A Survey of Basic Grammar

Question 1

What is a sentence?

Answer 1

A sentence is a group of words that make complete sense. Clauses and phrases make sense, but they cannot stand alone.

Question 2

What is a clause?

Answer 2

A clause is a group of words having a finite verb.

Question 3

What is a phrase?

Answer 3

A phrase is a group of words not having a finite verb.

Question 4

What is a subject?

Answer 4

The subject is the person or thing about which something is said.

Question 5

What is a predicate?

Answer 5

The predicate is the part of the sentence that says something about the subject.

Question 6

What is a simple predicate?

Answer 6

A simple predicate is the verb only.

Question 7

What is a complete predicate?

Answer 7

A complete predicate includes the main verb plus such elements as a direct object, a modifier to the direct object, an indirect object, and a modifier to the indirect object.

Question 8

What is a direct object?

Answer 8

A direct object receives (or is affected by) the action of the verb (external object), shows the result of the action (internal object), or otherwise completes the verbal idea.

Question 9

What is an indirect object?

Answer 9

An indirect object tells to whom (or what) or for whom (or what) an action is done.

Question 10

What is a noun?

Answer 10

Nouns are words used to name persons, places, things, and ideas.

Question 11

What is a pronoun?

Answer 11

Pronouns are words used in the place of a noun.

Question 12

What are examples of personal pronouns?

Answer 12

I, me, we, us, you, he, him, she, her, it, they, them.

Question 13

What are examples of possessive pronouns?

Answer 13

My, mine, our, ours, your, yours, his, her, hers, its, their, theirs.

Question 14

What are examples of reflexive pronouns?

Answer 14

Myself, yourself, himself, herself, itself, ourselves, yourselves, themselves.

Question 15

What are examples of relative pronouns?

Answer 15

Who, whom,which, that, whose.

Question 16

What are examples of interrogative pronouns?

Answer 16

Who? Whom? Which? What? Whose?

Question 17

What are examples of demonstrative pronouns?

Answer 17

This, these, that, those.

Question 18

What are examples of indefinite pronouns?

Answer 18

All, another, any, anybody, anyone, both, each, either, everybody, everyone, few, many, most, neither, nobody, none, no one, one, other, several, some, somebody, someone, such.

Question 19

What are adjectives?

Answer 19

Adjectives are words used to modify a noun or pronoun.

Question 20

What are verbs?

Answer 20

Verbs are words used to express an action or otherwise make a statement, ask a question, or give a command.

Question 21

What are transitive verbs?

Answer 21

Transitive verbs take an object (noun or pronoun).

Question 22

What are intransitive verbs?

Answer 22

Intransitive verbs do not take an object.

Question 23

What are linking verbs?

Answer 23

Linking verbs join a noun, pronoun, or adjective to the subject in order to describe or identity it.

Question 24

What are examples of linking verbs?

Answer 24

Appear, become, feel, grow, look, remain, seem, smell, sound, stay, taste, is.

Question 25

Linking verbs may also function as action verbs:

Answer 25

1) The man smelled the soup (action verb)
2) The soup smelled good (linking verb)
*note: may generally be recognized if you can substitute some form of the verb (seem)

Question 26

What are adverbs?

Answer 26

Adverbs are words used to modify verbs, adjectives, and other adverbs. When they modify verbs they tell the place, time, manner, or extent (how much or how often) of the action.

Question 27

What are prepositions?

Answer 27

Prepositions are words used to show the relation of a noun or pronoun to some other word in the sentence (of, with, by, through).

Question 28

What are conjunctions?

Answer 28

Conjunctions are words used to join sentences, clauses, or words.

Question 29

What are examples of common coordinating conjunctions?

Answer 29

And, but, or, nor, for.

Question 30

What are common subordinating conjunctions?

Answer 30

After, though, because, before, since, so that, until, than, unless, when, if, in order that.

Question 31

What are common correlative conjunctions?

Answer 31

Either…or
No only…but (also)
Neither…nor
Whether…or
Both…and

Question 32

What are the 8 parts of speech?

Answer 32

Noun, pronoun, adjective, verb, adverb, proposition, conjunction, and interjection.