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English Grammar
ANSWERS TO ENGLISH GRAMMAR
UNIT 1
INTRODUCTION TO GRAMMAR
Some basic comcepts of English sysntax:
Traditional Grammar: is Gr based on early grammar of Latin or Greek and applied
to some other languages. Traditional Gr uses traditional categories such as part of
speech, number, gender, tense, persons, voice and agreements.
Prescriptive Grammar: states the rules for what is considered the best or the most
correct usages. They are often based on not the description of actual language but on
the grammarians’ point of view.
Descriptive Grammar: describes how language is actually spoken or written and it
does not describe (state) how it ought to be spoken or written.
IC (Immediate Constituents) Grammar: based on different elements of language, do
not belong to the same layer, they belong to different layers and create different
meanings.
Phrase structure (PS) Grammar: analyzes the structure of different sentences’types
in the language. It consists of phrase structure rules which show how a sentence can be
broken into various parts and how each part can be expanded.
Transformational generative (TG) Grammar: is a type of Gr which attempt to
define and describe a set of rules all the grammatical sentences of a language and
know ungrammatical ones. This type of grammar is said to generate or pruduce
grammatical sentences.
A. Theory
1. State whether the following rules is prescriptive or descriptive
a. The single word form maybe is an adverb meaning “perhaps”. The two-word
combination may be consists of an auxiliary verb followed by a copula verb be.
b. The possessive form for everyone is his and her. So do not say: “everyone brought
their own lunch” but rather say “everyone brought his (or her) lunch”.
c. The infinitive form of a verb is always uninflected. It should follow immediately
after the infinitive marker to. No word should intervene between to and its verb. So
this sentence “The Fourth Armed Devision tries to totally destroy the hideout.” Should
really be: “The Fourth Armed Devision tries to destroy the hideout.”
d. Present tense of the verbs with a third-person singular subject takes suffixes –s,
e.g. John understands it.
a and d are descriptive as they give the instruction and example while b and c are
prescriptive as they give the rule only.
2. English Grammar instruction for students planning to study literature in English in
their own country and those who will later be working in their own country for an
Australian company selling computers.
As the aim of studying of the two groups of students are different so there must be
different instruction for each groups to master the language.
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For students studying an academic field, the Gr instruction should be prescriptive at
the first stage, and then it should be the combination of prescriptive and descriptive
grammar to help them understand the language, the style and the expressive means the
writers use in their works. Thus both written and spoken English are really important.
For students who will later be working in their own country for an Australian company
selling computers, the Gr instruction should be descriptive as the students will later be
working with people whose mother tongue is English so they must be able to
communicate or use the language naturally. As the company specializes in selling
computers, the employee should be able to use the language (English) fluently to
persuade customers to buy their products. As a result, spoken English in this situation
is more important.
3. Dialogue:
C: My teacher holded the baby rabbits and we petted them.
A: Did you say your teacher held the baby rabbits?
C: Yes.
A: What did you say she did?
C: She holded the rabbits and we petted them.
A: Did you say she held them tightly?
C: No, she holded them loosely.
a. What generalizations about Gr does the child appear to have worked out?
- The child overgeneralized the rule by adding –ed for all the verb to form past
tense.
b. What is the adult trying to do and how effective it is? What does the dialogue
suggest to you about first language acquisition?
- The adult is trying to help the child correct the mistake but it is not really
effective as the child does not use the correct form. The dialogue also shows the fact in
first language acquisition. It is a natural process which is step by step realized by the
children as they grow up and there is no rule at all. The dialogue shows that the adult
focuses on the correct form of the correct grammar while the child is paying attention
to the content by applying all the rulls to it.
4. What is the difference between the descriptive grammar and prescriptive
grammar?
- Definition:
+ Prescriptive Grammar: states the rules for what is considered the best or the most
correct usages. They are often based on not the description of actual language but on
the grammarians’ point of view.
+ Descriptive Grammar: describes how language is actually spoken or written and it
does not describe (state) how it ought to be spoken or written.
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-
Aim
+ Prescriptive:
To regulate the way people speak and write
+ Descriptive: To describe how people actually speak and write
Rule
+ Prescriptive: The rules are normative
Eg:
+ Descriptive: Give the rules which are constitutive how we can define or describe
structure of the language.
5. What is the different between the free morpheme and the bound morpheme?
- Definition:
+ Free morphemes: are morphemes which can stand alone as independent words and
carry full semantic weight. Eg. –care (careful)
+ Bound morphemes: are morphemes which can not stand alone as independent words,
can only added to other words to form new words or new form of words. Eg. mis(misuse)
- Distribution
+ Free morphemes can stand alone
+ Bound morphemes can not stand alone
- Function (Semantic role):
+ Free morphemes can be independent words
+ Bound morphemes only modify the meaning of free morphemes or add
grammatical function to the free morphemes.
- Meaning:
+ Free morphemes carry the full meaning (principle meaning) of the words
+ Bound morphemes only support the meaning of the words based on prefix or
suffix
6. What is the typical feature of the Immediate Constituent Grammar? Give
examples to illustrate?
- Definition: IC (Immediate Constituents) Grammar bases on different elements of
language, which do not belong to the same layer, they belong to different layers and
create different meanings.
- Approach: Describe grammar through different levels of structure within a sentence
in a series of steps.
- Analysis: Analize grammar through lines or tree diagram based on the following
rules
Eg: The girl chased the dog
+ identify the two major constituents, the girl and chased the dog.
+ divide the next-biggest constituent into two, i.e, chased the dog is divided in to
chased and the dog
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+ continue dividing constituents into two until we can go no further, i.e, the girl
and the dog are divided into the+girl, the+dog
So we have: The/// girl / chas///-ed// the ///dog.
7. What is the typical feature of the traditional grammar? Give example
- Definition: Traditional Grammar is Gr based on early grammar of Latin or Greek
and applied to some other languages. Traditional Gr uses traditional categories such as
part of speech, number, gender, tense, persons, voice and agreements.
- Approach: Traditional grammar is often notional and prescriptive in its approach.
- Analysis: Analize the grammar based on the traditional categories such as part of
speech, number, gender, tense, persons, voice and agreements.
Eg:
Det
N
V
Det
N
P
N
The government expelled the officers from Thailand
8. What is the typical features of Phrase Structure Grammar? Give example to
illustrate
- Def: Phrase structure (PS) Grammar: analyzes the structure of different
sentences’types in the language. It consists of phrase structure rules which show how a
sentence can be broken into various parts and how each part can be expanded.
- Approach: The way of putting more information into an analysis would be to name,
or label, the elements/constituents that emerge each time a sentence is segmented.
Each label abbreviates a formal category.
- Analysis: phrase structure grammar use the tree diagram to analyse the sentence
based on the phrasal categories such as NP, VP, PP, etc.
Eg:
S
NP
VP
Det
N
V
NP
Det
N
The
boy hit
the
ball.
9. What are inflectional morphemes? Give example. Explain your understanding
of inflectional morphemes in English language.
- Definition: Inflectional morphemes are morphemes which create the new forms of
the old words to express grammatical contrast in sentence.
- Eg: He does exercises ( -es: is inflectional verb suffix for third person singular
present tense)
- In English, there are 8 types of inflectional morphemes:
+ plural –s (and irregular variants). Eg: boys, information
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+ possessive – ’s. Eg: boy’s
+ verb suffix for third person singular present tense -s. Eg: walks
+ progressive –ing. Eg: doing
+ comparative –er. Eg: cheaper
+ superlative –est. Eg: laziest
+ past participle –en, -ed ( and irregular variants). Eg: written, lived, put
+ simple past tense –ed ( and irregular variants). Eg: lived, wrote
10. What are the differences between inflectional morphemes and derivational
morphemes? Give example to illustrate.
- Definition:
+ Inflectional morphemes are morphemes which create the new forms of the old
words to express grammatical contrast in sentence. Eg: cheaper
+ Derivational morphemes are morphemes which create a new base form of the
word when attached. Eg: Happiness
- Both inflectional morphemes and derivational morphemes use suffixes to form new
words. But they are different from each other according to the following criteria:
+ Types of morphemes: Inflectional morphemes only use suffixes while
derivational morphemes use both prefixes and suffixes. Eg: cheaper ( inflectional
morpheme), unhappiness (derivational morphemes)
+ Function of morphemes: Derivational morphemes change part of speech or
meaning while inflectional morphemes only show grammatical function without
changing part of speech and meaning. Eg: boys ( Inflectional morpheme “-s” shows
the plural form of the noun boy), happiness(Derivational morpheme “-ness” shows the
change of the adjective “happy” into the noun “happiness”), unhappy (Derivational
morpheme “un-” shows the change of the meaning from affirmative to negative).
11. Give description of Grammatical Units?
Grammar deals with language form and meaning and the way they are interconnected
Grammatical Units are meaningful elements which combine with each other in a
structural pattern. In the simplest cases, a unit consists of one or more elements on the
level below:
- A sentence consists of one or more clauses
- A clause consists of one or more phrases
- A phrase consists of one or more words
- A word consists of one or more morphemes.
Properties of grammatical units: GUs are described in terms of 4 factors: structure,
syntactic role, meaning, and use.
Structure: Units can be described in terms of their external structure. For example:
word in terms of base and affixes; phrase in terms of head and modifiers, etc. Eg:
movement is formed from the base “move” and affix “-ment”.
Syntactic role: Units can be described in terms of their syntactic role. For example, a
phrase can function as Object in clause. Eg: she buy the book
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Meaning: Units can be described in terms of meaning. For example, adverb can
express information about time, place, and manner. Eg: In November, she won those
tickets.
Use ( discourse function): Units can be further described in terms of how they behave
in discourse. This can include their use in different registers, their frequency in those
registers, and the factors which influence their use in speech or in written texts. Eg:
Pronoun are more common in speech than in written texts
Morphemes
Definition: morpheme is t he smallest meaningful unit in a language. A morpheme can
not be divided without altering or destroying its meaning.
Eg: understand, -ness, etc.
- Classification ( Tham khảo Lexicology)
Words:
-
Defintion: Words are considered to be the basic elements of language.
- Types: According to the main function and grammatical behavior words are
classified into 3 types:
+ Lexical words: ( Content words) are the main carrier of information in a text or
a speech. They can be subdivided into parts of speech such as N, lexical V, Adj, Adv.
Lexical words are the most numerous. They often have a complex internal structure
and can be composed of several parts. Eg: unfriendliness( un+friend+li+ness). Lexical
words can be heads of phrases. Eg: the completion of the task. They are generally
stressed most in speech. They are generally remained if a sentence is compressed a
newspaper headlines.
+ Functional words: ( Xem sach trang 14)
+ Inserts: (Xem sach trang 14,15)
- Structure of word: Words can be created by the process of inflection, derivation, or
compounding.( Xem Lexicology)
Phrases:
- Definition: a phrase is a group of words which forms a grammatical unit. A phrase
does not contain a finite Verb and does not have Subject-Predicate structure.
- Characteristic of phrase
+ Words make up phrases which behave like units
+ A phrase can consist of one word or more than one word
+ Phrases can be identified by substitution and movement tests
+ Differences in phrase structure show up in differences of meaning.
+ Phrases can be embedded
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- Classification of phrase
According to the central words or head words, phrase can be classified into NP, VP,
AP, AdvP, PrepP( Xem trong tai lieu cua Thay Ngoc)
- Syntactic role of Phrase: Phrase can function as:
+ Subject: Eg: This beautiful girl plays guitar well.
+ Object: ( Direct Object, Indirect Object) Eg: I gave my close friend a book.
+ Complement ( Subject Complement, Object Complement)
Eg: She is a good student. ( SC)
I consider her my best friend (OC)
+ Attributive Eg. The very beautiful girl ...
+ Adverbial. Eg: Really slowly, she entered the room.
Example from Mr.Ngoc:
+I
gave
the man
NP VP
Function as: S
Predicate
NP
IO
a cake
every morning
NP
DO
NP
Adverbial
Eg2: I called her my honey.
NP
( Object Complement)
Eg3: She is my honey
NP
( Subject Complement)
Differences between eg2 &eg3:
* Grammatical function:
Eg2: Function as OC. (Eg3) function as SC
*Meaning:
Eg2: Her name is Honey. Eg3: She is a very dear friend
Clauses:
- Definition: Clause is a group of word which forms grammatical unit and it contains a
finite verb and at least a subject and a verb. A clause forms a sentence or half of a
sentence and it can function as N-clause, Adj-clause, Adverbial clause.
- Clause patterns: (7)
+ Intransitive clause: S+V
Eg: The girl is dancing.
+ Monotransitive clause: S+V+DO
Eg. She changed her dress.
+ Copular clause: S+ V+ S-Complement Eg. The girl is sick
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S+ V+ Adverbial Eg. She was in the bathroom
+ Ditransitive clause: S+V+ID+DO
Eg. The girl gave her dog a bone.
+ Complex transitive clause: S+ V+ DO+ OC
Eg. The girl calls her dog Honey
S+ V+ DO+ Adverbial
Eg. The girl beat her dog
yesterday
Sentences:
- Definition: Sentence is a group of word which is the largest unit of grammatical
organization within which part of speech and grammatical classes are said to function.
- Properties of sentences:
+ Linearity: Sentences are produced and received in a linear sequence
+ Hierarchy: Sentences are hierarchically structured, that is, they are not simply
sequences of individual words but are made up of word groupings, which themselves
may consist of lesser groupings.
+ Categoriality:Sentences are made up of parts which belong to a set of distinct
categories, each with its special characteristics.
QUESTION (UNIT 1)
1. What is the difference between phrase and clause? Give example
- Definition:
+ Clause is a group of words which forms a grammatical unit and which contains a
subject and a finite verb. A clause forms a sentence or part of a sentence and often
functions as N clause, Adj clause, Adv clause.
+ Phrase is a group of words which forms a grammatical unit. A phrase does not
contain a finite verb and does not have subject-predicate structure.
- The difference between phrase and clause is expressed through:
Structure:
+ A phrase does not contain finite verb. It does not have subject-predicate structure.
It does not have complimentizer. Eg. a beautiful girl
+ A clause contain subject-predicate structure. It can have finite verb or non-finite
verb. It can have complimentizer. Eg. That she left made me happy
Function:
+ Phrase is element of clause, can only function as part of sentence
+ Clause can function as part of sentence or a sentence as itself.
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Meaning:
+ Meaning of phrase is the meaning of word or group of words. Phrase can not express
a complete thought.
+ Clause can express a relatively complete thought.
2:Compare the sentence and the clause in English language.

-
-
Definition:
Sentence: The sentence is the largest grammatical unit which expresses a complete
thought or idea and has a definite grammatical form( one finite verb, one subject)
and a certain intonation.
Clause: Clause is a group of words which forms a grammatical unit and which
contains a subject and a finite verb. A clause forms a sentence or part of a sentence
and often functions as N , Adj , Adv

Structure:
-
A sentence is a complete grammatical unit. It has its own subject and predicate
Eg: -she is so kind to inform me about that; ahe is a best friend that I have
-
A clause is a part of a sentence which has own suject and predicate
Eg: while she cries; who she loves; what she does
 Function
-A sentence functions as largest unit and can be very complex, consisting of more
than one clause.
Clause can function as part of sentence or a sentence as itself.
 Meaning:
A sentence express complete thought, idea and can be used independently
A clause does not expresses complete thought and can not be used independently.
-
3.What are the main ways to identify the phrase structure? ( graduation exam of
K49-HUST)

4 mains ways:
-
1.substitution test.
-
According to this, any word combination of the English sentence that can be
replaced by a single word without changing the grammaticality of the sentence is
called a phrase. Eg: That yung teacher teaches English at my university John
teaches E at my university ‘’That young teacher ‘’ can be replaced by ‘’John’’ to
make a new sentence sharing the same grammaticality which is whay we can
conclude that ‘’that young teacher’’ is a phrase.
-
2. Movement criterion
-
According to this, any word combination of E sentence that can be moved to
another position in the sentence without changing the meaning of the sentence is
called a phrase.eg: I met him for the first time in this street In this street, I met
him for the first time Although the positions of the Adv place in the above
sentences have changed, their meaning remains the same.therefore, we can
conclude that ‘’in the street’’ is a phrase.
-
3. Conjoining criterion( tieu chi ket hop)
-
According to this, any word combination of E sentence that can be conjoined with
a similar one without changing the grammaticality of the sentence is call a phrase.
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-
Eg: That old man gave her everything she wanted that old man and that old
woman gave her everything she wanted ‘’that old man’’ can be combined a
similar sequence ‘’that old man’’ to make a new sentence without changing the
grammaticality of the sentence. So,’’that old man’’ is called a pharase.
-
Eg: we can see beautiful houses in big cities we can see beautiful houses in big
cities ans small towns.
-
4. Anaphora criterion
-
According to this, any preceding word combination antecedent that can be replaced
by a pro-word is called a pharase
-
Eg: that well-dressed lady is my neighbor. She is very nice to me.--> ‘’that welldressed lady’’ can be replaced by ‘’she’’ which is why we can determine it as a
pharase.
Chapter 3
Clause element
I. The subject

Formal realization
- NP: The girl is beautiful
- Finite clause:
eg: That that girl could not give an example made Mr.N surprised.
( when, who, where…)
- Non-finite clause
eg: To live means to love
Learning English is necessary.

Meaning: The doer of the action.
II. The Object
Def: Is a person or thing affected by the action of verb :DO & IO
Eg1: He gave me a cake.
Recepient (to)
Eg2: He bought me a cake
Benefactive( for)
III. Complement

Subject Complement

Object Complement
Eg: I called him a taxi ( IO + Oc)
His name is Taxi (Subjet Complement)
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1. What are the syntactic functions of dependent clause?
Dependent clause can function as:
- Subject: Eg. That you are lazy causes troubles
- Direct object: Eg. I know that you are lazy
- Indirect object: Eg. I give him whatever he wants
- Post-modifier: Eg. Students who are lazy are in my class
- Adjunct (Adverbial): Eg. Although they are lazy, they pass the exam
- Complement: Eg. The point is that all the students are lazy (SC)
I know her to be reliable (OC)
- Conjunct: Eg. What is more, they are very lazy
2. The differences between Adverb and Adverbial?
Adverb
Adverbial
Grammatical Unit
Clause element
A word
A word, phrase, Clause
Not all adverbs are adverbial
Not all adverbials are Adverb
Eg: They are very(quite) beautiful
Eg: They quite forgot about Grammar
Modifier
Adverbial
1. I gave her a masterpiece
NPDO
Meaning: We don’t know which is masterpiece here
2. I called that book a masterpiece
NP OC
Meaning:The book is a masterpiece
Sentence 2
1. They moved the table/ with the 2 men
NP2
NP1
2 meanings: 1. Move the table where 2 men are sitting.
2: They move the table with the help of 2 men.
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UNIT 2
VERBS AND VERBS PHRASE
A. Theory :
- Definition:
+ Verb is a word which,(a) occurs as part of the predicate of a sentence,(b) carries
markers of grammatical categories such as tense, aspect, person, number and mood
and (c) refers to an action or state.
Eg. She sleeps.
She wants to make her mother happy.
+ Verb phrase is a group of words in which the verb is the head. It is a part of
sentence which contains the main verb and also any object(s), complement(s), and
adverbial(s).
Eg. Tom gave his mom a watch
1. What are the categories of the verb?( Classification)
• According to the function of items in the verb phrase, verbs can be classified
in to lexical verbs and auxiliary verbs
Lexical verb: can be used as the only verb in a sentence and have a lexical meaning.(
The alternative terms are: notional verb, main verb, full verb)
Eg. She works at a factory
Auxiliary verb: is a verb which is used with another verb in a sentence, and which
shows grammatical functions such as aspect, tense, voice, mood, and person
Eg. Her mother can cook very well.
Auxiliary verbs are subdivided into primary auxiliary verbs and modal auxiliary verbs
+ Primary auxiliary verbs are those used to form negative and interrogative sentences,
different aspects and tenses, the passive voice and emphasis and code (NICE)
Eg. I don’t know.
She is looking for a new job.
+ Modal auxiliary verbs are verbs which indicate attitudes of the speaker/ writer
towards the state or event expressed by another verb, i.e. which indicate different types
of modality
Eg. I may be wrong ( may = possibility)
You can smoke here ( can = permission)
• According to the valency pattern( meana show how the combine with other
element) verbs can be classified into 4 types
- Transitive verb is a verb which takes an object
Eg. He loves cats
- Ditransitive verb is a verb which takes an indirect object and a direct object.
Eg. Mary gives her daughter a present
- Complex transitive verb is a verb which takes a direct object and an object
complement
Eg. We consider her our family’s member.
- Intransitve verb is a verb which does not take an object
Eg. She dances beautifully.
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• According to the form of the verbs, they can be divided into finite and non
finite verbs
- finite verb is a form of a verb which is marked to show that it is related to a
subject in person and/or number, and which shows tense
Eg. My mom loves flowers.
- non-finite verb form is not marked according to differences in the person or
number of the subject and has no tense.
Eg. She wants to leave.
Xem cach chia cua co Tam
2. What is the use of gerunds and infinitives? ( Mr. Ngoc)
Gerunds:
Form: V + ing
Usage:
+ As subject
eg. Working is glory
+ As Object
eg. He likes dancing
+ As Complement
- Subject complement: His favourite sport is running
- Object complement:The police officer considered the offense spending.
+ Object of preposition
eg. She left without saying anything
+ Attributive : eg. The dining room is ready now.
Infinitive:
Form: “to infinitive” and “bare infinitive”
Usage:

The present tense in all persons and numbers except 3rd person singlular (which has
the –s form)
I/you/we/they/ call everyday

The imperarive: Be on your guard.
 The present subjunctive
It is essential that she be on her guard.
They demanded that she call and see them.
Other uses of the bare infinitive can be:
 Complement: He lets his wife go out in the evening.
That beard makes you look much older than you are.
 In fixed expression: we were in a hurry so we had to make do with a quick snack.
You’ll have to make your pocket money do. I can’t give you more
 It is non-finite verb in the following constructions:
 The bare infinitive( after modal verbs)
He may call tonight
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
To to- infinitive
He wants her to call
It is important to be always on your guard
III. Verb forms and Function of Verb forms (Mr.Ngoc)
( 5 verb forms: -ing, -ed, the past, the –s, the base)
a) The present participle(-ing)
-
To form the continuous aspect
Eg: I am/was/will be learning
-
Used as clause head
Eg: Learning E here I met her/ I am learning
-
It is used as attributive
Eg: A smiling girl from TB
b) The past participle (-ed)
-
To form the perfect aspect
Eg: I have/had/will have learned
-
As clause head
Eg: Called early, I found her at home
-
As attributive
Eg: Aspoken language
-
To form passive voice
-
Eg: English ia learnt
IV. Distinctive property of Modal verb ( Mr.Ngoc)
- They have only primary form
- there is no agreement between the subject and the verb
Eg: I/they/ we/ you can
- after modal verb, we can use infinitive( without ‘’to’’)
They are used in the main clause of real conditional sentences
Eg: if I were you, I would get married to her.
3. What is the difference between the present participle and gerund when they
stand before noun to form the compound noun?
Form: Present participle and Gerund have the same form
+ Present participle: V_ing + N
+ Gerund: V_ing + N
Syntactic function:
+ Present participle: is used as adj to attribute to the noun
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Eg. interesting story; an exciting story;
+ Gerund: is used as a noun to modifies the N
Eg. Dining room, a reading lamp
- Meaning:
+ Gerund usually shows the purpose to which the head noun is put, it specifies the
meaning of the N. Eg. running shoes- shoes for running (G)
+ But a present participle refers to an action of the head noun, and the state
of the N
Eg. running water- water that is running (P)
4. What is the difference between the Present participle and the Past participle?
Give examples.
Form:
+ Present participle: V_ing form
+ Past participle: V_ed form
Syntactic function:
Present participle:
Past participle
+ As attributive of a N, eg.
interesting film, boring film
+ As attributive of a N, eg. written
form, spoken English
+ As complement, eg. The story
is interesting
+ As complement, eg. She looks
tired
+ can be the head of a clause, eg.
The man living next door is a
good man
+ Used in progressive aspect, eg.
she is working
+ Can be the head of a clause, eg.
The book written in English is
what she is looking for.
+ Used in perfect aspect and
passive voice, eg. We have learnt
English for 4 years
They are beaten by the dog
- Voice:
+ Present participle: active Eg. The film is so interesting.
+ Past participle: passive Eg. she is interested in the film.
- Meaning:
+ Present participle expresses the characteristic of the person(s) or thing(s)
Eg. The news is surprising.
+ Past participle expresses the state of the person(s) or thing(s)
Eg. He is surprised at the news
5. What are the properties of modal auxiliary?(9)
Modal auxiliary has following properties:
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No agreement: they are invariable functional words. The form of modal auxiliary is the
same in all cases, So, there is no S-V agreement. Eg. I can swim, He can swim
Only primary forms: the modal auxiliaries have no secondary inflectional forms and
hence can not occur in the constructions which require one. The verb following a
modal verb must be in the plain form, and modals do not have plain forms, so the two
modal verbs can not go together. Eg. I can swim
Bare infinitive complement: the complement of the modal auxiliaries must be in bare
infinitive form. Other verbs which can take a “to infinitive” or “bare infinitive” as their
complements generally differ from modals in their complementation by taking NP
before the plain form verb
Eg. I can answer your question
vs. She makes me answer her question
Remote conditionals: The first verb of the apodosis (main clause) of a remote
conditional sentence must be a modal
Eg. If you came, I could help you do this exercise
Remote past condition
Eg. I wish you could have finished this work
Negation: may use contracted or uncontracted form
Eg. She can not swim or She can’t swim
Inversion: used to show question, negative constituent
Eg. Can she swim?
What can I do now?
Never will he come back
Code: In the code construction, the VP of a clause is reduced, with the remainder of its
semantic content being recoverable form the context.
Eg. Men can become politicians. Women can, too.
Emphasis: it can be positive or negative
Positive: you don’t think I can swim. But I can
Negative: I should have not made such a stupid mistake
5*). What are the distinctive properties of modal auxiliary? (5)
No agreement: they are invariable functional words. The form of modal auxiliary is the
same in all cases, So, there is no S-V agreement. Eg. I can swim, He can swim
Only primary forms: the modal auxiliaries have no secondary inflectional forms and
hence can not occur in the constructions which require one. The verb following a
modal verb must be in the plain form, and modals do not have plain forms, so the two
modal verbs can not go together. Eg. I can swim
Bare infinitive complement: the complement of the modal auxiliaries must be in bare
infinitive form. Other verbs which can take a “to infinitive” or “bare infinitive” as their
complements generally differ from modals in their complementation by taking NP
before the plain form verb
Eg. I can answer your question
vs. She makes me answer her question
Remote conditionals: The first verb of the apodosis (main clause) of a remote
conditional sentence must be a modal
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Eg. If you came, I could help you do this exercise
Remote past condition
Eg. I wish you could have finished this work
6. What are syntactic properties of auxiliary verbs? (NICE)
They are used in the NICE constructions: Negation, Inversion, Code, Emphasis to
make sentences.
Negation (N): may use contracted or uncontracted form, carry negative meaning
Eg. She does not (doesn’t) want to talk to me.
Inversion (I): used in questions ( yes/no question or “wh” question”), negative
constituents, in conditional sentences ( were, had), may (wish), or initial “so”/“such”,
“only”
Eg. Did you go to the cinema last night?
Never did she come late
May you be happy all your life
So little time did we have that we had to cut corner
Had you fulfilled this task, you would have been rewarded.
Code (Elliptic or reduced form)-> to avoid repetition (C):
Eg. I can’t understand. I can’t, either.
Emphasis (E): it can be positive or negative
Eg. I do love you
She does not answer
7. What are the auxiliary verbs and how it is used in the English language? Give
example
- Definition: Auxiliary verb is a verb which is used with another verb in a sentence,
and which shows grammatical functions such as aspect, tense, voice, mood, and person
- According to the function, auxiliary verb is classify into modal and non-modal V
- Properties of auxiliary verbs
+ Negation (N): may use contracted or uncontracted form, carry negative meaning
Eg. She does not (doesn’t) want to talk to me.
+ Inversion (I): used in questions ( yes/no question or “wh” question”), negative
constituents, in conditional sentences ( were, had), may (wish), or initial “so”/“such”,
“only”
Eg. Did you go to the cinema last night?
Never did she come late
May you be happy all your life
So little time did we have that we had to cut corner
Had you fulfilled this task, you would have been rewarded.
+ Code (Elliptic or reduced form)-> to avoid repetition (C):
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Eg. I can’t understand. I can’t, either.
+ Emphasis (E): it can be positive or negative
Eg. I do love you
She does not answer
- Auxiliary verb is used before another verb in the sentence.
Eg. I may go to school tomorrow
She is working for a famous company
8. What is the use of modal verbs in the English language? Give examples
Xem sach trang 36-39
9. Give the rules of verb formation in the English laguage? Give examples.
English verbs can be formed by:
Derivation Derived verbs: root + affixes
Eg. Industrial  industrialize; do  redo / undo; powerempower, etc.
Composition Compound verb: free base + free base
Eg. proof-read, outweigh
Conversion: N  V
Eg. Book  to book; hammer  to hammer; tail  to tail, dog  to dog
10. What is the difference between tense and aspect?
- Definition:
+ Tense is the relationship between the form of the verb and the time of the action
or state that it describes
+ Aspect is a grammatical category which deals with how the event described by a
verb is viewed, such as whether it is in progress, habitual, repeated, momentary, etc. In
other words, aspect denotes different characteristics of an action. We recognize two
aspects in English, the perfect and progressive, which may combine in a complex verb
phrase, and are marked for present or past tense
- The different between tense and aspect is the relationship involved. Tense is the
relationship between the form of the verb and the time of the action or state that it
describes. But aspect is the relationship between the form of the verb and the manner
(the characteristic) of the action
11. What is perfect aspect in English language?
- Perfect aspect concerns the manner in which the verbal action is experienced or
regarded as completed
Eg. I have been in HCM city twice
- The choice of perfective aspect is associated with time-orientation and consequently
also with various time-indicators (lately, since, so far, etc).
Eg.
I have finished all my tasks this morning.
I have lived in France for 4 years.
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- In the present perfect, it is not the time specified in the sentence but the period
relevant to the time specified that must extend to the present
Eg.
I have lived in France for 4 years.
- In the past perfect, the point of current relevance to which the past perfect extends is
a point in the past
Eg. I had eaten all these chocolate before he came
- The perfect progressive inplies an especially recent activity, the affects of which is
obvious
Eg. Oh look! It has just been raining.
12. What is the use of subjunctive mood in the English language? Give axample.
Subjunctive mood is used in the English language in the following contexts:
In subordinate “that” – clauses with any verb when the main clause contains an
expression of recommendation, resolution, demand and so on (we demand, require,
move, insist, suggest, ask, etc. that...)
Eg. I suggested (that) you invite her to go to the theatre.
In Set expression
Eg. God save the Queen; Bless you
In if-clause of conditional sentence
Eg. If I were you I would never tell that story.
13. What is the use of present perfect, present perfect continuous and what is the
different betwwen them?
 The use: ( Doc tai lieu cua Thay Ngoc trang 43)
Present Perfect: Often expresses how the speaker views himself relative to the
event(s) he is talking about:
Situation that began in the past and that continues into the present(the continuative):
I have been a teacher since 1989
A past experience with current relevance(result) (the experiential perfect):
I have already seen that movie
A very recently completed action( the perfect of recent past):
Mort has just finished his homework.
An action that went on over time in the past and that is completed with the moment of
speech(the resultative perfect):
The value of the Johnsons’ house has doubled in the last 4 years.
With the verbs in subordinate clauses of time or condition:
She won’t be satisfied until she has finished another chapter.
Present Perfect Progresive
A situation or habit that began in the past(recent or distant) and continues uo to the
present(duration):
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I have been living I Seattle for 7 years now.
He has been walking to school for several years now.
Burt has been going out with Alice
The incompleteness of an action in progress
I have been reading a book.
 Difference:
Tense: both present perfect and present perfect continuous involve reference to present
and past time ( same time) but the present perfect shows the present simple while the
present perfect continuous shows present continuous
V-Form: Present perfect: have/has + PII
Present perfect continuous: have/has + been+ Ving
Function: Present perfect shows the completed duration but present continuous show
an incompleted duration.
Aspect: The aspect of present perfect is perfect while the aspect of present perfect
continuous is perfect progressive.
14. What is the use of present perfect and past tense and what is the difference
between them?
 The use: ( Doc tai lieu cua Thay Ngoc- trang 42-43)
Present Perfect: Often expresses how the speaker views himself relative to the
event(s) he is talking about:
Situation that began in the past and that continues into the present(the continuative):
I have been a teacher since 1989
A past experience with current relevance(result) (the experiential perfect):
I have already seen that movie
A very recently completed action( the perfect of recent past):
Mort has just finished his homework.
An action that went on over time in the past and that is completed with the moment of
speech(the resultative perfect):
The value of the Johnsons’ house has doubled in the last 4 years.
With the verbs in subordinate clauses of time or condition:
She won’t be satisfied until she has finished another chapter.
-Simple Past Tense:
a) A definite single completed event/action in the past.
I attended a meeting of that commiittee last week.
b) Habitual or repeated action/ event in the past( suggests that some changes in this
habit/event has taken place)
Sam walked his dog every day last year.
It snowed almost every weekend last winter.
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c) An event with duration that applied in the past with the implication that it no longer
applies in the present.
Prof. Nelson taught at Yale for 30 years
d) With stative verbs in the past time:
He appeared to be a creative genius.
He loved daisies.
I saw a large house on the corner
He owned me a lot of money.
He knew that John was a teacher.
e) Past conditional or imaginative events in the subordinate clause:
If he took etter care of himself, he wouldn’t be absent so often.
 Difference:
In terms of structure
+ PP is expressed by a simple verb phrase whereas PT is expressed by a complex verb
phrase. The form of the verb in the past tense is the past form, which is a finite verb
form, but in the present perfect tense only the first word (have/has) is finite, the rest is
nonfinite.
Eg. I promised to come early
I have promised to come early
In terms of tense: present perfect involves reference to both past and present time
whereas the past tense involves reference to past time only. The action in the present
perfect may extend up to present but the action used in past tense no longer continue at
present.
Eg. I have learned English for 4 years ( I started to learn in the past and now continue
to learn)
I learned English for 4 years ( I learned English in the past and donot learn any
longer)
In terms of the aspect: The aspect of present perfect is perfect while the aspect of past
tense is non-perfect.
15. What is the difference between finite and non-finite verbs phrases?
- In term of tense:
+ Finite verb phrases have tense distinction: He studies/studied English.
+ Non-finite verb phrases are non-tense: Learning English is difficult.
- In term of verb element:
+ Finite verb phrases occur as the verb element of a clause. There is person and
number concord between the subject and the finite verb. Concord is particularly overt
with “be”: I + am; You/we/they + are; He/she/it + is. With most lexical verbs, concord
is restricted to a contrast between 3rd and non 3rd person singular present: “He reads
the paper everyday/ they read the paper everyday”.
+ Non-finite verb phrases occur as the parts of speech. Eg. To smoke like that
must be dangerous.
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- In term of mood:
+ Finite verb phrases have mood, including indicative mood, imperative mood
and subjunctive mood. Eg. Open the door!
+ Non-finite verb phrases are moodless. Eg. I make him go.
- In term of V-form:
+ Non-finite verb phrases: the non-finite forms of the verb are the infinitive
((to) call), the –ing participle (calling), and the –ed participle (called). Non finite verb
phrases consist of one or more such items.
Eg. I want her to call
angry
I found him smoking
called early, he feels
+ Finite verb phrases consist of 6 V-forms, base (plain) form ( present tense
except 3rd person singular, imperative, subjunctive mood), -s form ( 3rd singular
present tense), past form ( past tense, backshift, modal remoteness), -ing participle (
progressive aspect), -ed participle ( past participle or –en form)( perfect aspect, passive
voice), negative form
Eg. She learns E well
We love flowers
She passed the exam
16. What is the use of inversion?
( Tai lieu cua Thay Ngoc trang 32, 33)
The subject occurs after an auxiliary verb instead of in its degault pre-verbal position.
She speakes French.(degault order)
Does she speak French? (subject-auxiliary inversion)
Construction involving subject-auxiliary inversion.
a) Closed interogative: inversion is generally restricted to main cclauses:
Does she speak French?
b) Open interogatives,
Here inversion accompanies the placement in prenucler position of a non-subject
interogative phrase. Inversion is normally limited to main clauses.
(1) Who told you that
(2) What did she tell you?
In (1) the interrogative phrase is itself subject. Inversion occurs only after nonsubject as in (2)
c) Exclamatives
Here inversion is optinal after a non-subject exclamative phrase in prenuclear
position.
What a fool I have been!—What a fool have I been!
How hard she tried!—How hard did she try!
The uninverted construction is much the more common.
d) Initial negative constituents
Inversion occurs with a negative non-subject element in prenuclear position.
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Not one of them did he find useful.
Nowhere does he mention my book.
Inversion with negative is not limited to main clauses, but only applies with clausal
negation.
He pointed out that not once had she complained.
e) Intial Only
f) Initial so/such
g) Conditional inversion
h) Optative may
B. Practice
1. Explain the use of modal verbs in the following sentences:
a. Could you show me the way to the station, please?
Request
b. He should have been here yesterday.
Request in the past
c. May you be happy all your life!
Wishes
d. It may rain this afternoon.
Possibility
e. I used every kind of argument I could think of, and talked to him hours on end; he
wouldn’t take my advice.
Ability – Possibility
2. Make full sentences of the different uses of the modal verb WOULD.
Express the willingness:
Eg.
Would you like to join my birthday party to night?
Insistence:
Eg.
It is your fault; you would correct it.
Characteristic activity in the past:
Eg.
Every morning sho would do morning exercises.
Contingent use in the main clause of conditional sentence:
Eg.
If I were you, I would never come to that party.
Probability:
Eg.
That would be my teacher.
3. What is the difference between the regund and the infinitive with “to” when
they go after such verbs as: “to remember”, “to forget”, “to regret”
The criteria: verb form , syntactic function; and semantic.
a. To remember: Remember doing something
 Structure
“doing”: 2 morphemes
to + do, “do”-1 morpheme
Eg. I remember to see him.
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vs.
Remember to do something
English Grammar
 Syntactic function:
“doing”: gerund
“to do”: infinitive with “to”
 Meaning:
Gerund: denotes action happening before the action “ remember”
Eg. I remember seeing him - means - I did see him in the past.
‘To’ infinitve: denotes action happening after the action “remember”
Eg. I remember to see him - means - I will see him (any time in future).
4. Explain the use of the past participle in the following sentences:
a. He has been to London.
 used in perfect aspect
b. He was killed in the bomb attack.
 used in passive voice
c. The answer must be in written form.  used as Adjective (attribute) to modify the
Noun
5. What part of speech can combine with the morpheme “-ize” to form verb in the
English language?
Adjective can combine with the morpheme “-ize” to form verb”
Eg.
Global  globalize;
Industrial  industrialize;
Commercial  commercialize
Urban  urbanize.
6. Replace each of the passage underlined by the appropriate modal auxiliary +
lexical verb:
a. John is capable of typing very fast.
John can type very fast.
b. It is just possible that what you say is true.
What you say may be true.
c. I suggest I open the window.
Shall I open the window.
d. Someone keeps putting his coat on my peg.
Someone will put his coat on my peg.
e. I had a habit of hitting the wrong key of the typewriter.
I would (used to) hit the the wrong key of the typewriter.
f. It is obligatory for us to read it.
We must read it.
g. You are prohibitted from smoking here.
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You mustn’t smoke here.
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UNIT 3
NOUNS AND NOUN PHRASES
A. Theory
1. Give the description of nouns in the English language.
a. Definition of noun and noun and noun phrase
- Noun is a lexical word which can occur as the subject or the object of the verb or
object of preposition. It can be modified by an adjective and can be used with
predeterminer. Nouns typically refer to people, animals, places, things, or abstractions.
Eg. London, love, music
- NP is a group of words with a noun or pronoun s the main part( the head). The noun
phrase may consist of only one word ( for example Mike arrived yesterday) or it may
be long and complex.
In other words, a phrase with a noun as its head is a noun phrase. The head can be
preceeded by determiners, such as the, a , her, and can be accompanied by modifierselements which describe or classify whatever the head refers to
Eg: the man in the iron mask
b. Disctinctive properties of Nouns( three main properties)
Inflection: N inflects for number (singular and plural) and for case (plain and
genitive). Eg book books, Mary’s book
Function: N can function as the head of the NP and it can also be used as: subject
complement, object, attribute, object of preposition.
Eg. The beautiful girl in the corner
What he wants is a computer
She like music
The network development (attributive)
The man from Thailand
Dependents: various dependents occur exclusively or almost exclusively with Nouns
as head: certain determinatives ( the girl), pre-head adj phrase (good news) or relative
clause (people who work).
c. Classification: semantic, countability, and contrasts
According to Semantic(Meaning)
Nouns
Proper nouns
Count
Ns
Common nouns
Noncount
Ns
Count
Ns
Noncount
Ns
Pronouns
(References)
According to Countability:
Nouns
Count
Non-Count
Common
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Proper
Common Proper
English Grammar
Singular
Eg. dog
Plural
Singular
Plural
Eg.
dogs
Eg.
Muslim
Eg.
Muslims
Eg.
Courage
- Constrasts:
+ Concrete nouns and abstract nouns
+ Common nouns and proper nouns
+ Collective nouns and material nouns
+ Count nouns and non-count nouns
+ One word nouns and compound nouns
( See definitions and examples of these types of noun in Mr. Ngoc’s document Pg
50,51))
d. Formation ( document pg 51)
Derivation: adding affixes such as: -dom, -hood, -ment, -tion/ion/ation, micro-, anti-,
Eg. King  kingdom; entertain  entertainment; computermicrocomputer
Compound:
+ N – N: bedroom, schoolboy
+ Adj – N: tallboy
+ V-ing – N: reading-lamp, sleeping-bag
-
Conversion: rich the rich,
g. Case
Genitive case (‘s): boy’s name, father’s books ( genitive inflection) the name of the
book, the city of New York (of- genitive)
Common case (of): We see many flowers in the garden
h. Determiner: Determiner is the word which is used with the noun and which limits
the meaning of the noun in someway. The determiner serves to mark the NP as definite
or indefinite.
( See question 9)
2. State the properties of Noun and Noun phrase ( Mr.N)
a. Properties of Noun:
 Definition:
Noun is the word which can occurs as the subject or the object of the verb or object of
preposition. It can be modified by an adjective or can be used with predeterminer.
 Properties:
Inflection: N inflects for number (singular and plural) and for case (plain and genitive)
Function: N can function as the head of the NP and it can also be used as: subject
complement, object, attribute or part of adverbial modifier.
Dependent: various dependents occur with N as the head certainly determiner,
prehead adj phrase or relative clause.
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Eg.
Spain
English Grammar
Pronouns included in the categories of nouns: Eg. The boss was late ~ He was late( N
can be replaced by pronoun in a sentence to avoid repetition)
b. Syntactic function of NP
- S, DO, IO,SC, OC
Eg1: She gave me a cake ( S+IO+DO)
Eg2: She is a student( SC)
Eg3: She called me a puppy(DO+OC)
Function as Mofifier in AdjP, AdvP, PP, NP
Eg1: Q is 19 years old
Eg2:She arrived 2 hours late
Eg3: It is 2 miles under the sea
c) Structure
Determiner + Premodifier + Head + post modifier
A nice girl from HP
-
Premodifier can be: AP, -ing participlle, -ed participle; =’s genetive, noun,
adverbial
Eg: A country girl
A smiling girl
A boken girl
A farmer’s girl
Post-modifier can be: clause; phrases
Clause: difining &non-difining(ing clause; ed clause; to-infinitive)
Eg: The girl who comes from HP
The girl, who come from HP
The girl coming from HP
The girl to talk to
The girl broken yesterday
Phrase can be: PP, Adj ( something wrong), NP, of- gnetive
3. Classify English Nouns
Classification: semantic, countability, and contrasts
Semantic:
Nouns
Proper nouns
Count
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Common nouns
Non-
Count
Pronouns
Non-
(References)
English Grammar
Ns
count
Ns
Ns
count
Ns
Countability:
Nouns
Count
Non-Cou
Common
Singular
Eg. Dog
Proper
Plural
Singular
Plural
Eg.
dogs
Eg.
Muslim
Eg.
Muslims
- Constrasts:
+ Concrete nouns and abstract nouns
+ Common nouns and proper nouns
+ Collective nouns and material nouns
+ Count nouns and non-count nouns
+ One word nouns and compound nouns
( See definitions and examples of these types of noun in Mr. Ngoc’s document Pg
50,51))
4. Classify English pronouns
- Definition: Pronoun is the word that can be used the place of a noun or a noun
phrase
- Classification: English pronouns are divided into these following types:
Personal pronouns: function as replacement for co-referential NPs in neighbouring
clause
Eg. I, we, you, he, she, it, they
Impersonal pronouns: “It” is used as vague subject to denote: weather, time, distance,
impersonal statement, introduction, emphasis
Eg. It is raining
Reflexive pronouns: replace a co-referential NP, normally within the same finite verb
clause
Eg. Myself, himself, themselves
Reciprocal pronouns: each other, one another
Posessive pronouns: combine genitive functions with pronominal (belong to pronoun)
functions
Eg. My, your, our, his, her, their
Relative pronoun:
+ wh- series: reflect the gender (personal / non-personal) of the antecedent:
Personal: who, whom, whose
Non-personal: which, whose
+ that: a general purpose relative pronoun
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Common
Eg.
Courage
English Grammar
+ zero: used identical to ‘that’
Eg. The book (that) I love is torn.
Interregative pronouns: identical in form and in case relations with the relative
pronouns, the difference is the function in detail.
+ Interrogative determiners:
Personal: whose
Non-personal: what
+ Interrogative pronouns:
Personal: who, whom, whose
Non-personal: what
Personal and non-personal: which
Demonstrative pronouns: function both as determiners and pronouns, can be stated as
“near” and “distant” reference.
+ Near: this / these
+ Distant: that / those
Universal pronouns (definite pronouns) and determiners:
Eg. Each, all, every, every’s compounds
Partitive pronouns (definite pronouns): parallel to universal pronouns (negative, nonassertive, assertive).
Eg. something, anything, nothing.
5. State the properties of pronouns
They do not admit determiners and they can not go with other N.
looked for the watch
eg.
They
They often have an objective case: my, us, his, her, your, their.
They often have person distinction.
They often have overt gender contrast.
Singular and plural forms are often not morphologically related.
They have very general and relative meaning and make statement less repetitive.
5*) Give the description of Pronouns in English language ( Q4+Q5)
6. Give the description of Articles in the English language
 Definition:
Article is the word which is used with a Noun and shows whether the Noun refers to
something definite or indefinite.
 Classification: 3 types
Definite: ‘the’ – goes with both countable and uncountable Ns. It marks the noun as
referring to something or someone assumed to be known to speaker and addressee.
+ Anaphoric use
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English Grammar
+ Indirect anaphoric use
+ Cataphoric use
+ Situational use
Eg. The Earth, the Sun, the first, the most beautiful girl
Indefinite: ‘a/an’ – used with singular countable nouns. It narrows down
the reference of the head noun to one indefinite member of the class
Eg. A boy, a house
+ specific use of a/an: the indefinite article is often used to introduce a new specific
entity into the discourse.
Eg. a 12-year-old boy got mad at his parent
+ unspecific use of a/an: the indefinite article is also used where the noun phrase does
not refer to any specific individual
Eg. I feel terrible. I need a friend
Zero article: used with plural countable Ns or uncountable Ns, generic reference such
as whole group of thing/species.
Eg. Lion, human
7. Give rules of noun formation
d. Formation ( document pg 51)
Derivation: adding affixes such as: -dom, -hood, -ment, -tion/ion/ation, micro-, anti-,
Eg. King  kingdom; entertain  entertainment; computermicrocomputer
Compound:
+ N – N: bedroom, schoolboy
+ Adj – N: tallboy
+ V-ing – N: reading-lamp, sleeping-bag
-
Conversion: rich the rich,
8. Give the description of determiners in the English language
 Definition:
Determiner is the word which is used with the noun and which limits the meaning of
the noun in someway. The determiner serves to mark the NP as definite or indefinite.
 Function:
Determiner helps clarify meaning of the noun.
 Classification: According to the function of determiner, we can classify them into 3
groups: pre-determiner, determiner, and post-determiner
Pre-determiners: They can occur only before articles or demonstratives .They includes
quantitative words (all, both, half, double, twice, one third, etc.)
Determiners (head): includes article, demonstrative, possessive
+ article is used to show whether the noun refers to something indefinite or something
definite ( a book, the candle)
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+ demonstrative determiner is used to indicate that the referents are “near to” or “
away from” the speaker’s immediate context (this table, that lamp)
+ possessive determiner is used to tell us who or what the noun belongs to (my house,
her book)
Post-determiners: includes quantitative and numeral
+ quantifiers: specify how many or how much of the N there is ( every book, some
books)
+ numerals: used to show ordinal or cardinal numerals of the N ( first day, ten times)
9. Give a brief explaination, supported by two illustrations, of each of the
following terms: premodifier, gender, case
Premodifier is word stand before N to modify N. It can be adj, V-ing, V-ed, adjphrase.
Eg.
Nice bag, his mother
Gender is grammatical distinction in which words (N, Adj, Pronoun) are marked
according to the distinction between masculine, feminine and neutral.
In the modern English language, there is no grammatical gender. The noun does not
possess any special gender forms In order to mark the gender distinction, two different
words as boy-girl, man- woman ,are used. Morpheme combination is also used to
show the different between male and female
Eg.
actor-actress, host- hostess
In English, there are Ns used for both: male and female: parent, cousin, teacher,
etc.
In literature, the Ns denoting strength or terrible concept are usually considered as
male
Eg. day, the sun, etc.
Those showing beautiful, attractive concept are usually considered as female
Eg. night, moon, etc.
Case is a grammatical category which shows the functions of N, NP or pronoun.
+ Genitive case (‘s): boy’s name, father’s books ( genitive inflection) the name of the
book, the city of New York (of- genitive)
+ Common case (of): We see many flowers in the garden
( With 6 personal pronounce we further classified common case into subjective case
and objective case: Eg. Mary see him in the garden- the former is in subjective case,
and the latter is in objective case)
B. Practice
1. What is the difference between “her” and “hers” in English?
The difference between “her” and “hers” is shown in the following aspects:
Criteria
Her
Hers
Part of speech
Possessive Adj
Possessive
Pronoun
Function
Modifier to noun
Referent function
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Morphological
structure
UNIT 4
Free base
Free
base
bound base
+
ADJECTIVES AND ADJECTIVE PHRASES
A. Theory
1. Give the description of English adjectives?
a. Definition
Adjective is a word or a part of speech that describes things, quality, state or action
which a N refers to.
Eg. The black cat
- Adjective phrase is a phrase that functions as an adjective.
- Main function of Adj: attribute, complement
b. Characteristics:
Morphological characteristics: central Adj can be inflected to show comparative and
superlative degree.
Syntactical characteristics: adj can function as attributive, predicative, and postposed
modifiers
Central adj can serve both attribute and predicative and postposed modifier syntactic
roles
In attribute position, an Adj is part of an NP: it precedes and modifies head N. Eg. My
new friend
Predicative Adj is not part of a NP, but instead characterize a NP that is a separate
clause element. It can function as Subject predicative or Object predicative
Eg. She is beautiful(SP)
Skilfully, she made the cake tasty (OP)
+ A postposed adjective is part of a noun phrase but it follows the head word.
Eg. It’s a shame if you haven’t got anyone musical here.
A postposed adjective appears in some fix expression.
apparent
eg. notary public, heir
When a modifying adj phrase is very long, the adj phrase will often follow the
head N
Eg. It’s a, a lounge not much bigger than the one we’ve got.
+ Other syntactic roles of adjectves ( Core-book Pg 92,93)
Semantic characteristics: they are descriptive and gradeable. Central adjs have both of
these characteristics. They typically characterize the referent of nominal expression (
eg. blue and white flag). They are also gradable, which means that they can show
different degrees of a quality. they can take comparative and superlative forms ( close,
closer, closest)
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 Adjectives that have all these above characteristics are called central adjective.
Thoes do not have all but only share some of these above characteristics are called
peripheral adjective.
c. Classification
According to semantic, Adj can be classified into: classifier and descriptor
Descriptors are adjectives that describe color, size and weigh, chronology and age,
emotion and other characteristics. They are typically gradable. Eg. black, white, deep,
heavy, new, poor, etc.
Classifiers are adjectives which limit or restrict a noun’s reference, rather than
describing characteristics in the way that descriptors do. Eg.
Chinese,
additional,
chemical, etc.
Classifiers: are non-gradable, so they can not take modifiers of degree or comparative
or superlative form, they have limit function; therefore, they can’t go with other limit
factor
Descriptors: have the function of a modifier
 some adj can serve as both classifiers and descriptors, depending on their context of
use
Eg. a popular girl in high school (descriptor)
a popular vote (classifier)
Based on characteristics: central and peripheral Adj
Central adjs: are those having all these above characteristics
Eg. big, large
Peripheral adjs: are those with fewer or defining characteristics
Eg. beautiful, intelligent
d. Formation of Adj
• Participal adjs:
Both “-ing” and “-ed” participal forms can be used as adjs.
Most participal adjs are derived from verbs.
Many “-ing” and “-ed” participal forms can serve both attribute and predicate function
Eg.
amazing, exciting, interesting, etc.
bored, tired, interested, etc.
• Derived adjs:
Many adjs are formed by adding an adj suffixe to a N or V
N
V
-less: hope  hopless
-ous: continue  continuous
-ful: hope  hopeful
-ive: conclude  conclusive
-ive: effect  effective
-ent: differ  different
-ly/y: man  manly; sun  sunny
-al: centre  central
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• Compound adjs:
Compound adjs are formed by the combination of more than one word. They may be:
Adj + adj:
grayish-blue
Adj + N:
full time, large scale
N + adj:
lifelong, age old
Adv + ed_participle:
so called, newly born
Adv + ing_participle:
free-spending
Adv + adj:
highly sensitive
Reduplicate:
N + ed_participle:
roly-poly, goody-goody
horse-drawn
N + ing_participle:
eye-catching
3. State the syntactic roles of Adjs?
Adj as modifier of N, pronoun:
Eg. She is a beautiful singer
Adj as postposed modifier: A postposed adj is a part of a NP but it follow the head
word (commonly appears with compound indefinite pronouns as head such as nobody,
anything, someone,etc)
Eg. I think they are doing anything possible to protect the worker.
Adj as NP head: Adj can function as the head of NP, may be modified as Adv
Eg. There is a clear gap between the very rich and the very poor in the country.
Adj as linking expression: Adj can sometimes serves to link clauses or sentences to
one another.
Eg. Worse he had nothing to say (SGK)
Adj as free modifiers: adj can be syntactically free modifier of a NP, ir modifies NP
but it is not a part of a NP.
Eg. Green, bronze and golden [it] flowed through weeds and rushes. (SGK)
Adj as exclaimation: (in conversation and friction)
Eg. Great! I like that.
Oh dear!
ADJECTIVE (Mr.Ngoc)
I. Def
II. Distinctive Characteristics of Adj

In term of Structure:
Are inflected to show comparative and superative.
Eg: nice nicernicest

Function: 4 functions
-
Atributive eg: the young girl
-
Subject complement: eg: She is young
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-Object Complement. Eg: She made me happy
-Postponed modifier. Eg: anything possible
- Head of Nps. Eg: The poor

Meaning: Descriptive and Gradable
3. The structure of Adjective ( Mr.Ngoc)
Modifier + head + Complement
Eg:
very
happy to come here

Complement
-
Obligatory: She is mindful of the danger
-
Optional: She is happy.
-
Types of Complement:
+ PP: I am good at E
+ Clause: Finite: I am happy that you understand
Non-finite: I am happy to come here.
+ Noun Phrase: 4 Adjective: due, like, unlike, worth
+ Indirect: She is micer than me
She is so nice that I don’t want to hurt her

Modifiers
_ Adverb: Very nice
-
NP: Trang is 19 years old
-
PP: He is nice beyond description
-
Det: She is nice that important
UNIT 5
ADVERBS AND ADVERB PHRASE
A. Theory
1. Give the description of Adverbs?
a. Definition
Adv is a lexical word or part of speech that describes or adds to the meaning of a verb,
an Adj, or another adv or sentence. It answers the question when, how, where.
A phrase or clause functioning as adv is called adv phrase.
b. Characteristics of adv (2)
Structural / Morphological characteristic:
+ advs are commonly formed by adding suffix “-ly”( slowslowly). they are the
majority of derivational adverbs. Other, less common, derivational suffixes are
(clockclockwise, wardnorthward)
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+ Advs exist in form of simple words
eg. just, only, well, etc.
+ Advs can formed form composition
eg. somehow, somewhere, etc.
Syntactical function: adv can function as either adverbial or modifier.
c. Classification (word formation)
(4)
Simple advs: are those not derived from other words.
Eg. too, quite, soon, rather
Compound advs: are formed by combining two or more elements into a single word.
Eg. anyway, hereinafter
Derived advs (by suffixation): adding suffix “-ly” to an adj; “-wise/ward” to N; “ward” to preposition.
Eg. heavily, quickly, homewards, onwards, upwards
Fixed advs: are phrases used as advs, they vary in form and component word.
Eg. of course, at last
d. Syntactic roles of adv (3)
Advs as modifiers
Advs modifying adjs: they often precede the adjs that they modify (except: enough,
ago)
Eg. quite large, pretty good
Advs modifying other advs: to form AVP (Adverb phrase)
Eg. too much, right now, right here
Advs modifying other elements: NP, pronounce, numerals or measurements,
predeterminer, PP, Particle of phrasal verb,
Eg. quite a surprise (NP); almost nobody (Pronoun); roughly 1/3 of (measurement);
approximately 200 (numeral), I’ve done about half a side (Predet), But there is a hell
of a lot- well into their seventies ( PP), It’s really filled the room right up(Particle of
PVerb)
Advs as complements of prepositions:
Eg. Its importance has been recognised since then. (preposition – adv)
Advs as clause elements: adverbials
- Circumstance adverbials: add information about the action or state described (time,
manner, place).
Eg. He did it slowly.
-
Stance adverbials: convey assessment of speaker/writer
Eg. His book undoubtedly fills a need
-
Linking adverbials: connect stretches of text
Eg. therefore, however
Advs standing alone:
-
Emphasis,
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eg. exactly, definitely
English Grammar
-
As question,
eg. really?
-
Stance advs used to answer question, eg. Are they good?
- Definitely
e. Semantic categories of advs
Place advs: express distance, direction, position
Eg. there, far, backward
Time advs: express position in time, frequency, duration and relationship
Eg. now, always, already
Manner advs: express information about how an action is performed
Eg. He ran quickly
Degree advs: describe the extent of a characteristic:
+ Amplifier / intensifier: increase the effect
Eg. more, very, extremely
+ Disminisher / Downtoner: decrease the effect
Eg. slightly
Additive / restrictive advs:
+ Additive advs: show that one item is being added to another
Eg. I love you, too.
+ Restrictive advs:
Stance advs: express attitude, style
Eg. actually, typically, honestly
Linking advs: make connection between sections of the discourse
Eg. thus, however, nevertheless
B. Practise
Identify the adverb(s) in each of the following sentences. Then classify it/them as A,
B, C… as follow. Where there are two adverbs in a sentence, refer to the first as “a”
and the second as “b”:
A. Adjunct (định ngữ - modify a V)
F. Modifying a NP
B. Modifying an adj
C. Modifying an adv
G. Complement of preposition (bổ
nghĩa giới từ)
D. Modifying a prepositional phrase
H. Disjuncts (Liên từ phân liệt)
I. Conjuncts (Liên từ)
E. Modifying a determiner
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Sentences
a–b
Label
/
Classify
1. Shut the door quickly
A
2. You are quite right
B
3. He plays surprisingly well
a–b
C
4. Hardly anyone came
E
5. It is rather a pity
F
6. I am right for once
a
–
preposition
–b
G
7. His room is right at the end
D
8. Wait until afterwards
D
9. Answer me honestly
A
10. Honestly, I don’t know
H
11. I haven’t met him yet
A
12. Yet I feel I know him
I
13. I hope to meet him soon, though
a–b
A–I
14. We left home so early
a–b
C–A
15. You are almost at the station
D
16. That cost almost a pound
F
17. It’s about double the normal
price
E
18. I didn’t say anything, naturally
H
19. He is really very kind
a–b
C–B/ B
–B
20. In fact, he is a quite nice man
a–b
H–F
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UNIT 6
PREPOSITIONS AND PREPOSITIONAL PHRASES
1. Description of prepositions
a. Definition:
Prepositions are linking words that introduce prepositional phrase (PP).
- A preposition is a word used with nouns, pronouns, and gerunds to link them
grammatically with other words.
- A prepositional phrase is a phrase consisting of a preposition and its complement,
which is characteristically noun phrase or a wh-question or V-ing clause.
b. Classification: According to the meaning, prepositions are classified into:
Place prepositions:
Dimension: on, in, etc
Eg. There is a new roof on the cottage
Positive position and direction: to, at, etc Eg. Tom went to the door
Negative position and direction: off, away from, etc
door
Relative position: by, over, under, etc
Eg. Tom went away from the
Eg. He was standing by his mother
Relative destination: by, over, under, etc Eg. When it started to rain, we all went
underneath the trees
Passage: across, by, through, over, under, etc
Eg. He jumped over a ditch
The bus passes through the
bus-stop
Orientation: up, down, along, beyond, over, etc Eg. There is a hotel along the road
Resultative meaning: all prepositions which have motional meaning can also have a
static resultative meaning indicating the state of having reached the destination
Eg. I managed to get over the fence (So that I was then on the other side)
Pervasive meaning: all over, throughout, etc
Eg. That child was running all over the flower borders
Time prepositions:
+ Time when (point of time): in, at, on, etc
+ Duration: for, during, etc
Eg. At ten o’clock
Eg. We camped there for the summer
+ Before, after, since, until
+ Between, by, upto
Instrument:
+ Means: by
Eg. I go to school by bus
+ Agentive: by, with
Eg. The window was broken by a boy
+ Stimulus: by, at
Eg. I was alarmed at/by his behavior
c. Function of prepositional phrase
Adjunct: We are singing on the bus
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Disjunct: To my surprise, she phoned me
Conjunct: However, she said she didn’t know him
Postmodifier in a NP: The people on the bus is singing
Complementation of a verb: I depend on you
Complementation of an adj: I’m sorry for him
d. Structure of prepositional phrase
PP = Prep + Complement (N, NP, N-Clause, Gerrund)
Eg. on the table
e. Distinctive properties of prepositions:
- Complement: Prepositions take N or NP complement
- Function: Preposition is head of prepositional phrase
- Modifier: A subset of preposition are distinguished by their acceptance of such
adverbs as right and straight as modifiers
Eg. The car stops right in front of her.
2. Classify prepositions (see Q 1)
4. Functions of the prepositions:
Adjunct: We are singing on the bus
Disjunct: To my surprise, she phoned me
Conjunct: However, she said she didn’t know him
Postmodifier in a NP: The people on the bus is singing
Complementation of a verb: I depend on you
Complementation of an adj: I’m sorry for him
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UNIT 7
THE CLAUSE AND TYPES OF CLAUSES
A. Theory
1. Definition of clause
Clause is a group of words which forms a grammatical unit and which contains a
subject and a finite verb. A clause forms a sentence or part of a sentence and often
functions as N clause, Adj clause, Adv clause.
Version 2 ( Mr.Ngoc)
Classification of Subordinate Clause
3 ways:
1. Syntactic function : subject; object (indirect and direct); complement (subject and
object); adverbial
2. Structure: finite(verb) clause: non-finite clause; verbless clause
3. Meaning: nominal(noun) clauses; adjective(relwative) clause (defining and nondefining clause); adverbial clauses; comparative clauses
I. On the ground of their syntactic function :
1. Subordinate subject clause.
Finite clause: That Mr T left Ms Hanh is not clear to me.
Non-finite clause: To live means to fight;
Ing-clause: Learning English Grammar is easy
2. Subordinate subject complement(predicative) clause.
Finite clause:What t want to know is where she lives
Non-finite clause: My duty is to learn.
3. Subordinate Object Complement clause
You can call me whatever you like
Infinitive clause: I know her to be reliable
4. Subordinate direct Object clause.
Finite clause: I do not know that H learns Chinese
Non-finite clause: I hate learning english Grammar; I want to learn E. Grammar.
5. Subordinate Indirect Object Clause
Finite clause: you can tell whoever is waiting
Ing-clause: she disliked living in this unfinished mess.
Infinitive clause: I would not like to leave him.
II. On the ground of the structure or the structure of the verb phrase we
recognize three main structural classes of clauses: finite clauses, non-finite
clauses and verbless clauses.
- A finite clause is a clause whose verb element is finite.
I can not go out with you because I’m studying this evening.
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-
A non-finite clause is a clause whose verb element is non-finite.
-
Knowing my temper, I didn’t reply
A verbless clause is a clause that does not have a verb element.
Eg: Although always helpful, he was not much liked
III. On the ground of meaning.
- Noun clause functions as noun (subject).
Eg: 1. That T learns Chinese is unknown to me
2. I don’t know that Trang learns Chinese.
3. The question is that trang learn hinese
- Relative clause is clause functions as adjective.
2. What are the types of clauses?
a. According to the number of argument of V:
Transitive clauses and Intransitive clauses:
+ Transitive clauses are clauses in which the verb is directly followed by a NP or an
embedded clause.
Eg. The panther climbed the tree
She knew that the girl was unreliable
She
knew
that the girl was unreliable
+ Intransitive clauses: are clause in which the verb do not take object.
Corpular verb clause: is clause in which a corpular verb can be only in the active
voice form and NP following it is never an object.
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Ditransitive clause: have two arguments (O) constituents in the VP
b. According to the position
Main clause (independent clause): is clause that can stand alone as a sentence.
Dependent clause:
+ Definition: A clause that does not stand on it own as sentence
Eg. That Sharon’s car had broken down
+ Kinds of dependent clauses: According to the Argument of Predicate, dependent
clauses are subdivided into:
Embedded clause: is dependent clause which functions as an argument of a predicate.
It can be a N-clause or Adj-clause
Eg. I want What she has (NC)
The girl who is crying is my friend (AdjC)
Subordinate clause: is dependent clause which functions as an adjunct. It is optional
clause. Subordinate clause can be called adverbial clause. According to the semantic
criterion, Subordinate clauses can be subdivided into time, location, manner, reason,
comparison, contrast, condition, result, and purpose clauses.
Eg. She locked the doors so as to prevent any more instrusions
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c. According to Finiteness of Verb, clauses are classified into finite and non-finite
clause
Finite clause: is clause whose verb element is finite verb and often introduced by the
Complimentizer that, who, which, etc.
Eg. That she left made me happy
Non-finite clause: is clause whose verb element is non-finite verb and only introduced
by Complimerizer “for”.
Eg. For his car to be broken down
3. What is the difference between phrase and clause? Give example
- Definition:
+ Clause is a group of words which forms a grammatical unit and which contains a
subject and a finite verb. A clause forms a sentence or part of a sentence and often
functions as N clause, Adj clause, Adv clause.
+ Phrase is a group of words which forms a grammatical unit. A phrase does not
contain a finite verb and does not have subject-predicate structure.
- The difference between phrase and clause is expressed through:
Structure:
+ A phrase does not contain finite verb. It does not have subject-predicate structure.
It does not have complimentizer. Eg. a beautiful girl
+ A clause contain subject-predicate structure. It can have finite verb or non-finite
verb. It can have complimentizer. Eg. That she left made me happy
Function:
+ Phrase is element of clause, can only function as part of sentence
+ Clause can function as part of sentence or a sentence as itself.
Meaning:
+ Meaning of phrase is the meaning of word or group of words. Phrase can not express
a complete thought.
+ Clause can express a relatively complete thought.
3*. What is the difference between subordinate clause and embedded clause?
- Definition:
+ Subordinate clause is dependent clause which functions as an adjunct. It is optional
clause. Subordinate clause can be called adverbial clause.
Eg. I am happy because she left me.
+ Embedded clause is dependent clause which functions as an argument of a predicate.
It can be a N-clause or Adj-clause.
Eg. I want What she has
- Subordinate clause is different from embedded clause in terms of:
Position of complimentizer
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+ In subordinate clause, complimentizer can stand at the beginning or between 2
clauses.
Eg1. I am happy because she left me.
Eg2. Because she left me, I am happy
+ In embedded clause, the position of complimentizer can not be changed. The
position of complimentizer determines the function and meaning of clause.
Eg. I want What she has
Argument of predicate:
+ Embedded clause functions as an argument of predicate
+ Subordinate clause functions as an adjunct
3**. What is the difference between finite and non-finite clause?
- Definition:
+ Finite clause is clause whose verb element is finite verb and often introduced by the
Complimentizer that, who, which, etc.
Eg. That his car has been broken down
+ Non-finite clause is clause whose verb element is non-finite verb and only
introduced by Complimentizer “for”.
Eg. For his car to be broken down
- Finite clause is different from non-finite clause in terms of:
+ Verb: finite clause has finite verb while non-finite clause has non-finite verb
+ Tense distinction: finite verb has present and past tense while non-finite verb does
not have tense.
Eg. He studies/studied English
Learning English is difficult
+ Element in sentence: Finite verb occurs as the verb element of a clause, it has
person and number concord between subject and finite verb while non-finite verb is
only part of speech.
Eg. He smokes heavily
To smoke like that must be dangerous
+ Mood: Finite verb has moods such as indicative, imperative and subjunctive mood
while non-finite verb has no mood.
Eg. Are you angry?
Stand up!
If I were you
+ Verb form: non-finite verb only has three forms ( bare infinitive or to-infinitive,
present participle and past participle) while finite verb has all verb forms (bare
infinitive or to-infinitive, present participle, past participle, s-form, past, negative
form)
+ Complimentizer: Finite clause has complimentizer, typically “that”, “which”,
“who”, etc. If we omit the complimentizer, finite clause can become independent
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clause while non-finite clause does not has or has only complimetizer “for” and it can
not stand as an independent clause if the complimentizer is omitted.
Eg. That his car has been broken down
For his car to be broken down
Meaning: Finite clause can function as statement or question while non-finite clause
can not, it is often used as embedded counterparts of order and request.
Eg. She left immediately
She ordered him to leave immediately
Subject: Finite clause needs an overt subject to be a grammatical sentence while nonfinite clause does not need.
Eg. Knowing my hunger, he did not reply.
5. What are the syntactic functions of dependent clause?
Dependent clause can function as:
- Subject: Eg. That you are lazy causes troubles
- Direct object: Eg. I know that you are lazy
- Indirect object: Eg. I give him whatever he wants
- Post-modifier: Eg. Students who are lazy are in my class
- Adjunct (Adverbial): Eg. Although they are lazy, they pass the exam
- Complement: Eg. The point is that all the students are lazy (SC)
I know her to be reliable (OC)
- Conjunct: Eg. What is more, they are very lazy
6. What are clause elements? (xem sgk T 124127)
B. Practice
1. How does the semantic function of a masterpiece in clause (a) differ from that
in clause (b)
a. Mark lent his mother a masterpiece
b. Mark called that book a masterpiece
In clause (a) “a masterpiece” (NP) serves as an object (subject complement) – the
second argument in a ditransitive clause.
In clause (b) “a masterpiece” (serves as a NP, it modifies “the book”) is an object
complement as it bears semantic relation to the object. It is the predicate; therefore, it
can’t function as subject in the passive counterpart.
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UNIT 8
THE SENTENCE AND THE STRUCTURE OF A SENTENCE
Theory
1. What is a sentence?
- Sentence is a group of words which is the largest unit of grammatical organization
within which parts of speech and grammatical classes are said to function.
2. Classify English sentences?
- According to the communicative functions (meaning), sentences can be classified
into:
+ Statements (declarative sentences): are sentences in which the subject is always
present and generally precedes the verb. They give information to the listeners and
readers.
Eg. Because he is sick, he is at home
+ Questions (Interrogative sentences): are sentences marked by one or more of these
three criteria: the placing of the operator immediately in front of the subject; the initial
positioning of an interrogative or wh-element; raising intonation. They are used to ask
for information.
In spoken English, they are marked by intonation and question word. In written
English, they are marked by question mark and question word.
There are 3 types of questions according to the type of answer:
- Yes/no question (VD dua ca tag question)
- Wh-question
- Alternative question
Eg. Who will you speak to?
+ Exclamations: are sentences which have an initial phrase introduced by what or how
without inversion of subject and operator. They are used to show the attitude and
emotion of speakers.
Eg. What a beautiful girl!
+ Commands (Imperative sentences): are sentences which normally have no overt
grammatical subject and whose verb is in the imperative. They are used to give
requests, orders or show attitude.
Eg. Stand up!
- According to the structure and pattern, sentences are classified into:
+ Simple sentences: are sentences which consist of juct one clause. There are five
patterns as follows:
Intransitive pattern: S + V Eg. She laughed
Monotransitive pattern: S + V +DO Eg. The goalkeeper catches the ball
Copular pattern: S + V +SC
Eg. She is a student
S + V + Adverbial Eg. She is in the house
Ditransitive pattern: S +V +IO + DO Eg. She gives me a book
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Complex transitive pattern: S + V + DO + OC Eg. He makes me so happy
S + V +DO + Adverbial Eg. I put the plate on the table
+ Multiple sentences: are more than 2-clause sentences. They are subdivided into
compound and complex sentences.
In compound sentences, the clauses have the same hierarchy, are linked by
coordinating conjunctions and there is no complimentizer
Eg. Mary is a saint but she has no patience
Complex sentences: the clauses have different hierarchy and are linked by
complimentizer.
Sentences with embedded clause: embedded clause is dependent clause which
functions as an argument of a predicate. It can be a N-clause or Adj-clause
Eg. I want what she has
Sentences with subordinate clause: Subordinate clause is dependent clause which
functions as an adjunct. It is optional clause. Subordinate clause can be called
adverbial clause. According to the semantic criterion, Subordinate clauses can be
subdivided into time, location, manner, reason, comparison, contrast, condition, result,
and purpose clauses.
Eg. Although he failed the exam, he was in good spirit
3. Give brief description of concords, negation, commands, question,
exclamations?
Concord
Subject-verbs concord: is the concord of number between subject ad verb. It is the
most important type of concord in English.
Eg. The window is open
Notional concord, and proximity: Notional concord is agreement of verb with
subject according to the idea of number rather than the actual presence of the
grammatical marker for that idea.
Eg. The govermenr have broken all their promises (the government is treated as plural)
Proximity denotes agreement of the verb with whatever noun or pronoun closely
precedes it, sometimes in preference to agreement with the headword of the subject.
Eg. No one except his own supporters agree with him
Collective noun: In British English, collective nouns, notionally plural but
grammatically singular, obey the notional concord while American English has the
singular. Although singular or plural verbs are more or less interchangeable, the choice
is based on whether the group is being considered as a single undivided body or as a
collection of individuals.
Eg. The public are tired of demonstrations
Coordinated subject:
- Under non-appositional coordination we include cases that can be treated as an
implied reduction of two clauses, these have a verb in the plural.
Eg. Tom and Mary are now ready
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- With the less common appositional coordination, no such reduction is possible at all,
hence a singular verb is used.
Eg. This temple of ugliness and memorial to Victorian bad taste was erected at the
Queen’s express wish.
- Either N(sing) or N(sing) + V(sing)
- Either N(plural) or N(plural) + V(plural)
- Either N(plural) or N(sing) + V(sing)
- Either N(sing) or N(plural) + V(plural)
Indefinite expression of amount: the singular or plural verb is based on the noun
preceding it or the principle of proximity.
Eg. None of them is/are coming
Concord of person: is the concord of person between subject and verb
Eg. He is ready
They are students
Pronoun concord:
- Personal pronoun in the 3rd personsingular verb
- Plural pronounplural verb
Other types of concord:
- Subject-complement concord: Eg. The child is an angel
There is an equivalent concord between object and object complement
Eg. He thinks these girls the best actors
- Subject-object concord: concord of number, person, gender
Eg. You should give yourself another chance
Negation: the negation of a simple sentence is accomplished by inserting “not”, “n’t”
between the operator and the predication
Eg. We may not win the match
- Abbreviated negation: Eg. He isn’t coming  He ‘s not coming
- Non-assertive forms: Eg. I saw him somewhere  I didn’t see him anywhere
- Negative intensification: Eg. I ‘ve never never go there again
- Alternative negative elements:
Eg. An honest man would not lie  No honest man would lie
- More than one non-assertive form: Eg. I’ve never travelled anywhere by air yet
(Xem them trong sgk)
Questions: 3 types according to the type of answer
- Yes/no question
- Wh-question
- Alternative question
Exclamations: introduced by What or How
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Eg. What an interesting book!
How delightful her manners are!
Commands:
- Command without a subject: have no subject, have an imperative finite verb
Eg. Put it on the table
- Command with a subject: Eg. You come here, Jack.
- Command with let: Eg. Let us go
- Negative command: Eg. Open some windows  Don’t open any windows
- Persuasive imperative: Have some more sherry  Do have some more sherry
1. Draw constituent tree structure (PS) for the following sentences:
a. The police seized the robbers.
b. Those tourists came from Australia.
c. The soldiers in the boat jumped into the water.
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d. He worked hard, but he failed the exams.
e. Although he failed the exams, he was in good spirit.
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Note: the part with ø comp is drawn higher than the other part.
f. He was in good spirit, although he failed the exams.
2. Draw constituent tree structure by using the concept of IC for the following
sentences
a. They hate flying Concord.
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or
b. The Government expelled the officers from Malaysia.
or
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