GED LANGUAGE ARTS, WRITING

Question 1

The present tense

Answer 1

The present tense tells about things that are true now or are habitually true.

Jane wants a new car.

Example: I play softball.

Question 2

Determine

Answer 2

To decide something.

Question 3

Regular verb

Answer 3

a verb that forms its principle parts by adding -d, -ed, or -ing
to the present form.

Question 4

Helping verb

Answer 4

(also called auxiliary verb) a verb used with the main verb to make participle forms.The helping verbs are forms of the verbs be, do, and have.

example: We will buy the new computers.

Question 5

Irregular verb

Answer 5

A verb whose past forms are not made by adding -d or -ed to the simple present.

Example: begin (present), began (past), begun (past participle)

Question 6

Verb tense

Answer 6

tells when an action takes place or when a condition is true.

Question 7

The past tense

Answer 7

The past tense tells about things that happened before now.

Example: Tom went to work early yesterday.

Remember: The past part of a verb does not have a helping verb.

Question 8

Subject-verb agreement

Answer 8

The subject and the verb in a sentence must both be singular (referring to more than one).

Example: we know the scheduled time for the concert. (plural subject, plural verb)

Question 9

The future tense

Answer 9

The future tense tells about things that have not happened yet. These things will happen in time to come. Use a helping verb and the present part of the verb to form this tense.

He will be a great manager.

Note: you can use will or shall as helping verbs to make this tense.

Question 10

The present part

Answer 10

Things that are true now or are habitually true take the present part.

The present part of a verb does not change the spelling of most verbs.

All regular verbs can either the letter s or es.

To talk: Talk,talks

I talk to her every day.

Question 11

The past part

Answer 11

Things that have already happened use the past part.

To call: Called

She called twice yesterday.

Question 12

The past participle

Answer 12

This part is used to tell more about the timing of things. A helping verb is used with the past part to make the past participle.

To love: have loved
To help: had helped

I have loved her for two years.

Question 13

The present participle

Answer 13

This part is used to tell more about things that happen over time. A helping verb is used with the ing form of a verb to make the present participle.

To fix: she is fixing the leak.

I am fixing my wife’s car now.

Question 14

Simple tenses

Answer 14

The simple tenses of verbs tell when things happen. The simple tenses are:

Present: she wants a new computer.

Past: Dan spilled his coffee.

Future: I will tell you about it later.

Question 15

Perfect tenses

Answer 15

The perfect tenses of verbs build on the simple tenses. These tell more about when things happen. The perfect tenses are:

Present perfect: I have worked here for five years.

Past perfect: He had seen her there before.

Future perfect: Ted will have completed the job by then.

Question 16

The present perfect tense

Answer 16

The present perfect tense tells about things that start in the past and go on into the present. (Sometimes this tense tells about things that have just stopped.) use the past participle of the verb to make this tense.

I have joined that group.

Note: for helping verb forms with this tense use have and has

Question 17

The past perfect tense

Answer 17

The past participle tense tells about things that happened before a time or event in the past. Use the past participle of the verb to form this tense.

Anna had worked there last year.

Note: the helping verb used to form this tense is had.

Question 18

The future perfect tense

Answer 18

The future perfect tense tells about something that will happen before something else. Use helping verbs with the past part to form this tense.

I will have finished my work by the end of the day.

Note: you can use will have and shall have as helping verbs to form this tense.

Question 19

Progressive tense

Answer 19

The progressive tenses of verbs tell about things in progress. The progressive tense are:

Present progressive: they are going to the trade show.

Past progressive: I was looking for Tony.

Future progressive: Simon will be working in Purchasing.

Question 20

The present progressive tense

Answer 20

The present progressive tense tells about something that is happening now. Use a helping verb with the present participle of the verb for this tense.

He is driving a new car.

Note: you can use am, is and are as helping verb forms to make this tense.

Question 21

The past progressive tense

Answer 21

The past progressive tense tells about something as it was happening in the past. Use a helping verb with the present participle of the verb for this tense.

He was sitting on the bench.

Note: you can use was and were as helping verb forms to make this tense.

Question 22

The future progressive tense

Answer 22

The future progressive tense tells about things as they will happen in time to come. Use a helping verb with the present participle of the verb for this tense.

He will be changing offices.

Note: you can use will be and shall be as helping verbs to make this tense.

Question 23

Concrete nouns

Answer 23

Concrete nouns name things you can see and touch.

Example: computer, painter, car

Question 24

Abstract nouns

Answer 24

Abstract nouns name things you cannot see and touch.

Example: freedom, love, anger.

Question 25

Collective nouns

Answer 25

A collective noun names a group of people or things.

Example: crowd , herd, team.

Question 26

Singular noun

Answer 26

A singular noun names one person, place, or thing.

Example: Manager

Question 27

Plural noun

Answer 27

A plural noun names more than one person, place, or thing.

Example: clerks

Question 28

Noun (subject) - verb agreement

Answer 28

Nouns and verbs used together must agree in number for writing to make sense.

e.g. Manager is a singular noun.

If the the noun is singular, the verb must be singular, too. In this example the s at the end of the verb means it is a singular verb.

The manager helps customers.

Clerks is a plural noun.

If the noun is plural, the verb must be plural, too.

The clerks help customers.

Question 29

Pronoun

Answer 29

A word used in place of a noun, which names a person, place, or thing.
Example: Lisa is eighteen, so she is old enough to vote.

A pronoun is a word that can replace a noun.

                                Pronouns I        He           She            You              We           They Me       Him         Her             It            Us            Them

First person pronouns refer to the person speaking.
The pronouns I and me refer to the person speaking alone. The pronouns we and us refer to the person speaking and others.

e.g. I am hungry.

Second person pronouns refer to the person spoken to. The pronoun you refer to one or more persons.

e.g. Are you hungry?

Third person pronouns refer to the person spoken about. The pronouns he, she, him, and her refer to one person. The pronouns they and them refer to more than one person.

e.g. He has a good idea!

Question 30

Personal Pronouns Before / After the Verb

Answer 30

When you use a personal pronoun in place of a noun, you must use the right kind of pronoun.

Use the personal pronouns before an action verb:
I We He She They

e.g. I saw the boss.

Use these personal pronouns after an action verbs:
Me Us Him Her Them

e.g. Kevin called her.

There are exceptions to these guidelines. Two personal pronouns can be used before or after an action verb.
You It

e.g. You want the puppy.

Question 31

Pronouns That Show Ownership

Answer 31

1. These pronouns show ownership when used before a noun:
   My Her Our
   Your Its Their
2. These possessive pronouns show ownership without a noun:
   Mine Ours Hers
   Yours Theirs
3. This pronoun can show ownership with or without a noun:
   His

Question 32

Self Pronouns

Answer 32

Self pronouns refer to who or what is doing the action.

Examples: He did it all by himself.
I can do this myself.

Here is a list of pronouns

Myself Itself
Yourself Yourselves
Himself Himself
Ourselves Themselves

You make self pronouns by adding self or selves to personal pronouns.

Myself Itself
Himself Herself
Yourself

Add selves when you are talking more than one person or thing.

Ourselves Yourselves Themselves

Question 33

Who / whom pronouns

Answer 33

Who and whom are used in place of a person’s name. These pronouns are used in questions when a name is not known.

Who usually refers to the person (s) doing the action.
e.g. Who will help me?
Who won the game?

Whom usually is used after words like: to and for.
e.g. To whom does this go?
For whom is this message?

Question 34

Thoughts and Adjectives

Answer 34

Adjectives describe or tell about nouns.

Adjectives tell how many, what kind, which one, and so on.

Adjectives are words that help make our thoughts clearer and more interesting to others.

Language gives us the power to put thoughts.
Language gives us the power to put thoughts … Into words.

I’d like a cold drink now.

Question 35

Subject

Answer 35

tells who or what a sentence is about.

Question 36

Verbs

Answer 36

tells what the subject is or does.

Question 37

Sentence

Answer 37

A sentence is a group of words that expresses a complete thought.

“A sentence is a complete thought, containing both subject and verb. The subject is what the sentence is about, and the verb is what the subject is doing. Here’s an example of a sentence: I write. “I “ is the subject, and “write” is what I do.”

Question 38

Fragment sentence

Answer 38

A sentence fragment fail to be a sentence in the sense that cannot stand by itself.

An incomplete sentence.

Question 39

Noun

Answer 39

A noun is a person, place, thing, quality, animal, idea or activity.

For example:
Person — Maria
Place — Detroit
Thing — Desk
Quality — Width
Animal — Dog
Idea — Independence
Activity — Navigation

Question 40

Period

Answer 40

Rule 1. Use a period at the end of a complete sentence
that is a statement.
Example: I know him well.

Rule 2. If the last item in the sentence is an
abbreviation that ends in a period, do not
follow it with another period.
incorrect: This is Alice Smith, M.D..
correct: This is Alice Smith, M.D.
correct: Please shop, cook, etc. we will do the laundry.

Rule 3. Question marks and exclamation points
replace and eliminate periods at the end
of a sentence.

Question 41

Proper noun

Answer 41

A proper noun is a specific person, place, or thing and is always capitalized. Days of the week, names, months, historical documents, institutions, organizations, and religions are all proper nouns.

Question 42

Pronoun

Answer 42

A pronoun is a word that takes the place of a noun.

Question 43

preposition

Answer 43

Preposition is a word that shows how a noun or pronoun relates to other part of the sentence.

Question 44

adjective

Answer 44

An adjective is a word that modifies a noun or a pronoun.

Question 45

adverb

Answer 45

An adverb is a word that modifies a verb. The adverb tells us how, when, or where something happens. It often, but not always, ends with the letters l-y.

Question 46

dependent clause

Answer 46

A dependent clause is a group of words with a subject and a verb. it does not express a complete thought so it is not a sentence and can’t stand alone. These clauses include adverb clauses, adjective clauses ans noun clauses.”

Question 47

Independent clause

Answer 47

An independent clause ( or main clause ) is a clause that can stand by itself as a simple sentence.

An independent clause contains a subject and a predicate and makes sense by itself.

Question 48

Punctuation marks

Answer 48

Punctuation marks help in expressing and linking thoughts clearly and meaningfully.

Punctuation marks help us pause and stress on words while writing.

Question 49

Capital Letters

Answer 49

The first word of every sentence starts with a capital letter.

Example: The star looks beautiful.

The first word in direct speech starts with a capital letter.

Example: Fleck said, “I love decorating this Christmas tree.”

The specific names of particular or specific persons and places begin with a capital letter.

Examples: Ken, Uncle Arun, Egypt

The names of days, months and special days also begin with a capital letter.

Examples: Sunday, May and Christmas

The pronoun I is always capitalized.

Question 50

The full stop / period (.)

Answer 50

The full stop is used to mark the end of a simple statement or a command.

Examples: This is a tall tree.
Let us go home.

The full stop is also used to mark abbreviations and initials.

Examples: Mrs. T.N.Kumar, Dr.Ajay

Question 51

The Question Marks (?)

Answer 51

The question mark is placed at the end of a sentence that asks a question.

Examples: Can we switch on the lights?
Whose box is this?

Question 52

The Exclamation Mark (!)

Answer 52

The exclamation mark is another type of punctuation mark placed at the end of a sentence that express a deep or sudden emotion or feeling.

Examples: Watch out for the speeding cars!
Wow! It looks beautiful.

The punctuation marks that are used to mark the end of a complete sentence are the full stop, the question mark and the exclamation mark.

Question 53

The Comma (,)

Answer 53

The comma (,) indicates a short pause or break in the sentence. There are many uses of the comma.

The comma is used to separate a series of words in a sentence.

Example: The tree glowed in red, yellow and blue lights.

The comma may be used before the and preceding the last word in the series.

Example: The tree glowed in red, yellow, and blue lights.

The comma is used to separate the name of a person spoken to.

Example: Tina, can you give me your pen?

The comma is also used to separate words or expressions such as yes, no, well, however, so, from the rest of the sentence .

Example: Yes, we shall go to the park today.

The comma is also used to separate a word or a group of words, that tells you something more about a person or thing, from the rest of the sentence. It is commonly used whenever a brief pause is required to give more clarity to the writing.

Example: The book, which is kept on the table, is mine.

Question 54

The Apostrophe (‘)

Answer 54

The apostrophe is used to indicate the omission of a letter or letters to form contractions or shortened words.

Example: don’t, it’s, let’s
these words have been formed by omitting letters from two words and using apostrophe to join them.

do not = don't
It is = It's
let us = let's

The apostrophe is also used to form the possessives of singular and plural nouns.

Examples: The lady’s bag, Roy’s book -singular possessive nouns.
Children’s store, girls’ school - plural possessive noun.

Question 55

Quotation Marks (“ “)

Answer 55

The quotation marks or inverted commas are used to enclose the actual words used by a speaker.

Example: Fleck asked, “Can we switch on the lights?”

Question 56

Interjection

Answer 56

An interjection mostly ends with an exclamation mark.

Question 57

Declarative

Answer 57

A statement

Question 58

singular and plural 2

Answer 58

Rule Examples
Nouns that end in vowel + y Add s to form the plural. donkey ⇒ donkeys
highway ⇒ highways
Nouns that end in vowel + o Add s to form the plural. oreo ⇒ oreos
scenario ⇒ scenarios
Nouns that end in consonant + y Change the y to i and add es to form the plural. family ⇒ families
trophy ⇒ trophies
Nouns that end in consonant + o Easy rule:
Usually add es except for musical terms.

Complicated rule:
Some nouns that end in consonant + o add es. Many can be spelled either way. Look in the dictionary if you want to be sure.

These nouns always add es: potato, tomato, hero, echo, banjo, embargo, veto, torpedo.

Here are the preferred spellings of some plural nouns: buffaloes, dominoes, mosquitoes, volcanoes, tornadoes, ghettos, mangos, mottos, cargos, halos, mementos.
Regular examples:
potato ⇒ potatoes
dingo ⇒ dingoes
piano ⇒ pianos
soprano ⇒ sopranos
The chart below explains some exceptions to the rules.

Exceptions Examples
Words from foreign languages, including musical terms Simply add s. taco ⇒ tacos
kimono ⇒ kimonos
aria ⇒ arias
Words that are proper nouns Simply add s. Eskimo ⇒ Eskimos
Picasso ⇒ Picassos
Words that are short forms of longer words Simply add s. photo (photograph) ⇒ photos
kilo (kilogram) ⇒ kilos
memo (memorandum) ⇒ memos
Hint: If a musical term or proper noun ends in s still add es. chorus ⇒ choruses
Jones ⇒ Joneses
Hint:Are you confused yet? The easiest way to handle the plural nouns in this lesson is to remember a few shortcuts:
Memorize the short list of words that must end in es.
Add es to words that end in consonant + o.
For words that end in consonant + y, change y to i and add es.
Remember that foreign words usually end in s, not es.

Question 59

singular and plural

Answer 59

Definition: Singular means only one. Plural means more than one.

In order to make a noun plural, it is usually only necessary to add s. However, there are many irregular nouns that add es. The rules for spelling plural nouns are based on the letters at the end of the word. The chart below breaks up the rules into categories so that they are easier to remember.

Rule Examples
Most nouns Add s to form the plural. cat ⇒ cats
truck ⇒ trucks
bug ⇒ bugs
Nouns that end in s, sh, x, ch, or z Add es to form the plural. For words that end in z, add an extra z before the es.
Hint:It is too hard to pronounce the words without the e. Try it – buss, brushs, foxs… You sound like a snake!
bus ⇒ buses
brush ⇒ brushes
fox ⇒ foxes
beach ⇒ beaches
quiz ⇒ quizzes
Nouns ending in f or fe Some nouns ending in f or fe just add s. Sometimes it is necessary to change the f to a v. In that case, always end the word with es.
Hint:Check a dictionary if you are unsure which rule a noun follows.
roof ⇒ roofs
safe ⇒ safes
shelf ⇒ shelves
wife ⇒ wives

Question 60

irregular noun

Answer 60

Irregular nouns form plurals in unusual ways. Dictionaries will give you the plural spelling if it is irregular.

one child ⇒ two children
one foot ⇒ two feet
one tooth ⇒ two teeth
one man ⇒ two men
Some nouns are spelled the same way whether they are singular or plural.

one fish ⇒ two fish
one sheep ⇒ two sheep
one deer ⇒ two deer
Nouns with Latin and Greek origins form plurals in strange ways. Because Latin and Greek plural endings are so unusual, many people try to follow the English rules by adding s or es. Applying the English rules is acceptable for some nouns, but using the original spelling is usually better. You will notice in the chart below that nouns with the same endings form plurals in the same way every time. Impress your friends and family by knowing the correct forms.

-a ⇒ -ae -us ⇒ -i -is ⇒ -es -on ⇒ -a and -ie ⇒ -ce
amoeba ⇒ amoebae alumnus ⇒ alumni analysis ⇒ analyses criterion ⇒ criteria
antenna ⇒ antennae cactus ⇒ cacti axis ⇒ axes phenomenon ⇒ phenomena
alumna ⇒ alumnae fungus ⇒ fungi diagnosis ⇒ diagnoses die ⇒ dice
nucleus ⇒ nuclei hypothesis ⇒ hypotheses
octopus ⇒ octopi parenthesis ⇒ parentheses
Note:Amoebas, cactuses, and funguses are now acceptable spellings even though the Latin spellings are still preferred. Also, octopuses is now the preferred plural spelling of octopus, but the Latin octopi is acceptable as well.
Some nouns exist only in the plural form.

binoculars	pants
clothes	pajamas
glasses	scissors
goggles	shorts
jitters	tweezers

Note: This is not a complete list.
Depending on the style manual you use, there are different rules for making letters, numbers, and abbreviations plural. The information in this lesson is based on the Chicago Manual of Style. Use the shortcuts in this lesson to help you remember the rules.

In order to make capital letters plural, add a lowercase s. Sometimes it is necessary to use an apostrophe if the plural form could be confused with a word (such as the word As versus the plural A’s or the word Is versus the plural I’s), but the apostrophe is only necessary if the letter is at the beginning of the sentence.
Shortcut: Capital letter + s

I earned straight As on my report card, but my sister received all Bs.

To make lowercase letters plural, italicize the letter and add an apostrophe + s. It is important to add the apostrophe because otherwise the letter might be mistaken for a word (for example, a’s versus as). Remember that even though the letter itself is italicized, the s is never italicized.
Shortcut: Lowercase italicized letter + apostrophe + s

Why does algebra use so many x’s and y’s?

To make an abbreviation plural, simply add a lowercase s. It is not necessary to add an apostrophe before the s.
Shortcut: Abbreviation + s

I used to have a lot of CDs, but now I just listen to my mp3 player.
I’ve heard that M.D.s go to school for at least 7 years!

One last area that we haven’t covered is how to make numbers plural. You can do so by adding a lowercase s without an apostrophe.
Shortcut: Number + s

2s, 3s, and 4s

Hint: Many people think that you have to use an apostrophe + s when making years plural, but most style guides actually suggest that you leave out the apostrophe.
The Industrial Revolution took place between the late 1700s and early 1800s.
I was born in the ’90s.
(Notice how the apostrophe in ’90s comes before the number. That’s because the apostrophe is being used to replace the 19 in 1990s. It has nothing to do with whether the number is plural or not.)

Note:Remember that the Chicago Manual of Style isn’t the only guide out there, and different manuals follow different guidelines. For example, some manuals prefer to use an apostrophe + s when making all letters and numbers plural. When writing, consult your manual if you have one. Whether you have a manual or not, make sure to follow the same rule throughout your essay, article, or story.
Also remember that people use specific guides for certain types of writing. Some popular guides are the Associated Press Stylebook (also called the AP Stylebook), APA style (from the American Psychological Association), and the MLA style (from the Modern Language Association). When you write essays or research papers, you use MLA or APA style, but when writing a news article, you use the AP Stylebook. If you’re not sure which guide to use, just ask your teacher.

Question 61

Prepositions

Answer 61

A word that expresses the relationship between two other nearby words.

The book about the wizard
The book by the wizard
The book near the wizard
The book behind the wizard
The book under the wizard