Basic Grammar Note

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This article is a study note for Just Enough English Grammar to Illustrate.

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NOUNS

FORM OF ENGLISH NOUNS

Types of Nouns

Type	Example	Illustration
Proper	Susan	specific
Common	school, suntan lotion	general
Concrete	hamburger, suntan lotion	senses
Abstract	love	out of senses
Collective	family	groups
Compound	suntan lotion	more words

Singular and Plural Nouns

• + s

• s,x,z,sh + es

• f or fe to v,ve + es

• y—i + es

Common Noun Suffixes

Adding -er indicates the person who is carrying out an action.
Adding -ance indicates the fact or state of carrying out an action.
Adding -ness indicates a quality or state of being.
Adding -ity indicates an action or state of affairs that is
abstract.

Gender of Nouns

Masculine Nouns
Feminine Nouns
Neuter Nouns

Articles

Indefinite Articles(General):a/an (a boy/boys)
Definite Articles(Specific):the (the boy/the boys)

USES OF ENGLISH NOUNS

We conclude this chapter with a Venn diagram that summarizes how the
noun $trophy$ can be used when forming sentences.

Nouns as Subjects

A noun that names the person(s) or thing(s) about which a statement is
to be made is labeled the subject,which includes simple and compound
subjects.

• Who:people

• What:inanimate objects

Nouns as Subject Complements

A subject complement describes or renames the subject.

• Linking verbs help to make a statement not by expressing an action,
  but by serving as a link between the subject and the subject
  complement.

• $Am, are, is, was$, and $were$ are all forms of the most commonly
  used linking verb $to\quad be$.

• Any form of $to\quad be$, when it acts as a linking verb, can be
  represented by an equals sign.

Possessive Nouns

• To show relationship or ownership of a noun,add an apostrophe.

• Use $of$ instead of the apostrophe, and switch the order of the
  nouns.

EXAMPLES:the pool’s diving board = the diving board of the pool

What Is a Sentence?

Units are composed of different parts that we will call building
blocks.

Nouns as Direct Objects

The direct object , which need action verbs ¹, is a word or
group of words that directly receives the action expressed by the verb.

Nouns as Objects of Prepositions

A noun used after a preposition is called the object of the preposition.

ADJECTIVES

Descriptive Adjecitives

In general, common adjectives are placed before the noun they are
describing.

Predicate adjectives are placed after the linking verb
$to \quad be$. They always expand on the subject.

An adjective formed from a proper noun is called a proper
adjective. It is always capitalized.

Determiners or Limiting Adjectives

A determiner is placed before the noun it modifies and helps to identify
a specific noun rather than describe it.

Articles

• Indefinite Articles:$A$ and $an$ refer to one of a general group.

• Definite Articles：$The$ indicates that the noun (either singular or
  plural) refers to someone or something in particular.

Possessive Adjectives

Possessive adjectives are derived from these $personal$ $pronouns$²
and express the idea of possession.

Demonstrative Adjectives

Demonstrative adjectives point out persons or things.This and
that are singular; these and those are
plural.

Interrogative Adjectives

The interrogative adjectives which, what, and
whose, together with the nouns they modify, are commonly used
to form questions.

Indefinite Adjectives

Indefinite adjectives indicate nonspecific persons or
things.Some, each, any, many,
and several are examples of indefinite adjectives.

Numerical Adjectives

Numerical adjectives indicate quantity by stating a fixed number of
people or things.

Suffixes and Origin of Adjectives

Suffixes are attached to a root word to form the adjective. These
adjectives originate from other types of words, such as nouns or verbs.

PRONOUNS

We conclude this chapter with a Venn diagram that summarizes how the
pronoun $trophy$ can be used when forming sentences.

What Information Do Pronouns Give?

Uses of Pronouns

Common Uses of Pronouns:

• To replace people, places, or things: he, it

• To introduce a question: Who, What

• To point to a specific person, place, or thing: this
  (one), that (one), these, and those

• To refer to unnamed, nonspecific people or
  things: Singular: each, somebody, something, or anything.Plural:
  both, several, few, or many.

Personal Pronouns

$I$, $you$, $he$, $she$, $it$, $we$, $they$

Grammar Person of Pronouns

Every personal pronoun is classified by whether it is first, second, or
third person.

• First person pronoun: I, We(Plural)

• Second person pronoun: You, You(Plural)

• Third person pronoun: He, She, It, They(Plural)

Possessive Pronouns

$Mine$, $yours$, $his$, $hers$, $its$, $ours$, $yours$, and $theirs$

Number of Pronouns

• Singular:$I$, $you$, $he$, $she$, $it$

• Plural:$we$, $you$, $they$

Gender of Pronouns

Gender does not differentiate the pronouns “I,” “you,” “we,” and
“they.”
Three genders differentiate the third-person singular pronouns :

• Masculine Pronoun：he

• Feminine Pronoun： she

• Neuter Pronoun: it

We say “generally” here because pronouns do not always follow these
simple rules: Animals are classified as male or female, and sometimes
inanimate objects (such as ships and boats) are referred to as she.

What Jobs Can Pronouns Do?

The roles pronouns can play divide them into three distinct groups:

Pronouns as Subjects and Pronouns as Direct Objects

Pronouns as Objects of Prepositions

Object pronouns can be used to complete a prepositional phrase.

Possessive Pronouns

Pronouns as Question Words

• Question Words Asking About the Subject: $Who$, $What$

• Question Words Asking About the Object: $Whom$. $What$ plays a
  double role(subject or object).

• Question Word Asking About a Possessive Noun: $Whose$

VERBS

This chapter takes a close look at all the jobs verbs can perform.

FORM OF ENGLISH VERBS

Verb Families

The infinitive form consists of the word “to” plus the base form of a
verb.

Types of Verbs

• Action Verbs: Action verbs express the action, often physical
  action, that the subject does.(to eat)

• Non-Action Verbs: Non-action verbs tell about states of mind or
  senses.(to think, to look, and to understand.)

• Linking Verbs: Linking verbs convey a state of being. They
  link the subject of a sentence with a word that renames or describes
  the subject.(to be,to appear, to become, to feel, to grow,
  to look, and to taste.)

• Helping Verbs: Main verb may need a helper to express its full
  meaning: [to be am, are, is, was, were]{.underline} [to do do, does,
  did]{.underline} [to have have, has, ha]{.underline}d [Could, would,
  and must]{.underline}
  

Regular and Irregular Verbs

Verbs change in form. Based on how they change, verbs are divided into
two groups.

The Four Principal Parts

USES OF ENGLISH VERBS

Tense

• Now：Present Tense，Present Continuous

• Yesterday：Past Tense，Present Perfect

• Tomorrow: Future Tense

Modals: Special Helping Verbs

Some common modals are $can$, $could$, $may$, $might$, $must$, $should$,
and $would$

Modals as helping verbs express:

• possibility or necessity

• ability or permission

• polite requests

Linking and Non-Action Verbs as Main Verbs

When looking at the definitions of verb tenses, the terms $action$ and
$condition$ appear often.They indicate $conditions$ showing what the
subject is, or is like.It can be used as a main verb, just like other
verbs.

• Linking Verbs: $be$

• Non-Action Verbs: $have$

Verbs in Questions and Statements

There are two main kinds of questions in English:

• Questions beginning with a main or helping verb(direct questions) A
  form of “to do,” in either present or past tense, must be used to
  form questions, unless the main verb is the linking verb “to be.”

• Questions beginning with a main or helping verb(information
  question) Like direct questions, most questions that begin with a
  question marker, such as what, why, when, and how, follow inverted
  word order. When “who” or “what” replaces the subject to form a
  question, regular word order applies.

Verbs with Direct Objects

The direct object names the receiver of an action. It completes the
meaning of the sentence.

Transitive and Intransitive Verbs

• Transitive Verbs
  A transitive verb has a direct object. A verb is transitive when an
  object is necessary to complete its meaning in the sentence. The
  action of the verb is transferred to the object.
  

• Intransitive Verbs
  An intransitive verb does not have a direct object. When an object
  is not needed to complete its meaning, the verb is intransitive.
  

Verbs Expressing Commands

A sentence that gives a command or make a request is called an
imperative sentence.

ADVERBS

What Is an Adverb?

Adverbs act as modifiers. The prefix “ad-“ in the word adverb
means “to,” “toward,” or “in addition to.” An adverb is a word that is
used with a verb to expand its meaning.

Five Groups of Adverbs That Modify Verbs

1. Adverbs of Time: early, today, now, yesterday, before, soon, and
   tomorrow.

2. Adverbs of Location： above, inside, here, there, and everywhere

3. Adverbs of Manner：loudly, carefully, well, quickly, and slowly

4. Adverbs of Degree：completely, nearly, too, almost, very, and fully

5. Adverbs of Frequency：always, often, sometimes, seldom, and never
   Most

Adverbs Used to Form Questions

“When,” “where,” and “how”(interrogative adverbs) are used to form
questions.

When Adjectives Become Adverbs

Most adjectives become adverbs by adding the suffix -ly. Some examples
of adverbs that cannot be identified as adverbs by looking at a suffix
are seldom, again, soon, almost, fast, and now.

When Adverbs Modify Other Adverbs

The meaning of an adverb can be made stronger by adding a second adverb.

When Adverbs Modify Adjectives

Adverbs of degree can modify both other adverbs and adjectives.

PREPOSITIONS

What Is a Preposition?

A preposition is a word or group of words that is placed before a noun
or a pronoun to show a relationship in a sentence.

Frequently Used Prepositions

Prepositional Phrases with Nouns and Pronouns

A preposition and the object of the preposition form a prepositional
phrase.

A pronoun used as the object of a preposition must be an object pronoun;
it cannot be a subject pronoun.

Extended Units with Direct Objects and Objects of a Preposition

Some Words Are Both Prepositions and Adverbs

Some words can be used as prepositions when they have an object, but
they can also be used as adverbs when they do not have an object.

CONJUCTIONS

What Is a Conjunction?

A conjunction joins words or a group of words of the same
type.

• $and$ expresses addition

• $or$ expresses a choice

• $but$ expresses contrast

Joining Words

Examples:

• Maria wears her green or pink bikini almost every day
  during the summer.

Joining Phrases

Examples:

• The hula girl performed for Jake last week and for Maria
  this week.

• Is the lifesaver near the pool or in the locker room?

Joining Sentences

Examples:

• We went to the pool, and the Miller family went to the
  parade.

• All the friends came, but Maria was not there.

INTERJECTIONS

An interjection(exclamation) expresses strong emotion or surprise; it
functions independently within a sentence.
Common interjections include wow, well, hey, bravo, and
oh.

Vocabulary

• formal exposure 正式接触

• The parts of speech 词性

• spark 火花

• biography 传记

• locker room 衣帽间

• towel 毛巾

• life preserver 救生设备

• suntan （晒黑） lotion

• air mattress 空气垫

• goggles 护目镜

• ladder 梯子

• concession stand 小卖部

• Overview 概述

• inanimate 无生命的

• Masculine 男性的

• Feminine 女性的

• bull 公牛

• cow 母牛

• affirmative 肯定的，同意的；

• action-packed 内容丰富有趣的；令人激动的

• coordinate v. 协调，配合 n. 坐标；配套服装；adj.
  地位相当的，同等重要的；

• ordinate n. 纵坐标 v. 授某人以圣职；命令

• parade 游行

• comma 逗号

• proficiency n. 熟练，精通

• undergraduate 大学本科生

• prestigious adj. 有威望的，有声望的

• assignment n.
  作业，任务；（工作等的）分配，指派；（财产、权利的）转让

• prestigious assignments 重要职位

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1. 1.Action verbs are verbs that express something that we do and take direct objects. ↩
2. 2.I, you, he, she, it, we, you, and they are called personal pronouns. ↩