BASIC GRAMMAR AND PUNCTUATION

PARTS OF SPEECH
• Parts of Speech
• One way to begin studying basic sentence
structures is to consider the traditional parts
of speech (also called word classes): nouns,
pronouns, verbs, adjectives, adverbs,
prepositions, conjunctions, articles, and
interjections. To know for sure what part of
speech a word is, we have to look not only at
the word itself but also at its meaning,
position, and use in a sentence.
 PARTS OF SPEECH TABLE

part of speech function or "job" example words example sentences

Verb action or state (to) be, have, do, EnglishClub is a

like, work, sing, can, web site.
must I like EnglishClub.

Noun thing or person pen, dog, work, This is my dog. He

music, town, lives in my house.
London, teacher, We live in London.
John

Adjective describes a noun good, big, red, well, My dogs are big. I
interesting like big dogs.
 PARTS OF SPEECH TABLE
Determiner limits or a/an, the, 2, some, I have two dogs
"determines" a many and some rabbits.
noun

Adverb describes a verb, quickly, silently, My dog

adjective or adverb well, badly, very, eats quickly. When
really he is very hungry,
he
eats really quickly.

Pronoun replaces a noun I, you, he, she, Tara is Indian. She is

some beautiful.

Preposition links a noun to to, at, after, on, but We

another word went to school on
Monday.
 PARTS OF SPEECH TABLE

Conjunction joins clauses or and, but, when I like dogs and I like
sentences or words cats. I like
cats and dogs. I like
dogs but I don't like
cats.

Interjection short exclamation, oh!, ouch!, hi!, well Ouch! That

sometimes inserted hurts! Hi! How are
into a sentence you? Well, I don't
know.
 GRAMMAR AND SENTENCE
STRUCTURE
• In English grammar, sentence structure is the
arrangement of words, phrases, and clauses
in a sentence. These three structures are a
common part of English, and are all
composed of groups of words. Clauses,
phrases and sentences are very similar, but
they do have different roles. Learning the
difference between them will help you make a
lot more sense of English grammar, and will
be very useful to improve your written
English.
 PHRASES
What is a phrase?
• Words can be grouped together, but without a subject
or a verb. This is called a phrase.
• Because a phrase has neither subject nor verb, it can’t
form a ‘predicate’. This is a structure that must contain
a verb, and it tells you something about what the
subject is doing.
• Phrases can be very short – or quite long. Two
examples of phrases are:
• “After dinner”
• “Waiting for the rain to stop”.
• Phrases can’t be used alone, but you can use them as
part of a sentence, where they are used as parts of
speech.
 CLAUSES
• What is a clause?
• Clauses are groups of words that have both subjects and
predicates. Unlike phrases, a clause can sometimes act as a
sentence – this type of clause is called an independent
clause. This isn’t always the case, and some clauses can’t be
used on their own – these are called subordinate clauses,
and need to be used with an independent clause to
complete their meaning.
• An example of a subordinate clause is “When the man
broke into the house”
• An example of an independent clause is “the dog barked at
him”
• While the independent clause could be used by itself as a
complete sentence, the subordinate clause could not. For it
to be correct, it would need to be paired with another
clause: “When the man broke into the house, the dog
barked at him.”
 SENTENCES
• What is a sentence?
• A complete sentence has a subject and predicate,
and can often be composed of more than one clause.
As long as it has a subject and a predicate, a group
of words can form a sentence, no matter how short.
• E.g. “You ate fish.”
• More complex sentences can combine multiple
clauses or phrases to add additional information
about what is described. Clauses may be combined
using conjunctions – such as “and”, “but” and “or”.
• E.g. “He went out to dinner but didn’t enjoy the meal.”
• This example is composed of two independent
clauses, “he went out to dinner” and “he didn’t enjoy
the meal”, combined with a conjunction- “but”.
• Parts of a Sentence
• The basic parts of a sentence are the
subject, the verb, and (often, but not
always) the object. The subject is usually a
noun — a word that names a person, place,
or thing. The verb (or predicate) usually
follows the subject and identifies an action
or a state of being. An object receives the
action and usually follows the verb.
 SIMPLE SENTENCES
• Simple sentence:
• A simple sentence is that type of sentence that
consists of one independent clause.
• Examples of the simple sentence:
• The moon goes around the earth.
• Water freeze at 0 degrees.
• I love my new cat.
• Sara enjoys cooking.
• Florida is in America.
• You run to the party.
• So all the above sentences, have an independent
clause so these are simple sentences.
 COMPOUND SENTENCES
• Compound sentence:
• A compound sentence is that type of sentence that has two or
more than two clauses joined together by conjunction or a
semicolon. Each of the clauses could form a sentence alone.
• Examples of the compound sentence:
• My father’s job is so difficult, but he enjoys going to work
every day.
• I like hot chocolate; it sends me to sleep.
• The bell rang and the music began.
• Ali asked for three candies. But he got four candies.
• She watches cartoons. And her brother watches sports.
 COMPLEX SENTENCE
• Complex sentence:
• A complex sentence is that type of sentence that
consists of an independent clause and also a
dependent clause. So that two types of clauses make
a complex sentence.
• Examples of the complex sentence:
• I washed the car after coming home.
• I love this class because I like to study Pakistan study.
• When the rain stopped, we went back out to play.
• The boys did not go to the zoo because they went to
the park.
• Many people enjoyed the movie; however, Ali did not.
 COMPOUND COMPLEX SENTENCE
• Compound complex sentence:
• A compound-complex sentence is that type of sentence that consists
of at least two independent clauses and one or more than one is a
dependent clause. So these clauses make a compound-complex
sentence.
• Examples of compound-complex sentences:
• While Sara reads novels, Ali reads comics, but Ahmed reads only
magazines.
• When you ready, I will call the cab, and we can go together.
• Sara forgot her anniversary, so she sent her a card when she finally
remembered.
• When you are free, I will call the store, and we can talk to the
manager.
• Sara wants cake because she is hungry, but she cannot take the
calories.
•
 4 FUNCTIONAL TYPES OF SENTENCE
• Four Functional Types of Sentences
• There are four main types of sentences that can be
distinguished by their function and purpose:
• A declarative sentence makes a statement: Babies
cry.
• An interrogative sentence poses a question: Why
do babies cry?
• An imperative sentence gives instructions or
expresses a request or demand: Please be quiet.
• An exclamatory sentence expresses strong feelings
by making an exclamation: Shut up!
 DEFINITION OF PUNCTUATION
• Punctuation is the tool that allows us to
organize our thoughts and make it easier to
review and share our ideas. The standard
English punctuation is as follows: period,
comma, apostrophe, quotation, question,
exclamation, brackets, braces, parenthesis,
dash, hyphen, ellipsis, colon, semicolon.
 PERIOD
• Period (.)
• - Use a period at the end of a declarative
sentence (a sentence which states an idea).
"That was a wonderful movie."
• - Use a period to end an abbreviation.
"I think that Mr. Williams is a great teacher."
 COMMA
• Comma ,
• Commas are primarily used to aid in clarity
and to join two independent clauses with a
conjunction. They set off introductory phrases
and set off series. They also are used to
separate independent and dependent clauses.
The Oxford comma is the inclusion of a
comma before coordinating conjunction in a
series.
 Comma examples
• Examples:
I enjoyed the singers, and I loved the dancers.
At the beginning of the performance, two dancers appeared from
behind the curtain.
Even though the auditorium was packed, the audience remained
silent.
I had eggs, toast, and orange juice.
• Commas can also be used to note an interjection in a sentence.
• Example:
The criminal said the judge was an idiot.
The criminal, said the judge, was an idiot.
• The criminal is speaking in the first sentence. The judge is speaking
in the second.
 APOSTROPHE
• Apostrophe ‘
• Apostrophes are used to mark possession and
to mark contractions. They are also used to
denote a quotation mark in material that is
already being quoted.
• Examples:
It was James’ car that the drunk driver hit.
“James said, ‘If you come any closer I’ll call the police.'”
• Quotation ” “
• Quotation marks are used to inform a reader either of something
that was spoken or something that is being directly copied from
another work. Quotes should also be placed around a word if it is
used in a specific context or otherwise bears special attention. In
informal applications, quotations can also be used to denote
something that is ironic.
• Examples:
Lydia said, “Is this my prom dress?”
Dr. Shruti claims, “The use of violence against women in India is on
the rise.”
• f
QUESTION AND EXCLAMATION MARKS
• Question and Exclamation ? !
• Question and exclamation marks are used to note
interrogative and exclamatory sentences. Neither
of these punctuation marks are commonly used
in academic writing. In general, a writer should
not be shouting at the reader in formal writing.
The lack of conversation makes any question
rhetorical, and revising the question in a
statement would be the better course.
• "Did you like that movie?"
 HYPHEN AND DASH
• Hyphen –
Hyphens are most commonly used to pair
compound words. Throw-away, high-speed-chase,
merry-go-round, user-friendly
• Dash –
Dashes are generally not in common use but
denote a tangent within a thought. There are two
kinds of dashes, an “en” dash and an “em” dash. En
dashes essentially are the same glyph as hyphens
but fill a different purpose. Em dashes are longer,
an easy way to remember is that an en dash is the
length of an “n” and an Em dash is the length of an
“m”.
 Dash examples
• Example:
I think that my dog is a genius — but doesn’t everybody
think their pet is?
• Dashes are able to substitute for commas and semicolons
in the right situation. They can replace commas to note
non-essential information or semicolon to note an example.
Despite, and because of this versatility dashes should not
be frequently employed in your writing. The multitude of
applications make dashes easy to overuse taking away
from, rather than adding to clarity in your writing.
• Note: Dashes can either connect to the surrounding words
or be separated by a space, it is an issue of style, be sure to
ask your professors if they have a preference.
 PARENTHESIS, BRACKETS AND
BRACES
• Parenthesis (), Brackets [], Braces {}
• Parenthesis note non-essential information that could
be skipped without altering the meaning of a sentence.
Brackets are most commonly employed in academic
writing within a quotation where the writer is omitting
or explaining something. In either case, the writer
places a bracket within the quote [explains or places an
ellipsis and] closes the bracket to continue the quote.
• Braces are used quite rarely and are employed to
essentially make a list within a list.
 PARENTHESIS, BRACKETS AND
BRACES EXAMPLES
• Examples:
Cora (the woman who lives down the street
from Jane) works as a paralegal.
Professor Brown claims, “She [the novel’s
central character] is an example of a strong
African-American woman.”
Before I go on vacation I need to pack my bags
{clothes, toiletries and shoes}, unplug the TV,
and close all of the windows.
 SEMICOLON
• Semicolon (;)
• - Use a semicolon when two independent
clauses in a sentence are not connected by a
conjunction (such as "and").
"I like pizza; Carlos also likes pizza"
 SEMICOLON
• Use a semicolon when the items in a series of
items contain commas.
"I have lived in Los Angeles, California; Boston,
Massachusetts; Trenton, New Jersey; and
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania."
 SEMICOLON
• Use a semicolon between independent
clauses in a sentence that are connected by
any of the following transitional words or
phrases: accordingly, consequently, for
example, for instance, furthermore, however,
instead, moreover, nevertheless, otherwise,
and therefore.
"I planned to study Saturday morning;
however, the power in our house went out due
to a storm
 COLON
• Colon (:)
• - Use a colon before a list that is preceded by a
complete independent clause. Some form of the
word "follow" is often used in such a case.
"On our next vacation, we plan to visit the
following countries: England, France, Italy, and
Greece."
• - Use a colon to divide hours from minutes.
"I have an appointment with the doctor at 10:30
tomorrow morning."
 STANDARD ENGLISH
• Standard English is used in formal
settings, for example when we talk or
write to people we don't know well,
such as doctors or head teachers. We do
this to show them respect or to make a
good impression.
5FEATURES OF STANDARD ENGLISH
• Standard english is not regionally based-
people from all over the country can and do
use it
• Standard english has distinctive features of
grammar, vocabulary and orthography
(spelling&punctuation) but not of
pronunciation. This is because it can be
spoken with any accent.
• It is the most prestigious variety of English,
associated with people of high social status.

• Standard english is the variety promoted by

educational institutions and is used
extensively in government, law and the mass
media. It is the form of English that is most
widely understood.
• It is the variety most commonly used in
printed texts but only a minority of people use
it when they speak. Most people use a
combination of standard english and regional
features when they speak.
 STANDARD LANGUAGE VS
VERNACULAR
• The distinction between a vernacular
language and a standard language is
a useful place to start. Vernacular is the
language or dialect spoken by the ordinary
people of a country or region. ...
Vernacular is different: think of it as how
friends talk when no one is listening.
Vernacular language includes slang.
 VERNACULAR
• A vernacular or vernacular language refers to the language or dialect that
is spoken by people that are inhabiting a particular country or region. The
vernacular is typically the native language, normally spoken informally
rather than written, and seen as of lower status than more codified forms.
It may vary from more prestigious speech varieties in different ways, in
that the vernacular can be a distinct stylistic register, a regional dialect, a
sociolect, or an independent language. Vernacular is a term for a type of
speech variety, generally used to refer to a local language or dialect, as
distinct from what is seen as a standard language. The vernacular is
contrasted with higher-prestige forms of language, such as national,
literary, liturgical or scientific idiom, or a lingua franca, used to facilitate
communication across a large area.

• According to another definition, a vernacular is a language that has not

developed a standard variety, undergone codification, or established a
literary tradition. In the context of language standardization, the terms
"vernacular" and "vernacular dialect" are also used as alternative
designations for "non-standard dialect".
QUESTIONS