2. Format of Exam
• Diagramming sentences
– Running is a great form of exercise.
– Running from the monster, I narrowly
escaped death.
– I tossed the ball to my teammate.
– She under the tunnel.
– The streamers were hanging over the desks.
3. What to Know. . .
• Verbs
– Different types
– Verb phrases
• Complements
• Pronouns
– Subject vs. Object
– Possessive
• Direct and Indirect Objects
• Prepositions
• Gerunds
– Different types
– Be able to identify
• Participles
• Clauses
– Independent and Dependent
– Subordinating Conjunctions
4. Verbs
• Action: Describes what a subject does, physically or mentally
– I fear snakes. (mental)
– The students write hastily. (physical)
• Helping: Helping verbs help the main verb express itself more
clearly, creating a verb phrase
– The students should finish their homework.
– The clouds might produce rain.
– The girl does not feel well.
– I am running the store.
• Linking: Link the subject to words in the predicate which describes
it.
– Mary is a student.
– Mary is short.
– She seems tired.
– She seems like a child.
5. Complements
• Complements are predicate nouns linked
to the subject with a linking verb.
• They are NOT adjectives
– Will is a student.
– Buck is a football player.
– Noah is a son.
– Rhett is a brother.
– Joe is a drummer.
6. Pronouns
• A pronoun is a word that is used in place of a noun or
another pronoun. The noun it replaces is called the
antecedent
• Subject vs. Object
– Subject: Pronouns can be used as subjects or predicate nouns
following a linking verb.
• I, you, he, she, it, we, you, they
– Object: Pronouns can be used as direct or indirect objects. They
receive the action of the verb
• Me, you, him, her, it, us, you, them
• Possessive: Show ownership
– My, your, his, her, ours, yours, theirs
• Other Types
7. Replace the Nouns
• The girl is Sally.
• The boy is Phil.
• The girl looks like Sally.
• The boy looks like Phil.
• She appears to be Sally.
• He appears to be Phil.
8. Replace the Nouns
• Pass the book to Sally.
• Give the pencil to Phil.
• I made a cake for Sally.
• I gave a cake to Phil.
• I ran into Sally.
• I pushed Phil.
9. Direct and Indirect Objects
• A direct object is a word or group of words that
names the receiver of an action
– Many Beijing residents ride bicycles
– New Yorkers take the subway
• Answers the question what or whom
• An indirect object is a word or group of words
that tell to whom or what, or for whom or what,
an action is performed.
– Mass transit offers people easy commutes.
– Gondolas give Venetians romantic rides.
• Answers the question to what or whom
10. Prepositions
• A preposition is a word that shows a relationship
between a noun or pronoun and some other
word in the sentence.
• A prepositional phrase consists of the
preposition, its object, and any modifiers of the
object.
– Robots conduct a series of tests and experiments.
– Experiments can be performed by robots or people.
– The robot is above the spacecraft.
– The robot is below the spacecraft.
11. Gerunds
• A gerund is a verbal ending in “ing” acting
as a noun
• A gerund phrase consists of a gerund plus
its modifiers and complements
– WRITING FRANKENSTEIN must have given
Mary Shelley goose bumps
– Fishing is fun.
– Hiking is difficult.
– That is ballet dancing.
12. Different Types of Gerunds
• Subject, predicate noun, object, object of
preposition
Subject Calling the monster Frankenstein
was a mistake.
Predicate noun Frankenstein’s error was creating the
monster.
Direct Object I like watching horror movies.
Object of preposition The monster was responsible for
killing three people.
13. Examples
• Gerund as subject:
• Traveling might satisfy your desire for new experiences. (Traveling is the
gerund.)
• The study abroad program might satisfy your desire for new experiences.
(The gerund has been removed.)
• Gerund as direct object:
• They do not appreciate my singing. (The gerund is singing.)
• They do not appreciate my assistance. (The gerund has been removed)
• Gerund as predicate noun:
• My cat's favorite activity is sleeping. (The gerund is sleeping.)
• My cat's favorite food is salmon. (The gerund has been removed.)
• Gerund as object of preposition:
• The police arrested him for speeding. (The gerund is speeding.)
• The police arrested him for criminal activity. (The gerund has been
removed.)
14. Participle
• A participle is a verbal that is used as an
adjective and most often ends in -ing or
-ed.
• There are two types of participles: present
participles and past participles.
– Present participles end in -ing.
– Past participles end in -ed, -en, -d, -t, -n, or
-ne
15. Participles
• Participles can be in phrases before a noun
– Running for a mile, Dan was tired.
– Laughing hysterically, Shelly started to
• OR, participles can be one word, NO comma
– The running water
– The fallen soldier
– The broken pot
– The shining sun.
– The waning moon.
– The crying child.
16. Participle Examples
• Catching the ball, the receiver fell to his knees.
• Reading the Latin poem, the lady swooned.
• Studying participles, the students sat in silent
amazement.
• The crying baby had a wet diaper.
• Shaken, he walked away from the wrecked car.
• The burning log fell off the fire.
• Smiling, she hugged the panting dog.
17. Gerunds vs. Particples
• Bill and Tony are running.
Are running is the verb in this
sentence.
• Bill and Tony enjoy running.
Running is a gerund, a direct object
of the action verb, enjoy.
• The running water overflowed.
Running is a participle (adjective)
modifying the noun, water.
18. Clause
• A clause is a group of words containing a
subject and a verb. It can be either
independent or dependent (subordinate).
• An independent clause can stand alone as
a complete grammatical sentence. It
contains the main subject and verb of the
sentence.
– The cat is in the room.
– John hit his sister.
19. Clauses
• A dependent clause cannot stand alone
as a grammatical sentence because of an
extra element that changes an
independent clause into a dependent
clause. It must always be connected to an
independent clause.
– Because I was late
– When I miss the bus
20. Subordinate Conjunctions
• after • so that
although than
as that
because though
before unless until
even if when
even though whenever
if where
in order that once whereas
provided that wherever
rather than whether
since while
why
