UNDERSTANDING

THE BASICS OF
ENGLISH
PARTS OF SPEECH
 OBJECTIVES:
• Identify and define the parts of speech: nouns,
pronouns, verbs, adjectives, adverbs, prepositions,
conjunctions, and interjections;
• Understand the function of each part of speech in
a sentence;
• Recognize and use parts of speech effectively in
their own writing and speaking; and
• Apply knowledge of parts of speech to improve
sentence structure and clarity.
PARTS OF SPEECH
NOUN
PRONOUN
ADJECTIVE
ADVERB
CONJUNCTIO
N
INTERJECTIO
N
PREPOSITION
ARTICLES
VERB
NOUNS
 NOUNS
- THESE ARE WORDS THAT FUNCTION AS THE
NAME OF SOMETHING. NOUNS ARE THE MOST
COMMON CLASS OF WORD IN ENGLISH.
- A WORD THAT REPRESENTS A PERSON, THING,
CONCEPT OR A PLACE.
EXAMPLES:

•People: teacher, doctor, friend, artist, neighbor

•Places: park, city, school, restaurant, beach
•Things: book, computer, chair, apple, car
•Ideas: happiness, freedom, love, justice, wisdom
TYPES OF NOUNS
 COMMON
NOUNS
-These are used to name a GENERAL
type of person, place or thing.
-Non-specific person, place or a thing.
-Common nouns are typically not
capitalized.

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PROPER NOUNS
-These are used to name a specific
person, place or thing. In English, it
begins with a capital letter.

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Common Proper nouns
nouns
city Tuguegarao City

mountain Mt. Fuji

market Don Domingo Market

 COMPOUND
NOUNS
-These are two or more words that create a noun. Compound nouns
are sometimes one word (haircut), words joined by a hyphen (son-
in-law) or as separate words (bus stop). The main stress is normally
on the first part of the compound word (sunglasses, swimming
pool).
-Examples: toothbrush, rainfall, sailboat, mother-in law, well-being,
alarm clock, credit card

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COLLECTIVE NOUNS
These are words that refer to a set or
group of people, animals or things.
Examples: staff, team, crew, herd,
flock, bunch, bouquet, fleet.

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 COLLECTIVE NOUNS
CAN BE FUNCTION SINGULAR OR PLURAL
DEPENDING ON HOW THE GROUP IS
BEING THOUGHT OF.
1. Singular use
When the group is seen as one unit, the verb is SINGULAR.
EX: The team is winning the match. (The team is acting together as one
unit.)
EX: The class was noisy today.

2. Plural use
When the members of the group are considered individually, the verb is
PLURAL.
EX: The team are arguing among themselves. (Focus on the individual
members.)
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EX: The jury have different opinions.
 CONCRETE NOUNS
These are nouns which refer to people and things that exist physically and
that at least one of the senses can detect (can be seen, felt, heard,
smelled/smelt, or tasted).
a noun that refers to a physical thing, person, or place
Examples:
Table- ( Can be seen and touched)
Apple- (Can be seen, touched, and tasted)
Music- (Can be heard)
Perfume- (Can be smelled)
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 ABSTRACT NOUNS
Many abstract nouns are uncountable. nouns that have no physical existence and are not concrete. They
refer to ideas, emotions or concepts so you CANNOT see, touch, hear, smell or taste something

Examples:

•Freedom - A state of being free or having liberty

•Happiness - A state of well-being and contentment
•Courage - The quality of being brave in facing danger or challenges
•Justice - The concept of fairness and law
•Wisdom - The ability to make sound decisions and judgments
•Hope - The feeling of expectation and desire for a certain thing to happen
•Truth - The quality of being true or factual
•Love - An emotional state or feeling
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 GERUNDS
A gerund, sometimes called a verbal noun, is a noun formed from a verb. Since all
gerunds end in -ing, they are sometimes confused as being a verb (present participle).
A gerund is a form of a verb that functions as a noun in a sentence. It is created by
adding “-ing” to the base form of a verb.

Examples:
Reading helps improve your vocabulary. (direct object- it answers the question What)
She enjoys cooking new recipes.
His favorite hobby is painting.

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 COUNTABLE NOUNS
These are nouns that CAN be counted. They have a singular and a plural form and
can be used with a number. Sometimes countable nouns are called count nouns.
Countable nouns are nouns that can be counted individually.
They have both singular and plural forms, and you can use
numbers with them to indicate quantity. For example, you can
say "one book" or "three books.“
Examples:
Apples- one apple, two apples, three apples….
Dog- One dog, Two dogs….
Bag- One bag, thirtyfive bags, fifty-four bags….
 UNCOUNTABLE NOUNS

These are nouns that CANNOT be counted. These are

sometimes called mass nouns. Uncountable nouns often refer
to:
Substances and Materials such as:
a. liquids: milk, oil , juice
b. gases: air, oxygen
c. Solid: salt, rice
TYPES OF NOUNS
PROPER COMMON COMPOUND COLLECTIVE CONCRETE
NOUNS NOUNS NOUNS NOUNS NOUNS

ABSTRACT GERUNDS COUNTABLE UNCOUNTABLE

NOUNS NOUNS NOUNS

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PRONOUNS
PRONOUNS
A pronoun is a word that refers to or takes the place of a noun. The noun being referred to is
called the antecedent.
Pronouns are used to avoid repetition and make sentences more concise and fluid.
They can refer to people, objects, or concepts without naming them directly
Examples:
The boy said that he was tired.
The girl in red is my sister. She is the youngest among us siblings.

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TYPES OF PRONOUNS
PERSONAL
POSSESSIV
E
REFLEXIVE
INTENSIVE
DEMONSTR
ATIVE
INTERROGA
TIVE
INDEFINITE
 PERSONAL
PRONOUNS
These are pronouns that refer to a specific person or thing in a sentence
and can be divided into two groups: nominative and objective.

a. Nominative personal pronoun can act as the subject of a sentence (I,

you, she, it, we, they).
Example: I went to the store after work.
You should not go to class if you are sick.
b. Objective personal pronoun can act as objects of a sentence (me,
you, him, her, it, us, them).
Example: Alex came out with Joe and me.
Melissa really like him.
 PERSONAL
PRONOUNS
NOMINATIVE/ OBJECTIVE POSSESSIVE
SUBJECTIVE
I Me My, mine
We Us Our, ours
You You Your, yours
He Him His, his
She Her Her, hers
It It Its, its
they them Their, theirs
 PERSONAL
PRONOUNS
Example: Noun/ Pronoun + I / me

Ana and Cris study together.

1. I and Cris study together.
2. Me and Cris Study together.
3. Cris and I study together.
4. Cris and me study together.
 PERSONAL
PRONOUNS
Example: Noun/ Pronoun + I / me

The manager gave the reward to Cris and

Trina .
1. The manager gave the reward to I and Trina.
2. The manager gave the reward to Cris and I.
3. The manager gave the reward to me and Trina.
4. The manager gave the reward to Cris and me.
 POSSESSIVE
PRONOUNS
These are pronouns that show ownership; in other words,
something belongs to someone else (my/mine, your/yours, his,
her/hers, its, our/ours, their/theirs).

EXAMPLES:

• My car is parked outside. (The adjective “my” shows

ownership of the car.)
• Her jacket is on the chair. (The adjective “her” shows
ownership of the jacket)
• This book is mine.
• The choice is yours.
 REFLEXIVE
PRONOUNS
These are pronouns that are used to show that the
subject of the sentence is receiving the action of the
verb (myself, yourself, himself, herself, itself, ourselves,
themselves.

• She talks to herself when she is alone.

• He saw himself in the mirror.
• I believe in myself.
• Ana provides herself a medical kit.
 INTENSIVE
PRONOUNS
These are pronouns that are used only to place emphasis on the subject and are not
essential to the meaning of the sentence. Note: These pronouns look the same as
reflexive pronouns, but they act differently in the sentence and are always placed
next to the subject that they are emphasizing (myself, yourself, himself, herself,
itself, ourselves, themselves).
In each case, the intensive pronoun adds emphasis to the person or people
performing the action, but it does not change the grammatical function of the
sentence.

Examples: Noun/ pronoun + Intensive pronoun

• The President himself delivered the keynote address.

• (Here, “Himself” emphasizes that it was indeed the
presidents who gave the speech, not someone else.
 DEMONSTRATIVE
PRONOUNS
These are pronouns that are used to identify nouns and answer the
question “Which one?” (this, that, these, those).
A demonstrative pronoun is used to point out specific
people or things and indicate their relative position in
terms of proximity. They help clarify which particular
noun is being referred to, often in relation to the
speaker's location or the context of the conversation
Examples:
• This (refers to something close to the speaker)
• That (refers to something farther from the speaker)
• These (refers to multiple things close to the speaker
• Those (refers to multiple things farther from the
speaker)
 INTERROGATIVE
PRONOUNS
These are pronouns that are used only in reference to a
question, (who, what, which, whom, whose).
An interrogative pronoun is used to ask questions
and gather information about people, things, or
situations. These pronouns introduce interrogative
sentences and are crucial for forming questions in
English.

Examples:
• Who (used to ask about people)
• What (used to ask about things or information)
• Which (used to ask about specific items or choices
 INDEFINITE PRONOUNS
(ONE-BODY-THING)
• These are pronouns that are used in reference to a person or thing
that is not specific or not known. Indefinite pronouns are also used to
identify a general group of people or things (i.e. everyone,
everybody, anyone, anybody, somebody, most, all, each, every, some,
none, one, few, both, many, several).

Everybody has to take the Writing Proficiency Examination in

order to graduate.
All the seniors were excited for graduation.
Note: Singular indefinite pronouns must always take singular
verbs.
TYPES OF PRONOUNS
PERSONAL POSESSIVE REFLEXIVE INTENSIVE
PRONOUNS PRONOUNS PRONOUNS PRONOUNS

DEMONSTRAT INTERROGA INDEFINITE

IVE TIVE PRONOUNS
PRONOUNS PRONOUNS

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ADJECTIVES
 ADJECTIVES
An adjective modifies a noun or pronoun by providing descriptive or specific detail. Adjectives
answer the following questions: what kind?, How many?, Or which ones?
An adjective is a word that describes or modifies a noun or pronoun, providing
more information about it. Adjectives can indicate qualities, quantities, or
states, helping to specify which one, what kind, or how many of the noun or
pronoun is being discussed.

Here are some key functions of adjectives:

1.Describing Qualities:
1. Example: "The blue sky."
"Blue" describes the color of the sky.
2.Indicating Quantity:
1. Example: "She has three cats."
"Three" indicates the number of cats.
3.Specifying Identity or Features:
1. Example: "He wore a beautiful dress."
"Beautiful" describes the dress.
4.Providing Size, Shape, Age, or Origin:
1. Example: "They live in a small house."
"Small" describes the size of the house.
TYPES OF ADJECTIVES
DESCRIPTIV
E
PROPER
LIMITING
INTERROGAT
IVE
COORDINATE
COMPOUND
DETERMINE
RS
 DESCRIPTIVE
ADJECTIVES
Name a quality of the noun or pronoun that it modifies.
A descriptive adjective is a type of adjective specifically used to describe the
characteristics or qualities of a noun or pronoun. It provides more detailed
information about the noun or pronoun it modifies, such as its appearance,
color, size, shape, age, or other attributes.

Here are some examples of descriptive adjectives:

1.Color: "The red apple."
1. "Red" describes the color of the apple.
2.Size: "A large house."
1. "Large" describes the size of the house.
3.Shape: "A round table."
1. "Round" describes the shape of the table.
4.Age: "An old book."
1. "Old" describes the age of the book.
5.Texture: "A smooth surface."
1. "Smooth" describes the texture of the surface.
6.Quality: "A beautiful painting."
1. "Beautiful" describes the quality of the painting.
 PROPER
ADJECTIVES
Derived from a proper noun
A proper adjective is a type of adjective derived from a proper noun and used to describe
a specific noun by referencing a particular place, person, or organization. Proper
adjectives are capitalized because they are based on proper nouns, which are specific
names of people, places, or organizations..
ere are some examples of proper adjectives:
1.American (from the proper noun "America")
1. Example: "She enjoys American cuisine."
2. "American" describes the type of cuisine, indicating that it originates from or is
associated with America.
2.Shakespearean (from the proper noun "Shakespeare")
1. Example: "He performed a Shakespearean play."
2. "Shakespearean" describes the type of play, indicating that it is related to or
characteristic of Shakespeare.
3.French (from the proper noun "France")
1. Example: "They visited a French bakery."
2. "French" describes the type of bakery, indicating that it is associated with France.
4.Chinese (from the proper noun "China")
1. Example: "She studies Chinese art."
2. "Chinese" describes the type of art, indicating that it is associated with China.
5.Victorian (from the proper noun "Victoria," referring to the reign of Queen Victoria)
1. Example: "They live in a Victorian house."
 PROPER
EXERCISES:
ADJECTIVES
1. I love KFC burgers.
2. Hero is a Japanese player.
3. Shakespearean sonnets are easy to
comprehend.
4. My sister likes Korean idols.
5. The Itawes tribe is in Cagayan.
 LIMITING
ADJECTIVES
Restrict the meaning of the word it modifies.
Limiting adjectives are adjectives that specify or restrict the scope of a noun or pronoun.
They help to narrow down the meaning of the noun by providing information about
quantity, possession, order, or other limitations. Unlike descriptive adjectives, which
describe the qualities of a noun, limiting adjectives focus on defining or limiting which
particular noun is being referred to.

Here are some examples of limiting adjectives:

1.Quantity or Number:
1. Example: "I have three dogs."
2. "Three" limits the noun "dogs" by specifying the exact number.
2.Possession:
1. Example: "This is my book."
"My" limits the noun "book" by indicating ownership.
3. Demonstrative:
•Example: "I want those shoes."
•"Those" limits the noun "shoes" by pointing out specific ones.
4. Distributive: each, few, many, much, several, any, etc.
•Example: "Each student received a prize."
•"Each" limits the noun "student" by referring to individual members of the group.
5. Ordinal:
•Example: "She finished in first place."
 INTERROGATIVE
Used to ask a question
ADJECTIVES
Interrogative adjective is used to ask questions about a noun or
pronoun. It modifies the noun or pronoun by specifying which one,
how many, or what kind, and it is used at the beginning of a
question.
The primary interrogative adjectives are:
1.Which
1.Example: "Which book did you choose?"
2."Which" modifies the noun "book" and asks for a specific
choice from a set of books.
2.What
1.Example: "What color do you prefer?"
2."What" modifies the noun "color" and asks for specific
information about the color.
Interrogative adjectives are essential for forming questions that
seek specific details about the nouns or pronouns they are
inquiring about. They help in gathering information by identifying
 COORDINATE
ADJECTIVES
Consist of two or more adjectives separated by a comma (,) instead of by a coordinating conjunction.
Example:
a cold, rainy day
Note:
To determine if you can replace the coordinating conjunction with a comma, see if the adjectives can
be reversed or if ‘and’ can be added between the adjectives without changing the meaning. If the adjectives
can be reversed, they are coordinate, and a comma can be used.
Examples:
1. The clowns arrived in a bright, shiny car.
2. The clowns arrived in a shiny, bright car. (Reversing bright and shiny does not change the meaning.)
3. The clowns arrived in a bright and shiny car. (Adding and between bright and shiny does not change the
meaning.)
However, if the adjectives cannot be reversed or if ‘AND’ cannot be used, a comma cannot be used.
Examples:
The clowns arrived in two colorful cars.
The clowns arrived in colorful two cars. (Reversing two and colorful changes the meaning.)
 COMPOUND
ADJECTIVES
Consist of two or more words that function as a unit. Depending on its position within the sentence, the
compound adjective is punctuated with or without a hyphen. When a compound adjective comes before the
noun it modifies, use a hyphen to join the adjectives. When a compound adjective follows the noun it modifies,
do not use a hyphen to join the adjectives.

A compound adjective is an adjective made up of two or more words combined to modify

a noun. These words work together as a single descriptive unit, and they often provide
more specific or detailed information about the noun than a single-word adjective could.

Compound adjectives can be formed in several ways:

1.Hyphenated Compound Adjectives:
1. Example: "A well-known author."
2. "Well-known" is a hyphenated compound adjective describing the author.
2.Open Compound Adjectives:
1. Example: "High school student."
2. "High school" is an open compound adjective describing the type of student.
3.Closed Compound Adjectives:
1. Example: "Full-time job."
2. "Full-time" is a closed compound adjective describing the type of job.
Here are some more examples of compound
adjectives:
•"A high-quality product."
• "High-quality" describes the product’s
quality.
•"A part-time job."
• "Part-time" describes the nature of the
job.
•"A user-friendly interface."
• "User-friendly" describes the ease of use
of the interface.
•"A three-legged stool."
 DETERMINERS AS
ADJECTIVES
Determiners, such as articles, pronouns, and numbers, can function as adjectives. When a determiner is
used as an adjective, it restricts the noun it modifies, like a limiting adjective. Determiners functioning
as adjectives tell which one?, How many?, And whose?

• Articles (a, an, the)

• Possessive pronouns (my, our, your, his, her, its, their)

• Relative pronouns (whose, which, whichever, what, whatever)

• Demonstratives (this, these, that, those)

• Indefinite pronouns (any, each, other, some, etc.)

• Cardinal numbers (one, two, three, etc.)

• Ordinal numbers (last, first, second, etc.)

• Possessive proper nouns (Bob’s, Sarah’s)

Example:
Bob’s house is only three blocks from that house.
Bob’s answers the question: whose house?
Three answers the question: how many blocks?
That answers the question: which house is three blocks
from bob’s house?)
.
 ORDER OF
ADJECTIVES
 ORDER OF
ADJECTIVES
N - umber
O - pinion Example: That one
S - ize wonderful large old
A - ge square brown Chinese
S - hape
C - color wooden table for eating
O - rigin is mine.
M - aterial Example: My brown
P - urpose leather riding boots.
 DEGREE OF
ADJECTIVES
POSITIVE COMPARATIV SUPERLATIV
E E
old older oldest

dirty dirtier dirtiest

useful more useful most useful

good better best

bad worse worst