HBEL1203 Language Description

Faculty of Education and Languages

HBEL1203 LANGUAGE DESCRIPTION Chung Han Teik Komathy Senathy Rajah Ong Siow Kim

Module Writers: Chung Han Teik Komathy Senathy Rajah Ong Siow Kim

Moderator: Chung Han Teik

Developed by: Centre for Instructional Design and Technology Open University Malaysia

First Edition, January 2007 Second Edition, August 2015 (rs)

Copyright © Open University Malaysia (OUM), August 2015, HBEL1203 All rights reserved. No part of this work may be reproduced in any form or by any means without the written permission of the President, Open University Malaysia (OUM).

Table of Contents

Course Guide xi - xv

Topic 1 Nouns and Pronouns 1 1.1 Nouns 2 1.1.1 Types of Nouns 3 1.1.2 Number: Singular and Plural 6 1.1.3 Collective Nouns 9 1.2 Pronouns 10 Summary 18 Key Terms 19 Self-Test 1 19 Self-Test 2 20 References 21

Topic 2 Verbs 22 2.1 Verb Forms 22 2.1.1 Regular and Irregular Verbs 25 2.2 Verb Functions 25 2.2.1 Main and Auxiliary Verbs 26 2.2.2 Extensive and Intensive Verbs 34 2.2.3 Transitive and Intransitive Verbs 37 2.2.4 Finite and Non-Finite Verbs 40 Summary 43 Key Terms 44 Self-Test 1 44 Self-Test 2 44 References 45

Topic 3 Tenses 46 3.1 Tenses: Forms 47 3.2 Tenses: Functions 53 3.2.1 Present Tenses 53 3.2.2 Past Tenses 57 3.2.3 Future Tenses 62 3.3 Dynamic and Stative Verbs 65 Summary 67 Key Terms 67 Self-Test 1 68

Self-Test 2 70 References 71

Topic 4 Voice and Concord 72 4.1 Voice 73 4.1.1 Forms 73 4.1.2 Functions 80 4.2 Concord 82 4.2.1 Concord Where the Subject is a Noun 82 4.2.2 Concord Where the Subject is a Pronoun 82 4.2.3 Concord Where the Subject is a Non-Finite Clause 83 4.2.4 Concord Where the Subject is a Finite Clause 83 Summary 96 Key Terms 96 Self-Test 1 97 Self-Test 2 98 References 98

Topic 5 Determiners and Adjectives 100 5.1 Determiners 101 5.1.1 Definition 102 5.1.2 Types of Determiner 102 5.1.3 Determiners or Pronouns? 104 5.1.4 Order of Determiners 106 5.2 Adjectives 107 5.2.1 Definition 108 5.2.2 Types of Adjectives 108 Summary 117 Key Terms 118 Self-Test 1 118 Self-Test 2 118 Self-Test 3 119 References 120

Topic 6 Adverbs and Prepositions 122 6.1 Adverbs 123 6.1.1 Formation of Adverbs 123 6.1.2 Functions of Adverbs 125 6.2 Prepositions 134 6.2.1 Forms of Prepositions 135 6.2.2 Types of Prepositions (Functions) 136 Summary 144 Key Terms 144

Self-Test 1 145 Self-Test 2 146 References 147

Topic 7 Conjunctions and Sentence Types 148 7.1 Conjunctions 149 7.1.1 Coordinating Conjunctions 150 7.1.2 Correlative Conjunctions 153 7.1.3 Subordinating Conjunctions 156 7.2 Sentence Types 161 7.2.1 Simple Sentences 162 7.2.2 Compound Sentences 163 7.2.3 Complex Sentences 165 Summary 169 Key Terms 169 Self-Test 1 169 Self-Test 2 171 References 172

Topic 8 Phrases and Clauses 174 8.1 Phrases vs Clauses 175 8.2 Phrases 180 8.3 Clauses 186 8.3.1 Finite Clauses 186 8.3.2 Non-Finite Clauses 196 Summary 199 Key Terms 199 Self-Test 1 200 Self-Test 2 201 References 202

Topic 9 Sentence Patterns 203 9.1 Subject and Predicate 204 9.2 Basic Sentence Patterns 207 9.2.1 Sentence Pattern I: S V 207 9.2.2 Sentence Pattern II: S V Od 208 9.2.3 Sentence Pattern III: S V Cs 210 9.2.4 Sentence Pattern IV: S V A 212 9.2.5 Sentence Pattern V: S V Oi Od 214 9.2.6 Sentence Pattern VI: S V Od Co 216 9.2.7 Sentence Pattern VII: S V Od A 218 Summary 222 Key Terms 223

Self-Test 1 223 Self-Test 2 224 References 225

Topic 10 Spelling Rules and Punctuation 227 10.1 Adverbs 228 10.1.1 Common Spelling Rules 229 10.2 Punctuation 234 10.2.1 Definition of Punctuation 234 10.2.2 Types of Punctuation 236 10.2.3 Functions of Punctuations 236 Summary 244 Key Terms 245 Self-Test 1 245 Self-Test 2 246 Self-Test 3 246 References 247

Answers 249

COURSE GUIDE

COURSE GUIDE DESCRIPTION You must read this Course Guide carefully from the beginning to the end. It tells you briefly what the course is about and how you can work your way through the course material. It also suggests the amount of time you are likely to spend in order to complete the course successfully. Please keep on referring to the Course Guide as you go through the course material as it will help you to clarify important study components or points that you might miss or overlook.

INTRODUCTION

HBEL1203 Language Description is one of the courses offered by the Faculty of Education and Languages at Open University Malaysia (OUM). This course is worth 3 credit hours and should be covered over 15 weeks.

COURSE AUDIENCE

HBEL1203 Language Description is a compulsory course for all students of the Bachelor of Teaching (Hons.) programme, majoring or minoring in TESL.

As an open and distance learner, you should be able to learn independently and optimise the learning modes and environment available to you. Before you begin this course, please confirm the course material, the course requirements and how the course is conducted.

STUDY SCHEDULE

It is a standard OUM practice that learners accumulate 40 study hours for every credit hour As such, for a three-credit hour course, you are expected to spend 120 study hours. Table 1 gives an estimation of how the 120 study hours could be accumulated.

Table 1: Estimation of Time Accumulation of Study Hours

Study Study Activities Hours Briefly go through the course content and participate in initial discussion 3 Study the module 60 Attend 3 to 5 tutorial sessions 10 Online participation 12 Revision 15 Assignment(s), Test(s) and Examination(s) 20 Total Study Hours Accumulated 120

COURSE OUTCOMES

By the end of this course, you should be able to: 1." Explain in a systematic way the grammatical system of the English language; 2." Use rules of grammar accurately and effectively in appropriate contexts; 3." Analyse grammatical errors and describe relevant grammar rules; 4." Analyse sentence patterns in terms of form and function; and 5." Interpret the grammar component in the English language syllabus and the curriculum specifications for primary schools.

COURSE SYNOPSIS

The ultimate purpose of teaching this component is to develop studentsÊ overall grammatical competence. Course tutors should, therefore, bear in mind the importance of grammatical accuracy in the studentsÊ language. However, this course should not be conducted as a proficiency course per se, and the strategies used should reflect those used in teaching a Language Description component.

There may be some lecture input, but most sessions will involve active student participation, including discovery and awareness-raising activities to formulate rules and explanations for the use of selected grammatical features. Students will also be expected to investigate the use of grammatical features in authentic samples of language, and to compare the treatment of selected features in

different grammar books and teaching materials. Constant reference to a good dictionary for grammatical information should also be an important feature of the course.

This course is divided into 10 topics. The synopsis for each topic can be listed as follows:

Topic 1 introduces the two major word classes of English grammar: nouns and pronouns. These two word classes belong to the noun group. The topic will take students through a series of language awareness activities and some language proficiency exercises. The language awareness activities will sensitise students to the characteristics and the grammar rules related to the forms and functions of nouns and pronouns, while the language proficiency exercises provide practice on the use of these two word classes in meaningful contexts.

Topic 2 introduces students to verbs, their forms and functions. English verbs exist in five basic forms. They are the base form, -s form, past form, -ing form and -ed form. The verb forms may be regular or irregular and students will learn the criteria used to distinguish them. In terms of function, English verbs may be used as main or auxiliary verbs, extensive or intensive verbs, and transitive or intransitive verbs. These verbs can further be classified as finite or non-finite verbs, depending on how they are used. This topic will take students through a series of language awareness activities to sensitise them to the features of different verb types in terms of form and function.

Topic 3 deals with tenses. The tenses will be covered are Simple Present, Simple Past, Simple Future, Present Perfect, Past Perfect, Present Continuous, Past Continuous, Future Continuous, Present Perfect Continuous, Past Perfect Continuous and Future Perfect Continuous. However, this topic will only focus on tenses in the active voice. Tenses in the passive voice will be covered in Topic 4. Through various language awareness activities, this topic will sensitise students to the forms and functions of the 12 tenses. In terms of form, this topic will give special attention to the verb forms used in forming the various tenses, while in terms of function, it will highlight the use of tenses in appropriate contexts. Whenever necessary, time-line diagrams are used to illustrate the functions of tenses.

Topic 4 looks into two important aspects of a sentence, i.e., Voice and Concord. Voice concerns the choice of whether to choose an Active or Passive verb, while concord concerns the requirement that the verb of a sentence agrees with its subject. The topic will at first examine sentences in the Active Voice and the Passive Voice. The focus is on the forms and functions of these two types of sentences. In this topic, students will see how the forms of sentences in the active

voice differ from those in passive voice and also why one type of sentence is more appropriate than the other in specific contexts. As for the concord between the subject and the verb (i.e. subject-verb concord), the focus is on understanding concord rules and applying them in language use.

Topic 5 provides students with language awareness activities to enable them to identify determiners and adjectives, recognise the characteristics of different types of determiners and adjective as well as discover their use in context. It also endeavours to raise studentsÊ awareness of the differences between determiners and pronouns, as well as determiners and adjectives, so that they will be able to use them accurately to convey the intended meaning.

Topic 6 introduces two other major word classes of English grammar: adverbs and prepositions. Adverbs are commonly known as modifying words because they modify other parts of language, be it verbs, adjectives, other adverbs, clauses or sentences. Prepositions, on the other hand, are known as linking words because they are used to connect a noun structure to some other word in a sentence. Some words can function both as adverbs and as prepositions. This topic will take you through a series of language awareness activities and some language proficiency exercises on adverbs and prepositions. You will be able to practise the use of these two word classes in meaningful contexts.

Topic 7 introduces another part of speech which is conjunctions, and explains how they are used to produce different sentence types. You will look at two main types of conjunctions, which are coordinating conjunctions and subordinating conjunctions. By using the elements of clause structure and the rules of grammar, you can produce many different types of sentences using appropriate conjunctions. In this chapter, you will look at three different sentence types: simple, compound and complex.

Topic 8 deals with two longer grammar units of a sentence, which are phrases and clauses. They are also referred to as constituents of a sentence. Phrases and clauses are defined differently in contemporary and traditional grammar. In this topic, the definitions proposed by contemporary grammar will be used. Students will learn to differentiate between phrases and clauses in terms of form, identify different types of phrases and clauses in terms of form, differentiate between finite and non-finite clauses, differentiate between main/independent and subordinate/dependent clauses, and describe the forms of different types of phrases and clauses.

Topic 9 extends what students have learnt about forms of phrases and clauses to cover the functions of these constituents in a sentence. They will learn how to parse a simple sentence into its respective constituents and then analyse them in

terms of form and function. Though the focus of the constituent analysis will be on simple sentences, some examples of complex sentences will also be discussed. The constituent analysis will be confined to the seven sentence patterns proposed by Quirk & Greenbaum (1990) and Biber, Conrad and Leech (2002).

Topic 10 explains the rules that govern the accepted use of Spelling and Punctuation. It will raise studentsÊ awareness of how they work through a series of activities and equip them with the writerÊs tool to communicate with others clearly in writing. The activities focus on identifying the rules governing spelling and punctuations, and using correct spelling and punctuations in various contexts.

TEXT ARRANGEMENT GUIDE

Before you go through this module, it is important that you note the text arrangement. Understanding the text arrangement will help you to organise your study of this course in a more objective and effective way. Generally, the text arrangement for each topic is as follows:

Learning Outcomes: This section refers to what you should achieve after you have completely covered a topic. As you go through each topic, you should frequently refer to these learning outcomes. By doing this, you can continuously gauge your understanding of the topic.

Self-Check: This component of the module is inserted at strategic locations throughout the module. It may be inserted after one sub-section or a few sub- sections. It usually comes in the form of a question. When you come across this component, try to reflect on what you have already learnt thus far. By attempting to answer the question, you should be able to gauge how well you have understood the sub-section(s). Most of the time, the answers to the questions can be found directly from the module itself.

Activity: Like Self-Check, the Activity component is also placed at various locations or junctures throughout the module. This component may require you to solve questions, explore short case studies, or conduct an observation or research. It may even require you to evaluate a given scenario. When you come across an Activity, you should try to reflect on what you have gathered from the module and apply it to real situations. You should, at the same time, engage yourself in higher order thinking where you might be required to analyse, synthesise and evaluate instead of only having to recall and define.

Summary: You will find this component at the end of each topic. This component helps you to recap the whole topic. By going through the summary, you should be able to gauge your knowledge retention level. Should you find points in the summary that you do not fully understand, it would be a good idea for you to revisit the details in the module.

Key Terms: This component can be found at the end of each topic. You should go through this component to remind yourself of important terms or jargon used throughout the module. Should you find terms here that you are not able to explain, you should look for the terms in the module.

References: The References section is where a list of relevant and useful textbooks, journals, articles, electronic contents or sources can be found. The list can appear in a few locations such as in the Course Guide (at the References section), at the end of every topic or at the back of the module. You are encouraged to read or refer to the suggested sources to obtain the additional information needed and to enhance your overall understanding of the course.

PRIOR KNOWLEDGE

No prior knowledge required.

ASSESSMENT METHOD

Please refer to myINSPIRE.

COMPULSORY TEXT

Sinclair, J. (ed.) (1991). Collins COBUILD studentÊs grammar. London, England: Harper Collins. Sinclair, J. (ed.) (1993). Collins COBUILD English grammar. London, England: Harper Collins.

ADDITIONAL REFERENCES

Aitken, R. (1992). Teaching tenses. Edinburgh, England: Thomas Nelson. Alexander, L.G. (1988). Longman English grammar. New York, NY: Longman. Azar, B.S. (1992). Fundamentals of English grammar (2nd ed.). New York, NY: Longman.

Barry, A.K. (1997). English grammar: language as human behavior. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall. Biber, D., Conrad, S. & Leech, G. (2002). Longman student grammar of spoken and written English. Harlow, Essex: Pearson Education Limited. Crystal, D. (1988). Rediscover grammar. Harlow, Essex: Longman Group. Davidson, G. (2001). Phrases, clauses and sentences. Singapore: Learners Publishing. Disterheft, D. (2004). Advanced grammar: A manual for students. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson. Eastwood, J. (2005). Oxford learnerÊs grammar. Oxford, England: Oxford University Press. Frank, M. (1986). Modern English: Exercises for non-native speakers. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall Regents. Hooper, J.S. (1980). A quick English reference. Kuala Lumpur: Oxford University Press. Jackson, H. (1982). Analyzing English: An introduction to descriptive linguistics. Oxford, England: Pergamon Press. Klammer, T.P. & Schulz, M. R. (1992). Analyzing English grammar. Boston, MA: Allyn & Bacon. Leech, G. & Svatvik, J. (1975). A communicative grammar of English. London, England: Longman. Lester, M. & Beason, L. (2004). Handbook of English grammar and usage. New York, NY: McGraw Hill. Master, P. (1996). Systems in English grammar. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall Regents. Parrott, M. (2000). Grammar for English language teachers. Cambridge, England: Cambridge University Press. Pollock, C.W. (1982). Communicate what you mean: Grammar for high level ESL students. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall. Quirk, R. & Greenbaum, S. (1990). A studentÊs grammar of the English language. Harlow, Essex: Longman. Rozakis, L. (2003). English grammar for the utterly confused. New York, NY: McGraw Hill. Swan, M. (2005). Practical English usage. Oxford, England: Oxford University Press.

Stern, G. (2000). LearnersÊ grammar dictionary. Singapore: Learners Publishing. Thomas, L. (1993). Beginning syntax. Oxford, England: Blackwell. Thornburry, S. (1997). About language: Tasks for teachers of English. Cambridge, England: Cambridge University Press. Woods, E. & McLeod, N. (1990). Using English grammar: Meaning and form. New York, NY: Prentice Hall.

DICTIONARY

Hornby, A. S., Turnbull, J., & Oxford University Press. (2012). Oxford advanced learner's dictionary of current English. Oxford, England: Oxford University Press.

TAN SRI DR ABDULLAH SANUSI (TSDAS) DIGITAL LIBRARY

The TSDAS Digital Library has a wide range of print and online resources for the use of its learners. This comprehensive digital library, which is accessible through the OUM portal, provides access to more than 30 online databases comprising e-journals, e-theses, e-books and more. Examples of databases available are EBSCO host, Pro Quest, Springer Link, Books24x7, Info Sci Books, Emerald Management Plus and Ebrary Electronic Books. As an OUM learner, you are encouraged to make full use of the resources available through this library.

 TTooppiicc Nouns and

Pronouns

LEARNING OUTCOMES

By the end of this topic, you should be able to: 1." Differentiate between nouns and pronouns;

2." Identify nouns and pronouns used in prose; 3." Explain the grammar rules related to nouns and pronouns;

4." Categorise different types of nouns and pronouns; 5." Use a dictionary to look for grammatical information about nouns and pronouns; and

6." Use different types of nouns and pronouns in appropriate contexts.

" INTRODUCTION

This topic introduces two major word classes of English grammar: nouns and pronouns. These two word classes belong to the noun group. You can use a word from the noun group to refer to someone or something by naming them. You do this by using a name, called a noun. You may decide not to name the person or thing and use a pronoun. This topic will take you through a series of language awareness activities and some language proficiency exercises on nouns and pronouns. The language awareness activities will sensitise you to the characteristics and the grammar rules related to the forms and functions of nouns and pronouns, while the language proficiency exercises provide practice on the use of these two word classes in meaningful contexts.

1.1 NOUNS

ACTIVITY 1.1

Do you know what a noun is? Can you underline all the nouns in the following sentences? Can you explain the criteria you have used to identify the nouns?

1. Hassan is a good doctor. 2. Kuala Lumpur is a city in Malaysia. 3. She wrote a letter to her pen-friend. 4. The teacher likes my singing and dancing. 5. The policeman caught the thief. 6. Wisdom is better than strength. 7. I lost my personal computer at the market. 8. The food at the restaurant is delicious. 9. The crowd dispersed immediately. 10. The team played very well in the competition.

A noun is a „naming word‰. It tells us what someone or something is called. For example, it can be used to refer to a person (e.g. Hassan, boy, pen-friend, thief), a job title (doctor, policeman), a place (e.g. Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, city, market, restaurant), an object (e.g. letter, personal computer, food), an activity/event (e.g. singing, dancing, competition), a quality (e.g. wisdom, strength), a group (crowd, team) or whatever name we can think of.

Some nouns consist of more than one word, as in pen-friend, policeman and personal computer. These nouns are called compound nouns. Refer to Collins COBUILD English Grammar, p. 27 for more details.

ACTIVITY 1.2

Identify all the nouns in the following text by underlining them.

Carriers to share routes

Kuala Lumpur: Both Malaysia Airlines and AirAsia will be allowed to fly major domestic routes, the Government has decided. MAS will provide the premium service while the budget airline will provide the low-cost domestic trunk services.

The Government also decided that both companies would be given the flexibility to decide on the frequency of flights, capacity distribution, types of aircraft and airfare under the supervision of the Transport Ministry.

Adapted from: The Star, 17 March 2006

1.1.1 Types of Nouns

All nouns are either proper nouns or common nouns. There are two types of common nouns: countable nouns and uncountable nouns. Figure 1.1 shows the relationship among the four types of nouns.

Figure 1.1: Types of nouns

Now let us go through the following description of the types of nouns.

(a) Proper and Common Nouns You use a proper noun as the specific name of a person, place, event or thing. You always spell this type of noun with a capital letter (e.g. Elizabeth, Japan, Monday, Deepavali and Proton Perdana). You use a common noun as the general name of a person, place, event or thing (e.g. girl, country, day, festival and car).

ACTIVITY 1.3 The following text contains proper and common nouns. Can you identify them?

ZaÊba, whose real name was Zainal Abidin bin Ahmad, was born on 16 September 1895 in Kampung Batu Kikir near Kuala Pilah, Negeri Sembilan.

At a very young age, ZaÊba was taught at home by his own father. When he was 13 years old, he started his formal education in a Malay school and developed a strong interest in reading. In 1910, he furthered his studies at St. PaulÊs Institution in Seremban for six years.

After graduation, he taught English at the English College, Johor Bahru. Later, he was transferred to the Malay College, Kuala Kangsar. There, he started his career as a writer and contributed articles to newspapers and educational journals. Soon ZaÊba became well-known for his literary works.

(b) Countable and Uncountable Nouns Some common nouns refer to people or things that we can count. They are countable nouns.

Example: I have two pens.

Some common nouns refer to things that are not usually counted. They are uncountable nouns.

Example: Drinking milk every day is healthy.

However, we can use certain common nouns as countable as well as uncountable, depending on the context.

Examples: I bought a chicken to cook my favourite curry (Countable). Would you like some chicken for dinner? (Uncountable).

ACTIVITY 1.4 A good dictionary will indicate whether you can use a noun as countable, uncountable or countable and uncountable.

Can you get this type of grammatical information from your dictionary? Find out how your dictionary indicates this information.

ACTIVITY 1.5

Sort the following nouns into three categories: • Countable • Uncountable • Countable and uncountable For each countable or uncountable noun, write a sentence to show its use.

paper electricity potato diabetes housewife furniture meeting outcome advice task beach beauty chief noise poverty device luggage billiards factory experience talent work instrument problem child

Examples:

Noun Countable Uncountable Paper I am writing a paper for the You can wrap the parcel in brown conference. paper.

Furniture ---- Malaysia exports furniture made of rubber wood.

Beach Pantai Seri is a beautiful beach. ----

1.1.2 Number: Singular and Plural

A countable noun has two forms, singular and plural. The singular form denotes „one‰ and the plural form denotes „more than one‰ An uncountable noun only has the singular form.

Examples:

Noun Singular Plural Countable girl girls Uncountable homework -

ACTIVITY 1.6

Here are some rules for you to follow to form plurals for countable nouns. Some examples are provided for each rule.

Can you provide some examples of your own? You can use a good dictionary to check your answers.

No. Rule Example Your Example 1. Add –s to the singular cow – cows rose – roses 2. Add –es to the singular that class – classes ends in –s, -sh, -ch, -x, or o brush – brushes match – matches box – boxes cargo – cargoes 3. Add –s to the singular that photo – photos ends in -o radio – radios 4. Add –s or –es to the singular zero – zeros/zeroes that ends in o buffalo – buffalos/ buffaloes 5. Change –y into –i and add –es lady – ladies for the singular ending in –y, party – parties preceded by a consonant

6. Change –f or –fe into v and thief – thieves add –es to the singular leaf – leaves 7. Add –s to the singular that belief – beliefs ends in –f or –fe roof – roofs 8. Change the inside vowel of the tooth – teeth singular foot – feet 9. Add –en to the singular child – children ox – oxen 10. Nouns from foreign languages formula – formulae/ have two plural forms formulas syllabus – syllabi/ syllabuses

So far you have seen that you can form a plural by making some changes to the singular form of a noun. However, this is not the case all the time. The following are some explanation related to the singular and plural form of nouns.

(a) Some nouns have a plural form but no singular form. You can only use them as plural nouns.

Examples: Clothing - trousers, pants, glasses, spectacles, pyjamas, shorts, trunks. Tools - scissors, binoculars, clippers, tongs, shears, pincer. Others - belongings, surroundings, goods, expenses, handcuffs. 1. My trousers are dirty. 2. I have a pair of scissors. 3. All his belongings are in the bag.

(b) Some nouns have a plural form but they are uncountable nouns which are singular in meaning.

Examples: Diseases – measles, mumps, rickets, diabetes, rabies, shingles. Subjects of study/activity – classics, physics, statistics, aerobics, athletics. Games – draughts, billiards, cards, checkers, darts. Others – news, savings, politics.

1. Measles is a harmless disease. 2. Aerobics has become a popular exercise. 3. Draughts is easier to play than chess. 4. The news brings cheers to the public.

Examples: Crossroads, means, series, barracks, headquarters, quarters, barracks, bellows, gallows, species. 1. This crossroads does not have traffic lights. There are three crossroads along Jalan Indah. 2. Internet is an effective means of communication. All means have been used to locate him. 3. This species of orchid is very rare. You can find different species of flowers in the park.

(d) Some nouns do not have a plural form and you always use them in the singular. They are uncountable nouns.

Examples: Furniture, information, traffic, knowledge, advice, machinery, homework, equipment, clothing, scenery, luggage, oil, sand, rice, love, meat, milk. 1. This information is reliable. 2. A little knowledge is dangerous. 3. The meat has turned bad.

(e) Some nouns do not have a plural form but you always use them in the plural. They are also known as plural nouns.

Examples: Cattle, police, vermin, gentry, poultry, people, military. 1. The cattle are grazing in the field. 2. The police have completed their investigation. 3. Some people are never satisfied. (Note: „People‰ is singular when it means „nation‰.)

(f) Some nouns do not have a plural form but you can use them in the singular or plural.

Examples: Sheep, deer, salmon, trout, grouse, mackerel, aircraft, Chinese, Japanese, Swiss. 1. This sheep has grown fatter. There are three sheep in the field. 2. He is a Japanese. Japanese are hardworking people.

(g) There are some nouns for which only a singular form is used because they refer to certain things in the world that are unique. These nouns are referred to as singular nouns.

Examples: Moon, sun, atmosphere, air. 1. The moon is so beautiful tonight. 2. The sun was shining brightly.

ACTIVITY 1.7

Check how your dictionary indicates the types of nouns mentioned above.

1.1.3 Collective Nouns

Collective nouns refer to groups of people, animals, or things. They can be common nouns (e.g. army, audience, bunch, committee, family and team) or proper nouns (e.g. the BBC, the Senate and the UN).

When a collective noun is singular in form, you can use it in the singular or plural, depending on the meaning you wish to convey.

Examples: 1. My family is small. „Family‰ is used in the singular because it is considered a single unit.

2. My family are cleaning the house. „Family‰ is used in the plural because it is thought of as a number of individuals, i.e. the family members.

A collective noun can have both singular and plural forms (e.g. family – families), but some collective nouns do not have plural forms. Nevertheless, you can still use them in the singular or plural.

Examples: 1. The public is supportive of the new action plan. (Singular) 2. The public are divided in their opinion. (Plural)

ACTIVITY 1.8

Look at the words in the diagram below. Can you identify the words which can be used as collective nouns? Find out how your dictionary indicates this type of noun.

1.2 PRONOUNS

ACTIVITY 1.9

Read the following texts and decide which text is better. Provide a rationale for your choice.

Text A When Mr. Low got a job in the factory, Mr. Low was afraid of losing his limbs in the machines. So, Mr. Low was always very careful when Mr. Low worked. However, one day, Mr. Low slipped and his left leg got caught in a machine. Mr. Low was afraid Mr. Low might lose his left leg. His fears were confirmed when Mr. Low was admitted into the hospital. A doctor told Mr. Low that his injured leg had to be amputated.

Text B When Mr. Low got a job in the factory, he was afraid of losing his limbs in the machines. So, he was always very careful when he worked. However, one day, he slipped and his left leg got caught in a machine. Mr. Low was afraid he might lose his left leg. His fear was confirmed when he was admitted into the hospital. A doctor told him that his injured leg had to be amputated.

You will see that Text B is more cohesive because the word „he‰ has been used to replace „Mr. Low‰ in the text to avoid unnecessary repetition of the proper noun. The word is a personal pronoun. It is a type of pronoun.

ACTIVITY 1.10

Can you provide other examples of personal pronouns?

How many other types of pronouns do you know? Make a list of them.

For each type, provide as many examples as possible in the form of sentences.

Compare what you have got with the notes provided.

Find out how much grammatical information you can get from your dictionary.

ACTIVITY 1.11 Read through the notes below and compare them with your answers to Activity 1.8.

For more detailed information, refer to Collins COBUILD English Grammar, pp.28-42.

The following are nine types of pronouns used for different purposes.

(a)" Personal Pronouns

Subject Pronouns Object Pronouns Singular Plural Singular Plural 1st Person I we me us

2nd Person you you

3rd Person he him she they her them it it Examples: 1. I donÊt know what to do. 1. He told me the news. 2. Would you come along? 2. John likes you very much. 3. She was a pretty woman. 3. We were with her last 4. It is a very long novel. night. 5. They have decided to go. 4. My brother has read it.

5. I gave them a warning.

" You use personal pronouns to refer to yourself (e.g. I), the people you are talking to (e.g. you), or the people or things you are talking about (e.g. he, they). " There are two sets of personal pronouns: subject pronouns and object pronouns.

(b)" Possessive Pronouns

Singular Plural 1st Person mine ours 2nd Person yours 3rd Person his theirs hers Examples: 1. This book is mine. 2. Is that coffee yours or his? 3. It was her fault, not theirs. 4. He is an old friend of ours.

• You use possessive pronouns to show possession. Examples:

1." The book is AhmadÊs. It is his.

2." These cats are our pets. They are ours.

(c) Reflexive Pronouns " Singular Plural 1st Person myself ourselves 2nd Person yourself yourselves 3rd Person himself herself themselves itself Examples: 1. He killed himself. 2. She stared at herself in the mirror. 3. We introduced ourselves to the VIP. 4. You should buy yourself a new watch. 5. You need to ask yourselves questions.

• Reflexive pronouns refer back to the subject in a sentence.

Example:

She hurt herself. (subject)

• You can use a reflexive pronoun for emphasis. You can leave out the reflexive pronoun without changing the meaning of the sentence.

Compare: 1. The town itself is very crowded. / The town is very crowded. 2. She made the card herself. / She made the card.

(d) Demonstrative Pronouns Singular Plural this these that those

• „This/These‰ refers to something that is close to you, or that you consider to be close to you. „That/Those‰ refers to something that is not close to you, or that you do not consider to be close to you.

Examples: 1. This is a list of reference books 2. That was difficult for me. 3. I bought you these. 4. What are those?

(e) Indefinite Pronouns

anybody everybody nobody somebody anyone everyone no one someone anything everything nothing something

• You use indefinite pronouns to refer to people or things but you do not know exactly who or what they are, or their identity is not important.

Examples: 1. Ask anyone. They/he will tell you. 2. She could wear anything she liked. They/It looked pretty on her. 3. Everyone is ready. They/he can leave anytime. 4. Everybody is enjoying themselves/himself at the party.

• Indefinite pronouns are singular, but if you want to use a pronoun to refer back to an indefinite pronoun, you can either use a singular or plural pronoun. The use of plural pronouns is more common in formal English.

(f) Reciprocal Pronouns

each other one another

• You use reciprocal pronouns to indicate that people do the same thing, feel the same way, or share the same relationship.

Examples: 1. John and Sam shouted at one another. (John shouted at Sam. Sam shouted at John.) 2. The two lights moved towards one another. 3. Ali and Asiah love each other. 4. We helped each other a lot.

• Both „each other‰ and „one another‰ can refer to two or more people or things.

(g) Relative Pronouns

who whom whose that which

• Like other pronouns, relative pronouns refer to somebody or something you have mentioned earlier. At the same time, they join clauses together. The clause introduced by a relative pronoun is the relative clause. You will learn more about relative clauses in Topic 8.

(clause) (clause) I talked to the salesman. He came yesterday.

I talked to the salesman who came yesterday.

Relative Clause

• You use „who‰ and „whom‰ to refer to people.

Examples: 1. That is the man who/whom I met yesterday. 2. Boys who keep long hair will be punished. („Whom‰ is not possible) 3. The old lady to whom you gave the money was my neighbour. (After a preposition, „who‰ is not possible.)

• You use „whose‰ to show who or what something belongs to.

Examples: 1. Children whose parents are educated tend to be more intelligent. 2. The police recovered the car whose owner went missing last week. 3. He is the one from whose house the stolen goods were found.

• You use „which‰ to refer to things.

Examples 1." The road which leads to my college is muddy. 2." The hunters found footprints which belonged to the elephant. 3. The shop from which I bought the book is in the next block.

• You use „that‰ to refer to people or things.

Examples 1. The clothes that were on display were imported from Italy. 2. He is the man that came just now. 3. I like the idea that you have suggested.

(h) Interrogative Pronouns

who whom whose which what

• You use interrogative pronouns to ask direct or indirect questions.

Examples: 1. What is that? 2. Who was at the door just now? 3. For whom do you buy the food? 4. Who/Whom did you talk to? 5. Whose is this? 6. Which do you like? 7. I asked him who he was talking to. 8. He wondered what Sally would do now.

(i) Quantifying Pronouns all each fewer more several another either less most some any enough little much one* both few many neither

• Quantifying pronouns are quantifiers, which indicate number or amount. You can also use quantifiers as determiners. Many were offered scholarships. (Pronoun) Many students were offered scholarships (Determiner)

You will learn about determiners in Topic 5.

• Most quantifying pronouns are followed by „of‰ as in „some of the fund....‰, „several of my friends....‰, „none of them...‰ • „One‰ can be a personal pronoun as in „One should work hard to succeed‰.

Examples: 1. All must come for the meeting. 2. Give him some money, if you have any. 3. I saw one girl whispering to another. 4. I have two interesting novels. You can borrow both. 5. There are twenty prizes. Each of them is worth RM200.00. 6. Would you like to have some steak?

" This topic provides grammatical information about nouns and pronouns.

" Nouns may be classified as proper or common nouns.

" A common noun can be countable, uncountable or both. In terms of number, nouns can be singular or plural in form.

" Some nouns, when singular in form, may be used in the singular or plural.

" Likewise, when they are plural in form, they may be used in the singular or plural.

" A collective noun which is singular in form may be used in the singular or plural.

" Pronouns are words that can replace expressions functioning as nouns.

" The nine types of pronouns covered in this module are personal, possessive, demonstrative, reflexive, indefinite, reciprocal, relative, interrogative and quantifying pronouns.

Collective noun Pronoun Common noun Proper noun Countable noun Singular noun Plural noun Uncountable noun

(a)" Identify the types of nouns underlined in the following sentences. Leave the box empty if it is not relevant.

Common/ Countable/ Singular/ No. Sentence Proper Uncountable Plural 1. The Prime Minister will announce the 9th Malaysia Plan. 2. How much time did you spend on the work? 3. This is not my first time here. 4. The refugees are well taken care of. 5. You should say nothing but the truth. 6. I need some writing paper to write the report. 7. „My Fair Lady‰ is a good play. 8. We will send the equipment later. 9. Two more new quarters are being built for teachers. 10. Teaching is a noble profession. 11. I enjoy learning statistics. 12. MAS has reduced the number of aircraft to cut costs.

(b)" Replace the underlined words with suitable collective nouns.

Example: The group of players lifted their coach in jubilation. (team) 1." A lot of people gathered at the accident scene but none helped the victim. 2." Mr. Tan took his wife and children for a holiday at the Cameron Highlands. 3." The audience gave the group of performers a standing ovation. 4." The dog helped the shepherd to guide his group of sheep. 5." The general reminded his group of soldiers to be alert at all times. 6." They presented Puan Aini a collection of flowers during the TeachersÊ Day. 7." The group of sailors were busy preparing their gear before they set sail. 8." The principal thanked his group of teachers for the hard work and dedication.

Complete each sentence with an appropriate pronoun. Label the type of pronoun you have used."

Type of No. Sentence Pronoun 1. ThereÊs some money on the table. ______is it? 2. You ______saw what happened. It was not my fault. 3. Cars ______have air-conditioner are more comfortable. 4. Everyone who meets my brother likes ______. 5. The man ______you spoke to is my teacher. 6. So you have a new baby! Is ______a boy or a girl? 7. That is not HassanÊs car. IÊm sure it isnÊt ______. 8. ______is that man standing at the door?

9. We promise to get in touch with ______. 10. I see that you have cut ______again. What a careless boy! 11. ______has taken my pen. Do you know who? 12. I wonder to ______we must report the matter. 13. ______are not the answers. You should try harder. 14. They have cancelled the meeting ______was scheduled at 9 a.m. 15. ______can attend the talk as long as they are above 21. 16. All the apples are bad. You can eat ______of them. 17. Which shirt do you prefer, this or ______? 18. The prices of cars have dropped but I still canÊt afford ______. 19. ______should constantly ask oneself questions during reading. 20. Kenneth has been a family friend of ______for many years. We really treasure our friendship.

Alexander, L.G. (1988). Longman English grammar. New York, NY: Longman.

Biber, D., Conrad, S. & Leech, G. (2002). Longman student grammar of spoken and written English. Harlow, Essex: Pearson Education Limited.

Quirk, R. & Greenbaum, S. (1990). A studentÊs grammar of the English language. Harlow, Essex: Longman

Sinclair, J. (Ed.) (1991). Collins COBUILD studentÊs grammar. London, England: HarperCollins.

Sinclair, J. (Ed.) (1993). Collins COBUILD English grammar. London, England: HarperCollins.

 TTooppiicc Verbs

LEARNING OUTCOMES

By the end of this topic, you should be able to:

1." Identify different types of verbs in terms of form;

2." Identify different types of verbs in terms of function; 3." Explain the features of different types of verbs in terms of form and function;

4." Use appropriate grammar terminology to describe verbs; and 5." Use a dictionary to look for grammatical information on verbs.

" INTRODUCTION

In this topic, you will learn about verbs, their forms and their functions. English verbs exist in five basic forms. They are the base form, -s form, past form, -ing form and -ed form. The verb forms may be regular or irregular and you will learn the criteria used to distinguish them. In terms of function, English verbs may be used as main or auxiliary verbs, extensive or intensive verbs, and transitive or intransitive verbs. These verbs can further be classified as finite or non-finite verbs, depending on how they are used. This topic will take you through a series of language awareness activities to sensitise you to the features of different verb types in terms of form and function.

2.1 VERB FORMS

Most English verbs have five basic forms. They are: (a)" Base form; (b)" -s form;

(c)" Past form; (d)" -ing participle form (present participle form); and (e)" -ed participle form (past participle form).

ACTIVITY 2.1

In each of the following sentences, a verb is underlined. Prepare a grid. Then, identify the form used and write it in the appropriate column in the grid. Supply the other forms of the verb.

The first one has been done for you.

1. John and Peter walk to school every day. 2. My sister likes the new house very much. 3. Children carry heavy bags to school nowadays. 4. We play football during the weekend. 5. Ali watches T.V with his parents at night. 6. They helped us with the project yesterday. 7. My father dropped his key on his way to the office. 8. Hassan is brushing his teeth. 9. It has been raining heavily for the past three days. 10. I worked in that company before. 11. The naughty boy broke the windows. 12. All the girls had done their work neatly. 13. Someone has stolen our luggage. 14. My family and I went to Singapore during the holiday. 15. The Minister will be coming next week. 16. We had fried rice for breakfast this morning. 17. That incident nearly cost him his life. 18. The boys were cutting the grass in the garden. 19. The brave firemen put out the fire in twenty minutes last night. 20. She hit him on the head with a book.

No Base form -s form Past form -ing form -ed form 1." walk walks walked walking walked

ACTIVITY 2.2 What criteria did you use to identify the verb forms?

The verbs from 1 – 10 are regular verbs while those from 11 – 20 are irregular verbs.

Can you explain how you distinguish these two types of verbs? In terms of verb form, what grammatical information does your dictionary give you?

So far, you have used your prior knowledge about verbs to recognise their different forms. You most probably use the following criteria to identify them. (a)" The base form of a verb is the form that is used in a simple present tense sentence when the subject is plural. It is the form that is given first in a dictionary when a verb is explained. (b)" The -s form of a verb consists of the base form with „s‰ on the end. You use the form in a simple present tense sentence when the subject is singular. (c)" The past form of a verb is the form that is used in a simple past tense sentence. Some verbs consist of the base form with „ed‰ on the end while others involve a total change of the base form. (d)" The -ing form (also called „present participle form‰) consists of the base form with „ing‰ on the end. It is used in sentences in the continuous tenses. (e)" The -ed form (also called „past participle form‰) is used for perfect tenses. For some of the verbs, their –ed forms are the same as their past forms, but for the others, they are different.

Note: Other than tenses, the different verb forms have other uses. You will come to that in the subsequent topics of the module.

2.1.1 Regular and Irregular Verbs

In the list of sentences in the previous section, the verbs in sentences 1 to 10 are regular because you can predict the other forms if you know the base form of such a verb. Both the past form and the -ed participle form have „ed‰ at the end.

Examples: Base form walk like carry Past form walked liked carried -ed participle form walked liked carried

On the other hand, the verbs in 11 to 20 are irregular verbs. They differ from regular verbs in that you cannot predict their past form and/or -ed form from the base. You can distinguish three types of irregular verbs: (a)" Verbs in which all the three forms (the base, the past and the past participle) are identical, for example, cost – cost – cost. (b)" Verbs in which two of the three forms are identical, for example, come – came – come. (c)" Verbs in which all the three forms are different, for example, steal – stole – stolen.

Some verbs have both regular and irregular forms, for example, speed – speeded/sped – speeded/sped.

ACTIVITY 2.3

For each type of verb, can you provide more examples of your own? Does your dictionary provide the required information?

2.2 VERB FUNCTIONS

You have seen that verbs exist in different forms. Verbs can also be classified into different types based on their functions, that is, how they function in a sentence and their relationships with other elements of the sentence. In this section, you will learn about the different types of verbs.

2.2.1 Main and Auxiliary Verbs

ACTIVITY 2.4

Study the verbs in bold and in italics in the following sentences. What is the main difference in function between the two groups of verbs? 1. He has gone to the cinema. 2. I shall get better after the massage. 3. We did see him at the match. 4. Have you met him before? 5. I was waiting for him to come. 6. She can borrow the book from the library. 7. My father is working tonight. 8. Hassan will ring you tomorrow. 9. It may come this afternoon. 10. You ought to tell him the truth. 11. The food should taste nice. 12. She does not look nice in that dress. 13. You must remain silent throughout the journey. 14. He would appear sad to you but not to me. 15. The curry can turn sour easily.

The verbs in italics have a lexical meaning. They express: (a)" An action, for example, gone (go), see, met (meet), waiting (wait), ring, come; (b)" A state of existence, for example, remain, appear; (c)" A sensory perception, for example, taste, look; and (d)" A process of change, for example, turn, get.

These verbs are called main verbs (also lexical verbs). Main verbs carry a real meaning and are not dependent on another verb.

On the other hand, the verbs in bold (e.g. has, shall, did, have, was, can, is, will, may, ought to, should, does, must, would, can) have no lexical meaning but perform a grammar function. They are called auxiliary verbs. Auxiliary verbs occur before a main verb and qualify the meaning of the main verb. They help to add meaning to the main verb. Auxiliary verbs are also referred to as helping verbs.

In the following example, could and be are auxiliary verbs, and sleeping is the main verb. • Mr. James could be sleeping in the room.

Could adds the meaning of possibility to the meaning of the main verb, and be signals an ongoing process. The overall meaning is quite different from the sentence without the auxiliary verbs. • Mr. James sleeps in the room.

Auxiliary verbs consist of primary auxiliary verbs and modal auxiliary verbs (also called modal verbs). The figure below presents the two types of auxiliary verbs and their respective forms.

Figure 2.1: Auxiliary verbs

ACTIVITY 2.5 In each pair of sentences, one verb is in italics and the other in bold. Find out the main difference in function between the two verbs.

What can you conclude about the main verbs and the auxiliary verbs from this activity?

1. He does the work all by himself. Does he study every night?

2. She has four sisters. She has gone to bed.

3. I am a lecturer in the college. I am teaching Language Studies.

4. We can pineapples and rambutans for export. We can travel to Gua Musang by bus.

5. JoeÊs parents will him everything they possess. You will reach the station in time if you hurry.

6. They need three workers to finish the work. Need I attend the meeting tomorrow?

7. He wonÊt dare break the promise. The son dare not tell his father the truth.

8. I shall be sixteen next year. All lights must be switched off.

ACTIVITY 2.6 You probably realise that some verbs can function as main verbs as well as auxiliary verbs. In each pair of sentences above, the verbs in italics function as main verbs but the same verbs in bold function as auxiliary verbs.

Can you explain how you differentiate their functions? Provide some examples of your own.

" An auxiliary verb must occur before a main verb. As many as four auxiliary verbs can precede a main verb. Note that modal auxiliary verbs always precede primary auxiliary verbs that are present.

In the above example, the auxiliary verbs with the main verb make up the verb group of the sentence. A verb group may also consist of just the main verb. It is quite common to refer to the verb group as the verb of a sentence, or just the verb phrase. You will learn about verb phrases in Topic 8.

" An auxiliary verb can occur without a main verb in ellipsis. In ellipsis, words are omitted to avoid repetition because they are supplied by earlier context. Examples: 1. My sister can speak Japanese as well as she can. 2. „I must go.‰ – „I suppose you must.‰ 3. „Is he coming?‰ – „Yes, he is.‰

• Different verb forms are used with different types of auxiliary verbs (refer to Table 2.1).

Table 2.1: Verb Forms of Auxiliary Verbs Auxiliary Verb form Example Verb

Primary do + base form He does not make the basket. Auxiliaries Do they speak Japanese? I did sweep the floor.

have + -ed She has taken her lunch. participle Someone had broken the vase. The men have repaired the house. Having done the work, he left.

The pupils are resting in the room. be + -ing participle Ali was watching the show. The train will be arriving at 1.00 p.m. We have been working very hard.

be + -ed participle This book is written in old English. The meeting was cancelled. We will be invited to the party. The documentary is being shown. My precious ring has been stolen.

Modal You can go now. Auxiliaries modal + base form He might join the trip. I will do it immediately. She ought to forget the matter.

ACTIVITY 2.7

Identify the verbs in the following sentences and write them in the appropriate columns.

Verb Group No. SENTENCE Modal Primary Main Auxiliary Auxiliary Verb e.g. We shall sing in the concert. shall sing

1. The team has won the match again.

2. You should have become an actor.

3. The test seems very easy to me.

4. I am not happy about the results.

5. The accident was serious.

6. The food here smells nice.

7. The baby has been growing restless.

8. The man would be here anytime.

9. I dare not go out at night.

10. Our team will be playing tonight.

11. I am being optimistic about the issue.

12. No one could have been in the room.

13. The mad man was being taken away.

14. My mother may be cooking in the kitchen.

15. The money could have been kept here.

16. We need not come for the meeting.

Given below are some uses of auxiliary verbs in brief. For detailed information, refer to Collins COBUILD English Grammar.

(a) Primary Auxiliary Verbs

Auxiliary to do (do, does, did) You use auxiliary to do in negative statements, in questions, or for emphasis. Examples: 1. This does not sound right. 2. Did he make it to the final? 3. Oh, but we do have a plan.

Auxiliary to have (have, has, had, having) You use auxiliary have to form the perfect aspect. This aspect describes events or states taking place during a preceding period of time. It can be combined with present, past or future tense. Examples: 1. Hong has written to the authorities. 2. He had seen him crossing the road. 3. Peter will have completed his studies by then.

Auxiliary to be (be, been, being, is, am, are, was, were) You use auxiliary be to form the progressive aspect. This aspect describes an event or state of affairs which is in progress or continuing. It can be combined with the tense, which tells you whether the event or state of affairs takes place in the present, past or future. Examples: 1. Mary is playing the piano. 2. Joyce was cooking in the kitchen. 3. They will be leaving for further studies.

You also use auxiliary be in passive constructions. Examples: 1. The butter is kept in the fridge. 2. The fugitive was spotted in town. 3. She should be counselled by the teacher.

Note: You will learn more about the use of primary auxiliary verbs in tenses in Topic 3 and passives in Topic 4.

(b) Modal Auxiliary Verbs You use modal auxiliary verbs to perform a number of functions such as making requests, offers, or suggestions, or indicating your attitude towards what you are saying. Table 2.2 summarises the major uses of this type of verbs.

Table 2.2: Examples of Modal Auxiliary Verbs

Modal Function Example auxiliary Indicating ability can I can speak French. (present) could He could read when he was three. (past) Indicating could DonÊt touch it. It could break. possibility might John might show up anytime. may I may be wrong here. Indicating shall I shall see you tomorrow. certainty will The price of petrol will go up. should She should do well in the exam. ought to He ought to recover very soon. must That must be Jenny. She promised to come. Indicating need You need to earn at least RM2,000 a month. necessity All you need to do is complete the form. Indicating must You must come on time. obligation/duty should Every pupil should buy the book. Indicating should You should work harder. advisability ought to You ought to see a doctor. Giving/Asking may Applications may be made online. permission can You can borrow my car. May I go now? Can I come in? Making requests can Can you lend me your bicycle? could Could you close the door? will Will you please open the window? would Would you mind handing me that book? Making offers can Can I help? could Could I give you a lift? may May I get you a cup of coffee?

Making could You could ask Mary for help. suggestions should I think we should stop here. might You might try the cheesecake. ought to He ought to use a different approach. shall Shall we go for a swim? (question) Indicating past used to I used to smoke heavily. habit or a past This place used to have a fountain. state Stating intention/ will I will work harder this time. Willingness (with „I‰ or We will try our best. „we‰) Stating prediction will It will rain this evening. would She would feel better if she went out. Indicating cannot Children cannot bathe in this pool. prohibition will not Unless you finish the work, you wonÊt be leaving from here. shall not Persons under 18 years of age shall not be employed in night work. (formal) must not You must not say a word to him.

2.2.2 Extensive and Intensive Verbs

You have seen in Section 2.2.1 that a main verb may indicate the following: (a)" An action; (b)" A state of existence; (c)" A sensory perception; and (d)" A process of change.

The main verbs that indicate the doing of an action are extensive verbs. These verbs are not confined to physical actions only (e.g. play, kick, run). They include actions that express mental processes (e.g. think, know), and emotions, attitudes or desires (e.g. love, want). Extensive verbs very often refer to a volitional activity, that is, an action performed intentionally by an agent or „doer‰ as in the following example: • My wife bought some biscuits and condensed milk.

However, you also use extensive verbs to express events that occur without the volition of an agent, as in the following examples: • The team comprised twelve players. • The machine moves in a circular direction.

In the above examples, the subjects (underlined) do not perform the activity by their will.

The main verbs that indicate a state, sensory perception and process of change are intensive verbs (also copular verbs).

You use an intensive verb to associate an attribute with the subject of a sentence. The subject, as usual, comes first and the attribute, which is usually expressed by a complement, comes after the verb. For example, in the sentence:

(Adjective Phrase) • John is very clever. (subject) (complement)

„John‰ is the subject, and „very clever‰ is the complement that specifies the attribute that is associated with the subject. The intensive verb be links the complement to the subject. Therefore, intensive verbs are also referred to as link verbs or linking verbs.

In the above sentence, the complement is an adjective phrase. The complement can also be a noun phrase, as in the following sentence:

(Noun Phrase) • He has become a doctor. (subject) (complement)

Some intensive verbs are also used to locate the subject of a sentence in time or space. Time and space are expressed by adverbials, as the following sentences illustrate: • My mother stayed in bed. (subject) (adverbial) • The next intake will be in April. (subject) (adverbial)

Note: You will learn more about adjective phrases and noun phrases in Topic 8, and complements and adverbials in Topic 9.

Check how your dictionary indicates these types of verbs.

ACTIVITY 2.8

Study each pair of sentences with the same main verb. What conclusion can you make about the main verb in each pair of sentences?

1. You appear very moody and sad today. Elma will appear at the charity concert tonight.

2. My mother has grown thinner and healthier. My mother has grown a durian tree in the backyard.

3. Your prophecy has come true. All the visitors have come from Indonesia.

4. The food tastes very nice. He tastes the food before serving it.

5. He canÊt go wrong with my guidance. I will go to Russia next week.

6. I felt very sad about the whole matter. The blind man felt his way into the house.

Several verbs can function as either an intensive verb or an extensive verb. In each pair of sentences above, the main verb in the first sentence functions as an intensive verb. In the second sentence, the main verb functions as an extensive verb.

ACTIVITY 2.9

Study the sentences below and underline all the main verbs. Label the main verbs as extensive (ext) or intensive (intens) verbs.

1. The boys rushed out of the classroom immediately. 2. This bag looks very familiar to me. 3. We have climbed the mountain twice. 4. She and Mary remain the best of friends. 5. He has been thinking very hard about the problem. 6. We should all believe in God. 7. The noises in the attic sound ominous to me. 8. She fell ill on her return from her overseas trip. 9. The milk will definitely turn bad overnight. 10. The old woman walked slowly into the house. 11. The old man stays healthy with proper diet and regular exercise. 12. We kept awake the whole night.

ACTIVITY 2.10

Explain what is wrong with the sentences below. Study the three verbs in bold. 1. The committee appointed 2. They kicked 3. The bottle contains

2.2.3 Transitive and Intransitive Verbs

All the three verbs are made up of extensive verbs. The meaning of each verb is incomplete because a direct object is missing. The verb is a transitive verb and requires a direct object, as in the following examples: 1. The committee appointed a new secretary. 2. They kicked the ball. 3. The bottle contains acid.

In the above examples, the direct objects are noun phrases, that is, a new secretary, the ball and acid. In contemporary grammar, a noun phrase may be a single word which is a noun or pronoun.

An extensive verb which cannot take a direct object is an intransitive verb. Given below are examples of intransitive verbs. 1. The woman screamed. 2. Helen is coming. 3. Your driving licence has expired.

In the above sentences, the intransitive verbs can stand on their own without a direct object. However, intransitive verbs may be followed by an adverb phrase or a prepositional phrase, as in the following examples.

1. The woman screamed loudly. (adverb phrase)

2. Helen is coming in the evening. (prepositional phrase)

Note: You will learn more about adverb phrases and prepositional phrases in Topic 8.

ACTIVITY 2.11

Study the verb groups in each pair of sentences below. What can you say about them?

1. He has rung the bell. The bell has rung.

2. She can read English books. She can read very well.

3. The driver stopped the car. The car stopped in the middle of the road.

4. My father runs a restaurant. The horse runs at great speed.

5. The gift reflected our sincerity. She reflected for a moment.

6. I could manage my family business. I could manage on my own.

7. The government is studying the proposal. My friend is studying at a college.

8. The train drew into the station. She drew this portrait.

Some verbs can be transitive as well as intransitive. The verbs from sentences 1 to 4 have the same meaning when used transitively or intransitively. The verbs from sentence 5 to 8 have different meanings when used transitively or intransitively.

ACTIVITY 2.12

How does your dictionary indicate these types of verbs?

ACTIVITY 2.13

allow, blame, enter, take, borrow, meet, know, sneeze, omit, recommend

Categorise the verbs above into the following catagories: (a) Transitive verbs (b)" Intransitive verbs (c)" Transitive and Intransitive verbs

For each verb categorised as transitive or intransitive, construct a sentence to show how it is used.

For each verb categorised as transitive and intransitive, construct two sentences (one transitive and the other intransitive) to show how it is used.

No Transitive Intransitive e.g. They wanted our help. -

He opened the door. The door opened suddenly.

Note: You will learn more about transitive verbs in Topic 9.

2.2.4 Finite and Non-finite Verbs

ACTIVITY 2.14 Below are two sets of sentences, showing how the main verb „speak‰ is used in different structures.

In Set A, the verb is used as a finite verb and in Set B, it is used as a non-finite verb.

Study the two sets of sentences carefully and explain how the two types of verbs differ from each other.

Set A: Finite Verb Set B: Non-finite Verb She speaks English fluently. To speak like that is impolite.

We spoke to the manager yesterday. The teacher makes her pupils speak English in class. The pupils are speaking English in class. I saw him speaking to the boss. I had spoken to the boss about the problem. The English language spoken by the pupils is perfect. He can speak many languages.

In Set A, the verb groups consist of finite verbs because they indicate tense (e.g. „spoke‰ in the simple past tense). They agree in number with the subject of the sentence (e.g. „speaks‰ agrees with „she‰). They are also used with modal auxiliary verbs to indicate modality (e.g. „can‰ for ability). The structure of a finite verb group is made up of optional auxiliary verbs and a main verb as in the following examples:

1. He smokes heavily. (main verb) 2. He smoked heavily. (main verb) 3. He is smoking heavily. (be + main verb) 4. He has smoked heavily. (have + main verb) 5. He has been smoking heavily. (have + be + main verb) 6. He must have been smoking heavily. (modal + have + be + main verb)

The verb groups in Set B consist of non-finite verbs because they do not indicate tense. They do not change their form at all with the change in the tense of the sentences.

• She wants to clean the house. She wanted to clean the house.

With the change in tense of the sentence, the form of non-finite verb „to clean‰ remains unchanged.

The structure of a non-finite verb group is made up of the following verb forms:

(a) Infinitive • bare infinitive (base form) e.g. She could feel the whole house shake violently. • „to‰ – infinitive (to + base form) e.g. The fans rushed forward to shake hands with their idol.

(b) Participle • -ing participle e.g. The bomb exploded, shaking the surrounding areas.

• -ed participle e.g. Shaken by the tremor, the buildings are no longer safe to live in.

Non-finite verbs also include other variations of infinitive and participle forms as follows: 1. It is much better for us to be staying at home. (present continuous infinitive) 2. Only two are known to have escaped detection. (perfect infinitive) 3. He seems to have been sleeping all day. (perfect continuous infinitive)

4. I donÊt like to be blamed for the mistakes. (passive infinitive) 5. The house seems to have been destroyed. (perfect passive infinitive) 6. Having done the work, he left the office. (perfect participle) 7. You can avoid being interviewed by the press. (passive participle) 8. Having been declared a Malaysian idol, he accepted the offer from a recording company. (perfect passive participle)

The non-finite verb groups may be extensive or intensive, and transitive or intransitive, just like the finite verb groups.

Figure 2.2: Finite and non-finite verb groups

ACTIVITY 2.15

Identify the finite and non-finite verb groups in the following sentences. Write F for finite verb group and NF for non-finite verb group.

1. Ahmad has gone to visit his grandfather in Penang. 2. The police should have recovered the money stolen by the thieves. 3. My parents will be hosting a dinner to celebrate their 30th anniversary. 4. She especially likes the food served in this restaurant. 5. The hunter fired a shot, killing the tiger instantly. 6. The Third World countries are beginning to export to the West. 7. The Government ought to have helped the poor to be self-reliant. 8. As responsible citizens, we must help keep public toilets clean. 9. She felt herself being followed by some strangers.

10. They chased away the young man, not knowing that he was their own son. 11. Sam, having forgotten his fear, had become bored and restless. 12. Waiting for the reply is all we can do now. 13. Work hard if you wish to succeed in life. 14. Being curious, he decided to go out of the house to investigate. 15. Concerned about the safety of his child, the millionaire paid the ransom. 16. Feeling a bit out of place, the guest excused herself and left.

• The five basic forms of an English verb are the base form, -s form, past form, - ing form and -ed form. The English verb forms may be regular or irregular depending on how their past and -ed forms are formed from the base form. Some verbs have both regular and irregular forms.

• In terms of function, verbs may be classified as main verbs or auxiliary verb. A main verb has lexical meaning but an auxiliary verb does not. There are two major types of auxiliary verbs: primary and modal.

• Verbs may function as extensive or intensive verbs. An extensive verb expresses action, both physical and mental. An intensive verb describes a state, a sensory perception, or a process.

• Verbs can be transitive, intransitive or both. A transitive verb requires a direct object to complete the sentence. An intransitive verb does not require a direct object but may be followed by an adverbial.

• A verb group may be finite or non-finite. A finite verb group has tense and agrees in number with the subject of a sentence. The structure of a finite verb group consists of an optional auxiliary verb and main verb. A non-finite verb has no tense and does not agree in number with the subject. Its main forms are bare infinitive, „to‰-infinitive, -ing participle and -ed participle.

Auxiliary verb Main verb Extensive verb Non-finite verb Finite verb Verb Intensive verb Verb group

„In terms of form, most verbs are either regular or irregular, while some are both regular and irregular.‰

Explain what you understand from the above statement. Provide examples of relevant verb forms to illustrate your points.

1." Identify the verb groups in the sentences below and label them as Finite (F) or Non-finite (NF).

2." For each verb group labelled, state whether it is extensive (ext) or intensive (intens).

3." For each extensive verb, state whether it is transitive (T) or intransitive (I). (a)" I saw the boy run across the road. (b)" The teacher found him sleeping in the canteen. (c)" Teaching English to adults appears to be a lucrative business. (d)" It was the first time we heard him talk about his past. (e)" You should have done something to make the victim feel comfortable. (f)" I think the old man is afraid to go to the hospital. (g)" The woman making the bogus collections seemed to have disappeared. (h)" Medicine has always been the most popular course chosen by SPM school leavers applying for overseas scholarships.

Biber, D., Conrad, S. & Leech, G. (2002). Longman student grammar of spoken and written English. Harlow, Essex: Pearson Education Limited.

Leech, G. & Svatvik, J. (1975). A communicative grammar of English. London, England: Longman.

Quirk, R. & Greenbaum, S. (1990). A studentÊs grammar of the English language. Harlow, Essex: Longman

Sinclair, J. (ed.) (1991). Collins COBUILD studentÊs grammar. London, England: HarperCollins.

Sinclair, J. (ed.) (1993). Collins COBUILD English grammar. London, England: HarperCollins.

 TTooppiicc Tenses

LEARNING OUTCOMES

By the end of this topic, you should be able to: 1." Identify different forms of finite verb groups used to indicate tenses;

2." Explain the use of different finite verb groups in tenses; 3." Identify the functions of different tenses;

4." Use different tenses correctly and appropriately in context; and 5." Explain the use of different tenses in context.

" INTRODUCTION

In Topic 2, you have learned that different forms of the main verbs (verb forms) are combined with different auxiliary verbs to make up the finite verb groups in sentences. One powerful use of these finite verb groups is that they signal TENSE and ASPECT. Tense refers to the time of an action or event, that is, whether it exists now, existed in the past or is likely to exist in the future. This reference to time gives rise to three major tenses: present, past and future.* Aspect refers to the nature of the action or event described by the verb, that is, whether it is indefinite (simple aspect), completed (perfect aspect) or still continuing (continuous/progressive aspect). The perfect aspect is also combined with the continuous aspect to form the perfect continuous aspect. The interaction of tense and aspect results in the formation of 12 tenses. Through various language awareness activities, this module will sensitise you to the forms and functions of the 12 tenses. However, this topic will only focus on tenses in the active voice. Tenses in the passive voice will be covered in Topic 4.

*Some contemporary grammarians argue that there is no future tense, only a present and a past tense. Refer to Stern (2000) for a brief discussion of this issue.

3.1 TENSES: FORMS

To be able to use tenses correctly, you need to know what a tense looks like or more specifically the form of the finite verb group that indicates a particular tense.

ACTIVITY 3.1

Given below are sentences written in 12 different tenses. (a) Using your prior knowledge about tenses, categorise the sentences according to their respective tenses. (b) Underline the finite verb group in each sentence and identify the form of verb group for each tense.

1. By 10 tomorrow, I shall have been travelling for 12 hours. 2. He likes black coffee. 3. These children were very naughty. 4. Someone has stolen my mobile phone. 5. I am leaving for Australia to attend university. 6. He ate his breakfast at seven. 7. The pupils are reading in the library. 8. I was working in the garden the whole morning. 9. We have all finished the course work. 10. They were having their dinner at 8pm. 11. We shall be visiting the school. 12. The teachers had told us the news. 13. Siti had been in the class for only ten minutes. 14. My mother has been to London. 15. The students will be sitting for the exam in December. 16. I have been waiting for you since yesterday. 17. The lecturers have been working very hard. 18. The robbers had been hiding in the jungle.

19. I shall inform you of the results as soon as possible. 20. They appear very excited. 21. Peter is the candidate for the post. 22. My neighbour will help you with the cleaning. 23. He will have forgotten everything by Tuesday. 24. No one will be using the hall this week. 25. I am a teacher in the school. 26. She is preparing dinner. 27. The book was on the table just now. 28. The houses are beautiful.

Example:

Tenses Sentences Finite Verb Group

Simple " They appear very excited. base form P " He likes black coffee. -s form r e" Peter is the candidate for the post. is/am/are

e" I am a teacher in the school. n" The houses are beautiful. t

After doing Activity 3.1, you should have realised that different forms of verb groups are used in different tenses. For example, to indicate the simple present tense, you should use the base form or the -s form of the main verb. You also use is, am, or are when the verb to be is used as the main verb. The following grids summarise the various forms of the finite verb groups used to indicate different tenses. Compare the information in the table with your answers.

The grids only provide the positive forms of the finite verb groups. Can you give the negative and question/interrogative forms?

You can convert the positive statements into negative statements and yes/no questions first to identify the forms of the finite verb groups. Are the negative and the question forms the same as the positive forms?

(a) Present Tenses

No. Tense Positive Negative Question 1. Simple base form do/does + not + Do/Does + base Present -s form base form form

is/am/are is/am/are + not Is/am/are 2. Present Is/am/are + -ing Continuous participle 3. Present have/has + -ed Perfect participle 4. Present have/has + been + Perfect -ed participle Continuous

(b) Past Tenses

No. Tense Positive Negative Question 5. Simple Past past form was/were 6. Past was/were + -ing Continuous participle 7. Past Perfect had + -ed participle 8. Past Perfect had + been + -ing Continuous participle

No. Tense Positive Negative Question 9. Simple will/shall + base Future form 10. Future will/shall + be + Continuous -ing participle 11. Future will/shall + have + perfect -ed participle

12 Future will/shall + have + Perfect been + -ing Continuous participle

For present tenses, you see that the negative and question forms are the same as the positive forms in all tenses except the Simple Present, which requires the use of auxiliary to do as in the following examples. • Negative: They do not (donÊt) appear very excited. (do + base form) He does not (doesnÊt) like black coffee. (does + base form) • Question: Do they appear very excited? (do + base form) Does he like black coffee? (does + base form)

However, when the verb to be is used as the main verb, there is no need to use the auxiliary to do, as in the following examples. • Negative: Peter is not (isnÊt) the candidate for the post. (is) I am not a teacher in this school. (am) The houses are not (arenÊt) beautiful. (are) • Question: Is Peter the candidate for the post? (is) Am I a teacher in this school? (am) Are the houses beautiful? (are)

For past tenses, the negative and question forms are the same as the positive forms in three tenses but not in the Simple Past, which requires the use of auxiliary to do as in the following examples. • Negative: He did not (didnÊt) take his breakfast at seven. (did + base form) • Question: Did he eat his breakfast at seven? (did + base form)

Again, when the verb to be is used as the main verb, there is no need to use the auxiliary to do, as in the following examples. • Negative: These children were not (werenÊt) very naughty. (were) The book was not (wasnÊt) on the table. (was) • Question: Were these children very naughty? (were) Was the book on the table? (was)

For all future tenses, the positive, negative and question forms are the same. The verb groups of all the three forms are made up of the following: • Modal will/shall* + base form (Simple Future) • Modal will/shall* + be + -ing participle (Future Continuous)

• Modal will/shall* + have + -ed participle (Future Perfect) • Modal will/shall* + have + been + -ing participle (Future Perfect Continuous)

„Shall‰ is commonly used with first person pronouns „I‰ and „we‰. However, its usage is becoming less common nowadays and is often replaced by „will‰ to indicate future. This is especially so in questions. In questions, „shall‰ is used to give offers or suggestions, while „will‰ is used to indicate future as in the following examples. • Offers/Suggestions: Shall I write it down for you? Shall we go? • Future: Will I see you again? Will we have time later?

So far, you have examined the forms of finite verb groups used in positive statements, negative statements and yes/no questions in different tenses. There is another type of questions that require your attention – the „wh-‰ question form:

how what when whom whose who why which where

The forms of finite verb groups used in „wh-‰ questions are the same as those used in yes/no questions in all the tenses except in the Simple Present and the Simple Past. In the Simple Present tense, when the „wh-‰ word is the subject, or when it forms part of the subject, you use the base form or the -s form in the finite verb group. Similarly, in the Simple Past Tense, you use the past form in the finite verb group. There is no need to use the auxiliary to do.

Examples: Simple Present Tense: Who cycles to office every day? (-s form) (subject) How many students understand this? (Base form) (part of subject) Simple Past Tense: Who invited you? (Past form) (subject)

ACTIVITY 3.2

1." Underline the finite verb groups in the following sentences. 2." Identify the tense of each sentence. For sentences with more than one tense, indicate the tenses according to their order.

No. Sentence Tense 1. The Robinsons will have reached their destination by midnight. 2. While Mr. Hassan was giving a speech, some boys were making funny noises at the back. 3. My mother will be leaving for Indonesia soon. 4. All the workers are at the meeting to voice their grievances. 5. Why arenÊt they doing the work? 6. When he came, everyone had already left for the station. 7. IÊm meeting the visitors at the lobby later. 8. The girls have never complained about the work. 9. All the pupils will be at the hall at 10am. 10. The college called off the concert because of the examinations. 11. He has forgotten about our plan to go on a picnic this weekend. 12. We have not been seeing each other for quite some time. 13. I have no idea how he manages his financial problems. 14. She would not have done this on her own. 15. HavenÊt you been to this town before? 16. Where shall we go this coming holiday? 17. The class will have started when you reach the school. 18. He was tired because he had been working since 8am. 19. By next year, my father will have worked in this firm for 30 years. 20. With only half pay, he has difficulty in making ends meet. 21. I shall only tell you the truth after I have met the manager. 22. No one is above the law in this country.

3.2 TENSES: FUNCTIONS

To be able to use tenses correctly, knowing the forms of verb groups of different tenses is not enough. You need to know what these tenses do – their functions. In this section, you will examine the functions of the present, past and future tenses separately.

To illustrate the different functions of tenses, some grammar books use the timeline diagram as follows:

The horizontal line represents the line of time with the vertical line indicating the time „now‰ or „at the moment of speaking‰. The part to the left of the vertical line represents „past time‰ while the one to the right represents „the future time‰.

ACTIVITY 3.3 The following section explains the different functions of tenses. Whenever necessary, timeline diagrams will be used to clarify the functions.

For each function, can you provide an example of your own?

3.2.1 Present Tenses

The following are the four present tense forms in English: (a) Simple Present

No. Function Example Your Example 1. To express a general truth or Water freezes at 00 C. fact 2. To express a habit or He reads for at least an habitual action hour a day. 3. To indicate a planned future The express bus leaves at event, normally in a 10am tomorrow. timetable or programme

(b) Present Continuous

No. Function Example Your Example 1. To talk about an action or My mother is cooking in the state that is happening at kitchen. (You can see her the moment of speaking there.)

2. To talk about a temporary I am studying psychology at action or situation in the a local college. present 3. To talk about a changing The world is becoming situation or trend in the smaller. present 4. To talk about a future We are leaving by bus event which arises from a tonight. (WeÊve bought our present arrangement or tickets.) plan

No. Function Example Your Example 1. To talk about an action I have eaten my lunch. (IÊm or event that took place full now.) in the past but whose results are still present 2. To talk about an action They have worked here for or event that began in the two years. past and continues to the present time (with They have worked here „since‰ or „for‰) since 2004.

(d) Present Perfect Continuous

No. Function Example Your Example 1. To talk about an action or It has been raining. (The event that happened in streets are still wet.) the recent past but whose results are still present 2. To talk about an action or They have been studying event that began in the hard for the coming exam. past and continues to the present time

You often use the Simple Present Tense to talk about permanent situations or things that happen repeatedly or all the time, while the Present Continuous Tense is used to talk about temporary situations that have a definite duration.

Example: Jane works for an insurance company but she isnÊt working today.

In the above example, the Simple Present Tense indicates that „working for an insurance company‰ is a permanent situation for Jane, but „not working‰ is seen as a temporary state that has a definite time limit, that is, she is most probably on leave and is expected to continue working after her leave.

• When you use the Present Continuous Tense to refer to planned future events, the plan must involve human beings. You cannot say the following: 1. It is raining tomorrow. 2. The birds are building their nests next month.

However, with domestic pets which many people consider to have human qualities, you can use the Present Continuous Tense to indicate the future.

Example: My dog is having puppies next week.

• You do not use the Present Perfect with words that refer to a completely finished period of time, like yesterday, last week, three years ago, in 1978, etc. This is because the Present Perfect Tense focuses on the present. Though it refers to past completed actions or events, you want to emphasise that the results are still present NOW.

Example:

In the above example, the tense implies that Aminah read the book some time in the past and now she knows its content.

• When you use the Present Perfect Tense with „since‰ or „for‰, there is not much difference in meaning between this tense and the Present Perfect Continuous Tense. Both indicate that the action extends from the past to the present.

Examples: 1. Aminah has read the book for a week. Aminah has read the book since Monday.

2. Aminah has been reading the book for a week. Aminah has been reading the book since Monday.

The wavy line for the Present Perfect Continuous Tense merely emphasises the duration of the activity. Like the Present Perfect Tense with „since‰ or „for‰, the use of Present Perfect Continuous Tense shows that the activity is still going on.

• Depending on the context, the Present Perfect Continuous Tense might also indicate that the activity has ended at the moment of speaking, but the result is still clear, as in the following example:

Example: It has been raining. The streets are still wet.

• You do not use the Present Perfect Continuous when you say how much or how many. Instead, you should use the Present Perfect Tense.

Examples: I have been calling the hotline at least twenty times today.(wrong) I have called the hotline at least twenty times today.(correct)

3.2.2 Past Tenses

The following are the four past tense forms in English: (a) Simple Past

No. Function Example Your Example 1. To express an action that began I watched an and ended at a particular time interesting show. in the past

(b) Past Continuous

No. Function Example Your Example 1. To express an action that was Ali was watching in progress at one particular television at eight time in the past last night. 2. To express an action that was They were playing in progress over a period of football the whole time in the past morning yesterday.

No. Function Example Your Example 1. To indicate that an action was Fred had taken his completed before a particular breakfast at seven in time in the past the morning. 2. To talk about an action that He had taught English began at one particular time in for 30 years. the past and continued up to another point of past time He had taught English (with „since‰ or „for‰) since 1970.

(d) Past Perfect Continuous

No. Function Example Your Example 1. To talk about an action that He had been teaching began at one particular time in English throughout his the past and continued up to career. another point of past time

You use the Present Perfect Tense if you are thinking about the past and present together. If you are only referring to an action or event that happened at one particular time in the past, you use the Simple Past Tense.

Example: He hurt his leg last Sunday.

• You can use the Past Continuous Tense together with the Simple Past Tense to describe two contrasting actions or events.

Example: Andy was making some coffee when the guests arrived.

In this case, the coffee-making began before the guests arrived and might go on or stop after they arrived.

However, in the following example in which both the events are in the Simple Past Tense, it implies that Andy began to make the coffee after the guests arrived.

Example: Andy made some coffee when the guests arrived.

• If you wish to say that two events were in progress simultaneously in the past time, you can use the Past continuous Tense for both the events.

Example: Some students were talking when the teacher was writing on the board.

• The Past Perfect Tense is sometimes called the Past in the Past. You can use the tense to refer to actions or states in a time before a point of time which is already in the past time.

For instance, if you are speaking about yesterday, then everything that happened before yesterday can be seen as happening in the time before the past time you are thinking about.

Example: The prefects had decorated the hall yesterday.

In the above example, the use of the Past Perfect Tense implies that the prefects decorated the hall before yesterday.

• The main purpose of the Past Perfect Tense is to put events into a chronological order and to make it clear which event occurred first. The following examples illustrate this point.

Examples: 1. Mariam came at 5pm but Pak Hassan had closed the store. 2. The elephant had eaten all the hay, so we fed it oats for a week.

In sentence (1), the act of closing the store took place before Mariam came to the store. In sentence (2), the eating of the hay preceded the eating of the oats.

• The use of Past Perfect Tense is especially significant in the following context.

Edwin took his bath when he did his homework.

The sentence above does not sound logical as it implies that both the activities, taking bath and doing homework, occurred at the same time to rectify this, you may put the event that happened first in the Past Perfect Tense.

Examples: 1. Edwin had taken his bath when he did his homework 2. Edwin took his bath when he had done his homework.

• With „since‰ or „for‰, the Past Perfect Tense refers to an action or event that extended from one point of time in the past to another point of past time. This is different from the Present Perfect Tense with „since‰ or ‰for‰, which refers to the past action or event that continues up to the present time.

Examples: 1. Mr Albert has lived in Malaysia for 20 years. 2. Mary had lived in Malaysia for 15 years.

Sentence (1) implies that Mr Albert began his life in Malaysia 20 years ago and he is still in Malaysia. Sentence (2) implies that Mary no longer lives In Malaysia.

• The Past Perfect Continuous Tense is similar to the Present Perfect Continuous Tense in that both tenses focus on the duration of the actions or events. However, the major difference is that the Past Perfect Continuous refers to past actions or events that extended from one point in the past to another point in the past. The Present Perfect Continuous refers to actions or events that extended from a point in the past to NOW.

Examples: 1. Asiah has been working here since 2000. 2. Ellina had been working here since 2000.

3.2.3 Future Tenses

(a) Simple Future

No. Function Example Your Example 1. To talk about an action or Karen will start work event that will happen in the next week. future 2. To predict a future action or The unemployment rate event will double next year.

(b) Future Continuous

No. Function Example Your Example 1. To talk about an action or (You canÊt meet Mr event that is in progress at a Velu at 10am particular moment in the tomorrow.) He will be future attending a meeting. 2. To express a future action or The team will be having event that is in progress over their practice from 4pm a specific period of time to 6pm tomorrow. 3. To indicate that an action or I will be phoning my event will happen as a result mother tonight. (I of a routine normally call her on Fridays.)

Function Example Your Example To talk about an action or They will have done the event that will be completed work by next Monday. by a specific time in the future

(d) Future Perfect Continuous

Function Example Your Example To talk about an action or By next year, Mrs Tan event that will be completed will have been teaching by a specific time in the future for 35 years. with emphasis on the duration

The use of the Simple Future Tense merely gives information about the future. It is not related to any present plan or arrangement, unlike some other tenses which are used to talk about the future (e.g. Simple Present, Present Continuous and Future continuous). Compare: 1. I will leave for K.L. on the 10th. (information about the future) 2. I leave for K.L. on the 10th. (an item in my travel plan) 3. I am leaving for K.L. on the 10th. (arrangements have been made) 4. I will be leaving for K.L. on the 10th. (part of my travel routine)

• When you use the Simple Future Tense to make predictions, the predictions are based on what you know, or believe, or have calculated. They are not based on outside evidence as in the case of using the „going to‰ form to indicate the future.

Example: 1. ItÊll probably rain. It usually rains in the evening. (the speakerÊs knowledge of the weather conditions) 2. Look at those dark clouds. ItÊs going to rain. (outside evidence – the dark clouds. NOT – It will rain.).

• The Future Continuous emphasises the duration of an action or event.

Example 1. The crowd will be cheering when the pop star arrives. (The crowd will start cheering before the pop star arrives and will probably continue to do so after her arrival.)

Compare: The crowd will cheer when the pop star arrives. (The pop star will arrive and then the crowd will cheer.)

• You use the Future Perfect Tense if you want to focus on the result of an action, but you use the Future Perfect Continuous Tense if you want to focus on the action going on.

Compare: 1. IÊll have written the report by tonight, so itÊll be on your desk tomorrow morning. 2. This report is taking ages. IÊll have been writing it for a week by the time I finish.

• The use of the Future Prefect Continuous Tense may indicate that the action extends from a point of time in the future to another point of future time as in (1). It may also indicate that the actions began before NOW and will continue to another point of future time as in (2).

Examples: 1." By the time Sue gets here at 10am, Sharon will have been waiting for an hour.

2. I will have been working in the company for 35 years by the time I retire next year.

3.3 DYNAMIC AND STATIVE VERBS

ACTIVITY 3.4

There are 12 errors in tenses in the following dialogue. Identify and explain the errors. Provide the correct forms. Mr Ong : IÊm noticing a crack at the roof. ItÊs appearing to be quite big. IÊm thinking we should get somebody to repair it. Mrs Ong : But this isnÊt our house. We should get the landlord to carry out the repairs. Mr Ong : IÊm believing that our landlord is a very understanding person. LetÊs repair the crack first and then claim the money from him later. Mrs Ong : Are you thinking heÊll be trusting us? What happens if heÊs refusing to pay us back the money for the repairs. Mr Ong : Come on. He is owning this house and he is understanding what he has to do. Moreover, I have been"knowing him as a friend for years. Mrs. Ong : IÊm feeling we ought to discuss with him before we get someone to repair the roof. Mr Ong : Of course, IÊll do that but IÊm wanting to estimate the cost of repair first.

" Activity 3.4 suggests that you do not use some verbs in the continuous tenses. You call these verbs Stative Verbs, as opposed to Dynamic Verbs, which can be used in the continuous tenses. For example, „notice‰ is a stative verb. It is therefore wrong to say: IÊm noticing a crack at the roof. (Wrong)

Therefore, the appropriate tense to use here is the Simple Present Tense, not the Present Continuous Tense, even though you are referring to an action at the moment of speaking. I notice a crack at the roof. (Correct)

• Some verbs can be stative in one meaning but dynamic in another. For example, „appear‰ as used in the above dialogue means „seem‰ and is a stative verb. The correct tense used is the Simple Present Tense. The correct sentence is: It appears to be quite big.

However, „appear‰ in the following sentence means „take part in a television programme‰ is a dynamic verb. It can be used in the continuous tense as in the following example: She is appearing on TV tonight.

• Here is the list of verbs which are not usually used in continuous tenses.

admire despise imagine need satisfy adore detest impress notice see agree dislike include owe seem appear doubt intend own sound be envy know please smell believe exist lack possess suppose belong fit last prefer taste concern forget like realise think consist guess love recognise trust contain hate matter refuse understand deserve have mean remember want desire hear mind resemble wish

Find out how you can get this type of information from your dictionary. Some of the verbs above may be used as dynamic verbs with a different meaning. Identify them with the help of your dictionary.

• Modern linguists argue that verbs in English have only two tenses marked on them, that is, present and past. However, in this topic, future tenses are included in line with the grammar component of the Primary School English Syllabus (2002).

• The present tenses are Simple Present, Present Continuous, Present Perfect and Present Perfect Continuous. The past tenses are Simple Past, Past Continuous, Past Perfect and Past Perfect Continuous. The Future tenses are Simple Future, Future Continuous, Future Perfect and Future Perfect Continuous.

• You can recognise the different tenses based on the forms of the finite verb groups. Different tenses perform different functions in relation to time and aspect.

• Some verbs cannot be used in continuous tenses and they are called Stative Verbs. Verbs that can be used in continuous tenses are called Dynamic Verbs. Certain verbs may be stative in one meaning but dynamic in another.

Aspect Perfect continuous Continuous aspect Simple aspect Dynamic verbs Stative verbs Perfect aspect Tense

68  TOPIC 3 TENSES

Complete each text with the verb groups in their correct tenses using the verbs in the brackets. For some verbs, more than one tense is possible.

1. Trishaw riders in big towns like Kuala Lumpur and Petaling Jaya no longer earn a good living nowadays. Public transport in these places (be) now very efficient and commuters (find) it very convenient to use it instead of trishaws. Only tourists (consider) the trishaws as a novelty. The future of the trishaw riders (be) indeed very bleak and uncertain.

2. Beng and Muthu are good friends. They (know) each other since childhood. They (go) to the same schools and (graduate) from the same university in 1996. When they (start) working after graduation, they (get) the same job in the same company. They (work) together in the company since then. Beng (hope) that their friendship (last) forever.

3. In the old days, every harvest (end) with a festival to honour the Spirit of the Rice. The festivals (be) almost religious in nature, but that (not stop) the fun-loving farmers from enjoying themselves. In those days, farmers (have) plenty of time to hold such festivals. However, many modern farmers today still (hold) them to celebrate their harvests.

4. I (wait) for an hour already but Peter (not come) yet. I (not know) what (happen) to him. Yesterday, he (ask) me to be here at 12 oÊclock. But when I (arrive) just now, he (not be) here. I think I should call his house to find out why he is still not around.

5. When I (see) her yesterday, she (lie) on her bed. She (groan) in pain because she (have) a terrible toothache. Though she (go) to see the dentist earlier, her condition (not improve).

6. As Hassan (walk) to town last Sunday, he (witness) a fatal hit-and-run accident. A red car (knock) down an old man while he (cross) the road. The driver (not stop) his car but (speed) away. While the victim (lie) unconscious on the ground, he (bleed) profusely. Hassan quickly (call) the hospital. Unfortunately, when the ambulance (arrive), the man (pass) away.

7. David and Henry were late for school this morning. The bell (ring) when they (reach) the school. All their classmates (enter) the class. Worst still, their English teacher (start) teaching already.

8. When we (come) home last night, we (know) at once that something (happen). The house (be) in a mess. We (suspect) that someone (break) into the house. We quickly (check) our valuables in the bedroom. To our dismay, the burglar (steal) all of them.

9. I (be) sorry I canÊt help you. I (type) the invitation cards for the college annual party. So far, I (type) 100 cards but there (be) still a lot more to be done. I (think) I (finish) typing the cards tomorrow.

10. When Mak Minah came home, she (discover) that her children (not study). They (play) hide-and-seek in the house. She (know) that because they (break) some cups and glasses. The broken pieces (be) still on the floor.

11. Ladies and gentleman, welcome to the Bandung Tour. Before you (take) your rest, allow me to tell you our programme for tomorrow. Breakfast, as usual, (be) from 7am to 8am. Then, at 8.30am, the coach (drive) you to Lake Ansar. You (visit) the place for about 2 hours. Then we (go) to the Cini Waterfall. After that, we (have) our lunch at the Rasa Sayang Restaurant.

12. I (start) my teaching career in 1990 and (retire) in 2024. By then, I (teach) for 34 years. After my retirement, I still (hope) to continue teaching because I (like) the profession very much. Unfortunately, none of my children (be) keen to take up teaching as a career.

13. Doctor: (Aux) you (know) that smoking (be) bad for your health? Patient: Of course, but I canÊt help it. Doctor: Well, (aux) you ever (try) to give it up? Patient: Yes, I have. I (try) last year, but then I (find) that I (get) fat. So I (start) smoking again.

14. Lee: Hi, Pit ! (Aux) you (have) any plans for the coming holiday? Pit: Yes. I (take) my wife to Europe. Lee: How nice! (Aux) you (make) all the arrangements? Pit: Of course. We (register) our names with SA Tours and they (apply) visas for both of us next Monday. In fact, I (go) to the SA Tours office now to handle our application for the visas. Lee: In that case, I (not want) to hold you back. See you.

15. Kim: Sally (see) a lot of Mr Henry. (Be) there anything in it? Pam: Yes. They (aux) just (announce) their engagement. Kim: (Be) you pleased about it? Pam: Only moderately. Sally (look) for a very rich man and now she (find) one. Similarly, Mr Henry (try) to get a really beautiful wife

and now he (meet) one. Apart from that, they (be not) really compatible. Kim: I (aux) always (hear) that Sally (have) a bad temper. Pam: You (be) right, and so has he.

Answer all the questions.

1. Read the job advertisement below and answer the questions that follow:

We are looking for someone who wants to make Commission money. They will have to find some of their own projects and make their own sales. Our products are a Sales necessity in every home. Their quality is superior and their prices competitive.

(a)" Identify the finite verb group in the Present Continuous Tense. (b)" Explain why the company chooses to use the Present Continuous Tense. Adapted from: Woods & McLeod (1990)

2. Study the following pair of sentences and explain why the speaker or writer has used the Present Simple or the Present Continuous in each case. (a) IÊm seeing Alex tomorrow about the agenda for the meeting. IÊve made an appointment with his secretary. (b) Cats see in very dim light.

3. Look at the following sentences and explain the differences in meaning. You may use timeline diagrams to illustrate the differences. (a) The thief ran away when the policemen arrived. (b) The thief was running away when the policemen arrived. (c) The thief had run away when the policemen arrived.

4. Explain what could be the difference in meaning between the two sentences below. (a) Alice has not met John this morning. (b) Alice did not meet John this morning.

5. In each of the following, there is an error in tense. (a)" Identify the error. (b)" Explain why it is an error. (c)" Correct the error. (i)" Jane canÊt come to class because she is having a fever. (ii)" We have been trying to call him many times, but each time we called, there was no reply from him. (iii)" I promise I donÊt smoke any more. (iv)" We have discussed the problem with the manager yesterday and he agreed to look into it immediately. (v)" The stranger was loitering around here since 5pm I suspect he is up to something. Why donÊt we inform the police? (vi)" Look! It rains again.

Aitken, R. (1992). Teaching tenses. Edinburgh, UK: Thomas Nelson.

Azar, B.S. (1992). Fundamentals of English grammar (2nd ed.). New York, NY: Longman.

Sinclair, J. (ed.) (1991). Collins COBUILD studentÊs grammar. London, England: HarperCollins.

Sinclair, J. (ed.) (1993). Collins COBUILD English grammar. London, England: HarperCollins.

Stern, G. (2000). LearnersÊ grammar dictionary. Singapore: Learners Publishing.

Woods, E. & McLeod, N. (1990). Using English grammar: Meaning and form. New York, NY: Prentice Hall.

 TTooppiicc Voice and

Concord

LEARNING OUTCOMES

By the end of this topic, you should be able to:

1." Differentiate between active and passive sentences; 2." Transform active sentences into passive sentences, and vice versa;

3." Explain the rules involved in forming passive sentences; 4." Use active and passive sentences of different tenses in appropriate contexts;

5." Explain what singular and plural subjects are; 6." Explain what singular and plural verbs are; and

7." Apply appropriate subject-verb concord rules in language use.

" INTRODUCTION

In this topic, you will look into two important aspects of a sentence. They are Voice and Concord. Voice concerns the choice of the verb of a sentence being Active or Passive, while concord concerns the requirement that the verb of a sentence agrees with its subject. You will at first examine sentences in the Active Voice and the Passive Voice. The focus is on the forms and functions of these two types of sentences. In this topic, you will see how the forms of sentences in the active voice differ from those in passive voice and also why one type of sentence is more appropriate than the other in specific contexts. As for the concord between the subject and the verb (i.e. subject-verb concord), the focus is on understanding concord rules and applying them in language use. In a sentence, the subject may be made up of a noun phrase or a noun clause. A noun phrase may consist of a noun or pronoun, while a noun clause may be a finite or non- finite clause.

4.1 VOICE

In this section, you will look at sentences in the Active and Passive Voice. First, we will focus on the forms of passive sentences in relation to those of active sentences. Second, we will deal with the differences in the functions of active and passive sentences especially in a longer discourse.

4.1.1 Forms

You have learnt in Topic 2 that a transitive verb requires a direct object, as in the following example: "

In the above example, the sentence adopts the pattern of *Subject + Verb + Direct Object. This is the active form of the sentence. You call this form of sentence the ACTIVE SENTENCE or the sentence in the ACTIVE VOICE. The verb is referred to as an active verb. In the active sentence, the subject performs the action, and the direct object receives the action. There is, however, another way of presenting the above sentence, as in the following example: "

In the above example, the sentence adopts the pattern of *Subject + Verb + Adverbial. This is the passive form of the sentence. You call this form of sentence the PASSIVE SENTENCE or the sentence in the PASSIVE VOICE. The verb is referred to as a passive verb.

*Note: You will learn more about these sentence patterns in Topic 9.

In the passive voice, the direct object of the active sentence becomes the subject of the passive sentence and the passive verb is made up of the auxiliary be and the past participle of the active verb. The subject of the active sentence is maintained as the doer or agent of the action and is preceded by the preposition by.

The illustration below gives you a clearer understanding of the syntactic differences between the active and passive sentences.

"

In the Passive Voice, the auxiliary be takes a different form in different tenses.

Tense Form of Auxiliary be Simple Present is/am/are Simple Past was/were Simple Future shall/will be Present Perfect have/has been Past Perfect had been Present Continuous is/am/are being Past Continuous was/were being

The Present Perfect Continuous, Past Perfect Continuous, Future Continuous, and Future Perfect Continuous tenses of the Passive Voice are cumbersome, and are rarely used. Only the more commonly used tenses of the Passive Voice are discussed in this module.

ACTIVITY 4.1 The following grid displays the transformation from active to passive sentences and vice versa, in different tenses. Complete the grid with the missing information.

Underline the verb group in each sentence.

Active Voice Passive Voice Tense Sentence Verb Form Sentence Verb Form Simple I do the work. base form The work is done by is + past Present me. participle Nuclear energy The submarines are powers the powered by nuclear submarines. energy. Simple Past past form Penicillin was discovered by Alexander Fleming. They built those were + past houses. participle will + base The money will be form donated by the organisation.

We shall provide shall + base the information. form Present Some pupils have has been + Perfect broken the rule. past participle have + past The victims have been participle taken to the hospital by passers-by. The smugglers had hidden the drugs. Future I shall have typed will have Perfect the document. been + past participle The books are being kept by her. Past He was repairing Continuous my cars.

In most cases, the subject of an active verb (doer/agent) is not included in the corresponding passive sentence, as in the following examples:

1. They will hold the reception at the Angsana Hotel. (Active) The reception will be held at the Angsana Hotel. (Passive)

2. Someone has informed me about the test. (Active) I have been informed about the test. (Passive)

• You can use the passive with a modal verb. The passive verb group with a modal verb has the following form:

modal verb + be + past participle

Examples: 1. You can fax the document to me. The document can be faxed to me. 2. We should never keep animals in cages. Animals should never be kept in cages. 3. They used to pack these items in tea chests. These items used to be packed in tea chests.

" A modal verb can also go with the perfect and the passive together (as in the Future Perfect Tense); the passive verb group takes the following form:

modal verb + have been + past participle

Examples: 1. Someone could have stolen my bicycle. My bicycle could have been stolen. 2. We should have advised him to seek treatment. He should have been advised to seek treatment.

• In the Passive Voice, the primary auxiliaries (be and have) and the modal shall/will should agree with the subject.

Examples: 1. The workers are repairing the bridge. The bridge is being repaired by the workers. 2. Those boys have stolen my money. My money has been stolen by those boys. 3. We shall decorate the hall. The hall will be decorated by us.

• In negatives and questions, you use the same auxiliary verb in the passive and active sentences, except when the tense is simple present or simple past. You use the auxiliary do in the active, but in the passive, you use the auxiliary be.

Negatives:

Active Passive Tense (do + base form) (be + past participle) Simple Ali does not do the work. The work is not done by Ali Present We do not do the work The work is not done by me. Simple Past They did not dig the hole. The hole was not dug by them.

Questions:

Active Passive Tense (do + base form) (be + past participle) Simple When does Ali do the work? When is the work done by Ali? Present When do we do the work? When is the work done by us? Simple Past Why did they dig the hole? Why was the hole dug by them?

• Only Transitive Verbs can become passive. Intransitive Verbs do not have passive forms.

Examples: 1. I go to school every day. (Intransitive) 2. The boy is jumping over the fence. (Intransitive) 3. We will arrive early. (Intransitive)

• Transitive Verbs with non-finite clauses* as objects cannot be made into passives.

Examples: 1. He enjoyed playing football. 2. I remembered to post the letter. *Note: You will learn about non-finite clauses in Topic 8.

• Some Transitive Verbs do not have passive forms. They are mainly Stative Verbs (e.g. fit, have, lack, resemble, suit).

Examples: 1. The shoes donÊt fit me. (NOT: IÊm not fitted by my shoes.) 2. I have a big house. (NOT: A big house is had by me) 3. The players lacked ability. (NOT: Ability was lacked by the players) 4. She resembles her mother. (NOT: Her mother is resembled by her) 5. That colour suits you. (NOT: You are suited by that colour)

• Some Transitive Verbs have two objects. They are Ditransitive Verbs. In the Passive, there are two possibilities.

Examples:

Active Passive He gave Asiah a new car. 1. Asiah was given a new car. 2. A new car was given to Asiah. They have shown us the photo. 1. We have been shown the photo. 2. The photo has been shown to us. She will tell you the news. 1. You will be told the news. 2. The news will be told to you. You should pay him the money. 1. He should be paid the money. 2. The money should be paid to him

Other examples: bring, buy, cost, get, leave, lend, send, make, offer, owe, pass, post, promise, read, sell, sing, teach, throw, write.

• Active and passive verb forms in English can sometimes be confusing to students because: (a) Auxiliary be is used make both passive verb forms and active continuous tenses. (b) Past participles are used to make both passive verb forms and active perfect tenses.

Compare: 1. He was taking his wife to the clinic. (active – past continuous) 2. He was taken to the clinic. (passive – simple past) 3. He has taken his wife to the clinic. (active – present perfect)

ACTIVITY 4.2

Can you think of some criteria that will help you differentiate the three types of sentences?

ACTIVITY 4.3 Complete the sentences below using the verbs in brackets in the correct form

1. The injured child was ______(take) to the hospital in an ambulance.

2. He was ______(take) this medication for his illness.

3. Our annual dinner will be ______(hold) in a restaurant.

4. Our school will be ______(hold) a concert next week.

5. A lot of people have been ______(rob) in the city.

6. These criminals had been ______(rob) banks and big commercial firms for the past year.

7. He has been ______(warn) not to make the same mistakes.

8. I have been ______(warn) him about the danger but he refuses to listen to me.

9. John is ______(write) a letter to his pen pal in the UK.

10. Nothing is ______(write) on the board.

4.1.2 Functions

ACTIVITY 4.4 You have seen that there are differences between active and passive sentences in terms of form.

How do these differences affect the functions of the two versions of sentences?

Compare these two sentences: • Alexander Fleming discovered Penicillin. • Penicillin was discovered by Alexander Fleming.

The sentences have the same meaning, but they are about different things in terms of emphasis. The focus of the first sentence is Alexander Fleming. In the second sentence, the focus is Penicillin. The passive transformation has therefore shifted the focus from the doer of the action (subject) to the receiver of the action (object) and the action itself. In other words, if you wish to de-emphasise the doer or to talk about the receiver and the action, you use the passive voice. There are good reasons for experienced writers/speakers to do this.

The following exercise will help clarify why it is sometimes more appropriate to use the passive rather than the active form, or vice versa.

ACTIVITY 4.5 Given below are examples of passive sentences.

Do you know why the passive voice is more appropriate in each instance? (a) The Education Ministry approved an entirely new policy for dealing with studentsÊ discipline. The policy was prepared by a committee on student behaviour. (b) The victim was murdered around midnight. This bank has been robbed twice so far. (c) Electricity is used for all kinds of purposes. This road is easily flooded after every downpour. (d) If sulphur is heated, a number of changes can be seen. The canned food must be heated to get rid of any water vapour.

In (a), the short paragraph is clearly about the new policy. It is thus appropriate that policy moves from being the receiver of the action in the first sentence to being the subject in the second sentence. The use of the passive voice provides a smooth transition from the first sentence to the next. It also helps keep the focus consistent throughout the text.

The sentences in (b) are more appropriate in the passive form because the agent in each instance is unknown. It would be unnatural to say: • Someone murdered the victim around midnight. • Someone has robbed this bank twice.

In (c), the agent in each instance is obvious and it would be redundant to mention who uses the electricity or what floods the road.

The sentences in (d) emphasise the action (i.e. what is done) because the doer and the receiver of the action are not important. This use of passive is especially relevant in the description of a process.

As you have seen in the sentences above, the passive voice is sometimes useful and necessary in a discourse. However, in general, experienced writers/speakers tend to switch from active to passive and back to keep the focus consistent throughout a discourse, as in the following short text.

Mr Paul waited for two hours; then he was seen by a doctor. After that, he was sent back to the waiting room. He sat there for another two hours. By this time, he was getting angry. Then, he was taken upstairs. There, he was examined by a specialist, after which he waited for another hour before he was allowed to go home. Adapted from: Swan (2005)

In the above example, the writer switches from active to passive to keep the subject „Mr Paul‰ consistent throughout the text. It would be awkward if you say: Mr Paul waited for two hours; then a doctor saw him......

In summary, the choice to write in the active voice or the passive voice depends entirely on what you choose to reveal or emphasise in the sentences you write, and also the contexts in which these sentences are found.

4.2 CONCORD

In some grammar books, concord is referred to as subject-verb agreement. As the phrase suggests, concord deals with how the verb of a sentence agrees with its subject. The subject of a sentence is usually a noun phrase which may be a noun or a pronoun. However, the subject of a sentence can also be a finite or a non- finite clause. Basically, there are four kinds of subject-verb concord with different types of subject, as indicated below: (a)" Concord where the subject is a noun; (b)" Concord where the subject is a pronoun; (c)" Concord where the subject is non-finite clause*; and (d)" Concord where the subject is a finite clause*.

4.2.1 Concord Where the Subject is a Noun

When you use a noun singular in number as the subject of a sentence, you use a singular verb. When the subject is a noun plural in number, you use a plural verb.

Examples:

The singular verb is in the -s form while the plural verb is in the base form. These two forms are also called present-tense verbs, as opposed to the past-tense verb, which is the past form of the main verb (e.g. walked).

4.2.2 Concord Where the Subject is a Pronoun

When you use the pronoun he, she or it as a subject, you use the singular verb (i.e. the -s form), but when you use the pronoun I, you, we, or they as a subject, you use the plural verb (i.e. base form).

Examples:

4.2.3 Concord Where the Subject is a Non-finite Clause

A non-finite clause is a clause with a non-finite verb. A non-finite verb may be an infinitive, or a participle. When you use a non-finite clause as a subject, you use a singular verb. A non-finite clause as a subject is singular.

Examples:

4.2.4 Concord Where the Subject is a Finite Clause

A finite clause is a clause with a finite verb. When you use a finite clause as a subject, you use a singular verb. A finite clause as a subject is singular.

Example:

So far, you have seen the choice between the base form and the -s form of the finite verb in subject-verb concord. When the subject is singular, the -s form of the verb is used. When the subject is plural, the base form of the verb is used. These two concord rules may be summarised as follows: • Singular subject + -s form • Plural subject + base form

The above rules suggest that the subject-verb concord is only limited to the present-tense verb. However, the verb be, whether it functions as a main verb or an auxiliary verb, has different forms in both the present and past tenses. It has its own special patterns, as indicated below.

In the PRESENT tense In the PAST tense Subject Verb Subject Verb I am I was You You We are We were

They They Noun plural in number (e.g. Noun plural in number (e.g. boys) boys) He He She is She was It It Noun singular in number Noun singular in number (e.g. the boy) (e.g. the boy) Finite/Non-finite clause Finite/Non-finite clause

ACTIVITY 4.6 Can you provide some examples of subject-verb concord using the verb be as the main verb and the auxiliary verb?

The other two primary auxiliary verbs, have and do, must also agree with their subjects when they are used in the present tenses, that is, has and does with third person singular subjects (e.g. he, she it, the boy) and have and do with other subjects, as indicated below.

Subject Verb I You have We do They Noun plural in number (e.g. boys) He She has It does Noun singular in number (e.g. the boy) Finite/Non-finite clause

ACTIVITY 4.7 Can you provide some examples of subject-verb concord using the verbs have and do as the auxiliary verbs?

Although the rules for subject-verb concord are easy to state, in practice they are not so easy to apply, especially when the subject of a sentence consists of a noun. Difficulties arise because some nouns may be plural in form but singular in meaning, while others may be singular in form but plural in meaning. In other words, „singular‰ and „plural‰ can be understood in terms of form or in terms of meaning. Moreover, complications also arise because a subject may consist of more than one noun phrase, which can be singular or plural. Sometimes, a noun phrase may consist of modifiers* and this can be confusing, too. The following notes highlight some special cases of subject-verb concord involving these types of subjects.

* You will learn about „modifiers‰ in Topic 8, on Phrases and Clauses.

• When the subject is made up of a noun that is plural in form but singular in meaning, it takes a singular verb. This type of noun is also uncountable.

Some diseases: measles, mumps, rickets, tuberculosis, appendicitis. Subject names: classics, linguistics, mathematics, phonetics, statistics. Some games: cards, billiards, draughts, darts, checkers. Others: news, politics, athletics, savings.

Examples: 1. Measles takes a long time to get over. 2. Statistics is a difficult subject. 3. All my savings has been stolen. 4. Darts is often played in the club.

Note: Some of these nouns can take a plural verb when they have a more specific meaning.

Examples: 1." These darts are too light for me. (the objects, not the game) 2." The latest statistics have been made available. (some figures)

• When the subject is made up of a plural noun, it takes a plural verb. Some plural nouns only exist in plural form and do not have a singular form while others only exist in singular form and do not have a plural form.

(a) Plural nouns that do not have a singular form:

Examples: 1. His swimming trunks have been stolen. 2. The old clothes were kept in the storeroom. 3. Your scissors are not sharp at all. 4. The surroundings of this house are really beautiful. 5. My spectacles are very expensive.

(b) Plural nouns that do not have a plural form:

Examples: 1. The cattle are grazing in the field. 2. The police have set up several roadblocks recently. 3. Vermin destroy our property and carry diseases. 4. These poultry are mine. 5. Who are these people?

Note: `People' also means `a nation'. The word can be used as singular or plural. 1." The French are a hardworking and brave people. 2." The peoples of this world have achieved remarkable progress in science.

• When the subject is made up of a noun with a plural form (i.e. ending in -s) which can be singular or plural in meaning, it can either take a singular or plural verb depending on the meaning.

(a) Taking a singular verb when the meaning is singular

Examples: 1. At the bottom of the hill, there is a dangerous crossroads. 2. A useful means of transport in Kelantan is the trishaw. 3. A new series of story books has just been published. 4. I stay in the new barracks, which has all the facilities. 5. The police headquarters is at Bukit Aman.

(b) Taking a plural verb when the meaning is plural

Examples: 1. There are three crossroads before you turn left. 2. The fastest means of transport are not always the most comfortable. 3. Two new series of video films have just arrived from Japan. 4. All the barracks are occupied by the soldiers. 5. All the government headquarters have received the directive.

• When the subject is made up of a noun which has no plural form but can be singular or plural in meaning, it can either take a singular or plural verb depending on the meaning.

(a) Taking a singular verb when the meaning is singular

Examples: 1. This sheep looks very cute. 2. The aircraft belongs to the President. 3. A Japanese was killed in the accident. 4. There is a fish in the drain.

(b) Taking a plural verb when the meaning is plural

Examples: 1. Those sheep are mine. 2. All the aircraft have been grounded for servicing. 3. Two Japanese were killed in the crash. 4. There are a lot of fish in the pond.

Note: There are many fishes in the river. (various species)

• When the subject is made up of an uncountable noun, it takes a singular verb. Uncountable nouns are singular.

Examples: 1. My luggage was missing when I returned to the hotel. 2. This medicine makes me feel drowsy.

• When the subject is made up of a collective noun that is singular in form, it either takes a singular or plural verb.

(a) When the collective noun suggests one number as a whole, a singular verb is used.

Examples: 1. My family consists of four members. 2. The audience is small tonight.

(b) When the collective noun suggests individual persons or things, a plural verb is used.

Examples: 1. My family are cleaning the house for the New Year. 2. The audience were rushing forward to shake hands with her.

Additional Notes:

" A collective noun can be plural. It takes a plural verb when it is plural in form. 1." All the teams have arrived. 2." A few committees are to be set up soon.

" A collective noun is not usually used with a plural verb when it is preceded by a (n), each, every, this, or that. 1." A team which practises regularly is more likely to win. 2." Every committee is headed by a chairman. 3." This musical group has performed all over the world. Exception: A group of us have decided to climb the hill.

" In American English, a singular collective noun is normally followed by a singular verb.

• When the subject is made up of two or more noun phrases linked by and, it takes a plural verb.

Examples: 1. A boy and a girl are walking in the garden. 2. Were John and Mary present last night? 3. Mother and I are going to K.L. tomorrow. 4. Two goats and a cow were slaughtered for the feast. 5. Wheat and rice are cereals.

• When the subject is made up of two noun phrases linked by „and‰ but they refer to a single idea, it takes a singular verb.

Examples: 1. Coffee and milk is a refreshing drink. 2. Slow and steady wins the race. 3. Time and tide waits for no man.

• When the subject is made up of two or more noun phrases beginning with „every/each‰ and linked by „and‰, it takes a singular verb. 1. Every man and every child needs to pay for the show. 2. Each man and each woman is given a ticket to the show. 3. Each book and magazine has to be accounted for. 4. Every man, woman and child has the right to live.

• When the subject is made up of two noun phrases linked by „either⁄.or‰ or „neither⁄nor‰, the verb agrees with the noun phrase nearer to it. 1. Either you or I am wrong. 2. Either you or he has taken the book 3. Either he or his friends have arrived. 4. Neither the teacher nor the pupils were present. 5. Neither the players nor the coach agrees to come.

• When the subject is made up of two noun phrases linked by „Not only ...... but also/but‰, the verb agrees with the noun phrase nearer to it. 1. Not only the teacher but also the pupils were present. 2. Not only the pupils but the teacher was present. 3. Not only you but I am blamed by her. 4. Not only I but also you are blamed by her.

• When the subject is made up of a noun phrase followed by „as well as/together with/along with/besides + noun phrase‰, the verb agrees with the first noun phrase.

Examples: 1. My brother, as well as his friends, is planning a trip to KL. 2. All the teachers, together with the headmaster, are present.

• When the subject is made up of an indefinite pronoun, it takes a singular verb.

Examples: 1. No one gives orders except me. 2. Something has fallen into the river. 3. Does everybody turn up?

• When the subject is made up of a plural noun phrase that shows a fixed amount but is considered as a whole, it takes a singular verb.

Examples: 1. Ten dollars doesn't buy as much as it used to. 2. Two years is a long time to wait.

• When the subject is made up of a plural noun phrase that indicates the title of a book/film or the name of a place, it takes a singular verb.

Examples: 1. „Star Wars‰ was a very successful film. 2. „The Three Musketeers‰ was written by Alexander Dumas. 3. The Philippines produces a lot of sugar.

• When the subject is made up of a plural countable noun preceded by „Either of‰, „Neither of‰ or „None of‰, it takes a plural or singular verb.

Examples: 1. None of the boys has/have come. 2. Neither of my brothers know/knows music. 3. Either of them is/are good.

Additional notes:

" You use a singular verb if the noun is uncountable.

Example: Neither of the medicine cures the illness.

Uncountable noun

" With other quantifying pronouns such as all, some, any, a lot, most, many, etc., you use either a singular or plural verb depending on whether the noun phrase is singular or plural.

Examples: 1." Some of it is genuine. („It‰ is singular) 2." Most of the copies are seized in the raid. („copies‰ is plural)

• When the subject is made up of a noun phrase preceded by „the number of‰, it takes a singular verb, but a plural verb is used when it is preceded by „a number of‰.

Examples: 1. The number of students is 30. 2. A number of students are joining the trip.

• When the subject is made up of a noun phrase followed by a modifier, the modifier does not change the noun phrase in terms of number.

Examples:

1."

2."

3."

4."

• When the subject is made up of a noun phrase followed by a modifier beginning with a relative pronoun like who, which, or that, the verb agrees with the noun phrase directly in front of the pronoun.

Examples: 1. En. Rahim is the house owner who has lodged the complaint. 2. En. Rahim is one of the house owners who have lodged the complaint.

ACTIVITY 4.8 There are many more rules about subject-verb concord. Can you think of some to add to the above list?

For more information, visit the following websites: http://www.grammarbook.com/grammar/subjectVerbAgree.asp http://www.uwf.edu/writelab/reviews/subjectverb.cfm

ACTIVITY 4.9

Underline the correct words in the brackets. In some sentences, both answers are possible. Explain the concord rule for each answer you have chosen. 1. An Indian headdress and two beaded moccasins (was, were) in the museum window. 2. Every teacher and every pupil in this school (agree, agrees) to donate RM 1.00 to the School Building Fund. 3. The surroundings of this housing area (need, needs) a major clean-up. 4. Neither the students nor the teacher (is, are) willing to come for the extra class. 5. Linguistics (help, helps) us to understand language better. 6. The police (has, have) announced a reward of RM 100,000 for information leading to the arrest of the kidnappers. 7. Fashionable clothes that (is, are) on display here (has, have) been imported from the US. 8. How he committed so many crimes (was, were) still unknown. 9. The traffic in most big cities (is, are) very heavy. 10. There (was, were) a big crowd of people outside the stadium. 11. The crowd of spectators (is, are) pushing one another to get closer to the front. 12. Six metres (is, are) a lot of material for a dress. 13. Two bags of cement (is, are) needed to repair the floor. 14. Not only teachers but the principal (attend, attends) our graduation dinner. 15. Something (is, are) better than nothing. 16. None of the trainees (complain, complains) about the new ruling. 17. Tea and milk (has, have) always been my favourite drink. 18. Either Peter or I (was, were) supposed to attend the meeting. 19. The United Nations (was, were) formed to preserve world peace. 20. Eating five servings of fruits and vegetables daily (provide, provides) all the essential vitamins we require.

" There are two types of voice in an English sentence, the active and the passive. " In the active voice, the subject of a sentence performs the action and the direct object receives the action. " In the passive voice, the direct object of the active sentence becomes the subject and the passive verb is made up of the auxiliary be and past participle. " The choice between the active voice and the passive voice depends entirely on what you choose to reveal or emphasise in the sentences you write, and also the contexts in which these sentences are found. " In a sentence, the subject and verb need to match in terms of concord. " Generally, when the subject is singular, a singular verb is used, but when the subject is plural, a plural verb is used. " There are a few special cases for concord, especially when collective nouns, quantifying pronouns or coordinated noun phrases are used as subjects.

Active sentence Noun phrase Concord Passive sentence Finite clause Plural verb Modifier Singular verb Non-finite clause Voice

1." Given below are 15 sentences. Write (A) if the sentence is Active and (P) if it is Passive. (a)" We are taught grammar in school. (b)" This letter was posted last night. (c)" You will have finished the work by then. (d)" They have been to the Titiwangsa Beach. (e)" The exhibition will be opened by the Prime Minister. (f)" The whole room had been filled with smoke. (g)" The project can be completed within a week. (h)" Some boys were helping the wounded man. (i)" Concerts have been banned in this state. (j)" They have been working very hard. (k)" The streets were thronged with spectators. (l)" You cannot pump the ocean dry. (m)" The complex could be renovated by the new owner. (n)" The government ought to set up an emergency centre. (o)" One may accomplish many things by a little effort.

2." In the following text, the voice of some sentences is not appropriate. (a)" Rewrite the sentences in an appropriate voice. (b)" Explain briefly the rationale for using the voice you have chosen.

People have criticised the city council for the lack of concern with the appearance of our city, but look at what they have achieved in the past few months. Sidewalks on Jalan Ismail have been repaired. Trees have been planted along the median strip of Jalan Hang Tuah. Attractive new street lights have been installed in front of the library and the museum. Flowers have also been planted in the borders at City Park. Adapted from: Klammer & Schulz (1992).

1." There are some errors in subject-verb concord in the following text. (a)" Underline the errors and make the corrections. (b)" Explain the relevant subject-verb concord rules.

The number of letters that we receive these days have increased1. A lot of people object to receiving unwanted letters which numbers a few hundred per year2. Most of the mail we receive go to the waste-paper basket3. ThatÊs why we often refers to it as „junk mail‰4. If people stop sending junk mail, we can save lots of trees from which paper are produced5.

2." Each of the following statements is about a subject-verb concord rule. For each statement below, provide examples of sentences to illustrate the rule as clearly as possible. (a)" The verb can be singular or plural, depending on whether the subject is countable or uncountable. (b)" When the subject is a collective noun, the verb can be singular or plural depending on the context. (c)" There is subject-verb concord with finite verbs, not with non-finite verbs. (d)" There is no agreement between the subject of a sentence and its modal verb. (e)" Subject-verb concord is limited to present-tense verbs, except be.

Biber, D., Conrad, S. & Leech, G. (2002). Longman student grammar of spoken and written English. Harlow, Essex: Pearson Education Limited.

Eastwood, J. (2005). Oxford learnerÊs grammar. Oxford, England: Oxford University Press.

Klammer, T.P. & Schulz, M. R. (1992). Analyzing English grammar. Boston, MA: Allyn & Bacon.

Leech, G. & Svatvik, J. (1975). A communicative grammar of English. London, England: Longman.

Sinclair, J. (ed.) (1991). Collins COBUILD studentÊs grammar. London, England: HarperCollins.

Sinclair, J. (ed.) (1993). Collins COBUILD English grammar. London, England: HarperCollins.

Swan, M. (2005). Practical English usage. Oxford, England: Oxford University Press.

TTooppiicc  Determiners

and Adjectives

LEARNING OUTCOMES

By the end of this topic, you should be able to: 1." Identify determiners and adjectives;

2." Categorise the different types of determiner and adjective;

3." Explain the grammar rules governing determiners and adjectives;

4." Differentiate between determiners and pronouns, and determiners

and adjectives; and

5." Use different types of determiners and adjectives correctly in various contexts.

" INTRODUCTION

„The‰ is the word that hammers importance onto rigid fact and fixes to it the burden of being absolute. Roy Hinks (Chesterman, 1991 as cited in Yule, 1998, p. 22)

This topic will provide you with language awareness activities to enable you to recognise the characteristics of different types of determiners and adjectives, as well as to discover their use in context. It also endeavours to raise your awareness of the differences between determiners and pronouns as well as determiners and adjectives so that you will be able to use them accurately to convey your intended meaning.

5.1 DETERMINERS

You have already been introduced to nouns and pronouns in the first topic. As you know, nouns stand for people, things and so on, but often it is important to establish which particular person or thing is being referred to, or how many. How can you do so?

ACTIVITY 5.1

Study the sentences below. What is missing in them?

Is it correct to say that the sentences are alright because they are able to communicate their meaning?

1. Runner wants drink. 2. Can I have red bag? 3. Dress is more beautiful. 4. Students must attend society meeting. 5. There are cars parked in directorÊs parking lot.

The determiners (signallers of nouns) are noticeably missing in the above sentences. While we are able to understand the sentences, do you not wish that the information conveyed could be more specific?

In sentence 1, the noun runner can refer to any runner in the entire universe. If we add ÂtheÊ and ÂaÊ respectively as in ÂThe runner wants a drinkÊ, we are limiting the meaning to one specific runner and one drink. Now you are clear that it is that particular runner who wants a drink; any drink, as long as he has one.

Determiners are a class of words that are used with nouns and have the function of defining the reference/definiteness of the noun in some way. They act to limit or determine to some extent the possible range of things which the noun can refer to. They answer, for example, the question of which, whose, or how many, of the thing(s) named in the noun phrase. Hence, determiners identify or specify which thing(s), whose thing(s) and how many thing(s). They have traditionally been classified as adjectives or pronouns. As they all have the same function of limiting the reference of the noun, it is deemed useful to have them all together in one category, the determiners.

The above sentences may be rewritten with determiners as below: 1. * The runner wants a drink. 2. Can I have that red bag? 3. This dress is more beautiful. 4. All students must attend the society meeting. 5. There are two cars parked in the directorÊs parking lot.

* However, articles may be omitted when the plural of the noun is used to refer to things in general as below:

Runners want drinks. (It is the general truth that all runners would want drinks, any type and any number).

Note: For details on the use of determiners with singular and plural nouns, you may refer to Collins COBUILD English Grammar and An A-Z of English Grammar & Usage.

5.1.1 Definition

Let us look at the following definition of determiners:

Determiners are a small set/group of words to identify nouns and give the range of reference of the nouns, i.e., ÂdetermineÊ the number and definiteness of the noun phrase. A determiner must always stand before a head noun.

The determiners in the sentences below will give you an idea of how commonly they are used. 1. Zeta is my classmate. 2. The tea has been boiling for several minutes. 3. The selection panel gave all the applications much thought. 4. My boss found an article in his drawer.

5.1.2 Types of Determiner

Based on the functions that they perform, there are two types of determiner: specific determiners and general determiners. You put them at the beginning of a noun group.

(a) Specific determiners include the definite article, demonstratives, possessives, multipliers, fractions, cardinals and ordinals. (i) Definite article (the) – the most common specific determiner in English. The company is expanding gradually. (ii) Demonstratives (this, that, these, those) Those squatter houses ought to be pulled down. (iii) Possessives (my, your, his, her, our, its, their, AnitaÊs) Our movie is going to be shown in cinemas soon. (iv) Multipliers (once, twice, thrice, two times, three times, double, triple). I need a double helping of the food as I am famished. (v) Fractions (a quarter, two-thirds, half). She inherited two-thirds of the old manÊs property. (vi) Cardinal numbers (one, two, three, four). Three bars of chocolate is the limit for children after dinner. (vii) Ordinal numbers (first, second, third). She was the first woman to win the world wrestler title.

(b) General determiners include indefinite articles, quantifiers, general ordinals, wh-words and determiners which express attitudes. The following sentences illustrate their use.

(i) Indefinite article (a, an) – the most common general determiners in English. • We need a pan and an egg now!

(ii) Quantifiers - also used in comparisons (All, every, each, both, some, any, either, neither, many, much, more, most, enough, a few, few, a little, little, fewer, fewest, less, least, several, plenty of, a lot of, lots of, a great/large/good/small number of, a great/large/good/small amount/deal of, no) • All parties were punished for the riot.

(iii) General ordinals (next, last, another, other, further). • There are five other people stranded inside the cave.

(iv) Wh-words and wh-ever words (what, whose, whatever, which, whichever). • She just yelled whatever names that came to her mind.

(v) Words to express attitudes. (what, such, rather, quite). • Such information is shocking.

EXERCISE 5.1 Underline the determiners in the following sentences and identify them according to their type at the end of each sentence. An example has been done for you.

Example: Twenty-five students are in this class. (cardinal, demonstrative) 1. Second winners will receive a hamper each. 2. Which vehicle have you bought? 3. I have no idea about homeopathy. 4. She is quite a helper. 5. Brad looked over WhitneyÊs shoulder. 6. Were any tables broken? 7. The farewell will cost three times the amount we have collected. 8. She got two-thirds of the total marks. 9. Most of the students in this class realise that English is a very interesting subject. 10. Another teenager dropped out.

5.1.3 Determiners or Pronouns?

Some determiners appear to be the same or similar to some other word classes as well. For example, the same word may function as a determiner or pronoun. You may see further illustrations of this below.

Examples:

1a. All school boys have to keep short hair. (determiner) All is a determiner which appears with the head noun school boys to form the noun phrase.

1b. You can take all if you want. (pronoun) All is a pronoun which appears on its own to form the noun phrase.

2. This car is mine. (determiner) This is my car. (pronoun)

3. Which house is hers? (determiner) Which is your house? (interrogative pronoun)

4. There is no such person here. (determiner) Cricket was boring. Such was her opinion. (pronoun)

EXERCISE 5.2

Sort out the difference between the following pairs of sentences by explaining the function of the underlined words. Note their position and their relationship with other words in the sentences. You may write your answer in the grid provided. An example is given below. 1a. Most like it colourful. 1b. Most people like it colourful. 2a. This book is really exciting. 2b. This is a really exciting book. 3a. Which is the bus to Keluang? 3b. Which bus goes to Keluang? 4a. Much food is wasted. 4b. Much is wasted. 5a. Some friends will be there. 5b. Some will be there.

1a. Most is a pronoun which 1b. Most is a determiner which appears on its own to form the appears with the head noun noun phrase. people to form the noun phrase.

5.1.4 Order of Determiners

ACTIVITY 5.2 Note the position of the determiners in the sentences in 5.1.2. What word class do they precede?

The following is a chart of the three groups of determiners with some examples in each category:

Table 5.1: Sequence of Determiners

Intensifiers Central Determiners/ Predeterminers Postdeterminers (Adverbs) Determiners 2 4 1 3 even 1." both (of), all 1." Articles: a, an, the 1." Ordinal numbers: only (of), half (of) first, third just 2." Demonstratives: this, 2." Multipliers: that, those, these 2." Cardinal numbers: once, one, two, three, twice, double, 3." Possessives: four, five triple, many my, your, hers, his times, five General ordinals: times, several 3." other, more, next, times, five Quantifiers: 4." last, following times no, some, any, each,

every, either, neither 4." Quantifiers: 3." Fractions: a many, few, third, a 5." Wh-determiners: quarter, three- several, little, eights what(ever), who(ever), which (ever), whose more, less

4." Attitude words: what, such, quite, rather

All determiners may be preceded by intensifiers of entire noun phrase.

The sentence below uses an intensifier and a range of determiners:

We say that this sentence consists of:

intensifier + DETERMINERS + noun + verb + DETERMINER + noun (predeterminer), (enjoyed) (central determiner/determiner), (postdeterminer)

EXERCISE 5.3

Arrange the determiners in the correct order and make changes where necessary. 1. Only (three, more) books are needed. 2. The candidates were placed in (other, two, every) seats for the final examination. 3. In (few, a, more) days we will be leaving for South Korea. 4. (Little, The, Even) appropriations granted last year will suffice for now. 5. I have (half, just, a) tank of petrol left.

5.2 ADJECTIVES

If you compare the semantics of the determiners with that of adjectives, you see that they are very different. Adjectives give qualities of nouns whereas determiners give grammatical information like quantity, possession, indication of whether the noun is near or far, definite or indefinite.

5.2.1 Definition

The adjective system includes all the words and phrases that modify a noun or pronoun. The function of adjectives is, typically, to add extra information to a noun phrase, such as the qualities of people, things and places.

5.2.2 Types of Adjectives

Based on the functions that adjectives perform, there are two large groups of adjectives – qualitative adjectives and classifying adjectives. However, if you were to examine the structure an adjective is in (e.g. before a noun or after a link verb), then it is said to be either attributive or predicative.

(a)" Qualitative Adjectives

Adjectives that identify a quality that someone or something has, such as ÂhardÊ, ÂrichÊ, ÂlowÊ, ÂbatteredÊ, ÂsmoothÊ, ÂcalmÊ, ÂinterestingÊ, and ÂgracefulÊ are called qualitative adjectives.

Examples: 1. Smooth fabric 2. A graceful ballerina 3. An interesting voice 4. A battered housewife

Gradable Adjectives Qualitative adjectives are gradable adjectives that describe qualities that we can measure or grade in some way. They can be modified by adverbs (ÂintensifierÊ) which convey the degree of intensity of the adjective.

The two ways in which you can indicate the amount of a quality someone or something has are by using: " A comparative or a superlative; or " Submodifiers such as Âvery; and ÂratherÊ in front of qualitative adjectives.

1. Using the comparative or superlative is the usual way to denote the amount of a quality. The positive form of a descriptive adjective can be raised to the comparative and superlative degrees. The following sentences show the three degrees of comparison of the adjective, ÂwarmÊ.

Positive (no comparison) : Today is warm. Comparative (compare two persons/ : Last night was things) warmer. Superlative (compare three/more persons/ : It was the warmest July things) 10 on record.

There are some rules which may help you to determine the comparatives and superlatives of adjectives.

ACTIVITY 5.3 Examine the following adjectives: tall, pretty, slim, splendid

Can you provide the comparative and superlative forms of each of them? You may want to consider the number of syllables in each word and their last letters to guide you.

Did you discover some of the rules below?

(i) Most adjectives of one syllable, form the comparatives by adding –er and the superlatives by adding –est.

• When the adjectives end with –y, y is replaced by i and then add –er or -est. Comparative : She looks prettier without makeup. Superlative : The beauty queen is the prettiest of all the models.

• When a one-syllable adjective ends with a single consonant, the consonant is doubled and then add –er or -est. Comparative : My friends think I look slimmer in black clothes. Superlative : The whale is the biggest sea animal.

(ii) Most adjectives of two or more syllables form the comparative by using more before the positive followed by than and for the superlative by using the most before the positive. Comparative : Their fireworks display was more splendid than yours. Superlative : The laser display was the most splendid of all.

Some adjectives have irregular comparatives and superlatives as illustrated in the following table:

Table 5.2: Comparison of Adjectives (Irregular)

Positive Comparative Superlative good better best bad worse worst many more most

2. Since qualitative adjectives are gradable, you are more likely to use submodifiers with them than with other types of adjectives. Many submodifiers are adverbs of degree intensifiers or downtoners.

Intensifiers (extremely, very, really, totally⁄) make adjectives stronger and are applicable to both gradable and non-gradable adjectives. • We are very hungry. • I am totally confused. • SheÊs an extremely calm counsellor.

Conversely, downtoners (fairly, quite, rather⁄) make adjectives weaker and are only used with gradable adjectives. • That was a fairly fast switch. • I baked a rather hard cake.

(b)" Classifying Adjectives Some adjectives do not lend themselves to comparison. These are the classifying adjectives.

Non-gradable Adjectives Since classifying adjectives place things or people either in a particular class or not, they do not have comparatives and superlatives. They are not gradable in the way that qualitative adjectives are. Examples of non- gradable adjectives include complete, perfect, universal, unanimous and faultless. Non-gradable adjectives are not normally used with submodifiers like ÂveryÊ and ÂratherÊ.

For example, if you say ÂnaturalÊ oil, you use the adjective ÂnaturalÊ to classify the noun ÂoilÊ. There are other kinds of oil, like Âfully-syntheticÊ and Âsemi-syntheticÊ oil. ÂNaturalÊ oil is one of them. You are unlikely to say Âvery natural oilÊ, right? Exceptions to this rule are found in Collins COBUILD English Grammar, page 95.

Only intensifiers can be added to classifying adjectives to stress the extreme or absolute nature of them. • Extreme qualities: e.g. terrified, furious, starving The rabbit is utterly terrified. NOT (The rabbit is very terrified.) • Absolute qualities: e.g. alive, correct, dead, male, human It is completely dead. NOT (It is fairly dead.)

Special cases: Certain words seem to suit either gradable or non-gradable adjectives. The word very is an intensifier that can only go with gradable adjectives. It is strange to talk about Âvery uniqueÊ when ÂuniqueÊ indicates Âone of its kindÊ – a non-gradable adjective.

However, there are words that can be used with both gradable and non- gradable adjectives. For example, quite is used with gradable and non-

gradable adjectives (and related adverbs), and its meaning changes accordingly. Quite functions as a downtoner with gradable adjectives, and expresses absoluteness with non-gradable adjectives. • She was quite tired. (gradable) • She was quite exhausted. (non-gradable)

While some adjectives are qualitative and others classifying, you should also note that some adjectives like ÂreligiousÊ can be either qualitative or classifying depending on the meaning that you wish to convey.

As a qualitative adjective, ÂreligiousÊ is gradable: • The headman is a very religious man. • The headman is a rather religious man.

As a classifying adjective, ÂreligiousÊ is used as below: " The council met over religious matters. " The council did not meet over financial nor social matters but religious matters.

IsnÊt this interesting? Would you like to know more about this? You may refer to Collins COBUILD English Grammar, page 67.

EXERCISE 5.4

Some of the underlined adjectives have been wrongly used. Write the correct forms of the adjectives in the spaces provided. If the adjective is correct, put a dash in the corresponding space. An example (0) is given below.

Agent: YouÊll find this apartment (1) attractive than (1)

Apartment 8C. Just a minute, please, while

I unlock the door... Oh dear, this lock is

(2) more difficult to open than the one for 8C. (2)

Okay, here we are... Please come in.

Mr John: Hmm! It does have (3) moderner furniture than 8C.

Mrs John: Yes, and the arrangement is (4) tastefuller. (4)

Agent: Please sit down. YouÊll find the seats are very

(5) comfortable. (5)

Mr John: Yes, they are.

Mrs John: TheyÊre the (6) comfortablest seats IÊve ever (6)

sat on.

Agent: IÊm glad you like them. Let me show you

around.

Mrs John: LetÊs start with the balcony ... ItÊs such a

(7) big balcony! Oh, and what a (7)

(8) lovely view of the city! (8)

Agent: Among all the apartments on this floor, this

Apartment gives you the (9) lovelier view of the (9) city.

Mrs John: It seems (0) cool here too. John, we could have (0) cooler some potted plants on the balcony and

it would still be (10) spacious. (10)

After examining the functions of adjectives, we shall now categorise them according to their position in a sentence; namely attributive and predicative adjectives.

(c)" Attributive Adjectives

Attributive adjectives come before the noun; between the determiner and the noun in a noun phrase and after the determiner in an adjective phrase. They can only pre-modify a noun. (You may refer to Topic 8 for more information on noun phrase and adjective phrase).

Examples of attributive adjectives are as below: 1. An excellent performance 2. A pink Persian carpet 3. An old black table 4. A tall pop singer 5. The adorable petite bridesmaid

Adjectival Order When more than one attributive adjective is present, they tend to come in a particular order. Which is the preferred order of the adjectives before the noun?

The model wears a tight black dress from Metrojaya. OR The model wears a black tight dress from Metrojaya.

If you have chosen the first sentence, you are correct. You may wonder, ÂIs there any basic logic to the order?Ê

Many grammars provide elaborate rules for adjectival order. One of them uses the guide: „Very Soon A Train Should COMe‰

Very VALUE e.g. fabulous, amazing, awesome Soon SIZE e.g. tiny, vast, heavy A AGE e.g. young, old, new Train TEMPERATURE e.g. cold, hot, warm Should SHAPE e.g. round, square, rectangular COMe COLOUR e.g. red, blue, violet ORIGIN e.g. Malaysian, Korean, suburban MATERIAL e.g. cotton, wooden, silk (PURPOSE e.g. shopping, chopping, cooling)

The following table contains the above phrases to illustrate another preferred order of adjectives:

Table 5.3: Order of adjectives

Adjectives Describing or Determiner Expressing Defining/ Noun Size Age Colour feeling Origin (Opinion) 1. excellent performance 2. a pink Persian carpet 3. an old black table 4. a tall pop singer 5. the adorable petite bridesmaid

It is arguable, however, that, not only are such rules of sequencing adjectives difficult to remember, but they encourage the idea that long strings of attributive adjectives are the norm in English. In fact, long adjective strings are peculiar only to certain specialised text types such as advertisements.

It may be more useful simply to draw learnersÊ attention to these three rules of ordering adjectives: • General qualities before particular/specific qualities (e.g. a small China tea cup NOT a China small tea cup; an attractive long blue coat NOT a blue long attractive coat). • Opinion before description/fact adjectives (e.g. a fantastic silk blouse NOT a silk fantastic blouse; an ancient Japanese note NOT a Japanese ancient note). • Qualitative (ugly, healthy, old) before classifying (plastic, electric, foreign, Indian).

EXERCISE 5.5 Rearrange the adjectives in the following sentences in their usual order in the spaces provided. 1. She lives in a new big luxurious condominium. 2. Is it true that bald fat short men are wealthy? 3. I wear a large-sized soft imported light-coloured cotton T-shirt for exercise. 4. That hypermarket sells a wide variety of heavy interesting chopping steel knives. 5. The humble doctor drives a German old small black rectangular- shaped car.

When we use adjectives from different groups together, we do not use a comma or ÂandÊ: The dancer wore an elegant orange Japanese costume. NOT (The dancer wore an elegant, orange, Japanese costume.) NOT (The dancer wore an elegant and orange Japanese costume.)

(d) Predicative Adjectives

Predicative adjectives are adjectives that occur without a noun in the predicate of a sentence. They most commonly occur after link verbs or copulas like ÂbeÊ, ÂseemÊ, ÂappearÊ and ÂlookÊ. In this position, the adjectives are called complement. They describe quality of the subject or the object.

Table 5.4 illustrates some examples of predicative adjectives functioning to complement the subject or the object.

Table 5.4: Predicative Adjectives

Predicative Adjectives Determiner Subject Verb Phrase Object (Complement) ⁄⁄ The road is narrow (here). It has been sunny (today). He made his wife elated. She left the door open.

• Although most adjectives can be either attributive or predicative, some can only be used in the attributive or predicative position. Example: the late prime minister. – attributive NOT (the prime minister is late. – the meaning is different from that in the original phrase) Example: The student felt unwell. – predicative NOT (The unwell student.)

More information on this can be found in Collins COBUILD English Grammar, p. 71 and Crystal, p. 145.

• A noun usually has to have a determiner in front of it (prenoun modifier).

• Determiners are a small group of words which signal nouns in a variety of ways.

• Determiners are classified into three groups according to their position before a noun – predeterminers, central determiners/determiners and postdeterminers.

• Qualitative adjectives can have degrees of the quality mentioned – very charming, less charming.

• Classifying adjectives do not normally allow degrees – very Indian, less Indian.

• Adjectives, like determiners, follow a particular order.

• Attributive and predicative adjectives are determined by their position in a sentence.

Adjective phrase Modification Classifying Noun phrase Intensifier Pronoun

Underline, with a single line, the pre and postdeterminers if they are found in the sentences and capitalise the central determiners/determiners. An example has been done for you.

Example: Just a little salt will do. - Just a little salt will do. 1. Some of the projects are pending approval. 2. Only my cookies disappeared. 3. Both those students played truant. 4. I have just enough money for the holiday. 5. The first five applications were chosen. 6. Half the cake is spoilt. 7. All of the money disappeared. 8. Several of his shoes are torn. 9. You need to double your savings in order to buy that outfit. 10. Only the next three workers will be promoted.

Examine the two phrases below. Briefly explain what they serve to illustrate. Which phrase would determine your choice of purchase? Why? Can you think of a typical context in which this phrase is used? Briefly explain this context and how it will be affected by your choice. (a)" Compact: The longer lasting outdoor snack (b)" Compact: A longer lasting outdoor snack

Underline the determiners and the adjectives in the text below. Then write them in the box provided. State the line number as well as the type of determiners and adjectives. Where the same determiner or adjective is repeated in the text and performs the same function, you need to identify it only once. An example of each word class is given:

DonÊt compromise or be cowed by student vandals. This is the message of SMK San MinÊs Parent-Teacher Association (PTA) and board of directors to the Teluk Intan school which was in the news recently after the houses of its administrators were splashed with motor oil. 5 The incidents took place after the school extended its „crew cut for boys‰ rule to senior students. On Wednesday, Nanyang Siang Pau and China Press reported that unknown persons threw some 20 packs of used motor oil into the houses of the headmaster, senior assistant, disciplinary master and former headmaster on 10 April 21. The reports said the students, a small group of problematic seniors, were also responsible for vandalising school property and cars belonging to their teachers. Following the incidents, the PTA called a press conference on Tuesday to expose the schoolÊs disciplinary problem. 15 Many of those interviewed by the papers condemned the acts and believed stern disciplinary action should be taken, including expulsion, if students were indeed involved. Chairman of the school board Chan Hong Kee said: „In spite of some hurdles, the hair rule has to be implemented. Our stand is clear and we will not 20 compromise or bow to pressure.‰ Source: The Sun, 5 May 2005.

No. Word Word class Type (Attributive/ Qualitative/Classifying (line no.) Predicative adjectives adjectives) 1 student (1) adjective attributive classifying 2 This (1) determiner demonstrative - 3. 4. 5. 6. 7.

8. 9. 10. 11. 12. 13. 14. 15. 16. 17. 18. 19. 20.

Crystal, D. (1988). Rediscover grammar. Harlow, Essex: Longman.

Disterheft, D. (2004). Advanced grammar – A manual for students. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson.

Frank, M. (1986). Modern English – Exercises for non-native speakers. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall Regents.

Leech, G. (1989). An A-Z of English grammar & usage. London, England: Longman.

Rozakis, L. (2003). English grammar for the utterly confused. New York, NY: McGraw Hill.

Sinclair, J. (ed.) (1993). Collins COBUILD English grammar. London, England: HarperCollins.

Thomson, A. J. & Martinet, A. V. A practical English grammar. Oxford, England: Oxford University Press.

Thornbury, S. (1997). About language – Tasks for teachers of English. Cambridge, England: Cambridge University Press.

Woods, E. G. & McLeod, N. J. (1990). Using English grammar: Meaning & form. New York, NY: Prentice Hall.

Yule, G. (1998). Explaining English grammar. New York, NY: Oxford University Press."

TTooppiicc  Adverbs and

Prepositions 66

LEARNING OUTCOMES

By the end of this topic, you should be able to:

1. Categorise different types of adverbs and prepositions;

2. Identify the different forms of adverbs and prepositions; 3. Identify the different functions of adverbs and prepositions;

4. Identify the adverbs and the prepositions used in text; 5. Differentiate between adverbs and prepositions; and

6. Explain the grammar rules related to adverbs and prepositions.

" INTRODUCTION

There are so many prepositions in English and learners often have to make choices and distinctions that are not necessary in their own language. These choices have little or nothing to do with meaning, and are therefore particularly difficult to remember. (Parrot, 2000)

The adverb is an extremely heterogeneous word class. Practically any word that is not easily classed as a noun, an adjective, a verb, a determiner, a preposition, or a conjunction, tends to be classified as an adverb. (Downing & Locke, 1992)

This topic introduces another two major word classes of English grammar: adverbs and prepositions. Adverbs are commonly known as modifying words because they modify any other parts of language, be it a verb, an adjective,

another adverb, clauses or sentences. They are normally placed closely to the words they modify. There are different types of adverbs, each with its own functions. Many adverbs are derived from adjectives by adding the letters Â-lyÊ. Prepositions, on the other hand are known as linking words because they are used to connect a noun structure to some other word in a sentence. Some words can function both as adverbs and as prepositions. This topic will take you through a series of language awareness activities and some language proficiency exercise on adverbs and prepositions. You will be able to practise the use of these two word classes in meaningful contexts.

6.1 ADVERBS

Adverbs are words that modify verbs, adjectives or other adverbs. They also often tell when, where, why or under what conditions something happens.

6.1.1 Formation of Adverbs

SELF-CHECK 6.1

The following paragraph contains different forms of adverbs. 1. Can you underline all the adverbs in the paragraph above? 2. Do you know how an adverb is formed? 3. Adverbs cannot be recognised by just looking at their form because some adverbs have the same form as prepositions or adjectives. Can you explain a criterion that can be used to identify adverbs? 4. Find out how much grammatical information you can get from your dictionary on adverbs.

124  TOPIC 6 ADVERBS AND PREPOSITIONS

My first experience in Ulu Padas was truly a memorable one, and it continues to surprise me even after numerous visits, as there is always something new to discover in the Kerangas forest. I have since spent many days and nights here and can honestly vouch that Ulu Padas is as rich in orchids as Mount Kinabalu Park, if not more. Scientists have barely scratched the surface, and already new species are being discovered on every expedition made into this area. (Source: Going Places, 2005)

ACTIVITY 6.1 Read through the notes below and compare them with your answers to Self-Check 6.1.

For more detailed information, refer to Hooper (1980). A Quick English Reference, p.46 – 47.

The following are the three types of adverbs: (a) Derivational Adverbs Most adverbs (especially adverbs of manner and some adverbs of degree) are formed from adjectives by adding the suffixes –y, - ly, -ily and –ally. This includes participle adjectives like interestingly. However, this is not a concrete rule because there are a few -ly words which are adjectives. For example: lovely, friendly and deadly.

-y -ly able ably bad badly gentle gently wise wisely terrible terribly certain certainly

-ily -ly gay gaily basic basically busy busily historic historically crazy crazily accidental accidentally

(b) Simple Adverbs Simple adverbs are not derived from another word. Many simple adverbs denote position and direction like near, out, under and down. Some adverbs have exactly the same form as adjectives, for example: fine, fast, high, alone, late, little, quick. • The police tried hard to catch the robber. (adverb) • Painting is a hard job. (adjective) • She came home early yesterday. (adverb) • I am going out for an early lunch today. (adjective)

ACTIVITY 6.2

Can you think of some other examples, i.e. the same word used as an adverb and an adjective?

What criteria can you use to differentiate them?

There are also many adverbs that are not morphologically indicated at all. These adverbs are not related to any adjectives. Adverbs of time and many adverbs of place are not related to adjectives.

alike anyway almost either half maybe more indeed meanwhile perhaps quite rather tough very and besides however much thus somehow too

(c) Compound Adverbs Compound adverbs are formed by combining two or more elements into a single word. For example: somehow (some + how), anywhere (any + where) and somewhere (some + where). • Somehow, he managed to finish his work. • I have seen this somewhere.

6.1.2 Functions of Adverbs

Adverbs have two main functions: (a) As adverbials; and (b) As modifiers.

The following are the explanations for the two functions of adverbs:

(a)" Adverbs as adverbials The function of adverbs as adverbials is to give us more information on the action or the circumstances of the action. It tells us how, where or when an action happened.

My aunt is temporarily putting up with me. adverbs of duration Alice shrieked loudly when she saw Mawi. adverbs of manner John goes away on holiday twice a year. adverbs of frequency She completely forgot about the meeting. adverbs of degree

(b)" Adverbs as modifiers The function of adverbs as modifiers is to add information to another word, such as an adjective, another adverb, determiners, pronouns or numerals. They normally come before the word they modify. Such adverbs are usually adverbs of degree. An exception to this rule is enough, which is placed after the adjective or adverb that it modifies.

Nur Amalina scored exceptionally well in her as modifiers of other SPM exam. adverbs Fear Factor is an extremely exciting game as modifiers of adjectives show. The sun is right above our head. as modifiers of prepositional phrases Over one thousand homes were damaged as modifiers of numerals during the flash floods in Shah Alam. He seems to have too many friends. as modifiers of a determiner

ACTIVITY 6.3 One of the characteristics of adverbs is their ability to move around. Adverbs that modify adjectives are not moveable. However, adverbs that modify the verb are often moveable and they answer the questions how, where, when, how, why, how often. Adverbs that modify other adverbs come in front of the adverbs they modify. Can you provide some examples of your own?

ACTIVITY 6.4 Study the underlined adverbs in the following sentences and answer the questions given. 1. She whispered quietly to her friend. 2. The building is really magnificent. 3. David left the place rather hastily.

Questions: (a) What is the function of the underlined adverb in each sentence? (b) What effect would removing these adverbs from the text have?

FUNCTIONS OF ADVERBS

Adverbs can be categorised on the basis of its function, into the following categories. (a) Adverbs of time Adverbs of time are used to specify the precise time or to provide information about the time of an action in relation to some other point in time, often ÂnowÊ. The use of this adverb might affect the verb tenses in a particular clause. They can be placed at the initial, middle or final position (before the main verb, after the auxiliary verb, between an auxiliary verb and a main verb or at the end of a clause. Adverbs of time answer the question ÂWhen?Ê.

For example: • I hurt my ankle yesterday. • We shall now start the meeting. • I will receive the parcel from him tomorrow. • She is currently working as a marketing manager.

Common Adverbs of Time

Present Time now, yet, today, presently, instantly, immediately, directly, currently Past Time already, just now, lately, recently, yesterday, once, since, long ago Future tomorrow, henceforth, next month Relative Time when, then, first, just, before, after a while

(b) Adverbs of duration Adverbs of duration tell us how long something lasts or takes. They are also normally used when you want to be less precise about the length of time an event lasts. These adverbs answer the question ÂHow long?Ê.

For example: • I have been trying to contact you since ⁄. • Jane spent all afternoon baking cookies. • The Tan family has been controlling the share market for more than two decades.

Common Adverbs of Duration

all long overnight always lately briefly since for ever temporarily permanently indefinitely overnight

(c) Adverbs of frequency Adverbs of Frequency are used to indicate how often we do things or how many times something happen. Adverbs of frequency can be placed before the main verb, after the auxiliary verb, between an auxiliary verb and a main verb or at the end of a clause. They normally modify or give more information about verbs by describing how many times an action happens. They fall into two categories: definite frequency (twice, daily, every day) or indefinite frequency (always, usually, often). In other words, adverbs of frequency answer the question ÂHow often?Ê.

Below is a chart of frequency adverbs. always 100% nearly/ almost always 90% usually 80% very often/ frequently 70% often 60% sometimes 50% occasionally 40% almost never/ ever 20% seldom / almost never 10% never 0%

For example: • The newspapers are delivered daily to my house. • Sean seldom comes here because of his busy work schedule. • Endangered animals like tigers are often in danger of being killed.

Common Adverbs of Frequency

twice often again daily always frequently regularly never ever rarely seldom usually occasionally sometimes

(d) Adverbs of place Adverbs of place inform us where an incident or event takes place. They are usually placed after the main verb, after an auxiliary verb or after the object. They are often used in phrasal verbs. They go with Âposition verbsÊ such as be, live, stay and work. Adverbs of place may also be two words combining to emphasise place, such as: down below, far ahead and over here. Most common adverbs of place also function as prepositions. Adverbs of place answer the question ÂWhere?Ê or ÂWhere to?Ê.

For example: • The famous chicken rice shop is there. • Tanisha buried her jewellery box outside. • I dropped my pen somewhere around here.

Common Adverbs of Place

inside indoors outside anywhere around underneath downstairs near abroad ahead somewhere there everywhere elsewhere

(e) Adverbs of direction Adverbs of direction are used to indicate destinations. They often go with Âmovement verbsÊ like go and cannot usually begin a sentence. Adverbs of direction answer the question ÂIn what direction?Ê or ÂWhere to/from?Ê.

For example: • The couple just laughed and drove ahead. • The owner does not want anyone trampling around. • They left the base camp and climbed higher.

Common Adverbs of Direction

up north left along around clockwise everywhere northward down right down south ahead anticlockwise backward southward

(f) Adverbs of manner Adverbs of manner give more information about the way in which an event or action takes place or to describe the way in which something is done. They normally end in –ly (Note that not all adverbs of manner end in –ly, e.g. fast, hard and straight). Adverbs of manner are usually placed after the main verb or after the object. They should not be placed between the verb and the object. These adverbs answer the question ÂHow?Ê or ÂIn what manner?Ê.

For example: • Stella stroked her cat gently. • Aaron neatly stacked the books up. • Her mannerisms are distinctly different from her twin sisterÊs.

Common Adverbs of Manner

fast badly easily gently quietly neatly warmly politely carefully hard finely widely softly evenly simply slowly sharply beautifully

(g) Adverbs of degree Adverbs of degree make the meaning of a verb, adverb or adjective stronger or weaker by placing qualities or ideas on a scale. They can show both intensity of degree or intensifiers (really, absolutely, extremely) as well as downtoners (fairly, rather, quite). Adverbs of degree are normally placed before the word they modify, after the auxiliary verb, before the main verb or between the auxiliary verb and the main verb. These adverbs answer the question ÂTo what extent?Ê or ÂHow much?Ê.

For example: • Taylor practically won all the races. • Rashmeka is really good at her work. • The contract workers cleaned the area thoroughly.

Common Adverbs of Degree

so very quite nearly almost nearly completely spectacularly too just fairly rather enough hardly extremely considerably

ORDER OF ADVERBS This is a basic order in which adverbs will appear when there is more than one adverb.

Subject And Verb Manner Place Frequency Time Tanisha exercises earnestly here every morning before breakfast. The child plays excitedly there every evening after tea.

ACTIVITY 6.5

1." Study the sentences below and identify the adverb in each sentence.

2." Compare them with the adverbs you have learnt about earlier and explain the difference. (a)" Unfortunately, things changed for the worst for cats when the Middle Ages arrived. (b)" Cats, especially black ones, were hunted down and killed. (c)" Why were cats seen as the devilÊs companion? (d)" Egyptians worshipped a cat-goddess called Bast, who had a head of a cat and a body of a human. In fact, the Egyptian word for cat was ÂMauÊ, which means Âto seeÊ.

(h) Interrogative adverbs Interrogative adverbs are questioning words such as ÂwhereÊ, ÂwhenÊ, ÂwhyÊ, and ÂhowÊ. Interrogative adverbs are also known as Wh-adverbs. They are not only used to introduce questions but also to introduce various types of clauses.

How ÂIn what wayÊ? How high are the Petronas Twin Towers? Why ÂFor what reason? Why were they angry? When ÂAt what timeÊ? When do you need to pay the bill? Where ÂIn what placeÊ? Where is KLPAC situated?

• Where is KLPAC situated? • How high are the Petronas Twin Towers? • I do not know where my aunt is staying.

Common Interrogative Adverbs

Time Place Manner Degree Reason/Cause when where how how why whenever wherever however however

(i) Linking adverbs Linking adverbs are adverbs that are used to link ideas or clauses in spoken discourse or written text. At times, this requires the use of a semicolon. Linking adverbs are also called conjunctive adverbs because they perform the same sort of function as conjunctions. Most linking adverbs can go in middle position in the clause. Some linking adverbs (so, yet) can go only at the front of the clause. On the other hand, linking adverbs such as ÂlikeÊ (ÂtooÊ, as well) cannot go at the front of the clause.

For example: • He broke his arm; therefore, he will not be coming to work tomorrow. • Muhammad did not attend the revision classes. Consequently, he was reprimanded by his teacher. • These herbal supplements are very effective. Besides, they are not very expensive. • Two of the workers were retrenched, and as a result, everyone went on strike. • We invited everyone to the opening ceremony. However, only a handful turned up.

Common Linking Adverbs

Linking Adverbs Function too, also, besides, furthermore, as well, To introduce a related point or to add an moreover, at the same time extra piece of information again, likewise, equally, similarly, in the To add a new fact that illustrates the same way same point as the one you have just made yet, instead, however, alternatively, on the To add a sentence that contrasts with the contrary, nevertheless previous one or to give a different point of view

(j) Sentence adverbs Sentence adverbs are used to convey the speakerÊs belief on the content of what he is saying or to show the speakerÊs attitude or viewpoint towards certain events. Sentence adverbs usually qualify a whole sentence and not just a part of it. They are also known as viewpoint adverbs because they qualify what is being said, but do not affect grammatical structure. They are usually placed at the beginning of a sentence and are set off from the rest of the sentence with a comma. They can also come at the end of a clause, before a complement or between a subject and a verb.

For example: • HeÊs, surprisingly, only 16 years old. • I will inform you, perhaps, by 7 oÊclock. • Fortunately, the event went on smoothly. • Apparently, they have been trying to use the online banking system for weeks.

Common Sentence Adverbs

really surely luckily actually perhaps certainly surprisingly blindly clearly apparently admittedly naturally hopefully fortunately

(k) Focusing adverbs Focusing adverbs are used when we want to indicate or focus on the main quality of something or on the most relevant thing involved in what we are saying. For example, when we want to indicate the main reason for something, we use focusing adverbs like especially, particularly or exclusively. Focusing adverbs are also used to express some kind of

restriction (e.g. just, only or merely) and to refer back to something (e.g. too, also, either).

For example: • Even Ram heard about the incident. • Only Sherry has the key to the guest house. • Ramli Ibrahim is specifically interested in Indian classical dance.

Common Focusing Adverbs

just purely chiefly notably primarily especially particularly alone either mainly mostly specially exclusively specifically

6.2 PREPOSITIONS

ACTIVITY 6.6

Just 40 kilometres as the crow flies _____ Ipoh, Cameron Highlands nestles_____ a 1,500 metre plateau. It stretches ______Ringlet ____ the south, past Tanah Rata ____its heart, ___ Brinchang and Tringkap ____ the north. Ringlet Lake is ____ the start of the lower highlands that are home ____ several tea plantations. The HighlandÊs climate is ideal ____ tea but equally good _____ vegetables, flowers and fruits. The produce, ______strawberries _____cauliflowers, find their way _____ the hotels ____ Kuala Lumpur and grocers _____ Singapore. Adapted from: Going Places, June 2005

1." What words are missing? What is their words class?

2." What information enables you to identify the missing words?

Answer Just 40 kilometres as the crow flies from Ipoh, Cameron Highlands nestles on a 1,500 metre plateau. It stretches from Ringlet in the south, past Tanah Rata at its heart, to Brinchang and Tringkap in the north. Ringlet Lake is at the start of the lower highlands that are home to several tea plantations. The HighlandÊs climate is ideal for tea but equally good for vegetables, flowers and fruits. The produce, from strawberries to cauliflowers, find their way to the hotels of Kuala Lumpur and grocers in Singapore. Adapted from: Going Places, June 2005

The words missing from the text above are known as prepositions. Many of the most common words in English are prepositions. In fact, prepositions like of, to, in, for, with, on, at and by are words which are commonly used by everyone. The Concise Oxford Dictionary considers it an „indeclinable word‰ serving to mark the relation between the noun or pronoun it governs and another word.

Prepositions also have special functions as part of a verb or an adverb. As with adverbs, it is difficult to recognise prepositions just from the form of the words. In fact, some words can function both as prepositions and as adverbs or even conjunctions.

What is the difference between a preposition and an adverb? A preposition ÂgovernsÊ an object, so it is always related to a noun, a noun phrase, pronoun or gerund; an adverb particle does not ÂgovernÊ an object, so it is more closely related to a verb. (Alexander, 1988, p.145)

6.2.1 Forms of Prepositions

Prepositions can be classified according to form as simple prepositions (one word) or complex prepositions (multiple words).

(a) Simple prepositions Below is a list of the most common simple prepositions. There are three main types: monosyllabic (in, on), polysyllabic (inside, without) and prepositions derived from participles (barring, concerning).

in to as inside into despite barring on at for within without expect concerning off up past beyond beneath granted opposite

(b) Complex prepositions Complex prepositions are made up of two, three or four separate words but they must be considered as one. Their meaning cannot be derived from the meaning of the parts. They consist of a simple preposition preceded by a word from another category, such as an adverb, adjective or conjunction. Sometimes, it could also be a simple preposition followed by a noun and then a further simple preposition. Complex prepositions are normally stressed on one of the syllables.

as for apart from on top of because of together with for the sake of but for down from in spite of along with in relation to by means of next to across from in front of instead of except for

ACTIVITY 6.7

1. Get through = a verb + preposition combination. Look in your dictionary to list down more examples of this combination.

2. Absent from = an adjective + preposition combination. Look in your dictionary to list down more examples of this combination.

3. Faith in = a noun + preposition combination. Look in your dictionary to list down more examples of this combination.

Students often face difficulties in identifying the correct preposition to use. There are just far too many of them. For example, you need to know which preposition to use with a given verb because the meaning of a phrasal verb changes when different prepositions are used. The only way second language learners can master the fine points of preposition usage is through practice, referring to the dictionary and paying close attention to the written word.

6.2.2 Types of Prepositions (Functions)

The function of prepositions (meaning „placed before‰) is to connect a noun structure to some other word in a sentence. They are placed before a noun (on a table), noun phrase (near several tea plantations) or a pronoun (to them). Prepositions can also be followed by verbs (excluding but and except) but the verb must be in the gerund form (good at baking cakes).

(a) Prepositions of place Place prepositions are used to state the approximate place of someone or something. Many English prepositions have nearly the same meaning. Therefore, when referring to place or space, we can choose from a few options. It all depends on the meaning we wish to express.

According to Alexander (1988), we can consider position in space in relation to a point (i.e. a place or event), a line (i.e. a place we think of in terms of length), a surface (i.e. a place we think of as a flat area) or area or volume (i.e. a place which can ÂencloseÊ). (Alexander, 1988, p.146)

• At – For specific addresses or general vicinity e.g. Joy Kumar lives at 101-14P, Circular Road. • On – To designate names of lanes, streets or roads e.g. The temple is located on Pudu Street. On – Touching the surface e.g. There is an oil spot on my apron • In – For the names of towns, states, countries and continents e.g. Shah Alam is situated in Selangor In – Beneath the surface e.g. There is a pen in the drawer. • Over/under – When you want to relate things vertically e.g. The laptop is under the conference table. • Among, amid, by, around – In a group e.g. The bride was surrounded by her family and friends. • Opposite – When things are facing each other. e.g. The cineplex is opposite the shopping mall. • Next to – When objects are side by side e.g. The coat hanger is next to the cupboard. • Off – At a distance from the point e.g. The ball rolled off the pool table. • Near – Close to the point e.g. Mrs. Taylor was standing near the French doors. • Around – Surrounding an area or all round a place e.g. We sat around the conference table and discussed the drama scripts.

Common Prepositions of Place

by off near above below beneath inside on to of throughout on under over outside along all over around against not far from

(b) Prepositions of direction These prepositions are used to show movement towards a place. They indicate where someone/something is going or moving to. A preposition takes on the idea of movement from the verb in the sentence. Some examples of movement verbs are (bring, drive, fly, get, move, pull, run , take or walk). (Alexander, p.146)

The movements can be in either two or three dimensions. Movements in two dimensions can be vertical, horizontal or planar (i.e. staying within or passing across a plane). Movements in three dimensions can be either open (unrestricted) or closed (contained) (Master, 1996, p.300-302).

For example: • The dog jumped over the fence. • The spacecraft was moving towards the satellite. • The snatch thief ran into a policeman.

Common Prepositions of Direction on by above across along out of around below beyond through up to past down from over all over under towards throughout

ACTIVITY 6.8 The following questions are based on the picture below.

1. Using the objects in the picture below, form as many sentences as you can.

2. Which type of prepositions did you use to form the sentences?

3. What kind of verbs would you need to use?

4. What other vocabulary would learners need to know in order to be able to do this exercise?

(c) Prepositions of time Prepositions of time include those that describe range, starting point, duration, and end point (Master, 1996, p.295). The following is a list of prepositions that indicate relationships of time.

• To past – Used to tell the time e.g. It is now quarter past five. It is now fifteen to six. • At – Used to designate specific times e.g. I will meet you at ten oÊclock. • By – Not later than e.g. I will try to be there by three oÊclock. • On – used to designate days and dates e.g. The meeting will be held on Wednesday. – on time means on schedule. e.g. The concert began on time. • In – Used for nonspecific times during a day, a month or a year e.g. Sheila started her new job in June. • For – Used to measure time (seconds, minutes, hours, days, years) / a period of time e.g. World War two lasted for three years. • Since – Used with a specific date or time or to show the starting point of an action. It also refers to a period of time that extends from a point of time in the past to the present. The verb tense is usually the present perfect or past perfect. e.g. Anne has been working here since 2004.

• Until – Used for a period of time, which starts now and stops at a point in the future e.g. We have to be here for the conference until Sunday. • During – Used for a period of time or a block of time. It represents the length of time of an action that is going on while the action is happening. e.g. You must not talk during the examination. • From – Used with to or till / until e.g. Stella will be working from eight to five.

ACTIVITY 6.9 Explain the difference in meaning between these two sentences. (a) Were you late for your performance? No, I was there on time. (b) Were you late for your performance? No, I was there in time.

(d) Prepositions of manner Prepositions of manner show the way in which something is done. The preposition like means Âsimilar toÊ and it is used for comparison. The preposition with is always followed by an abstract noun.

For example: • She spoke in a loud voice. • He behaves like his mother. • The teacher handled the delicate matter with care.

(e) Prepositions of cause and purpose There is a spectrum of relations extending from cause to purpose. For the part covering cause, reason and motive, we have prepositional phrases with items such as because of, on account of, for, and out of (Greenbaum & Quirk, 1990, p.199).

For example: • My aunty died of stomach cancer. • Ismail achieved stardom through hard work. • The Prime Minister resigned due to old age.

(f) Prepositions of accompaniment The prepositions that show accompaniment are ÂwithÊ and ÂwithoutÊ. It is always followed by an object, which can be a person, an animal or a thing. If the object is a living thing, ÂwithÊ conveys the meaning Âin the company ofÊ.

For example: • The director attended the function with his secretary. • The lawyer attended the trial without his legal assistant. • You must have some of this mint sauce with your lamb chop.

(g) Prepositions of possession The prepositions that show possession are ÂwithÊ and ÂofÊ. The possessive function is also referred to as genitive of.

For example: • Catherine is a woman of great strength and wisdom. • John was taken to the hospital with the best surgical facilities. • Kuala Lumpur is the capital of Malaysia.

(h) Prepositions of concession Prepositions expressing concession include in spite of and its more formal synonym despite, the still more formal notwithstanding, and the somewhat informal for all, with all (Greenbaum & Quirk, 1990, p.199).

For example: • The manager is quitting for all her disapproval. • The rescue workers continued their search despite the rain. • The dancer continued her performance in spite of her injuries.

(i) Prepositions of means The preposition that shows means is by. It requires an object that can be a noncount noun, a singular count noun or a noun phrase. By can also be used before an –ing form. We can also use by means of to explain how something is done.

For example: • My children usually go to the library by bus. • The bouquet of flowers was delivered by her fiancée.

• The workers entered the factory by using the back entrance.

(j) Prepositions of instrument Prepositions of instrument show the device, machine, substance or tools through which something is accomplished, making use of the prepositions with and without (Master, 1996, p.304).

For example: • She pushed open the back door with her foot. • My husband hit the steering wheel with his right hand in anger. • The electronic gate cannot be opened without a mechanical device.

ACTIVITY 6.10

The same preposition can be used to express different meanings, thus performing different functions. Study the underlined prepositions in the following pairs of sentences and identify the differences in function.

1. LetÊs hurry up. We are behind schedule. The mosque is behind the mall.

2. My friends are at the theatre. Come and see me at noon.

3. There was a fallen tree across the road. The cat ran across the road.

4. My brother works in London. The tutorial will start in March.

5. Towards midnight, the guests started to leave. The child ran towards her mother.

6. He managed to get promoted with my help. My son has gone out with his friend.

7. I sent the information by post. We live right by the office.

8. We are ashamed of his rude behaviour. He is a man of great honour.

Can you think of other examples of your own?

Preposition or Adverb? Some prepositions are also used as adverbs. They are called ÂAdverb ParticlesÊ. A preposition requires an object. An adverb does not. The following sentences show the differences between prepositions and adverbs.

No. Prepositions Adverbs 1 Josephine is waiting for a cab outside If you want to get some fresh air, you will the railway station. need to go outside. 2 You have to go down the lane before Please sit down and pay attention to the you see the park. lesson. 3 We walked along the jungle trail. Will Sally come along?

ACTIVITY 6.11

Refer to the dictionary and consider how many of these prepositions could be used as adverbs.

above across since under in front of against around through outside in regard to among during toward without on account

There are various combinations of verbs plus particles. Since a preposition is normally followed by its complement, the particle is an adverb if the verb is intransitive. • The plane has taken off. (Quirk & Greenbaum, 1990)

• This topic provides grammatical information about adverbs and prepositions.

• Adverbs are considered a part of speech in traditional English grammar.

• However, modern grammarians recognise that words traditionally grouped together as adverbs serve a number of different functions. They tell us when, where, how, in what manner, or to what extent an action is performed.

• Prepositions are linking words that introduce prepositional phrases. They can be classified as simple or complex prepositions. Their most specific function is to show time and place.

• Other functions of prepositions are to show direction, manner, cause and purpose, means, instrument, accompaniment, possession and concession.

Adverbial Modifiers Gerund Prepositional phrases Intensifier

Identify the types of adverbs underlined in the following sentences.

No. Sentence Type of Adverb 1. I would like to go abroad for a holiday. 2. The Persian lion growled loudly at the visitors. 3. She posted the application letter yesterday. 4. The Law Journal is published quarterly. 5. He is an extremely talented man. 6. I had better pay my bill. Otherwise, I might be charged interest. 7. The green and yellow parrots flew away. 8. My father rarely scolds me. 9. The labourers work hard for a meagre salary. 10. The policeman was almost killed by the robber. 11. Let me just phone and see if my sister is at home. 12. Why are you smiling to yourself? 13. You certainly know how to enjoy yourself. 14. Even the technician was not able to solve the problem. 15. She knows where the meeting is going to be. 16. Turn left at the junction near Parkson Grand. 17. The phone was temporarily out of order. 18. The seagulls are flying above the lake. 19. He was not feeling well. Nevertheless, he still went to work. 20. Unfortunately, four victims were killed during the recent landslide in Ulu Kelang.

Complete each sentence with an appropriate preposition. Label the type of prepositions you have used.

Type of No. Sentence Preposition 1. Prof. John was the brother ______my friend. 2. The Venetian vase is ______the coffee table. 3. That modern gadget is actually powered ______electricity. 4. I like to travel ______air-conditioned bus. 5. My friend died ______blood cancer. 6. She greeted her husband ______a sweet smile. 7. They went out hiking ______the heavy rain. 8. Jack and Jill went ______Maxwell Hill. 9. Blood was oozing ______his broken arm and leg. 10. Businessmen seldom travel ______their laptops. 11. The lights went out ______the lightning. 12. _____ stirring the paste continuously, you stop it from burning. 13. The helicopter hovered ______the field. 14. The assignment had to be finished ______a week. 15. Would you like some fresh cream ______your scones? 16. The roof ______the house was blown away during the storm. 17. She acts ______a coward. 18. The wheel caps were tightened ______a machine. 19. I need to go to the hypermarket ______my groceries. 20. We heard the news ______your retirement from Jane.

Alexander, L.G. (1988). Longman English grammar. New York, NY: Longman.

Biber, D., Conrad, S. & Leech, G. (2002). Longman student grammar of spoken and written English. Harlow, Essex: Pearson Education Limited.

Downing, A., & Locke, P. (1992). A university course in English grammar. New York, NY: Prentice Hall.

Eastwood, J. (2005). Oxford learnerÊs grammar. Oxford, England: Oxford University Press.

Hooper, J.S. (1980). A quick English reference. Kuala Lumpur: Oxford University Press.

Jackson, H. (1982). Analyzing English: an introduction to descriptive linguistics. Oxford, England: Pergamon Press.

Leech, G. & Svatvik, J. (1975). A communicative grammar of English. London, England: Longman.

Master, P. (1996). Systems in English grammar. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall Regeats.

Parrott, M. (2000). Grammar for English language teacher. Cambridge, England: Cambridge University Press.

Quirk, R. & Greenbaum, S. (1990). A studentÊs grammar of the English language. Harlow, Essex: Longman.

Sinclair, J. (ed.) (1993). Collins COBUILD English grammar. London, England: HarperCollins.

 TTooppiicc Conjunctions

and Sentence

Types

LEARNING OUTCOMES

By the end of this topic, you should be able to: 1. Categorise the different types of coordinating conjunctions and subordinating conjunctions;

2. Identify the different functions of coordinating and subordinating conjunctions; 3. Define the three sentence types;

4. Differentiate the forms of three sentence types; and 5. Explain the grammar rules related to conjunctions and sentence types.

" INTRODUCTION

The coordination and subordination systems allow us to combine sentences (i.e. clauses) in different ways to achieve different effects. All grammatical structures can be coordinated, but only clauses can be subordinated. (Master,1996)

Sentences are the only group of words that can stand alone to express complete thoughts. The key idea here is standing alone. Sentences are not dependent on some previous contexts or question to fill in grammatically significant pieces. (Lester & Beason, 2004)

This topic introduces another part of speech, which is conjunctions, and explains how they are used to produce different sentence types. You will look at two main types of conjunctions, which are coordinating conjunctions and subordinating conjunctions. Coordinating conjunctions link ideas of equal importance, whereas subordinating conjunctions show the relationship between ideas of unequal rank. Sentences are made as a result of combining together elements like words, phrases and clauses. By using the elements of clause structure and the rules of grammar, you can produce many different types of sentences using appropriate conjunctions. In this topic, you will look at three different sentence types: simple, compound and complex. A simple sentence has one independent clause. A compound sentence consists of two or more independent clauses. A complex sentence contains an independent clause and one or more dependent clauses.

7.1 CONJUNCTIONS

Conjunctions are grammatical connectors that link words, phrases or clauses. A conjunction can indicate the relationship between the elements that it connects in the sentence. Without conjunctions, we would not see the relationship. We will be looking at two types of conjunctions: coordinating conjunctions and subordinating conjunctions.

According to Rozakis (2003), „Coordination shows the relationship among equal independent clauses; subordination, in contrast, shows the relationship between two unequal but related clauses. Subordination helps to develop ideas, trace relationships among ideas, and emphasise one idea over the other.‰

Conjunctions have three basic forms: (a)" Single Word For example: so, for, and, but, because, although (b)" Compound (often ending with as or that) For example: provided that, as long as, in order that (c)" Correlative (surrounding an adverb or adjective) Correlative conjunctions are two-part conjunctions, for example: so...that, both...and.

Figure 7.1 shows the different types of conjunctions.

Figure 7.1: Types of conjunctions

7.1.1 Coordinating Conjunctions

There are seven coordinating conjunctions and they are all single words.

for and nor but or yet so

A coordinating conjunction is a connector that links words, phrases or clauses. Coordinating conjunctions are used to join two similar grammatical constructions or ideas of equal importance. They may join single words or group of words but they must always join similar elements: e.g. subject + subject, verb phrase + verb phrase, noun phrase + noun phrase or clause + clause.

According to Pollock (1982,p.46), „Coordination is a method for combining two or more complete sentences, not only to produce longer sentence but also to show the proper relationship between similar or related ideas. Coordinating conjunctions like for, and, nor have different meanings, so they show different relationships between the ideas in the sentences.

Coordinating conjunctions always come between the words or clauses that they join. They donÊt come at the beginning or end. Look at the examples in the table - the two elements that the coordinating conjunction joins are shown in italics.

Two words Jack and Jill went up the hill. My daughter loves to eat bread and cheese. Two prepositional Please meet me near the cafeteria or by the library. phrases Two verb phrases Jack fell down and broke his arm. Those foreign maids have lived and worked in Malaysia for four years. Two dependent clauses We can investigate while you are teaching or when you finish work. Two independent Cheryl needed a change, so she moved to Cherating. clauses

ACTIVITY 7.1

Find the coordinating conjunctions in the following sentences and determine if they are joining words, phrases or clauses. What is the function of each coordinating conjunction? 1. Time and tide waits for no man. 2. You can pay by card or by cash. 3. Nicholas is rich but tight-fisted. 4. I was sleepy so I took a nap. 5. My hands were really cold and numb. 6. My cousin and I will bake the wedding cake. 7. My maid peeled the potatoes and put them in boiling water. 8. I hate to waste this shark fin soup, for it is an expensive dish to have. 9. Ranch House Grill is famous for tasty grilled Western dishes and a large variety of pizzas. 10. She was already running late for work, yet she stopped to help a blind man cross the road.

Read through the following notes to know more about the forms and functions of coordinating conjunctions. For more detailed information, refer to Collins COBUILD English Grammar (Sinclair, 1993, p.373-383).

Table 7.1: Types and Functions of Coordinating Conjunctions

Type Function

for " To introduce the reason/cause for the preceding clause

and " To join two similar ideas together " To suggest that one idea is chronologically sequential to another " To add additional information " To suggest that one idea is the result of another

nor " To reinforce negative (not this either), joining two negative alternatives " To express an alternative or choice

but " To suggest contrast or contrary information " To connect two ideas with meaning of Âwith the exception ofÊ

or " To join two alternative ideas " To suggest that only one possibility can be realised " To express a condition yet " To suggest an element of surprise, or something unexpected " To show contrast or difference

so " To provide consequential information (shows that the second idea is the result of the first) " To introduce a result / conclusion

The linking of clauses, or word groups, using coordinating conjunctions is called coordination. Coordinating conjunctions are sometimes called coordinators. When forming sentences, we have to pay attention to the relationship each coordinator stresses.

Jane was cold, so she put on a coat. The conjunction so shows cause and effect. We could go for a movie, or we could The conjunction or indicates a choice bake a cake. between two statements. He looked angry but he may be But shows contrast between two sentences. pretending. He was retrenched for a year, yet Yet is used to show difference or contrast. somehow he managed to survive with the help of his wife. He went to the market and bought The conjunction and is used to link ideas. some vegetables for dinner.

She must have done her research well, For is used to introduce reason or cause. for she is a meticulous person. I did not buy anything, nor did my sister. Nor is used to reinforce negative.

An easy way to remember the seven coordinating conjunctions is to think of the acronym FANBOYS. Each of the letters in this acronym is the first letter of one of the coordinating conjunctions.

ACTIVITY 7.2 Read and understand the following sentence:

Amir is a thief, so his family loves him. 1. The sentence above is grammatically correct. There is a subject and verb in each independent clause. Why then does the sentence sound odd? 2. What is the function of the conjunction ÂsoÊ? 3. Will the sentence sound better if the conjunction Âso‰ is replaced by another conjunction? 4. How can the use of other coordinating conjunctions (for example, „yet‰ or „but‰) change the relationship between the two clauses? Will the meaning of the sentence still be the same?

7.1.2 Correlative Conjunctions

A correlative conjunction is a coordinating conjunction that works in pairs to connect elements in a sentence. According to Sinclair (1993), „when you are using coordinating conjunctions, you sometimes want to emphasise that what you are saying applies to both the word groups linked by the conjunction. You usually do this by putting a word such as ÂbothÊ or ÂneitherÊ in front of the first word group. These pair of conjunctions requires equal structures after each one.‰

Correlative Functions Examples Conjunctions not⁄but Replacing one idea We are going to England not next week, but by another the week after. both⁄and Adding one item or Both my brother and his wife were working idea to another in a private hospital.

either⁄or Alternatives You can have either a window seat or an aisle seat. neither⁄nor Adding two negative My landlord is neither kind nor ideas together compassionate. not only⁄but Adding one idea to The gangster is not only wicked, but also also another: emphatic callous.

ACTIVITY 7.3

Fill in the blanks with suitable coordinating conjunctions or correlative conjunctions. 1. Is that story true ______false? 2. Jerry is tall, ______Jeremy is taller. 3. Roses ______carnations are my favourite flowers. 4. Bring ______a cake ______a pizza to the party. 5. I must attend the show, ______my daughter is taking part. 6. Muhammad was so tired, ______he came for the farewell. 7. ______Vincent ______Vicky should have come and seen me. 8. I had no evening gown, ______I hired one for our annual dinner. 9. The children screamed excitedly ______ran towards Santa Claus. 10. ______my grandfather ______my father were from the banking line. 11. We waited so long for Angeline ______she didnÊt turn up for the interview. 12. It is ______useful ______necessary for you to be there during the meeting. 13. This movie is particularly thrilling, ______it is written and directed by Night Shyamalan. 14. Sheelan is trying to decide ______to go to medical school ______to go to law school. 15. The earthquakes destroyed _____the villages but _____ the surrounding towns.

16. It is difficult to learn the rules of grammar, ______basic grammar skills are essential if you want to master the language fast. 17. We were angry, ____ because we lost the match ___ because the judging was not fair. 18. The car was totally wrecked, ______somehow he managed to escape unhurt. 19. The free check-up offer is only valid for a month, __ you must fix an appointment quickly. 20. My mother went to the bakery ______bought some coconut buns and Swiss rolls.

Answer 1. Is that story true or false? 2. Jerry is tall, but Jeremy is taller. 3. Roses and carnations are my favourite flowers. 4. Bring either a cake or a pizza to the party. 5. I must attend the show, for my daughter is taking part. 6. Muhammad was so tired, yet he came for the farewell. 7. Either Vincent or Vicky should have come and seen me. 8. I had no evening gown, so I hired one for our annual dinner. 9. The children screamed excitedly and ran towards Santa Claus. 10. Both my grandfather and my father were from the banking line. 11. We waited so long for Angeline but she didnÊt turn up for the interview. 12. It is neither useful nor necessary for you to be there during the meeting. 13. This movie is particularly thrilling, for it is written and directed by Night Shyamalan. 14. Sheelan is trying to decide whether to go to medical school or to go to law school. 15. The earthquakes destroyed not only the villages but also the surrounding towns. 16. It is difficult to learn the rules of grammar, yet basic grammar skills are essential if you want to master the language fast.

17. We were angry, not because we lost the match but because the judging was not fair. 18. The car was totally wrecked, yet somehow he managed to escape unhurt. 19. The free check-up offer is only valid for a month, so you must fix an appointment quickly. 20. My mother went to the bakery and bought some coconut buns and Swiss rolls.

7.1.3 Subordinating Conjunctions

Forms of Subordinating Conjunctions Single words as, as if, since, because, despite, while, although, Compound words so that, provided that, except that, sooner than, as long as,

Functions of Subordinating Conjunctions A subordinating conjunction comes at the beginning of a subordinate or dependent clause. Subordinating conjunctions are used to introduce adverb clauses (a type of subordinate clause) that depend on the independent clause for its meaning. It establishes the relationship between the dependent clause and the rest of the sentence.

Subordinating conjunctions also join two clauses together, but in doing so, they make one clause dependent (or "subordinate") upon the other.

Examples:

He is stubborn. Both are independent clauses.

He wonÊt listen to anyone.

Add the subordinating conjunction ÂbecauseÊ to He is stubborn.

because he is stubborn. This is now a dependent clause.

Put the two clauses together.

He wonÊt listen to anyone because he is stubborn.

Note: You will learn more about independent and dependent clauses in Topic 8.

Functions Subordinating Conjunctions Comparison as than as if as⁄⁄ so as though Condition if unless seeing (that) as as long as given (that) in case whether or not provided (that) Contrast much as not that though although while whereas despite even if except that even though although⁄yet in spite of the fact that Degree or extent as far as so ⁄.. that than Exception but (that) except (that) Manner as must as like as if just as as though Place where wherever Purpose so that in order that in order to Reason and cause as because since Result so⁄. that such ⁄ that Indirect question whether if whether⁄or Indirect statement that Time (same time) as while whenever when now (that) Time (earlier time) till before until Time (later time) after since Time (just after) once when whereupon as soon as

The following are some sample sentences that use subordinating conjunctions for different purposes.

Function Sample Sentence Comparison She performed wonderfully, as I thought she would. It looks as though the weather is improving. She loves me as if I were her own daughter. Condition If I drink too much coffee, I canÊt sleep. I shall accompany you provided that you send me back home. Unless the concert tickets are very cheap, I wonÊt be able to attend. I will continue working here as long as they need me. Manner Syed is a talented artist, as his father used to be. He treats his wife as if sheÊs a child. He behaves as though he knows everything. Place We can meet wherever you like. You should first swim where the water is not very deep. Time I saw my friend as she was leaving the bank. Now that youÊre here, we can start the prayers. We shall play badminton as soon as you finish you work. I had not seen my aunt since she left the country. Purpose We are promoting this product so that everyone will know about it. En. Ahmad strives hard in order that his family will have a better life. Reason As I am the eldest child, I have to look after my parents. The errant students ran away because they saw the discipline master. Contrast I will replace your precious vase even if it is going to cost a bomb. Mrs. Joseph is very fit though she is eighty years old. Although Siti was not well, she still sat for the exam. Degree As far as I am concerned, she is a very caring person. Result He is so talented that he was chosen to represent his country. Kuala Lumpur is such a modern city that I canÊt imagine staying anywhere else.

Not sure when to use a subordinating conjunction or a coordinating conjunction?

Use a coordinating conjunction when you want to link related independent clauses.

Use a subordinating conjunction when you want to put the most important idea in the main clause.

ACTIVITY 7.4

Fill in the blanks with suitable subordinating conjunctions. 1. ______the bakery didnÊt attract enough customers, it closed down. 2. ______he was in office, he created the National Service. 3. ______I think about my grandmotherÊs death, I feel sad. 4. I refused to believe that someone had murdered him ______I read the report of his death on paper. 5. We checked in earlier ______we will be sure of a seat. 6. Helmi has wanted to be a teacher ______he was young. 7. The vendors spoke ______they were angry. 8. I wouldnÊt mind staying in a hostel ______the rooms are clean. 9. ______we wanted to eat seafood, we went to Port Klang yesterday. 10. It began to rain heavily ______the ship reached shore. 11. Harry decided to go diving, ______he had a bad cold. 12. ______you feel hungry, help yourself to the food in the fridge. 13. ______they were away on holidays, I helped to take care of their home. 14. ______I started working full-time, I donÊt have time for recreational activities. 15. ______I was leaving for home the other day, I met my childhood friend. 16. You can borrow the novel ______you return it soon.

17. The notice was published ______all might know the facts. 18. He saved all his allowances ______he could buy a motorcycle. 19. Johnny asked ______he might have a holiday next semester. 20. Muhammad was so tired ______he could scarcely stand.

Answers 1. As the bakery didnÊt attract enough customers, it closed down. 2. While he was in office, he created the National Service. 3. Whenever I think about my grandmotherÊs death, I feel sad. 4. I refused to believe that someone had murdered him until I read the report of his death on paper. 5. We checked in earlier so that we will be sure of a seat. 6. Helmi has wanted to be a teacher since he was young. 7. The vendors spoke as if they were angry. 8. I wouldnÊt mind staying in a hostel as long as the rooms are clean. 9. Since we wanted to eat seafood, we went to Port Klang yesterday. 10. It began to rain heavily before the ship reached shore. 11. Harry decided to go diving, even though he had a bad cold. 12. If you feel hungry, help yourself to the food in the fridge. 13. While they were away on holidays, I helped to take care of their home. 14. Since I started working full-time, I donÊt have time for recreational activities. 15. As I was leaving for home the other day, I met my childhood friend. 16. You can borrow the novel provided that you return it soon. 17. The notice was published in order that all might know the facts. 18. He saved all his allowances so that he could buy a motorcycle. 19. Johnny asked whether he might have a holiday next semester. 20. Muhammad was so tired that he could scarcely stand.

7.2 SENTENCE TYPES

A sentence expresses a statement, a question, a command or an exclamation. In the written form it begins with a capital letter and ends with a full stop, a question mark or an exclamation mark.

Examples:

The children were playing in the garden. Statement Where are they? Question DonÊt make noise. Command What a beautiful car! Exclamation

However, in terms of form, a sentence can be Simple, Compound or Complex. These are the three sentence types in English.

ACTIVITY 7.5 Given below are three sets of sentences: A, B, and C. Can you identify the sentence type, Simple, Compound or Complex, of each set of sentences? Explain the criteria you use to differentiate them.

Set A Set B Set C 1." The college made 1." He mixed the dough, 1." If it is cold, I will use her a director. but we baked it. my shawl. 2." Miss Irene praised 2." You can either pay up or 2." Ahmad told me that his the drama cast. face the consequences. father would come. 3." Jack and Jill are 3." She eats moderately, yet 3." I didnÊt want to buy the close friends. she is fat. player because it is 4." Teach me how to 4." She was shivering, so we expensive. knit this shirt. gave her our coat. 4." The dress which has the 5." He is transferring to 5." The man turned and left lace trimmings is mine. Kuching today. the shop. 5." I will never forget the day when I got my driving license. Sentence Type: Sentence Type: Sentence Type:

Criteria: Criteria: Criteria

7.2.1 Simple Sentences

Set A consists of simple sentences. A simple sentence is made up of a single clause with only one finite verb, which is also known as an independent clause. The finite verbs in the sentences in Set A are made, praised, are, teach, and is transferring. A simple sentence can stand alone as a grammatically complete sentence.

ACTIVITY 7.6

This is a list of expressions. Some are simple sentences but the rest are not. Can you identify the simple sentences? What criteria do you use in identifying them? 1. Susan gave her mother a rose for her birthday. 2. And pushed the cart around the market all morning. 3. I had to attend lectures the whole afternoon. 4. Or could attend the seminar next month. 5. Some flour for cakes and five loaves of bread. 6. Works in the operation theatre.

A simple sentence presents a single idea. In fact, simple sentences, because they present ideas clearly, are useful for creating emphasis. However, the use of too many simple sentences can make your writing choppy.

A simple sentence has two main parts: subject and predicate. There are only seven elements of clause structure, yet out of these seven, any number of simple sentences can be made. Below are the seven different patterns of a simple sentence.

Simple Sentences Sentence Elements She laughed. SV

The weather is getting cooler. SVCs She was in her bedroom. SVA

All the girls love cooking. SVOd

My friend will lend us his new i-pod. SVOiOd

The secretary referred me to her manager. SVOdA

The chairperson declared the meeting open. SVOdCo Note: You will learn about the seven sentence patterns of simple sentences in Topic 9.

7.2.2 Compound Sentences

Set B consists of compound sentences. A compound sentence is made up of two or more independent clauses connected to one another by a coordinating conjunction. The coordinating conjunctions used in the sentences in Set B are but, or, yet, so and and. Each independent clause is complete by itself and can stand alone. In sentence (6), the subject „the man‰ has been omitted in the second independent clause. This is referred to as ellipsis. For more detailed information, refer to the Collins COBUILD English Grammar, p. 374. • The man turned and (the man) left the shop. • She came into the office but (she) didnÊt say anything.

A compound sentence is most effective when you use it to create a sense of balance or contrast between two or more equally important pieces of information. The coordinating conjunctions show the relationship between the two ideas.

The two parts of the compound sentence need to be linked correctly, with a comma and then a coordinating conjunction at the place where one sentence ends and the other begins. Otherwise we will have a sentence error called a run-on sentence as in the following example. • The night was cold we forgot to bring our jackets. (run-on sentence)

The night was cold, and we forgot to bring our jackets. (compound sentence)

Forming Compound Sentences Compound sentences are formed by linking simple sentences. A compound sentence contains two or more independent clauses connected to one another with a coordinating conjunction. These independent clauses refer to two separate actions which are equally important. Independent clauses in compound sentences can be joined in one of three ways: • Independent Clauses may be joined by a coordinating conjunction, which indicates the relationship between the sentences. The coordinators are as

follows: for, and, nor, but, or, yet, so. (Helpful hint: The first letter of each of the conjunctions spells FANBOYS.)

Coordinating Independent Clause Independent Clause Conjunction I had a terrible migraine last so I couldnÊt go out. night

When using a coordinating conjunction to join two independent clauses or two sentences, we have to use a comma before the conjunction. • They lived in a beautiful condominium, yet they were not happy. However, if the independent clauses are short and well-balanced, a comma is not necessary. • She is kind so she helps everyone. • Independent clauses that are related may be joined by a semicolon (;) to form a compound sentence. A semicolon is normally used when the independent clauses are closely related and the relationship is implied.

Independent Clause Semicolon Independent Clause I had a terrible migraine last night ; I couldnÊt go out.

• Independent Clauses may also be joined by a semicolon followed by a conjunctive adverb which indicates the relationship between the two independent clauses or simple sentences.

Conjunctive Independent Independent Clause Semicolon Adverb Clause I had a terrible migraine last night ; therefore, I couldnÊt go out.

Conjunctive adverbs are used to show how the ideas in the second independent clause are related to the meaning of ideas in the first sentence. Rozakis (2003) points out that „⁄a semicolon and a conjunctive adverb together indicate different relationships, depending on the conjunctive adverbs. The relationships are chiefly examples, continuation and contrast.‰ The following is a list of frequently used conjunctive adverbs.

also incidentally nonetheless as a result indeed on the contrary besides in fact on the other hand consequently in other words otherwise finally instead still for example likewise then furthermore meanwhile therefore however nevertheless next

ACTIVITY 7.7 Link the sentences below to form a compound sentence. Use suitable coordinating conjunctions. 1. The agenda for the meeting will be changed. I know several politicians will not like the change. 2. The promotion is only valid for one month. You must act fast. 3. Our instructor was absent. We cancelled the rehearsal. 4. He had no proper qualifications. He got the job. 5. They left for Ipoh early in the morning. They are still not there. 6. He ran to the central station. He missed the train. 7. We must finish our assignment on time. The lecturer will get angry with us. 8. Your arguments are quite good. They do not convince me. 9. It was raining heavily. We decided to change our mind. 10. I have warned her many times. She refused to listen to me.

7.2.3 Complex Sentences

Set C consists of complex sentences. A complex sentence has an independent clause joined by one or more dependent clauses. Dependent clauses cannot stand alone because they do not express a complete thought. The dependent clause gives more information about the independent clause, and is introduced by a subordinating conjunction such as because, since, after, although, or when, a

relative pronoun such as that, who, or which or a relative adverb such as when, why, or where.

In Set C, the dependent clauses in sentences (1), (2) and (3) are introduced by subordinating conjunctions if, that and because respectively. In sentence 4, the dependent clause is introduced by a relative pronoun, which, while in sentence 5, the dependent clause is introduced by a relative adverb, when.

Forms of Complex Sentences The following are some of the ways of forming complex sentences using three different types of dependent clauses (a noun clause, an adverb clause or a relative clause).

Complex sentences containing adverbial clauses can be formed in two ways:

Dependent Clause Introduced by Subordinating Independent Clause Conjunction I went to the hypermarket after I finished work.

You can also form a complex sentence containing adverbial clause in this manner.

Dependent Clause Introduced by a comma Independent Clause Subordinating conjunction After I finished work , I went to the hypermarket.

The term Âperiodic sentenceÊ is used to refer to a complex sentence beginning with a dependent clause and ending with an independent clause. Periodic sentences can be effective because the completed thought occurs at the end of the sentence. Thus, the first part of the sentence can build up to the meaning that comes at the end.

When the independent clause comes first, a comma should not be used to separate the two clauses. However, if the dependent clause comes first, a comma should be used to separate the two clauses.

Pollock (1982) states that „After an independent clause, a comma is usually used before the word „through‰, „although‰, „even though‰, „while‰, „in spite of the fact that‰ because they often introduce ideas that are unnecessary or connected loosely with the idea in the independent clause.

Complex sentences containing noun clauses are as below. The words in bold are noun clauses. • I donÊt know where Lilian went last night.

• That she told us the truth made us happy. • What you are planning is none of my business. • I canÊt understand why the meeting was cancelled.

Finally, sentences containing relative clauses (or dependent clauses) are also complex because they contain an independent clause and a dependent clause. The relative clauses in the following examples are in bold. • The boy who came just now is my brother. • I bought a car that cost RM100,000. • That is the place where she was born.

Complex sentences are more effective than compound sentences because a complex sentence indicates clearer and more specific relationships between the main parts of the sentence. The subordinating conjunction „although‰, for instance, tells us that the idea in the dependent clause contrasts with the idea in the main clause.

ACTIVITY 7.8

First sentence: He has retired.

Second sentence: Encik Salim keeps himself busy with some social work.

Coordinated : • Encik Salim keeps himself busy with some social work and he has retired.

Subordinated: • Although he has retired, Encik Salim keeps himself busy with some social work. • Encik Salim keeps himself busy with some social work because he has retired. • Since Encik Salim keeps himself busy with some social work, he has retired.

1. Which sentence is more logical?

2. How do you decide which ideas need to be coordinated or subordinated?

3. From the examples above, which subordinating conjunction best expresses the relationships between the independent clause and the dependent clause?

ACTIVITY 7.9

Form a complex sentence by completing the following statements. Be careful of the meaning indicated by each subordinating conjunction,

1. The life of a student nurse is often difficult because ______although______

2. The train fare will remain the same until______unless______

3. I am planning to move in with my parents so that ______until ______

4. IÊll probably visit England next year even though______in spite of the fact that ______

5. The stewardess told us to sit wherever ______as soon as ______

• There are two different types of conjunctions: coordinating conjunctions and subordinating conjunctions.

• Coordinate when you want to link equal related independent clauses. We can coordinate independent clauses by using coordinating conjunctions, correlative conjunctions or a semicolon and a conjunctive adverb.

• Subordinate when you want to show a relationship between two or more ideas, one of which is more important than the others are. Subordinating conjunctions are used to introduce adverbial clauses that depend on the independent clause for their meaning.

• Sentences consist of one or more than one clauses. Much of the grammar of sentence structure is concerned with the systems of connection, which allow clauses to be joined together.

• Sentences are classified by structure. In this topic, we looked at three categories: simple sentences, compound sentences and complex sentences.

Compound subject Run-on sentence Conjunctive adverb Semicolon Fragment

Part I (a) Study the following sentences and state whether they are simple sentences, compound sentences or complex sentences. (b) For each compound or complex sentence, underline the conjunction or the relative pronoun used.

No Sentence Type 1. The Malay Mail logo makes the paper stand out in the newsstands. 2. We selected this car after we had tried it several times. 3. I shall not go to the dinner unless I am invited. 4. I have warned him many times, yet he refused to listen to me. 5. The book that Aminah read is on the shelf. 6. Explain it clearly so that everyone understands the purpose of this charity drive. 7. The number of buses will depend on the responses of the pupils towards the trip. 8. My favourite reading sections are the Sofa session, sports, campus and the Features. 9. I didnÊt want to leave the party, nor did my sister. 10. I always put my car keys where I can find them.

Part II Identify 4 simple sentences, 2 compound sentences and 4 complex sentences from the passage below. Write your answers in the columns provided.

Dainty colonial charm up in FraserÊs Hill ThereÊs a distinct colonial charm about FraserÊs Hill. As soon as you reach the hilltop, colonial bungalows and very English gardens greet you. Even the roads sport English names, such as Lady Maxwell Road and Lady Guillemard Road. What matters is that it is arguably the most exquisite and dainty hill station in the country.

FraserÊs Hill owes its heritage to Louis J. Fraser, who in the late 1890s trudged through the jungle tracks from Kuala Kubu to Tras in Pahang, pulling a team of mules laden with crude tin ore. In 1917, two Englishmen, Bishop C.J. Ferguson- Davie and Reverend A. B. Champion, who were on holiday in Malaya, went searching for Fraser but could not find him. Instead, they stumbled upon a hill which seemed eminently suitable for a hill station. They saw the potential of developing the hill into a resort for the British colonialists and sold the idea to the British administrators. Today, FraserÊs Hill, which is perched 1,500 metres above sea level, is famous throughout the country.

As expected, the hill resort attracts British and Australians longing for something like home. Almost a ÂLittle EnglandÊ, FraserÊs Hill stays cool throughout the year and is still very popular for its laidback lifestyle. Activities include the annual International Bird Watching Competition as the hill is home to hundreds of species. Other activities include golfing, horse riding, cycling and jungle trekking.

1. 2. Simple 3. 4. 1. Compound 2. 1. 2. Complex 3. 4.

(COORDINATION AND SUBORDINATION)

Part I

No Sentence Function 1. We went swimming ______the weather was great. 2. Rani has a piano, ______she plays it really well. 3. The exhibit was fantastic, ______some didnÊt like it. 4. We must eat to live ______we should not live to eat. 5. Clearly these people are not insane, ______are they fools. 6. She was really starving, ______she made herself a sandwich. 7. The child was only two years old, _____ he was not afraid of the sea. 8. The policeman told Sean not to look back, ______he could not help it.

9. To get from the mainland to Penang Island, you can drive, _____ you can ride the ferry. 10. ThereÊs so much haze lately! Maybe itÊs because of the open fires ______maybe itÊs just pollution.

Part II Combine these two sentences into one using a suitable subordinating conjunction.

1. The Matthews were having a party. Their daughter was getting engaged.

2. Marie could not attend the function. Her clothes were not suitable.

3. May heard a strange sound on the roof. She became very frightened.

4. The knocking continued all night. Laila could not sleep.

5. Deer are cute. They eat all your flowers.

6. He took his MUET exam again. He only scored Band 4.

7. My wife likes to travel abroad. I prefer to stay at home for my vacation.

8. Malaysia is beautiful and peaceful. I canÊt imagine living anywhere else.

9. I am planning to carpool with my friends. I can save some money.

10. I had a wonderful holiday. It was too short.

Alexander, L.G. (1988). Longman English grammar. New York, NY: Longman.

Biber, D., Conrad, S. & Leech, G. (2002). Longman student grammar of spoken and written English. Harlow, Essex: Pearson Education Limited.

Lester, M. & Beason, L. (2004). Handbook of English grammar and usage. New York, NY: McGraw Hill.

Master, P. A. (1996). Systems in English grammar: An introduction for language teachers. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall Regents.

Pollock, C.W. (1982). Communicate what you mean. Grammar for high level ESL students. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall.

Quirk, R. & Greenbaum, S. (1990). A studentÊs grammar of the English language. Harlow, Essex: Longman.

Rozakis, L. (2003). English grammar for the utterly confused. New York, NY: McGraw Hill.

Sinclair, J. (ed.) (1991). Collins COBUILD studentÊs grammar. London, England: HarperCollins.

Sinclair, J. (ed.) (1993). Collins COBUILD English grammar. London, England: HarperCollins.

TTooppiicc  Phrases and

Clauses 88

LEARNING OUTCOMES By the end of this topic, you should be able to:

1. Differentiate between phrases and clauses in terms of form; 2. Identify different types of phrases and clauses in terms of form;

3. Differentiate between finite and non-finite clauses; 4. Differentiate between main/independent and subordinate/ dependent clauses; and

5. Describe the forms of different types of phrases and clauses.

" INTRODUCTION

So far, you have learned about the forms and functions of single-word grammar units of a sentence, like nouns, pronouns, verbs, adjectives, adverbs, conjunctions, determiners and prepositions (also referred to as word classes). Now, you will look into two longer grammar units of a sentence, that is, phrases and clauses. They are also referred to as constituents of a sentence. Phrases and clauses are defined differently in contemporary and traditional grammar*. In this topic, the definitions proposed by contemporary grammar will be used.

* Refer to Stern (2000) for a clear explanation of the differences between contemporary and traditional grammar on phrases and clauses.

8.1 PHRASES VS. CLAUSES

In this section, you will look into the differences between phrases and clauses, in terms of form. In contemporary grammar, a phrase is defined as a constituent with a noun/pronoun, a verb/verb group, an adjective, an adverb or a preposition* as the head word (also called head). The head word is the main word in a phrase and determines what type of phrase it is. A phrase (in bold) may consist of a single word or a coherent string of words, as in the following examples: 1. My neighbour has just moved in. (A phrase with a noun „neighbour‰ as the head word) 2. She came just now. (A phrase with a pronoun „she‰ as the head word) 3. The disciplinary committee will be handling the case. (A phrase with a finite verb group „will be handling‰ as the head word) 4. Siti has a very beautiful cat. (A phrase with an adjective „beautiful‰ as the head word) 5. The school choir sang melodiously. (A phrase with an adverb „melodiously‰ as the head word) 6. The money is on the table. (A phrase with a preposition „on‰ as the head word*)

* Note: Some grammar books do not consider „preposition‰ as the head of a phrase. Please refer to Jackson (1982).

In a sentence, there can be many phrases with some of the phrases embedded in other phrases. For example, in a simple sentence like „The priceless painting is hanging elegantly on the wall‰, you can parse it into numerous phrases as shown in Figure 8.1 below.

Figure 8.1: Phrasal analysis of a simple sentence

You can describe the above sentence as consisting of six phrases. The first major phrase is the one headed by the noun „painting‰ and embedded in it is another phrase headed by the adjective „priceless‰. The second major phrase is the one headed by the verb group „is hanging‰ and embedded in it are two more phrases, one headed by the adverb „elegantly‰ and another headed by the preposition „on‰. Embedded within the latter phrase is another phrase which is headed by the noun „wall‰. This is how you can look at a sentence at phrase level. At word level, as you have learnt in the earlier topics, you can analyse the above sentence according to their word classes. • The priceless painting is hanging elegantly on the wall. (Det) (Adj) (N) (Aux) (V) (Adv) (Prep) (Det) (N)

You have seen what a phrase is. Let us examine what a clause is as defined by contemporary grammarians. Unlike phrases, a clause is not headed by a noun/pronoun, a verb/verb group, an adjective, an adverb, or a preposition. It is a constituent consisting of a subject (S) and a verb (V). The verb may be finite (F) or non-finite (NF). You refer to the clause with a finite verb group as a FINITE Clause and the one with a non-finite verb group as a NON-FINITE Clause. A non-finite clause may or may not have a subject. The one without a subject is more common. Non-finite clauses do not stand alone. You use them together with finite clauses.

The following are examples of finite and non-finite clauses. The relevant clauses are bracketed.

(a)" Finite Clauses

(S) (F) 1. (Swans eat water plants).

(S) (F) (S) (F) 2. (Simon came early) but (Peter was late.)

(S) (F) (S) (F) 3. (Everyone knows) (that he has been promoted.)

(S) (F) (S) (F) 4. (When Hassan arrived,) (the group had left already.)

(S) (F) (S) (F) 5. (He finally found the boy) (who borrowed the book.)

(S) (S) (F) (F) 6. [The house (where I had lived for two years) has been demolished.]

Are you familiar with the structural patterns of the above sentences? You should. You came across these structural patterns in Topic 7 on Sentence Types. Sentence (1) is a simple sentence with only one subject and one finite verb. It has only one finite clause. Sentence (2) is a compound sentence, comprising two finite clauses joined by a coordinating conjunction (i.e. but). Each clause has a subject and a finite verb. Sentences (3), (4), (5) and (6) are all complex sentences with two finite clauses, each consisting of a subject and a finite verb. One of the two clauses in each of the sentences begins either with a subordinating conjunction (i.e. that, when), a relative pronoun (i.e. who, which also doubles up as the subject) or a relative adverb (i.e. where). In Sentence (6), one clause (i.e. where I lived two years ago) is nested in another clause (i.e. The house has been demolished).

(b)" Non-finite Clauses*

• Without a subject

(NF) 1." (Entering the house), he dropped his bag.

(NF) 2. (Stunned by the news), she could not say a word.

(NF) 3. The board agreed (to reinstate him as the manager).

(NF) 4. All he could do was (wait patiently).

• With a subject

(S) (NF) 1. (The matter having been settled amicably), we left.

(S) (NF) 2. (The work done), we went home immediately.

(S) (NF) 3. The best thing would be (for you to tell the truth).

(S) (NF) 4. (Rather than John do it), I would do the work myself.

* Note: Non-finite clauses are referred to as phrases in traditional grammar (refer to Klammer & Schulz, 1992).

ACTIVITY 8.1 Study the underlined parts in bold in the following sentences and categorise them as Phrases or Clauses. For clauses, categorise them further as Finite or Non-finite Clauses.

1. She lives in a wooden hut. 2. Though he started late, he completed the work on time.

3. That is the boy who stole my money. 4. The course participants like your lectures. 5. If you shout, she can definitely hear you. 6. School children like to watch T.V. 7. The food in that restaurant is really delicious. 8. We do not know where to look for the stranger. 9. We havenÊt met each other for a very long time. 10. I remembered posting the letters. 11. Hoping to get a seat, he comes early. 12. As it was raining, we decided to stay back. 13. I saw the man enter the room. 14. He didnÊt turn up because he had gone outstation. 15. The cute baby can talk fairly well. 16. Located in the town centre, the shop is easily accessible. 17. The roof of the building collapsed. 18. The old building in front of us will be converted into a heritage centre. 19. Our family doctor has invited us for dinner. 20. As soon as they reached the camping site, they put up their tents. 21. Shocked by the news, he could not utter a word. 22. When alerted to the problem, the board convened an emergency meeting. 23. By 10 oÊclock, Sam will have been waiting for 2 hours. 24. The scenery at the mountain is amazingly enchanting. 25. To win the race is not at all difficult now. 26. Hunting wild animals is prohibited by the government. 27. Why he was murdered is still a mystery. 28. While walking down the road, she tripped and fell. 29. My father has just bought a beautiful car. 30. What he will do is spoil the whole plan.

31. The man who will be teaching us is a new lecturer. 32. The guide informed the tourists that the delay was inevitable. 33. The problem is apparently difficult for them. 34. Taking herbal supplements has become popular among old people. 35. Those children can dance very gracefully. 36. Can you remember the day when we first met? 37. Having taken his lunch, Hassan went out to play squash. 38. The baby was sleeping very soundly while her mother was cooking. 39. All I did was hit him on the head. 40. She regretted accepting the offer to work in Kuala Lumpur.

You may wish to present your answers in the following format:

Clauses Phrases Finite Clauses Non-Finite Clauses

8.2 PHRASES

You will now examine phrases in greater detail. You will learn how to identify different types of phrases and the elements that make up each type of phrase.

In section 8.1, it is mentioned that the head word in a phrase determines what type of phrase it is. Therefore, you refer to the phrase with an adverb as the head word as an adverb phrase (AdvP); with an adjective, as an adjective phrase (AdjP); with a noun/pronoun, as a noun phrase (NP); with a preposition, as a prepositional phrase; (PP) and with a finite verb group, as a verb phrase (VP).

ACTIVITY 8.2 In Activity 8.1, you must have identified the following expressions as phrases.

List of Phrases • in a wooden hut • our neighbour • like your lectures • will have been waiting for two hours • school children • amazingly enchanting • is really delicious • now • we • by the government • early • beautiful • The cute baby • apparently difficult • fairly well • them • easily accessible • very gracefully • collapsed • was cooking • in front of us

• for dinner

Now categorise the phrases into: (a) Adverb phrases (b) Adjective phrases (c) Noun phrases (d) Prepositional phrases (e) Verb phrases

Answers are provided at the end of this activity but you are advised to go through the activity before looking at them.

Type Description Example Adverb Phrase Phrase with an adverb (in " early (AdvP) bold) as the head word " fairly well " now " very gracefully Adjective Phrase Phrase with an adjective (in " easily accessible (AdjP) bold) as the head word " amazingly enchanting " beautiful " apparently difficult Noun Phrase Phrase with a noun/pronoun " school children (NP) (in bold) as the head word " we " the cute baby " our neighbour " them Prepositional Phrase Phrase with a preposition (in " in a wooden hut (PP) bold) as the head word " in front of us " for dinner " by the government Verb Phrase Phrase with a finite verb " like your lectures (VP) group (in bold) as the head " is really delicious word " collapsed " will have been waiting for two hours " was cooking

• An adverb phrase (AdvP) consists of an adverb (adv) as its head word. In the above examples, the adverbs acting as the head words are early, well, now, gracefully. These adverbs may, however, be premodified by another adverb such as very and fairly as in the above examples. These premodifying adverbs by themselves are also labelled as adverb phrases. A typical adverb phrase may therefore be expressed symbolically as follows:

AdvP (AdvP) + Adv

• An adjective phrase (AdjP) consists of an adjective as its head word. In the above examples, the adjectives are accessible, enchanting, beautiful and difficult. Again, as in the adverb phrases, the adjectives in the phrases may be premodified by another adverb. In the above examples, the premodifiers are easily, amazingly and apparently. These premodifying adverbs by themselves are also labelled as adverb phrases. A typical adjective phrase may be expressed symbolically as follows:

AdjP (AdvP) + Adj

• A noun phrase (NP) consists of a noun/pronoun as its head word. In the above examples, the nouns (N) are children, baby and neighbour, while the pronouns (Pron) are we and them. The head noun may be premodified by a determiner (e.g. the, our), a noun (e.g. school) and/or an adjective (e.g. cute).The premodifying adjective is also labelled as an adjective phrase. There is no premodification when the head word in a noun phrase is a pronoun. A typical noun phrase may be expressed symbolically as follows:

NP (Det) + (AdjP) + (N) + N OR NP Pron

• A prepositional phrase (PP) consists of a preposition (Prep) and a noun phrase. In the above examples, the prepositions are in, in front of, for and by, while the noun phrases are a wooden hut, us, dinner and the government. A typical prepositional phrase may be symbolically expressed as follows:

PP Prep + NP

• A verb phrase (VP) has a verb group (Vgp) as its head word. In the above examples, the verb groups are like, are, collapsed and will have been waiting. The phrase also includes other constituents that complete it, e.g. your lectures (NP), really delicious (Adj), and for two hours (PP). A finite verb group by itself can be a verb phrase, e.g. collapsed, was cooking. A typical verb phrase may be expressed symbolically as follows:

VP Vgp OR VP Vgp + NP OR VP Vgp + AdjP OR VP Vgp + PP

The type of constituent used to complete a verb phrase is dependent on the type of main verb in the verb group (refer to Topic 2). You will learn more about these verb patterns in Topic 9.

Biber, Conrad and Leech (2002) label a verb phrase that include other constituents that follow the verb group as long verb phrase, while a verb phrase is one that is made up of the verb group alone.

Additional Notes:

You have seen that a noun phrase is either made up a noun or pronoun as its head word. The head noun may also be premodified by a determiner, an adjective phrase and/or a noun. For more complex noun phrases, the head word in a noun phrase can also be followed by a postmodifier, which may take the form of a prepositional phrase, a non-finite clause, a finite clause, an adverb phrase, or an adjective phrase Thus, the structure of a noun phrase can be more complicated as indicated by the following examples.

NOUN PHRASE Premodifier (s) Head word Postmodifier (s) The new psychology book with a plastic cover (prepositional phrase) All those tall boys sitting near the door (non-finite clause) A really unbelievably cottage that overlooks a river. beautiful (finite clause) something strange (adjective phrase) The only way out (adverb phrase)

Examples: 1. The new psychology book with a plastic cover is written by a university professor. 2. The principal wanted to see all those tall boys sitting near the door. 3. He has bought a really unbelievably beautiful cottage that overlooks a river. 4. Something strange has been happening in the house lately. 5. The only way out is over there.

ACTIVITY 8.3

Study the underlined parts in bold in the following sentences and label them as: (a) adverb phrases (AdvP) (b) adjective phrases (AdjP) (c) noun phrases (NP) (d) prepositional phrases (PP) (e) verb phrases (VP)

1. The old man could still see very clearly. 2. The boys are running across the road. 3. I have been reading some interesting books. 4. The food tastes too salty. 5. The weather tomorrow is expected to be cloudy. 6. The pupils have placed their work on the table. 7. Because of the explosion, the whole room shook. 8. He was walking slowly. 9. This concert is suitable for anyone keen on modern jazz. 10. All the rubbish stacked at the back door is an eye sore. 11. He has just bought a striking shirt. 12. The lecturer left in a hurry after he received a phone call. 13. There will be 400 participants at the conference. 14. The house is exceptionally big for two people. 15. Did you see the strange man walking into the room? 16. School books are not cheap nowadays. 17. Beyond them lay the vast fields. 18. The police had found the newly born baby boy who was reported missing. 19. The students of this school are mostly from the rural areas. 20. Peter is quite happily married with five children.

21. Time passes rather fast during the holidays. 22. The annual party was surprisingly successful. 23. The generous millionaire has donated a van to the orphanage. 24. The naughty students have made the lecturer extremely angry. 25. They were surprised that he could sing amazingly well. 26. The seemingly honest man turned out to be a conman. 27. The government announced a new salary scheme for lecturers. 28. You will make her angry if you donÊt do the assignment. 29. Rosemary found some money in the drawer yesterday. 30. A Tale of Two Cities was written by Charles Dickens.

8.3 CLAUSES

In this section, you will learn about the different types of clauses, the finite clauses and non-finite clauses.

8.3.1 Finite Clauses

In Section 8.1, you have learnt that a finite clause should consist of a subject and a finite verb group and in Activity 8.1, you must have identified the relevant finite clauses. The following tasks will further sensitise you to the various characteristics of these finite clauses.

ACTIVITY 8.4 The finite clauses that you have identified are now placed in two Columns, Column A and Column B.

Column A Column B she can definitely hear you Though he started late We havenÊt met each other who stole my money they put up their tents As it was raining the delay was inevitable because he had gone outstation The man is a new lecturer Why he was murdered The baby was sleeping soundly when we first met

Can you tell the difference between the two sets of finite clauses?

You must have realised that finite clauses in Column A can stand on their own. They are complete by themselves. You call these clauses independent clauses (or main clauses). On the other hand, finite clauses in Column B cannot stand on their own. By themselves, they are not complete. You call them dependent clauses (or subordinate clauses). To complete them, they need to be used with independent clauses as in the following examples.

Examples:

DC (Dependent Clause) IC (Independent Clause) • (Though he started late), (he completed the work on time).

IC DC • (That is the boy) (who stole my money).

DC IC • (As it was raining), (we decided to stay back).

IC DC • (He didnÊt turn up) (because he had gone outstation).

DC IC • (Why he was murdered) (is still a mystery).

IC DC • (Can you remember the day) (when we first met)?

The above examples are all complex sentences. A complex sentence can thus be redefined as one consisting of one independent clause and at least one dependent clause. The dependent clause is introduced by a subordinating conjunction, a relative pronoun or a relative adverb. However, if it is a compound sentence, it will consist of at least two independent clauses joined by a coordinating conjunction, as in the following example:

ID ID • (Jane accidentally dropped the vase) and (it broke into pieces).

A simple sentence will only have one independent clause, as in the following example:

ID • (Jane accidentally dropped the vase).

ACTIVITY 8.5 For each of the following sentences, bracket each finite clause and label it as Independent Clause (IC) or Dependent Clause (DC).

Check your answers with a partner/tutor. 1. He is healthy because he takes regular exercise. 2. She usually does her shopping on Saturday or Sunday. 3. I like classical music, but my brother prefers pop music. 4. He can speak Fujian and Mandarin. 5. When they arrived, the show had ended. 6. The man whom you talked to just now is my uncle. 7. Either Gopal or Samy had borrowed the book. 8. They couldnÊt read although they had been taught. 9. If you canÊt go, you must find a replacement. 10. I have just bought a house that costs RM 200,000. 11. You can stay here provided that you do not make noise. 12. The children were so excited that they could hardly sit still. 13. He looked as if he had seen a ghost. 14. They seemed to cause trouble wherever they went.

15. Get an early night so that you will be fresh in the morning. 16. As the weather was bad, we decided to call off the trip. 17. You will feel all right when you get used to the cold weather. 18. They found the journey too hazardous, so they aborted their plan. 19. He was given extra time, yet he could not complete the work. 20. He told me that the police were looking for your neighbour. 21. I do not know the reason why he resigned from the company. 22. We are hoping that he will heed our advice. 23. That the principal will retire soon is no longer a secret. 24. Our lecturer said that the test would be held later. 25. Mr. Yap, who has recently migrated to Australia, is an architect.

ACTIVITY 8.6

Study the three sets of sentences, Set A, Set B and Set C, and identify their similarities and differences.

(Hint: Pay special attention to the dependent clauses in the sentences)

SET A • They canÊt recognise the girl who is sitting near the door. • We met the lady whose house is located beside the school. • The book that you bought yesterday is very expensive. • The committee asked him many questions which he could not answer. • She is the doctor whom I have worked with before. • They could not locate the cabinet where you kept the files. • The time when the economy will recover is quite unpredictable. • The reason why he failed the test seems obvious.

SET B • When the concert ended, the audience cheered. • We plan to visit Pulau Langkawi because it is a beautiful island. • The police car pulled up where the crowd had gathered. • Ramli worked hard so that he could buy a house. • If you donÊt repair the car properly, I will not pay you. • She bought the expensive toy although her money was running low. • The crowd was so large that it overflowed the hall. • The old lady treated him as if he was her own son.

SET C • Hassan announced that the assembly had been cancelled. • Whoever chairs the meeting must be firm. • We didnÊt notice whom he signalled to. • I know where she has kept the money. • I wonder if Ivy is joining us. • The teacher told us why the rainbow has seven colours. • Which course I should study is my biggest problem. • What you did puzzled everyone.

You may wish to present your answers in the following format:

What is common

What is different Set A Set B Set C

The three sets of sentences are all complex sentences, with each sentence comprising two finite clauses. One of the clauses is independent, while the other is dependent. Can you underline the dependent clauses?

• In Set A, each dependent clause is introduced by either a relative pronoun (e.g. who, whose, that, which or whom) or a relative adverb (e.g. where, when or why). This type of dependent clause is called RELATIVE CLAUSE, and it modifies the noun phrase preceding it and answers the question „which one?‰

Examples

They canÊt recognise the The relative clause (in parenthesis) is introduced by girl (who is sitting near a relative pronoun, who. The clause modifies NP the door). „the girl‰ and answers the question „Which girl? " Which girl canÊt they recognise? The one who is sitting near the door The reason (why he The relative clause (in parenthesis) is introduced by failed the test) seems a relative adverb, why. The clause modifies NP „the obvious. reason‰, and answers the question „Which reason?‰ " Which reason seems obvious? The one why he failed the test

More specifically, the above examples are Defining Relative Clauses in the sense that they identify or explain which person or thing we are talking about. Without the relative clauses, you are not clear which girl or reason is being referred to. There is, however, another type of relative clause known as Non-Defining Relative Clauses. These clauses do not identify the noun phrases preceding them. They merely provide extra information about the noun phrases.

Examples: 1. The person (who played Gandhi in that movie) is a wonderful actor. 2. Ben Kingsley, (who played Gandhi in that movie), is a wonderful actor.

In sentence (1), if you remove the relative clause „who played Gandhi in that movie‰, you are not clear on who is being referred to. However, in sentence (2), the relative clause can be omitted, yet you know who is being referred to. The relative clause in (2) is non-defining. It merely provides additional information about Ben Kingsley. Table 8.1 provides more examples of defining and non- defining relative clauses in comparison.

Table 8.1: Comparison between Defining and Non-Defining Relative Clauses

Defining Relative Clause Non-Defining Relative Clause I have met the lecturer (who will be I have met Dr Rahman, (who will be teaching us next semester). teaching us next semester). The boy (whom you talked to this Rashid, (whom you talked to this morning) is a very intelligent student. morning), is a very intelligent student. The man (whose son is suffering from a My form teacher, (whose son is suffering chronic disease) has appealed for public from a chronic disease), has appealed for donations. public donations. The grammar book (which we bought for Collins COBUILD English Grammar, the course) is a good reference book. (which we bought for the course), is a He came from the town (where I was good reference book. born). He came from Bandar Indah, (where I was born).

It should be noted that most of the time whether a clause is defining or not is not purely a matter of grammar. It depends on what you mean to say and what you think your reader already knows. For example, look at the following pair of sentences. 1. Teachers (who are dedicated) do not mind being posted to rural schools. 2. Teachers, (who are dedicated), do not mind being posted to rural schools.

In sentence (1), the writer is talking only about a certain subset of teachers, i.e. those who are dedicated. In sentence (2), the writer is talking about all teachers. The relative clause is the same but the writer is using it for two different purposes.

One other difference between defining and non-defining relative clauses is that the relative pronoun that can only be used with defining clauses. So we can use that in sentence (1) but not (2) in the following examples: Examples 1. Teachers (that are dedicated) do not mind being posted to rural schools. 2. Teachers, (that are dedicated), do not mind being posted to rural schools. (Not that, but who)

In certain cases, you can leave out the relative pronouns or relative adverbs from the defining relative clauses if they are not the subjects of the clauses.

Examples: 1. I need to talk to someone (who I can trust). I need to talk to someone (I can trust). 2. The house (where I used to live in) is no longer around. The house (I used to live in) is no longer around.

In Set B, each dependent clause is introduced by a subordinating conjunction (e.g. where, when, so that, if, because, although, so⁄that or as if). Refer to Topic 7 for more examples of subordinating conjunctions. This type of clause is called an ADVERB CLAUSE. The adverb clause answers questions like When?, Where?, How?, Why? However, the wh-question test does not work for all adverb clauses.

(When the concert ended), The adverb clause (in parenthesis) is the audience cheered. introduced by the subordinating conjunction „when‰, and the clause answers the question „When?‰ " When did the audience cheer?‰ When the concert ended

We plan to visit Pulau The adverb clause (in parenthesis) is Langkawi (because it is a introduced by the subordinating conjunction beautiful island). „because‰ and it answers the question „Why?‰ " Why do we plan to visit Pulau Langkawi? Because it is a beautiful island

There are different kinds of adverb clauses, depending on the functional meanings of the dependent clauses. The functional meanings of the clauses are expressed by the subordinating conjunctions used. Table 8.2 below summarises the different kinds of adverb clauses with their usual subordinating conjunctions. An example of adverb clause (in parenthesis) is also provided for each kind of adverb clause.

Table 8.1: Kinds of Adverb Clauses

Kind of Subordinating Adverb Example Conjunction Clause Time when, whenever, before, Lee left immediately (after he after, since, while, as, until, received the call). till, as soon as, once Place Where, wherever (Wherever you go), you can see these food stalls. Reason/cause Because, since, as (Since the pay was too low), I decided to quit. Purpose so that, in order that He works hard (in order that he can buy a car). Result so⁄that, so that It rained so heavily (that the whole area was flooded). Condition if, unless (Unless you work for it), you will not succeed. Concession although, though, even (Though he was wealthy), he was though, even if never proud. Manner as, as though, as if, like, He behaved (as if he knew everything). Comparison as, than The boy plays chess better (than an adult does*). *Note: The verb may be omitted

• Dependent clauses in Set C are introduced by words that are also used to begin relative and adverb clauses (e.g. that, whoever, where, whom, if, why, which and what). However, they are not relative or adverb clauses but NOUN CLAUSES. They play the same role as a noun phrase in the sentences.

Examples: • Hassan announced (that the assembly had been cancelled). Hassan announced (the news) • (Whoever chairs the meeting) must be firm. (He) must be firm. • Noun clauses answer the question „What?‰ or „Who?‰

Examples:

Hassan announced (that the The noun clause (in parentheses) is assembly had been cancelled). introduced by the subordinating conjunction „that‰ and answers the question „What?‰ " What did Hassan announce? That the assembly had been cancelled.

(Whoever chairs the meeting) The noun clause (in parentheses) is must be firm. introduced by the pronoun „whoever‰ and answers the question „Who?‰ " Who must be firm? Whoever chairs the meeting

In informal speech and writing, the subordinating conjunction „that‰ in the noun clause is commonly omitted, as in the following examples: • He knew the attempt was useless. • I think we should try again.

ACTIVITY 8.7

Underline the dependent (subordinate) clauses and state whether they are: (a) ADVERBIAL CLAUSES (AC); (b) RELATIVE CLAUSES (RC); or (c) NOUN CLAUSES (NC).

For each adverbial clause, identify its specific function. For each relative clause, state whether it a defining (D) or non-defining clause (ND). 1. The wallet that I lost yesterday contained RM300.00. 2. He is the man who built our house. 3. Mr. Rama, whom you talked to just now, is our new lecturer. 4. What you said could be used as evidence against you in court. 5. A big crowd had gathered outside the bank when the police arrived.

6. I light the fire so that the house will be warm. 7. He would have done well if he had listened to my advice. 8. We decided to camp near the jungle because it was getting dark. 9. The college has informed us that we will get our exam results by next week. 10. The government which promises to cut taxes will be popular. 11. I cannot find the site where I hid the treasure. 12. My mother always wants to know where I go every day. 13. Mrs Chan was the person whose house was burglarised last night. 14. Adults who abuse children will be punished by law. 15. He spoke in such a low voice that no one could hear him.

16. Even though he was sick, he came to work. 17. Can you tell me the reason why my service is terminated? 18. He screamed frightfully as if he had seen a ghost. 19. I really cannot recall where I have left the book. 20. We shop where the prices are the lowest. 21. After he left, the committee voted on the issue. 22. The organiser will give whoever answers the question correctly a prize. 23. I had hoped that he would reconsider his decision to resign. 24. Since she started working here, the business has improved. 25. Since it was getting windy, we decided to stop the game.

8.3.2 Non-finite Clauses

In Section 8.1, you learnt that a non-finite clause consists of a non-finite verb group, and as explained in Topic 2, the structure of a non-finite verb group takes one of the following verb forms:

(a) Infinitive • Bare-infinitive • To-infinitive

(b) Participle • -ing participle • -ed participle

When a non-finite clause has an infinitive verb form, it is an infinitive clause. There are two types of infinitive clause, i.e. bare-infinitive clause and to-infinitive clause. The bare-infinitive clause consists of a bare-infinitive verb form, and the to-infinitive clause consists of a to-infinitive verb form. The following are examples of infinitive clauses (in parenthesis).

Examples:

When a non-finite clause has a participle verb form, it is a participle clause. There are two types of participle clause, i.e. -ing participle clause and -ed participle clause. The -ing participle clause consists of an -ing participle verb form, and the -ed participle clause consists of an -ed participle verb form. Given below are examples of participle clauses (in parenthesis).

Examples:

Non-finite clauses cannot stand on their own as complete sentences. They are used as dependent clauses and may be introduced by subordinating conjunctions (in bold).

Examples: • We must be careful (when dealing with problem children). • The guard watched the boys (while pretending not to). • He has been feeling healthy (since taking up Tai Chi exercise). • (If convicted), he would be sent to prison. • (Once convinced of its usefulness), he recommended the product to his friends.

ACTIVITY 8.8 In Activity 8.1, you must have identified the following expressions as non-finite clauses.

List of non-finite clauses: " to watch T.V. " To win the race " where to look for the " While walking down the stranger road " posting the letters* " spoil the whole plan " Hoping to get a seat " Taking herbal supplements* " enter the room " Having taken his lunch " Located in the town centre " to play squash " Shocked by the news " hit him on the head " When alerted to the " accepting the offer* problem *Note: These clauses are referred to as gerund phrases in traditional grammar. Refer to Klammer & Schulz (1992)

Can you categorise the non-finite clauses you have identified into (a) bare infinitive clauses (b) to-infinitive clauses (c) -ing participle clauses (d) -ed participle clauses

Check your answers with a partner/tutor.

You may wish to present your answers in the following format:

Infinitive Clause Participle Clause Bare Infinitive To-infinitive -ing participle -ed participle Clause Clause Clause Clause

• A clause is different from a phrase in that the former has a subject and a finite verb, while a phrase neither has a subject and a finite verb.

• There are four types of phrases, namely, noun phrases, adjective phrases, adverb phrases, prepositional phrases and verb phrases.

• A clause may be finite or non-finite. A finite clause consists of a subject and a finite verb group. A non-finite clause has non-finite verb group and it may or may not have a subject.

• A non-finite clause can be further categorised as a bare infinitive clause, a to- infinitive clause, an -ing participle clause or an -ed participle clause. A non- finite clause can only be used as dependent clauses.

• A finite clause can be independent or dependent. A dependent clause can be further categorised as a relative clause, an adverb clause or a noun clause.

Clause Head Constituent Independent clause Dependent clause Phrase

Read the text carefully and identify the types of phrases of the italicised parts in bold.

The qualities looked for in a spouse vary considerably between boys and girls. Selecting a wife is never easy for Mexican boys. When boys are ready to select a wife, they generally choose a girl for romantic reasons, beauty or personality. Girls tend to be more realistic about selecting a 5 husband and will very often refuse to marry a boy who is known to be lazy.

However, status factors are very important in marriage. It is usual for boys to seek out girls who are poorer and who have the same or less education, so that „the man can be the boss‰ and his family need not be 10 ashamed before her. Boys tend to avoid having affairs with girls from the more important and prosperous family, for fear of incurring reprisals from the parents of such girls. Girls, on the other hand, seek to improve their economic status with marriage, and it is rare for a girl to marry a man with less education. As a result of these attitudes, the daughters of 15 the families in the upper economic group in the village have difficulty finding husbands. They tend to marry later, and to marry more educated men or men from the outside. Quite occasionally a wealthy girl in her late twenties will marry a boy poorer than herself rather than remain unmarried in her life. The most important thing is that they are 20 customarily married in the eyes of the society.

Adapted from: Life in a Mexican Village by Oscar Lewis

1. The qualities (line 1) ______2. in a spouse (line 1) ______3. considerably (line 1) ______4. for Mexican boys (line 2) ______5. ready (line 3) ______6. more realistic (line 4) ______7. very often (line 5) ______8. are very important in marriage (line 7) ______9. can be the boss (line 9) ______

10. his family (line 9) ______11. before her (line 10) ______12. from the parents of such girls (line 12) ______13. Girls (line 12) ______14. their economic status (line 13) ______15. a man with less education (lines 13 – 14) ______16. in the upper economic group (line 15) ______17. have difficulty finding husbands (lines 15 – 16) ______18. They (line 16) ______19. more educated (line 16) ______20. from the outside. (line 17) ______21. Quite occasionally (line 17) ______22. herself (line 18) ______23. unmarried (line 19) ______24. The most important thing (line 19) ______25. customarily married (line 20) ______

1." Explain the differences between a finite and a non-finite clause. You should illustrate the differences with appropriate examples.

2." Identify the dependent clauses in the following sentences. Classify them as adverbial, relative or noun clauses. State the criteria you use in the classification. (a)" We did not know when he came. (b)" The day when he came was a secret. (c)" He found the money in the room when he came.

3." Study the following pair of sentences and explain how one is different from the other. (a)" JaneÊs cousin who lives in Penang is coming to visit me. (b)" JaneÊs cousin, who lives in Penang, is coming to visit me.

Barry, A.K. (2002). English grammar: Language as human behaviour. Upper Saddle River: NJ: Prentice Hall.

Biber, D., Conrad, S. & Leech, G. (2002). Longman student grammar of spoken and written English. Harlow, Essex: Pearson Education Limited.

Davidson, G. (2001). Phrases, clauses and sentences. Singapore: Learners Publishing.

Eastwood, J. (2005). Oxford learnerÊs grammar. Oxford, England: Oxford University Press.

Jackson, H. (1982). Analyzing English: An introduction to descriptive linguistics. Oxford, England: Pergamon Press.

Klammer, T.P. & Schulz, M. R. (1992). Analyzing English grammar. Boston, MA: Allyn & Bacon.

Leech, G. & Svatvik, J. (1975). A communicative grammar of English. London, England: Longman.

Sinclair, J. (ed.) (1991). Collins COBUILD studentÊs grammar. London, England: HarperCollins.

Sinclair, J. (ed.) (1993). Collins COBUILD English grammar. London, England: HarperCollins.

Stern, G. (2000). LearnersÊ grammar dictionary. Singapore: Learners Publishing.

TTooppiicc  Sentence

Patterns

LEARNING OUTCOMES

By the end of this topic, you should be able to: 1. Analyse the constituents of a sentence in terms of form and function;

2. Identify the subject and predicate of a sentence; 3. State the elements that make up the subject of a sentence;

4. Identify the constituents that make up the predicate of a sentence;

5. Parse a sentence into its respective constituents; and

6. Differentiate the seven sentence patterns based on the types of

verbs used.

" INTRODUCTION

In Topic 8, you have learnt the forms of two grammatical constituents of a sentence, i.e. phrases and clauses. Topic 9 will now extend on what you have learnt to cover the functions of these constituents in a sentence. You will learn how to parse a simple sentence into their respective constituents and then analyse them in terms of form and function. Though the focus of the constituent analysis will be on simple sentences, some examples of complex sentences will also be illustrated. The constituent analysis will be confined to the seven sentence patterns proposed by Quirk and Greenbaum (1990); and Biber, Conrad and Leech (2002).

9.1 SUBJECT AND PREDICATE

A simple sentence, which is made up of a single clause, can be parsed into two major constituents, i.e. SUBJECT and PREDICATE. The subject, which usually stands first, and which answers the question „who‰ or „what‰, is the topic of the sen tence. The predicate, which usually comes after the subject, answers the question: „What does the sentence tell us about the subject?‰

Diagrammatically, you can show the two major constituents of a simple sentence as follows:

You can see that the subject has a noun phrase (NP) as its form, while the predicate has a verb phrase (VP) as its form. Therefore, in terms of function, the two major constituents are the subject and the predicate but in terms of form, the two constituents are the noun phrase and the verb phrase.

ACTIVITY 9.1 Given below are more examples of sentences that have been parsed into their subjects and predicates.

What can you say about the structure of the subject?

No. SUBJECT PREDICATE 1. The headmaster or the senior assistant will chair the meeting. 2. To err is human. 3. Smoking cigarettes can ruin your health. 4. What you say may hurt his feeling. 5. Whoever tried succeeded.

The subject of a sentence is not confined to a single noun phrase. Two or more noun phrases may be coordinated to form a compound subject (also called coordinated subject) as in (1). In (1), the noun-phrase subject is made up of two noun phrases joined by a coordinating conjunction „or‰. Refer to Topic 7 for the list of coordinating conjunctions that can be used to join noun phrases.

The subject may not be in the form of a noun phrase. In (2) and (3), the subjects take the forms of a non-finite clause. In (2), the subject is a to-infinitive clause in form but in (3) it is an -ing participle clause in form. In (4) and (5), the subjects are in the form of finite clauses. Both are also referred to as noun clauses.

ACTIVITY 9.2 You have seen that the subject of a sentence need not be a noun phrase. Another question is whether the subject should always come before the verb group in the verb phrase.

Study the sentences below and identify the subjects. What can you say about their subjects? 1. Here comes Ali. 2. Located beside the market is a big cinema. 3. There is a book on the table. 4. Have they had their dinner? 5. Where do you work?

In (1) and (2), the subjects (i.e. Ali, a big cinema) do not come before the verb group in the verb phrase. (1) and (2) are examples of subject-verb inversion in which the verb groups are moved before the subjects. In (3), the subject (i.e. a book) also comes after the verb group. Likewise, in question forms, the subjects (i.e. they, you) appear immediately after the auxiliary verbs as in (4) and (5).

ACTIVITY 9.3 Parse the following sentences into Subject (S) and Predicate (P). 1. The bell has rung. 2. His younger brother became a soldier. 3. The blind old man told us the whole story. 4. En. Raman sold his car to my sister. 5. Those beautiful houses belong to him. 6. The cat which is lying on the mat loves dogs. 7. How he was murdered remains a mystery. 8. My mother enjoys sewing and gardening. 9. Nothing will make him repent. 10. The man who wears a red shirt is my neighbour. 11. On to the field ran the horses. 12. John, Peter and I would work together. 13. That he is still alive after so many days is a miracle. 14. The next passenger train to arrive was from Singapore. 15. A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush. 16. Down came the heavy rain. 17. Walking along this stretch of road is unsafe. 18. Every man is the architect of his own fortunes. 19. All the items belonging to the college must be returned. 20. The clothing sold in the next shop is much cheaper. 21. No one but you can solve this problem.

22. The headmaster accompanied by two teachers attended the meeting. 23. The double-storey bungalow near my house has been advertised for sale. 24. Situated along this river is a row of low-cost houses. 25. We saw the boy running towards your office.

9.2 BASIC SENTENCE PATTERNS

In this section, you will learn how to conduct an analysis of the constituents that make up the PREDICATE. The analysis will only be confined to simple sentences. Concentrating on those constituents that are normally obligatory, you can usefully distinguish seven basic sentence patterns in English.

The activities below will sensitise you to the constituents that make up each of the seven basic sentence pattern in terms of form and function.

9.2.1 Sentence Pattern I: S V

ACTIVITY 9.4

The following sentences have been parsed into their respective Subjects and Predicates.

What is common among the predicates? What type of verb is used in each sentence?

Function Subject Predicate (1) My head aches. (2) All the girls cried (3) The train has arrived. (4) He was sleeping (5) May and Jane might have left. Form Noun Phrase Verb Phrase

• All the predicates in the form of verb phrases are made up of only a verb group (Vgp), i.e. aches, cried, has arrived, was sleeping, might have left, and will be coming. All the verbs are intransitive and can therefore stand on their own. This sentence pattern is made up of a subject (S) and a verb (V) in terms of function and can be written as S V. In terms of form, it is made up of a noun phrase (NP) and a verb group (Vgp) and can be written as NP Vgp. Given below is an example of the constituent analysis of the sentence pattern.

S V " The sun is shining. NP Vgp

ACTIVITY 9.5 Can you provide more examples of the above sentence pattern? Analyse them in terms of form and function.

9.2.2 Sentence Pattern II: S V Od

ACTIVITY 9.6

The following sentences have been parsed into their respective Subjects and Predicates.

What is common among the predicates? What type of verb is used in each sentence? Can you parse the predicates into their respective constituents in terms of form?

Function Subject Predicate (1) She had lost the keys (2) They opened the door. (3) Alice likes black coffee. (4) My brother has been keeping the money. (5) We could have arrested the suspects. (6) All the guests love my cooking. Form Noun Phrase Verb Phrase

• Unlike Sentence Pattern I, in which the verbs in the predicates are intransitive, the verbs in the predicates in Sentence Pattern II are transitive. You have learnt in Topic 2 that a sentence with a transitive verb needs an object to complete it. More specifically, the type of transitive verb used in Sentence Pattern II is called Monotransitive Verb, which requires only a single object called Direct Object. This sentence pattern is therefore made up of a subject (S), a verb (V) and a direct object (Od) in terms of function. In terms of form, it comprises a noun phrase (NP), a verb group (Vgp) and another noun phrase. Given below is an example of the constituent analysis of the sentence pattern.

S V Od " The lecturer has scolded the students. NP Vgp NP

Without an object, the sentence is ungrammatical as in the following example. " *The lecturer has scolded. (Ungrammatical)

ACTIVITY 9.7 Can you parse the sentences above into their respective constituents in terms of form and function?

Provide more examples of your own and analyse them. Find out how your dictionary indicates this type of sentence pattern.

9.2.3 Sentence Pattern III: S V Cs

ACTIVITY 9.8

The following sentences have been parsed into their respective Subjects and Predicates.

What is common among the predicates? What type of verb is used in each sentence? Can you parse the predicates into their respective constituents in terms of form?

Function Subject Predicate (1) The dress on display is beautiful. (2) She appeared very confident. (3) Our breakfast seems ready. (4) Mr. Samuel has become our new branch manager. (5) The results of the study remained a secret. (6) Most of the houses in this are hers. area Form Noun Phrase Verb Phrase

• Can you recognise the verbs used in the above sentence pattern? They are all intensive verbs (i.e. is, appeared, seems, has become, remained and are). You have learnt in Topic 2 that an intensive verb (also called a copular or link/linking verb) associates an attribute with the subject of a sentence. The attribute is expressed by a complement and since it refers to the subject, it is called a Subject Complement (i.e. beautiful, very confident, ready, our new branch manager, a secret and hers).

• As can be seen from the examples, the subject complement is either an adjective phrase (AdjP) or a noun phrase (NP). In (1), (2) and (3), the subject complement is an adjective phrase, while in (4), (5) and (6), it is a noun phrase. Therefore, in terms of function, Sentence Pattern III consists of a subject (S), a verb (V) and a subject complement (Cs), but in terms of form, it comprises a noun phrase (NP), a verb group (Vgp), and an adjective phrase (AdjP) or a noun phrase (NP). The constituent analysis of Sentence Pattern III can be illustrated as follows:

" S V Cs  The soup tasted really delicious. NP Vgp AdjP

" S V Cs  This has proven a good investment. NP Vgp NP

Without a subject complement, these sentences are ungrammatical as in the following examples: " *The soup tasted. (ungrammatical) " *This has proven. (ungrammatical)

ACTIVITY 9.9 Can you parse the sentences above into their respective constituents in terms of form and function?

Can you provide more examples of your own and analyse them? Find out how your dictionary indicates this type of sentence pattern.

9.2.4 Sentence Pattern IV: S V A

ACTIVITY 9.10

The following sentences have been parsed into their respective Subjects and Predicates.

What is common among the predicates? What type of verb is used in each sentence? Can you parse the predicates into their respective constituents in terms of form? How is this sentence pattern similar and different from Sentence Pattern III?

Function Subject Predicate (1) My office is in the next building. (2) None of us have been to Australia. (3) The first meeting was on Sunday. (4) The victim appeared in shock. (5) He seems in excellent health. (6) These methods had fallen into disuse. Form Noun Phrase Verb Phrase

• Again, the predicates in this sentence pattern consist of intensive verbs (i.e. is, have been, was, lasted, seems and fallen). However, unlike in Sentence Pattern III, each intensive verb is followed by a prepositional phrase (i.e. in the next building, to Australia, on Sunday, in shock, in excellent health, or into disuse), which functions as an adverbial. Sentence Pattern IV is thus made up of a subject (S), a verb (V) and an adverbial (A) in terms of function. In terms of form, the constituents are a noun phrase (NP), a verb group (Vgp) and a prepositional phrase (PP). The constituent analysis of Sentence Pattern IV can be illustrated as follows:

" SV A " Your money is on the table. NP Vgp PP

The adverbial in this pattern is obligatory, without which the sentence is ungrammatical as in the following example. " *Your money is. (ungrammatical)

Obligatory adverbials usually express place or direction (e.g. in the next building, to Australia) and time (e.g. on Sunday) although they can express manner (e.g. in shock, in excellent health, into disuse).

Some intransitive verbs also require an adverbial to be grammatically complete, as in the following examples: " En. Sharif lives in London. (Incomplete: *En Sharif lives.) " He was leaning against the wall. (Incomplete: * He was leaning.) " This road leads to the forest. (Incomplete: * This road leads.) " The baby lay on the bed. (Incomplete: * The baby lay.)

Obligatory adverbials can also be in the form adverb phrases as in the following examples. " Mary is outside. " Her job interviews were yesterday.

ACTIVITY 9.11 Can you parse the sentences above into their respective constituents in terms of form and function?

Can you provide more examples of your own and analyse them? Find out how your dictionary indicates this type of sentence pattern.

9.2.5 Sentence Pattern V: S V Oi Od

ACTIVITY 9.12 The following sentences have been parsed into their respective Subjects and Predicates.

What is common among the predicates? What type of verb is used in each sentence? Can you parse the predicates into their respective constituents in terms of form? How is this pattern similar and different from Sentence Pattern II?

Function Subject Predicate (1) He could have given her the wrong file. (2) The company bought everyone a watch. (3) The agency has found her a maid. (4) I must send her some flowers. (5) The new taught us Linguistics. lecturer from the UK (6) My mother will make me a cake. Form Noun Phrase Verb Phrase

" You must have realised that the verb groups used in this sentence pattern are transitive as in Sentence Pattern II. However, the transitive verb group in each sentence is followed by two noun phrases. For example, in (1), the two noun phrases after the verb group are her and the wrong file. This type of transitive verb is called Ditransitive Verb. The first noun phrase (i.e. her) functions as an Indirect Object (Oi) and the second noun phrase (i.e. the wrong file) functions as a Direct Object (Od). In terms of form, Sentence Pattern IV is thus made up of a noun phrase (NP), a verb group (Vgp) and another two noun phrases, and in terms of function, it is made up of a subject (S), a verb (V), an indirect object (Oi) and a direct object (Od). An example of constituent analysis of this sentence pattern is given below:

" SV Oi Od " The guest handed the receptionist her room key. NP Vgp NP NP

" There is a variation for this sentence pattern. Instead of putting the indirect object in front of the direct object, it is possible to put it in a Prepositional Phrase (PP) that comes after the direct object as illustrated by the example below:

" S V Od Oi  The guest handed her room key to the receptionist. NP Vgp NP PP

The prepositional phrase (i.e. to the receptionist) is the indirect object. In the above example, the prepositional phrase is introduced by the preposition to. The preposition for is used with certain ditransitive verbs, as the following examples show:

" SVOi Od  The manager has left his secretary an important message. NP Vgp NP NP

" SVOd Oi  The manager has left an important for his secretary. message NP Vgp NP PP

However, for some ditransitive verbs, the indirect object almost always comes in front of the direct object rather than being introduced by to or for, as indicated by the following examples: 1." They promised her a reward. (NOT: *They promised a reward to/for her) 2." The teacher asked the pupils a question. (NOT: *The teacher asked a question to/for the pupils) 3." Parents should allow their children some freedom. (NOT: *Parents should allow some freedom to/for their children.)

ACTIVITY 9.13 Can you parse the sentences above into their respective constituents in terms of form and function?

Can you provide more examples of your own and analyse them? Find out how your dictionary indicates this type of sentence pattern.

9.2.6 Sentence Pattern VI: S V Od Co

ACTIVITY 9.14 The following sentences have been parsed into their respective Subjects and Predicates.

Function Subject Predicate (1) That made the public extremely mad. (2) We found the new manager friendly. (3) The fridge will keep the fruits fresh. (4) The students elected him the new president of the club. (5) All the teachers consider Mani a helpful student. (6) Everyone calls her Molly. Form Noun Phrase Verb Phrase

In this sentence pattern, the predicate is made up of a transitive verb group (i.e. made, found, will keep, elected, consider or calls), followed by a noun phrase (i.e. the public, the new manager, the fruits, him or her) and an adjective phrase (i.e. extremely mad, friendly, fresh) or another noun phrase (i.e. the new president of the club, a helpful student, or Molly). This type of verb is called Complex Transitive.

In terms of form, this sentence pattern consists of a Noun Phrase (NP), a Verb Group (Vgp), an Adjective Phrase (AdjP), or a Noun Phrase (NP). In terms of function, it comprises a subject (S), a verb (V), a direct object (Od) and an object complement (C0). It is called the object complement because it describes the object.

Examples:

In (1), the adjective phrase, i.e. crazy, refers to the direct object, i.e. me, and in (2), the noun phrase, i.e. Andrew, refers to the direct object, i.e. the newly born baby. Given below are examples of the constituent analysis of this sentence pattern.

" S V Od Co  They are driving me crazy. NP Vgp NP AdjP

" S V Od Co  The parents have named the newly born baby Jimmy. NP Vgp NP NP

ACTIVITY 9.15

Can you parse the sentences above into their respective constituents in terms of form and function?

Can you provide more examples of your own and analyse them? Find out how your dictionary indicates this type of sentence pattern.

9.2.7 Sentence Pattern Vii: S V Od A

ACTIVITY 9.16

The following sentences have been parsed into their respective Subjects and Predicates.

Function Subject Predicate (1) You can put your computer on the desk. (2) The teacher referred the students to their grammar errors. (3) She stood the decorative lamp near the entrance. (4) The intruder must have placed the ladder there. (5) The stepmother treated the children very well. (6) I will take the tourists around. Form Noun Phrase Verb Phrase

Like Sentence Pattern VI, this sentence pattern also consists of a complex transitive verb group (i.e. can put, referred, stood, must have placed, treated or will take), followed by a noun phrase (i.e. your computer, the students, the decorative lamp, the ladder, or the tourists). However, after the noun phrase, you have either a prepositional phrase (i.e. on the desk, to their grammar errors, or near the entrance) or an adverb phrase (i.e. there, very well or around). These constituents function as adverbials and they are obligatory because removing them will make the sentences incomplete and ungrammatical or change the meaning of the verbs.

Examples: " You can put the computer ( ungrammatical) " The stepmother treated the children. (Change in meaning – giving a treat)

In terms of form, Sentence Pattern VII is made up of a noun phrase (NP), a verb group (Vgp), a prepositional phrase (PP) or an adverb phrase (AdvP). In terms of function, it is made up of a subject (S), a verb (V), a direct object (Od) and an adverbial (A). Given below are examples of the constituent analysis of the sentence pattern.

" S V Od A  The little has placed the kitten in the box. girl NP Vgp NP PP " " S V Od A  You should stand the syringe upright. NP Vgp NP AdvP

ACTIVITY 9.17 Can you parse the sentences above into their respective constituents in terms of form and function?

Can you provide more examples of your own and analyse them? Find out how your dictionary indicates this type of sentence pattern.

Table 9.1 provides a summary of the seven basic sentence patterns you have learnt so far.

Table 9.1: Summary of Sentence Patterns in Form and Function

Sentence Pattern No. Example Function Form

1. S V NP Vgp John is sleeping.

2. S V Od NP Vgp NP The boy kicked the ball.

3. S V Cs NP Vgp AdjP This computer has become obsolete. NP Vgp NP He has become a doctor.

4 S V A NP Vgp PP Their wedding will be in December. NP Vgp AdvP The fire was everywhere.

5. S V Oi Od NP Vgp NP NP My friend left me a note. S V Od Oi NP Vgp NP PP My friend left a note for me.

6. S V Od Co NP Vgp NP She served the coffee black. AdjP They voted him the chairman of the NP Vgp NP NP society

7. S V Od A NP Vgp NP PP The guard showed him to the door. NP Vgp NP The guard showed him out. AdvP

" Obligatory and Optional Adverbials

ACTIVITY 9.18

What can you say about the two phrases in bold? 1. The children are playing in the room. 2. The children are in the room.

In (1), the prepositional phrase (i.e. in the room), which functions as an adverbial, can be removed without any real loss of meaning and without causing grammatical incompleteness. " The children are playing.

The adverbial in (1) is therefore optional, unlike the adverbial in (2) which is obligatory. As mentioned in Section 9.2.4, an obligatory adverbial cannot be removed without creating grammatical incompleteness in the sentence, as indicated by the following example. " *The children are (Incomplete)

Obligatory adverbials occur in sentence patterns S V A (e.g. They are staying nearby.) and S V Od A (e.g. He deposited his salary in the bank). However, optional adverbials can be used to expand all the seven basic sentences. They can be placed in different positions within a sentence – in final, initial or medial positions. More than one of them can occur in a single sentence. Optional adverbials add additional information to the sentence, covering a wide variety of

meanings such as place, time, manner, extent and attitude. (Optional adverbials are bracketed).

Examples: " (A) S V (A)  Sometimes, she sings melodiously. (AdvP) NP Vgp (AdvP) " " S V A (A) (A)  Alice was here with her uncle yesterday. NP Vgp AdvP (PP) (AdvP) " Adverbials usually take the form of adverb phrases, prepositional phrases or noun phrases.

Examples: " I will do it very carefully. (Adverb phrase) " I will do it with special care. (Prepositional phrase) " I will do it my way. (Noun phrase)

ACTIVITY 9.19

Analyse the constituents of sentences in terms of function.

Bracket the optional adverbials and identify the basic sentence pattern from which each sentence is derived. 1. My head aches terribly. 2. They have lost the keys in the field. 3. She bought her mother a new dress for her birthday. 4. Yesterday, the teacher told a story to the children. 5. The weather is getting hotter from day to day. 6. He became the Prime Minister of Malaysia last year. 7. In Malaysia, the students are now on vacation. 8. She always likes coffee black.

9. The delegates elected Mr. Henry their new chairman in an emergency meeting. 10. He must have placed the stool there without our knowledge.

You may wish to present your answers in the following format.

No. Constituent Analysis Basic Sentence Pattern "" " " " "

• A simple sentence is composed of a subject and a predicate.

• The most common form of a subject is a noun phrase. Two or more noun phrases may also be coordinated to form a compound subject or coordinated subject. The subject of a sentence can also be in the form of a finite or non- finite clause.

• The main constituents of a predicate are verb phrase, object (direct or indirect object), complement (subject or object complement) and adverbial.

• The constituents of the predicate together with the subject combine in seven basic sentence patterns: S V, S V Od, S V Cs, S V A, S V Oi Od (or S V Od Oi), S V Od Co, and S V Od A.

• Adverbials can be obligatory or optional. Obligatory adverbials occur in sentence patterns S V A and S V Od A. Optional adverbials can be added to the basic sentence patterns – either at the beginning, in the middle or at the end of a sentence.

Adverbial Object complement Complex transitive verb Predicate Ditransitive verb Subject Monotransitive verb Subject complement

Parse the sentences into their respective constituents in terms of form and function.

Identify the basic sentence pattern of each sentence and write the answer in brackets.

Use the following codes:

Subject S Noun Phrase NP Verb V Adjective Phrase AdjP

Direct Object Od Adverb Phrase AdvP

Indirect Object, Oi Prepositional Phrase PP

Subject Complement Cs Verb group Vgp

Object Complement Co Adverbial A 1. It was raining heavily in the evening. 2. That sounds a good idea to me. 3. The young girl can sing this song very well. 4. The football match yesterday was really exciting. 5. All thought him a man of great honour. 6. The fire was everywhere within five minutes. 7. My boss has been very busy lately because of the festival. 8. The queue unexpectedly stretched around the block.

9. They crammed everything into the box. 10. You should have told him the truth earlier. 11. My mother remained silent for a while. 12. He had sent a dozen roses to her on ValentineÊs Day. 13. At the end of the show, we gave him a standing ovation. 14. Everyone in the village considered her trustworthy. 15. Yesterday, the teacher punished him for being naughty. 16. The overnight milk in the bottle has gone sour. 17. The purchase of this property fortunately proved a worthwhile investment. 18. The soldiers trudged non-stop for ten miles that afternoon. 19. The maid kept the baby very quiet in the cot. 20. The company will place the advertisement on its website soon.

Question 1 Based on your understanding of constituent analysis, explain what is wrong with each of the following expressions. Your explanation should include whatever rectification you have made and the constituent analysis used. (a) The boy kicked (b) He has lent her (c) Frank becomes (d) Both of them live (e) She has deposited all her savings (f) You can make him

Question 2 Analyse the following sentences in terms of form and function. Then, explain the difference in the function of the prepositional phrase „in the box‰ in the sentences. (a) I like the cat in the box. (b) She laid the cat in the box. (c) We found the cat in the box.

Question 3 Each of the following sentences is ambiguous and has two interpretations depending on the analysis. Explain clearly how you can analyse each sentence differently to give it two different interpretations. (a) The manager found Mrs Mary a capable assistant. (b) The old woman hit the man with a stick.

Question 4 Explain what is similar and different in the patterns of the following sentences. (a) We have given the boy a warning. (b) We proved the boy a liar.

Question 5 Identify the prepositional phrases in the following sentence and explain the differences in their functions.

The security guards positioned themselves in various parts of the building before the VIPÊs arrival.

Barry, A.K. (1997). English grammar: Language as human behaviour. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall.

Biber, D., Conrad, S. & Leech, G. (2002). Longman student grammar of spoken and written English. Harlow, Essex: Pearson Education Limited.

Jackson, H. (1982). Analyzing English: An introduction to descriptive linguistics. Oxford, England: Pergamon Press.

Klammer, T.P. & Schulz, M. R. (1992). Analyzing English grammar. Boston, MA: Allyn & Bacon.

Leech, G. & Svatvik, J. (1975). A communicative grammar of English. London, England: Longman.

Quirk, R. & Greenbaum, S. (1990). A studentÊs grammar of the English language. Harlow, Essex: Longman.

Sinclair, J. (ed.) (1991). Collins COBUILD studentÊs grammar. London, England: HarperCollins. Sinclair, J. (ed.) (1993). Collins COBUILD English grammar. London, England: HarperCollins.

Stern, G. (2000). LearnersÊ grammar dictionary. Singapore: Learners Publishing.

Thomas, L. (1993). Beginning syntax. Oxford, England: Blackwell.

TTooppiicc  Spelling

Rules and

10 10 Punctuation

LEARNING OUTCOMES

By the end of this topic, you should be able to:

1. Identify the rules governing spelling and punctuation;

2. Punctuate written discourse; 3. Use correct spelling and punctuation in various contexts; and

4. Write clearly and accurately using the mechanics of written English.

" INTRODUCTION

Many have thought with the advent of spell-checking in modern computers, learning how to spell has become less important. The poem (in Activity 10.2) illustrates otherwise; spell-checking is far from infallible.

This topic explains the rules that govern the accepted use of certain writing conventions of English. It will raise your awareness of how they work and equip you with the writerÊs tool to communicate with others in writing. Spelling and punctuation are important conventions that enable language to work as written communication. Besides, choosing the right word between two similar ones (such as principle/principal) is equally important, as depicted in the poem (Activity 10.2). The use of ÂcommaÊ and Âperiod/full stopÊ in the poem (Activity 10.2) clearly shows there is a system of symbols in the English language that allows you to make your writing clear and to add emphasis, intonation, and even pauses to your work. Hence, the „mechanics‰ of written English will help you to convey your ideas exactly as you intend them, that is, express yourself clearly in writing.

10.1 ADVERBS

If you have the ability to form words correctly from individual letters, you are a good speller and will consequently be a more accurate writer. So, what is obstructing you from becoming a competent speller?

ACTIVITY 10.1

What makes the English spelling system so difficult?

It is because the spelling of English words has developed in such a haphazard manner. There are just too many exceptions and contradictions in the spelling rules of English. The English language, the way we know it today, has gone through tremendous changes over a few centuries. The spelling of English is influenced by other languages, such as French, Latin and Italian, and some of these influences survive until today. There are also differences between British and American spelling. If you are in doubt, you may refer to a good English dictionary to help you.

ACTIVITY 10.2

Can you correct the spelling in the following poem?

Now, your poem should be as below. Does it make better sense and are you able to understand it better? Why?

How did you correct the words in the poem? You probably read the poem aloud and changed the spelling of the words as you read them. If you did that, then you have actually employed a special art which is found in the definition of spelling.

DEFINITION

Spelling is the art of writing words with the correct sequence of letters. It enables language to function as written communication.

In order for you to be a competent speller, you need to know the rules governing the spelling of words.

10.1.1 Common Spelling Rules

Spelling involves more than just merely following a few simple rules. There are basically two ways to deal with spelling rules: (a)" Common rules in terms of word classes; and (b)" Rules that are influenced by the way words sound.

EXERCISE 10.1

Complete the text below by using the word/correct form of the words in brackets.

At the (1)______(begin), the (2)______(chief) were (3)______(hope) that their (4)______(beauty) (5)______(wife) would look after their (6)______(puppy) but on (7)______(see) that their spouses couldnÊt (8) ______(possible) cope, they (9) ______(pay) skilful workers to do the job (10)______(entire). The village (11)______(counsellors/councillors) (12)______(absolute) agreed with the step taken and (13)______(pray) that family harmony be maintained since that is the (14) ______(principle/principal) contributing factor of (15) ______(piece/peace) in the village.

Would you like to know the answers? You may do so by referring to the ÂAnswerÊ section at the end of this module. Did you get all the answers correct? If you did not, the following spelling rules may be helpful to you.

(a) Spelling Rules by Word Classes

Plural Nouns Most nouns are made plural simply by adding –s. Example: hill – hills

Nouns ending in the letters ch, sh, s, or x are made plural by adding –es. Examples: watch – watches box – boxes wash – washes miss – misses

There are two considerations when pluralising nouns ending in a y. - If, a y is preceded by a consonant, simply change y to i and add –es. Examples: puppy – puppies lily – lilies

- If the final y is preceded by a vowel, simply add –s. Examples: key – keys relay - relays

Nouns ending in f or fe, change the f or fe to v, and add –es to form the plural. Examples: wife – wives calf – calves loaf – loaves Exception: chief – chiefs roof – roofs

Nouns ending in ff, simply add –s to form the plural Examples: muff – muffs cuff – cuffs

Adverbs Many adverbs look identical to adjectives except for the additional –ly. Therefore, as a general rule, add –ly to an adjective to change it into adverb. Examples: absolute – absolutely equal – equally

Sometimes, changes must be made to adjectives to form adverbs especially those ending in y. Change the y to i and add –ly. Example: happy – happily

Sometimes, changes are made to adjectives ending in e. The final e is taken off and –ly is added. Examples: true – truly whole – wholly

If the final e is preceded with l, the e is taken off and y is added. Examples: capable – capably possible – possibly

Adjectives Changes of spelling for adjectives are common when it comes to comparison. Normally -er and –est are added to form comparative and superlative respectively. Example: tall – taller – tallest

If the adjective already ends in e, only –r and –st are added. Example: brave – braver – bravest

For adjectives which end in a consonant and followed by y, the letter y is replaced by i and add –er or –est. Example: pretty – prettier - prettiest

The final consonant of a one-syllable adjective is doubled where the word end is a single vowel and followed by a single consonant. Examples: fit – fitter thin – thinner

(b) Spelling Rules by Sound

Final Consonant For one-syllable words ending in single vowel and followed by a single consonant, double the consonant before adding a suffix beginning with a vowel. Examples: rob – robber run – running beg – begged mad – maddest

For words of two or three syllables ending in single vowel and single consonant, double the final consonant if the last syllable is stressed. Examples: begin – beginning control – controller

In British English, the consonant l is doubled even if the stress does not fall on the last syllable. Examples: travel – traveller signal – signalling

If the word to which the suffix -ful is added ends in ll, the second l is dropped. Examples: skill – skilful will – wilful

-ic changes to –ick; -ie changes to –y. Examples: picnic – picnicking lie – lying

Final e For words ending in silent e, drop the e before a suffix beginning with a vowel. Examples: live – living dive – diving

The e remains if the suffix begins with a consonant. Examples: hope – hopeful manage - management

There are exceptions for words ending in ce and ge which retain the e when adding able or ous. Examples: notice – noticeable courage – courageous

Sometimes, the e is retained in words ending with ce and ge where both c and g are pronounced to avoid confusion with a similar word. Examples: singe – singeing (avoid confusion with singing) swinge – swingeing (avoid confusion with swinging)

As for words ending in ee, just add a suffix. Examples: see – seeing agree – agreement

Final y For words with a final y following a consonant, change y to i before a suffix. Examples: beauty – beautiful marry – marriage carry – carried

However, there are exceptions: Examples: carry – carrying marry – marrying

Words with a final y following a vowel do not change y to i. Examples: pray – prayed play – playing

However, there are exceptions too: Examples: pay – paid lay – laid

(c) Common Confusing Pairs Very often, to learn to spell correctly entails learning the spelling of all the words that one needs (Simpson, 2003). You may have noticed by now that there are logical and practical rules in the spelling of English amidst its chaotic outlook. For example, if you know the word ÂcorrectÊ, then you can form a few other words by simply adding Â-lyÊ, Â-ionÊ, or Â-edÊ. There are others that can be learned in pairs. In this section, we are going to focus on five confusing pairs of frequently-used words and of course, this list is non- exhaustive.

Counsellor / Councillor The word counsel is a rather old-fashioned word for ÂadviceÊ which has become commonly used as ÂverbÊ such as Âto counsel someoneÊ. Thus, a counsellor is someone providing counsel to another person. Council refers to some sort of controlling group or assembly such as a State Council. Therefore, a councillor is a member of such a group.

Principle / Principal This pair is commonly misused by many. A principle is a moral truth or a manifestation of a spiritual quality for example, Âthe principle of justiceÊ. Principal, however, normally means ÂchiefÊ such as Âthe principal of a schoolÊ.

Review / Revue This pair is confusing because they are often used in theatre. A revue is an entertainment, usually made up of songs and sketches while a review could be a report of some sort such as a review of a play.

Meter / Metre Both of these words deal with measuring. Meter is a measuring device whereas, metre is a measured distance.

Programme / Program Programme is used in UK whereas Program is used in US. However, according to Simpson (2003), ÂprogramÊ is used in computing parlance in UK.

10.2 PUNCTUATION

There are many differences in punctuation practices. American and British publishing traditions differ, as do those of individual publishers. Useful references for this include a good English dictionary, Quirk and GreenbaumÊs A University Grammar of English (p. 458 – 461) and many other grammar reference books. Individual writers also differ in their preference for ÂlightÊ or ÂheavyÊ punctuation, especially in the number of commas used.

ACTIVITY 10.3

Which sentence is acceptable? 1. In fact weÊll go in the new silver car this time. 2. In fact, weÊll go in the new, silver car, this time.

Both sentences are acceptable as the meaning is the same although the usage of commas differs. The first sentence demonstrates a preference for ÂlightÊ punctuation while the second, a preference for ÂheavyÊ punctuation. Regardless of the differences in punctuation use, what matters most is that writers must be consistent in this respect throughout their works.

10.2.1 Definition of Punctuation

Punctuation means the right use of putting in Points or Stops in writing (Wren & Martin, 1968, p. 481). Using the correct punctuation helps in conveying ideas exactly as the writer intends them and makes reading a text easier. In spoken discourse, sentence intonation gives cues about constituent structure; however, since there is no intonation in written texts, punctuations are used to make interpretation of syntactic structure clearer.

ACTIVITY 10.4 In your group, try to figure out the meaning of the sentences in the text below. Was it easy to understand the sentences? Why? Now punctuate the text.

You probably found it difficult to understand the above text initially because the punctuation marks are omitted. Was it easier to comprehend after you inserted the punctuation marks?

Read the same text which is correctly punctuated below. Was it much easier to figure out the meaning of the sentences this time? The text also illustrates the extensive use of punctuation marks to aid readersÊ understanding.

How you use punctuation depends largely on what you are writing and who your audience will be. You should follow the traditional rules of punctuation for formal writing. It is still important to know the rules – so you will know what effect you want to achieve, when and if you choose to break them. Let us look at these rules in detail.

10.2.2 Types of Punctuation

(a) The following are the Main Stops: " Full Stop or Period (.) " Comma (,) " Semicolon (;) " Colon (:) " Note of Interrogation or Question Mark (?) " Note of Exclamation (!)

(b) Other Common Marks are: " Apostrophe (Â) " Brackets or Square Brackets [ ] " Brackets or Parentheses ( ) " Ellipsis or Dots (⁄) " Hyphen (-) " Dash (─) " Inverted Commas or Quotation Marks („ ‰) " Slash or Oblique (/) " CAPITAL LETTERS

10.2.3 Functions of Punctuations

1. Full Stop or Period (.) A full stop (UK) or period (US) marks the end of a sentence. It represents the greatest pause and separation. It is used to:

" Mark the end of a declarative or an imperative sentence Give me your research findings.

" Mark abbreviations and initials Y.B. Dato Dr Kadir will be visiting Kuala Selangor next week. (*Do not use a period after acronyms; as, CNN, TV3, SUKOM, FAMA). mark after each Roman numeral, letter, or number in an outline. A. She is kind and gentle. B. She is nasty and unreasonable.

2. Comma (,) A comma helps to divide a sentence into smaller units of meaning (e.g. clauses), so that it is easier to make sense of it when reading. It represents the shortest pause and it is used to: " Separate items in a series (the comma before and in a series of items is optional) My mother bought some apples, papayas, oranges, and watermelons from that mini market. " Separate parts of a compound sentence (put a comma before the coordinating conjunction) It was raining heavily, so I decided to stay home. " Set off dialogue or direct quotation from the rest of the sentence „Brandon and Siti,‰ teacher said, „come here please.‰ " Mark off a noun or phrase in apposition Nichole David, the British Open squash champion, broke the world record. " Mark off the nominative of address or vocative Come here, Shirley. " Mark off two or more adverbs or adverbial phrases coming together Later, at the hall, they were going to have a gathering. " Indicate the omission of a word, especially a verb Lan drives a Kembara; Nomi, a Benz. " Separate short co-ordinate clauses of a compound sentence The road is long, the breeze is chilly. " Separate a noun clause, whether subject or object, preceding the verb How they are going to capture the robbers, is a secret. " Separate a nonessential information clause from a relative clause I am going to meet Mr. Meor, who was my former headmaster, at 2.00p.m. " Separate an adverbial clause from its principal clause While I was doing my window shopping, I saw my former housemates.

" Separate words or phrases after the greeting and at the close of any letter My dearest Jessica, I am looking forward to meeting you. Yours, Margaret.

A comma cannot separate subject from predicate or verb from object:

3. Semicolon (;) A semicolon is used in (rather informal) writing. It is used to separate two sentences which are closely linked in meaning. It is stronger than a comma but not as strong as a full stop or period. It is used to: " Separate the clauses of compound sentence, when they contain a comma She is a generous, capable leader; and respected by many of us. " Separate closely related clauses when the coordinating conjunction has been left out My mum cooked our favourite dishes; we finished off the dishes with satisfaction. " Separate two main clauses connected by conjunctive adverbs He knows the painting is a fake; moreover, he also knows who the supplier is.

4. Colon (:) A colon is similar to a semicolon. However, it implies that what follows it is an explanation of what goes before it. It is still a more complete pause than that expressed by semicolon. It is used: " To introduce a quotation The President says: „God helps those who help themselves.‰ " To introduce a list after an independent clause If you want to make a chocolate cake, you need to have the following ingredients: cocoa powder, butter, flour, eggs, sugar, and baking powder.

" To explain what has been stated before the part of a sentence The government had just implemented a new rule: No smoking is allowed in government offices. " After the salutation of a business letter To Dr Yan: Thank you for your contribution towards the betterment of mankind.

5. Note of Interrogation or Question Mark (?) A note of interrogation or question mark is used after a direct question; as, How are you?

(*Do not use a Â? Âafter an indirect question; as, She asked me why I was late?)

6. Note of Exclamation (!) An exclamation mark (UK) or point (US) is used after interjection and after phrases and sentence to express emotional emphasis; such as,

What! How dare you betray me! * Oh dear! I cannot stand it anymore.

(*When the interjection ÂOhÊ is placed before the nominative of address, the note of exclamation, is used after the noun, or put at the end of the sentence.)

7. Apostrophe (Ê) An apostrophe is used in three manners; to show:

" Possession My mother gave me my grandmotherÊs gold necklace. (with singular nouns or pronouns not ending in ÂsÊ) That is TrussÊs house. (with singular nouns ending in ÂsÊ, it is optional whether to have an apostrophe) The childrenÊs play corner is on the third floor of the shopping complex. (with plural nouns not ending in ÂsÊ) Both of the teachersÊ cars were wrecked by the fallen tree. (with plural nouns ending in ÂsÊ)

" Where letter(s) or number(s) have been left out of contractions IÊll show you the way to achieve inner peace. (omission of letters) The house was built by my ancestor in the Â30s. (omission of numbers)

" Plural of letters or numbers There are more than five 8Ês in that page.

8. Brackets or Square Brackets [ ] Brackets (US) or square brackets (UK) are used to: " Enclose editorial comments A notice stating that ÂEverything must be arranged in its [safe] proper place after useÊ is on the door. " Enclose words to make a quotation grammatically correct The village in [these] months was out of electrical supply.

9. Brackets or Parentheses ( ) Brackets (UK) or parentheses (US) are used to set off nonessential information. They are used to: " Separate extra information or a comment from the rest of a sentence (Mount) Everest is the highest mountain in the world. " Enclose cross-references The statistics illustrate clearly the financial standing of the firm (see chapter 10). " Enclose numbers or letters in text The steps to make a chocolate cake are as follows: (1) Beat the butter with sugar; (2) Add eggs and cocoa powder; (3) Fold in flour; (4) Pour into a tray; (5) Bake.

10. Dash (─) A dash is not the same as a hyphen. It is used in informal style instead of a colon or semicolon. A dash, or a pair of dashes, is used to add emphasis with additional information. It is used to: " Indicate that what follows is a summary or conclusion of what has gone before He had just deceived me · how can I trust him again? " Indicate an abrupt stop or change of thought If I knew that would happen · but why moan the past? " Emphasise an example, a definition, or a contrast Three of my latest pets· the hamster, cat and dog · are expensive. " Separate a comment or an afterthought from the rest of the sentence They knew the minister very well · or so they claimed.

11. Ellipsis or Dots (⁄) Ellipsis or three dots are used for the following reasons: " To show that words have been omitted from a quoted sentence Crystal, 2003, states: „The study of sentence is called syntax ⁄ a syntactic analysis forms the dominant element in a modern grammar.‰ " To show a pause or interruption in a conversation „I⁄I didnÊt know that it would turn out this way‰

12. Hyphen(-) A hyphen is smaller than a dash. It is used to divide a word at the end of a line or to connect two words which act as one (compound nouns or words) as: " In writing certain compound nouns or words Her father-in-law is coming to visit her today. " In written-out fractions and in written-out compound numbers from twenty-one to ninety-nine The vote was passed by two-thirds majority. " Between the parts of compound adjectives used before a noun My uncle bought a double-storey house at Mont Kiara. " In a compound adjective made up of a prefix and a proper noun or adjective Those lots are offered to non-Malay workers.

13. Inverted Commas or Quotation Marks („ ‰) Inverted commas or quotation marks are used in quoting a speech. They make the page look less monotonous. They are used to keep the words of one speaker from becoming confused with those of some other speaker. They are used to set off: " A speakerÊs exact words He said, „IÊm going to reach by 12.00 p.m.‰ " The titles of short works, such as essays, poems, short stories and others „Sonnet 18‰ by William Shakespeare (poem) is most appealing to people in love. " Quoted material in single quotation marks within a quotation enclosed by double quotation marks „I want all of you to read ÂPhantom of The OperaÊ as homework‰ the teacher said.

14. Slash or Oblique (/) A slash or oblique is used:- " To separate alternative words or phrases single/ married/ widowed/ divorced (delete where applicable) " To separate lines of poetry ShakespeareÊs famous lines, ÂShall I compare thee to a summerÊs day, / Thou art more ...Ê " In numerical fraction of formulas 1 To make a cup of lemonade, you need: /2 teaspoon lemon juice and 1 2 /2 syrup.

15. Capital Letters Capitalisation means writing a letter of the alphabet as a capital. Our system of capital and lowercase letters allows you to point out specific words within a sentence and to signal the start of a new sentence. Generally, capitalisation falls into the following categories: " Capitalise all proper nouns (names, geographical places, special organisations, buildings, languages, nationalities, countries, races, titles, and the names of special events Datuk Seri Dr Mohd Khir Toyo, who is the Menteri Besar of Selangor, will be attending the grand opening ceremony of Smart College this weekend. " Capitalise the first word of every sentence Do not talk in the library. " Capitalise the first word of each line of poetry Two roads diverged in a yellow wood, /And sorry I could not travel both, /And ⁄. " Capitalise the pronoun I and its contractions IÊm going to have a birthday party next week and IÊll invite all my friends to come. " Capitalise all nouns and pronouns which indicate Deity Good luck and God bless you.

EXERCISE 10.2

Indicate whether the following statements are true or false by putting (T) for true or (F) for false in the brackets provided.

1. ( ) Capitalise the first word at the beginning of a sentence.

2. ( ) Do not capitalise the names of any animals.

3. ( ) Capitalise proper names and names of geographical places, specific events, languages, nationalities, countries, races and titles.

4. ( ) Capitalise only the first part of a compound title, as in „Deputy minister.‰

5. ( ) A person can always decide how to capitalise the words in his or her name.

6. ( ) Use a comma rather than an apostrophe to show plural forms.

7. ( ) With singular nouns ending in s, add an apostrophe but not another s.

8. ( ) Use a comma to set off words in apposition.

9. ( ) The ellipsis is used to show that you have left something out of a passage.

10. ( ) The following sentence is punctuated correctly: Cathy sent Pam to Dr Josk, who started her on antidepressants, and her condition improved markedly.

EXERCISE 10.3

Rewrite the following sentences with quotation marks and other necessary punctuation and capitalisation.

1." nazeem said i hope you understand my point of view ______

2." oh lord exclaimed hedy what shall i do now ______

3." tony told alex you were right about the incident ______

4." frank j paul was the first president who received the honorary title tun from sultan johor ______

5." prime minister datuk seri abdullah ahmad badawi was witnessing the launching of the new piece of technology in ipoh yesterday ______

• Punctuation helps readers identify clusters of words between and within sentences.

• Punctuation should help carry a message along more smoothly and clearly, not cause road bumps or confusion.

• Punctuation should serve as a guide. It indicates pauses, tone and emphasis. It provides signposts indicating how to read a written message.

• Between sentences, the most common mark of punctuation is the period; within sentences, the most common mark is the comma.

• Hyphens separate words parts; dashes separate sentence parts or sentences.

• Semicolons shows coordination, especially between clauses; colons show lists.

• Capital letters are important because they help determine meaning in written language.

• Capitalise all proper nouns and proper adjectives.

• Capitalise the first word at the beginning of a sentence.

• Most abbreviations start with a capital letter and end with a period. Use only commonly accepted abbreviations.

Apposition Quotation Principal clause Vocative t Punctuation marks

Rewrite the following sentences with quotation marks and other necessary punctuation and capitalisation. 1." remember the first step read the instructions 2." have you noticed any changes asked linda 3." after I read the drovers wife I realised why it is considered one of the greatest short stories ever written 4." writing keeps me alive in every sense of the word says Pamela 5." my eight year old daughter wiggled and giggled throughout the examination 6." i hear myself saying over and over no no no ⁄ 7." next october sammy 27 heads south to swim across the straits of melaka

8." the town in these weeks was out of water supply 9." they never trusted me how can i work with them 10." if you want to make omelette you need to have the following ingredients two eggs butter and ham

Read aloud the poem in box A. Punctuate the poem and correct the spelling of the words. Then rewrite the poem in box B.

A B

Unemployable

I usth thu workth in the thircusth, he said, between the intermittent showers that emerged from his mouth.

Oh, I said, what did you do? I Usth thu catcth bulleth in my theeth.

Gareth Owen

Read the following text carefully. Then punctuate it so that it makes sense.

Reasons for brain drain obvious

to be honest i find the recent survey conducted by the uk executive council for malaysian students unnecessary poor pay keeping best brains away (sunday star april 30) any tom dick or harry can tell you why malaysian doctors and professionals working abroad are not willing to come back to serve the country tell us something new other than what we already know but choose to deny the fact is and it has always been this low salary and long working hours the results of the survey clearly reflect the sad state of affairs particularly of the medical profession in the country

it was not too long ago that i worked as a houseman at the busiest hospital in the country i worked for 36 hours when i was on call and more often than not i was on call every other day which translates to a total of more than 108 hours a week including weekends our monthly income was nothing to shout about either when i met some old friends they often popped the dreaded question how much do you earn a month i never answered them

Adapted: Sunday Star, 7 May, 2006.

Disterheft, D. (2004). Advanced grammar. A manual for students. Upper Saddle, NJ: Pearson Prentice Hall.

Jacobs, G. & Loh Wan Inn. (2002). Grammar in use. Singapore: Press Ace Pte Ltd.

Leech, G., Cruickshank, B. & Ivanic, R. (1989). An A-Z of English grammar and usage. China: Longman.

Lester, M. & Beason, L. (2005). Handbook of English grammar and usage. New York, NY: McGraw Hill.

Noor Azlina Yunus (1986). A quick English reference. Petaling Jaya: Penerbit Fajar Bakti Sdn. Bhd.

Osborn, P. (1999). How grammar works. A self-teaching guide (2nd ed.). New York, NY: John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

Parrott, M. (2000). Grammar for English language teacher. Cambridge, England: Cambridge University Press.

Quirk, R. & Greenbaum, S. (1973). A university grammar of English. Harlow, Essex: Longman.

Rozakis, L. (2003). English grammar for the utterly confused. New York, NY: The McGraw - Hill.

Simpson, R. (2003). Teach yourself English grammar. London, England: Hodder Headline.

Sinclair, J. (ed.) (1993). Collins COBUILD English grammar. London, England: HarperCollins.

Strumpf, M. & Douglas, A. (1999). GoldenÊs concise English grammar. Kuala Lumpur: Golden Books Centre Sdn. Bhd.

Wren, P. C. & Martin, H. (1968). High school English grammar and composition. Bombay: K. & J. Cooper.

Answers

TOPIC 1: NOUNS AN0D PRONOUNS

Self-Test 1

(a) (1) proper (2) common, uncountable, singular (3) common, countable, singular (4) common, countable, plural (5) common, countable, singular (6) common, uncountable, singular (7) proper (8) common, uncountable, singular (9) common, countable, plural (10) common, countable, singular (11) common, uncountable, singular (12) common, countable, plural

(b) (1) crowd (2) family (3) cast (4) flock (5) army (6) bouquet (7) crew (8) staff

Self-Test 2

(1) whose (interrogative) (2) yourself (reflexive) (3) which/that (relative) (4) him (personal) (5) whom/who/that (relative) (6) it (personal) (7) his (possessive) (8) who (interrogative) (9) each other/one another (reciprocal) (10) yourself (reflexive) (11) Someone/Somebody (Indefinite) (12) whom (interrogative) (13) Those (demonstrative) (14) which/that (relative) (15) Anyone (indefinite) (16) neither/none (quantifying) (17) that (demonstrative) (18) one (quantifying) (19) one (personal) (20) mine (possessive pronoun)

TOPIC 2: VERBS

Self-Test 1

Verbs have five basic forms. Some examples are given below: Base form -s form Past form -ing form -ed form (1) play plays played playing played (2) hurt hurts hurt hurting hurt (3) spend spends spent spending spent (4) take takes took taking taken

In terms of form, they can be further categorised as regular and irregular verbs. The verb „play‰ as in (1) is an example of a regular verb. It is easily recognisable because both the past form and the –ed participle form have „ed‰ on the end. We can thus predict the other forms of a verb if we know its base form. Other examples of regular verbs are as follows: Base form : jump type try -s form : jumps types tries Past form : jumped typed tried -ing form : jumping typing trying -ed form : jumped typed tried

On the other hand, the verbs in (2), (3) and (4) are irregular verbs. They differ from regular verbs in that we cannot predict their past form and/or –ed form from the base. There are three types of irregular verbs: • Verbs in which all the three forms (the base, the past and the past participle) are identical, as in (2), hurt – hurt – hurt. • Verbs in which two of the three forms are identical, as in (3) spend – spent – spent. • Verbs in which all the three forms are different, for example, as in (4), take – took – taken.

However, some verbs have both regular and irregular forms. Some examples are given below:

Base form : knit learn wake -s form : knits learns wakes Past form : knit/knitted learnt/learned woke/waked -ing form : knitting learning waking -ed form : knit/knitted learnt/learned woken/waked

Self-Test 2

(F)(ext)(T) (NF)(ext)(I) (a) I saw the boy run across the road.

(F)(ext)(T) (NF)(ext)(I) (b) The teacher found him sleeping in the canteen.

(NF)(ext)(T) (F)(intens) (NF)(intens) (c) Teaching English to adults appears to be a lucrative business.

(F)(intens) (F)(ext)(T) (NF)(ext)(I) (d) It was the first time we heard him talk about his past.

(F)(ext)(T) (NF)(ext)(T) (NF)(intens) (e) You should have done something to make the victim feel comfortable.

(F)(ext)(T) (F)(Intens) (NF)(ext)(I) (f) I think the old man is afraid to go to the hospital.

(NF)(ext)(T) (F)(intens) (g) The woman making the bogus collections looks familiar to me.

(F)(Intens) (NF)(ext)(T) (h) Medicine has always been the most popular course chosen by SPM school (NF)(ext)(I) leavers applying for overseas scholarships.

TOPIC 3: TENSES

Self-Test 1

1. is, find, consider, is 2. have known, went, graduated, started, got, have worked/have been working, hopes, last/will last 3. ended, were, did not stop, had, hold 4. have waited/have been waiting, has not come, do not know, has happened, asked. arrived, was not 5. saw, was lying, was groaning, had, had gone, did not improve. 6. was walking, witnessed, knocked, was crossing, did not stop, speeded/sped, was lying, was bleeding, called, arrived, had passed/passed 7. had rung, reached, had entered, had started 8. came, knew, had happened, was, suspected, had broken, checked, had stolen 9. am, am typing, have typed, are, think, will finish 10. discovered, had not been studying, had been playing, knew, had broken, were 11. take, is, drives, visit, go, have

12. started, will retire/will be retiring, will have taught/will have been teaching, hopes, like, is/are 13. Do...know, is, have...tried, tried, found, was getting, started 14. Do...have, am taking/will be taking, have...made, have registered, will apply, am going 15. Has been seeing, is, have...announced, are, has been looking, has found, has been trying, has met, are not, have....heard, has, are

Self-Test 2

1. The finite verb group in the Present Continuous Tense is „are looking‰. The use of Present Continuous Tense indicates the company has started looking for a new employee but it is only a temporary situation and there is a time limit for looking. After that, they will offer one of the applicants a job with the company. So the period of looking for new employees will be a limited duration.

2. Sentence (a) talks about a planned future event. The appropriate tense to use is Present Continuous. Sentence (b) is a statement of fact or a universal truth. That is why Simple Present is used.

3. Sentence (a) means that the thief started running away when the policeman arrived. The arrival of the policemen happened before the thief ran away.

PQY"

Vjg"rqnkegogp"cttkxgf0" Vjg"vjkgh"tcp"cyc{0"

Sentence (b) means that before the policemen arrived, the thief started running away, and when the policemen arrived, he was still running.

PQY"

Vjg"vjkgh"ycu"twppkpi" Vjg"rqnkegogp"cttkxgf0"

Sentence (c) means that when the policemen arrived, the thief was no longer at the scene. He ran away before the policemen arrived.

PQY"

Vjg"vjkgh"tcp"cyc{0" Vjg"rqnkegogp"cttkxgf0"

4. Sentence (a) indicates that Alice has not met John the whole morning up to now and the morning is not over yet but sentence (b) indicates that the morning was over, and it was a past event that Alice did not meet John.

5. (a) The use of Present Continuous Tense, „is having‰, is an error. The verb „have‰ is a stative verb and cannot be used in the continuous tense. (b) The use of Present Perfect Continuous Tense, „have been trying‰, is an error. This tense, which emphasises duration, is not used to talk about how many or how much. The correct tense to use is the Present Perfect, „I have tried to call him many times....‰ (c) The use of Simple Present Tense „donÊt smoke‰ is an error. The sentence talks about the future and the appropriate tense to use is the Simple Future Tense, „wonÊt smoke‰. The Simple Present is only used to talk about future events that are fixed in a time-table or programme. (d) The use of Present Perfect, „have discussed‰ is an error. The sentence talks about past events as indicated by the time expression „yesterday‰. The correct tense to use is the Simple Past, „discussed‰. (e) The use of Past Continuous Tense „was loitering‰ is an error. The sentence talks about an event that extends from a point in the past to now. The correct tense to use is the Present Perfect Continuous, „has been loitering‰. (f) The use of Simple Present tense, „rains‰, is an error. The sentence talks about an event that is happening at the moment of speaking. The correct tense to use is Present Continuous, „is raining‰.

TOPIC 4: VOICE AND CONCORD

Self-Test 1

1. (a) P (b) P (c) A (d) A (e) P (f) P (g) P (h) A (i) P (j) A (k) P (l) A (m) P (n) P (o) A

2. (a) The City Council has been criticised for the lack of concern about the appearance of our city, but look at what they have achieved in the past few months. They have repaired sidewalks on Jalan Ismail. They have planted trees along the median strip of Jalan Hang Tuah. They have installed attractive new street lights in front of the library and the museum. They have also planted flowers in the borders at City Park.

(b) The subject of the first sentence, People, is indefinite, and hence, unimportant. It can therefore be omitted. Moreover, as the sentence stands, it misleads the reader into thinking that the text is about people, rather than the City Council. By changing the first sentence into passive, the focus is clearly about the City Council. Furthermore, to keep the focus consistent throughout the text, it is also more appropriate to change the rest of the sentences into active, making „they‰, which refers to the City Council, the subject.

Self-Test 2

Error Correction Explanation of Concord rule The number of letters that has The verb should agree with „the we receive these days have number of letters‰, not „days‰ in increased1 the modifiers. With „the number of‰, the verb used should be singular (i.e. Âs form) A lot of people object to number The verb „number‰ should agree receiving unwanted letters with the noun before the relative which numbers a few pronoun. Since the noun „letters‰ hundred per year2 is plural, the verb used should be plural (i.e. base form) Most of the mail we goes The noun „mail‰ is uncountable. receive go to the waste- A singular verb should be used. paper basket3. ThatÊs why we often refers refer The pronoun „we‰ is plural, a to it as „junk mail‰4. plural verb should be used. If people stop sending is The verb should agree with junk mail, we can save lots „paper‰. Paper is uncountable. of trees from which paper Therefore, a singular verb „is‰ are produced5 should be used.

2. (a) (i) When the subject is a singular countable noun, it takes a singular verb. E.g. A boy is waiting outside for you. (ii) When the subject is a plural countable noun, it takes a plural verb. E.g. Some pupils have done the work. (iii) When the subject is an uncountable noun, it takes a singular verb. E.g. This information is very useful to me.

(b) (i) When the collective noun suggests one number as a whole, a singular verb is used. E.g. Our football team is stronger this year. (ii) When the collective noun suggests individual persons or things, a plural verb is used. E.g. The team are discussing the strategies for the match.

(c) In the following sentences, the finite verb changes from singular (i.e. Âs form) to plural (i.e. base form) with the change in the subject from singular (i.e. he) to plural (i.e. they). The non-finite verb „to keep‰ remains unchanged. (i) He exercises to keep himself healthy. (ii) They exercise to keep themselves healthy.

(d) The modal verb in the following sentences remains unchanged with the change in the subject from singular (i.e. house) to plural (i.e. houses). The modal verb does not have singular or plural form. (i) The house must have a garden. (ii) The houses must have a garden.

(e) In the following sentences, the verbs in the simple present tense agree with the subjects. If the verbs are in the simple past tense, they remain unchanged with the change in the subject from singular to plural. (i) He walks to school. They walk to school. (ii) He walked to school. They walked to school.

However with „be‰, it involves a change with the change in the subject from singular to plural. (i) He is walking to school. They are walking to school. (ii) He was walking to school. They were walking to school.

TOPIC 5: DETERMINERS AND ADJECTIVES

Answers to Exercises and Self-Tests

Exercise 5.1

1. Second winners will receive a hamper each. (ordinal, quantifier) 2. Which vehicle have you bought? (wh-word) 3. I have no idea about homeopathy. (quantifier) 4. She is quite a helper. (attitude) 5. Brad looked over WhitneyÊs shoulder. (possessive) 6. Were any tables broken? (quantifier)

7. The farewell will cost three times the amount we have collected. (cardinal) 8. She got two-thirds of the total marks. (fraction, definite article) 9. Most of the students in this class realise that English is a very interesting subject. (quantifier, definite article, demonstrative, indefinite article) 10. Another teenager dropped out. (general ordinal)

Exercise 5.2

1a Most is a pronoun which appears 1b Most is a determiner that on its own to form the noun phrase. appears with the head noun people to form the noun phrase.

2a This is a determiner which appears 2b This is a pronoun which appears with the head noun book to form on its own to form the noun the noun phrase. phrase.

3a Which is a pronoun which appears 3b Which is a determiner that on its own to form the noun phrase. appears with the head noun bus to form the noun phrase.

4a Much is a determiner that appears 4b Much is a pronoun which with the head noun food to form appears on its own to form the the noun phrase. noun phrase.

5a Some is a determiner which appears 5b Some is a pronoun which with head noun friends to form the appears on its own to form the noun phrase. noun phrase.

Exercise 5.3

1. Only three more books are needed. 2. The candidates were placed in every two other seats for the final examination. 3. In a few more days we will be leaving for South Korea. 4. Even the little appropriations granted last year will suffice for now. 5. I have just half a tank of petrol left.

Exercise 5.4

1. more attractive 6. most comfortable

2. - 7. -

3. modern 8. -

4. tasteful 9. loveliest

5. - 10. -

Exercise 5.5

1. She lives in a luxurious big new condominium. 2. Is it true that short fat bald men are wealthy? 3. I wear a soft large-sized light-coloured imported cotton T-shirt for exercise. 4. That hypermarket sells a wide variety of interesting heavy steel chopping knives. 5. The humble doctor drives a small old rectangular-shaped black German car.

Self-Test 1

1. Some of THE projects are pending approval. 2. Only MY cookies disappeared. 3. Both THOSE students played truant. 4. I have just ENOUGH money for THE holiday. 5. THE first five applications were chosen. 6. Half THE cake is spoilt. 7. All of THE money disappeared. 8. Several of HIS shoes are torn. 9. You need to double YOUR savings in order to buy THAT outfit. 10. Only THE next three workers will be promoted.

Self-Test 2

The two phrases illustrate the distinction between the use of the indefinite and the definite article (the and a respectively). I would make my purchase based on phrase (a) Compact: the longer lasting outdoor snack. This is because the use of the definite article the, informs me that the longer lasting outdoor snack is clearly a unique product, not one among many as suggested by the indefinite article a in the second phrase: Compact: a longer lasting outdoor snack.

This phrase is typically used in advertising slogans. Advertisers would certainly want to create as favourable an image of their product as possible, and then want to convey that image as precisely as possible. So they have to choose their words very carefully. The use of determiners may assist them in defining the uniqueness of their product and single it out from the other general items. The end result would be a healthy growth in the sales of the special product.

Self-Test 3

" DonÊt compromise or be cowed by student vandals. This is the message of SMK San MinÊs parent-teacher association (PTA) and board of directors to the Teluk Intan school which was in the news recently after the houses of its administrators were splashed with motor oil. 5 The incidents took place after the school extended its „crew cut for boys‰ rule to senior students. On Wednesday, Nanyang Siang Pau and China Press reported that unknown persons threw some 20 packs of used motor oil into the houses of the headmaster, senior assistant, disciplinary master and former headmaster on 10 April 21. The reports said the students, a small group of problematic seniors, were also responsible for vandalising school property and cars belonging to their teachers. Following the incidents, the PTA called a press conference on Tuesday 15 to expose the schoolÊs disciplinary problem. Many of those interviewed by the papers condemned the acts and believed stern disciplinary action should be taken, including expulsion, if students were indeed involved. Chairman of the school board Chan Hong Kee said: „In spite of some 20 hurdles, the hair rule has to be implemented. Our stand is clear and we will not compromise or bow to pressure.‰

Adapted: The Sun, 5 May 2005.

No. Word Word class Type (adjectives only - For adjectives only - (line no.) Attributive/Predi Qualitative/Class cative) ifying e.g. student (1) adjective attributive classifying e.g. This (1) determiner demonstrative - 1. the (1) determiner definite article - 2. its (3) determiner possessive - 3. crew (5) adjective attributive classifying 4. senior (6) adjective attributive classifying 5. unknown (8) adjective attributive classifying 6. some (8) determiner quantifier - 7. 20 (8) determiner cardinal - 8. used (8) adjective attributive classifying 9. former(9) adjective attributive classifying 10. a (11) determiner indefinite article 11. small (11) adjective attributive qualitative 12. problematic adjective attributive classifying (11) 13. school (12) adjective attributive classifying 14. their (12) determiner possessive - 15. disciplinary adjective attributive classifying (15) 16. Many (16) determiner quantifier - 17. stern (17) adjective attributive classifying 18. hair (20) adjective attributive classifying 19. our determiner possessive - 20. clear (20) adjective predicative classifying

262 " ANSWERS

TOPIC 6: ADVERBS AND PREPOSITIONS

Self-Test 1

1. place 11. focusing 2. manner 12. interrogative 3. time 13. sentence 4. frequency 14. focusing 5. degree 15. interrogative 6. linking 16. direction 7. place 17. duration 8. frequency 18. direction 9. manner 19. linking 10. degree 20. sentence

Self-Test 2

1. of (possession) 2. on (place) 3. by (means) 4. by (manner) 5. of (cause and purpose) 6. with (manner) 7. despite (concession) 8. up (direction) 9. from (direction) 10. without (accompaniment) 11. during (time) 12. by (means) 13. over (place) 14. within (time) 15. with (accompaniment)

16. of (possession) 17. like (manner) 18. with (instrument) 19. for (purpose) 20. of (possession)

TOPIC 7: CONJUNCTIONS AND SENTENCE TYPES

Self-Test 1

Part 1

No Sentence Type 1. The Malay Mail logo makes the paper stand out in the Simple newsstands. 2. We selected this car after we had tried it several times. complex 3. I shall not go to the dinner unless I am invited. complex 4. I have warned him many times, yet he refused to listen to me. compound 5. The book that Aminah read is on the shelf. complex 6. Explain it clearly so that everyone understands the purpose complex of this charity drive. 7. The number of buses will depend on the responses of the simple pupils towards the trip. 8. My favourite reading sections are the Sofa session, sports, simple campus and the Features. 9. I didnÊt want to leave the party, nor did my sister. compound

10. I always put my car keys where I can find them. complex

264 " ANSWERS

Part II

1. ThereÊs a distinct colonial charm about FraserÊs Hill. 2. Even the roads sport English names, such as Lady Maxwell Road and Lady Guillemard Road. Simple 3. As expected, the hill resort attracts British and Australians longing for something like home. 4. Other activities include golfing, horse riding, cycling and jungle trekking. 1. Almost a ÂLittle EnglandÊ, FraserÊs Hill stays cool throughout the year and is still very popular for its laidback life. Compound 2. They saw the potential of developing the hill into a resort for the British colonialists and sold the idea to the British administrators. 1. Today, FraserÊs Hill, which is perched 1,500 metres above sea level, is famous throughout the country. 2. As soon as you reach the hilltop, colonial bungalows and very English gardens greet you. Complex 3. Activities include the annual International Bird Watching Competition as the hill is home to hundreds of species. 4. Instead, they stumbled upon a hill which seemed eminently suitable for a hill station.

Self-Test 2

Part I

Coordinating No Function Conjunction 1 for to introduce the reason for the preceding clause 2 and to add additional information 3 yet to show contrast or difference 4 but to suggest contrary information 5 nor to join two negative alternatives together 6 so to provide consequential information

7 yet to suggest an element of surprise 8 but to suggest contrary information 9 or to join two alternative ideas together 10 or to join two alternative ideas together

Part II

1. The Matthews were having a party. Their daughter was getting engaged. The Matthews were having a party because their daughter was getting engaged.

2. Marie could not attend the function. Her clothes were not suitable. Marie could not attend the function since her clothes were not suitable.

3. I will become a good ballet dancer. I can find a good teacher. I will become a good ballet dancer provided that I can find a good teacher.

4. The knocking continued all night. Laila could not sleep. As the knocking continued all night, Laila could not sleep.

5. Deer are cute. They eat all your flowers. Although deer are cute, they eat all your flowers.

6. He was painting the room. I was having a nap. While he was painting the room, I was having a nap.

7. My wife likes to travel abroad. I prefer to stay at home for my vacation. Whereas my wife likes to travel abroad, I prefer to stay at home for my vacation.

8. Malaysia is beautiful and peaceful. I canÊt imagine living anywhere else. Malaysia is so beautiful and peaceful that I canÊt imagine living anywhere else.

9. I am planning to carpool with my friends. I can save some money. I am planning to carpool with my friends so that I can save some money.

10. I had a wonderful holiday. It was too short. I had a wonderful holiday even though it was too short.

TOPIC 8: PHRASES AND CLAUSES

Self-Test 1

1. noun phrase 14. noun phrase 2. prepositional phrase 15. noun phrase 3. adverb phrase 16. prepositional phrase 4. prepositional phrase 17. verb phrase 5. adjective phrase 18. noun phrase 6. adjective phrase 19. adjective phrase 7. adverb phrase 20. prepositional phrase 8. verb phrase 21. adverb phrase 9. verb phrase 22. noun phrase 10. noun phrase 23. adjective phrase 11. prepositional phrase 24. noun phrase 12. prepositional phrase 25. adjective phrase 13. noun phrase

Self-Test 2

1. A finite clause has a finite verb group and it can be an independent or dependent clause as shown in the following sentence:

Finite clause (independent) Finite clause (dependent)

(She will turn on the fan) (when she sleeps).

Finite verb group Finite verb group On the other hand, a non-finite clause has a non-finite verb group which can be in the form of bare infinitive, to-infinitive, -ing participle or –ed participle. A non-finite clause can only be a dependent clause which must be used together with an independent finite clause, as indicated in the following sentence.

Non-finite clause Finite clause (-ing participle clause) (Independent clause) Non-finite clause (-ing participle clause) Finite clause (Independent clause)

(Fearing for his own safety), (he made a police report).

Non-finite verb group

2. (a) We did not know (when he came). (b) The day (when he came) was a secret. (c) No one was in the class (when he came).

The three sentences have the same dependent clause „when he came‰. It is a dependent clause because it cannot stand on its own as a complete sentence.

In sentence (i), the dependent clause is a noun clause because it plays the role of a noun and answers the question:

„What didnÊt we know? When he came

In sentence (ii), the dependent clause is a relative clause because it modifies the preceding noun phrase „The time‰. The clause is introduced by a relative adverb and answers the question

„Which day was a secret?‰ The day when he came

In sentence (iii), the dependent clause is an adverb clause. It is introduced by a subordinating conjunction „when‰ and answers the question:

„When did he find the money in the room?‰ When he came.

3. Sentence (a) is a defining relative clause, telling which one of JaneÊs cousins is being referred to. Jane probably has more than one cousin living in different places. The sentence only talks about the one in Penang.

Sentence (b) is a non-defining relative clause and it intends to provide additional information about JaneÊs cousin. Jane most probably has only one cousin or the reader is already aware who the writer is referring to.

TOPIC 9: SENTENCE PATTERNS

Self-Test 1

S V A A (1) It was raining heavily in the evening. (SV) NP Vgp AdvP PP

S V Cs A (2) That Sounds a good idea to me. (SVCs) NP Vgp NP PP

S V Od A (3) The young girl can sing this song very well. (SVOdA) NP Vgp NP AdvP SVCs (4) The football match yesterday was really exciting. (SVCs) NP Vgp AdjP " S V Od Co (5) All thought him a man of great honour. (SVOdCo) NP Vgp NP NP " S V A A (6) The fire was everywhere within five minutes. (SVA)

NP Vgp AdvP PP "

" S V Cs A A *9+" My boss has been very busy lately because (SVCs) of the festival. "" NP Vgp AdjP AdvP PP " S A V A (8) The queueunexpectedly stretched around (SVA) the block. NP AdvP Vgp PP

S V Od A (9) They crammed everything into the box. (SVOd A) NP Vgp NP PP

S V Oi Od A (10) You should have told him the truth earlier. (SV Oi Od) NP Vgp NP NP AdvP " SV Cs A (11) My mother remained silent for a while. (SV Cs) NP Vgp AdjP AdvP " S V Od Oi A (12) He had sent a dozen roses to her on (SV OdOi) Valenti- neÊs Day NP Vgp AdjP AdvP " ASVOi Od (13) At the end of the we gave him a (SV OiOd) show, standing ovation. PP NP Vgp NP NP " SV Od Co (14) Everyone in considered her trustworth (SVOd Co) the village y. NP Vgp NP AdjP " AS VOd A (15) Yesterday, the teacher punished him for being (SVOd) naughty. AdvP NP Vgp NP PP S V Cs (16) The overnight milk in the bottle has gone sour. (SVCs) NP Vgp AdjP " SAVCs (17) The purchase of fortunately proved a (SVCs) this property worthwhile investment. NP AdvP Vgp NP " SV AAA (18) The soldiers trudged non-stop for ten miles that (SV) afternoon NP Vgp AdvP PP NP

S V Od Co A (19) The maid kept the baby very quiet in the cot. (SVOdCo) NP Vgp NP AdjP PP " S V Od A A (20) The will the on its soon. (SVOdA) company plac advertisement website e NP Vgp NP PP AdvP

Self-Test 2

Question 1

(a) The boy kicked The expression is grammatically incomplete because „kicked‰ is a monotransitive verb and requires a direct object. The correct sentence pattern for the verb is SVOd. The expression can be rectified by adding a noun phrase after the verb group, as in the following example:

S V Od  The boy kicked the ball. NP Vgp NP

(b) He has lent her The verb „lent‰ is ditransitive and requires an indirect object and a direct object after the verb group. The correct sentence pattern should be SVOiOd. The expression is therefore grammatically incomplete and it can be rectified by placing another noun phrase after „her‰, as in the following example:

S V Oi Od  He has lenther some money. NP Vgp NP NP

(c) Frank becomes The correct sentence pattern should be SVCs because „becomes‰ is an intensive verb that requires a subject complement to be grammatically complete. The expression can be rectified by adding either a noun phrase or an adjective phrase, as in the following examples:

S V Cs  Frank becomes a teacher. NP Vgp NP

S V Cs " Frank becomes rich. NP Vgp AdjP

(d) Both of them live The verb „live‰ is an intransitive verb that requires an adverbial after the verb to be grammatically complete. The correct sentence pattern is SVA, in which A is an obligatory adverbial. The adverbial may be in the form of a prepositional phrase or an adverbial phrase, as shown in the following examples:

SVA " Both of them live happily. NP Vgp AdvP

SVA " Both of them live in the village. NP Vgp PP

(e) She has deposited all her savings The verb „deposited‰ is a complex transitive verb that belongs to the SVOdA sentence pattern. The expression therefore requires an obligatory adverbial after the direct object „all her savings‰. The adverbial takes the form of a prepositional phrase, as in the following example:

S V Od A " She has deposited all her savings in the bank. NP Vgp NP PP

(f) You can make him The verb „make‰ is a complex transitive verb that belongs to the SVOdCs sentence pattern. An object complement is missing in the above expression. The object complement can either take the form of an adjective phrase or a noun phrase, as shown in the following examples:

S V Od Cs " You can make him very angry. NP Vgp NP AdjP

S V Od Cs  You can make him the group leader. NP Vgp NP NP

Question 2 The three sentences can be analysed as follows:

S V Od (a) I like the cat in the box. NP Vgp NP

S V Od A (b) She laid the cat in the box. NP Vgp NP PP

S V Od (A) (c) We found the cat in the box. NP Vgp NP PP

Sentence (a) belongs to the SVOd pattern and the prepositional phrase „in the box‰ is a postmodifier of the head noun „cat‰.

Sentence (b) belongs to the SVOdA pattern with the prepositional phrase Âin the box‰ functioning as an obligatory adverbial.

Sentence (c) belongs to the SVOd pattern with the prepositional phrase „in the box‰ functioning as an optional adverbial.

Question 3 Sentence (a) can be analysed as SVOiOd or SVOdCo. as follows:

S V Oi Od SVOiOd The manager found Puan Mary a capable assistant. NP Vgp NP NP

S V Od Co SVOdCo The manager found Puan Mary a capable assistant. NP Vgp NP NP

By analysing the second NP, „a capable assistant‰, as Od, the NP has become the receiver of the action „found‰, implying that the manager got somebody to assist

Puan Mary. By analysing the same constituent as Co, the NP refers to Puan Mary, i.e. Puan Mary was a capable assistant.

Sentence (b) can be analysed as SVOd, or SVOdA as follows:

S V Od SVOd The old woman hit the man with a stick. NP Vgp NP

S V Od A SVOdAo The old woman hit the man with a stick. NP Vgp NP PP

When sentence (b) is analysed as SVOd, the prepositional phrase „with a stick‰ functions as a postmodifier to the head noun „man‰. This implies that the man had a stick with him. When it is analysed as SVOdA, the prepositional phrase functions as an optional adverbial, implying that the old woman used a stick to hit the man.

Question 4 The sentences are similar in terms of form. Both of them consist of NP Vgp NP NP. However, in terms of function, sentence (a) is made up of SVOiOd and sentence (b) is made up of SVOdCo.

S V Oi Od SVOiOd We have given the boy a warning. NP Vgp NP NP

S V Od Co SVOdCo, We proved the boy a liar. NP Vgp NP NP

Question 5 There are three prepositional phrases in the sentence. The phrases are: 1. in the various parts of the building 2. of the building 3. before the VIPÊs arrival

The first phrase „in the various parts of the building‰ functions as an obligatory adverbial because the verb group „positioned‰ is a complex transitive verb. The second phrase „of the building‰ functions as a postmodifier of the head noun „parts‰. The third phrase functions as an optional adverbial.

TOPIC 10: SPELLING RULES AND PUNCTUATION

Exercise 10.1

Complete the text below by using the word/correct form of the words in brackets. At the (1) beginning, the (2) chiefs were (3) hopeful that their (4) beautiful (5) wives would look after their (6) puppies but on (7) seeing that their spouses couldnÊt (8) possibly cope, they (9) paid skilful workers to do the job (10) entirely. The village (11) counsellors (12) absolutely agreed with the step taken and (13) prayed that family harmony be maintained since that is the (14) principal contributing factor of (15) peace in the village.

Exercise 10.2

1. T 2. F 3. T 4. F 5. T 6. F 7. F 8. T 9. T 10. T

Exercise 10.3

1. Nazeem said, „I hope you understand my point of view.‰ 2. „O Lord!‰ exclaimed Hedy, „What shall I do now?‰ 3. Tony told Alex, „You were right about the incident.‰ 4. Frank J. Paul was the first President who received the honorary title ÂTunÊ from Sultan Johor. 5. Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi was witnessing the launching of the new piece of technology in Ipoh yesterday.

Self-Test 1

1. Remember the first step: (or .) Read the instructions. 2. „Have you noticed any changes?‰ asked Linda. 3. After I read „The DroverÊs Wife,‰ I realised why it is considered one of the greatest short stories ever written. 4. „Writing keeps me alive, in every sense of the word,‰ says Pamela. 5. My eight-year-old daughter wiggled and giggled throughout the examination. 6. I hear myself saying over and over „No, no, no ⁄‰ 7. Next October, Sammy, 27, heads south to swim across the Straits of Melaka.

8. The town in [these] weeks was out of water supply. 9. They never trusted me · how can I work with them? 10. If you want to make omelette, you need to have the following ingredients: two eggs, butter, and ham

Self-Test 2

Unemployable

„I used to work in the circus,‰ he said, between the intermittent showers that emerged from his mouth.

„Oh‰, I said, „What did you do?‰ „I used to catch bullets in my teeth.‰

Gareth Owen

Self-Test 3

Reasons for brain drain obvious To be honest, I find the recent survey conducted by the UK Executive Council for Malaysian Students unnecessary, „Poor pay keeping best brains away‰ (Sunday Star, April 30). Any Tom, Dick or Harry can tell you why Malaysian doctors and professionals working abroad are not willing to come back to serve the country. Tell us something new, other than what we already know but choose to deny. The fact is, and it has always been this: Low salary and long working hours. The results of the survey clearly reflect the sad state of affairs, particularly of the medical profession in the country. It was not too long ago that I worked as a houseman at the busiest hospital in the country. I worked for 36 hours when I was on call, and more often than not, I was on call every other day, which translates to a total of more than 108 hours a week, including weekends! Our monthly income was nothing to shout about either. When I met some old friends, they often popped the dreaded question: How much do you earn a month? I never answered them. Adapted: Sunday Star, 7 May, 2006.

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