Parts of Speech and Verbal Phrases

Parts of Speech

• Nouns: Words naming people, places, things, or ideas. Examples: dog, city, happiness, love.
• Pronouns: Words replacing nouns. Examples: he, she, it, they, we, you, I.
• Verbs: Words showing action or state of being. Examples: run, jump, is, are, was, were.
• Adjectives: Words describing nouns or pronouns. Examples: big, red, happy, intelligent.
• Adverbs: Words describing verbs, adjectives, or other adverbs. Examples: quickly, slowly, very, extremely, happily.
• Prepositions: Words showing relationship between a noun/pronoun and another word. Examples: on, in, at, under, over, by, with.
• Conjunctions: Words joining words, phrases, or clauses. Examples: and, but, or, nor, for, so, yet.
• Interjections: Words expressing strong emotion. Examples: Wow!, Ouch!, Hurry!

Verbal Phrases

• Verbal phrases: Groups of words with a verb form (verbals), plus modifiers, complements, and objects.
• Present participles: End in -ing, act as adjectives.
• Past participles: Often end in -ed or -en, function as adjectives or in passive constructions.
• Infinitives: Verbals starting with "to," function as nouns, adjectives, or adverbs.
• Gerunds: Verbals ending in -ing, function as nouns.

Comma Uses

• Separating items in a series: Separate three or more items. Example: The store sold apples, oranges, and bananas.
• Setting off introductory phrases/clauses: Separate introductory elements. Example: Before leaving, she packed her bag. After running a marathon, he felt exhausted.
• Separating coordinate adjectives: Separate two or more adjectives modifying the same noun. Example: The tall, strong man won the competition.
• Setting off nonessential phrases/clauses: Set off nonessential elements. Example: The runner, who was also a doctor, kept training. (Compare: The runner who won first place kept training.)
• Setting off quoted material: Set off direct quotations. Example: "Hello," he said.
• Avoiding comma splices and fused sentences: Do not use a comma to join independent clauses. Use a semicolon, conjunction, or separate sentences.
• Using commas after introductory words/phrases (e.g., however, therefore, nonetheless).

Punctuation

• Periods: End declarative and imperative sentences.
• Question marks: End interrogative sentences.
• Exclamation points: End exclamatory sentences.
• Commas: Used for various purposes (see Comma Uses).
• Semicolons: Separate closely related independent clauses.
• Colons: Introduce lists, quotations, or elaborations.
• Apostrophes: Show possession and contractions.
• Quotation marks: Enclose direct quotations.

Grammar

• Subject-verb agreement: Verb's number must match subject's number (singular/plural).
• Pronoun-antecedent agreement: Pronoun's number and gender must match its antecedent.
• Correct tense usage: Maintain consistent time of action.
• Correct voice usage: Sentences are either active (subject performs action) or passive (subject receives action).
• Proper sentence structure: Sentences contain a subject and a verb. Types: simple, compound, complex, compound-complex.
• Modifiers properly placed: Avoid ambiguity or awkwardness by correct placement.
• Word Choice: Use accurate and effective vocabulary for clear communication.
• Active and Passive Voice: Understanding impacts clarity and emphasis.
• Parallelism: Using similar grammatical structures enhances clarity.
• Logical flow of ideas: Organized and consistent arguments for coherence.