Download Grammar for 2013-2014 SATP English II Review

Grammar for 2013-2014
SATP English II Review
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Verbs: words that show action or existence
Action verb: a verb that shows doing; examples: write,
run, sleep, imbue, exalt
Being verb: a verb that shows being or existence;
examples: is, are, was, were
Helping verb: a being verb that is used with an action
verb
Examples:
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Jack jog s home after school. Jogs tells the action occurring in the sentence.
Verb tense expresses time.
Verbs can be expressed in the simple tenses, which
are past, present, and future.
Verbs also can be expressed in the perfect,
progressive, or emphatic tenses.
Examples:
Simple tenses:
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Past tense: Jill ran in the race yesterday.
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Present tense: Jill runs every day.
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Jill will run in the race this afternoon.
Perfect tenses:
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Past perfect: Sometimes two events happened in the
past, and you need to show which happened before the
other. To show this tense, use the helping verb had.
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I was here all day.
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Jill had been babysitting for a year.
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Past perfect: When I saw you yesterday, I had lost my notebook.
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The notebook was lost before I saw you, yet both happened in the past.
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Present perfect: Use this tense for an action that
happened in the past but has continued into the
present; use the helping verbs has or have.
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Present perfect: I have lived in Brandon for twenty years.
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It is clear that the writer still lives in Brandon.
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Future perfect: For two future actions, show that one
action will happen before the other one by using the
helping verbs will have.
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By the end of May, you will have taken driver’s ed.
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May is in the future, but before it ends, you will have taken driver’s ed.
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Progressive verb tenses: verb tenses that use the –ing
form of a verb with a helping verb; examples: is
practicing, was practicing, will be practicing
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Emphatic verb tenses: verb tenses that use the
helping verbs do, does, or did; most commonly used
either for emphasis or to ask a question
Examples:
Progressive
Progressive
Progressive
Progressive
Progressive
Progressive
past: Jack was running in the race.
present: Jack is running in the race now.
future: Jack will be running in the race Friday.
past perfect: Jack had been running in the race when Jill arrived.
present perfect: Jack has been running in the race for over ten minutes.
future perfect: In ten seconds, Jack will have been running for fifteen minutes.
Present emphatic: I do enjoy reading. Do you enjoy reading? She does not enjoy reading.
Past emphatic: I did read The Luxe. Did Jill read The Luxe? Jack did not read The Luxe.
Active and Passive Voice
Verbs in the active voice take direct objects, and verbs in
the passive voice do not.
Active Voice: Maggie Wade anchors the news.
Passive Voice: The news is anchored by Maggie Wade.
A verb in the passive voice always includes a form of “be”
and the past participle of a verb. The form of “be” and the
helping verb, if any, indicate the tense of the verb phrase.
I am given
I was given
I will be given
I have been given
I had been given
Choosing between the active voice and the passive voice is
a matter of style. In general, the passive voice is less
direct, and less forceful than the active voice. Sometimes
the passive voice may produce an awkward effect.
Awkward: The event was completed when a vault was done
by Clare.
Active:
Clare completed the event by doing a vault.
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Pronoun: words that take the place of a noun;
examples: I me, he she, it, they, etc.
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Nouns: person place, thing, or idea; examples: student,
school, pen, love
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Antecedent: the noun that a pronoun replaces
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Ambiguous: describes a pronoun that could refer to
more than one different noun, so the antecedent is
unclear
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Ambiguous pronoun reference: If two people or things
are mentioned in a sentence, it is important for the
reader to know whom or what a pronoun refers to;
otherwise, the pronoun is said to be ambiguous, which
means it is unclear which noun the pronoun is replacing;
a sentence with ambiguous pronouns should be
rewritten so that its meaning is clear.
Passive voice is not always awkward. In fact, the passive voice is useful in the following situations:
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When you do not know who performed the action
Example: All of the tickets had been sold before the concert.
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When you do not want to reveal the performer of the action.
Example: Mistakes were made.
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When you want to emphasize the receiver of the action rather than the performer
Examples: Lasers are used in industry and communications.
Aretha Franklin has been emulated by many singers.
Which of the following sentences should remain in passive voice?
A The gift had been left on the front step.
B The mistake had been made by Tom.
C The candidate was attacked by her opponent.
D The song was loved by Luisa.
Examples:
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Jack took off his hat. Jack is the antecedent for his. It is clear and understood that the hat belongs to Jack.
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Mrs. Collins made an appointment for Jill while she was at the doctor.
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This is ambiguous. Why? How can it be corrected?
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Jack asked Jill to move his car. It is understood that his stands for Jack.
Jack asked James to move his car. This is ambiguous. Why? How can it be corrected?
Identify the sentence that does not contain an ambiguous pronoun reference.
A The teacher gave Jill her pencil.
B The coaches showed the team members their lockers.
C Uncle Bill told Jack to take his tools to the shed.
D Your sister loaned me the gasoline money for the trip.
Preposition: a word that shows a relationship between
words, such as above, around, in, on, over, above, across,
under, with, from, for, etc.
Prepositional phrase: a phrase that begins with a
preposition and ends with a noun or pronoun (called an
object); gives more information about a noun or a verb,
such as “The frog sat on a log.”
Subject: part of a sentence that tells the person or thing
the sentence is about; who/what is doing the action or is
existing/being
Verb: part of a sentence that shows either action or state
of being
Coordinating conjunction: word that joins equal words,
phrases, or sentences; examples: FANBOYS for, and, nor,
but, or, yet, so
What is a clause?
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A group of words with a subject and a verb
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An independent clause is a sentence and can stand on
its own. Example: Jack drove the truck.
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A dependent (subordinate) clause cannot stand on its
own, even though it has a subject and a verb. Example:
Although Jack drove the truck.
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A subordinate clause begins with a
subordinating conjunction; Example:
After we go to the game, we will go to
your house.
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It may begin with a relative pronoun,
such as who, which, whose, where;
Example: Jill, who has her license,
drives her little sister to school every
day.
Examples:
Name the subject, verb, coordinating conjunction, preposition, and object of the proposition below.
1 Jack drove under the bridge and across the exit.
2 Jill jumped and shouted about the As on her report card.
3 Jarvis threw the ball through the gate, yet he could not find it in the mud.
You just learned above about
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Coordinating conjunctions: word that joins equal words, phrases, or sentences; examples: FANBOYS for, and,
nor, but, or, yet, so
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Now learn these subordinating conjunctions:
After
Although
As
As soon as
As if
As though
Before
Because
Even though
Whenever
If
In order that
Since
Than
Though
Until
Unless
When
While
Where
Whenever
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Note: There are many more!
Active voice: verbs that show the subject doing the action
Passive voice: verbs that have the subject acted upon
Examples:
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The student read the book. (Active voice)
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Student is the subject and the student is doing the reading (action)
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Using Passive Voice Appropriately:
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Even though active voice is almost always preferred to
passive voice, there are some times when passive voice
is needed.
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In some cases, the person or thing who performed the
action is unknown, so passive voice is absolutely
necessary.
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Sometimes the person or thing who did the action is
not mentioned because it is not important to the
sentence or because it is more important to draw
attention to the person or thing acted upon.
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In some science reports, the process should be
emphasized by using passive voice.
Predicate nominative: a noun or a pronoun that follows a
being verb and renames the subject
The book was read by the student (passive voice)
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Book is the subject, but the book is not performing the action. Who is?
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The book is being acted upon, so the verb was read is passive. Remember, student cannot be the
subject because it is the object of the prepositional phrase.
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Hint: Passive voice has a helping verb before the verb
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In the novel, the man was murdered and buried in a vault. (We do not know who did it)
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The flags were flown to celebrate the victory. (It is not important who flew those flags)
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Next, three cups of water is poured into the container. (It is not important who is doing the pouring)
Examples:
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Rachel had been an actress. (Rachel = actress)
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That girl is my cousin. (girl = cousin)
Direct object: a noun or a pronoun that receives the action
of an action verb
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The ball hit the wall. D.O. answers “what?” The ball hit what? The wall.
Indirect object: A noun or pronoun that follows an action
verb and answers to whom or for whom
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The librarian gave Jack the card. Card is the direct object telling what was given. Jack is the indirect object
telling to whom the card was given. Note: The indirect object must always come before the direct object.
Objective complement: A noun or an adjective that
completes the meaning of a direct object and describes or
identifies it
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He painted the house white.
Jill considers him her hero. Her is the direct object. Hero complements the direct object.
They elected him the first mayor of the town. Him is the direct object and mayor is the objective
complement.
BE CAREFUL: They sent us the tickets. Tickets does not describe or identify us; tickets is the direct object,
so us is the indirect object.
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Phrases between subject and verbs: Sometimes a subject is
located right before the verb, yet sometimes there are
words or phrases between the subject and the verb. Be
careful to see who or what is doing the action or is being.
BE CAREFUL: Don’t confuse the object of the preposition
as the subject. The subject of the sentence will NEVER be
found in a prepositional phrase.
Examples:
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One of my friends is going to the game.
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The subject is one, not friends. One is a singular subject so you will choose the singular verb “is
going.”
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“of my friends is a prepositional phrase. Of is a preposition and friends is the object of the
preposition. Remember, mark out the prepositional phrases because objects of prepositions
cannot be subjects.
Collective nouns: Nouns that appear singular, but they
represent a group;
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when collective nouns refer to the group as a whole,
they use a singular verb
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However, in some cases, a collective noun may refer to
the individual members of the group in which case it
takes a plural verb.
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Examples of collective nouns: army, class, crowd, flock,
mob, audience, club, faculty, group, public, band,
collection, family, herd, swarm, bunch, committee,
fleet, jury, team
Other noun exceptions:
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The word “number” is singular if it has the article
“the” in front of it
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It is plural if it has an “a” in front of it
Capitalization: Remember to capitalize the following:
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The pronoun I
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Individual names, nicknames, and titles
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The first word of a sentence
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Ethnic groups
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Nationalities
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Languages
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Names of places sections of the country
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Sections of the country are capitalized
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Directions are not capitalized
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Calendar items
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Direct quotes
Commas
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Use commas
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Use commas
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Use commas
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Use commas
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Use commas
before it)
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Use commas
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Use commas
to separate items in a series
after introductory words/phrases
to set off a direct address
to set off interrupters
to set off appositives (renames noun
to set off dates and addresses
to avoid misreading
The
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The
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committee meets in the conference room every Friday morning. (singular)
In this example, committee refers to the group as a whole. The entire group meets in the conference room.
committee disagree on the new budget plans. (plural)
In this example, committee refers to the individual members of the committee. The individual members
disagree.
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The number of fans attending the game was over ten thousand.
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A number of fans were tailgating hours before the game began.
Examples:
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Aunt Maria and Uncle Ben visited Grandma Smith.
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Native Americans and Italians do not speak the same language.
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We live in the South.
California is west of Colorado.
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He said, “We
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saw the sun rise.”
“I saw the sun rise,” he said.
“I saw,” he said, “the sun rise.”
(Of course you do not capitalize he or the.)
Examples:
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Our flag is red, white, and blue.
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After the game, we will go to Pizza Hut.
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Jarvis, will you put some gasoline in the car?
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Jasmine knew, I believe, that the puppy was under that chair.
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Jill, my favorite cousin, plays the piano.
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Note: if the appositive is necessary do not use commas: My favorite cousin Jill plays.
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Biloxi, Mississippi, is found on the Gulf of Mexico.
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In the summer, time seems to go more quickly.
Coordinate adjectives: two or more adjectives that modify
the same noun equally;
they need to be separated by a comma
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I opened the window that cool, windy morning.
Mom gave me a warm, fuzzy sweater to wear to the party.
Series within a Series:
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When a sentence has a series of items as well as other
elements that all need commas, use semi-colons to join
the items in the series; in other words, you don’t want
too many commas because that will be confusing to
your reader.
Examples:
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Mr. Smith, the chairman; Mr. Jones, the secretary; and Mrs. Johnson discussed the matter.
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Gabe, my cousin; Lake, my neighbor; and Jack all pushed the truck out of the mud.
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We have lived in Dallas, Texas; Baton Rouge, Louisiana; and Brandon, Mississippi.
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Direct quote: tells a person’s exact words and uses
quotation marks
Examples:
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His barber said, “I don’t have time to cut your hair today.”
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Notice the end punctuation goes inside the quotation marks
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Indirect quote: tells what a person said by using your
own words
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His barber said that he didn’t have time today.
Quote within quotation marks: Short stories, songs,
poems, other quotations, etc. are enclosed with double
quotation marks; however, if double quotation marks
are already being used, then the writer will use single
quotation marks.
Complete sentence: A group of words with a subject and a
verb that contains a complete thought. Types:
Declarative: makes a statement; ends with period
Interrogative: asks a question; ends with question mark
Imperative: gives a command; may end with exclamation
Point or period, depending on the writer’s emotion
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Jack said, “We listened to ‘Stairway to Heaven’ in Jill’s car on the way home from school today.”
“Let’s think about going to New Orleans,” suggested Dad, “because your grandma used to say ‘New Orleans is
like no other city in the South.’”
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Note: Do not use imperative sentences in your essays; do not command your reader to do anything
Turn off the television. (implied “you” is the subject)
Stop! What is the subject?
fragment: an incomplete sentence.
run-on sentence: two or more sentences put together
incorrectly
comma splice: two or more sentences put together
incorrectly using just a commas without a conjunction.
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The book written by my favorite author. When Jill sang the song. What’s missing?
The weatherman gave the forecast he said rain.
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The weatherman gave the forecast, he said rain.
coordinating conjunctions: used to join equal words,
phrases, and sentences (fanboys – for, and, nor, but, or,
yet, so)
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He needed the light bulb, so he took one from the lamp. (comma-conjunction rule)
correlative conjunctions: conjunctions that work as pairs,
such as either/or, neither/nor, not only/but also, both/and
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A personal trainer can not only assess your strengths and weaknesses but also design an individual program for
you.
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Examples:
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The weatherman gave the forecast of rain. What’s the subject and verb?
simple sentence: a sentence with only one main clause that
has either a simple or compound subject and a simple or
compound verb
Compound sentence: a sentence that has two or more main
clauses; the main clauses can be joined by a coordinating
conjunction, correlative conjunction, or semi-colon.
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Phrase
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Clause
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A group of words that lacks both a
subject and a verb
A group of words with both a subject
and a verb, but cannot stand on its own
Prepositional phrases:
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Most prepositions are easy to identify because
they are difficult to define
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Try defining of, in, off, by, through, between, etc
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Prepositional phrases are sentence parts that
describe people, things, or actions
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Sentences can contain single or consecutive
prepositional phrases anywhere in the sentence
subordinate clause: a group of words with a subject and a
verb that cannot stand alone as a sentence but can be in a
complex sentence with a main clause
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The weatherman gave the forecast of rain.
Read these two statements.
Statement 1: The wind may have blown the screen door open.
Statement 2 :I may have left it open.
Which sentence combination equally emphasizes both statements?
A The wind blew the screen door open because I left it open.
B Since I left it open, the wind may have blown the screen door open.
C Either the wind blew the screen door open, or I left it open.
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He tried to sneak into class (after the bell).
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After the bell had rung. (Not a sentence; it’s a fragment)
He tried to sneak into class after the bell had rung.
Examples of single prepositional phrases:
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Before the fall
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After the creation
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At the game
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Down the aisle
(In a hole) (in the ground), there lived a hobbit.
J.R.R. Tolkien, The Hobbit
Examples:
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When the ship docked, we walked on the beach.
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complex sentence: a sentence with a main clause and one or
more subordinate clauses
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He tried to sneak into class after the bell had rung.
Adjective clause: a clause that modifies a noun or pronoun
in the main clause
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Words that introduce adjective clauses: who, whom, whose, which, that, when, where
Essential adjective clause: An adjective clause that does
not need to be punctuated with commas because it is
“essential” to the sentence
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Counters that are uncluttered make cooking easier.
Nonessential adjective clause: An adjective clause that
should be punctuated with commas because it adds
additional information that is “not essential” to the
sentence
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The history book, which is worn from use, is in my locker.
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Appositive phrases are nouns phrases that
identify (rename) adjacent nouns or pronouns.
They are frequently used by professional writers
but rarely used by students.
Appositive phrases are an efficient way to
combine related ideas in one sentence.
Label these appositive phrases as sentence openers, interrupters, or sentence closers.
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Adverb clause: a subordinate (dependent) clause found
anywhere in a sentence that usually modifies a verb but can
also modify and adjective or an adverb
Subordinating conjunctions: introduces a subordinate
clause
Common subordinating conjunctions: after, although, as, as
soon as, as if, as though, before because, even though, if, in
order that, since, than though, until, unless, when, while,
where, whenever, wherever
***Subordinating emphasis: When combining two
statements, if you want to emphasize statement 2, then
leave it alone and add a subordinating conjunction to
sentence 1.
Poppa, a good quiet man, spent the last hours before our parting moving aimlessly about the yard,
keeping to himself and avoiding me.
Gordon Parks
The boy looked at them, big black ugly insects.
Doris Lessing
Hour after hour he stood there, silent, motionless, a shadow carved in ebony and moonlight.
James Marshall
One of eleven brothers and sisters, Harriet was a moody, willful child.
Langston Hughes
Examples:
Although it rained, I walked home.
If the adverb clause opens the sentence, it is introductory and needs a commas after it.
I was out of breath because I walked fast.
If the adverb clause does not begin the sentence, it usually does not need a comma.
The walk, even though it was only a mile, seemed to take forever.
If the adverb clause interrupts the flow of the sentence, set it off with commas.
Statement 1: Acid rain causes aluminum to be dissolved and absorbed.
Statement 2: Acid rain can harm or even kill plants and animals.
Which sentence appropriately combines both statements and emphasizes Statement 2?
A Acid rain, which can harm or even kill plants and animals, causes aluminum to be dissolved and absorbed.
B Acid rain causes aluminum to be dissolved and absorbed, so it can harm or even kill plants and animals.
C Acid rain causes aluminum to be dissolved and absorbed harm because it can harm or even kill plants and animals.
D Since acid rain causes aluminum to be dissolved and absorbed, it can harm or even kill plants and animals.
Punctuating complex sentences: When a sentence contains
three or more main clauses but needs additional commas
other than the ones needed to separate the clauses, use
semi-colons instead of commas to join the clauses.
Examples:
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Last summer in the King City Triathlon, Jack swam 3 miles; he bicycled 110 miles; and then he ran a full
marathon, which is 26.2 miles.
Noun clause: a subordinate (dependent) clause that is used
as a noun; the whole clause can be a subject, a direct
object, an indirect object, a predicate nominative, or an
object of a preposition.
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Wherever you choose will be fine with me. The noun clause is the subject of the sentence.
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I did not know how I could make the mistake. What is the function of the clause?
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The quote begins with what he said about war. What is the function of the clause?
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Her answer was that she did not know. What is the function of the clause?
Subordinating emphasis:
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When combining two statements, if you want to
emphasize statement 2, then leave it alone and add a
subordinating conjunction to sentence 1.
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When combining sentences within a paragraph, the
same concept applies.
Verbal: A form of a verb that is used as a noun, an
adjective, or an adverb in a sentence
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Not the main verb
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In addition to verbals, we will see verbal phrases.
1) Butterflying began with naturalists collecting butterflies in nets and studying the dead ones to identify and
catalogue them. 2) Next, the development of close-focusing binoculars made it possible to identify butterflies
without nets. 3) Later, guidebooks were published. 4) Then, butterfly enthusiasts could recognize the varieties
seen through the binoculars. 5) Binoculars increased the ability to see all the beauty of the colors and patterns of
butterflies.
Which sentence correctly and appropriately combines sentence 3 and 4 to emphasize the idea in sentence 4?
A Later, guidebooks were published, and then, butterfly enthusiasts could recognize the varieties seen through
the binoculars.
B Once guidebooks were published, butterfly enthusiasts could recognize the varieties seen through the
binoculars.
C Butterfly enthusiasts could recognize the varieties seen through the binoculars so that guidebooks could be
published.
D Guidebooks were published so that butterfly enthusiasts could recognize the varieties seen through the
binoculars.
Three kinds of verbals: participles, infinitives, and gerunds
A verbal that acts as an adjective is a participle
The hissing snake scared her.
Participles describe nouns or pronouns.
The startled squirrel ran up the tree.
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In other words, participles and participial phrases act
like adjectives in a sentence.
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Present participles always end in “ing”
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Past participles usually end in “ed” or some other
past tense ending (spoken)
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So, participles will end in either “ing” or “ed” or
some other past tense ending
The tree grown in our back yard was home to many squirrels.
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Coiling around the tree branch, the python looked imposing.
The python, coiling around the tree branch, looked imposing.
Waiting, the python wrapped itself around the branch.
The python, waiting, wrapped itself around the branch.
The python wrapped itself around the branch, waiting.
Participial phrases are used in professional writing, but
rarely in student writing.
She was quite far from the windows which were to her left, and behind her were a couple of tall bookcases,
containing all the books of the factory library.
John Hershey, Hiroshima
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Looking over their own troops, they saw mixed masses slowly getting into regular form.
Stephen Crane,
The Red Badge of Courage
Participial phrases are an efficient way to combine related
ideas into one sentence.
The crowd was pulsating with excitement. The crowd was moving like a blob. The crowd was growing larger.
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Pulsating with excitement, the crowd surrounded the girl.
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The crowd, moving like a blob and growing larger, surrounded the girl.
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Growing larger, the crowd surrounded the girl.
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Example:
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The wagon was rolling down the hill.
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Rolling is part of the verb was rolling, so it is not used as an adjective; instead, it is used as a
verb.
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Incorrect:
The football players celebrated their victory at the pizza parlor, winning the state championship.
Correct:
Winning the state championship, the football players celebrated their victory at the pizza parlor.
Also correct:
The football players, winning the state championship, celebrated their victory at the pizza parlor.
Does the participle come after a “being” verb?
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If yes, then the participle is just a part of the
verb phrase and is not used as an adjective.
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Sometimes students make mistakes by creating
dangling participles in their writing.
If the participial phrase is not in the correct
place, it is called a dangling participle.
An infinitive is a verbal that begins with “to” and
can be used as a modifier or a noun
Easiest verbals to recognize because they are
“to” + verb
Infinitives may be part of infinitive phrases
I like to eat cookies.
The right dress to wear to the prom should be in fashion.
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Infinitive phrase acts like an adjective and modifies dress
He wants to run for president.
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Here the noun infinitive phrase is used as a direct object.
To buy a house on the lake is her dream.
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Here the noun infinitive phrase is used as the subject.
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A gerund is a verbal that ends only in “ing” and
that is used as a noun in a sentence
Gerunds are verbals used as nouns
They look similar to participles because they
always end in “ing”
Gerunds and gerund phrases may be used as a
subject, direct object, predicate nominative or
object of the preposition.
Gerund phrases may begin with a possessive noun
or a pronoun
His snoring loudly bothered his wife. (subject)
Her excuse was having a flat tire. (direct object)
Preparing the entire meal was not difficult. (subject)
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Misplaced modifiers are modifiers (adjectives,
adverbs, or phrases) that are unclear because
they are not close to the word modified.
The meaning of a sentence might be lost if you cannot tell
what the modifiers are modifying
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You will recall that modifiers are adjectives,
adverbs, and prepositional phrases
To correct misplaced modifiers, move the
modifying word or phrase so that it appears
directly before or after the object it modifies
Common adverbs that are misplaced are only,
almost, just, even, merely, and scarcely
TIP: 1) Read each word and phrase closely. Make sure the
modifier is parked next to the noun or pronoun that it
should be modifying and è draw arrows indicating same;
2) Be aware that modifier questions are challenging, yet
you are quite capable of figuring out the correct answer. It
will just take some patience on your part!
1
A
B
C
D
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Incorrect:
She only washed some of her clothes. (No mopping, cooking, etc.; only washing)
Correct:
She washed only some of her clothes.
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Incorrect:
The watermelons at the produce stand grown in Mississippi were the freshest.
Correct:
At the produce stand, the watermelons grown in Mississippi were the freshest.
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Unclear: Walking to school that cold morning, my hand became completely frozen.
Clear: As I walked to school that cold morning, my hand became completely frozen.
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Just the boys thanked the coach.
Notice how the position of “just” affects these sentences
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The boys just thanked the coach.
–
The boys thanked just the coach.
Which sentence does not have a misplaced modifier?
The hawk circling its prey in the field soared unnoticed above the tiny mouse.
The mouse ate grass in the field sensing danger only once it was too late.
Diving through the low clouds, the hawk’s flight was suddenly interrupted.
A boy with a sling shot distracted the hawk flinging a small pebble.
Parallel structure: having like grammatical parts joined
together;
2
A
B
C
D
Which sentence is written correctly?
Jerome searched frantically for the keys to his car around the house.
Normally a careful person, his search was even more frustrating.
The Keys on the table in the den had been sitting there since he got home from school.
Once found, his sister teased him.
3
A
B
C
D
Which sentence contains a modifier error?
Clapping loudly, the crowd enjoyed her performance.
A top performer, Janet entertained the crowd of over one thousand people.
Having an unusual name, Juneau went by her middle name instead.
An accomplished singer, David’s voice could be recognized easily.
4
A
B
C
D
Which sentence contains a modifier error?
We drove almost all night.
He bounced the ball confidently before he served.
They danced gracefully to the waltz.
The ball bounced on the baseline obviously.
Examples:
Grandma enjoys walking, swimming, and riding her bike.
Grandma tries to walk, to swim, or to ride her bike several times a week.
Making series with coordinating conjunctions parallel: when
using a coordinating conjunction—and, or, but (fanboys)—in
a series, you must always use the same grammatical
elements joined by the conjunction to keep the sentence
parallel, such as adjectives, nouns, phrases, etc.
Incorrect:
The man was tired, lonely, and a grouch.
Correct:
The man was tired, lonely, and grouchy.
Making sentence parts parallel: Sometimes only two parts
of a sentence are combined using a coordinating
conjunction. Make sure the two parts of the sentence that
are joined by the conjunction are written in the same form.
Incorrect:
Telling your intentions and to carry them out are two different matters.
Correct the above sentence:
Correlative conjunctions: either/or, neither/nor, not
only/but also, both/and
You are not only a student but also a talented athlete.
Making sentences with correlative conjunctions parallel
(equal emphasis): in many cases, you can look at only the
first one or two words after each correlative conjunction
to determine parallelism
•
1 Identify the correlative conjunctions
•
2 Look at only the first one or two words after them
to see if they are grammatically parallel
•
3 Ignore the rest of the words
Incorrect:
Hikers traveling to the bottom of the Grand Canyon can afford neither to become dehydrated nor by allowing their
blood pressure to drop.
Correct:
Hikers traveling to the bottom of the Grand Canyon can afford neither to become dehydrated
nor to allow their blood sugar to drop.
Statement 1: The Navy SEAL could hold his breath for five minutes.
Statement 2: He could also swim with his hand and feet tied together.
Which statement combines both sentences by giving both statements equal emphasis?
A The Navy SEAL could not only hold his breath for five minutes but also swim with his hand s and feet tied
together.
B Not only could the Navy SEAL hold his breath for five minutes but also swim with his hands and feet tied
together.
C The Navy SEAL could hold his breath not only for five minutes but also swim with his hands and feet tied
together.
D The Navy SEAL could not only hold his breath for five minutes but to swim with his hand and feet also tied
together.
Combining ideas from two or more statements into one
sentence can be an effective writing strategy; remember
that when you combine two sentences with verbals or
prepositional phrases, the parts must be parallel
(grammatically equal)
Parallelism: using a deliberate repetition for emphasis.
Review:
Simple sentence: a sentence made up of only one main
clause (independent clause); the subject or verb may be
compound
Combine these statements into one sentence:
•
Jill is a girl who enjoys cats and playing with them.
•
She enjoys reading mysteries, too.
•
Jill also likes to study health and nutrition.
Examples:
Democracy is the government of the people, by the people, and for the people. –Abraham Lincoln
It was the best of times, it was the worst of times…Charles Dickens
I came, I saw, I conquered. –Julius Caesar
What you see is what you get.
Friends, Romans, countrymen, lend me your ears. --William Shakespeare,Julius Caesar
Jack missed the bus. He was late for school.
Compound sentence: a sentence made up of two main
clauses that are joined by a semi-colon or by coordinating
conjunctions (fanboys)
Jack missed the bus, so he was late for school. (comma-conjunction rule)
Complex sentence: a sentence made up of a main clause and
one or more subordinate clauses (clauses that have a
subject and a verb but that cannot stand on their own, such
as adjective, adverb, or noun clauses)
Identify each of these clause in this compound-complex sentence:
Because Jack petted his dog, he missed the bus, so he was late for school.
Sentence structure: the way a sentence is “built” by using
clauses and phrases; also known as syntax
Sentence variety: it is helpful to you as a reader and writer
if you can read a paragraph and identify the various types
of sentences used in a paragraph; remember: a well-written
text has a variety of sentence structures.
Sentence combining gives your writing variety.
Examples:
Simple sentence: Wandering around the mall, the group of teens wearing bizarre clothing wanted only to be seen.
Compound: We wanted to have a peaceful vacation, but problems arose with our getting into the condo.
Complex: If the tree grows much taller, it will shade the entire yard.
Which example most effectively utilizes a variety of sentence structures?
A French scientists discovered that copper pollution of the atmosphere occurred about 2500 years ago. These
results were reached by analyzing ice cores from Greenland in a European program in which France took part. The
pollution was attributed to the Romans who had used copper to produce coins and to make bronze and brass for
armor and weapons.
B By analyzing ice cores from Greenland, French scientists discovered that copper pollution of the atmosphere
occurred about 2500 years ago. These results were obtained during a European program in which France took part.
The pollution was attributed to the Romans who had used copper to produce coins. They also used it to make
bronze and brass for armor and weapons.
C In a European program in which France took part, French scientists discovered that copper pollution of the
atmosphere occurred about 2500 years ago. Having analyzed ice cores from Greenland, the scientists attributed
the pollution to the Romans who had used copper to produce coins and to make bronze and brass for armor and
weapons.
D French scientists discovered copper pollution of the atmosphere, and it had occurred about 2500 years ago.
These scientists were a part of a European program, and they analyzed ice cores from Greenland. They attributed
the pollution to the Romans for their use of copper in coins, armor, and weapons.
Read the following paragraph.
1) Dust mites, microscopic bugs, thrive in people’s homes on upholstered furniture, mattresses, and carpet. 2)
They live mostly on the dead skin cells that humans and pets shed. 3) They are generally harmless. 4) They don’t
carry diseases. 5) Many people are allergic to their feces. 6) Exposure can cause varied reactions. 7) These
reactions can include an asthma attack or mere itchy eyes.
How can sentences 3-7 be combined to include a variety of sentence structures?
A They are generally harmless since they don’t carry diseases. Many people are allergic to their feces. Exposure
can cause reactions. These include an asthma attack or mere itchy eyes.
B They are generally harmless and don’t carry diseases. Many people are allergic to their feces. Exposure can
cause an asthma attack or mere itchy eyes.
C The dust mites don’t carry diseases and are generally harmless. Many people are allergic to their feces.
Exposure can cause reactions, such as an asthma attack or mere itchy eyes.
D Even though dust mites are generally harmless and don’t carry diseases, many people are allergic to their feces.
Exposure can cause varied reactions: they can trigger an asthma attack, or they can merely cause itchy eyes.
Parallel sentence structure: using the same sentence structure for each
sentence in a paragraph to create a desired effect
•
Deliberate parallelism within a sentence can create emphasis; the
same is true in a paragraph.
•
Sometimes a writer may want to use repetition and the same
sentence structure in every sentence in a paragraph for emphasis.
Read the following paragraph.
1) The journey a mastering swimming was a long, painful one for me. 2) At five, getting water in my
eyes or my face terrified me. 3) at six, putting my head underwater and holding my breath panicked me.
4) At sever, I couldn’t seem to kick my feet and move my arms at the same time. 5) At eight, being in
the deep end and treading water finally did not defeat me.
Which sentence revision improves the parallel structure of this paragraph by maintaining a
consistent emphasis?
A 2) When I was five, I was terrified to get water in my eyes or my face.
B 3) At six, I panicked when I tried to put my head underwater and hold my breath.
C 4) At seven, kicking my feet and moving my arms at the same time confused me.
D 5) At eight, I finally triumphed over being in the deep end and treading water.