Download Chapter 12

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© Joy Goodwin
‘How to be Top’
English Work Book
CHAPTER 12
 CONCORD RULES
 EDITING
 CONDENSING / SUMMARISING /
PARAPHRASING
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CONCORD
1.
Agreement
A sentence must stick to the rules and be consistent. Every verb in a sentence
must agree in number with its subject. A singular subject must have a singular
verb and a plural subject must have a plural verb.
e.g. I am …, We are …, The bones seem…, The monkey swings …, The monkeys
swing … etc.
Sometimes it is a little difficult to know whether the subject is singular or plural
especially when it consists of more than one noun or pronoun.
Study the following rules carefully:







2 OR MORE nouns or pronouns joined by AND – subject is PLURAL
You and I are invited to a party tonight.
John and Mary own a clothing shop.
If the 2 NOUNS MEAN ONE THING – subject is SINGULAR
Bread and butter / ham and tongue / bacon and eggs is what we will have for
breakfast.
Orange juice and soda is the drink he likes.
When two subjects are JOINED BY with / as well as, the verb agrees with
the FIRST SUBJECT. The hen with the chickens is lost.
The teacher, as well as the children, is tired.
Two subjects JOINED BY either…or / neither…nor / or, the verb agrees
with the SUBJECT NEAREST to it.
Neither the children nor the teacher is happy.
Neither the teacher nor the children are happy.
Either the passengers or the driver has been killed
Either the driver or the passengers have been killed.
The leader or his friends are to blame.
The friends or the leader is to blame.
Neither this nor that is suitable.
INDEFINITE PRONOUNS [each, every, each one, everyone, everybody,
no-one, nobody, nothing, something, somebody, someone, anyone, anything,
anybody, either(of two), neither (of two)] are always followed by a
SINGULAR verb. Everybody is coming to the party.
Neither of the two boys has done his work.
Anything seems to be good enough for him.
Nobody appears to have seen my book.
Everyone of you has done his share.
NOTE
None may be used with a singular or plural verb.
None of them was/were present.
ALL– sometimes takes a singular verb and sometimes a plural one.
All the people are happy.
All (meaning everything) is lost.
When a sentence begins with THERE, you must find out what the real
subject is.
There are many people here. (subject = people)
There is no-one to whom I can talk. (subject = no-one)
There is a great amount of work to do. (subject = amount)




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COLLECTIVE nouns usually take a SINGULAR verb.
The team has been chosen.
A bunch of flowers is expensive.
The pride of lions was seen this morning.
The group has decided to disband.
* When the meaning of the collective noun is plural it takes a PLURAL
verb.
The team are fighting among themselves.
The group are finally working together.
The board of directors disagree among themselves on this point.
THE WORDS much, many, more, most, few, fewer, little, less, least, a
number of, a sum of are used as follows:
There is much work to do. SINGULAR
There are many books in the library. PLURAL
There is more work to do. SINGULAR but:
There are more people than I thought. PLURAL
Most of the work has been done. SINGULAR but:
Most people have worked hard. PLURAL
A few children are present. PLURAL
There are fewer books in the library now. SINGULAR
There is little food in the house. SINGULAR
There is less work to do now. SINGULAR
That is the least that you can do. SINGULAR
A number of people have disappeared. PLURAL
A sum of money has disappeared. SINGULAR
The sum of these numbers is … SINGULAR
FRACTIONS If they refer to singular nouns they are SINGULAR. If they
refer to plural nouns they are PLURAL (as with the words in the previous
point).
Half of the apple is rotten. SINGULAR
Half of the people have not arrived. PLURAL
Two-thirds of the building is completed. SINGULAR
Two-thirds of the children are absent. PLURAL
Some nouns with a PLURAL FORM take SINGULAR verbs and others take
a PLURAL verb.
Those with a SINGULAR verb are:
News, mumps, measles, darts (the game), billiards, mathematics, athletics,
gallows, means, physics, innings, a pair of scissors etc.
Those with a PLURAL verb are:
Trousers, thanks, scissors, tidings, tidings, pyjamas, politics, goods, pincers,
tongs, shears, spectacles, bellows etc.
2.
The same pronoun should be used throughout the sentence.
One should make up one’s mind about what one hopes to achieve.
A person is often judged by his friends. [Choose a gender – it is less clumsy
than his/her. NEVER use their.]
3.
Take care with phrases like: This kind of book [both singular]
These kinds of books. [both plural]
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Exercise 1 Choose the correct word in brackets:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
14.
15.
16.
17.
18.
19.
20.
21.
22.
23.
24.
25.
26.
27.
28.
29.
30.
Each of the girls [were/was] given a prize.
Neither John nor Peter [were/was] there.
Neither of the two boys [were/was] injured.
The number of players [have/has] increased recently.
The crowd of spectators [were/was] excited.
There [were/was] large numbers here yesterday.
There [were/was] huge unhappiness on hearing the announcement.
Three-quarters of the players [are/is] injured.
Three-quarters of the apple [are/is] eaten.
A cat and a dog [are/is] the only pets I have.
Rest and relaxation [are/is] what I need.
The pair of scissors [are/is] on the table.
The boys together with their teacher [are/is] going on a school outing.
There [are/is] less confidence in government today.
There [are/is] fewer people who approve of this policy now.
Either the boys or the teacher [are/is] telling a lie.
Everybody [agree/agrees] with you.
A number of excuses [have/has] been received.
Mumps [are/is] infectious.
The range of mountains [are/is] beautiful.
The pack of wild dogs [are/is] fighting one another.
My spectacles [are/is] lost.
None of those present [seem/seems] to know the answer.
Both boys and girls [are/is] taught to cook.
I enjoy these [kind/kinds] of books.
A trolley loaded with products [are/is] hard to push in the aisles.
One of the large shopping complexes [mount/mounts] spectacular
entertainment for shoppers.
Retirement and sickness [have/has] contributed to the company’s losses.
A part of the town precincts [are/is] made up of commercial enterprises.
Advertisers, as well as a large shopping complex, [are/is] quick to capitalize
on a woman’s anxieties.
[30]
Demon errors in grammar.
*
LIKE is not a conjunction. Do as you are told. NOT … like you are told.
*
He agreed to our coming. NOT … us coming
*
AMOUNT / NUMBER
you can.
The amount of money ...
The number of coins ...
The amount of sand ….
The number of grains ….
amount when you can’t count them - number when
The amount of foliage…
The number of trees…
The amount of kindness…
The number of people …
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*
LESS / FEWER
less unhappiness
less heating
less salt
less perfume
less when you can’t count them - fewer when you can.
fewer unhappy people
fewer fires
fewer salt-cellars
fewer rose petals
*
MUCH / MANY
much laughter
much activity
much interest
much good-will
much when you can’t count them - many when you can.
many jokes
many actions
many ideas
many deeds of kindness
*
LEND / LOAN
you a loan.
lend is a verb, loan is a noun. I will lend you money. I will give
*
DUE TO/ OWING TO due is used as an adjective. Something must be due ..
Never start a sentence with due to…
The cancellation of the match is due to bad weather.
Owing to bad weather, the match was cancelled.
*
this kind of flower NOT these kinds of flowers
this sort of sweet NOT those sorts of sweets – better = sweets of this sort
all right – two separate words NOT alright or allright.
already / all ready They were already playing.
They were all ready to begin playing.
altogether / all together The two are altogether (completely) different.
For the first time in years we are all together.
any / any other Do I have any volunteers? Smith is better than any other
bowler.
everyone / every one Everyone is here now. Every one of the soldiers was
injured.
individual / person The individual must adapt himself to the needs of the
community.
The individual behaves differently in a crowd.
NOT
I met a strange individual yesterday. Use person
its / it’s
It’s a good idea. The cat ate its food.
who’s / whose
Who’s coming for supper? Whose book is this?
lay / lie
Lay the table for supper. Lie down Spot. Good dog!
their / there
Their work is pleasing. Sit over there.
to / too
I want to rest. I go to school. The work is too easy.
between / among
between two …among three or more people.
each other / one another each other refers to two people
one another refers to three or more people.
*
TO BEG THE QUESTION does not mean to ask the question.
It means to take for granted the very point to be proved.
It is for you, gentleman of the jury, to decide whether the blackguard in the dock
is guilty or not guilty. Here the judge can be accused of begging the question.
*
SPLIT INFINITIVE An infinitive should not have an adverb inserted
between to and the verb.
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I want you to fetch my book, please. NOT to please fetch… to go quickly
NOT to quickly go..
Our intention is to defeat this enemy finally and convincingly NOT …to finally
and convincingly defeat ….
*
shall / will
Future
I/we shall…
He/she will…
You will…
They will…
It will…
Determination
I/we will…
He/she shall…
You shall…
They shall…
It shall…
*
Avoid the reason why and because in the same sentence. = clumsy
Some people smoke because they are insecure.
One reason for people’s smoking is their insecurity.
Exercise 2 Correct the following sentences:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
14.
15.
16.
17.
18.
19.
20.
Less people seem to be smoking.
A reason why people give up smoking is because their health suffers.
Leonard is the youngest of the two of them
There’s several things still to do.
Give me a lend of R20.00.
Quickly jumping out of the way, the car narrowly missed him.
Two-thirds of the apple are eaten.
The population of Johannesburg is greater than Durban.
George and myself went on a holiday.
One should always try his best.
She objected to me coming in the room.
He has never and will never agree.
Do not say anything about Peter nor John.
She is not so tall as what you are.
He is the boy what played so well.
They have not seen him since many weeks.
He jumped off the diving board in the water.
Its quite unnecessary to say no more.
She sang real beautiful.
She since told me that everything are now in order.
[20]
Exercise 3 Rewrite the sentences correctly.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
Running through the rain her hair got wet.
Each of the children have a book.
Ann and myself will help you with your problem.
Divide these between the three of you.
He was angry at me when I broke the jug.
He, together with the children, were watching television.
There is a large amount of students writing exams at the moment.
Between you and I Hansie was the best captain in the world.
When buying a TV one should produce a currant viewer’s licence.
I obtained less marks than John did.
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11.
12.
13.
14.
15.
He is better at maths than her.
I love practicing table-tennis.
Each player wore their new cricket jersey.
The mouse hurt it’s foot.
The man who I saw hitting Jack was his father.
[15]
Exercise 4 Choose the correct sentence: A or B
1.
2
3
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10
11.
12.
13.
14.
A
B
A
B
A
B
A
B
A
B
A
B
A
B
A
B
A
B
A
B
A
B
A
B
A
B
A
B
Exercise 5
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
This is different to that.
This is different from that.
My answer does not correspond to yours.
My answer does not correspond with yours
He plays like I do.
He plays as I do.
He is neither good nor bad.
He is neither good or bad
I paused between every stitch.
I paused between each stitch.
Divide the money among the four boys.
Divide the money between the four boys
That individual is named John Smith.
That man is named John Smith
A crowd does what an individual never thinks of.
A crowd does what a man never thinks of.
He left early leaving John and I to explore the city alone.
He left early leaving John and me to explore the city alone.
My wound was aggravated by the friction of my coat.
I was so aggravated I could have hit him.
Some boy or other did it.
Some boy did it.
Whence have you come?
From whence have you come?
All our trouble, which we had taken, was in vain.
All the trouble, which we had taken, was in vain.
You can give it to either John or myself.
You can give it to either John or me.
[14]
Choose the correct word in brackets.
Neither the girl nor the boy [was/were] happy.
The jury [was/were] unanimous.
The jury [was/were] divided in their opinions.
Every girl and boy [require/requires] a pen.
Fewer than 10 people [remain/remains].
More than a hundred tons [were/was] sold.
Much of the beauty and glory [have/has] disappeared.
Neither of them [seem/seems] to have any idea.
Less than half the apples [has/have] been eaten.
The three boys helped [each other/one another].
Exercise 6
Correct the sentences by inserting one word.
[10]
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1.
2.
3.
4.
Do you add or subtract from the quantity?
He is as good, perhaps better than his brother.
This apple is sweeter, or at least as sweet as that.
House rents are higher in Joburg than Cape Town.
Exercise 7
1.
2.
3.
[4]
Identify each sentence as simple, complex or compound.
I discovered my mistake and apologized.
Running through the fields made me breathless.
He explained how we were to do it.
[3]
Exercise 8 Fill in the correct prepositions.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
How long have I been accountable _____ you _____ my actions?
I am not averse ______ your going.
I am very anxious, not only _______ my results, but also _____ your safety.
A master is in authority _______ the boys in his class.
He is the greatest living authority _____ Chemistry.
You have no authority _____ that statement.
He is careful ____ his money but not _____ his clothes.
My opinion is different _____ yours.
I must differ _______ you.
[12]
Exercise 9
1.
2
3
4
5
Fill in the blank spaces. Do this in your notebook.
Present
Past
Past participle
walk
walked
have walked
begin
________
_____________
draw
________
_____________
fly
_________
_____________
swim
_________
______________
strive
_________
______________
REVISION TEST
1.1
1.2
[10]
[50]
Give the part of speech (word class) of each of the underlined words:
a)
My neighbour has a brand-new BMW.
b)
James was standing next to her.
c)
I have a driving lesson tomorrow.
d)
I love reading.
e)
I have ridden many motorbikes in my life.
f)
Who is the composer of this tune?
g)
He hid behind the shed.
h)
Who is the composer of this tune?
Say whether the following verbs are in the active or passive voice.
a)
The children were inoculated against TB.
b)
The bell has rung.
/8/
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c)
1.5
1.6
1.7
1.8
1.9
The game was ended by the referee.
/3/
Saying whether the verbs in the following sentences are transitive or
intransitive.
a)
The teacher wrote on the board.
b)
The pilot flew his aircraft low overhead.
/2/
Write down the subordinate clause in this sentence:
It is commonplace to say that we live in a scientific age.
/1/
Write down the main clauses in these sentences:
a)
As his victim lay on the ground bleeding and begging for help,
Mr Brink ran outside.
b)
Looking up, because he suspected it might rain, and because
he had no raincoat, James studied the clouds, which were dark
and threatening.
c)
The fact, that you do not understand a word of what I am saying,
does not mean I am stupid.
/3/
Rewrite the following sentence as a periodic sentence:
I am an avid rugby fan, although I do not play the game.
/1/
Are the following simple, complex or compound sentences?
a)
We retraced our steps but we did not find the ring Jane had lost.
b)
When the moon is high, the surface of the lake is a silver sheet.
c)
Having a good memory is very helpful at exam time.
/3/
[20]
2.1
The following is a list of descriptors:
invitation
a rhetorical question
a statement of opinion
a generalization
an assumption
an emphatic statement
a command
a suggestion
Match the underlined section of each sentence below with one of the descriptors
above. You should have a different descriptor for each.
e.g. Bend over boy! = a command [Write down the letter and the appropriate
descriptor]
a
b.
c.
d.
e.
f.
g.
h.
We sell the tastiest buns in town. Do give us a try.
When you need music you usually need it fast.
Men cannot multi-task.
Bring your book to me.
We definitely do not need a second TV set.
When will this dreary lesson end?
Glue is not strong enough. Why not try using screws?
I think blue is the best colour for this wall.
[8]
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Correct the mistakes:
3.1
3.2
3.3
3.4
3.5
3.6
3.7
3.8
3.9
3.10
4.1
4.2
4.3
4.4
There are less marks for question one than for question two.
Due to bad weather, the game was cancelled.
This is different than that.
Less than half of the boys is on time.
The amount of people in debt is growing every year.
All the children helped each other.
How much marks did you get for the test?
Please give it to John or myself when you have finished.
The boy that threw this at me will be reported.
A person should wash their hands before eating.
Due to delays, the trains will run late.
The train is due to arrive.
They came to visit us due to my illness.
The bad weather conditions are due to global warming.
[10]
[4]
Are these sentences simple, complex or compound?
5.1
5.2
5.3
John rode his bike home but Jenny walked.
She was bleeding because she had fallen down.
I like to eat chocolate.
[3]
Identify the underlined word. Choose from the list:
Finite verb; infinitive; pres. participle; past participle; gerund; auxiliary
6.1
6.2
6.3
6.4
6.5
The ogre is swallowing the girl.
The ogre swallowed the girl.
The ogre has swallowed the girl.
The ogre wants to swallow the girl.
The ogre will swallow the girl.
[5]
CONDENSING
Condensing, Summarizing, and Paraphrasing
If you are asked to give the meaning of something in your own words, you
are asked to paraphrase it.
If you are asked to give the gist / the main issues in a piece of writing you summarize it
and end with a piece of writing much shorter than the original.
Condensing is making writing much shorter.
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Exercise 10
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
14.
15.
16.
17.
18.
Re-write succinctly (as briefly as possible) in simple English. Use the
number of words in brackets.
He made an exact replica of the Eiffel Tower. [8]
Owing to the adverse weather conditions, we did not find ourselves in a position
to go. [5]
Gradually, step by step, they retreated backwards. [3]
He was a man who pretended to be good but was not. [7]
The services of a medical practitioner were requisitioned for the purpose of
providing attention to the man who had been injured. [9]
He is guilty of a terminological inexactitude. [3]
The traveller decided to fortify his constitution with good food. [5]
The child was attacked near his place of residence by a savage member of the
canine species. [11]
After a nocturnal rest, we partook of the morning repast prepared by the cook.
[11]
The accident has necessitated an extension of travelling time for all vehicles. [4]
There will be a postponement in the departure time of the train. [6]
The listener found himself unable to believe his auditory facilities. [7]
Children in this modern day and age engage in very little physical exertion. [5]
I hope all the people who are listening out there, will phone in with their views.[9]
The past history of our country will be repeated again if we are not careful. [13]
When they fought the Persians, the Greeks were outnumbered because the
Persians had more men. [9]
Doctor, how many autopsies have you done on dead people? [7]
Sign: Open 7 days a week and also at weekends. [6]
[18]
Exercise 11
Summary
The various methods of advertising can have effects that are highly undesirable. When
the manufacturers try to make the ordinary men and women in the street associate their
particular products, such as a soap-powder, a shampoo, a box of chocolates or a make of
sports car, with a particular kind of success – success on the dance floor or in marriage or
promotion in one’s firm – they are spreading a very poor set of values. On every side,
through every mass medium, or on our television screens, in our newspapers and
magazines, on ugly hoardings in the streets, in every shop window, we are being told
repeatedly, over and over again, that buying things, owning things, purchasing new
things, will bring us happiness, will solve all our personal problems, and will guarantee
success. People begin to take it for granted that, if they spend more and more, they will
become happier and happier. They assume, for instance, that a holiday abroad is bound to
be happier than one at home, or that a large expensive car is more desirable than a cheap
one. In fact, however, the effect of all this advertising, urging us to buy more and own the
newest and the latest, be it a washing machine, or a scooter, or a record player, is to make
us increasingly discontented with ourselves, our homes, our incomes.
In this paragraph five main points are being made about the effects of advertising.
*
*
Write down the five main points, using full sentences.
Use a maximum of 10 words per sentence.
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*
*
Leave out all examples and illustrations.
Write down the number of words you have used in each sentence.
[10]