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Language Arts Practice Rules
page
3-4
5-6
7-13
14-15
Skill Rules
Capitalization
Nouns
Pronouns
Verb Tense: present, past, future
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17-20
To be and To have
Irregular past tense
21
22
23
24
25
there is a LONG LIST of these spelling change words
Coordinating conjunctions
Subordinating conjunctions
Commas
Semi-colons, colons
Hyphens and dashes
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2
CAPITALIZATION:
1. Capitalize the names of people and pets.
Laura
Sparky
kitten
dog
2. Capitalize a title of respect if it is used with a name or as a name.
President Nixon
Dr. Chen
Mayor Higgins
Do not capitalize a title of respect if it is used as a common noun.
a president
the doctor
3. Capitalize the title of a family member if it is used with a name or as a name.
Mommy
Uncle Dave
4. Do not capitalize the title of a family member if it is used as a common noun.
my mother
an uncle brother
sister
5. Capitalize initials.
J. K. Rowling
U.S.
DVD
FBI
6. Capitalize the names of months, days of the week, and holidays, including
words like Day and Eve.
January
Monday
New Year's Eve
Halloween
7. Capitalize the names of historical events, periods, and documents.
Battle of Bunker Hill
Renaissance
Constitution
8. Capitalize languages, religions, nationalities, and proper adjectives.
Arabic
Hinduism
Canadian
Italian food
American
French
9. Capitalize the names of places, including: Cities, states, countries, and other
political divisions
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London
North Dakota
Madison County
Mexico
10. Places built by people, such as buildings, bridges, streets, and monuments
Linden High School
Golden Gate Bridge
11. Geographical features, such as bodies of water, mountains, deserts, forests,
and continents
Nile River
Gobi Desert
Antarctica
12. Capitalize a direction word (north, south, east, west) if it is used as the
name of a particular region.
the Southwest
the North
13. Do not capitalize a direction word if it is not used as the name of a region.
driving southwest
the northern horizon
headed south
14. Do not capitalize a word like the or of, unless it is the first word of the
sentence.
the Declaration of Independence
the Soviet Union
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NOUNS:
A noun is a word that names a person, place, thing, or idea.
Some nouns name people, like daughter, passenger, and firefighter.
Some nouns name places, like forest, zoo, and island.
Some nouns name things, like canoe, lion, and hammer.
Nouns like month or question name things you can't touch or see.
Some nouns name ideas, like courage, wisdom, and happiness.
A concrete noun names a person, place, or thing that is a physical object.
This means that you can see, hear, smell, taste, or touch it.
Friend
home
Luke
flower
An abstract noun names an idea, feeling, quality, or concept. It is not a physical object.
This means you can think about an abstract noun, but you can't see, hear, smell, taste, or touch
it.
power
fear
wisdom
Sunday
A common noun names a general type of person, place, thing, or idea.
It is not the name of a person, place, thing, or idea.
A common noun is not capitalized unless it is the first word of a sentence.
A proper noun is the specific name of a person, place, thing, or idea.
A proper noun is always capitalized.
Common Nouns
Proper Nouns
boy
Jacob
day
Tuesday
street
Elm Street
city
Chicago
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POSSESIVE NOUNS
A possessive noun shows who or what owns something or has something.
Add an apostrophe and -s ('s) to a singular noun to make it a possessive noun.
Matt → Matt's glove
the bird → the bird's wings
When a plural noun ends in -s, add an apostrophe (') to make it a possessive noun.
the boys → the boys' camp
the schools → the schools' teams
When a plural noun does not end in -s, add an apostrophe and -s ('s) to make it a
possessive noun.
the children → the children's toys
the mice → the mice's tails
REGULAR PLURAL NOUNS:
Singular means one. Plural means more than one.
With most singular words, add -s to make them plural.
one tree → two trees
If a singular word ends in -s, -ch, -sh, -x, or -z, then add -es to make it plural.
one bush → two bushes
If a singular word ends in consonant-y, then drop the y and add -ies to make it plural.
one baby → two babies
If a singular word ends in -f or -fe, then drop the -f or -fe and add -ves to make it plural.
one wolf → two wolves
IRREGULAR PLURAL NOUNS:
Some plurals are irregular. They don’t follow rules, so you must remember each one.
ox oxen child children mouse mice woman women
man men goose geese foot feet person people
Some plural forms are the same as their singular forms.
deer → deer
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sheep → sheep
fish → fish
PERSONAL PRONOUNS:
A pronoun is a word that takes the place of a noun or nouns.
Singular pronouns take the place of singular nouns (one person, place, or thing).
Lea liked the book.
She liked it.
(She takes the place of Lea, and it takes the place of the book.)
These are singular pronouns:
I, you, he, she, it, me, him, her
Plural pronouns take the place of plural nouns (more than one person, place, or thing).
The kids liked the books.
They liked them.
(They takes the place of the kids. Them takes the place of the books.)
These are plural pronouns:
we, you, they, us, them
You can use a subject pronoun as the subject of a sentence or clause.
It tells who is doing something, and it is usually at the beginning of the sentence.
The subject pronouns are I,you, he, she, it, we, and they.
I hug Rick.
You can use an object pronoun after an action verb.
You can also use an object pronoun after a preposition (like at, for, of, on, to, or with). The
object pronouns are me, you, him,her, it, us, and them.
Rick hugs me.
Rick smiles at me.
The object pronoun me is used after a preposition, at.
When a pronoun is connected to a noun with the word and (like Rick and I or Rick and me),
it can be hard to tell which pronoun is correct.
To tell which one is correct, look at the sentence without the other noun.
Rick and I like the teacher.
I like the teacher.
The subject pronoun I is used as the subject of the sentence.
The teacher likes Rick and me.
The teacher likes me.
The object pronoun me is used after the action verb, likes.
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POSSESSIVE PRONOUNS:
Some possessive pronouns come before a noun.
They are my, your, his, her, its, our, their.
That is Tasha’s car.
That is her car.
Some possessive pronouns appear without a noun.
They are mine, yours, his, hers, its, ours, theirs.
That is Tasha’s car.
That is hers.
RELATIVE PRONOUNS:
A relative pronoun introduces a dependent (or relative) clause that describes a noun or
pronoun.
The five main relative pronouns are:
who, whom, whose, which, and that.
The woman who lives next door grows tomatoes in her garden.
Peter, whom you met yesterday, has four younger brothers.
Emily, whose hair is quite long, likes wearing braids.
I just read Janet’s new book, which came out last month.
This is the dress that I wore to my uncle’s wedding.
A relative pronoun introduces a dependent (or relative) clause that describes a noun or
pronoun.
The relative pronouns who and whom give information about people.
To figure out whether to use who or whom, restate the dependent clause with a personal
pronoun.
If the clause uses a subject pronoun (he, she, or they), use who.
The woman who lives next door grows tomatoes in her garden.
WHO LIVES NEXT DOOR? He, she, or they OR him, her, or them lives next door.
She lives next door.
If the clause uses an object pronoun (him, her, or them), use whom.
Peter, whom you met yesterday, has four younger brothers.
WHO DID YOU MEET YESTERDAY? You met he, she, or they OR him, her, or them yest.
You met him yesterday.
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The relative pronoun that gives necessary information about things.
Necessary information narrows down what you're talking about and is not set off by commas.
We walked to a park that has a tire swing.
WHERE DID YOU WALK TO? To a park THAT has a swing.
The information narrows down which park we walked to. It is necessary.
The relative pronoun which adds unnecessary information about things.
This extra information does not narrow down what you're talking about. It is always set off by
commas.
We walked to Glendale Park, which has a tire swing.
WHERE DID YOU WALK TO, Glendale park, WHICH has a swing.
The information is extra. It does not narrow down which park we walked to.
The relative pronoun whose shows possession.
Emily, whose hair is quite long, likes wearing braids.
WHO DID THE BRAIDS BELONG TO? Emily, WHOSE hair is long….
Do not confuse whose with who's. Who's is a contraction for who is or who has. It does not
show possession.
Emily, who's quite tall, can reach the top shelf.
Emily, who is quite tall, can reach the top shelf.
PRONOUN-ANTECEDENTS
A pronoun is a word that takes the place of a noun or noun phrase. The noun or noun phrase
that the pronoun refers to is called the antecedent. A pronoun must agree with its antecedent.
Singular pronouns take the place of singular nouns. Singular pronouns
include I, you, she,he, it, me, him, her, his, its, my, and your.
Rachel is tired, even though she slept for ten hours last night.
Rachel IS she
Surprisingly, my brother's basketball team won all of its games this season.
team IS its
Plural pronouns take the place of plural nouns, or of nouns joined by the conjunction and.
Plural pronouns include we, you, they, us, them, our, your, and their.
My neighbors spent the weekend at their cabin in South Lake Tahoe.
neighbors IS their
Izzy and I spent all day on our science project.
Izzy and I IS our
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REFLEXIVE AND INTENSIVE PRONOUNS:
Reflexive pronouns are pronouns that end in -self or -selves.
Subject (singular)
Reflexive pronoun
I
myself
you
yourself
she
herself
he
himself
it
itself
Subject (plural)   Reflexive pronoun
we
ourselves
you
yourselves
they
themselves
A reflexive pronoun is used to refer back to the subject of the sentence or clause in which it
appears.
It should agree with that subject.
We helped ourselves to some more soup.
The subject of the sentence is we, so use ourselves.
After the guests left, Amy made herself a cup of tea.
The subject of the clause in which the pronoun appears is Amy.
Amy can be called she, so use herself.
A reflexive pronoun can only be used to refer to the subject of the sentence or clause in which it
appears.
To refer to someone else or something else, a personal pronoun, like me, you, him, her, it,
us, or them, should be used instead.
Jake wrote a note for himself.
The reflexive pronoun, himself, refers back to the subject, Jake.
Jake wrote a note for him.
The personal pronoun, him, must refer to someone other than the subject, Jake.
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Intensive pronouns emphasize, or intensify, the noun or pronoun they refer to.
They can refer to any noun or pronoun in the sentence, not just a subject.
Intensive pronouns are used for emphasis only — they are not objects of verbs or prepositions.
No one else was home, so I brought in the groceries myself.
The intensive pronoun myself emphasizes the pronoun I.
After waiting in line all afternoon, we were finally able to meet the queen herself.
The intensive pronoun herself emphasizes the noun queen.
One way to tell if a pronoun is reflexive or intensive is to try replacing it with an object
pronoun, like me, her, or us.
If you can replace it with an object pronoun and still have a complete sentence, it is reflexive.
Did Sarah save any of the cookies for herself?
Did Sarah save any of the cookies for him?
You can replace herself with the object pronoun him and still have a sentence. This tells you
that the pronoun is reflexive.
If you can't, it is intensive.
No one else was home, so I brought in the groceries myself.
No one else was home, so I brought in the groceries her.
You can't replace myself with the object pronoun her. The second sentence doesn't work. This
tells you that the pronoun is intensive.
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SUBJECT AND OBJECT PRONOUNS:
You can use a subject pronoun as the subject of a sentence or clause.
It tells who is doing something, and it is usually at the beginning of the sentence.
You can also use a subject pronoun after a linking verb (like am, is, are, was, were, or be).
The subject pronouns are
I, you, he, she, it, we, and they.
Yes, it was she who won first place.
The subject pronoun she is used after a linking verb, was.
I is a subject pronoun.
You can use it as the subject of a sentence or clause.
It tells that the speaker is doing something, and it is usually at the beginning of the sentence.
After finishing the experiment, I showed my teacher the results.
The subject pronoun I is the subject of the sentence.
You can use an object pronoun after an action verb. You can also use an object pronoun after a
preposition (like at, for, of, on, to, or with).
The object pronouns are
me, you, him, her, it, us, and them.
After finishing the experiment, my teacher showed me the results.
The object pronoun me is used after an action verb, showed.
My teacher showed the results to me.
The object pronoun me is used after a preposition, to.
Me is an object pronoun. You can use it after an action verb.
You can also use it after a preposition (like at, for, of, to, or with).
After finishing the experiment, my teacher showed me the results.
The object pronoun me is used after an action verb, showed.
My teacher showed the results to me.
The object pronoun me is used after a preposition, to.
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When a pronoun is connected to a noun with the word and (like Rick and I or Rick and me), it
can be hard to tell which pronoun is correct.
To tell which one is correct, look at the sentence without the other noun.
Rick and I discussed the results with the teacher.
I discussed the results with the teacher.
I is used as the subject of the sentence.
The teacher discussed the results with Rick and me.
The teacher discussed the results with me.
Me is used after the preposition, with.
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PRESENT TENSE
Present tense verbs tell you about something that is true or is happening now. The presenttense form of a verb must agree with its subject in number.
Singular subjects go with singular verbs. To form most singular present-tense verbs, add -s. For
verbs that end in -sh, -ch, -s, -x, and -z, add -es. For verbs that end in consonant-y, change
the y to i and add -es.
Snow falls outside my window.
Dylan washes the dishes.
Susan carries the boxes to her room.
Plural subjects, I, and you go with plural verbs, which have no ending.
Ice cubes float in water.
You look nice today.
REGULAR PAST TENSE :
The past tense usually tells about something that has already happened.
Regular past-tense verbs end in -ed.
We washed the car a few days ago.
They walked to school last Friday.
walk → walked
greet → greeted
push → pushed
watch → watched
If the base form ends in -e, add -d.
They biked to school last Friday.
bike → biked
hope → hoped
hate → hated
assume→ assumed
seize → seized
tie → tied
For regular verbs that end in a vowel+y, add –ed.
They played in the yard.
play → played
survey→ surveyed
decay→ decayed
enjoy→ enjoyed
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free → freed
If the base form ends in consonant-y, change y to i and add -ed.
They hurried to school last Friday.
hurry → hurried
dirty→ dirtied
cry→ cried
magnify→ magnified
If the base form ends in a short vowel and a consonant, double the consonant and add -ed.
They jogged to school last Friday.
jog → jogged
plan→ planned
strip→ stripped
dam→ dammed beg→ begged
FUTURE TENSE:
The future tense tells about something that is
going to happen.
To use a verb in future tense, add will before
the base form of the verb.
He will walk to school.
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TO BE AND TO HAVE:
The verb to be is irregular. It does not follow the rules that most verbs follow. You have to remember the
forms.
Subject
Present
Past
I
am
was
he, she, it
is
was
you, we, they
are
were
The verb to have is irregular. It does not follow the rules that most verbs follow. You have to remember the
forms.
Subject
Present
Past
I, you, we, they
have
had
he, she, it
has
had
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IRREGULAR PAST TENSE:
Most verbs are regular in the past tense.
That means you follow a rule like "add -ed" or "add-d" to get the past-tense form of the verb.
Some verbs are irregular in the past tense.
That means you don't follow a rule.
Instead, you must remember the past-tense form of the verb.
Simple Present
Simple Past
arise
awake
be
bear
beat
become
begin
bend
bet
bite
bleed
blow
break
bring
build
burn
burst
buy
catch
choose
cling
come
cost
creep
cut
deal
dig
dive
do
draw
arose
awoke
was, were
bore
beat
became
began
bent
bet
bit
bled
blew
broke
brought
built
burned or burnt
burst
bought
caught
chose
clung
came
cost
crept
cut
dealt
dug
dived or dove
did
drew
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dream
drink
drive
eat
fall
feed
feel
fight
find
fit
flee
fling
fly
forbid
forget
forgive
forgo
freeze
get
give
go
grind
grow
hang
have
hear
hide
hit
hold
hurt
keep
kneel
knit
know
lay
lead
leap
leave
lend
dreamed or dreamt
drank
drove
ate
fell
fed
felt
fought
found
fit, fitted
fled
flung
flew
forbade or forbad
forgot
forgave
forwent
froze
got
gave
went
ground
grew
hung or hanged
had
heard
hid
hit
held
hurt
kept
knelt or kneeled
knitted or knit
knew
laid
led
leapt or leaped
left
lent
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let
lie (down)
light
lose
make
mean
meet
pay
prove
put
quit
read
ride
ring
rise
run
saw
say
see
seek
sell
send
sew
shake
shave
shear
shine
shoot
show
shrink
shut
sing
sink
sit
slay
sleep
slide
sneak
speak
let
lay
lit or lighted
lost
made
meant
met
paid
proved
put
quit
read
rode
rang
rose
ran
sawed
said
saw
sought
sold
sent
sewed
shook
shaved
sheared
shone or shined
shot
showed
shrank or shrunk
shut
sang
sank
sat
slew
slept
slid
sneaked or snuck
spoke
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speed
spend
spill
spin
spit
split
spread
spring
stand
steal
stick
sting
stink
strew
strike
strive
swear
sweep
swim
swing
take
teach
tear
tell
think
thrive
throw
undergo
understand
upset
wake
wear
weave
weep
win
wind
withdraw
wring
write
sped
spent
spilled or spilt
spun
spat or spit
split
spread
sprang
stood
stole
stuck
stung
stank or stunk
strewed
struck
strove or strived
swore
swept
swam
swung
took
taught
tore
told
thought
thrived or throve
threw
underwent
understood
upset
woke or waked
wore
wove
wept
won
wound
withdrew
wrung
wrote
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COORDINATING CONJUNCTIONS
Coordinating conjunctions are used to connect words, phrases, and simple sentences.
Coordinating conjunctions create the ACRONYM FANBOYS: for, and, nor, but, or, yet,
and so.
Use and to connect words, phrases, or sentences that go together or are alike.
My sister is going to France and Spain this summer.
I have a pet dog, and my cousin does, too.
Use but to show a contrast.
My brother loves apples but hates apple pie.
I usually walk to school, but my dad drove me today.
Use or to show a choice.
Today we can go to the beach or the park.
You can finish your homework now, or you can finish it after school.
Use so to tell that something happens because of something else.
I forgot to set my alarm, so I was late for school.
Use for to explain why something is [more formal and less common than because]
He’s overweight, for he eats too many cakes and biscuits.
Use nor to show two non-contrasting grammatically negative items (not + not)
He doesn’t eat cake, nor does he eat biscuits.
Use yet to show contrast, despite something [synonyms = nevertheless, but still]
He’s overweight and feels terrible, yet he continues to eat lots of cakes and biscuits.
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SUBORDINATING CONJUCUNCTIONS:
The conjunctions after and before tell you when something happens.
I need to return this book before the library closes.
The conjunctions as and while tell you that two things happen at the same time.
As we lie on the grass, we look for shapes in the clouds.
My brother likes to listen to music while he does homework.
The conjunction until tells you how long something takes or lasts.
My mom told me to wait until she comes back.
The conjunctions because and since tell you why something happens or why something
is true.
I was late to school because I forgot to set my alarm.
Since I left my phone at home, I have to borrow my brother's.
The conjunction unless shows an exception.
Unless it's cloudy tonight, we will see the full moon.
some others
after
although
as
as if
as long as
as much as
as soon as
as though
because
before
even if
even though
how
if
inasmuch
in order that
lest
now that
provided (that)
since
so that
than
that
though
till ( or 'til)
unless
until
when
whenever
where
wherever
while
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COMMAS:
Use commas to separate the name of a person being spoken to from the rest of the sentence.
Thank you, Bella.
Thank you, Bella, for your help.
Use a comma after words like yes, no, well, and many others, when they are followed by a
complete sentence.
Yes, that sounds great!
Use a comma after a mild interjection.
Oh, what a stunning sunset.
Use commas around an interrupter, which is a word, phrase, or clause that adds additional,
nonessential information to the sentence.
You, of course, may have a different opinion.
Use commas to set off phrases that use the words not or unlike to qualify adjacent text.
Alexander the Great was Macedonian, not Greek.
Tara, unlike Megan, finds chemistry fascinating.
Use commas to separate three or more items in a series. Put a comma after each item in the list,
except for the last one. The last comma in the list (right before the coordinating conjunction) is
called an Oxford comma or serial comma. The serial comma is sometimes considered optional,
but most style guides demand it.
Red, white, and blue are the colors of the American flag.
Expressions that consist of pairs of words, such as "thunder and lightning" and "bread and
butter," are generally treated as single items.
College costs typically include tuition, room and board, and textbooks.
In dates with a day and a year, use a comma after the day. Also use a comma after the year
unless the date ends the sentence.
January 1, 2001, was the first day of this century.
Mahatma Gandhi was born on October 2, 1869.
When the name of a city is used with the name of its state or country, use a comma after the
city. Also use a comma after the state or country unless it ends the sentence.
Chicago, Illinois, is known as the Windy City.
We've just booked our flight to Athens, Greece.
In a compound sentence, use a comma before the coordinating conjunction that joins the two
independent clauses. Examples of coordinating conjunctions are and, or, but, and so.
We saw a flash of lightning, and seconds later we heard the rumble of thunder.
In a complex sentence, if a dependent clause comes before an independent clause, use a comma
after the dependent clause. A dependent clause is one that starts with a subordinating
conjunction, such as after, although, as, because, before, if, since, unless,until, when, or while.
If she ever gets the chance, Terri would love to visit the Egyptian pyramids.
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SEMICOLONS
Use a comma to separate two complete sentences that are joined with a coordinating
conjunction, such as and, or, but, or so. However, if the coordinating conjunction joins verbs or
verb phrases in a compound predicate, a comma should not be used.


Wyatt was reserved around new people, but he was hardly shy.
Wyatt was reserved around new people but was hardly shy.
Also use a comma after a dependent clause if it is followed by a complete sentence. These
dependent clauses usually start with a subordinating conjunction, such as after, although, or
because.
Although Wyatt was reserved around new people, he was hardly shy.
Use a semicolon to connect two closely related sentences that are not joined with a coordinating
conjunction.
Wyatt was hardly shy; he was simply reserved around new people.
Also use a semicolon to connect two sentences that are joined with a conjunctive adverb, such
as consequently, however, or therefore.
Wyatt was hardly shy; nevertheless, he was reserved around new people.
Use a colon to introduce a list after a complete sentence. If a list does not follow a complete
sentence, do not use punctuation to introduce the list.


My parents have visited much of Western Europe: Austria, Belgium, France, Germany,
Greece, Italy, the Netherlands, Portugal, and Spain.
My parents have visited much of Western Europe, including Austria, Belgium, France,
Germany, Greece, Italy, the Netherlands, Portugal, and Spain.
Use commas to separate three or more items in a series. Put a comma after each item in the list,
except for the last one.
Our speakers will be Kevin O'Malley, Rachel Stein, and Linda Wu.
Use semicolons to separate items in a series when using commas would be unclear, such as
when one or more items in the series already contain commas.
Our speakers will be Kevin O'Malley, an English professor; Rachel Stein, a print journalist; and
Linda Wu, a blogger.
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HYPHENS: (you also need to know adjectives describe the noun)
A compound adjective is an adjective made up of more than one word. In general, use a
hyphen to join the words of a compound adjective, if the adjective could be misread.
a full-time job
an open-ended question
that well-known actor
an ear-splitting scream
my two-year-old cousin
an open-and-shut case
an expensive new desk
an expensive-looking desk
In the first example, the desk is expensive. In the second example, the desk isn't expensive, but it
looks expensive.
no hyphen
adverb ending in -ly.
that actor is well known
a barely visible star
my cousin is two years old
freshly washed sheets
DASHES
A dash often represents a pause in a sentence. The dash can show a clear break or set off extra
content from the rest of the sentence, such as an aside, an explanation, or additional details.
According to legend, King Midas ultimately died of starvation—all because of his wish that
everything he touched should turn to gold.
The dash shows a clear break.
Warren strives to control every aspect of his life, but life—surprise, surprise—doesn't always
accommodate his wishes.
The dashes set off an aside from the rest of the sentence.
Certain quirks—repeatedly washing one's hands, checking that doors are locked, or counting
things—may actually be symptoms of obsessive-compulsive disorder.
The dashes set off additional details from the rest of the sentence.
In dialogue or quoted text, a dash can indicate an interruption or mid-sentence correction.
Lauren protested, "But—no, you're mistaken!"
The dash shows an interruption.
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