Conjunctions Prepositions Subject Predicate Tense

1. Conjunctions: What is a Conjunction? In grammar, a conjunction is a part of speech that connects two words, phrases or clauses together. This definition may overlap with that of other parts of speech, so what constitutes a "conjunction" should be defined for each language. In general, a conjunction is an invariable grammatical particle, and it may or may not stand between the items it conjoins. The definition can also be extended to idiomatic phrases that behave as a unit with the same function as a single-word conjunction (as well as, provided that, etc.). You can use a conjunction to link words, phrases, and clauses, as in the following example: I ate the pizza and the pasta. Call the movers when you are ready. Coordinating conjunctions are conjunctions which connect two equal parts of a sentence. The most common ones are and, or, but, and so which are used in the following ways: and is used to join or add words together in the sentence They ate and drank, or is used to show choice or possibilities as in the sentence “He will be here on Monday or Tuesday”. but is used to show opposite or conflicting ideas as in the sentence She is small but strong. so is used to show result as in the sentence I was tired so I went to sleep. Subordinating conjunctions connect two parts of a sentence that are not equal. For now, you should know some of the more common subordinating conjunctions such as: after although as because

before if since than

unless until when while

Correlative conjunctions are pairs of conjunctions that work together. In the sentence Both Jan and Meg are good swimmers, both . . .and are correlative conjunctions. The most common correlative conjunctions are: both . . .and either . . . or neither . . . nor not only . . . but also

More on conjunctions here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grammatical_conjunction http://www.arts.uottawa.ca/writcent/hypergrammar/conjunct.html http://eslus.com/LESSONS/GRAMMAR/POS/pos8.htm 2. Subject and Predicate Being able to identify the subject and predicate of a sentence makes it so much easier to construct grammatically correct sentences in English. Every complete sentence contains two parts: a subject and a predicate. The subject is what (or whom) the sentence is about, while the predicate tells something about the subject. In the following sentences, the predicate is enclosed in braces ({}), while the subject is highlighted. Judy {runs}. Judy and her dog {run on the beach every morning}. To determine the subject of a sentence, first isolate the verb and then make a question by placing "who?" or "what?" before it -- the answer is the subject. The audience littered the theatre floor with torn wrappings and spilled popcorn. The verb in the above sentence is "littered." Who or what littered? The audience did. "The audience" is the subject of the sentence. The predicate (which always includes the verb) goes on to relate something about the subject: what about the audience? It "littered the theatre floor with torn wrappings and spilled popcorn." Every subject is built around one noun or pronoun (or more) that, when stripped of all the words that modify it, is known as the simple subject. Consider the following example: A piece of pepperoni pizza would satisfy his hunger. The subject is built around the noun "piece," with the other words of the subject -- "a" and "of pepperoni pizza" -- modifying the noun. "Piece" is the simple subject. See: http://www.uottawa.ca/academic/arts/writcent/hypergrammar/subjpred.html#subject Subject Verb Agreement: Singular subjects need singular verbs; plural subjects need plural verbs. My brother is a nutritionist. My sisters are mathematicians. The indefinite pronouns anyone, everyone, someone, no one, nobody are always singular and, therefore, require singular verbs. • •

Everyone has done his or her homework. Somebody has left her purse.

Some indefinite pronouns — such as all, some — are singular or plural depending on what they're referring to. (Is the thing referred to countable or not?) Be careful choosing a verb to accompany such pronouns. • •

Some of the beads are missing. Some of the water is gone.

On the other hand, there is one indefinite pronoun, none, that can be either singular or plural; it often doesn't matter whether you use a singular or a plural verb — unless something else in the sentence determines its number. (Writers generally think of none as meaning not any and will choose a plural verb, as in "None of the engines are working," but when something else makes us regard none as meaning not one, we want a singular verb, as in "None of the food is fresh.") • • •

None of you claims responsibility for this incident? None of you claim responsibility for this incident? None of the students have done their homework. (In this last example, the word their precludes the use of the singular verb.

See: http://classroom.jc-schools.net/la/activities/verb-subjagree_files/v3_document.htm http://grammar.ccc.commnet.edu/GRAMMAR/sv_agr.htm 3. Prepositions A preposition is a word which shows relationships among other words in the sentence. The relationships include direction, place, time, cause, manner and amount. In the sentence “She went to the store”, to is a preposition which shows direction. In the sentence “He came by bus”, by is a preposition which shows manner. In the sentence “They will be here at three o'clock”, at is a preposition which shows time and in the sentence “It is under the table”, under is a preposition which shows place. A preposition always goes with a noun or pronoun which is called the object of the preposition. The preposition is almost always before the noun or pronoun and that is why it is called a preposition. The preposition and the object of the preposition together are called a prepositional phrase. The following chart shows the prepositions, objects of the preposition, and prepositional phrases of the sentences above See http://eslus.com/LESSONS/GRAMMAR/POS/pos7.htm A preposition links nouns, pronouns and phrases to other words in a sentence. The word or phrase that the preposition introduces is called the object of the preposition. A preposition usually indicates the temporal, spatial or logical relationship of its object to the rest of the sentence as in the following examples:

The book is on the table. The book is beneath the table. The book is leaning against the table. The book is beside the table. She held the book over the table. She read the book during class. A prepositional phrase is made up of the preposition, its object and any associated adjectives or adverbs. A prepositional phrase can function as a noun, an adjective, or an adverb. The most common prepositions in English are "about," "above," "across," "after," "against," "along," "among," "around," "at," "before," "behind," "below," "beneath," "beside," "between," "beyond," "but," "by," "despite," "down," "during," "except," "for," "from," "in," "inside," "into," "like," "near," "of," "off," "on," "onto," "out," "outside," "over," "past," "since," "through," "throughout," "till," "to," "toward," "under," "underneath," "until," "up," "upon," "with," "within," and "without." See http://www.arts.uottawa.ca/writcent/hypergrammar/preposit.html 4. Tense The English Tense System The links below are to lessons for each of the 12 basic tenses. In each lesson we look at two aspects of the tense: • •

Structure: How do we make the tense? Use: When and why do we use the tense?

Some lessons look at additional aspects, and most of them finish with a quiz to check your understanding. Present Tense I do, do, I do Present Continuous Tense I am doing, I am doing tomorrow Present Perfect Tense I have done Present Perfect Continuous Tense I have been doing

Past Tense I did do, I did Past Continuous Tense I was doing Past Perfect Tense I had done Past Perfect Continuous Tense I had been doing Future Tense I will do Future Continuous Tense I will be doing Future Perfect Tense I will have done Future Perfect Continuous Tense I will have been doing See: http://www.englishclub.com/grammar/verb-tenses.htm http://www.englishpage.com/verbpage/verbtenseintro.html