF VERBS AND ADVERBS smell

sound
The Basic Rules: Adjectives look
appear
Adjectives modify nouns. To modify means to change in some way. seem
For example: Some examples:

"I ate a meal." Meal is a noun. We don't know what kind of meal; all "The dog is black." Black is an adjective that modifies the noun dog,
we know is that someone ate a meal. but it comes after the verb. (Remember that "is" is a form of the
"I ate an enormous lunch." Lunch is a noun, and enormous is an verb "be.")
adjective that modifies it. It tells us what kind of meal the person "Brian seems sad." Sad is an adjective that modifies the noun Brian.
ate. "The milk smells rotten." Rotten is an adjective that modifies the
Adjectives usually answer one of a few different questions: "What noun milk.
kind?" or "Which?" or "How many?" For example: "The speaker sounds hoarse." Hoarse is an adjective that modifies
the noun speaker.
"The tall girl is riding a new bike." Tall tells us which girl we're talking Be sure to understand the differences between the following two
about. New tells us what kind of bike we're talking about. examples:
"The tough professor gave us the final exam." Tough tells us what
kind of professor we're talking about. Final tells us which exam we're "The dog smells carefully." Here, carefully describes how the dog is
talking about. smelling. We imagine him sniffing very cautiously.
"Fifteen students passed the midterm exam; twelve students passed
the final exam." Fifteen and twelve both tell us how many students; But:
midterm and final both tell us which exam.
So, generally speaking, adjectives answer the following questions: "The dog smells clean." Here, clean describes the dog itself. It's not
that he's smelling clean things or something; it's that he's had a bath
Which? and does not stink.
What kind of?
How many? ADJECTIVES WITH COUNTABLE AND NON-COUNTABLE NOUNS
The Basic Rules: Adjectives
The Basic Rules: Adverbs
A countable noun is one that can be expressed in plural form, usually
with an "s." For example, "cat--cats," "season--seasons," "student--
Adverbs modify verbs, adjectives, and other adverbs. (You can
students."
recognize adverbs easily because many of them are formed by
adding -ly to an adjective, though that is not always the case.) The An uncountable noun is one that usually cannot be expressed in a
most common question that adverbs answer is how. plural form. For example, "milk," "water," "air," "money," "food."
Usually, you can't say, "He had many moneys."
Let's look at verbs first.
Most of the time, this doesn't matter with adjectives. For example,
you can say, "The cat was gray" or "The air was gray." However, the
"She sang beautifully." Beautifully is an adverb that modifies sang. It
difference between a countable and uncountable noun does matter
tells us how she sang.
with certain adjectives, such as the following:
"The cellist played carelessly." Carelessly is an adverb that modifies
played. It tells us how the cellist played. · some/any
Adverbs also modify adjectives and other adverbs.
· much/many
"That woman is extremely nice." Nice is an adjective that modifies · little/few
the noun woman. Extremely is an adverb that modifies nice; it tells
us how nice she is. How nice is she? She's extremely nice. · a lot of/lots of
"It was a terribly hot afternoon." Hot is an adjective that modifies · a little bit of
the noun afternoon. Terribly is an adverb that modifies the adjective
hot. How hot is it? Terribly hot. · plenty of
So, generally speaking, adverbs answer the question how. (They can
· enough
also answer the questions when, where, and why.)
· no
Some other rules:
Some/Any:
Most of the time, adjectives come before nouns. However, they Both "some" and "any" can modify countable and uncountable
come after the nouns they modify, most often when the verb is a nouns.
form of the following:
· "There is some water on the floor."
be · "There are some Mexicans here."
feel
taste · "Do you have any food?"
 · "Do you have any apples?" Rule #1: Adjectives modify nouns; adverbs modify verbs, adjectives,
and other adverbs.
Much/Many:
"Much" modifies only uncountable nouns. You can recognize adverbs easily because many of them are formed
by adding -ly to an adjective.
· "They have so much money in the bank."
· "The horse drinks so much water." Here are some sentences that demonstrate some of the differences
between an adjective and an adverb.
"Many" modifies only countable nouns.
· "Many Americans travel to Europe." Richard is careless.
Here careless is an adjective that modifies the proper noun Richard.
· "I collected many sources for my paper."
Little/Few: Richard talks carelessly.
Here carelessly is an adverb that modifies the verb talks.
"Little" modifies only uncountable nouns.
· "He had little food in the house." Priya was extremely happy.
Here happy is an adjective that modifies the proper noun Priya and
· "When I was in college, there was little money to spare." extremely is an adverb that modifies the adjective happy.
"Few" modifies only countable nouns.
Adverbs can't modify nouns, as you can see from the following
· "There are a few doctors in town." incorrect sentences.
· "He had few reasons for his opinion."
He is a quietly man.
A lot of/lots of: The correct sentence above should say, "He is a quiet man."
"A lot of" and "lots of" are informal substitutes for much and many.
They are used with uncountable nouns when they mean "much" and I have a happily dog.
with countable nouns when they mean "many." The correct sentence above should say, "I have a happy dog."

· "They have lots of (much) money in the bank." Rule #2: An adjective always follows a form of the verb to be when it
modifies the noun before the verb. Here are some examples that
· "A lot of (many) Americans travel to Europe."
show this rule.
· "We got lots of (many) mosquitoes last summer."
I was nervous.
· "We got lots of (much) rain last summer." She has been sick all week.
A little bit of: They tried to be helpful.
Rule #3: Likewise an adjective always follows a sense verb or a verb
"A little bit of" is informal and always precedes an uncountable
of appearance — feel, taste, smell, sound, look, appear, and seem —
noun.
when it modifies the noun before the verb.
· "There is a little bit of pepper in the soup."
Sharon's cough sounds bad.
· "There is a little bit of snow on the ground." Here bad is an adjective that modifies the noun cough. Using the
Plenty of: adverb badly here would not make sense, because it would mean
her cough isn't very good at sounding.
"Plenty of" modifies both countable and uncountable nouns.
· "They have plenty of money in the bank." Castor oil tastes awful.
Here awful is an adjective that modifies the noun oil. Using the
· "There are plenty of millionaires in Switzerland." adverb awfully here would not make sense, because it would mean
Enough: that castor oil isn't very good at tasting.

Enough modifies both countable and uncountable nouns. The ocean air smells fresh.
· "There is enough money to buy a car." Here fresh is an adjective that modifies the noun air. Using the
adverb freshly here would not make sense, because it would mean
· "I have enough books to read." that the air has a sense of smell that it uses in a fresh manner.
No
She seems unhappy today.
No modifies both countable and uncountable nouns. Here unhappy is an adjective that modifies the pronoun she. Using
· "There is no time to finish now." the adverb unhappily here would not make sense, because it would
mean that she isn't very good at seeming.
· "There are no squirrels in the park."
Be careful to notice whether the word modifies the subject or the
ADJECTIVE OR ADVERB? verb in the sentence. If the word modifies the subject, you should
use an adjective. If the word modifies the verb, you should use an
adverb. The difference is shown in the following pair of sentences. Surely, environmental destruction has been one of the worst
catastrophes brought about by industrial production.
This apple smells sweet. Here surely is an adverb that modifies the verb has been.
Here sweet is an adjective that modifies the noun apple. Using the
adverb sweetly here would not make sense, because it would mean Real or Really?
that the apple can smell things in a sweet manner.
Real is an adjective, and really is an adverb. Here are some examples
Your dog smells carefully. that demonstrate the difference between real and really.
Here carefully is an adverb that modifies the verb smells. Using the
adjective careful here would not make sense, because it would mean She did really well on that test.
that the dog gives off an odor of carefulness. Here really is an adverb that modifies the adverb well.

Avoiding Common Errors Is she really going out with him?

Here really is an adverb that modifies the verb phrase going out.
Bad or Badly?
Popular culture proposes imaginary solutions to real problems.
When you want to describe how you feel, you should use an Here real is an adjective that modifies the noun problems.
adjective (Why? Feel is a sense verb;see rule #3 above). So you'd say,
"I feel bad." Saying you feel badly would be like saying you play Near or Nearly?
football badly. It would mean that you are unable to feel, as though
your hands were partially numb. Near can function as a verb, adverb, adjective, or preposition. Nearly
is used as an adverb to mean "in a close manner" or "almost but not
Good or Well? quite." Here are some examples that demonstrate the differences
between various uses of near and nearly.
Good is an adjective, so you do not do good or live good, but you do
well and live well. Remember, though, that an adjective follows The moment of truth neared.
sense-verbs and be-verbs, so you also feel good, look good, smell Here neared is a verb in the past tense.
good, are good, have been good, etc. (Refer to rule #3 above for
more information about sense verbs and verbs of appearance.) We are nearly finished with this project.
Here nearly is an adverb that modifies the verb finished.
Confusion can occur because well can function either as an adverb
or an adjective. When well is used as an adjective, it means "not The cat crept near.
sick" or "in good health." For this specific sense of well, it's OK to say Here near is an adverb of place that modifies the verb crept.
you feel well or are well — for example, after recovering from an
illness. When not used in this health-related sense, however, well First cousins are more nearly related than second cousins.
functions as an adverb; for example, "I did well on my exam." Here nearly is an adverb that modifies the verb related.

Double-negatives The detective solves the mystery in a scene near the end of the
movie.
Scarcely and hardly are already negative adverbs. To add another Here near is a preposition. The prepositional phrase near the end of
negative term is redundant, because in English only one negative is the movie modifies the noun scene.
ever used at a time

They found scarcely any animals on the island. (not scarcely no...)
Hardly anyone came to the party. (not hardly no one...)
Basic English Grammar Rules
Sure or Surely?
Some of the most basic and important English grammar rules relate
directly to sentence structure. Some of these rules specify that:
Sure is an adjective, and surely is an adverb. Sure is also used in the
idiomatic expression sure to be. Surely can be used as a sentence- • A singular subject needs a singular predicate.
adverb. Here are some examples that show different uses of sure
and surely. Adjectives are in blue and adverbs are in red. • A sentence needs to express a complete thought.

I am sure that you were there. Another term for a sentence is an independent clause.
Here sure is an adjective that modifies the pronoun I.
• Clauses, like any sentence, have a subject and predicate
He is surely ready to take on the project. too. If a group of words does not have a subject and predicate, it is a
Here surely is an adverb that modifies the adjective ready. phrase.

She is sure to be a great leader. • If they can stand alone and make a complete thought, then
Here sure to be is an idiomatic phrase that functions as an adjective they are independent and called sentences.
that modifies the pronoun she.
• If they do not express a complete thought, they are called To fully understand basic grammar rules, you also need to look at
"dependent clauses." An example of a dependent clause, which is punctuation rules.
not a sentence, is “when i finish my work”.
• All sentences must start with a capital, or upper case,
So, what are the other basic rules for sentence structure? letter.

Subjects and Predicates • Titles of people, books, magazines, movies, specific places,
etc. are capitalized.
Basic to any language is the sentence, which expresses a complete
thought and consists of a subject and a predicate. • Organizations and compass points are capitalized.

• The subject is the star of the sentence; the person, animal, • Every sentence needs a punctuation mark at the end of it.
or thing that is the focus of it. These would include a period, exclamation mark, or question mark.

• The predicate will tell the action that the subject is taking • Colons are used to separate a sentence from a list of items,
or tell something about the subject. between two sentences when the second one explains the first, and
to introduce a long direct quote.
Basic Parts of Speech
• Semicolons are used to take the place of a conjunction and
Once you have a general idea of the basic grammar rules for are placed before introductory words like “therefore” or “however.”
sentence structures, it is also helpful to learn about the parts of They are also used to separate a list of things if there are commas
speech: within each unit.

• A noun names a person, animal, place, thing, quality, idea, • There are a lot of rules for commas. The basic ones are
activity, or feeling. A noun can be singular, plural, or show commas separate things in a series and go wherever there is a pause
possession. in the sentence. They surround the name of a person being
addressed, separate the day of the month from the year in a date,
• A pronoun is a word that takes the place of a noun, like: and separate a town from the state.
“I”, “you”, or “they.”
• Parentheses enclose things that clarify and enclose
• A verb shows action and can be a main verb or a helping numbers and letters that are part of a list. Apostrophes are used in
verb, like: “were” or “has.” Verbs also indicate tense and sometimes contractions to take the place of one or more letters and to show
change their form to show past, present, or future tense. Linking possession. An apostrophe and “s” is added if the noun is singular
verbs link the subject to the rest of the sentence and examples are: and an apostrophe alone is added if the noun is plural.
“appear” and “seem.”

• An adjective modifies a noun or a pronoun. It adds

meaning by telling how much, which one, what kind, or describing it
in other ways.
Capitalization Rules

• An adverb will modify a verb and tell more about it, like Capitalization is the writing of a word with its first letter in
how much, when, where, why, or how. uppercase and the remaining letters in lowercase. Experienced
writers are stingy with capitals. It is best not to use them if there is
• A preposition shows a relationship between nouns or any doubt.
pronouns. It is often used with a noun to show location, like:
“beside”, “in”, or “on”. It can also show time, direction, motion, Rule 1. Capitalize the first word of a document and the first word
manner, reason, or possession. after a period.

• Conjunctions connect two words, phrases, or clauses, and Rule 2. Capitalize proper nouns—and adjectives derived from proper
common ones are: “and”, “but”, and “or.” nouns.

Mention needs to be made about other types of words that are Examples:
considered by some, but not all, to be parts of speech. the Golden Gate Bridge
the Grand Canyon
• One of them is the interjection. It shows emotion and a Russian song
examples are: “yea”, “hurray”, “uh-oh”, and “alas.” a Shakespearean sonnet
a Freudian slip
• Articles are very useful little words that are also sometimes
considered to be parts of speech. The articles are: “a”, “an”, and With the passage of time, some words originally derived from proper
“the”. Indefinite articles are “a” and “an” and “the” is a definite nouns have taken on a life, and authority, of their own and no longer
article. require capitalization.

Punctuation Examples:
herculean (from the ancient-Greek hero Hercules)
quixotic (from the hero of the classic novel Don Quixote) · Religions and names of deities
draconian (from ancient-Athenian lawgiver Draco) Note: Capitalize the Bible (but biblical). Do not capitalize
heaven, hell, the devil, satanic.
The main function of capitals is to focus attention on particular
elements within any group of people, places, or things. We can · Special occasions
speak of a lake in the middle of the country, or we can be more the Olympic Games, the Cannes Film Festival
specific and say Lake Michigan, which distinguishes it from every
other lake on earth. · Streets and roads

Capitalization Reference List

· Brand names Lowercase Reference List

· Companies Here is a list of categories not capitalized unless an item contains a

proper noun or proper adjective (or, sometimes, a trademark). In
· Days of the week and months of the year such cases, only the proper noun or adjective is capitalized.

· Governmental matters · Animals

Congress (but congressional), the U.S. Constitution (but antelope, black bear, Bengal tiger, yellow-bellied sapsucker,
constitutional), the Electoral College, Department of German shepherd
Agriculture. Note: Many authorities do not capitalize
federal or state unless it is part of the official title: State · Elements
Water Resources Control Board, but state water board; Always lowercase, even when the name is derived from a
Federal Communications Commission, but federal proper noun: einsteinium, nobelium, californium
regulations.
· Foods
· Historical episodes and eras Lowercase except for brand names, proper nouns and
the Inquisition, the American Revolutionary War, the Great adjectives, or custom-named recipes: Tabasco sauce,
Depression Russian dressing, pepper crusted bluefin tuna, Mandy's
Bluefin Surprise
· Holidays
· Heavenly bodies besides planets
· Institutions Never capitalize the moon or the sun.
Oxford College, the Juilliard School of Music
· Medical conditions
· Manmade structures Epstein-Barr syndrome, tuberculosis, Parkinson's disease
the Empire State Building, the Eiffel Tower, the Titanic
· Minerals
· Manmade territories
Berlin, Montana, Cook County · Plants, vegetables, and fruits
poinsettia, Douglas fir, Jerusalem artichoke, organic celery,
· Natural and manmade landmarks Golden Delicious apples
Mount Everest, the Hoover Dam
· Seasons and seasonal data
· Nicknames and epithets spring, summertime, the winter solstice, the autumnal
Andrew "Old Hickory" Jackson; Babe Ruth, the Sultan of equinox, daylight saving time
Swat
Rule 3. A thorny aspect of capitalization: where does it stop? When
· Organizations does the Iraq war become the Iraq War? Why is the legendary Hope
American Center for Law and Justice, Norwegian Ministry Diamond not the Hope diamond? Everyone writes New York City, so
of the Environment why does the Associated Press Stylebook recommend New York
state? There aren't always easy formulas or logical explanations.
· Planets Research with reference books and search engines is the best
Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune, strategy.
but policies vary on capitalizing earth, and it is usually not
capitalized unless it is being discussed specifically as a In the case of brand names, companies are of little help, because
planet: We learned that Earth travels through space at they capitalize any word that applies to their merchandise. Domino's
66,700 miles per hour. Pizza or Domino's pizza? Is it Ivory Soap or Ivory soap, a Hilton Hotel
or a Hilton hotel? Most writers don't capitalize common nouns that
· Races, nationalities, and tribes simply describe the products (pizza, soap, hotel), but it's not always
Eskimo, Navajo, East Indian, Caucasian, African American easy to determine where a brand name ends. There is Time
(Note: white and black in reference to race are lowercase) magazine but also the New York Times Magazine. No one would
argue with Coca-Cola or Pepsi Cola, but a case could be made for However, these monikers are not capitalized with possessive nouns
Royal Crown cola. or pronouns, when they follow the personal name, or when they are
not referencing a specific person.
If a trademark starts with a lowercase word or letter (e.g., eBay,
iPhone), many authorities advise capitalizing it to begin a sentence. Examples:
My mom is here.
Example: EBay opened strong in trading today. Joe's grandpa looks well.
The James brothers were notorious robbers.
Rule 4. Capitalize titles when they are used before names, unless the There's not one mother I know who would allow that.
title is followed by a comma. Do not capitalize the title if it is used
after a name or instead of a name. Rule 6c. Capitalize nicknames in all cases.

Examples: Examples:
The president will address Congress. Meet my brothers, Junior and Scooter.
Chairman of the Board William Bly will preside at the conference. I just met two guys named Junior and Scooter.
The chairman of the board, William Bly, will preside.
The senators from Iowa and Ohio are expected to attend. Rule 7. Capitalize specific geographical regions. Do not capitalize
Also expected to attend are Senators Buzz James and Eddie Twain. points of the compass.
The governors, lieutenant governors, and attorneys general called
for a special task force. Examples:
Governor Fortinbrass, Lieutenant Governor Poppins, and Attorney We had three relatives visit from the West.
General Dalloway will attend. Go west three blocks and then turn left.
We left Florida and drove north.
NOTE We live in the Southeast.
We live in the southeast section of town.
Out of respect, some writers and publishers choose to capitalize the Most of the West Coast is rainy this time of year. (referring to the
highest ranks in government, royalty, religion, etc. United States)
The west coast of Scotland is rainy this time of year.
Examples:
The President arrived. Some areas have come to be capitalized for their fame or notoriety:
The Queen spoke.
The Pope decreed. Examples:
I'm from New York's Upper West Side.
Many American writers believe this to be a wrongheaded policy in a I'm from the South Side of Chicago.
country where, theoretically, all humans are perceived as equal. You live in Northern California; he lives in Southern California.

Rule 5. Titles are not the same as occupations. Do not capitalize Rule 8. In general, do not capitalize the word the before proper
occupations before full names. nouns.

Examples: Examples:
director Steven Spielberg I'm reading the London Times.
owner Helen Smith They're fans of the Grateful Dead.
coach Biff Sykes
In special cases, if the word the is an inseparable part of something's
Sometimes the line between title and occupation gets blurred. One official title, it may be capitalized.
example is general manager: is it a title or an occupation? Opinions
differ. Same with professor: the Associated Press Stylebook considers Example: We visited The Hague.
professor a job description rather than a title, and recommends
using lowercase even before the full name: professor Robert Ames. Rule 9. Do not capitalize city, town, county, etc., if it comes before
the proper name.
Rule 6a. Capitalize a formal title when it is used as a direct address.
Examples:
Example: Will you take my temperature, Doctor? the city of New York
New York City
Rule 6b. Capitalize relatives' family names (kinship names) when the county of Marin
they immediately precede a personal name, or when they are used Marin County
alone in place of a personal name.
Rule 10. Always capitalize the first word in a complete quotation,
Examples: even midsentence.
I found out that Mom is here.
You look good, Grandpa. Example: Bill said, "That job we started last April is done."
Andy and Opie loved Aunt Bee's apple pies.
Rule 11. For emphasis, writers sometimes capitalize a midsentence
independent clause or question.
Examples: words following hyphens unless they are proper nouns or proper
One of her cardinal rules was, Never betray a friend. adjectives (Ex-Marine but Ex-husband). Others capitalize any word
It made me wonder, What is mankind's destiny? that would otherwise be capped in titles (Prize-Winning, Up-to-
Date).
Rule 12. Capitalize the names of specific course titles, but not
general academic subjects. Rule 16b. Many books have subtitles. When including these, put a
colon after the work's title and follow the same rules of composition
Examples: capitalization for the subtitle.
I must take history and Algebra 101.
He has a double major in European economics and philosophy. Example: The King's English: A Guide to Modern Usage

Rule 13. Capitalize art movements. Note that A is capitalized because it is the first word of the subtitle.

Example: I like Surrealism, but I never understood Abstract Suppose you are reviewing a book whose title on the cover is in
Expressionism. capital letters: THE STUFF OF THOUGHT. Beneath, in smaller capital
letters, is the subtitle, LANGUAGE AS A WINDOW INTO HUMAN
Rule 14. Do not capitalize the first item in a list that follows a colon. NATURE. All sides would agree that the main title should be written,
The Stuff of Thought. But depending on which capitalization policy
Example: Bring the following: paper, a pencil, and a snack. you choose, the subtitle might be any of the following:

For more on capitalization after a colon, go to "Colons," Rules 1, 3, Language As a Window Into Human Nature
and 4. Language as a Window Into Human Nature
Language As a Window into Human Nature
Rule 15. Do not capitalize "the national anthem." Language as a Window into Human Nature

Rule 16a. Composition titles: which words should be capitalized in Capitalizing composition titles is fraught with gray areas. Pick a policy
titles of books, plays, films, songs, poems, essays, chapters, etc.? This and be consistent.
is a vexing matter, and policies vary. The usual advice is to capitalize
only the "important" words. But this isn't really very helpful. Aren't
all words in a title important?

The following rules for capitalizing composition titles are universal. CONJUNCTIONS

· Capitalize the title's first and last word. A conjunction is the glue that holds words, phrases and clauses
(both dependent and independent) together. There are three
different kinds of conjunctions––coordinating, subordinating, and
· Capitalize verbs, including all forms of the verb to be (is,
correlative––each serving its own, distinct purpose, but all working
are, was, etc.).
to bring words together.
· Capitalize all pronouns, including it, he, who, that, etc.
What Is a Coordinating Conjunction?
· Capitalize not. Coordinating conjunctions are what come to most people’s minds
when they hear the word “conjunction.” They can join together
· Do not capitalize a, an, or the unless it is first or last in the words, phrases and independent clauses. There are seven of them,
title. and they’re easy to remember if you can just remember FAN BOYS:

· Do not capitalize the word and, or, or nor unless it is first · For - Explains reason or purpose (just like “because”) I go
or last in the title. to the park every Sunday, for I love to watch the ducks on
the lake.
· Do not capitalize the word to, with or without an infinitive,
unless it is first or last in the title. · And - Adds one thing to another I go to the park every
Sunday to watch the ducks on the lake and the shirtless
Otherwise, styles, methods, and opinions vary. Small words such as
men playing soccer.
or, as, if, and but are capped by some, but lowercased by others.
· Nor - Used to present an alternative negative idea to an
The major bone of contention is prepositions. The Associated Press
already stated negative idea I don’t go for the fresh air nor
Stylebook recommends capitalizing all prepositions of more than
really for the ducks. Honestly, I just like the soccer.
three letters (e.g., With, About, Across). Others advise lowercase
until a preposition reaches five or more letters. Still others say not to
capitalize any preposition, even big words like regarding or
· But - Shows contrast The soccer in the park is entertaining
in the winter, but it’s better in the heat of summer.
underneath.

Hyphenated words in a title also present problems. There are no set · Or - Presents an alternative or a choice The men play on
rules. Some writers, editors, and publishers choose not to capitalize teams: shirts or skins.
 · Yet - Introduces a contrasting idea that follows the Diana stared dreamily at the handsome Mr. McKenzie, but Olivia,
preceding idea logically (similar to “but”) I always take a who hated economics, furiously jiggled her foot, impatient to escape
book to read, yet I never seem to turn a single page. the boring class.

· So - Indicates effect, result or consequence I’ve started While Diana was staring dreamily at the handsome Mr. McKenzie,
dating one of the soccer players, so now I have an excuse Olivia furiously jiggled her foot, impatient to escape the boring
to watch the game each week. economics class that she hated.

Recognize a coordinating conjunction when you see one. At a red light, Maria jumped out of Gino's car and slammed the door,
for she could not tolerate one more minute of the heavy metal
And, but, for, nor, or, so, and yet—these are the seven coordinating music that Gino insisted on blasting from the stereo.
conjunctions. To remember all seven, you might want to learn one of
these acronyms: FANBOYS, YAFNOBS, or FONYBAS. At a red light, Maria jumped out of Gino's car and slammed the door
because she could not tolerate one more minute of the heavy metal
Coordinating conjunctions connect words, phrases, and clauses. music that Gino insisted on blasting from the stereo.
Look at the examples that follow:
Making an A in Anatomy and Physiology has not helped Sima choose
The bowl of squid eyeball stew is hot and delicious. a career. She might decide to make her parents happy and go to
medical school, or she might use her knowledge of the human body
The squid eyeball stew is so thick that you can eat it with a fork or to become a sculptor.
spoon.
Making an A in Anatomy and Physiology has not helped Sima choose
Rocky, my orange tomcat, loves having his head scratched but hates a career. Although she might decide to make her parents happy and
getting his claws trimmed. go to medical school, she might also use her knowledge of the
human body to become a sculptor.
Rocky terrorizes the poodles next door yet adores the German
shepherd across the street. Kyle refused to eat the salad served with the meal, nor would he
touch any green vegetable put on his plate.
Rocky refuses to eat dry cat food, nor will he touch a saucer of squid
eyeball stew. After Kyle refused the salad served with the meal, he then would not
touch the green vegetables put on his plate.
I hate to waste a single drop of squid eyeball stew, for it is expensive
and time-consuming to make. Joe spent seven hours studying calculus at the Mexican diner, so now
he can set his math book on fire with his salsa breath.
Even though I added cream to the squid eyeball stew, Rocky ignored
his serving, so I got a spoon and ate it myself. Since Joe spent seven hours studying calculus at the Mexican diner,
he can now set his math book on fire with his salsa breath.
Understand the difference between coordination and subordination.
Because she gets seasick, Danielle is dreading the spring break
Use a coordinating conjunction when you want to give equal cruise, yet she might enjoy herself once she realizes how many cute
emphasis to two main clauses. The pattern for coordination looks guys in skimpy bathing suits parade the decks.
like this:
Even though Danielle is dreading getting seasick on the spring break
Main Clause + , + Coordinating Conjunction + Main Clause. cruise, she will probably enjoy herself once she realizes how many
cute guys in skimpy bathing suits parade the decks.
Subordination, however, emphasizes the idea in the main clause
more than the one in the subordinate clause. Generally, the patterns Punctuate coordinating conjunctions correctly.
look like these:
Three patterns in writing use coordinating conjunctions. Add
Main Clause + Ø + Subordinate Clause. commas when required.

Subordinate Clause + , + Main Clause. Pattern 1 — Connecting two main clauses

Read the pairs of sentences that follow. The first version coordinates When you connect two main clauses with a coordinating
the two ideas. The second version subordinates one idea to conjunction, use a comma. The pattern looks like this:
emphasize the other.
Main Clause + , + Coordinating Conjunction + Main Clause.
To survive the fetal pig dissection, Rinalda agreed to make all of the
incisions, and Frances promised to remove and label the organs. Here is an example:

To survive the fetal pig dissection, Rinalda agreed to make all of the While I am at work, my dog Floyd sleeps on the bed , and my cat
incisions if Frances would promise to remove and label the organs. Buster naps in the bathtub.

Pattern 2 — Connecting two items

You can also use a coordinating conjunction to connect any two Flying down the bumpy path, Genette hit a rock with the front wheel
items. These items can be any grammatical unit except main clauses. of her mountain bike, flew over the handlebars, and crashed into a
The pattern looks like this: clump of prickly palmetto bushes. Yet even this accident would not
deter her from completing the race.
Item + Ø + Coordinating Conjunction + Item
Only when an interrupter immediately follows the coordinating
Here are some examples: conjunction do you need to use commas. Read this example:

My dog Floyd has too many fleas and too much hair. We hoped that decorating the top of Christine's cupcake with a dead
grasshopper would freak her out. But, to our amazement, she just
My cat Buster has beautiful blue eyes but a destructive personality. popped the whole thing in her mouth, chewed, and swallowed.

Pattern 3 — Connecting three or more items in a series

When you have three or more items in a series, you generally use a What Is a Subordinating Conjunction?
comma before the coordinating conjunction. Some handbooks and
style guides will tell you that this comma is optional, but my advice is A subordinating conjunction always introduces a dependent clause,
to put it in. The pattern looks like this: tying it to an independent clause. In contrast to coordinating
conjunctions, a subordinate conjunction can often come first in a
Item + , + Item + , + Coordinating Conjunction + Item sentence. This is due simply to the nature of the relationship
between the dependent and the independent clause. In English,
Here is an example: there are lots of subordinating conjunctions, but the most common
ones are "after," "although," "as," "because," "before," "how," "if,"
Swatting olives off the kitchen counter, dragging toilet paper "once," "since," "than," "that," "though," "until," "when," "where,"
streamers through the house, and terrorizing Jacques Cousteau, the "whether," and "while." Here are a few examples of how
parakeet, have consumed another of Buster's days. subordinating conjunctions are used:
Yes, you can begin a sentence with a coordinating conjunction!
· “Because of you, I never stray too far from the sidewalk”
(Kelly Clarkson).
Some teachers warn that beginning a sentence with a coordinating
conjunction is wrong. Teachers will typically tell you this because
they are trying to help you avoid writing fragments. Other times · “If you leave me now, you’ll take away the biggest part of
teachers give this advice because their preference is that a sentence me” (Peter Cetera/Chicago).
not begin with a coordinating conjunction.
· “When I see you smile, I can face the world” (Bad English).
What you should remember is that you break no grammar rule if
you begin a sentence with a coordinating conjunction. Because you · “[You] don’t know what you’ve got ‘til it’s gone”
might be breaking your instructors' rules, however, you should ask (Cinderella).
what their preferences are.
· “I guess I’ll never be the same since I fell for you” (B.B.
If you decide to begin a sentence with a coordinating conjunction, King).
keep these three things in mind:
· “As I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I take
1. Be sure that a main clause follows the coordinating a look at my life and realize there’s nothing left” (Coolio).
conjunction.

2. Do not use a coordinating conjunction to begin every

sentence. Use this option only when it makes the flow What Are Correlative Conjunctions?
of your ideas more effective.
Correlative conjunctions are sort of like tag-team conjunctions. They
3. Do not use a comma after the coordinating come in pairs, and you have to use both of them in different places
conjunction. Coordinating conjunctions are not in a sentence to make them work. They include pairs like “both/and,”
transitional expressions like for example or first of all. “whether/or,” “either/or,” “neither/nor,” “not/but” and “not
You will rarely use punctuation after them. only/but also.”

Here are some examples: · I either want the cheesecake or the frozen hot chocolate.

While I was answering the telephone, Buster, my cat, jumped onto · I’ll have both the cheesecake and the frozen hot chocolate.
the kitchen counter and swatted all of my jalapeño-stuffed olives
onto the dirty kitchen floor. So I had to rinse off the cat hair and · I didn’t know whether you’d want the cheesecake or the
crumbs sticking to these delicacies before I could add them to the frozen hot chocolate, so I got you both.
salad.
· Oh, you want neither the cheesecake nor the frozen hot
chocolate? No problem.
 · I’ll eat them both - not only the cheesecake but also the Let's look again at the first example from above: 'Katie threw Lisa the
frozen hot chocolate. baseball.' We now know what Katie threw, but 'to whom' did she
throw the baseball? 'Lisa' is the recipient of the 'baseball,' and so it is
· I see you’re in the mood not for dessert but appetizers. I’ll the indirect object.
help you with those too. In contrast with direct objects, which are essential with some verbs,
indirect objects are not needed in a sentence to make logical sense.
Is there anything wrong with saying 'Katie threw the baseball?.' Of
course not. Logically, that sentence makes perfect sense. By
DIRECT OBJECTS AND INDIRECT OBJECTS removing indirect objects, you only lose some specific details.
Indirect objects are very useful when you want to clarify but are not
Sentence Structure
necessary for comprehension.
In our society, writing plays a huge role with communication. Be it
street signs, billboards, emails or text messages, you're constantly
bombarded with writing. In order for these communications to be The indirect object (IO) tells us where the direct object (DO) is going.
effective, writing must follow a specific sentence structure. Basically, He gives the book to María.
sentence structure refers to where words need to go and how you DO=Book
build sentences.
Where is the book going?
This lesson focuses on two parts of sentence structure: direct and To María.
indirect objects. However, in order to fully understand direct and
indirect objects, we need to review some of the basics of sentence IO=María
structure.
Subjects, Predicates and Objects He gives María the book.
Three concepts you need to grasp in sentence structure are subjects, DO=Book
predicates and objects. A subject is the main noun doing the action Where is the book going?
in the sentence. The predicate includes the verb and all the other To María.
words not attached to the subject. Objects are the other nouns in
the sentence that fall in the predicate and not the subject. IO=María

You can think of subjects as doing the action and objects as the noun
or pronoun being acted upon. Let's look at an example.
The indirect object answers the question "To whom?" or "For
'Katie threw Lisa the baseball.' Who is doing the action? 'Katie' is whom?" the action of the verb is performed.
doing the throwing and therefore is the subject of the sentence. The
predicate then is the verb 'threw' and all the words that follow. What He gives María the book.
are the objects? What are the other nouns or pronouns in the To whom does he give the book?
sentence? Both' Lisa' and 'baseball' are objects in this sentence. To María.
Now let's look at two types of objects sentences can have. IO=María
Direct Objects He buys me flowers.
For whom does he buy the flowers?
The first type of object is a direct object. A direct object is the noun For me.
or pronoun receiving the action. A trick for identification is that
direct objects answer the question 'what?'. Look again at the IO=me
example from above: 'Katie threw Lisa the baseball.' The action is
'threw', so ask yourself, 'what is being thrown?' The 'baseball' is
being thrown, and so the baseball is the direct object. Sentences that have an indirect object usually also have a direct
Here's another example: 'Mike rode his bicycle.' The action is 'rode', object. Remember, the IO tells us where the DO is going. Notice how
so ask yourself 'what is being ridden?' In this sentence, the 'bicycle' the sentences below just wouldn't work without a direct object.
is receiving the action and is the direct object. He gives María . . .
Certain verbs must have something after them in order to make the book, the pen, the diamond, etc.
sense. Imagine that someone comes up to you and says, 'Katie He buys me . . .
threw.' Most likely your response would be 'Katie threw what?' You flowers, candy, an ironing board, etc.
are asking for the direct object. The action 'threw' doesn't make
sense in that sentence unless you add an object to it. In this way,
direct objects can be essential in some sentences. Sometimes the direct object is not stated; rather it is implied, or
Indirect Objects understood.
The second type of object is the indirect object. An indirect object is My mother writes me every week.
the noun or pronoun affected by the action. Indirect objects answer DO=letter (understood)
the question 'to whom?'. You can think of an indirect object as the IO=me
recipient of the direct object. (My mother writes me a letter every week.)
She told him. To express extended time, English uses the following prepositions:
DO=it (understood) since, for, by, from—to, from-until, during,(with)in
IO=him
(She told it to him.) · She has been gone since yesterday. (She left yesterday and
has not returned.)

To identify the indirect object use our two guidelines: · I'm going to Paris for two weeks. (I will spend two weeks
1. The IO tells us where the DO is going. there.)

2. The IO answers the question "to whom?" or "for · The movie showed from August to October. (Beginning in
whom" the action of the verb is performed. August and ending in October.)
The key to learning to use the indirect object pronouns is the same
as the key for direct object pronouns. You must learn to think in · The decorations were up from spring until fall. (Beginning
phrases, not words. The phrases consist of a pronoun and a in spring and ending in fall.)
conjugated verb. In the following examples, note that the IO remains
the same, while the subject of the phrase changes. · I watch TV during the evening. (For some period of time in
the evening.)
In sentences with two verbs, there are two options regarding the
placement of the indirect object pronoun.
· We must finish the project within a year. (No longer than a
4. Place it immediately before the conjugated verb year.)
5. Attach it directly to the infinitive
Place

To express notions of place, English uses the following prepositions:

Here are examples of the indirect object pronoun placed before the to talk about the point itself: in, to express something contained:
conjugated verb: inside, to talk about the surface: on, to talk about a general vicinity,
at.
You need to give me a gift.
I need to buy you a hat. · There is a wasp in the room.
María wants to rent the apartment to Juan.
· Put the present inside the box.

· I left your keys on the table.

PREPOSITIONS FOR TIME, PLACE AND
INTRODUCING OBJECTS · She was waiting at the corner.

One point in time Higher than a point

On is used with days: To express notions of an object being higher than a point, English
uses the following prepositions: over, above.
· I will see you on Monday.
· He threw the ball over the roof.
· The week begins on Sunday.
· Hang that picture above the couch.
At is used with noon, night, midnight, and with the time of day:
Lower than a point
· My plane leaves at noon.
To express notions of an object being lower than a point, English
· The movie starts at 6 p.m. uses the following prepositions: under, underneath, beneath,
below.
In is used with other parts of the day, with months, with years, with
seasons: · The rabbit burrowed under the ground.

· He likes to read in the afternoon. · The child hid underneath the blanket.

· The days are long in August. · We relaxed in the shade beneath the branches.

· The book was published in 1999. · The valley is below sea-level.

· The flowers will bloom in spring. Close to a point

Extended time
To express notions of an object being close to a point, English uses · You go buy the tickets and I'll watch for the train.
the following prepositions: near, by, next to, between, among,
opposite. · If you wish for an "A" in this class, you must work hard.

· She lives near the school. PREPOSITIONS; LOCATORS IN TIME AND PLACE

· There is an ice cream shop by the store. A preposition describes a relationship between other words in a
sentence. In itself, a word like "in" or "after" is rather meaningless
· An oak tree grows next to my house and hard to define in mere words. For instance, when you do try to
define a preposition like "in" or "between" or "on," you invariably
· The house is between Elm Street and Maple Street. use your hands to show how something is situated in relationship to
something else. Prepositions are nearly always combined with other
· I found my pen lying among the books. words in structures called prepositional phrases. Prepositional
phrases can be made up of a million different words, but they tend
· The bathroom is opposite that room. to be built the same: a preposition followed by a determiner and an
adjective or two, followed by a pronoun or noun (called the object of
To introduce objects of verbs the preposition). This whole phrase, in turn, takes on a modifying
role, acting as an adjective or an adverb, locating something in time
English uses the following prepositions to introduce objects of the and space, modifying a noun, or telling when or where or under
following verbs. what conditions something happened.

At: glance, laugh, look, rejoice, smile, stare Consider the professor's desk and all the prepositional phrases we
can use while talking about it.
· She glanced at her reflection.
(exception with mirror: She glanced in the mirror.) You can sit before the desk (or in front of the desk). The professor
can sit on the desk (when he's being informal) or behind the desk,
· You didn't laugh at his joke. and then his feet are under the desk or beneath the desk. He can
stand beside the desk (meaning next to the desk), before the desk,
· I'm looking at the computer monitor. between the desk and you, or even on the desk (if he's really
strange). If he's clumsy, he can bump into the desk or try to walk
· We rejoiced at his safe rescue. through the desk (and stuff would fall of the desk). Passing his
hands over the desk or resting his elbows upon the desk, he often
· That pretty girl smiled at you. looks across the desk and speaks of the desk or concerning the desk
as if there were nothing else like the desk. Because he thinks of
· Stop staring at me. nothing except the desk, sometimes you wonder about the desk,
what's in the desk, what he paid for the desk, and if he could live
Of: approve, consist, smell without the desk. You can walk toward the desk, to the desk,
around the desk, by the desk, and even past the desk while he sits at
· I don't approve of his speech. the desk or leans against the desk.

· My contribution to the article consists of many pages. All of this happens, of course, in time: during the class, before the
class, until the class, throughout the class, after the class, etc. And
· He came home smelling of alcohol. the professor can sit there in a bad mood [another adverbial
construction].
Of (or about): dream, think
Those words in bold blue font are all prepositions. Some
· I dream of finishing college in four years. prepositions do other things besides locate in space or time — "My
brother is like my father." "Everyone in the class except me got the
· Can you think of a number between one and ten? answer." — but nearly all of them modify in one way or another. It is
possible for a preposition phrase to act as a noun — "During a
· I am thinking about this problem. church service is not a good time to discuss picnic plans" or "In the
South Pacific is where I long to be" — but this is seldom appropriate
For: call, hope, look, wait, watch, wish in formal or academic writing.

· Did someone call for a taxi?

· He hopes for a raise in salary next year.

· I'm looking for my keys.

· We'll wait for her here.

 And we use in for the names of land-areas (towns, counties, states,
countries, and continents).
She lives in Durham.
Durham is in Windham County.
You may have learned that ending a sentence with a preposition Windham County is in Connecticut.
is a serious breach of grammatical etiquette. It doesn't take a
grammarian to spot a sentence-ending preposition, so this is an
Prepositions of Location: in, at, and on
easy rule to get caught up on (!). Although it is often easy to
and No Preposition
remedy the offending preposition, sometimes it isn't, and repair
efforts sometimes result in a clumsy sentence. "Indicate the book
you are quoting from" is not greatly improved with "Indicate from IN AT ON NO PREPOSITION
which book you are quoting." (the) bed* class* the bed* downstairs
the bedroom home the ceiling downtown
Based on shaky historical precedent, the rule itself is a latecomer the car the library* the floor inside
to the rules of writing. Those who dislike the rule are fond of (the) class* the office the horse outside
recalling Churchill's rejoinder: "That is nonsense up with which I the library* school* the plane upstairs
shall not put." We should also remember the child's complaint: school* work the train uptown
"What did you bring that book that I don't like to be read to out of
up for?"

Is it any wonder that prepositions create such troubles for students

for whom English is a second language? We say we are at the
* You may sometimes use different prepositions for these locations.
hospital to visit a friend who is in the hospital. We lie in bed but on
the couch. We watch a film at the theater but on television. For
native speakers, these little words present little difficulty, but try to
learn another language, any other language, and you will quickly
discover that prepositions are troublesome wherever you live and Prepositions of Movement: to
learn. This page contains some interesting (sometimes troublesome) and No Preposition
prepositions with brief usage notes. To address all the potential
difficulties with prepositions in idiomatic usage would require We use to in order to express movement toward a place.
volumes, and the only way English language learners can begin to They were driving to work together.
master the intricacies of preposition usage is through practice and She's going to the dentist's office this morning.
paying close attention to speech and the written word. Keeping a
good dictionary close at hand (to hand?) is an important first step. Toward and towards are also helpful prepositions to express
movement. These are simply variant spellings of the same word; use
Prepositions of Time: at, on, and in whichever sounds better to you.
We're moving toward the light.
We use at to designate specific times. This is a big step towards the project's completion.
The train is due at 12:15 p.m.
With the words home, downtown, uptown, inside, outside,
We use on to designate days and dates. downstairs, upstairs, we use no preposition.
My brother is coming on Monday. Grandma went upstairs
We're having a party on the Fourth of July. Grandpa went home.
They both went outside.
We use in for nonspecific times during a day, a month, a season, or a
year. Prepositions of Time: for and since
She likes to jog in the morning.
It's too cold in winter to run outside. We use for when we measure time (seconds, minutes, hours, days,
He started the job in 1971. months, years).
He's going to quit in August. He held his breath for seven minutes.
She's lived there for seven years.
Prepositions of Place: at, on, and in The British and Irish have been quarreling for seven centuries.

We use at for specific addresses. We use since with a specific date or time.
Grammar English lives at 55 Boretz Road in Durham. He's worked here since 1970.
She's been sitting in the waiting room since two-thirty.
We use on to designate names of streets, avenues, etc.
Her house is on Boretz Road. Prepositions with Nouns, Adjectives, and Verbs.
Prepositions are sometimes so firmly wedded to other words that · live at an address, in a house or city, on a street, with other
they have practically become one word. (In fact, in other languages, people
such as German, they would have become one word.) This occurs in
three categories: nouns, adjectives, and verbs. Unnecessary Prepositions

NOUNS and PREPOSITIONS In everyday speech, we fall into some bad habits, using prepositions
where they are not necessary. It would be a good idea to eliminate
these words altogether, but we must be especially careful not to use
approval of fondness for need for them in formal, academic prose.
awareness of grasp of participation in
belief in hatred of reason for · She met up with the new coach in the hallway.
concern for hope for respect for
confusion about interest in success in · The book fell off of the desk.
desire for love of understanding of
· He threw the book out of the window.

· She wouldn't let the cat inside of the house. [or use "in"]
ADJECTIVES and PREPOSITIONS
· Where did they go to?

afraid of fond of proud of · Put the lamp in back of the couch. [use "behind" instead]
angry at happy about similar to
aware of interested in sorry for · Where is your college at?
capable of jealous of sure of
careless about made of tired of Prepositions in Parallel Form
familiar with married to worried about
When two words or phrases are used in parallel and require the
same preposition to be idiomatically correct, the preposition does
not have to be used twice.
You can wear that outfit in summer and in winter.
VERBS and PREPOSITIONS The female was both attracted by and distracted by the male's
dance.
apologize for give up prepare for
However, when the idiomatic use of phrases calls for different
ask about grow up study for
prepositions, we must be careful not to omit one of them.
ask for look for talk about
The children were interested in and disgusted by the movie.
belong to look forward to think about
It was clear that this player could both contribute to and learn from
bring up look up trust in
every game he played.
care for make up work for
He was fascinated by and enamored of this beguiling woman
find out pay for worry about

A combination of verb and preposition is called a phrasal verb. The PUNCTUATIONS

word that is joined to the verb is then called a particle. Please refer
to the brief section we have prepared on phrasal verbs for an The basics
explanation.
Punctuation is more than simply a series of rules to be memorized. It
Idiomatic Expressions with Prepositions is the tool that can most effectively fine tune your writing. The
choice to use a semicolon rather than begin a new sentence. The
· agree to a proposal, with a person, on a price, in principle decision to string series of phrases one after another with commas.
The attempt to interrupt the flow of a sentence a sentence with a
· argue about a matter, with a person, for or against a dash. All of these involve crafting beyond simply applying rules. But
proposition to apply the proper touch, a writer must understand the rules that
govern punctuation. He or she must know slows a sentence as well
· compare to to show likenesses, with to show differences as what stops it.
(sometimes similarities)
There are six types of punctuation we will consider:
· correspond to a thing, with a person 1) commas, which are used to connect a series of words, phrases
and clauses and have specific rules of use in Associated Press Style.
· differ from an unlike thing, with a person
2) semicolons, which are used to connect independent clauses and
provide clarity in a “comma heavy” sentence.
3) colons, which are used to let the reader know that a list or · The three boys’ bikes: Several participants, three boys,
restatement is to follow. own bikes.

4) dashes, which are used to indicate a dramatic break in the The problem of “its” (and other possessive pronouns)
sentence’s direction.
We are used to the idea that the apostrophe expresses possession,
5) hyphens, which are used to connect compound modifiers. so it comes as a surprise that “its,” the personal pronoun that
indicates possession, does not contain an apostrophe:
6) quotation marks, which have specific rules of use in Associated
Press Style. The possessive pronoun its

· The committee refused to share its findings.

APOSTROPHE The contraction it’s

The apostrophe is a single raised comma with a top curl [’]. It · It’s not my problem.
performs two functions in English:
The other possessive pronouns are (note they DO NOT have
1. indicates a relationship (usually ownership but not always) apostrophes):
between two nouns;
· his/hers: The car is his/hers.
2. indicates that a word is contracted or abbreviated.

The “possession” apostrophe · theirs: Theirs is the only option for decent coffee.

The possession apostrophe indicates that certain relationships exist · yours: The choice is yours.
between a noun and another noun.
· mine: The pleasure was mine.
Where does the apostrophe go?
· ours: Ours is the oldest house on the block.
Singular Nouns:
· whose: They hid from the kid whose ball they took.
For a singular noun, the apostrophe goes between the noun and the
“s” indicating possession. It wouldn’t be English without an exception:

The apostrophe after the singular form of the noun indicates that The only word that stands for a name, can express possession and
one participant “owns” the another noun (or pronoun): does so with an apostrophe is one’s:

· The soldier’s rations: One participant, the soldier, has · One’s integrity is one’s castle.
rations;
· Those ones’ outfits are adorable.
· The team’s locker room: One collective participant, the
team, has a locker room. A side note: There are those who argue that because one behaves
just like any noun, it is not a pronoun at all: It is a noun.
Plural Nouns:
Proper Nouns
For a plural noun, the apostrophe follows the “s” ending the plural
noun. For plural nouns that do not end in “s” (children, women, men When creating the possessive form of proper nouns, the rules are
etc) the apostrophe goes between the noun and the “s” indicating dependent on the style used:
possession.
For both AP and Chicago style, if a singular proper noun does not
The apostrophe after the plural form of a noun indicates that several end in s, add ‘s
participants “own” with another noun (or pronoun):
· Bill Clinton’s contribution to the success of the event was
· The soldiers’ rations: The rations are the rations of several invaluable.
soldiers.
On the other hand, if a singular proper noun (a name) ends in s,
· The women’s presentation: The presentation is a Chicago and AP handle apostrophes differently.
presentation of several women.
In AP style, if a proper noun ends in s or an s sound, add an
· The dogs’ boarding facility: There is a boarding facility that apostrophe only.
is for dogs.
· Chris‘ exam scores were higher than any other students.
In Chicago style, if a proper nouns ends in s add ‘s. Remember the nouns have a POSSESSIVE relationship.

· Last year Kansas’s legislature passed a law. · His leaving made continuing in the job difficult for me.

Dates · Tim’s leaving made continuing in the job difficult for me.

It is common error to place an apostrophe before or after the s in a If you are struggling with understanding this, look at it this way.
number that is not a possessive.
There is a different meaning in:
With just a moment of consideration, it is easy to distinguish
numbers in need of an apostrophe from those not: · Tim, leaving, disappointed me.

Needs an apostrophe (indicating possession) · As he was leaving, Tim disappointed me.

· We should all agree that 1980s’ styles are embarrassing. and in:

Does NOT need an apostrophe · Tim’s leaving disappointed me.

· Students are less prepared in writing skills since the 1980s, · The fact that Tim left disappointed me.
according to college professors.
Basically “Tim leaving made continuing in the job difficult for me” is
Initials the equivalent of putting two random nouns together: “Tim
departure made continuing in the job difficult for me.”
The correct use of the apostrophe with initials is the same as
numbers: Use the apostrophe only when the initials “own” the noun. Contractions
If they don’t, then don’t.
The apostrophe marks the fact that a word has been shortened or
Again, it is easy to distinguish when an apostrophe is necessary: contracted:

· The DOD’s policy on gays in the military has changed · rock ’n’ roll, (rock and roll) ’cause (because) ’tween
significantly in the past 20 years. (between) o’er (over) ’80s (1980s, 1680s),

· The Department of Defense’s policy on gays in the military or that two words have been contracted :
has changed significantly in the past 20 years.
· couldn’t (could not) won’t (will not) could’ve (could have)
And when it is not necessary: we’ll (we will/shall) let’s (let us)

· Early ICBMs had limited accuracy that limited their use to COMMAS
the largest targets such as cities.
Quick Rules:
· Early intercontinental ballistic missiles had limited accuracy
that limited their use to the largest targets such as cities. The comma is a valuable, useful punctuation device because it
separates the structural elements of sentences into manageable
Gerunds segments. The rules provided here are those found in traditional
handbooks; however, in certain rhetorical contexts and for specific
We know that we use an apostrophe to show possession between a purposes, these rules may be broken.
two nouns:
The following is a short guide to get you started using commas. This
· The committee held Susan’s opinions in high regard. resource also includes sections with more detailed rules and
examples.
We know we do NOT use an apostrophe with possessive pronouns:
Quick Guide to Commas
· My choice to leave was mine alone.
1. Use commas to separate independent clauses when they are
But when the noun in question is a gerund, knowledge goes out the joined by any of these seven coordinating conjunctions: and, but,
window. Once the -ing noun appears, we forget the rules of for, or, nor, so, yet.
possession. (Or maybe it’s not understanding that -ing nouns exist?)
2. Use commas after introductory a) clauses, b) phrases, or c) words
These sentences make no sense: that come before the main clause.

· Tim leaving made continuing in the job difficult for me. 3. Use a pair of commas in the middle of a sentence to set off
clauses, phrases, and words that are not essential to the meaning of
· Him leaving made continuing in the job difficult for me. the sentence. Use one comma before to indicate the beginning of
the pause and one at the end to indicate the end of the pause.
4. Do not use commas to set off essential elements of the sentence, It rained heavily during the afternoon; we managed to have our
such as clauses beginning with that (relative clauses). That clauses picnic anyway.
after nouns are always essential. That clauses following a verb
expressing mental action are always essential. They couldn't make it to the summit and back before dark; they
decided to camp for the night.
5. Use commas to separate three or more words, phrases, or clauses
written in a series. You can also use a semicolon when you join two independent
clauses together with one of the following conjunctive adverbs
6. Use commas to separate two or more coordinate adjectives that (adverbs that join independent clauses): however, moreover,
describe the same noun. Be sure never to add an extra comma therefore, consequently, otherwise, nevertheless, thus, etc. For
between the final adjective and the noun itself or to use commas example:
with non-coordinate adjectives.
I am going home; moreover, I intend to stay there.
7. Use a comma near the end of a sentence to separate contrasted
coordinate elements or to indicate a distinct pause or shift. It rained heavily during the afternoon; however, we managed to have
our picnic anyway.
8. Use commas to set off phrases at the end of the sentence that
refer back to the beginning or middle of the sentence. Such phrases They couldn't make it to the summit and back before dark;
are free modifiers that can be placed anywhere in the sentence therefore, they decided to camp for the night.
without causing confusion.
HYPHEN
9. Use commas to set off all geographical names, items in dates
(except the month and day), addresses (except the street number Two words brought together as a compound may be written
and name), and titles in names. separately, written as one word, or connected by hyphens. For
example, three modern dictionaries all have the same listings for the
10. Use a comma to shift between the main discourse and a following compounds:
quotation.
hair stylist
11. Use commas wherever necessary to prevent possible confusion hairsplitter
or misreading. hair-raiser

COMMAS VS. SEMI-COLONS IN COMPOUND SENTENCES Another modern dictionary, however, lists hairstylist, not hair stylist.
Compounding is obviously in a state of flux, and authorities do not
A group of words containing a subject and a verb and expressing a always agree in all cases, but the uses of the hyphen offered here are
complete thought is called a sentence or an independent clause. generally agreed upon.
Sometimes, an independent clause stands alone as a sentence, and
sometimes two independent clauses are linked together into what is 1. Use a hyphen to join two or more words serving as a single
called a compound sentence. Depending on the circumstances, one adjective before a noun:
of two different punctuation marks can be used between the
independent clauses in a compound sentence: a comma or a a one-way street
semicolon. The choice is yours. chocolate-covered peanuts
well-known author
Comma (,)
However, when compound modifiers come after a noun, they are
Use a comma after the first independent clause when you link two not hyphenated:
independent clauses with one of the following coordinating
conjunctions: and, but, for, or, nor, so, yet. For example: The peanuts were chocolate covered.
The author was well known.
I am going home, and I intend to stay there.
2. Use a hyphen with compound numbers:
It rained heavily during the afternoon, but we managed to have our
picnic anyway. forty-six
sixty-three
They couldn't make it to the summit and back before dark, so they Our much-loved teacher was sixty-three years old.
decided to camp for the night.
3. Use a hyphen to avoid confusion or an awkward
Semicolon (;) combination of letters:

Use a semicolon when you link two independent clauses with no re-sign a petition (vs. resign from a job)
connecting words. For example: semi-independent (but semiconscious)
shell-like (but childlike)
I am going home; I intend to stay there.
 4. Use a hyphen with the prefixes ex- (meaning former), self-, The following covers the basic use of quotation marks. For details
all-; with the suffix -elect; between a prefix and a and exceptions consult the separate sections of this guide.
capitalized word; and with figures or letters:
Direct Quotations
ex-husband
self-assured Direct quotations involve incorporating another person's exact words
mid-September into your own writing.
all-inclusive
mayor-elect 1. Quotation marks always come in pairs. Do not open a quotation
anti-American and fail to close it at the end of the quoted material.
T-shirt
pre-Civil War 2. Capitalize the first letter of a direct quote when the quoted
mid-1980s material is a complete sentence.

5. Use a hyphen to divide words at the end of a line if Mr. Johnson, who was working in his field that morning, said, "The
necessary, and make the break only between syllables: alien spaceship appeared right before my own two eyes."

pref-er-ence 3. Do not use a capital letter when the quoted material is a fragment
sell-ing or only a piece of the original material's complete sentence.
in-di-vid-u-al-ist
Although Mr. Johnson has seen odd happenings on the farm, he
6. For line breaks, divide already-hyphenated words only at stated that the spaceship "certainly takes the cake" when it comes to
the hyphen: unexplainable activity.

mass- 4. If a direct quotation is interrupted mid-sentence, do not capitalize

produced the second part of the quotation.
self-
conscious "I didn't see an actual alien being," Mr. Johnson said, "but I sure wish
I had."
7. For line breaks in words ending in -ing, if a single final
consonant in the root word is doubled before the suffix, 5. In all the examples above, note how the period or comma
hyphenate between the consonants; otherwise, hyphenate punctuation always comes before the final quotation mark. It is
at the suffix itself: important to realize also that when you are using MLA or some other
form of documentation, this punctuation rule may change.
plan-ning
run-ning When quoting text with a spelling or grammar error, you should
driv-ing transcribe the error exactly in your own text. However, also insert
call-ing the term sic in italics directly after the mistake, and enclose it in
brackets. Sic is from the Latin, and translates to "thus," "so," or "just
8. Never put the first or last letter of a word at the end or as that." The word tells the reader that your quote is an exact
beginning of a line, and don't put two-letter suffixes at the reproduction of what you found, and the error is not your own.
beginning of a new line:
Mr. Johnson says of the experience, "It's made me reconsider the
lovely (Do not separate in a way which leaves ly beginning a new existence of extraterestials [sic]."
line.)
eval-u-ate (Separate only on either side of the u; do not leave the 6. Quotations are most effective if you use them sparingly and keep
initial e- at the end of a line.) them relatively short. Too many quotations in a research paper will
get you accused of not producing original thought or material (they
QUOTATION MARKS may also bore a reader who wants to know primarily what YOU have
to say on the subject).
Using Quotation Marks
Indirect Quotations
The primary function of quotation marks is to set off and represent
exact language (either spoken or written) that has come from Indirect quotations are not exact wordings but rather rephrasings or
somebody else. The quotation mark is also used to designate speech summaries of another person's words. In this case, it is not
acts in fiction and sometimes poetry. Since you will most often use necessary to use quotation marks. However, indirect quotations still
them when working with outside sources, successful use of require proper citations, and you will be commiting plagiarism if you
quotation marks is a practical defense against accidental plagiarism fail to do so.
and an excellent practice in academic honesty. The following rules of
quotation mark use are the standard in the United States, although it Mr. Johnson, a local farmer, reported last night that he saw an alien
may be of interest that usage rules for this punctuation do vary in spaceship on his own property.
other countries.
Many writers struggle with when to use direct quotations versus I and you. With these pronouns, the contraction don't should be
indirect quotations. Use the following tips to guide you in your used.
choice.
He doesn't like it.
Use direct quotations when the source material uses language that is They don't like it.
particularly striking or notable. Do not rob such language of its
power by altering it. 5. Do not be misled by a phrase that comes between the subject
and the verb. The verb agrees with the subject, not with a noun or
Martin Luther King Jr. believed that the end of slavery was important
and of great hope to millions of slaves done horribly wrong. pronoun in the phrase.

The above should never stand in for: One of the boxes is open
The people who listen to that music are few.
Martin Luther King Jr. said of the Emancipation Proclamation, "This The team captain, as well as his players, is anxious.
momentous decree came as a great beacon light of hope to millions The book, including all the chapters in the first section, is boring.
of Negro slaves who had been seared in the flames of withering The woman with all the dogs walks down my street.
injustice."
6. The words each, each one, either, neither, everyone, everybody,
Use an indirect quotation (or paraphrase) when you merely need to anybody, anyone, nobody, somebody, someone, and no one are
summarize key incidents or details of the text. singular and require a singular verb.
Use direct quotations when the author you are quoting has coined a
Each of these hot dogs is juicy.
term unique to her or his research and relevant within your own
Everybody knows Mr. Jones.
paper.
Either is correct.
When to use direct quotes versus indirect quotes is ultimately a
7. Nouns such as civics, mathematics, dollars, measles, and news
choice you'll learn a feeling for with experience. However, always try
to have a sense for why you've chosen your quote. In other words, require singular verbs.
never put quotes in your paper simply because your teacher says,
"You must use quotes." The news is on at six.

Note: the word dollars is a special case. When talking about an

amount of money, it requires a singular verb, but when referring to
SUBJECT AND VERB AGREEMENT the dollars themselves, a plural verb is required.

MAKING SUBJECT AND VERBS AGREE Five dollars is a lot of money.

Dollars are often used instead of rubles in Russia.
1. When the subject of a sentence is composed of two or more
8. Nouns such as scissors, tweezers, trousers, and shears require
nouns or pronouns connected by and, use a plural verb.
plural verbs. (There are two parts to these things.)
She and her friends are at the fair.
These scissors are dull.
Those trousers are made of wool.
2. When two or more singular nouns or pronouns are connected by
or or nor, use a singular verb.
9. In sentences beginning with "there is" or "there are," the subject
follows the verb. Since "there" is not the subject, the verb agrees
The book or the pen is in the drawer.
with what follows.
3. When a compound subject contains both a singular and a plural
There are many questions.
noun or pronoun joined by or or nor, the verb should agree with
There is a question.
the part of the subject that is nearer the verb.
10. Collective nouns are words that imply more than one person
but that are considered singular and take a singular verb, such as
group, team, committee, class, and family.
The boy or his friends run every day.
His friends or the boy runs every day.

4. Doesn't is a contraction of does not and should be used only

The team runs during practice.
with a singular subject. Don't is a contraction of do not and should
The committee decides how to proceed.
be used only with a plural subject. The exception to this rule The family has a long history.
appears in the case of the first person and second person pronouns My family has never been able to agree.
The crew is preparing to dock the ship.
 The kitchen or the bedrooms need to be cleaned.
-This sentence is referring to the individual efforts of each crew The bedrooms or the kitchen needs to be cleaned.
member. The Gregg Reference Manual provides excellent
explanations of subject-verb agreement (section 10: 1001). The following words are all singular and therefore require singular
verbs: each, each one, either, neither, everyone, everybody,
11. Expressions such as with, together with, including, anybody, anyone, nobody, somebody, someone, and no one.
accompanied by, in addition to, or as well do not change the
number of the subject. If the subject is singular, the verb is too. Each of these sweaters is black.
Nobody knows what happened to all the cake.
The President, accompanied by his wife, is traveling to India. Everybody thinks they can sing really well.
All of the books, including yours, are in that box.
In sentences that begin with there are or there is, pay attention to
what follows there are or there is. This element is what determines
*Subject-Verb Agreement* whether you use are or is. If the subject is plural, you use are; if the
subject is singular, you use is.
Some questions will ask you to correct errors in subject-
verb agreement. Subject-verb agreement errors are very common. There are two cookies left.
This section reviews basic rules for making subjects and verbs agree. There is one chance to make a first impression.
This section also offers guidelines for dealing with tricky subject-verb
Some subjects imply more than one person, but are themselves
situations that commonly confuse writers.
singular. These are known as collective nouns. Examples include
group, team, committee, class, band, and family. Because these
In general, subjects and verbs must agree in number. This
words are singular, they require a singular verb.
means that a singular subject must have a singular verb, and a plural
subject must have a plural verb. Additionally, subjects and verbs
The committee meets tomorrow.
must agree in person (first, second, or third). See the table below to My family is a little crazy.
understand this general idea.
Be careful not to be misled by phrases that come between the
Subject / Verb Agreement: Singular Subjects subject and verb. Always remember that the verb should agree
Subject / Verb Agreement: Plural Subjects with the subject of the sentence, not with the noun(s) or
pronoun(s) in the phrase. Carefully identifying the subject of the
I work we work
you work you work sentence will help you avoid this confusion.
she, he, it works they work
One of the dogs runs really slowly.
When you’re dealing with a simple subject like those in the The people who bring cake are always popular.
table above, making the subjects and verbs agree is straightforward.
Some subjects, however, are not so simple. The following guidelines
will help you deal with these complex subjects and make them agree
with verbs. Please note: in each example, the subject is italicized and
the verb is underlined.

When the subject of a sentence is two or more nouns or pronouns

(either singular or plural) connected by and, use a plural verb.

The table and couch look like they need work.

Jamie and her friends drive all the time.

When the subject of a sentence is two or more singular nouns or

pronouns connected or or nor, use a singular verb.

Sheila or Jenny will water my plants.

Neither the Ford nor the Pontiac is the car I want.

The verb should agree with the noun that is closer to the verb
when the subject has both a singular noun or pronoun and a plural
noun or pronoun connected by or or nor.