Grammar I

1. Singular and Plural Nouns

Singular and Plural Nouns A noun names a person, place, thing, or idea. Usually, the first page of a grammar book tells you about nouns. Nouns give names of concrete or abstract things in our lives. As babies learn "mom," "dad," or "milk" as their first word, nouns should be the first topic when you study a foreign language. For the plural form of most nouns, add s.        bottle – bottles        cup – cups        pencil – pencils        desk – desks        sticker – stickers        window – windows For nouns that end in ch, x, s, or s sounds, add es.        box – boxes        watch – watches        moss – mosses        bus – buses For nouns ending in f or fe, change f to v and add es.        wolf – wolves        wife – wives        leaf – leaves        life – lives Some nouns have different plural forms.        child – children        woman – women        man – men        mouse – mice        goose – geese Nouns ending in vowels like y or o do not have definite rules.        baby – babies        toy – toys        kidney – kidneys        potato – potatoes        memo – memos        stereo – stereos A few nouns have the same singular and plural forms.        sheep – sheep        deer – deer        series – series        species – species [Quiz 1.1] Choose the correct form of the noun in each sentence. 1) I have three (child, children). 2) There are five (man, men) and one (woman, women). 3) (Baby, Babies) play with bottles as toys. 4) I put two big (potato, potatoes) in the lunch box. 5) A few men wear (watch, watches). 6) I put a (memo, memos) on the desk. 7) I saw a (mouse, mice) running by. 8) There are few (bus, buses) on the road today. View Answers [1.1] 1) children 2) men, woman 3) Babies 4) potatoes 5) watches 6) memo 7) mouse 8) buses

2. Count Nouns vs. Non-Count Nouns

Count nouns Can be counted as one or more.        pen, computer, bottle, spoon, desk, cup, television, chair, shoe, finger, flower, camera, stick, balloon, book, table, comb, etc. Take an s to form the plural.        pens, computers, bottles, spoons, desks, cups, televisions, chairs, shoes, fingers, flowers, cameras, sticks, balloons, books, tables, combs, etc. Work with expressions such as (a few, few, many, some, every, each, these, and the number of).        a few pens, a few computers, many bottles, some spoons, every desk, each cup, these televisions, the number of chairs, a few shoes, a few fingers, many flowers, some cameras, every stick, each balloon, these books, the number of tables, many combs, etc. Work with appropriate articles (a, an, or the).        a pen, the computer, a bottle, the spoon, a desk, the cup, a television, the chair, a shoe, the finger, a flower, the camera, a stick, the balloon, a book, the table, a comb, etc. Do NOT work with much (for example, you would never say much pens or much computers). Non-count nouns Cannot be counted. They usually express a group or a type.        water, wood, ice, air, oxygen, English, Spanish, traffic, furniture, milk, wine, sugar, rice, meat, flour, soccer, sunshine, etc. Generally cannot be pluralized. Work both with and without an article (a, an, or the), depending on the context of the sentence.        Sugar is sweet.        The sunshine is beautiful.        I drink milk.        He eats rice.        We watch soccer together.        The wood is burning. Work with expressions such as (some, any, enough, this, that, and much).        We ate some rice and milk.        I hope to see some sunshine today.        This meat is good.        She does not speak much Spanish.        Do you see any traffic on the road?        That wine is very old. Do NOT work with expressions such as (these, those, every, each, either, or neither). [Quiz 2.1] Choose all of the non-count nouns in the following list: wine, student, pen, water, wind, milk, computer, furniture, cup, rice, box, watch, potato, wood View Answers [2.1] wine, water, wind, milk, furniture, rice, wood

3. Possessive Nouns

Possessive nouns are used to indicate ownership. Possessive nouns usually are formed by adding an apostrophe (') and s.        John's book        Kerry's car        Grandma's mirror When a noun is plural and ends in s, just add an apostrophe (').        The kids' toys        My parents' house        The teachers' lounge If two people own one thing, add the apostrophe and s to the second person only.        John and Mary's new house        David and Sue's wedding        Tom and Doug's car If two people own separate things, add the apostrophe and s for each person.        Susan's and Beth's books        Jean's and Dan's pants        Ben's and Jim's offices [Quiz 3.1] Which of the following is not correct? 1) Dr. Hunts has a new computer. 2) Dr. Hunts's new computer is working well. 3) Dr. Hunts' computer is new. View Answers [3.1] 2

4. Pronouns

A pronoun takes the place of a noun. Example story: Mary is one of the heads of the ToJi Corporation. Mary works with Mr. James and Mr. James' son Tom. Mr. James and Mr. James' son Tom are experts in biochemistry. Mary, Mr. James, and Tom researched and invented a drug for cancer treatment. If the story above is written using pronouns: Mary is one of the heads of the ToJi Corporation. She works with Mr. James and his son Tom. He and his son Tom are experts in biochemistry. They researched and invented a drug for cancer treatment. Personal Pronouns Personal pronouns refer to a person:        I go to school.        You are a student.        They are Koreans.        He works here.        We gave her food. The word ‘it' refers to an object:        I drank it.        It is big.        They cut it into halves. Memorize the personal pronouns: Singular Subject Singular Object Singular Reflexive Plural Subject Plural Object Plural Reflexive First I me myself we us ourselves Second you you yourself you you yourselves Third Male he him himself they them themselves Third Female she her herself they them themselves Third Neutral it it itself they them themselves [Quiz 4.1] Write the correct pronoun in each blank. 1) I ate an apple.                     was delicious. 2) You look tired.                     should rest. 3) She is a teacher. I gave                    a book. 4) They are my friends. I like                     very much. 5) He saw the movie.                     was fun. View Answers [4.1] 1) it 2) you 3) her 4) them 5) it

5. 'Be' Verbs

A verb shows action or a state of being. I go home. Home is my place to rest. I like the smell of my house. I feel totally relaxed. Home refreshes me. At home, I get ready for a new day. "Be" verbs indicate a state of being. Verbs must match subjects.        I am a doctor.        He is sleepy.        We are here. Negative sentences need ‘not' after the verb.        I am not a doctor.        He is not sleepy.        We are not there. The verb comes first in interrogative sentences.        Am I a doctor?        Is he sleepy?        Are we there? "Are not" (is not) can be shortened to "aren't" (isn't).        He isn't sleepy.        We aren't there. Remember the variations of "be" verbs: Present Negative Interrogative I am I am not Am I? You are You are not (aren't) Are you? He is He is not (isn't) Is he? She is She is not (isn't) Is she? It was It was not (wasn't) Was it? We are We are not (aren't) Are we? You are You are not (aren't) Are you? They were They were not (weren't) Were they? [Quiz 5.1] Which of the following sentences are written correctly? 1) I am thirsty. 2) You are kind. 3) He am not sad. 4) She are not tall. 5) It is not moving. 6) We aren't tired. 7) Is they running? 8) Are you ready? View Answers 1, 2, 5, 6, and 8