Essentials of English Grammar A Quick Guide

A quick reference for people with grammar questions and an excellent primer for anyone learning the basics, Essentials of English Grammar features a glossary of grammar terms and updated coverage of stylistic conventions.

L. Sue Baugh is the bestselling author of numerous books on grammar usage and writing.

Preface

xi

Acknowledgments

xv

PART I Essentials of Grammar

1

(136)

1 Parts of Speech

3

(42)

Nouns

4

(3)

Proper, Common, and Collective Nouns

4

(1)

Functions of Nouns

4

(1)

Plural Nouns

5

(1)

Possessive Nouns

5

(2)

Pronouns

7

(7)

Personal Pronouns

7

(1)

Case of Personal Pronouns

8

(1)

Indefinite Pronouns

8

(1)

Possessive Pronouns

9

(1)

Relative Pronouns

10

(1)

Interrogative Pronouns

11

(1)

Demonstrative Pronouns

11

(1)

Pronoun-Antecedent Agreement

11

(2)

Who or Whom?

13

(1)

Verbs

14

(15)

Basic Verb Forms

15

(1)

Auxiliary Verbs

15

(1)

Verb Tenses

16

(1)

Regular Verbs

16

(2)

Functions of the Six Tenses

18

(3)

Irregular Verbs

21

(1)

Common Errors in Using Verb Tenses

21

(3)

Mood

24

(1)

Active and Passive Voices

25

(1)

Subject-Verb Agreement

26

(1)

Special Subject-Verb Agreement Cases

27

(2)

Adjectives

29

(3)

Demonstrative Adjectives

30

(1)

Limiting Adjectives

30

(1)

Comparisons

31

(1)

Compound Adjectives

32

(1)

Predicate Adjectives

32

(1)

Adverbs

32

(4)

Forming Adverbs

32

(1)

Types of Adverbs

33

(1)

Comparisons

34

(1)

Adverb Position and Meaning

34

(1)

Adjective or Adverb?

35

(1)

Prepositions

36

(3)

Phrasal Prepositions

37

(1)

Common Errors to Avoid

37

(1)

Prepositions Used with Verbs

38

(1)

Conjunctions

39

(3)

Coordinating Conjunctions

39

(1)

Correlative Conjunctions

39

(1)

Subordinating Conjunctions

40

(1)

Linking Adverbs

41

(1)

Interjections

42

(3)

Common Interjections

42

(1)

Punctuation

43

(2)

2 Punctuation and Punctuation Style

45

(22)

End Marks: Period, Question Mark, Exclamation Point

45

(2)

Period

45

(1)

Question Mark

46

(1)

Exclamation Point

47

(1)

Comma

47

(4)

Series Comma

48

(1)

Independent Clauses

48

(1)

Introductory Clauses, Phrases, Expressions

49

(1)

Nonrestrictive Clauses and Nonessential Material

49

(1)

Direct Address

49

(1)

Commas and Clarity

50

(1)

Traditional Comma Uses

50

(1)

Comma Faults

51

(1)

Semicolon

51

(2)

Independent Clauses

52

(1)

Series

53

(1)

Colon

53

(1)

Before a Series or List

53

(1)

Between Independent Clauses

54

(1)

Time

54

(1)

Formal and Business Communications

54

(1)

Quotation Marks

54

(3)

Punctuation with Quotation Marks

55

(1)

Brief and Long Quotations

56

(1)

Single Quotation Marks

56

(1)

Titles

56

(1)

Terms and Expressions

57

(1)

Apostrophe

57

(3)

Possessive of Singular Nouns

57

(1)

Possessive of Plural Nouns

58

(1)

Possessive of Indefinite and Personal Pronouns

58

(1)

Individual and Joint Possession

58

(1)

Units of Measure as Possessive Adjectives

59

(1)

Plural Forms of Symbols

59

(1)

Contractions

59

(1)

Hyphen

60

(2)

Compound Numbers and Fractions

60

(1)

Continuous Numbers

60

(1)

Prefixes and Suffixes

61

(1)

Compound Adjectives

61

(1)

Word Division

61

(1)

Hyphenated Names

62

(1)

To Avoid Confusion

62

(1)

Dash

62

(1)

Parentheses

63

(1)

Brackets

63

(1)

Ellipses

63

(1)

Italics

64

(3)

Emphasis

64

(1)

Foreign Words and Phrases

64

(1)

Titles

65

(1)

Vehicles

65

(2)

3 Sentences and Sentence Patterns

67

(10)

Sentences, Fragments, and Run-Ons

67

(1)

Phrases and Clauses

68

(2)

Phrases

69

(1)

Clauses

69

(1)

Subject and Predicate

70

(4)

Forms of the Subject

70

(2)

Forms of the Predicate

72

(2)

Sentence Constructions

74

(3)

Simple Sentence

74

(1)

Compound Sentence

74

(1)

Complex Sentence

75

(1)

Compound-Complex Sentence

75

(1)

Modifiers in Sentences

75

(2)

4 Capitalization, Abbreviations, and Numbers

77

(38)

Capitalization

77

(9)

Proper Nouns and Adjectives

77

(1)

Hyphenated Names and Prefixes

78

(1)

Family Relationships

78

(1)

Nationalities and Races

79

(1)

Languages and School Subjects

79

(1)

Religious Names and Terms

79

(2)

Academic Degrees and Personal Titles

81

(1)

Historic Events, Special Events, and Holidays

81

(1)

Historical Monuments, Places, and Buildings

82

(1)

Calendar Days, Months, and Seasons

82

(1)

Documents

82

(1)

Titles of Publications

82

(1)

Compass Points

83

(1)

Geographic Names and Regions

83

(1)

Scientific Terms

84

(2)

Capitals with Numbers

86

(1)

Abbreviations

86

(14)

General Guidelines

86

(1)

Personal Names and Titles

87

(3)

Company Names

90

(1)

Agencies and Organizations

90

(1)

Geographic Terms

91

(3)

Time

94

(2)

Scholarly Abbreviations

96

(1)

Measures

97

(1)

Science and Technology

98

(1)

Commercial Abbreviations

99

(1)

Numbers

100

(15)

Arabic Numbers and Roman Numerals

100

(1)

Figures or Words

101

(2)

Ages

103

(1)

Names

104

(1)

Governmental Designations

104

(1)

Organizations

105

(1)

Addresses and Thoroughfares

106

(1)

Time of Day

106

(1)

Dates

107

(2)

Money

109

(1)

Percentages

110

(1)

Fractions and Decimals

110

(1)

Measures

111

(1)

Temperature

112

(1)

Parts of a Book

112

(1)

Inclusive Numbers

113

(2)

5 Spelling and Word Division

115

(22)

Spelling Guidelines

115

(17)

Prefixes

115

(3)

Suffixes

118

(8)

Plurals

126

(5)

The i and e Rules

131

(1)

Word Division

132

(7)

General Rules

132

(1)

Syllables and Word Division

132

(1)

Single-Letter Syllables

133

(1)

Final and Double Consonants

134

(1)

Hyphenated Words

134

(1)

Proper Names

135

(1)

Figures and Abbreviations

135

(2)

PART II Style Considerations

137

(30)

6 Sentences

139

(6)

Use Clarity and Meaning as the Criteria for Good Sentences

139

(1)

Include Only One to Two Ideas in Each Sentence

140

(1)

Vary Sentence Patterns to Avoid Monotonous Use of Any Particular Construction

141

(4)

7 Brevity

145

(4)

Avoid the Phrases There Is and There Are

145

(1)

Condense Clauses Beginning with Which, That, or Who into Fewer Words

145

(1)

Strike Out the Article the Wherever Possible

146

(1)

Eliminate Wordy and Redundant Phrases and Expressions

146

(3)

8 Clarity

149

(8)

Keep Words Fresh

149

(2)

Jargon

149

(1)

Buzzwords

150

(1)

Clichés

151

(1)

Keep Words Specific and Concrete

151

(1)

Keep References Clear

152

(3)

Keep Modifiers Close to Words They Modify

153

(1)

Place Adverbs Close to Words They Modify

153

(1)

Keep Subject and Verb Together

153

(1)

Make Sure That Antecedents Are Clear

154

(1)

Keep Structures Parallel

155

(2)

9 Accuracy

157

(2)

Double-Check Figures, Dates, Specifications, and Other Details

157

(1)

Be Sure That All Names, Titles, and Abbreviations Are Spelled Properly

157

(1)

Verify the Accuracy of Direct Quotations

157

(1)

Make Sure That Ideas Are Presented Clearly

158

(1)

Make Sure Your Work Is Neat and Legible

158

(1)

10 Gender-Inclusive Language

159

(8)

Nouns and Pronouns

159

(2)

Alternative Noun Forms

161

(1)

Suffixes ess, ette, ix, and ienne/ine

162

(2)

Social Titles

164

(1)

Salutations

164

(1)

Occupational Titles

165

(2)

Appendix A: Principal Parts of Irregular Verbs

167

(2)

Appendix B: Verb-Preposition Combinations

169

(6)

Appendix C: Frequently Confused Words

175

(8)

Appendix D: Frequently Misspelled Words

183

(6)

Glossary

189

(6)

Index

195

What is included with this book?

The New copy of this book will include any supplemental materials advertised. Please check the title of the book to determine if it should include any access cards, study guides, lab manuals, CDs, etc.

The Used, Rental and eBook copies of this book are not guaranteed to include any supplemental materials. Typically, only the book itself is included. This is true even if the title states it includes any access cards, study guides, lab manuals, CDs, etc.

FREE SHIPPING

Amazon no longer offers textbook rentals. We do!

Essentials of English Grammar A Quick Guide To Good English

Summary

Author Biography

Table of Contents

Supplemental Materials