1. General Grammar Definitions
● The goal with
grammar is to put
together an
organized sentence,
which leads to a
paragraph and then
a paper...
● This slide set will
discuss general
grammar definitions
to make sure you
are caught up to
what you need to
know in ENG101
and beyond.
2. Sentences
● Sentences have
subjects and
predicates.
● Subjects are nouns,
pronouns, and/or
noun groups about
which something is
said.
● Predicates make a
statement about that
subject and will
contain a verb.
3. The Grammar We Will Study
● This semester, we
will be doing six
sections of grammar.
● This will lead up to an
exam around
midterm worth 10
percent of your
grade.
● We will study the
following:
● Pronouns and Nouns
● Commas
● Semicolons/Colons
● Subject/Verb
Agreement
● Possession
● Clauses
4. Pronouns & Nouns
● Nouns are words that name.
● Erika teaches the seminar on Virginia Woolf.
● Jonathan teaches a course about poetry written during the Holocaust.
● Tom and I walked by the oak tree that had been mysteriously chopped down.
● Pronouns will take the place of nouns. They can also take the place of
an unnamed noun.
● She teaches the seminar on Virginia Woolf.
● He teaches a course about poetry written during the Holocaust.
● We walked by the oak tree that had been mysteriously chopped down.
5. Commas
● Commas are a primary divider.
● Commas will link two independent
clauses.
● Coordinating conjunctions will link the
clauses.
● Commas will also be used with lists of
elements.
6. Semicolons & Colons
● Semicolons are a
secondary divider.
● Semicolons will
combine two items of
equal grammatical
rank not already
joined with a
coordinating
conjunction.
● Semicolons will also be used
between related independent
clauses with contrasting or
parallel information.
● If you have commas already,
use a semicolon.
● Test your usage by placing a
period between them.
7. Subject/Verb Agreement
● Verbs describe or show
actions or “states of being”
● In a sentence, the subject
and verb must be in
agreement.
● Singular subjects get
singular verbs; plural
subjects get plural verbs.
● Check your verb tense. Is it past,
present, or future? (has/have/had)
● Is your noun singular or plural? Add
an S if singular.
● Watch out for modifying phrases.
No matter what is between a
subject and verb, they still need to
be in agreement.
8. Possession
● Subject and object case often
impact pronoun usage, but
possessive case will impact how
you use apostrophes in
sentences.
● Possession indicates ownership.
● In English, you can do this in two
ways.
● An “of” phrase.
● An Apostrophe.
● Beware of awkward phrasing.
● Watch out for instances where
there can individual or joint
ownership.
● Avoid using contractions in
college level writing.
● It's is not a possessive. Its is a
possessive.
9. Clauses
● A clause is a group of words
containing a subject and
predicate.
● They can be independent or
dependent.
● Independent clauses stand
alone and form a complete
sentence.
● Dependent clauses are not
complete and thus need to be
attached to an independent
clause.
● Independent clauses can be
joined together using
coordinating conjunctions (And,
But, Nor, Yet, So), semicolons,
etc.
● To make a dependent clause
grammatically correct, attach it
to an independent clause.
10. Professor Wend's Pet Peeves
● Do not use vague language (Some people,
big thing). Be clear and narrow!
● Avoid generalizations
● Do not give commands
● Contractions
● Capitalize “I”
