Keeper/Melton

  • 8 Parts of Speech – page 1
  • Subjects and Predicates- page 3
  • Prepositional Phrases- Page 4
  • Commas- Page 6
  • Sentence Structure (simple, compound, complex, compound/complex)- Page 8
  • Active vs. Passive Voice- 9
  • Direct and Indirect Objects- page 10
  • Verbals
  • Gerunds- page 11
  • Participles- page 12
  • Infinitives- page 13
  • Verb Moods- page 14

Name: Per:

Subject and Predicates

Every independent clause can be separated into two parts:

Complete subject and Complete predicate.

Complete subject
All the words that describe who or what is doing the action or who/what the sentence is about.
Usually is found at the beginning of the sentence / Complete predicate
Describes the action or describes who/what the subject is.
The verb or an adverb is usually the first word of the predicate!
1.Jack / rides his bike.
2.Jack, the boy down the street, / rides his bike to school every day.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.

Rewrite the sentences and place into either the complete subject or the complete predicate.

  1. Jack rides his bike.
  2. Jack, the boy down the street, rides his bike to school every day.
  3. Jack and Cyrus are my friends.
  4. Planets in the solar system reflect light from the sun.
  5. Ganymede is the biggest satellite in the solar system.
  6. The planets closest to Earth are Mercury, Venus, and Mars.
  7. My brother likes to catch fireflies at night.
  8. Dr. Davis at the animal clinic treated my dog for fleas.
  9. The hare takes a nap during the race.
  10. Sometimes, a wicked witch puts the princess under a spell.

Simple Subjects and Simple Predicates

Using the sentences above, write the simple subjects and the simple predicates.

Simple Subject
The main noun or pronoun in the complete subject
Cannot be in a prepositional phrase / Simple Predicate
Fancy term for the verb or verb phrase
Does not include any adverbs
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7
8.
9.
10.

Introduction to Prepositional Phrases (Yippee!)

Student should be able to use and identify:

  • prepositional phrases
  • prepositions
  • objects of the preposition.

The Basics: A preposition is a word that shows a relationship between a noun or a pronoun to some other word in the sentence. (Are you confused yet? Hold on; don’t give up. It’s easier than it sounds!)

Phrases are groups of words! (Simple so far, right?)

However, they are not complete sentences as they do not have a subject, and/or a verb.

Complete sentences may have prepositional phrases in them.

Prepositions add information to the sentences. They often tell:

Where something occurs- Example: in the house or under the desk

When something happened – Example: before dinner or during the movie

Movement- Example: towards the lake or away from the edge

Other- These don’t fall under the other categories- Example: according to or in spite of

Know these also!

over; above around

past

across

towardfrom

intoout; out of

through

under; underneath; beneath

Write the following prepositions in the correct locations on the graphic:

down; up; against; by; beside; on; between; near; next to; amid; among; to

You need to know: Every prepositional phrase:

Begins with a preposition

Ends with an object (a noun or a pronoun)

May have modifiers such as the (articles or other adjectives)

Example: over the bridge

Beanie Baby Examples

The Beanie Baby is:Your own examples

Preposition / Modifiers (adjectives) / Object of the preposition

Part I: Underline the prepositional phrases in each sentence. Then draw an arrow from the preposition to the object of the preposition.

  1. The train raced through the tunnel.
  2. Brian walked toward the ballpark after school.
  3. Ask Dad for the keys to the boat.
  4. The safe is behind the painting on this wall.
  5. Without a doubt, Natalie will arrive before us.
  6. Throughout the day, newscasters broke into the regular programs with special bulletins.
  7. Cassie has not been in town since last month.
  8. It is difficult to work during vacation.

COMMAS: Quick Rules

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  1. Use commas to separate independent clauses when they are joined by any of the 7 coordinating conjunctions: FANBOYS – for, and, nor, but, or, yet, so

EX: I decided to travel to the nearest city to shop for the latest fashions, but the shopping venues were extremely limited and too expensive for my budget.

  1. Use commas after introductory clauses, phrases, or words that come before the main clause.

EX: Whenever I go shopping, I always take my best friend with me.

EX: In the beginning of the book, the story was very dull and uninteresting.

EX: Unlike my friends, I like to travel extensively with my family.

EX: Laughing hysterically, the student fell out of chair!

  1. Use a pair of commas in the middle of the sentence to set off clauses, phrases, and words that are not essential to the meaning of the sentence.Do not use commas when the phrase or clause is necessary to understand the meaning of the sentence (restrictive).

EX: My sister, who loves to wear designer clothing, does not enjoy shopping on a budget.

EX: My sister, of course, is someone who is obsessed with fashion.

EX: The students who earn an A will receive an ice cream. (Restrictive-no comma)

  1. Use commas to separate two or more words, phrases, or clauses in a series.

EX: I decide to take my mom, my sister, and my aunt to the spa.

EX: I will drive to movies, drop the kids off, and meet my friends afterwards for dinner.

  1. Use a comma to separate two or more coordinate adjectives that describe the same noun.

EX: He was difficult, stubborn child.

EX: Your cousin has an easy, happy smile.

  1. Use a comma near the end of a sentence to separate contrasted coordinate elements or to indicate a distinct pause or shift.

EX: He was merely ignorant, not stupid.

EX: You’re one of the senator’s close friends, aren’t you?

EX: I know that you want to go, too.

  1. Use commas to set off all geographical names, items in dates (Except month and day), addresses (except street number and name), and titles in names.

EX: Birmingham, Alabama, gets its name from Birmingham, England.

EX: July 22, 1959, was a momentous day in his life.

EX: Who lives at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, Washington, DC?

EX: Rachel B. Lake, MD, will be the principal speaker.

**When you use just the month and year, NO comma is needed after the month or year. EX: The average temperatures for July 1998 were the highest on record.

  1. Use a comma to shift between the main discourse and a quotation.

EX: John said, “I’ll see you tomorrow.”

EX: “I was able,” she answered, “to complete the assignment.”

EX: In 1848, Marx wrote, “Workers of the world, unite!”

  1. Use commas wherever necessary to prevent possible confusion or misreading.

EX: To George, Harrison had been a sort of idol.

  1. Use a comma to indicate a word or phrase that interrupts the sentence.

EX: Will you give me a call, Grandma?

EX:No, Rebecca will not be able to meet us at the movies.

EX. I hope, Susan, that you will be able to join us.

  1. Avoid comma splices- Do not connect independent clauses with just a comma!

EX. I hope to graduate high school early, then I plan to attend college. (incorrect!)

EX.I hope to graduate high school early, and then I plan to attend college. (correct!)

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Direct and Indirect Objects:In a sentence, the subject and verb may be followed by an object. An object is a noun or pronoun that gives meaning to the subject and verb of the sentence. Not all sentences contain objects, but some may contain one or more. There are two kinds of objects within a sentence: direct and indirect objects.

I. A direct object is a noun or pronoun that receives the action of a verb. In other words, a direct object MUST follow an action verb.

Daniel cooks pizza.

Try this technique when determining the location of the direct object in the above sentence:

1)First,cross out prepositional phrases! A D.O will NEVER be in a prepositional phrase.

2. Next, locate the subject and action verb in the sentence. The subject in the above sentence is “Daniel” and the action verb is “cooks.” If there is no action verb, the sentence will NOT have a direct object.

2) Now ask yourself the questions What? or Whom? about the verb “cooks.”

3) Daniel cooks what/whom? Daniel fixes computers. Computers is the direct object.

II. An indirect object is the noun or pronoun for which the action is done. If you have a “who” and a “what,” the first one is ALWAYS the indirect object and the second one is the direct object! It is the ORDER that determines which is direct and which is indirect. Just like race cars; it is not the car that matters; it is which one comes first!

Daniel cooks his family pizza.

1) First locate the subject (Daniel) and the verb (cooks).

2) Now ask yourself the questions To Whom? To What? For Whom? or For What? About the subject and verb.

3) Daniel cooks pizza for whom? Daniel cooks pizza for his family.

In the following exercise, underline the direct objects once and underline the indirect objects twice. **Not all sentences will contain direct and indirect objects.

1) We ate steak for dinner.

2) Snow and ice covered the streets.

3) She gives Jacob violin lessons.

4) Everyone loves candy.

5) The teacher gave us an assignment.

6) The children are playing.

7) I brought Diane a balloon.

8) Can you send me a letter? Hint: Change to a statement.

9) The baby needs a nap.

10) The students asked the teacher many questions.

Predicate Nouns (nominatives) and Predicate Adjectives

These are similar to direct objects except they apply to linking verbs. Daniel is a good cook.

1)First, cross out all prepositional phrases, if there are any.

2)Next, find the subject and the linking verb.

3)Ask yourself Who? or What?

4)If the answer is a noun, then it is a predicate noun (also called nominative). If the answer is an adjective, then it is a predicate adjective.

5) Daniel is what? a cook- cook is a noun in this sentence, so cook is the predicate nominative.

PARTICIPLES

A participle is a form of a verb that acts like an adjective. They modify nouns and pronouns. There are two types of participles:

  • Present participles: Ends in “–ing” and can be one word or written as a participial phrase.

Example: A smilingstudent received the award.

Smiling acts as adjective to modify the noun, student.

Example: Jogging, he quickly reached the park.

Jogging acts as adjective to modify the pronoun, he.

Example: The girl, running with scissors, tried to hurt me.

Running with scissors acts as an adjective phrase to modify the noun, girl.

  • Past participles: Ends in “-ed” or in the past tense form of irregular verbs and can be one word or written as a participial phrase.

Example: I was the electedchairman of the committee.

Elected acts as an adjective to modify the noun, chairman.

Example: I can repair the broken chair.

Broken acts as an adjective to modify the noun, chair.

Identify the present and past participles by circling them and drawing an arrow from the participle or participial phrase to the noun or pronoun it modifies.

  1. A raging snowstorm struck the city.
  2. Disturbed, she tried to make sense of the tragedy.
  3. The police shed a glaring light on the robber.
  4. The frozen pipe burst.
  5. Shouting wildly, the team attacked the goalpost.

What’s the difference between a verb and a participle??????

Verb phrases and participles are sometimes confused! When a participle comes after a helping verb, it is part of the verb phrase, and is NOT a participle.

A participle used as an adjective will stand by itself and modify a noun or pronoun.

Identify each of the underlined words as either a verb or a participle. Write V for verb and P for participle.

  1. The director decided to join the planning board. ____
  2. We are planning a trip to the coast. ____
  3. We must have scrubbed the floor for hours. ____
  4. The scrubbed floors looked just like new! ____
  5. Digging, she found the hidden treasure. ____
  6. We are going to the concert this weekend. ____
  7. The reference book was opened to the final chapter. ____
  8. The completed assignment took forever to complete. ____
  9. Lewis was carefully pouring oil into the saucepan. ____
  10. She made a highly praised speech. ____

GERUNDS

A gerund is a form of the verb that acts as a noun.

  • It can be in the form of one word, or it can be a gerund phrase.
  • It ALWAYS ends in “-ing”.
  • The gerund or gerund phrase can do anything a noun can do!

It can be a subject:

Swimmingis my favorite activity.

Swimming in the ocean is my favorite activity.

It can be a direct object (DO) after an action verb:

I love swimming.

I love swimming in the ocean.

It can be a predicate noun (PN) after a linking verb:

My favorite activity is swimming.

My favorite activity is swimming in the ocean.

It can be the object of the preposition (OP) after a preposition:

I am good at swimming.

I am good at swimming in the ocean.

Draw a line under the gerund or gerund phrase.

  • Write S if it is acting as the subject. Hint: It will usually be at the beginning of the sentence.
  • Write PN if it is being used as the predicate noun. Hint: It will be after a linking verb.
  • Write DOif it is being used as the direct object. Hint: It will be after an action verb.
  • Write OP if it is used as the object of the preposition.

Hint: It will be after a preposition.

  1. Walking is excellent exercise. ____
  2. My little sister observes my birthday by phoning. ____
  3. Love is caring for others. ____
  4. The team finished practicing at five o’clock. _____
  5. A loud knocking interrupted my sleep. _____
  6. Traveling by air is a fun experience. _____
  7. Tourists are warned against taking stones for souvenirs at the Acropolis. _____
  8. One way to burn up calories is exercising. _____
  9. The plant needs pruning. _____
  10. Drinking large amounts of water is good for you. ____
  11. The secretary kept perfect records by writing the dates of the event. ____
  12. He enjoys composing his own music. ____

INFINITIVES

An infinitive is the form of the verb that comes after the word to. (To plus a verb). However, it does not function as the verb in the sentence!

  • It acts as a noun (Subject, PN, DO, OP).
  • It acts as an adjective (modifies/describes a noun or pronoun).
  • It acts as an adverb (Answers the question: How? When? Where? To what extent? And modifies adjectives, verbs, and other adverbs).
  • It can also come in the form of phrase.

Underline the infinitive or infinitive phrase in each sentence. In the space provided, tell whether it is used as a noun (N), adjective (ADJ), or adverb (ADV).

  1. Louise decided to go tomorrow. _____
  2. Her desire to act was very strong. ______
  3. This novel is easy to read. _____
  4. To reach high school is not that simple. ______
  5. We expect to drive to Baltimore. _____
  6. They are too lazy to walk to school. _____
  7. The place to visit is the Library of Congress. _____
  8. Her idea of breakfast is to have a cup of coffee. ______
  9. To reach that number is not possible. ______
  10. He had no choice except to go. ______
  11. She wants to go. ______
  12. The recipe to try is the one on the label. _____
  13. The librarians were happy to help. ______
  14. This is the best book to consult. ______
  15. Susan’s dream is to dance. ______
  16. To graduate a year early is my goal. ______
  17. Our plan was to meet her at the station. ______
  18. To get home was difficult. ______
  19. She was told to reorganize her notebook. _____
  20. This is a great offer to take. _____

Verb Moods:
The Indicative Mood, the Imperative Mood, the Subjunctive Mood, the Conditional Mood, and the Interrogative Mood

The change in the verb to show the mood, or feeling, of the writer or speaker is calledmood.

English has verb moods:

  1. the indicative
  2. the imperative
  3. the subjunctive
  4. the conditional
  5. the interrogative

The Indicativemood:

  • States a fact

Examples:

  1. I own a pink stapler.
  2. The temperature is 16 degrees below zero.

Theimperative mood:

  • It gives a command or an appeal.
  • The subject of the verb is understood ("you").

Examples:

  1. Cook me an omelet.
  2. Be here before the movie starts.

The subjunctive mood:

  • It expresses wishes, possibilities, doubts, suggestions, conditions, etc.or something that is not actually true. IT IS NOT A FACT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
  • It expresses a conscious choice.
  • It expresses a condition contrary to fact.It frequently uses the conjunction “If”. EX: If I were you… If you would have….

Examples:

  1. I wish I had something to eat. (WISH)
  2. It may snow tomorrow. (POSSIBILITY)
  3. She suggested that Michael move to California. (SUGGESTION)
  4. I vote that we go to the movies. (CHOICE)
  5. If he were in class, we would not be paying attention. (CONTRARY TO FACT)

WHEN USING THE VERB TO BE IN THE SUBJUNCTIVE, ALWAYS USE WERE RATHER THAN WAS!!!

Here are two common examples where students forget to use the subjunctive:

INCORRECT: If I was at the beach, I would be happier. 

CORRECT: If I were at the beach, I would be happier. 

______

INCORRECT: She wishes she was at the beach. 

CORRECT: She wishes she were at the beach. 

The conditionalmood:

  • It is used ONLY when the writer expresses an action or idea that is dependent on a condition.
  • It is used ONLY when the writer is talking about something that has not happened, or that can happen ONLY if some condition is met.

Examples:

  1. If I had had a hammer, I would have built the tree house.
  2. If we would experience a national emergency, we would need some help from the armed forces.

The interrogative mood:

  • It is used in a state of questioning.

Examples:

  1. Will you help me with my homework?
  2. Did Mary go to the hospital with her mom?

Write I for indicative, IMP for imperative, INTER for interrogative, C for conditional, and S for subjunctive.

  1. Have you brushed your teeth this morning? _____
  2. I am going to school. _____
  3. I will wash the car when I earn some more money. ___
  4. If I were Mary, I would have chosen not to go to the zoo with Mark. ____
  5. Be brave, my son. _____