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Usage Flashcards

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0
Q

Adjective

A

Part of speech that helps describe a noun or pronoun by giving it a more exact meaning

Big house; many friends; this pencil

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1
Q

Active verb

A

Verb whose subject is the doer of the action that the verb is indicating

The batter hit the ball.

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2
Q

Adverb

A

Part of speech that helps describe a verb, an adjective, or another adverb by giving it a more exact meaning

Walks slowly; very pretty

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3
Q

Agreement

A

This refers to parts of a sentence that are alike in gender, number, and person such as a subject and its verb and a pronoun and its antecedent

I study; he studies; the dog wagged its tail

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4
Q

Antecedent

A

Noun that is replaced with a pronoun.

Everyone will please remove his hat.
Walking is what I like to do most.

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5
Q

Antonym

A

Word that is opposite in meaning to another word.

Happy, sad

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6
Q

Apposition

A

Condition describing two nouns, next to each other in a sentence, that are equivalent in meaning.

My brother, Joe; Mrs Brown, the secretary

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7
Q

Auxiliary verb

A

Verb that helps another word show voice or tense.

I would have forgotten; she had left

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8
Q

Case

A

Form of a noun or pronoun that shows its relation to the other words in a sentence.

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9
Q

Nominative case

A

Nominative case of pronouns has the forms I, you, he, she, it, we, they, who, and is used as the subject of a verb or as a predicate noun.

They go; it is we

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10
Q

Possessive case

A

Possessive case shows possession. In nouns, it is formed with the apostrophe: Frank’s.

Possessive pronouns include mine, yours, his, hers, its, ours, theirs, whose.

There is no apostrophe in any possessive pronoun.

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11
Q

Objective case

A

Objective case of pronouns has the forms me, you, him, her, us, them, whom, and is used as the object of a verb, object of a preposition, subject or object of an infinitive.

They hit him; they gave it to him; I want him to go; I want to hit him

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12
Q

Clause

A

Group of words in a sentence that contains a subject and a predicate.

Independent clauses can stand alone: he played well.

Dependent clauses (adverb, adjective, or noun clauses) cannot stand alone: although he was hurt; that I read; that he recovered.

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13
Q

Comparison

A

Change of form in adjectives and adverbs to show increase in amount or quality.

Strong, stronger, strongest; good, better, best

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14
Q

Comparative

A

Comparative refers to a greater degree in quality or quantity of one item or person with respect to another.

Smarter of the two

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15
Q

Superlative

A

Superlative refers to a greater degree in quality or quantity of one item or person with respect to two or more others.

Largest of the three

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16
Q

Complex sentence

A

Sentence that has one independent clause and at least one dependent clause.

We are happy that you came.

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17
Q

Compound-complex sentence

A

Sentence that has two independent clauses and at least one dependent clause.

Joe sang and Joan played the song that she had been studying.

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18
Q

Compound predicate

A

Two or more predicates usually joined by ‘and’ or ‘or’.

He goes to school by day and works by night.

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19
Q

Compound sentence

A

Sentence that has two independent clauses.

Joe sang and Joan played the piano.

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20
Q

Compound subject

A

Two or more subjects that take the same verb.

Frank and I will come.

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21
Q

Conjunction

A

Part of speech that connects words, phrases, or clauses.

Bread and butter; to be or not to be; she came when I left

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22
Q

Consonant

A

Letter other than a, e, i, o, u (which are considered vowels) or y (which is considered a semivowel).

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23
Q

Dash

A

Punctuation mark that shows a pause or break in a sentence.

He may not come–but why should I worry?

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24
Q

Direct object

A

Noun or pronoun that receives the action of the verb.

Jon struck him; give it to Gerry.

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25
Q

Direct quotation

A

Use of the exact words of the speaker.

The teacher said, “Do your homework.”

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26
Q

First person

A

Pronoun and verb forms that refer to the person or persons speaking.

I, we; my, our; me, us; am, are.

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27
Q

Future tense

A

Time of verb that shows a happening yet to take place.

He will retire next year.

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28
Q

Gender

A

Classification of nouns and pronouns into three groups: masculine, feminine, and neuter.

He; she; it

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29
Q

Glossary

A

Listing of difficult or unusual words occurring in a book with their definitions. It is usually found in the back of the book.

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30
Q

Homonym

A

Word with the same sound as another word or words but with a different spelling and meaning.

To, two, too; pear, pair

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31
Q

Hyphen

A

Mark (-) used to form a compound adjective (two-faced), to join certain prefixes to words (ex-president) or to separate words into syllables (En-glish).

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32
Q

Idiom

A

Group of words that, taken together, differs in meaning from the individual words used separately.

Once upon a time

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33
Q

Indirect object

A

Word that shows, without any preposition, to whom or for whom the action in the sentence is taking place.

He gave me a pen.

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34
Q

Indirect quotation

A

Quotation that does not use the exact words of the speaker.

The candidate said [that] he would accept the nomination.

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35
Q

Infinitive

A

Verb form that is usually indicated by ‘to’ before the verb. Sometimes ‘to’ is understood.

I want to go home; he made me laugh.

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36
Q

Interjection

A

Independent word that expresses strong feeling.

Ah! Oh! Alas!

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37
Q

Interrogative sentence

A

Sentence that asks a question.

Did he leave?

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38
Q

Intransitive verb

A

Verb that has no object.

He stands; I sit.

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39
Q

Modifier

A

Word or group of words that help describe another word or group of words by giving a more exact meaning.

Adjective, adverb

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40
Q

Nominative case

A

Form of the noun or pronoun that is the subject or predicate noun in a sentence.

She is president.

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41
Q

Noun

A

Part of speech that is the name of a person, place, or thing.

George Washington; New York; toy

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42
Q

Number

A

Change in the form of a noun, pronoun, adjective, or verb to show whether there is one (singular) or more than one (plural).

Man, men; he, they; this, these; is, are

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43
Q

Object

A

Noun or pronoun that names the person or thing acted upon by the verb.

She brought the book; I admire her.

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44
Q

Objective case

A

Form of the noun or pronoun that shows it is the person or thing that receives the action.

I hit him.

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45
Q

Object of a preposition

A

Noun or pronoun that follows a preposition that controls it.

With me; between you and me; among him and them

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46
Q

Parallelism (parallel structure)

A

Two parts of a sentence that are given the same form, and therefore have the same importance, in the sentence.

He eats both meat and vegetables.
Not only the relatives were invited but also the friends.
Beth enjoys jogging, skating, and skiing.

47
Q

Participle

A

Form of the verb that is used both as an adjective and as part of a verb.

Sleeping child; am going (present participle); have gone (past participle)

48
Q

Part of speech

A

One of eight categories into which words in a sentence are assigned:

noun, pronoun, verb, adjective, adverb, preposition, conjunction, interjection

49
Q

Passive

A

Form of verb that is used when the subject of the sentence receives the action.

The watch was given to Joe.
The man was laid to rest.

50
Q

Past tense

A

Time of verb that shows that an action has been completed.

He went; we did go.

51
Q

Person

A

Form of pronoun or verb that tells whether the person(s) speaking is doing the action (first person); a person being spoken to is doing the action (second person); or the person spoken about is doing the action (third person).

We left for home; you stayed here; they arrived late.

52
Q

Phrase

A

Group of words without a subject and predicate, usually introduced by a preposition, that has a use in a sentence like that of a noun, adjective, or adverb.

In the park; with the light brown hair; to first base

53
Q

Plural

A

Form of noun, pronoun, adjective, or verb that indicates that more than one person, place, or thing is being spoken about in the sentence.

Boys; they; these; are

54
Q

Possessive

A

Form of noun or pronoun that shows ownership.

Girl’s pencil; ladies’ hats; its paw

55
Q

Predicate

A

Part of the sentence that tells something about the subject (what the subject does, what is done to the subject, or what is true about the subject).

The boy went home quickly.
This milk tastes sour.

56
Q

Prefix

A

Addition (usually a single syllable) to the beginning of a word that adds to or changes the meaning of the word.

Impossible; ex-president; review; prefix

57
Q

Preposition

A

Part of speech that shows the relationship between a noun or pronoun that is its object, and some other word in the sentence.

Mary went to the library.

58
Q

Present perfect tense

A

Time of verb that shows an action that started in the past and is continuing or has just been completed in the present. It requires the use of an auxiliary verb in the present tense and the past participle.

He has been our friend for years.

59
Q

Present tense

A

Time of verb that shows an action that is going on now. There are three forms of this tense:

He says; he is saying; he does say.

60
Q

Pronoun

A

Part of speech that is used in place of a noun. (John came. He was welcome.)

The four main kinds of pronouns are: demonstrative (this, that, these, those); personal (I, you, he, she, it, we, they); possessive (mine, yours, his, hers, its, ours, theirs); relative (that, what, who, which).

61
Q

Proper noun

A

Noun that refers to an individual person, place, or thing.

George Washington; New York City; City Hall

62
Q

Root

A

Basic part of a word, without prefixes or suffixes, that gives the main meaning of the word.

‘Cred’–believe; with prefix ‘in’ and suffix ‘ible’–incredible–unbelievable

63
Q

Run-on (or comma splice) sentence

A

Two sentences that are made into one by mistake. They are separated either by a comma or by no punctuation at all.

Wrong: Kay is class president, she is my friend.
Correct: Kay is class president. She is my friend.
64
Q

Sentence

A

Group of words containing a subject and predicate and expressing an independently complete thought: (e.g.: He came early.)

Three chief kinds of sentences are: declarative (makes a statement), interrogative (asks a question), imperative (gives a command).

65
Q

Sentence fragment

A

Group of words that may contain a subject and a predicate but that fails to express a complete thought and is, by error, punctuated as if it did.

Wrong: Hoping to hear from you.
Correct: I am hoping to hear from you.

66
Q

Singular

A

Form of noun, pronoun, adjective, or verb that refers to one person, place, or thing in a sentence.

Boy; he; this; is

67
Q

Subject

A

Part of the sentence that does the action or is spoken about.

He hit the ball; The watch was given to the man.

68
Q

Suffix

A

Addition to the ending of a word that adds to or changes its meaning.

Hand-ful; quick-ly; act-or

69
Q

Syllable

A

Smallest group of sounds, consisting of a vowel sound, and one or more consonant sounds that are pronounced as a unit.

Con-so-nant

70
Q

Synonym

A

Word that is very similar in meaning to another word.

Happy–glad

71
Q

Tense

A

Time of an action, indicated by the verb as present, past, future, present perfect. These are the most widely used tenses in English.

72
Q

Usage

A

Actual use of language by the people at large.

‘Good usage’ is the actual use of language by educated persons and other persons in positions of importance.

73
Q

Verb

A

Part of speech that indicates the action carried out by the subject or that tells something about the subject.

He hit the ball; She was in the garden.

74
Q

Vowels

A

Letters representing the sounds a, e, i, o, u.

The letter y is considered a semivowel, as in ‘slowly’.

75
Q

Proper noun

A

Noun that refers to an individual person, place, or thing.

George Washington; New York City; City Hall

76
Q

Root

A

Basic part of a word, without prefixes or suffixes, that gives the main meaning of the word.

‘Cred’–believe; with prefix ‘in’ and suffix ‘ible’–incredible–unbelievable

77
Q

Run-on (or comma splice) sentence

A

Two sentences that are made into one by mistake. They are separated either by a comma or by no punctuation at all.

Wrong: Kay is class president, she is my friend.
Correct: Kay is class president. She is my friend.
78
Q

Sentence

A

Group of words containing a subject and predicate and expressing an independently complete thought: (e.g.: He came early.)

Three chief kinds of sentences are: declarative (makes a statement), interrogative (asks a question), imperative (gives a command).

79
Q

Sentence fragment

A

Group of words that may contain a subject and a predicate but that fails to express a complete thought and is, by error, punctuated as if it did.

Wrong: Hoping to hear from you.
Correct: I am hoping to hear from you.

80
Q

Singular

A

Form of noun, pronoun, adjective, or verb that refers to one person, place, or thing in a sentence.

Boy; he; this; is

81
Q

Subject

A

Part of the sentence that does the action or is spoken about.

He hit the ball; The watch was given to the man.

82
Q

Suffix

A

Addition to the ending of a word that adds to or changes its meaning.

Hand-ful; quick-ly; act-or

83
Q

Syllable

A

Smallest group of sounds, consisting of a vowel sound, and one or more consonant sounds that are pronounced as a unit.

Con-so-nant

84
Q

Synonym

A

Word that is very similar in meaning to another word.

Happy–glad

85
Q

Tense

A

Time of an action, indicated by the verb as present, past, future, present perfect. These are the most widely used tenses in English.

86
Q

Usage

A

Actual use of language by the people at large.

‘Good usage’ is the actual use of language by educated persons and other persons in positions of importance.

87
Q

Verb

A

Part of speech that indicates the action carried out by the subject or that tells something about the subject.

He hit the ball; She was in the garden.

88
Q

Vowels

A

Letters representing the sounds a, e, i, o, u.

The letter y is considered a semivowel, as in ‘slowly’.

89
Q

Proper noun

A

Noun that refers to an individual person, place, or thing.

George Washington; New York City; City Hall

90
Q

Root

A

Basic part of a word, without prefixes or suffixes, that gives the main meaning of the word.

‘Cred’–believe; with prefix ‘in’ and suffix ‘ible’–incredible–unbelievable

91
Q

Run-on (or comma splice) sentence

A

Two sentences that are made into one by mistake. They are separated either by a comma or by no punctuation at all.

Wrong: Kay is class president, she is my friend.
Correct: Kay is class president. She is my friend.
92
Q

Sentence

A

Group of words containing a subject and predicate and expressing an independently complete thought: (e.g.: He came early.)

Three chief kinds of sentences are: declarative (makes a statement), interrogative (asks a question), imperative (gives a command).

93
Q

Sentence fragment

A

Group of words that may contain a subject and a predicate but that fails to express a complete thought and is, by error, punctuated as if it did.

Wrong: Hoping to hear from you.
Correct: I am hoping to hear from you.

94
Q

Singular

A

Form of noun, pronoun, adjective, or verb that refers to one person, place, or thing in a sentence.

Boy; he; this; is

95
Q

Subject

A

Part of the sentence that does the action or is spoken about.

He hit the ball; The watch was given to the man.

96
Q

Suffix

A

Addition to the ending of a word that adds to or changes its meaning.

Hand-ful; quick-ly; act-or

97
Q

Syllable

A

Smallest group of sounds, consisting of a vowel sound, and one or more consonant sounds that are pronounced as a unit.

Con-so-nant

98
Q

Synonym

A

Word that is very similar in meaning to another word.

Happy–glad

99
Q

Tense

A

Time of an action, indicated by the verb as present, past, future, present perfect. These are the most widely used tenses in English.

100
Q

Usage

A

Actual use of language by the people at large.

‘Good usage’ is the actual use of language by educated persons and other persons in positions of importance.

101
Q

Verb

A

Part of speech that indicates the action carried out by the subject or that tells something about the subject.

He hit the ball; She was in the garden.

102
Q

Vowels

A

Letters representing the sounds a, e, i, o, u.

The letter y is considered a semivowel, as in ‘slowly’.

103
Q

Proper noun

A

Noun that refers to an individual person, place, or thing.

George Washington; New York City; City Hall

104
Q

Root

A

Basic part of a word, without prefixes or suffixes, that gives the main meaning of the word.

‘Cred’–believe; with prefix ‘in’ and suffix ‘ible’–incredible–unbelievable

105
Q

Run-on (or comma splice) sentence

A

Two sentences that are made into one by mistake. They are separated either by a comma or by no punctuation at all.

Wrong: Kay is class president, she is my friend.
Correct: Kay is class president. She is my friend.
106
Q

Sentence

A

Group of words containing a subject and predicate and expressing an independently complete thought: (e.g.: He came early.)

Three chief kinds of sentences are: declarative (makes a statement), interrogative (asks a question), imperative (gives a command).

107
Q

Sentence fragment

A

Group of words that may contain a subject and a predicate but that fails to express a complete thought and is, by error, punctuated as if it did.

Wrong: Hoping to hear from you.
Correct: I am hoping to hear from you.

108
Q

Singular

A

Form of noun, pronoun, adjective, or verb that refers to one person, place, or thing in a sentence.

Boy; he; this; is

109
Q

Subject

A

Part of the sentence that does the action or is spoken about.

He hit the ball; The watch was given to the man.

110
Q

Suffix

A

Addition to the ending of a word that adds to or changes its meaning.

Hand-ful; quick-ly; act-or

111
Q

Syllable

A

Smallest group of sounds, consisting of a vowel sound, and one or more consonant sounds that are pronounced as a unit.

Con-so-nant

112
Q

Synonym

A

Word that is very similar in meaning to another word.

Happy–glad

113
Q

Tense

A

Time of an action, indicated by the verb as present, past, future, present perfect. These are the most widely used tenses in English.

114
Q

Usage

A

Actual use of language by the people at large.

‘Good usage’ is the actual use of language by educated persons and other persons in positions of importance.

115
Q

Verb

A

Part of speech that indicates the action carried out by the subject or that tells something about the subject.

He hit the ball; She was in the garden.

116
Q

Vowels

A

Letters representing the sounds a, e, i, o, u.

The letter y is considered a semivowel, as in ‘slowly’.

English (3 decks)

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