English Test-Study Guide for 8
Know the eight parts of speech.
noun interjection verb adjective
pronoun preposition adverb conjunction
Be able to label the four types of sentences. Punctuate them correctly.
I have a cat. declarative
Where is your mom? interrogative
Clean your room. imperative
I won the lottery! exclamatory
Know the difference between a subject and a predicate. The complete subject contains all of the words that tell who or what the sentence is about. The complete predicate contains the verb and all of the words that tell you what happened in the sentence. Sentences can be divided in half between the complete subject and the complete predicate.
My neighbor’s dog barked all night long.
Nicole lost her science homework.
Know the difference between the complete subject and the simple subject. The simple subject is the most important word in the complete subject. Sometimes the complete subject and the simple subject are the same.
My neighbor’s dog barked all night long.
Nicole lost her science homework.
Know the difference between the complete predicate and the simple predicate. The simple predicate is the most important word in the complete predicate (the verb).
My neighbor’s dog barked all night long.
Nicole lost her science homework.
Be able to identify compound subjects and compound predicates.
Mary and Beth like sports (compound subject).
Beth skips and dances down the hall (compound predicate).
Compound subjects and subject verb agreement. Be able to choose the correct verb form in a sample sentence.
Reading and writing (is/are) important.
Mike and Charlie (walk/walks) down the hallway.
Simple Sentences and Compound Sentences
A simple sentence has only one independent clause (although they may have compound subjects or compound predicates within them).
My dog is a beagle. (simple sentence)
My dog and my cat love me. (simple sentence with a compound subject)
My cat sleeps and snores. (simple sentence with a compound predicate)
A compound sentence has two independent clauses joined by a comma and a coordinating conjunction (for, and, nor, but, or, yet, so).
Joe waited for the train, but the train was late.
Allen is injured, so I am playing goalie tonight.
Compound sentences can also be joined with a semi-colon (;). In this case, there is no coordinating conjunction used.
She wanted a hamburger; he wanted salad.
*Remember, to be a compound sentence the clause on each side of the semi-colon or coordinating conjunction must be able to stand alone.
Be able to recognize and correct run-on sentences.
A run-on sentence is two independent clauses that are connected without using the proper methods described above. They can be corrected two ways:
1. Place a semi-colon between the clauses.
2. Use a comma and a coordinating conjunction between the clauses.
Incorrect: She wanted a hamburger he wanted salad.
Correct: She wanted a hamburger; he wanted salad.
or
Correct: She wanted a hamburger, but he wanted a salad.