English Grammar

English grammar is the set of rules that govern how words are used to form sentences in the English language, covering syntax, punctuation, and word structure.

English Grammar

Sentence
- Definition
  - A complete unit of thought (average length 15-20 words).
- Types
  - Statement (Declarative)
  - Question (Interrogative)
  - Command (Imperative)
  - Exclamation (Exclamatory)
- Styles
  - Active (the subject acts upon its verb)
  - Passive (the subject receives the action from the verb)
- Parts Of A Sentence
  - Independent Clause (aka Main Clause)
  - Dependent Clause (aka Subordinate Clause)
    - Noun Clause
    - Adjective Clause (aka Relative Clause)
      - Identifying Clause (no comma)
      - Non-Identifying Clause (use comma)
    - Adverbial Clause
    - Conditional Clause
    - Reported Clause
- Structure (+=1 clause)
  - Simple (1 independent clause)
  - Complex (1 independent clause, +=1 dependent clause)
    - Uses subordinating conjunction (when, if, because, that...)
  - Compound (+=2 independent clauses)
    - Uses coordinating conjunction (for, and, nor, but, or, yet, so)
  - Compound Complex (+=2 independent clauses, +=1 dependent clause)
Clause
- Definition
  - Consists of a subject and verb OR subject, verb and object.
- Parts Of A Clause
  - Subject
  - Predicate
    - Definition
      - The part of a clause that is not the subject.
  - Verb
  - Object
    - Direct, Indirect
  - Adverbial (aka Adjunct)
    - Adverb
    - Adverbial Phrase
    - Adverbial Clause
  - Complement
    - Adjective
    - Noun Phrase
- Structure
  - Subject, Verb
    - Subject, Intransitive Verb
    - Subject, Verb, Adverbial
  - Subject, Verb, Object
    - Subject, Transitive Verb, Direct Object
    - Subject, Verb, Object, Adverbial
  - Subject, Verb, Complement
    - Subject, Linking Verb, Subject Complement
    - Subject, Verb, Complement, Adverbial
  - Subject, Verb, Object, Object
    - Subject, Verb, Indirect Object, Direct Object
    - Subject, Verb, Object, Object, Adverbial
  - Subject, Verb, Object, Complement
    - Subject, Verb, Object, Object Complement
Phrase
- Definition
  - A group of words that function as a single part of speech.
Participle
- Definition
  - A word formed from a verb and used in compound verb-forms or as an adjective.
- Types
  - Present Participle (-ing) ??? "Continuous Participle"
    - As an adjective
    - To form continuous tenses
  - Past Participle (-ed) ??? "Perfect Participle"
    - As an adjective
    - To form pefect tenses
Gerund
- Definition
  - A word formed from a verb and used as a noun.
Parts Of Speech
- Open Classes
  - Noun
    - Proper, Common
    - Countable, Uncountable
    - Singular, Plural
  - Adjective (modifies nouns)
    - Attributive, Predicative
    - Comparative, Superlative
  - Verb (actions and states)
    - Types
      - Main Verb
        
        Regular, Irregular
        
        Transitive, Ditransitive, Intransitive
      - Auxiliary Verb
        
        Primary Auxiliary (express time)
        
        Modal Auxiliary (express certainty and doubt)
    - Forms
      - Base (aka Root. watch)
      - Present Simple, Third-Person Singular (watches)
      - Past Simple (watched)
      - Present Participle (watching)
      - Past Participle (watched)
    - Tense And Aspect
      - Present
        
        Simple (watch(es))
        
        Continuous (am/is/are watching)
        
        Perfect (have/has watched)
        
        Perfect Continuous (have/has been watching)
      - Past
        
        Simple (watched)
        
        Continuous (was/were watching)
        
        Perfect (had watched)
        
        Perfect Continuous (had been watching)
      - Future
        
        Simple (will watch)
        
        Continuous (will be watching)
        
        Perfect (will have watched)
        
        Perfect Continuous (will have been watching)
  - Adverb (modifies verbs, adverbs and adjectives)
- Closed Classes
  - Pronoun
    - Personal
      - Subject (eg I, you, he)
      - Object (eg me, you, him)
    - Relative (eg who, which, that)
    - Possessive (eg mine, yours)
    - Intensive
    - Demonstrative (eg this, that, these, those)
    - Reflexive (eg myself, yourself)
    - Reciprocal (eg each other)
    - Nominative
    - Indefinite
      - Singular (eg somebody, someone, something, nobody, nothing, everybody, everyone)
      - Plural (eg several, many, others, few, both)
    - Interrogative (eg whom, whose, who, what, which)
  - Determiner
    - Article
      - Definite (the)
      - Indefinite (a, an)
    - Demonstrative (this, these, that, those)
    - Quantifier (all, few, many)
    - Numbers
      - Cardinal (one, two, three)
      - Ordinal (first, second)
    - Possessive (my, your, his, her, its, our, their)
    - Distributives (each, every, either, neither)
    - Exclamatives (what, such)
  - Preposition (eg in, on, over, under)
  - Conjunction
    - Coordinating (eg and, nor, so)
    - Subordinating (eg because, since, after)
    - Correlative (eg "either/or", "such/that" and "not only/but also")
  - Interjection