English Flashcards
Apostrophes serve to 2 basic writing functions
♡ To show Possession
♡ To indicate that letters have been removed to form a contraction
Use an Apostrophe + “S” (‘S) to Show
That one person or thing owns or is a member of something.
♡ Amy’s ballet class
♡ Lisa’s car
♡ Robert’s Car
Use an apostrophe after the “s” (s’) at the end of a plural noun to show?
Possession
♡ The parents’ bedroom
♡ The Smiths’ lives
It is not necessary ↑ to add another “s” to the end of a possessive plural noun.
If a plural noun doesn’t end in “s”, add an apostrophe + s to create
The possessive form
If two people own the same item together, you can add the possessive (‘s) to the
final name
♡ Dave and Alice’s car
♡ Tim and Jane’s trip
What are Semicolons for?
Semicolons (;) are used to join two independent clauses, or 2 complete thoughts that could be a sentence.
What is the contraction of it is?
It’s
The word “its” is a
possessive pronoun
No commas should be used to ________ a adjective from what it describes or subject from the rest of the sentence
♡ Separate
In order to determine whether a comma is needed, examine the underlined portion to identity how the parts of it relate to other parts of the sentence.
Verbs must be parallel with other
Verbs in the same sentence
Use commas to separate independent clauses when they are joined by any of these 7 coordinating conjugations:
and, but, for, nor, or, so, and yet.
Use commas after introductory clauses, phrases, or words when they come before
the main clause
Use a pair of commas in the middle of a sentence to set off
clauses, phrases, and words that are not essential to the meaning of a sentence. Use one comma before to indicate the beginning of the pause and one at the end to indicate the end of the pause
Do not use commas to set off
essential elements of the sentence, such as clauses beginning with “that”
Use commas to separate 3 or more _____ or ______, or _______ written in a series.
- Words 2. Phrases 3. Clauses
Use commas to separate 2 or more coordinate __________ that describe the same noun.
- Adjective
Be sure never to add and extra comma between the final adjective and the noun itself or to use commas with non-coordinate adjectives
Use a Comma near the end of a sentence to
separate contrasted coordinate elements or to indicate a shift or distinct pause.
Colons (:) are used to show something is following
like a quotation, example, or list.
A colon must always follow
a complete sentence.
Use commas to set off phrases at the end of the sentence that refer to the beginning or middle of the sentence.
Such phrases are free modifiers that can be placed anywhere in the sentence without causing confusion. (if the placement of the modifier causes confusion, then it is not “free” and must remain “bound” to the word it modifies)
♡ Nancy waved enthusiastically at the docking ship, laughing joyously.
Use a _____ to shift between the main discourse and a quotation.
1.Comma
♡ “I was able,” she answered, “ to complete the assignment.”
Don’t use a comma to separate the _______ from the verb.
1.Subject
♡ The most important attribute of a ball player, is quick reflex actions. (INCORRECT)
The second clause after a semicolon (;) should not be ___________.
Capitalized
Don’t put a comma after the main clause when a _________ clause follows it.
Dependent
What does a sentence contain?
A subject,(the actor in a sentence) action, and a complete thought.
What are helping verbs?
Helping verbs are verbs used to show tense, or form a question or a negative.
When a city and state appear together at the beginning or in the middle of a sentence, a comma must follow both the?
city and state.
♡ She left Albany, New York, on January 18 of that year.
Use one comma to separate two adjectives when
the adjectives are interchangeable.
♡ They were a regal, strange group of people.
What are the two ways apostrophes (‘) are used in the ACT?
Apostrophes are used to show possession and create contractions.
What are dashes (—) for?
Dashes (—) are used to set off or emphasize the content enclosed within dashes or the content that follows a dash. Dashes place more emphasis on this content than parentheses.
♡ Upon discovering the errors—all 124 of them—the publisher immediately recalled the books.
♡ I wish you would—oh, never mind.
Name some subject pronouns.
I, you, he, she, it, and we.
Name some object pronouns?
me, you, him, her, it, us, and them.
Who is the pronoun for?
People
“That” is the pronoun for?
everything but people.
When we use pronouns more than once in a sentence,
we have to use the same perspective throughout.
Simple Present: ?
Present Perfect: ?
Simple Past: ?
Past Perfect: ?
Future: ?
Future Perfect: ?
Simple Present: They sing.
Present Perfect: They have sung.
Simple Past: They sang.
Past Perfect: They had sung.
Future: They will sing.
Future Perfect: They will have sung.
What is the difference between affect and effect?
♡ Affect is usually a verb meaning “to produce an effect upon,” as in “the weather affected his mood.”
♡ Effect is usually a noun meaning “a change that results when something is done or happens,” as in “computers have had a huge effect on our lives.”
Who and whoever typically come before a ____
1.Verb
Whom and whomever typically come after a ___________
1.preposition like to, for, from, of, or with.
“Which” precedes information that
defines all members of the noun that comes before “which”. It introduces nonessential information and therefore is preceded by a comma.
“That” precedes information that ?
narrows the scope of a broader category. “That” does not have a comma before it because it is a restrictive element that introduces essential information.
Who’s is a contraction for ?
Who’s is a contraction for who is.
Whose is the __________ form of ___
Whose is the possessive form of who. It can also be used as a pronoun to refer to a noun previously stated.
♡ Note that the word whose can refer to nouns that are not people, as shown in the example above.
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