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Thursday, July 28, 2005

Basic English Grammar



What is Grammar?

Think of grammar as a signpost.Grammar is the system of a language. People sometimes describe grammar as the "rules" of a language; but in fact no language has rules*. If we use the word "rules", we suggest that somebody created the rules first and then spoke the language, like a new game. But languages did not start like that. Languages started by people making sounds which evolved into words, phrases and sentences. No commonly-spoken language is fixed. All languages change over time. What we call "grammar" is simply a reflection of a language at a particular time.

Do we need to study grammar to learn a language? The short answer is "no". Very many people in the world speak their own, native language without having studied its grammar. Children start to speak before they even know the word "grammar". But if you are serious about learning a foreign language, the long answer is "yes, grammar can help you to learn a language more quickly and more efficiently." It's important to think of grammar as something that can help you, like a friend. When you understand the grammar (or system) of a language, you can understand many things yourself, without having to ask a teacher or look in a book.

So think of grammar as something good, something positive, something that you can use to find your way - like a signpost or a map.

Glossary of English Grammar Terms
Active Voice:
In the active voice, the subject of the verb does the action (eg They killed the President). See also Passive Voice.

Adjective:
A word like big, red, easy, French etc. An adjective describes a noun or pronoun.

Adverb:
A word like slowly, quietly, well, often etc. An adverb modifies a verb.

Article:
The "indefinite" articles are a and an. The "definite article" is the.

Auxiliary Verb:
A verb that is used with a main verb. Be, do and have are auxiliary verbs. Can, may, must etc are modal auxiliary verbs.

Clause:
A group of words containing a subject and its verb (for example: It was late when he arrived).

Conjunction:
A word used to connect words, phrases and clauses (for example: and, but, if).

Infinitive:
The basic form of a verb as in to work or work.

Interjection:
An exclamation inserted into an utterance without grammatical connection (for example: oh!, ah!, ouch!, well!).

Modal Verb:
An auxiliary verb like can, may, must etc that modifies the main verb and expresses possibility, probability etc. It is also called "modal auxiliary verb".

Noun:
A word like table, teacher, Afghanistan etc. A noun is the name of an object, concept, person or place. A "concrete noun" is something you can see or touch like a person or car. An "abstract noun" is something that you cannot see or touch like a decision or happiness. A "countable noun" is something that you can count (for example: bottle, song, dollar). An "uncountable noun" is something that you cannot count (for example: water, music, money).

Object:
In the active voice, a noun or its equivalent that receives the action of the verb. In the passive voice, a noun or its equivalent that does the action of the verb.

Participle:
The -ing and -ed forms of verbs. The -ing form is called the "present participle". The -ed form is called the "past participle" (for irregular verbs, this is column 3).

Part Of Speech:
One of the eight classes of word in English - noun, verb, adjective, adverb, pronoun, preposition, conjunction and interjection.

Passive Voice:
In the passive voice, the subject receives the action of the verb (eg The President was killed). See also Active Voice.

Phrase:
A group of words not containing a subject and its verb (eg on the table, the girl in a red dress).

Predicate:
Each sentence contains (or implies) two parts: a subject and a predicate. The predicate is what is said about the subject.

Preposition:
A word like at, to, in, over etc. Prepositions usually come before a noun and give information about things like time, place and direction.

Pronoun:
A word like I, me, you, he, him, it etc. A pronoun replaces a noun.

Sentence:
A group of words that express a thought. A sentence conveys a statement, question, exclamation or command. A sentence contains or implies a subject and a predicate. In simple terms, a sentence must contain a verb and (usually) a subject. A sentence starts with a capital letter and ends with a full stop (.), question mark (?) or exclamation mark (!).

Subject:
Every sentence contains (or implies) two parts: a subject and a predicate. The subject is the main noun (or equivalent) in a sentence about which something is said.

Tense:
The form of a verb that shows us when the action or state happens (past, present or future). Note that the name of a tense is not always a guide to when the action happens. The "present continuous tense", for example, can be used to talk about the present or the future.

Verb:
A word like (to) work, (to) love, (to) begin. A verb describes an action or state.

SUBJECT: A word or phrase in a sentence that denotes the doer of the action, the receiver of the action in passive constructions, or that which is described or identified.
You really need to know about a subject is: a sentence has got to have one!
To find out which word is the subject of a sentence, just ask yourself two questions:
1. What's going on (or being described)?
Who or what is doing whatever is going on (or being described)?
If you can answer question 2, you've found the subject.
Let's take a look at some examples:
1. The butcher saves the scraps for his dog.
The dog devours them quickly.
The butcher was a good man.
The dog was quite satisfied.
Shelties and cocker spaniels are good pets for small children.
Ask yourself the two questions about each of these sentences. Decide what's going on or being described, and then ask yourself who? or what? is doing it or being described. You can see that in numbers 1 and 2 the butcher and the dog are doing something. They are the subjects.
In numbers 3 and 4, the butcher and the dog are being described. Again, they are the subjects. Pretty easy, huh? In number 5, you can see how a sentence may have more than one subject, shelties and cocker spaniels.
If you back up to the dictionary definition, it says something about the subject being the receiver of the action in a passive construction. Consider the next sentence:
The dog was given a bone. There the dog receives the action--and the bone!--so it's the subject. But don't worry too much about passive constructions right now. We'll get back to them later.
This is awfully simple, but if you can't clearly identify the subject of a sentence, you're going to get into trouble later on when we talk about some of the harder stuff.

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VERB
A part of speech that expresses existence, action, or occurrence.
Remember question one for identifying subjects? "What's going on (or being described)?" Answer that and you've found your verb. And like a subject, a sentence has got to have one!
Let's look at a few more examples:
1. Ali ran into the burning building.
2. The man stepped on its ears.
What's going on in these sentences? A couple of men are doing stupid things; but what they are doing is the verb--in this case, Ali ran and the man stepped . Both show action.
Got the idea? Now let's look at verbs that are a little different. Some verbs don't show action. Instead, they link the subject to some other information: these are called, big surprise, linking verbs .
Common linking verbs are "to be" forms--such as, is, am, are, was, were--and the verbs appear, become, feel, look, seem. Examples are:
1. She was fond of her animals.
2. Pierre is a fine beast.
3. She looks like she has been in a fight with a cat.
4. It feels damp in the grass.
In identifying the verb, you also need to look for the helpers, since they are considered part of the verb. The helpers (auxiliaries) include: is, am, are, was, were, been, has, have, had, do, does, did, may, can, might, shall, will, should, could, would.
I've marked the complete verb in the following:
1. I was exercising before breakfast.
2. He should have let me out of the house.
3. I tried to wait for him to get up.
4. He should not have stayed in bed so long.
5. I shout and waited until. . . .
I guess you can figure out what happened at the end of this little story. It's an all-too-frequent part of a person life. . . . But about the verbs.
Notice what is not included in the verb in numbers 3 and 4: to wait and not. Words with to in front of them are never a part of the verb, even though they look suspiciously like verbs. Words like not, always, just, never, and only are not part of the verb.
Remember how a sentence can have more than one subject? It can also have more than one verb, as you see in number 5. One other thing: no word with an "-ing" ending can ever be the verb without a helper: I exercising; she running? No way!

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PREPOSITION
A word that indicates the relation of a substantive to a verb, an adjective, or another substantive.
I'm not sure I understand that definition, but it doesn't matter. Our only interest in these little words is how they can help us in finding subjects--or, better said, in how they can show us what can't be the subject.
A phrase is a group of words. A prepositional phrase is one that begins with a preposition, such as at, before, beside, between, by, during, for, from, in, over, under, with. You get the idea. If you find a word in a prepositional phrase (e.g., "in the doghouse," "across the street," "under the house"), it can't be the subject.
So when you have trouble finding subjects, just get rid of the prepositional phrases. That will narrow your search to what's left. Take a look at the following: (I've bolded the subjects and verbs for browsers that do not support the strike through tag.
1. During the football game, I snuck into the kitchen.
2. The scraps from dinner were in the garbage.
3. Except for ol' Doc, no one was at home.
4. With one nudge, I pushed the can on its side.
5. Until the end of the game, I could snack on the scraps with no fear of interruption.
See how easy it is to spot the subject once you cut the stuff that can't be one? Pretty simple, but it may come in handy when we get to
subject-verb agreement
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FRAGMENT
Every sentence has to have a subject and a verb in order to be complete (remember what we said about subjects and verbs?). If it doesn't, it's a fragment. That's easy enough if you have something like
1. Ran into town. (no subject)
2. The growling dog. (no verb)
Unfortunately, there's a little more to it than that. You can have a group of words with both a subject and a verb that is still a fragment. Not fair? What is? So, before we go any further, we need to cover some basics.
A phrase is nothing more than a group of words. (See
prepositions.)
A
clause is a group of words with a subject and a verb. There are two types that you need to be able to distinguish:
1. main (independent) clause: one that can stand alone and express a complete thought
2. subordinate (dependent) clause: one that depends on another element for its complete meaning
A main clause is a complete sentence; a subordinate clause, because it depends on something else, isn't--even though it has a subject and a verb. A few examples should make this clear (subjects and verbs are bolded):
1. I sit in front of the fireplace.
2. We go for a walk.
3. I like people.
These are all main clauses. The information might be sketchy, (unclear) but the ideas are complete. Compare these with the following which are all subordinate clauses. There is a subject and a verb, but the ideas are incomplete.
1. When it is cold.
2. After the dishes are put up.
3. Who pat my head and give me treats.
These are fragments because they are punctuated incorrectly. It's easy to spot (mark) this kind of mistake: just read your paper aloud, slowly and carefully, exactly as it is punctuated (that is, stop at each period). If anything is incomplete (a fragment), you should hear it.
Think about it: if I come into the room and haven't spoken to you, you'll be a little puzzled if all I say is "When it is cold." You're going to be waiting for more information. (Actually, you'd probably be more than puzzled if I said anything!)
One way to put these examples together clearly and correctly is:
1. When it is cold, I sit in front of the fireplace.
2. We go for walk after the dishes are put up.
3. I like people who pat my head and give me treats.
Notice the punctuation. When a subordinate clause begins a sentence, always put a comma after it (#1). If the subordinate clause comes after the main clause, you usually need no punctuation (#2 and #3). With sentence 1 and 2, you could just as easily have written (again, pay attention to the punctuation):
1. I sit in front of the fireplace when it is cold.
2. After the dishes are put up, we go for a walk.
Some of the words that create a subordinate clause are: after, although, as, because, before, if, since, that, unless, until, when, whether, which, while, and who. Watch out for these and check your sentences carefully to make sure they're punctuated correctly.
That's probably enough on fragments. Just remember: whatever is between that opening capital letter and the closing period in a sentence has to express a complete thought. Otherwise, you'll probably give your professor something to mark on your paper!

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COMMA-SPLICES & FUSED SENTENCES
Here you're going to need to know something about clauses, since comma-splices and fused sentences deal with two clauses that are incorrectly punctuated. (Some people call them run-ons.) Look at the following:
1. I leave muddy (dirty) foot prints on the kitchen floor I get in trouble.
2. I leave muddy foot prints on the kitchen floor, I get in trouble.
Neither of these is correct. The first runs two main clauses together without any kind of punctuation. This is a fused sentence. The second joins two main clauses together with only a comma. This is a comma-splice. Both will get your instructor's attention!
What's the problem? Each main clause expresses a complete thought. If you run two or more complete thoughts together without the right punctuation, they tend to blur. And the whole idea behind any kind of communication is to get your point across clearly, right? Anything that takes away from that should be avoided.
What's the solution? Don't do it! How you "Don't do it!" is really pretty easy, since there are four ways to get rid of comma-splices or fused sentences. Find the problem clauses and
o separate them with a period (.).
I leave muddy paw prints on the kitchen floor. I get in trouble.
o join them with a coordinating conjunction.
I leave muddy paw prints on the kitchen floor, and I get in trouble.
o separate them with a semicolon (;).
I leave muddy paw prints on the kitchen floor; I get in trouble.
o subordinate one clause.
When I leave muddy paw prints on the kitchen floor, I get in trouble.
Which is best? They're all correct, so the choice is up to you. Just decide which way sounds the best with the rest of the sentences around the problem. That's all you need to know about comma-splices and fused sentences.
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JOINERS
Ali has some fancy words for joiners like coordinating conjunctions, conjunctive adverbs, and who knows what else. But hey, a joiner is a joiner. Knowing their names is good, but knowing how they work is better!
Remember what I said about
comma-splices and fused sentences? One way to correct them is to join two main clauses with a coordinating conjunction. You're thinking, "Fine, but what are they?" Just think "FANBOYS" and you have every single one of them:
For, And, Nor, But, Or, Yet, So . . . FANBOYS
Sure it's silly, but it's easy to remember. Look at the following examples and pay attention to where the commas go:
1. He threw the Frisbee, and I caught it.
2. I ran after the cat, but I couldn't catch it.
3. He filled up her food bowl, yet she wouldn't eat.
4. They wanted to go walking without me, so I gave them my saddest look.
5. I scratched my ear, for there was a bug in it.
(The use of for in the last sentence may sound funny to you. You'd probably be more comfortable with because. That's okay. Both are correct, but if you use because, drop the comma in this construction. Review the comments on
punctuating subordinate clauses if you need to.)
Just pick the joiner that makes sense in your sentence, and put a comma in front of it. That's all there is to using coordinating conjunctions.
The second kind of joiner is a little different. Like the "FANBOYS," it joins two main clauses, but it also works as a transition (that is, it shows a logical relation between them).
Probably the most common transitional joiners are therefore and however. Others are: also, thus, in addition, otherwise, instead, as a result, meanwhile, on the other hand, and consequently.
With these, you have to watch your punctuation. You need a semicolon to separate the two main clauses and a comma after the joiner. (If you only use a comma between the two main clauses, you've created a comma-splice.)
1. I wanted to play in the backyard; therefore, I went to the door.
2. I scratched and yelled; however, I couldn't get his attention.
3. Maybe he was working at the computer; on the other hand, he could have been asleep.
These should give you the idea; however, remember that we're talking about joining two main clauses. Sometimes you'll find one of these transitional joiners used differently. For instance:
o He wanted to play. I, however, wanted to sleep.
o Ahmad always tries to eat my food. Ali, therefore, always puts it on the kitchen table when I'm not eating.
Here, however and therefore do not join anything--they simply interrupt the flow of thought in the sentence. That's why they're only set off with commas.
Like most grammar basics, joiners aren't that hard to understand or to use. Just watch your punctuation, and you should have no problems.
AGREEMENT: SUBJECT- VERB
I got a hold of some bad lunch the other day, and they didn't agree with me. Stomach aches aren't very pleasant. Don't you agree?
We all know these meanings of "agree," but when we talk about subject-verb agreement, we're talking about something different: matching
subjects and verbs according to number. That is, when you have a singular subject, you have to match it with a singular verb form: The boy plays. When you have a plural subject, you must have a plural verb form: The boys play.
In short, simple sentences, you should have no problem with agreement. You can hear the problem: The boys plays. When it's wrong, it just sounds funny. However, there are four potential problem spots that you need to watch carefully:
o stuff in between the subject and verb
o reversed sentence order
o "-body," "-one," and "-thing" words
o "who," "which," and "that"
STUFF IN BETWEEN SUBJECTS & VERBS
The stuff here is usually a prepositional phrase that separates the subject from the verb. Remember how we crossed out prepositional phrases in order to find the subject? (For more details please see preposition) Do the same thing if you're having problems with agreement. Now, thinking about that, look at the following sentence and decide what's wrong with it:
The dishes in the kitchen is dirty.
Good guess! The subject and the verb don't agree. What's the probable cause for the problem? Kitchen (a singular noun) is right in front of is (a singular verb). If kitchen were the subject, that would be okay. But, it's not. Cross out the prepositional phrase and you're left with:
The dishes in the kitchen is dirty.
"The dishes . . . is dirty?" Sounds wrong, doesn't it? The subject is plural, but the verb is singular. They don't agree. The correct version is:
The dishes in the kitchen are dirty.
Once you know how to look for this problem, it shouldn't be too hard to get rid of it when you proofread your paper.
RESERVED SENTENCE ORDER
The normal pattern for English sentences is subject-verb. However, there are a few situations where this order is reversed (like this sentence):
o There are snacks on the laundry-room table.
o Where are they?
o On the table are the goodies!
See how the subject comes after the verb in each of these? If you can remember how to locate subjects and verbs, you shouldn't blunder into mistakes when writing reversed-order sentences.
"-body," "-one," and "-thing" words
The correct term for these words is indefinite pronouns, but if you remember them as "-body," "-one," and "-thing" words, you'll probably be able to spot them more easily. You only need to know one thing: if a word has one of these endings (like everybody, everyone, anyone, anything, etc.), it is always singular! You can also include each, either, and neither in this group. Look at the following:
1. Everyone is going on a picnic.
2. Each of the boys is taking his own lunch.
3. If anyone drops something to do, I'll accept it before someone can pick it up.
You shouldn't have problems with these if you simply memorize the endings of words that are always singular.
NOTE: We said that either and neither are always singular; however, if you have two subjects in an either . . . or or neither . . . nor construction, getting the agreement right may give you fits. To get it right, just locate the subject closest to the verb and make the verb agree with it:
o Either the mailman or the construction workers are causing Mottee to bark like crazy.
o Neither the dogs down the street nor the one next door pays any attention.
Compare this with the following:
o Either the construction workers or the mailman is causing Mottee to bark like crazy.
o Neither the one next door nor the dogs down the street pay any attention.
Agreement, in this case, depends on the placement of the subject.
"Who," "which," and "that"
Remember
dependent clauses? They have a subject and a verb, but they can't stand alone. That's what we're dealing with here, but with a little something extra. Now we've got to consider pronouns. A pronoun is a word that takes the place of a noun that comes before it, usually in the same clause or one very close to it.
Nadia is a troublemaker. She bites my ears and steals my food.
"Who," "which," and "that" are pronouns. When they take the place of a singular noun, they are singular; when they take the place of a plural noun, they are plural. This is important to remember when they are the subject of a clause. Compare the following sentences:
1. Waleed is one of those students who are very intelligent.
2. Waleed is a student who is very intelligent.
In both, who is the subject of a dependent clause. In number 1, it takes the place of Students (a plural form). That's why "are" is the correct verb choice. In number 2, who takes the place of Student (a singular form), and that's why "is" is correct.
This may seem a bit confusing at first, but there's a way to get it right every time. If you find "who," "which," or "that" introducing a dependent clause (like in the examples above):
1. Look at the word right in front of it (usually that's the word it takes the place of).
2. Decide if the word is singular or plural (that will tell you whether "who," "which," or "that" is singular or plural).
3. Make the verb agree!
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AGREEMENT: PRONOUND-ANTECEDENT
Pronouns are a handy way to keep from repeating nouns too much. Consider the following:
o When Big Dog snuck under the fence, Big Dog ran to the dumpster. =====
o When Big Dog snuck under the fence, he ran to the dumpster. =====
Clearly the second sentence sounds better.
When we talked about
subject-verb agreement, we said that the subject and the verb must agree in number. That is, you have to make sure that both are singular or both are plural. The same goes for pronouns and antecedents.
A pronoun renames (takes the place of) a noun that comes before it.
An antecedent is what we call the noun that comes before the pronoun.Two examples should be enough:
1. I get worried when the neighbors let their dog out.
2. The tiger goes wild, and he always messes up my front yard.
In number 1, (neighbors) is the antecedent; (their) is the pronoun. They agree because both are plural. In number 2, (Tiger) is the antecedent, and he is the pronoun. They agree since both are singular. If you are having problems with pronoun-antecedent agreement, underline all your pronouns; then, locate the antecedent for each. Make sure that both are the same in number. That's all you have to do.
With subject-verb agreement, we also talked about
indefinite pronouns ("-one," "-body," and "-thing" words). With pronouns, we need to look at the "-one" and "-body" words again. (Also include "either," "neither," and "each.") These are always singular, and that should be easy enough to remember. But most beginning writers seem to have trouble with them. Part of the problem is the way we speak. Few would notice anything wrong if they heard someone say,
o Everyone needs to take their son to the vet (examine, inspect) regularly.
o Everybody was enjoying their vacation.

These sound okay, right? Maybe so, but they're wrong if you're writing. Words like "everyone" and "everybody" are always singular, so the plural pronoun their can't agree with them. The correctversions are:
o Everyone needs to take his son to the vet regularly.
o Everybody was enjoying her vacation.
You could use his or her in either sentence, depending upon the context.
Sexism (bigotry, narrow-mindedness) in the language
Some suggest that you should always use "he or she," "his or her," or "him or her" instead of simply using the masculine "he," "his," or "him." If you're worried about the sexist tradition of using masculine pronouns to refer to all people, then rewrite your sentences in the plural, as in "People need to take their sons to the vet regularly." "The people were enjoying their vacations."
You could use "he or she" (etc.), but it sounds awkward and will eventually lead to an agreement problem--if it doesn't bore your readers to death first. For instance:
If an owner doesn't take proper care of his or her son, then he or she will find his or her kid may suffer. The kid will be grateful to him or her if he or she takes care of his or her reponsibilities. When he or she . . . .
You may be an inexperienced writer, but you're not an inexperienced listener. That passage simply sounds dumb. Like I said, if you're worried about a sexist slant, go for the plurals!

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DANGLING MODIFIERS
o Having been thrown in the air, the player caught the ball.
o Smashed flat by a passing truck, Dog sniffed at what was left of a half-eaten hamburger.
The best way to begin talking about dangling modifiers is to show you a couple so you can see the problem for yourself: the writer has unintentionally said something that he (or she) didn't intend. The player wasn't "thrown in the air," and Dog wasn't "smashed flat." We can work out what is actually meant. But a reader shouldn't have to work things out.
Sentences like these are funny--but that's just the problem. Any time you draw attention to how you've said something instead of what you've said, your communication suffers. If you're writing something important, and I stop to chuckle over a faulty construction, the overall effect is lost.
So how do you get rid of these? Do the following:
1. Check for modifying phrases at the beginning of your sentences.
2. If you find one, underline the first noun that follows it. (That's the one that is being modified.)
3. Make sure the modifier and noun go together logically. If they don't, chances are you have a dangling modifier.
4. Rewrite the sentence.
Let's go back to the opening sentences and see how this works:
o Having been thrown in the air, the player caught the ball.
o Smashed flat by a passing truck, the Dog sniffed at what was left of a half-eaten burger.
Both sentences begin with a modifying phrase. In number 1, player is the first noun that follows; in number 2, it's Dog. Neither one goes logically with the modifier, so we need to rewrite the sentences. Sometimes you can rework the noun into the phrase itself. Often, you have to complete revise. One possible correction for each sentence is:
o When the ball was thrown in the air, the player caught it.(Here, the modifying phrase has become a dependent clause. The meaning is clear.)
o Dog sniffed at what was left of a half-eaten burger that had been smashed by a passing truck.(Again, the phrase has been rewritten as a clause.)
There are many ways to get rid of a dangling modifier. How you do it isn't that important, but being able to spot the problem and get rid of it is!
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MISPLACED MODIFIER
A modifier is a word or a phrase that describes something else. You should place it as close as possible to what it describes. If you don't, your intended meaning may not be clear. Consider the unintentional meanings in the following:
o The young girl was walking the cat in a short skirt.
o The policeman was chasing the boy with the spiked collar.
You can see what's wrong. The cat isn't "in a short skirt" and the boy doesn't have a "spiked collar." Because the modifier is misplaced, we have to think for a minute before we get the intended meaning. The correct versions are:
o The young girl in a short skirt was walking the cat.
o The policeman with the spiked collar was chasing the boy.

See how the proper placement clarifies the meaning?
You also need to watch the placement of modifiers such as almost, even, hardly, nearly, often, and only. A couple of examples should be enough:
1. Ali almost ran around the yard twenty times.
2. He nearly ate a whole box of treats.
In both sentences--when he "almost ran" and "nearly ate"--nothing happened! He didn't quite get around to doing either thing. What is intended is:
1. Ali ran around the yard almost twenty times.
2. He ate nearly a whole box of treats.
Remember: if you give your readers a chance to interpret something in more than one way, they'll usually get it wrong! By placing your modifiers correctly, you'll eliminate this possibility and have a better chance of getting your point across.
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PARALLEL STRUCTURE
When we talk about parallel structure, or "faulty parallelism" as some call it, we're dealing with a balancing act. The idea isn't too hard, but most people don't think about it.
So what are we balancing? . . . pairs of words or series of words. Look at the following:
Pairsa and ba or b
Seriesa, b, and ca, b, or c
Looks kind of like an algebra equation, doesn't it?
Have no fear! This is a math free zone! Just think of the letters as standing for words or groups of words. Any words or groups of words that you plug in have to be the same kinds of words or word patterns. That's all there is to it! Let's see how the "formula" works:


Pairsrunning and jumping, bothered and bewildered, open or shut, laughing or crying
Seriesbroken, bedraggled, and bone-tiredan old shoe, a stuffed bear, and a chewed-up blanket
When you write your sentences using parallel structure, your ideas come across more clearly because they're easier to read. Compare the following sentences:
1. Peggotty's toys were an old shoe, a bear that was stuffed, and she had chewed up an old blanket.
2. Peggotty's toys were an old shoe, a stuffed bear, and a chewed-up blanket.
See how the second sentence is smoother and more balanced? If you 'll try to balance your own sentences in this way, your writing will be more forceful.
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REFERENCES
With reference, we're talking about pronouns again. If you recall, a pronoun is a word that renames (takes the place of) another word (the antecedent). It not only must agree with its antecedent (see agreement: pronoun-antecedent), but it must also clearly refer to the word it renames.
The problem?If the pronoun doesn't clearly refer to its antecedent, you may cause confusion for your readers. And as we've said before, if you confuse your readers (and it's not that hard to do!), your communication breaks down.
The solution?Whenever you find a pronoun in your writing, underline it and then draw an arrow back to the specific one word that it renames. If you can't find the word or there seem to be two or more words that it could refer to, you have a problem with reference. Remember: the antecedent must be in the preceding clause or phrase (the one right before the pronoun) if you want to make sure the reference is clear.
Now, let's take a look at a few examples:
1. The man always buys my son food at the kid store because they are so friendly.
2. The owner told Ali that he was looking fit.
3. His brother is a cat breeder, but I'm not interested in it.
4. He tried to put the tape of 1001 Dalmatians in the VCR, but it was broken.
Try drawing an arrow from any of these italicized pronouns to the word they rename. Can't do it? That's because each is an example of a reference problem. Sometimes the problem is easy to fix; sometimes you've got to start all over again, as you can see in the following:
Look back at number 1. The problem is with they: who are they? To fix it, rephrase with something like". . . because the owners are so friendly" or ". . . because the people who work there are so friendly." With these changes, there is no problem with clarity.In number 2, we don't know who was looking fit. Was it Ali or the owner? Fixing sentences like this one can be awkward, but here's one suggestion. "The owner told Ali, 'You look fit.'" Or, if you meant something else you could say, "The owner told Ali, 'I look fit.'"With number 3, you have a different problem: it has no specific antecedent. The writer is trying to refer to the vague, unstated idea of "cat breeding," but you can't clearly refer to something that doesn't exist. One fix is: "His brother is a cat breeder, but I'm not interested in breeding cats."In number 4, the pronoun could be referring to either the tape or the VCR. Since it can't refer to both, the meaning is unclear. One solution is: "He tried to put the tape of 1001 Dalmatians in the VCR, but the machine was broken." Obviously, you could put "tape" in place of "machine" if that was what you meant.
Reference problems can create confusion in your writing, but if you know what they are and use the "underline and arrow" trick to check for them, they shouldn't cause you any trouble.

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PRONOUNCES
We've talked about pronouns with regard to reference and agreement: pronoun-antecedent. Here we need to cover a few odds and ends, and some of this stuff may really sound odd to you. But these are a few things you should know.
Subjects and objects
First let's look at case--that is, the difference between the subject and object forms of the pronouns. We know what
subjects are, and objects are those words that come at the end of prepositional phrases (among other things). You probably already know the differences, but just in case, here's a list of the forms:

Subject Object
I me
You you
He him
She her
It it
We us
They them
The only thing you need to know is that these forms can't be switched around. If the word is a subject, it must be a subject form; if it's an object . . . well, you get the idea. Consider the following:
o Faiza and me went to school.
o Her and me fought over the children.
Some of you are probably thinking, "What's wrong with these?" In spoken English, you'll hear things like this every day. But in written English, you need to make sure your forms aren't mixed up. The correct versions are "Fiza and I" and "She and I," since the words are the subject of the sentence. Nothing in the object list can be a subject--ever! You wouldn't say, "Me went" or "me fought"--unless you were trying out for a Tarzan movie.
The same goes for objects of prepositions. You can't use a subject form in a prepositional phrase.
o Fiza fetched the paper for her and I.
o We ran after John and she.
"For I"? "After she"? These can't be right, since both are in the subject list; but, they're used as objects of the preposition. The correct versions are "for me" and "after her." You shouldn't have as much trouble with these because you don't hear them misused quite as often in this way. But watch out for "just between you and I." That phrase gets a lot of use--even though "I" can't be an object. It's "just between you and me"!
With "to be" verbs
Now we get to the stuff that will sound odd to you. Remember when we talked about "to be" verb forms? (If you need a quick review, click
here for a refresher.) Any time a pronoun comes after one of these verbs, the subject form is required.
o It is I.
o It was they.
o It is he.
I told you this would sound funny--but it's correct! So, all these years you've been saying, "It's me" and "It's them," and you've been wrong. Right or wrong, I can't bring myself to say, "It is I." "It's me" sounds more natural. The best thing to do when you write yourself into a construction like this is to rethink and rewrite in a different way. (If anyone tells you otherwise, just say "it was I" who told you.)
With "than" or "as"
Another common pronoun mistake happens in sentences where you use "than" or "as" to compare people or things:
o Peggy is smaller than I.
o The dog down the street is meaner than she.
o Dogs are as smart as they.
You want to use "me," "her," and "them," don't you? You could, but that wouldn't be right. The subject form of the pronoun always comes after "than" or "as." Why? There's an understood verb in the construction.
o Peggy is smaller than I (am).
o The dog down the street is meaner than she (is).
o Dogs are as smart as they (are).
You can see why the object form won't work: "me am," "her is," and "them are" are just plain wrong! Even though you probably hear these kinds of sentences used incorrectly, when you're writing you can get them right if you remember that understood verb.
Relative pronouns: who, whom, whose, that, and which
In addition to renaming another word (like all pronouns), relative pronouns often introduce added details in your sentences. They can also be used to ask questions. Look at the following:
1. Big Dog is the one who is a true grammar hound.
2. Peggy is the dog whom everyone loves to pet.
3. Whose ball is that?
4. She is the one that I like.
5. I want to know which dog trampled the flowers.
These won't cause you too much trouble most of the time. Just remember: when you write about people, use "who," "whom," and "whose." When you write about things, use "which." "That" can be used in either case.
You may, however, have trouble with who and whom. Who is a subject form, and whom is an object. Like the subject and object forms we talked about earlier, you can't switch these around. Let's take a closer look at two of the sentences you just read:
1. Big Dog is the one who is a true grammar hound.
2. Peggy is the dog whom everyone loves to pet.
In number 1, "who" is the subject of the relative clause; in number two, "whom" is the object. "Fine," you're thinking, "but how do I know when to use 'who' or 'whom?'" You've got a 50/50 chance of getting it right, but you can better the odds if you'll do the following when you find a sentence like one of those above:
1. Mark the spot where "who" or "whom" should go.
2. Look at the group of words to the right of that mark.
Big Dog is the one _____is a true grammar hound.Peggy is the dog _____ everyone loves to pet.
3. Since "who" or "whom" introduces a relative clause, there should be a subject and a verb in that group of words. (Remember
clauses?)
_____is a true grammar hound._____everyone loves to pet.
4. If there is no subject, "who" is the right choice. It is the subject form and becomes the subject of the clause.
. . . who is a true grammar hound.
5. If there is a subject, "whom" is the right choice. It is the object form.
. . . whom everyone loves to pet.
Now that's not so hard, is it?
Reflexives
Reflexive pronouns are intensifiers that refer back to the doer of the action (the subject). You know the words: myself, yourself, himself, herself, itself, ourselves, yourselves, themselves.
We often say things like, I'll do it myself, "She'll fix it herself," etc. There's really no problem--except when you use a reflexive in place of a subject or object form. Never write (or say) something like, "Send it either to my secretary or myself." Keep that in mind, and you should be okay.
Pronouns are little words, but they're often troublesome. That's why we've spent so much time on them. But enough, already!
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CONSISTENCY
I'm not much for dictionary definitions, but the one for consistency is a good starting point: agreement or logical coherence among things or parts. The "things or parts" that we're going to talk about here are verbs and pronouns. The "agreement or logical coherence" that applies to them is really pretty simple--so simple that you might overlook it in your writing.

Verbs: tense
To make sure your verbs are consistent, just check their tense (the time they refer to). If you're writing in the past tense, for example, don't shift into the present unless you've got a logical reason to do so. If you do, you may confuse your readers about when something happened or something is happening--and you'll be having a problem with consistency. Look at these examples:
1. When Peggy was a pup, she was so uncoordinated that she often falls down.
2. Big Dog barks at the moon, and Peggy crawled through the bushes.
In number 1, the first two verbs ("was") are in the past tense; the third ("falls") is in the present. Why? There's no logical reason for the shift, so the tense is inconsistent. Change "falls" to "fell" and you have no problem.
In number 2, the first verb ("barks") is in the present tense; the second ("crawled") is in the past. Again, there is no logical reason for the shift. Switch "crawled" to "crawls," and you're okay. (Obviously which verb or verbs you change will depend on the meaning of your sentences.)
If you haven't noticed, the key to all this is logical reason. If you need to make a tense shift for your ideas to make sense, then make it. If you write a sentence like, "I live in Amarillo, but two years ago I lived in Atlanta."--there's nothing wrong. You're showing a logical relation between the past and the present.
Pronouns: point of view
To make sure your pronouns are consistent, check their point of view (the person they refer to). Person is nothing more than identifying who is speaking or being spoken about. There are three types: first-person ("I," "we"); second-person ("you"); and third-person ("he," "they").
Your point of view is inconsistent if you switch person without any "logical reason" (there's that phrase again). A couple of examples should give you the idea:
1. I like to eat when Peggy is in the backyard because you don't have to worry about her getting in the way.
2. Even though Doc tries to keep her in another room, you still have to worry.
Think about it. Why would "you" worry if "I" have a problem? I'm the one who's worried, so the sentence should show that: "I like to eat when Peggy is in the backyard because I don't have to worry. . . ." See the problem and how to fix it?
A final suggestion:In both sentences, the problem occurs with a shift to "you." Simply avoid using "you" anywhere in your paper. It will help your problems with inconsistent point of view, and it will make your writing sound more objective (but that's different topic). Trust me on this one!
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ACTIVE AND PASSIVE CONSTRUCTIONS
Remember our discussion of subjects? (If you need a review, click here.) A subject is "a word or phrase in a sentence that denotes the doer of the action [or] the receiver of the action in passive constructions."
To tell if a construction is active or passive simply look at the subject:
o If the subject is the "doer of the action," the sentence is active.
o If the subject is the "receiver of the action," the sentence is passive.
That's pretty easy. If you do something, you're active; if you have something done to you, you're passive. Compare the examples:
Active
o Peggy ate the bone.
o Big Dog chased the police car.
o We ate every bite of food.
Passive
o The bone was eaten by Peggy.
o The police car was chased by Big Dog.
o Every bite of food was eaten by us.
Generally, you want to make your sentences active whenever you can. Active sentences make your writing stronger, more forceful.