Grammar Flashcards
The basic units of English Grammar are
Clauses, phases and sentences
The parts of speech are
The building blocks of our language
Clauses are made up of ?
Please give an example
A group of words containing subject + verb + object
I.e Tony ate a pizza
Subject = tony Verb = ate Object = pizza
The subject of a clause is usually ?
The agent or doer of the action
The verb in a clause is the ?
Action that the subject performs
The object of a clause is ?
The thing or person upon “which or whom” the action is performed.
The meaning of the subordinate clause is dependable on ?
The Main Clause
A group of words that forms a meaningful unit within a clause is known as ?
A phrase
Please name 4 types of phrases ?
A noun phrase
A verb phrase
An adjective phrase
An adverbial phrase
A sentence is ?
A group of words that make complete sense.
A group of words that make complete sense is known as a ?
A Sentence.
It will contain a main clause and a predicate. A sentence will end with either;
. - a period - declarative sentence
? - question mark - explanatory sentence
! Exclamation mark - imperative sentence
Please name the 4 types of sentences
Declarative “.” Period
Interrogative “?”
Exclamatory “!” Exclamation point
Imperative “!” Period or Exclamation point (depending on the strength of the intended emotion)
A word that identifies a: Person Animal Place Thing or Idea
Is known as a
Common noun
I.e
Mother, park, pen, friendship, frog, bunch, loaf
Please define the Common nouns
A person An animal A place A thing An idea
In a sentence, the nouns that specifically name people, places or people. Are known as ?
Proper nouns - They will always begin with a capital
I.e
Peter
London
Great Wall of China
A subordinate clause is dependent on the ______
_____ for its meaning.
Main clause
Phrases
A ________ _________ is built around a noun.
A ________ _________ is built around a verb.
An _______ _________ is built around an adjective
An _______ _________ is built around an adverb
Noun phrase
Verb phrase
Adjective phrase
Adverb phrase
A sentence contains a ________ clause
Main
Sentences are used to make statements such as
_________ questions
_________ orders
_________ exclamations
Ask
Give
Express
Gerunds are ?
Continuous (+ ing) verbs that may be used in place of nouns.
I.e
I like to cook, I like cooking.
I like boxing but I don’t like to box.
Countable nouns may be _________ or _________
Singular or Plural
Uncountable nouns “do not” have a ___________
Plural
They are often liquids, powders or intangible ideas
I.e
Sand, ice cream, paint, music, homework, money
Please list the 7 subject pronouns
I, you, he, she, we, they, it
It, them, they
are all ____________
Pronouns - they can replace the noun in a sentence
Subject (personal) pronouns replace the ________ , of a sentence when is too obvious to state.
(You must commit the 7 subject pronouns to memory)
Subject
I / you / he / she / we / they / it
“Instead of saying “Sarah has a cat”, we can say “she has a cat” , if we know the subject is Sarah.
Object (personal) pronouns, replace the __________ of the sentence if it is ____________
Please list the 7 Object pronouns and commit to memory.
Object
Known
Me / you / him / her / us / them / it
“I like food” can be changed to “I like it” if we know the object is food”
Progressive pronouns replace the __________ of an ____________ if the object is known.
In this case the pronoun is not used to replace the noun, but displays ownership of the noun.
Please list the 6 progressive pronouns and commit to memory.
Owner / object
Mine / yours / his / hers / ours / theirs.
(Only 6 as “it’s” is not used as it fails to display ownership)
“The new phone is yours, and the old phone is mine.
Reflexive pronouns are used when the ____________ and ____________ are the same.
Pls list the 8 and commit to memory.
Hint: we don’t say “joe helped joe”
We say “joe helped himself”
Subject / object
Myself / yourself / himself / herself / itself / themselves / yourselves / ourselves
We use Indefinite pronouns when we are _________ of the ____________ or ____________
Please list the 6 and commit to memory.
Unsure / subject / object.
Anyone / someone / somebody / anybody / nobody something
Demonstrative pronouns are used to ____________ or ___________ a noun when we are talking about it separate from other nouns.
“Point to” or show
Singular - this / that
Plural - these / those
Interrogative pronouns are sometimes called ___________ ____________ or wh-words, these pronouns are used mainly in questions.
They may also replace common phrases
Pls name the 7 interrogative pronouns and commit to memory.
Question words
Who / what / where / when / why / which / whom
I didn’t hear “what” you said. (“What” replaces “the thing”)
Relative pronouns are used to __________ ___________ that contain more information about a ______________ or __________. There are a lot of rules concerning their use and the correct use of punctuation when using them.
Pls list the 4 relative pronouns and commit to memory
Introduce clauses / subject or object
That / which / who / when
“That is the man “who” helped me”
“Spain, “which” is in Europe, is a beautiful country.”
Verbs: often referred to as “doing words”.
They show the ____________ state of a __________.
They may also be used to _____________ or _______ physical or mental action. Every sentence will have some kind of verb.
Active / subject
Describe / show
Verbs: Depending on the verb, it may have a: Present form Past form Past participle Present (continuous) participle.
Please name the remaining forms for the “present form - sing”
Sing
Sang
Sung
Singing
Regular Verbs:
Are the most common and display there past form by adding ?
d or ed
Liked / jumped
Irregular Verbs:
Can be hard to memorize as their past form ________ be made by adding “d or ed”
Cannot
Swam / Ate
Transitive Verbs:
Shows an __________ that must be followed by an _____________.
Action / object
Like, have, close
The sentence “I like” is incomplete. (It requires an object)
I “like”banana “cake” is correct.
Intransitive Verbs:
They do not need an ____________ and may only be used with a ___________ in the sentence.
Object / Sentence
When I heard the joke, I “laughed”
The sun “set”
Auxiliary Verbs:
Often called “helping verbs”. Auxiliary verbs have no ___________ of their own. They are used with other ___________ verbs to create tense, show voice, display state.
They do not have continuous forms.
Pls name 4
Action / “action”
Is / will / could / have
I “have” written a letter.
In this sentence “have” has no action but helps form the perfect tense.
The “be” Verb: (the Verb “to be”)
It is an auxiliary verb that falls before another
__________, _____________, or complement to define the _____________. May also be used to make complex grammar structures, such as the passive voice or continuous tense.
Pls name 5.
Noun / adjective / subject
Is / am / are / was / were
I “am”a doctor. (No action)
I was “seen” by a doctor. (passive)
I “am” eating banana cake. (Continuous)
Modal Verbs:
These have many uses, although they have no “action” of their own. They are used to express
Need / Possibility / Willingness
Ability or obligation.
Pls name 5 - commit to memory
Will
Can
Might
Have to
Infinitive Verbs:
These follow the word “to” or a ___________
Verb. They have no _________ of their own and are always expressed as the present simple form of the “action” verb.
I like to “run”
I was going to “dance”
Modal Verb / Tense.
General Adverbs:
In much the same way as adjectives describe nouns. Adverbs describe verbs, adjectives, or sometimes other adverbs.
They are often formed by adding _ _ to an adjective, but their are many that don’t follow this rule
ly
Happily / Quickly / Gladly.
Adverbs of frequency:
These are used to show how often a ______ occurs.
Pls name 3
Verb
Sometimes / Usually / Never
Adverbs of time:
These show when a ________ occurs.
Pls name 4
Verb
Shortly / Soon / After / Now
Adverbs of degree:
These are used to show a subjective amount in relation to a _________ or _________adjective.
Pls name 3
Verb / Adjective
Very / Much / Extremely
Adverbs of place:
Adverbs of place show where a _____ takes place.
(Without using nouns as reference)
Pls name 2
Verb
Here / There
General adjectives:
Adjectives are used to describe a _________ or ________________ and can be used together with nouns to make noun ____________.
Generally, adjectives come after “ _ _ verbs” or before nouns.
Noun / Pronoun / Phrases / be
Opinion - wonderful, terrible Appearance - shiny, glamorous Material - leather, wood State - broken, temporary Origin - Mexican French Emotions - glad, depressed Numbers - 2, 9000
Comparative adjectives:
Usually use “ _ _ “ to compare on noun with another, Bigger, Taller, Fatter, Happier, although there are many exceptions to this rule.
Some comparatives are made by using ________ or _____ before an adjective that has more than two syllables.
“er” / more / less
Superlatives (adjectives):
Superlatives show the most or least of any Adjective.
Only adjectives of __________ can have superlatives.
The biggest, the best, the fastest
Superlatives use “the most” or “the least” when the adjective has more than 2 syllables.
Degree
Possessive Adjective:
Are used in a very similar way to possessive pronouns. However, they only replace the owner of the noun when it is known, not the noun itself.
A possessive adjective must be followed by a noun.
Pls name 7 possessive adjectives. Commit to memory.
My / Your / His / Her / Our / Their / It’s
The bird escaped from “its” cage.
Prepositions (General):
Prepositions are used to show the relationships between ___________, __________ and __________ by coming before other groups of words to create extra informative phrases. These words have several uses, depending on the phrase, and many student have difficulty learning and understanding the importance of them.
“In” “at” and “on” are some of the most common
People / Things / actions
The important thing to remember about prepositions is that they form ___________ that are separate from the _______ __________.
Phrases / Main Clause
Prepositions of Place:
“At” shows ________ _________
“In” shows ________________
“On” shows ______________ via the surface
General place - I am at the train station
Containment - it is in my hand bag
Attachment - you have a watch on your wrist
Other examples:
Beside / In front of / next to
Prepositions of time: These show when an \_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_ is occurring in relation to something else. "At" - is used for \_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_ \_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_ "In" - is used for \_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_ \_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_ "On" - is used for \_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_ \_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_
Action.
Extra times - the movie starts “at” 6
Future time - the show opens in March
Future Days - let’s watch the movie on Saturday night
Other examples:
Before, after, while
Propositions of movement:
Shows where ___________ are moving.
Into / Over / Through / Between
Objects
Prepositional phrases:
By using a prepositional in a phrase, we can complete the meaning of _____________ _______
“I went” - is incorrect
“I went to the shop” is a correct sentence due to the prepositional phrase.
Intransitive verbs
Phrasal Verbs:
By adding a ______________ to a verb, we make phrasal verbs which take on a completely different meaning to the original verb.
“Take up” an instrument
“Take apart” a radio
“Take off” on a holiday.
Preposition
Articles:
Although there are actually ______ “written” articles, there are ____ different types of articles. These are known as ____________ and ____________.
Four / Two / Indefinite / Definite
Articles are not really “parts of speech”, but they are crucial for _ _ _ and _ _ _ teachers and students to understand in the beginning.
ESL / EFL
Indefinite Articles:
Indefinite articles are used when the ______ is one of many, and the specific one is not yet important.
“a” and “an”
“There is “an” Apple tree at my house.”
(So what! There are many Apple trees in the world)
Noun
Definite Article:
Is used when we can guess the specific _________ being talked about or there is only one it could be.
There is one definite article “the”
“The” apples on my tree are very delicious.
“The” Great Wall of china.
Object
Zero Articles:
We use the zero article (or no article) when the noun is a __________ __________ with a capital letter or the plural form or the uncountable form of an indefinite noun.
In teaching grammar the zero article is represented by the symbol (zero with a line through it)
Proper noun
Conjunctions:
Are used to join parts of speech within a __________
Generally that would be the ______ clause to the ___________ clause.
Please name 5,
Sentence
Main
Supporting
and, or, so, but, because
I like tea “but” I don’t like coffee “because” it’s too strong for me
Interjections:
Interjections are words to express immediate feelings or surprise. They are usually written alone in a _______________
BOO! / OW! / Phew!
Sentence
Modal verbs:
Are actually a type of auxiliary _______ that are used to show:
Willingness / Possibility / Ability / Necessity / Obligation as well as other subtleties of the english language.
Verb
Modal verbs Can - used to show Could- used as May - used as Might - used to show Should - used to show Ought to -
Can - ability, possibility, informed, permission, informed request, or impossibility (in the negative)
Could - past ability, more formal version of “can”, polite request, suggestion, impossibility (in neg)
May - polite request, asking for permission, or to show uncertainty.
Might - uncertainty about the past, present or future, very polite questions.
Should - show advice, suggestion, display natural order of things.
Ought to - advice, strong suggestion
Modal Verbs: Had better - used for Be Supposed to - shows the speaker Must - shows strong Have to - shows Will - used for Be Going to - future tense used to
Had Better - advice, with a threat of negative reaction/result.
Be Supposed to - expectations, or the natural order of things, NB “be” verb changes according to tense.
Must - strong/personal obligation (verbal) - used to show necessity (written).
Have to - necessity or lack of (neg), in the “neg” must and have to, have very different meanings.
Will - future tense, at the time of utterance.
Be Going to - plans for the future decided in the past, “be” verb changes with tense
I “am going to” travel next year.
We’re “going to” take a swim when I get home
Modal verbs:
Would - often used as
Used to - shows a repeated behavior
Shall - volunteering a future action
Would - a repeated past action no longer performed, polite version of “will”, polite requests, preferences.
Used to - repeated behavior in the past, in the negative and question form drop the “d”
Shall - volunteering a future action, or formally expressing certainty.
Tenses:
Most english speakers think there are only 3 basic tenses. ___________ _____________ and __________
However there are actually _ _, and are used to convey a large amount of information in a sentence.
Past / Present / Future
12
Tenses:
Tenses are created by changing the _____ form in a ___________
When understood fully, tenses can allow insight into the speaker and what they are actually saying.
Verb form / Clause
Tenses:
When presenting tenses, it is important to give examples of the language in its:
________________ _________________ and
________________ (interrogative) form
As an EFL teacher it is imperative that you commit all tenses and good teaching examples to memory.
Positive
Negative
Questio
Tenses:
The Simple Present. The most basic; it expresses an action that happens regularly or always. The verb should remain in is base form, allowing for voice.
It’s formula is? and when can it occur?
Subject + (present Verb) + (object)
The action can occur at any time.
P = I “eat” cake, she “eats” cake
N = (use the auxiliary verb do(es) + not
I “don’t eat” cake - she “doesn’t eat” cake
Q = the auxiliary verb comes before the subject.
“Do” you “eat” cake? - When “does” she “eat” cake
Tenses:
The Simple Past. The simple past is used to explain about an action completed in the past.
It’s formula is? And when was the action completed?
Subject + (past) Verb + (object)
The action was completed before now.
I “saw” a big explosion.
I “drank” a bottle of soda this morning.
I “didn’t think” about that.
In the simple past negative, “don’t” and “doesn’t” become “didn’t”.
Tenses:
The Simple Future. We may use the modal verb “will” when discussing future events that are only decided upon at the time of speaking.
We use “(Be) going to” to talk about future events that have been planned with more certainty.
Remember that the choice of “be” verb will depend on the subject.
What is the formula? When will the action be completed ?
Subject + will + infinitive verb + (object) or
Subject + be verb + going to + infinitive verb + (object)
“Image you proposed to your girlfriend on Sunday”
“Will” you marry me!
Yes I “will”
On Monday his girlfriend tells her friends
We “are going to” get married in a month.
If asked Weekend plans?
We “are going” to have a picnic.
