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Nouns
The first letters of some nouns are capitalized to show a specific name or title (Alan). These are called proper nouns. Other
nouns that are not specific do not use a capital letter (man). These are called common nouns. Nouns that have a singular and
plural form are called count nouns. Nouns that only have a singular form are called non-count nouns.
person
often count nouns { place Common Noun Proper Noun
thing
Count Non-Count Count
Noun Functions
subject: The car runs well.
direct object: I bought a book.
complements: Mary was president.
object of the prep: He walked to the store.
indirect object: Sam mailed Joan a letter.
possession: The woman's daughter left early.
Verbs
A verb is a word that tells what the subject of the sentence does, says, thinks, or feels. Sometimes the verb shows movement
(jump) or sometimes it shows how a thing is or that it exists (is). The verb also shows time which is called tense. The form of
the verb or its tense can tell when events take place.
For example, the verb kiss (*note: kiss is also a count noun):
Past Continuous
Present Continuous (Progressive) Future Continuous (Progressive)
(Progressive)
is/am/are kissing will be kissing
was kissing
Adverbs
Adverbs modify or describe verbs (run fast), adjectives (often sad), or other adverbs (too often). Adverbs often, but not always,
end in -ly. A test for deciding if a word is an adverb is to think about the word's function. Adverbs tend to tell where, when, or
how.
For example: very pretty, most unhappy, never angry, come soon
Beth swims enthusiastically in the pool every morning before dawn to keep in shape.
to get a
Dad walks impatiently into town every afternoon before supper
newspaper.
In actual practice, of course, it would be highly unusual to have a string of adverbial modifiers beyond
two or three (at the most). Because the placement of adverbs is so flexible, one or two of the modifiers
would probably move to the beginning of the sentence: "Every afternoon before supper, Dad impatiently
walks into town to get a newspaper." When that happens, the introductory adverbial modifiers are
usually set off with a comma.
The Royal Order of Adverbs was created by Dr. Charles Darling, Professor of English, Capital Community College.
Source: Capital Community College Guide to Grammar & Writing: Adverbs. Reprinted with permission 25 February 2003.
Adjectives
Adjectives are words that describe a noun. Ugly, funny, big, round, and loose are all examples of adjectives. Some less obvious
examples are: that dog, her bone, enough food, every room. Adjectives can also describe how much or how many: fewer friends,
less food, more people.
Verb+ED becomes an adjective when it is used to describe a person or animal that experiences an emotion We will call this
adjective the Experiencer adjective.
One good way to remember to use ED to describe the Experiencer is to remember that both words start with E. The
Experiencer is described with ED.
Verb+ING becomes an adjective when it is used to describe the things that cause an emotion. We will call this the Instigator
(Causing) adjective.
One good way to remember to use ING to describe the Instigator (or Causing) adjective is to remember that both
words start with I. The Instigator is described with ING.
THE ROYAL ORDER OF ADJECTIVES
long-
four gorgeous red silk roses
stemmed
The Royal Order of Adjectives was created by Dr. Charles Darling, Professor of English, Capital Community College.
Source: Capital Community College Guide to Grammar & Writing: Adjectives. Reprinted with permission 25 February 2003.
Pronouns
Object
Subject (of verb or Possessive Reflexive
preposition)
I me mine myself
you you yours yourself
Singular he him his himself
she her hers herself
it it ----- itself
we us ours ourselves
Plural you you yours yourselves
they them theirs themselves
Conjunctions
A conjunction is a word that connects phrases, words, or clauses. Conjunctions are often used as transitions.
SUBORDINATING: introduces subordinate clauses and connects them with the main clause
Prepositions
Prepositions are words that express the relation of a noun or pronoun to another word in the sentence. Prepositions show the
relationships among things, people, and places.
Prepositions of
Direction Place Time
(to & from) (where) (when)
Interjections
An interjection is an exclamatory word (or words) that shows strong or sudden feeling and has no grammatical function in the
construction of a sentence.
For more detailed parts of speech review, see the Gallaudet University Handbook on Grammar & Usage by Marcia Bordman
and Anne Womeldorf.