Eguria

Grammar: Transitive and Intransitive Verbs By Egriase S. M. Okaka You have been told that verbs do not just describe actions, but also describe a state of being of a subject. Verbs are so important that, without them, we cannot have complete or meaningful sentences. Let us revise how verbs work. a) Verb as action I held the keys. (Subject) (verb) (subject) b) Verb expressing a state of being. Victor is a wonderful friend. (Subject) (verb) (subject complement) c) Verb expressing a body sensation The rash itches. (Subject) (verb) d) Ann and Tom are decorating their home. (Subject compound) (verb) (object) e) Verb expressing perception Josephine knew the dog’s whereabout. (Subject) (verb) (object) Transitive Verb Recall that the subject is the doer or performer of the action while the object is the receiver of the action. A transitive verb in the English language is the verb whose action is targeted or affects a person or an object, as in the case of the following se...

Grammar: Clauses By Eguriase S. M. Okaka A clause is a group of words that contains a subject and a predicate. Examples • Sade slapped the boy. (subject) (predicate) • The teacher punished the erring student. (subject) (predicate) • A clause is a group of words. (subject) (predicate) A clause may be either a sentence (an independent clause) or a sentence-like construction within another sentence (a dependent clause). Examples • I saw him/while I was coming. • In order to pass his exams,/(Luke studies every night. • All animals are equal,/ but some are more equal than the others.. Note that a clause is a construction which contains a verb. An expression (construction) that contains no verb is regarded as a phrase. Examples of Phrases • the newly appointed minister • many drivers • a student in an examination hall at night • several students in the school Examples of Clauses • I am proud of you. • It is a tribute to your expertise. • We have toiled over the years. • Our critics no...

Identifying Phrases By Eguriase S. M. Okaka Remember that a phrase is a group of words without a finite verb that forms part of a sentence. A finite verb is a verb that shows agreement with its subject in terms of person and numbers, e.g., the verb go as in: • He goes • They go Phrases can be used to form sentences by adding other words to them. One of the words to be added could be a verb. Examples • Dancing in the hall • A bottle of water • Our English teacher • Eating lunch You can see that none of the above examples of phrase contains a finite verb. But you can add other words to them to form sentences. Examples • The children are dancing in the hall. • My daddy asked for a bottle of water. • Our English teacher is a woman. • The students are eating lunch. Reminder: A sentence is group of words that makes complete sense. A sentence may have one or more finite verbs in it. A phrase is a group of words that does not make complete sense. Exercises Work with a partner to identif...

Grammar: Adjectives, Adverbs and Preposition By Eguriase S. M. Okaka Adjectives: Forms and sub-classes An adjective is a word that describes a noun or pronoun. There are different classes of adjectives. Here are some of them. • Qualitative adjectives or adjectives of quality, such as large, honest, tall, brave, fat, show the kind or quality a person or thing. Examples a) This is a large house. (adjective of quality) b) Mr. Felix is a kind man. (adjective of quality) • Quantifying adjectives or adjectives of quantity, such as some, little, enough, all, no, much, lots, tell us the quantity of something. Examples a) I cooked some food. (adjective of quantity) b) She needs lots of exercise. (adjective of quantity) • Adjective of number, such as one, two, third, fifth, indicate the exact number of persons or things. Examples a) The boy came first. (noun) (number adjective) b) Everyone has two ears. (number adjective) (noun) •...

Grammar: Noun, Pronoun, and Verb By Eguriase S. M. Okaka I believe that having a good knowledge of the parts of speech gives you a good knowledge of the English language as well. The parts of speech are the foundation stone of your building, if you consider building a house. If your foundation is solid that house will be solid but if the foundation is weak your house will be weak as well. If you know your parts of speech very well you will know your grammar very well. Grammar in general takes it root from parts of speech. Let us remind ourselves once again. The parts of speech include: • Noun • Pronoun • Adjective • Verb • Adverb • Preposition • Conjunction • Interjection and considerably the Articles which also are inclusive amongst them. Do you still remember the parts of speech (that is, the different classes into which we group words). Here is your chance to go over them again. • A verb is a doing word. • An adjective is a description word. • A preposition is a word that ...