English Grammar Study Notes

Nouns: Names of people, places, things, or ideas (e.g., cat, city, joy).
Pronouns: Replace nouns to avoid repetition (e.g., he, she, it).
Verbs: Action or state of being (e.g., run, is, seem).
Adjectives: Describing words that modify nouns (e.g., blue, tall).
Adverbs: Modify verbs, adjectives, or other adverbs (e.g., quickly, very).
Prepositions: Show relationships between nouns/pronouns and other words (e.g., in, on, at).
Conjunctions: Connect clauses or sentences (e.g., and, but, or).
Interjections: Express emotions or exclamations (e.g., oh, wow).

Simple Sentences: Contains one independent clause (e.g., She runs).
Compound Sentences: Two independent clauses joined by a conjunction (e.g., She runs, and he swims).
Complex Sentences: One independent clause and at least one dependent clause (e.g., Because she was tired, she went home).
Compound-Complex Sentences: At least two independent clauses and one dependent clause (e.g., She runs, and he swims because they like sports).

Present: Indicates current actions (e.g., I walk).
Past: Indicates actions completed in the past (e.g., I walked).
Future: Indicates actions that will occur (e.g., I will walk).
Present Perfect: Actions that occurred at an unspecified time (e.g., I have walked).
Past Perfect: Actions completed before another past action (e.g., I had walked).
Future Perfect: Actions that will be completed before a specified future time (e.g., I will have walked).

Subjects must agree with verbs in number (singular/plural).
- Singular subjects take singular verbs (e.g., The dog barks).
- Plural subjects take plural verbs (e.g., The dogs bark).

Comma (,): Indicates a pause; used in lists, before conjunctions, and after introductory phrases.
Period (.): Indicates the end of a sentence.
Question Mark (?): Indicates a question.
Exclamation Mark (!): Indicates strong emotion.
Quotation Marks (" "): Enclose direct speech or quotations.
Apostrophe ('): Indicates possession (e.g., Sarah's book) or contractions (e.g., can't).

Run-on Sentences: Two or more independent clauses joined incorrectly.
Fragments: Incomplete sentences that lack a main clause.
Misplaced Modifiers: Words or phrases that are placed awkwardly in a sentence.

Active Voice: The subject performs the action (e.g., The chef cooked the meal).
Passive Voice: The subject receives the action (e.g., The meal was cooked by the chef).

Direct Object: Receives the action of a verb (e.g., She reads the book).
Indirect Object: Indicates to whom or for whom the action is done (e.g., She gave him the book).

Independent Clause: Can stand alone as a sentence (e.g., I enjoy reading).
Dependent Clause: Cannot stand alone and provides additional information (e.g., although I was tired).

Commonly Confused Words: Their/there/they're, your/you’re, affect/effect.
Formal vs. Informal Language: Use appropriate language based on context and audience.

Nouns are words that name people, places, things, or ideas.
Pronouns are words that replace nouns to avoid repetition.
Verbs express actions or states of being.
Adjectives modify nouns, describing their characteristics.
Adverbs modify verbs, adjectives, or other adverbs, providing further details.
Prepositions show relationships between nouns/pronouns and other words, indicating location, time, or direction.
Conjunctions connect clauses or sentences, showing relationships between ideas.
Interjections are words or phrases that express emotions or exclamations.

Simple sentences contain one independent clause, expressing a complete thought.
Compound sentences consist of two or more independent clauses joined by a conjunction.
Complex sentences include one independent clause and at least one dependent clause, which provides additional information.
Compound-complex sentences combine elements of compound and complex sentences, containing multiple independent clauses and at least one dependent clause.

Present tense indicates actions happening now.
Past tense indicates actions completed in the past.
Future tense indicates actions that will happen in the future.
Present perfect tense describes actions that began in the past and continue to the present or have a present effect.
Past perfect tense describes actions completed before another past action.
Future perfect tense indicates actions that will be completed before a specific future time.

Commas (,) indicate pauses and are used in lists, before conjunctions, and after introductory phrases.
Periods (.) mark the end of a sentence.
Question marks (?) indicate questions.
Exclamation marks (!) express strong emotions.
Quotation marks (" ") enclose direct speech or quotations.
Apostrophes (') indicate possession or contractions.

Run-on sentences occur when two or more independent clauses are joined incorrectly.
Fragments are incomplete sentences lacking a main clause.
Misplaced modifiers are words or phrases placed awkwardly in a sentence, creating confusion about what they modify.

Commonly confused words include:
- Their (possessive pronoun): They own it.
- There (adverb): It's there.
- They're (contraction): They are
- Your (possessive pronoun): It is your cat.
- You’re (contraction): You are
- Affect (verb): To influence or change
- Effect (noun): The result or outcome
Formal vs. informal language: Use appropriate language based on the audience and context.