Grammar Terms Flashcards
What is a concrete noun?
Something physical. Things that we can see, count, or measure.
For example: dog, cat, food
What is an abstract noun?
Not physical
For example: Sadness, happiness, freedom, permission, experience
What is a linking verb?
When you want to connect one idea to another. Shows what something is.
For example:
My cat smells like fish.
The bear looks sad.
What is a helping verb?
Helps the verb and the tense.
For example:
Bryan is eating pizza.
Bryan was eating pizza.
What is a modal verb?
Expresses conditions. The likelihood, certainty that something will happen, the ability to do something, the permission to do something and the obligation to do something.
For example:
He must’ve gone that way!
What is a pronoun?
A word that stands in for other words.
What is a personal pronoun?
Words that stand in for other words, but change depending on the way you use them.
For example: I, you, she, he, it, they, etc.
What is a possessive pronoun?
The pronouns that states that you own it. This can be an adjective or a noun.
Sentence Examples:
That is my book. -> my is describing book
That book is mine. -> book is connected to mine
What is a reflexive pronoun?
Reflexive of the personal pronoun. Use when the subject and the object of the sentence is the same thing.
For example:
Personal -> Reflexive
Me Myself
Us ourselves
What is an object pronoun?
Pronoun that cannot be a subject and lives in the predicate. Goes in the object of the sentence.
They are personal and reflexive pronouns.
What is a relative pronoun?
Pronouns that link independent and dependent clauses.
Who, whom, whose, that , which
For example:
The salad that I bought was wilted.
What is an indefinite pronoun?
Undefined and uncertain pronouns.
1.) can be subjects or objects
2.) both, neither, and either retain dual form
I like both equally
3.) usually treasured singularly.
Everyone knows I like garlic. -> knows is singular
Some examples: any, anybody, each, everyone, nobody, someone
What is an emphatic pronoun?
Intensifiers. You can take out emphatic pronouns out and it’ll still make sense
For example:
The princess herself ten the marathon.
What is an adjective?
Modifiers that change a noun in a sentence. Adds more detail
What is an article (determiner)?
A kind of adjective that helps you determine how important something is. Gives specifics
For example:
The elephant = specific and definite
An elephant = unspecific and indefinite
What is an adverb?
Modifies everything that is not a noun. Usually ends with an -ly.
For example:
Vanessa was very hungry
I ran quickly.
What is a relative adverb?
Something that can be used to connect two clauses.
For example:
This is the place where I saw it.
I was able to ride a bike when I was 7.
I don’t know why he did that.
What is a determiner?
Something that goes with the noun or noun phrase to shape its meaning
For example: a, an, the
What is a preposition?
Words that ties noun to other information in the sentence.
What is a prepositional phrase?
A phrase that can work as an adjective describing a noun or a adverb describing a verb.
What is a conjunction?
A word the joins words, phrases, or clauses in a sentence.
For example: and, but, either, etc.
What is an interjection?
Outbursts that indicate strong emotion.
For example: ouch! Awesome!
What is an affix? Name the types of affixes.
An affix is a thing that gets added to a word.
Prefixes, Suffixes, and infixes are types or affixes
What is a contraction?
A word formed when two words are combined into one and lose a letter (or several) in there process
What is a subject?
The noun or pronoun that does the action or is something.
What is the predicate?
What finishes the sentence
Usually the verb and the direct object
What is a direct object?
Something that follows the action verb
Answers the questions:
“Whom?” Or “what?”
What is an indirect object?
Falls in between the action verb and the direct object.
Answers:
“For whom or what?”
“To whom or what?”
What is the object of preposition?
A noun or a pronoun or sometimes a whole clause that follows a preposition or finishes a preposition phrase
What is a compound sentence?
Two independent clauses joined by a coordinating conjunction
What is a complex sentence?
Dependent clause attached to an independent clause
What is a subordinator?
A word that links a clause to another clause making it a dependent or subordinate clause
Usually relative pronouns or subordinating conjunctions.
What is a relative pronouns?
Who, whom, which, that and their indefinite forms.
Can serve as the subject or an object in a clause and introduces more information
What is a subordinating conjunction?
Conjunctions such as until, unless, if, how, wherever, because, after, and although that indicate a time frame or a consequence
What is a prepositional phrase?
Something that modifies things in a sentence (like adj. or adv.)
Answers: “what kind?” or “which one?” (As an adjective)
Answers: “where?”, “when?”, “how?” or “why?” (as an adverb)
What is a noun phrase?
A noun unit
noun + determiners + adj + other things that modify a noun
What is a verb phrase?
Verb + adv. or objects that go with it
What is an infinitive phrase?
A phrase that uses the infinitive form of the verb (to ~)
What is a participial phrase?
A phrase that functions like an adjective.
Modifies the subject
What is mood ?
Something that reflects the speaker’s perspective.
What is the indicative mood?
The most common mood that states a fact, asks a question, or expresses an opinion
For example: We’re studying for math.
What is the subjunctive mood?
The mood that is used for hypothetical and contrary to the fact situations, as well as wishes and requests.
For example: If it hadn’t rained, we would’ve gone to the park.
What is voice? What are the two voices?
Indicates the focus of the action.
Who’s doing it or Who is having it done to them.
Voices: Active or Passive
What is the active voice?
The simple: subject-verb or subject-verb-object structure.
The subject is doing the verb
For example: We’re studying for the exam
What is the passive voice?
Takes the direct object and makes it the subject.
Structure where who does the action is unknown or unimportant.
For example:
The tuna was eaten by the cat
What is a transitive action verb?
A verb that takes the direct object.
For example:
Cade likes cakes.
What is an intransitive action verb?
A verb that doesn’t have a direct object, but still talks about an action.
For example:
Molly runs every morning.
What is a modal verb?
A group of helping verbs that let you know if something is possible, allowed, suggested, or necessary
What is a phrasal verb?
A verb phrase that functions more like an adverb. Don’t necessarily need to have an object.
For example: How do you put up with all of that noise
(“Put up with” is the phrasal verb)
What are verbals? What are the three verbals?
Verbs that have forms that act like another part of speech?
The three verbals are: participles, gerunds, and infinitives
What is a participle?
A verb that acts like an adjective
For example:
A compelling story, the chosen one etc.
What is a gerund?
A verb that acts like a noun. Always in the -ing form of a verb.
For example: The park offers hiking and biking.
What is an infinitive?
The to form of the verb that also functions as a noun.
For example:
To write likes professional, learn the rules.
What is a determiner?
A special kind of modifier. Comes in front of a noun phrase to tell us what the noun is referring to or in relation to, and whether it’s specific or general.
Determiners fall into several categories:
Articles, demonstratives, possessives, quantifiers, and interrogatives.
What is an article?
The/a/an
Can be either definite (the) of indefinite (an).
What is a demonstrative?
This, these, that, those
Point out something specific about the noun and can contrast it with another noun.
What is a possessive?
Marks who or what something belongs to or is associated with.
For example:
The company’s headquarters.
What is a quantifier?
Something that tells us “how much” or “how many.” Can be a specific number or an amount such as all, most, some, few, none.
What are interrogatives?
What, which, whose
Asks for a specific detail
For example:
Which car did you get?
What is a compound noun? What are the three ways a compound noun can occur?
A noun phrase that becomes ingrained as a unit and is treated as a single noun.
Three compound nouns are:
Close compounds
Open compounds
And Hyphenated compounds
What is a closed compound noun?
Nouns that have fused into a single word
For example:
Cheeseburger, website, basketball
What is a open noun compound?
Individual words treated as a unit
For example:
Garage sale, parking lot
What is a hyphenated compound?
Compounds that are “stuck together” with hyphens
For example:
Self-esteem, bird-watcher, bride to be
