Colegio San Agustin- Bacolod

College of Arts, Sciences and Education

Notes in Structure in English

(compiled and simplified for LET Review purposes of CSA- B only)

Course Description: Develops the ability to use the phonological, lexical, syntactic, and semantic
structures of English with ease and explain the form, meaning, and use of their elements.

How New Words are Born

1. Derivation
- The commonest method of creating a new word is to add a prefix or suffix to an existing one.
Hence realisation (1610s), democratise (1798), detonator (1822), preteen (1926), hyperlink (1987)

2. Back Formation
- The creation of a new root word by the removal of an affix.
- The noun sleaze, for example, was back-formed from “sleazy” in about 1967.
Examples: editor- edit; obsessive- obsess; singer- sing; revision- revise

3. Compounding
- The juxtaposition of two existing words. Typically, compound words begin as separate entities,
then get hitched with a hyphen, and eventually become a single unit.
- It’s mostly nouns that are formed this way (fiddlestick, claptrap, carbon dating, bailout), but
words from other classes can be put together too: into (preposition), nobody (pronoun),
daydream (verb), awe-inspiring, environmentally friendly (adjectives).

4. Repurposing
- Taking a word from one context and applying it to another.
- Thus the crane, meaning lifting machine, got its name from the long neck bird, and the
computer mouse was named after the long-tailed animal.

5. Conversion
- Taking a word from one word class and transplanting it to another.
- The word giant was for a long time just a noun, meaning a creature of enormous size, until the
early 15th century, when people began using it as an adjective.

6. Eponyms
- Words named after a person or place.
Examples: Alzheimer’s, atlas, cheddar, diesel, panic, sideburns

7. Abbreviations
- There are three main subtypes: clippings, acronyms and initialisms.
A. Clippings (truncation) or (shortening): reduction of a word to one of its parts
Ex.: phone from telephone; ad from advertisement; piano from pianoforte
B. Acronyms: initialism is pronounced as a word
Ex.: laser (light amplification by stimulated emission of radiation), scuba (self-contained
underwater breathing apparatus)
C. Initialisms: combining letters of words in the phrase
Ex: DVD (digital versatile disc), ATM (automated teller machine

8. Loanwords
 - Most English words are borrowed from French, Latin and Greek;
- Flemish (hunk), Portuguese (fetish), Tahitian (tattoo), Russian (mammoth), Japanese (tycoon)
- Calques (flea market, brainwashing, loan word) are translations of borrowings.

9. Onomatopeia
- The creation of a word by imitation of the sound it is supposed to make.
Examples: plop, ow, bark, cuckoo, rustle, slap

10. Reduplication
- The repetition, or near-repetition, of a word or sound.
Examples: flip-flop, goody-goody, boo-boo, helter-skelter, picnic, claptrap, hanky-panky, hurly-
burly

11. Nonce words

- created for a single occasion to solve an immediate problem of communication
Ex.: Fluddle (a water spillage between a puddle and a flood); bouba and kiki (used to - - ---
demonstrate a connection between the sound of words and their meaning)

12. Error
- Misspellings, mishearings, mispronunciations and mistranscriptions rarely produce new words
in their own right, but often lead to new forms in conjunction with other mechanisms.
-Scramble, for example, seems to have originated as a variant of scrabble; but over time, the
two forms have taken on different meanings, so one word has now become two.
- “helpmeet (a helper suitable for him)”, or “helpmate”, is the result of a Biblical boo-boo or
mistake

13. Portmanteaus
- Compounding with a twist. Take one word, remove an arbitrary portion of it, then put in its
place either a whole word, or a similarly clipped one.
- Example: sitcom, smog, motel, spork

Basic Sentence Patterns

1. N be Adj
Roses are sweet. (subject complement= predicate adjective)

2. N be UW (= uninflected word)
- uninflected word is an adverbial such as here, there, up, down, in, out, inside, upstairs, downstairs, on,
off, now, then, yesterday, and tomorrow. BE has the meaning of “be located” or “occur”
The meeting was yesterday. (adverbial)

3. N¹ be N¹- the superscript means that the two nouns have the same referent; in particular, a predicate
noun or predicate nominative
Her neighbor is my cousin. (subject complement= predicate nominative)

4. N InV (intransitive Verb)- intransitive verb does not require an object

Glasses break.

5. N¹TrV (transitive Verb) N²- where N² does not have the same referent as N¹. N² is called the direct
object of the verb, “the receiver of the action.”
The girl buys yellow roses.
6. N¹ TrV N² N³- the superscripts 1, 2, 3 indicate that each noun has a different referent
Mother gave a gift to the orphan.

7. }N²
}Adj.
}Pronoun
N¹ TrV N² } Adv (of place)
} verb, present participle
} verb, past participle

These are choices of different form in sentence final position. These are illustrated as follow:
(object complement) The class voted Henry secretary.
(adjective) The principal found the gardener efficient.
(pronoun) We considered the writer you.
(adverb of place) The teacher directed them outside.
(present participle) She saw them praying.
(past participle) I imagine my father overworked.

NOUNS
A noun is a word that names something: either a person, place, or thing although sometimes
they might be intangible things, such as concepts, activities, or processes.

Noun Types/ Classes

1. COMMON NOUNS refer to a kind of person, thing, or idea
COUNT NOUNS which take the plural inflection
MASS/NONCOUNT NOUNS which don’t take the plural inflection

2. PROPER NOUNS are names for unique individuals or places

Robinsons, Bank of the Philippines, CSA- B, Maria

3. COLLECTIVE NOUNS are able to take either singular or plural verbs forms, depending on the
interpretation given to the noun, i.e., whether it is seen as a unit or as a collection of individuals
The team has won all its games.
The team have won awards in their respective events.

Noun Characteristics/ Properties

1. They are names of entities - a person, place, thing, or idea.
Ex.: John, market, pen, love

2. They have two INFLECTIONS, the PLURAL

{-es/s} and the POSSESSIVE (sometimes called the GENITIVE) {-‘s}.
Ex.: two new houses/ buses
Maria’s assignment

3. They may be marked by noun-forming DERIVATIONAL SUFFIXES added to bases or stems, usually
belonging to other parts of speech, e.g.
added to verbs
{-age} breakage {-ee} employee
added to adjectives
{-ity} generosity {-ness} happiness
 added to other nouns
{-cy} advocacy {-ian} librarian {-ship} friendship

4. They fill certain characteristic positions in relation to other parts of speech in phrases and sentences.
just before a verb
ex.: Red roses bloom in my garden.
after determiners such as articles, demonstratives, and possessive adjectives,
e.g., the examination, these reviewees, my handouts

5. Gender is only marked in certain pairs of nouns, e.g., waiter/waitress, host/hostess

6. Certain SUPERFIXES/STRESS PATTERNS occasionally identify nouns from other parts of speech as in:
recòrd and rècord. These two words are morphemically alike; however, we identify the stress pattern / ˊ
ˋ / as a noun.

7. Nouns can serve as HEADS in a noun phrase. As heads they may be preceded by one or more single-
word modifiers and followed by a phrasal or clausal modifier or both
Ex.: the small study table in my room which my father bought

Functions of Nouns
A. Subject
Nouns can serve as subjects when they answer the question: “Who or what is doing the action?”
or “Who or what is being the state of being?” in a sentence.
Ex.: 1. Several items have ambiguous stems.
2. Students have to adjust in their new learning modality.

B. Direct Objects of Verbs

Nouns can serve as direct objects of the verbs when they answer the question, “Whom or what
is receiving the action of the verb?” If a direct object is existing in a sentence, it would normally follow
the verb. The verb must be a verb of action.
Ex.: 1. They administered the test.
2. The government implements a lockdown for everyone’s safety.

C. Indirect Objects of Verbs

An Indirect Object is a person or thing to whom or for which something is done. As the receiver
of the direct object, which is directly the receiver of the action, an indirect object receives the action of
the verb indirectly.
Ex.: 1. The lecturer provided the participants handouts.
2. We gave Jamie a virtual hug because he’s sick.

D. Subject Complements
Nouns can function as Subject Complements when they follow a verb of being (linking verbs)
and answer the question “Who?”, or the question “What?”. Sometimes, we refer to them as predicate
nominative.
Ex.: 1. The lady is an engineer.
2. All frontliners in this pandemic are heroes.

E. Object noun predicates/ Object complements

Nouns which come after direct objects to rename or modify it.
Ex.: 1. We painted the wall white.
 2. Liza calls my mother Superwoman.

F. Objects of Prepositions
Prepositional phrases are groups of words beginning with a preposition and generally ending
with a noun. The noun that follows a preposition is the object.
Ex.: 1. We need to follow the instructions of the NAITF.
2. Jill found her wallet under the bench.

G. Appositives
The appositive renames another noun in the sentence. Usually, a comma is used to separate it
with the noun it refers to.
Ex.: 1. Meet my new classmate, James.
2. Dr. Tan, our principal, instructed us to observe netiquette during online classes.

G. Vocatives/Nouns of Address/ Direct Address

Nouns of address are persons’ names, directly spoken to. Nouns of direct address are typically
used to name the listener when you are addressing, or speaking, directly to him or her in conversation.
Ex.: 1. Anne, how did you find the exam?
2. Hello, Carmel! How are you today?

Pronouns
- stand for, refer to, or replaces a noun or a noun phrase within a text
- antecedent (word or words that a pronoun stands for)
- They are words that take the place of nouns. They are substitutes for nouns, even noun phrases
too.

Properties of pronouns
- Like a noun, it has number, gender and case.

1. Grammatical Number
- A pronoun may be singular or plural.
- I, me, he, him, she, her, it, anyone, this, that, are all singular.
- we, us, they, them, all, these, those, are all plural.

2. Grammatical Gender
- It may be masculine, feminine, common, or neuter.
- Masculine - he, him, his
- Feminine - she, her, hers
- Common - they, them, theirs
- Neuter - it, its, that, this

3. Grammatical Case
- Case refers to the different forms associated with the different jobs a noun or a pronoun does in
a sentence. In the examples below, it shows you the different forms of he performing different
functions in sentences.

4. Pronouns are divided into three grammatical persons.

- They are:
o First Person - refers to the one(s) doing the speaking. (I, me, mine, we, us, ours)
o Second Person - refers to the one(s) spoken to, i.e. directly addressed. (you, yours)
 o Third Person - refers to the one(s) spoken about, be they human, animal, vegetable,
mineral, or abstract. (it, its, they, theirs, them.)

Types of pronouns
1. Personal Pronouns
- These are pronouns that refer mostly to human beings. However, the word 'it' does not refer to
human beings, but is a Personal Pronoun.
- The list of pronouns which belong to this group are: I, we, you, he, she, it, and they.
A. Subjective Pronouns (I, we, you, he, she, it, they)
B. Objective Pronouns (me, us, you, him, her, it, them)
C. Possessive Pronouns (mine, ours, yours, his, hers, its, theirs)
- with also the following ones, which strictly speaking, are adjectives - my, our, your, her, their).

2. Compound Personal Pronouns

A. Reflexive Pronouns
o These pronouns function as grammatical objects or complements which mirror the
subject, as in...
o herself—She blamed herself for the mishap.
o himself—He is himself today.
B. Intensive Pronouns
o These pronouns act as appositives of nouns or pronouns for the sake of emphasis, as in
the examples below...
o yourself—You yourself wrote those words.
o themselves—This request came from the employees themselves.

3. Demonstrative Pronouns
- These pronouns point out someone or something (this, these, those, such)
- She gave me this gift. (this - Demonstrative Adjective)
- I like this. (this - Demonstrative Pronoun)
- these - These are my children.
- such - Such are the people whom you once trusted.

4. Indefinite Pronouns
- These pronouns do stand for some person or thing, but we don't know for exactly whom.
- one - One should speak the truth.
- somebody - Somebody immediately called the doctor.
- anybody - Anybody can solve this problem.
- nobody - Nobody was present.
- many - Many are called, but few are chosen.
- others - Do good to others.
- you - You don't take coal to Newcastle, or coconuts to Kerala!
- they - They say that a poor workman blames his tools.

5. Distributive Pronouns
- These pronouns refer to individual elements in a group or a pair, one individual at a time.
- each - "From each according to his ability, to each according to his need."
- either - You may answer either of these (two) questions first.
- neither - Neither of the answers is correct.
- any - You may bring any of your friends.
- none - None of our students failed last year.
6. Reciprocal Pronouns
- These pronouns are found in pairs. They are really a subject-object pair compressed. We'll find
this if we expand the sentence in which they are present
- each other - They love each other. (i.e. Each loves the other.)
- Each (the subject) is used in a distributive sense; the other (the object) automatically takes the
reciprocal position. Each stands for both individuals, one at a time.
- one another - Good people help one another to succeed.

7. Relative Pronoun
- It acts as a substitute for a noun (like any pronoun)
- It also functions as a joining word for two clauses.
- who - Give this to the boy who wins the race.
- whose - This is Mohan, whose mobile phone was stolen last week.
- whom - Rita, whom you praised in class yesterday, is my sister.
- - This is the problem, which we are struggling to solve.
- - This is the day that we have waited for so long.
- what - Eat what is set before you.

8. Compound Relative Pronouns

- They are: whoever, whatever, whichever, whosoever, whatsoever
- Whoever is the owner of this car, please park it properly next time.
- Whatsoever you do to the least of your brother, that you do unto Me.

9. Interrogative Pronouns
- These look like Relative Pronouns, but have a different function. We use them for asking
questions. There are three of them:
- who (with its other forms, whose and whom)
- who - Who is that man?
- Whose - Whose is this wallet?
- Whom - Whom do you seek?
- which - Which is your seat?
- what - What is your name?

Personal and Related Pronouns

Person/ Personal Possessive Reflexive/
Number Intensive
Singular Subject Form Object Form Noun Determiner/
replacement adjective
I Me Mine My Myself
You You Yours Your Yourself

Masculine He Him His His Himself

Feminine She Her Hers Her Herself
Neuter it It - Its Itself
Plural
We Us Ours Our Ourselves
You You Yours Your Yourselves
They Them Their Their Themselves

Remember:
1. Animals closely related to people can be referred to by he, him, ad his, or she, her, and hers.
 The dog loves his/her/ its master.

2. Use “it” and “its” to inanimate objects except ships, which are always referred as “she”.
3. Countries and schools are sometimes referred to by “she” or “her”.
4. Traditionally, the pronouns “he”, “him” and “his” have been used for mixed groups or groups in which
the sex is unknown. Many people now object to this use, so they use both the masculine and feminine
forms or the plural forms to avoid the problem.
Everybody submitted his or her assignment. (awkward)
All the students submitted their assignments. (acceptable)
5. If “I, me, my or mine” or their plural counterparts are part of a pair or a series, put them last.
The teacher confiscated his toy and mine, too.
Father helped Tony with his project, and he will help my sister and me with ours tomorrow.

Indefinite Pronouns
Personal Anyone Everyone None Someone Another
Anybody Everybody No one Somebody Other ones
Nobody Others
Non- personal anything anything Nothing something Another
none Other ones
others

Pronouns and their function

- They share similar functions with the nouns (Subject, Direct Object, Indirect Object, Appositive, PN,
Object of the Preposition).
1. Jennie believes in her.- OP
2. They smelled it!- DO
3. The students, they, wrote him a letter.- Appositive
4. The person to ask is she.- PN
5. She is interested to join.- Subject

Verbs
- Denotes action (read) or state of being (know
- Action verbs are dynamic
- State of being verbs (stative verbs) include the copula or linking verbs, e.g. the be- verbs
“remain”, “appear”, and “become”
- Has four inflections (-s, -ed, -en, -ing)
- Possess the following:
o Number (singular or plural)
o Tense (past, present, future)
o Voice (active or passive)
o Mood or mode (indicative, imperative and subjunctive)
- They have endings:
o ify, -ise, -efy, -ish, -fy, -ate, -ize, -en
- They are positioned:
o After nouns (subjects)
o Before nouns (subjective complements, direct objects, indirect objects)
- They are found in verb phrases
o Main verb
- Auxiliary verb/s
 - They are combined with other verbs, nouns & adjs. to form solid compounds
o output, facelift, heartburn
o Hyphenated as wash- and- wear
o Spaced or open such as look for, put off

Six Categories of Verbs

1. Transitive Verbs
- Verbs that demand objects
- Common are the verbs “give”, “grant”, and “tell” or “pass”, “read”, “bake”
- Ex.: Alex sent a postcard from Argentina.
She left the keys on the table.
My father took me to the movies for my birthday.

2. Intransitive Verbs
- Verb which does not take a direct object
- Common intransitive verbs are “appear”, “arrive”, “breathe”, “continue”, “cry”, “die”, “happen”,
“occur”, “seem”, “smile”
- Ex.: She grew up so quickly.
It rained hard last night.
The incident happened last month.

3. Monotransitive Verbs
- Subcategory of transitive verbs that take only one object: direct object.
- Common monotransitive English verbs:
accomplish - begin
achieve - continue
address - start
- Examples: She has accomplished her dreams.
The President will address the students.
The referee ended the game.
He finally finished his thesis.

4. Ditransitive Verbs
- A verb which takes a subject and two objects (may be called direct and indirect)
Ex.: David told the children a story.
He gave her the letter.
My mother made me a pair of socks.

5. Complex Transitive Verbs

- A verb that requires both a direct object and another object or an object complement.
- The object complement identifies a quality or attribute pertaining to the direct object.
- Ex.: The judge declared the man guilty on two counts.
- Common verbs: believe, consider, declare, elect, find, judge, keep, know, label, make, name,
presume, pronounce, prove, rate, regard, think
Ex.: They painted the barn green.
Jack found his brother’s behavior deplorable.

6. Copula Verbs
- A verb that links the subject of a sentence to a subject complement
- In the case of English, this is the verb “to be”
- Semi- copulas such as “become”, “get”, “feel” and “seem”
 - Examples
Mary and John are my friends.
The sky was blue.
I am taller than most people.
The birds and the beasts were there.

Other Verbs
1. Stative verbs
- They express a state rather than an action
- They relate to thoughts, emotions, relationships, senses, states of being
- Ex.: The doctor disagrees with your analysis.
John doubts the doctor’s opinion.
I believe the doctor is right.

2. Modal verbs
- Are auxiliary verbs that are used to express abilities, possibilities, permissions and
obligations
- Ex.: can, must, may, should, would
- Ex.: He can shoot a three- point shot easily.
- Can- express ability
- Should & must- express obligations
- Would & may- express possibilities
- Ex.: I should go home.
- You must not delay.
- Sally would not recommend the sushi.
- David may be late.

3. Phrasal verbs
- Are combination of words (verb + a preposition or verb + adverb) that when used together,
usually take on a different meaning to that of the original verb.
- Ex.: break down, check in, tear up
Ella tore up the letter after she read it.
Their car broke down two miles out of town.

4. Linking Verbs
o Linking verbs are verbs that serve as a connection between a subject and further
information about that subject.
o They do not show any action; rather, they “link” the subject with the rest of the
sentence.
o The verb to be is the most common linking verb, but there are many others, including all
the sense verbs.
 all forms of to be (am, is, are, was, were, has been, are being, might be, etc.)
 all the sense verbs, such as look, touch, smell, appear, feel, sound, and taste

5. Helping Verbs (auxiliary verbs)

o Helping verbs are verbs that help the main verb in a sentence by extending its meaning.
They can also add detail to how time is conveyed in a sentence.
 To be: am, is, are, was, were, be, been
 To have: have, has, had
 To do: do, does, did
6. Finite Verbs and Non- finite Verbs
A. Finite Verbs
- A complete sentence consists of a subject and a finite verb.
- A finite verb-
o Agrees with the subject
o Indicates present or past
o Has a subject in the nominative case
B. Non- finite Verbs
- The verb in the sentence fragment is non- finite.
- A non- finite verb:
o Does not agree with the subject
o Does not indicate present or past
o Does not have a subject in the nominative case

Principal Parts of the Verb

Tenses of Verb
- Grammatical marking on verbs that usually indicates time reference relative to either the time
of speaking or the time at which some other situation was in force (Jacos 1995)
- Three tenses (present, past, and future)

Aspect
- General name given to verb forms used to signify certain ways in which an event is viewed or
experienced.
- Simple (completed whole), perfect (whether or not it has occurred earlier) and progress (still in
progress)
- The tenses in combination with aspects make up the following 12- tense aspect categories.
These make up the traditional 12 tenses.
- Sometimes, when we want to draw attention to the time of action, we use ADJUNCT OF TIME
which can be an adverb, a noun group, or a prepositional phrase
o Ex: She’s coming tomorrow (adverb)
o Results of the exam were released last week. (noun group)
o He will feel relieved after the exam. (prepositional phrase)

Verb Tenses
1. simple present- talk about thoughts and feelings at the present moment or about immediate actions
to something
I’m terribly busy. I get up early to take a bath.
There are 24 hours in a day.
2. Simple past- stating a definite time in the past
 The officials flew to Jakarta last week. We swam in the river a great deal in my
He lived in his ancestral home during his last years. childhood.
3. simple future- an expression of what we think might happen or what we intend to happen
What do you think Ella will do to fix it?

Perfect Aspect
1. present perfect- the past in relation to the present
I have read the book several times.
2. past perfect- events before a particular time in the past; talk about a past event or situation that
occurred before a particular time in the past
By noon, students had gathered at the quadrangle with their placards.
3. future perfect- refer to something that has not happened yet, but will happen before a particular time
in the future
By the time he graduates, his parents will already have left for New Zealand.

Progressive Aspect
1. Present progressive- accent on the present (I’m already feeling bored and hungry.)
2. Past progressive- accent on the past (His body was trembling; his fever was rising)
3. Future progressive- something will surely happen because arrangements have been made
They will be sending their students regularly to the University.

Perfect Progressive Aspect

1. Present perfect progressive- talk about an activity or situation that started at some time in the past,
continued, and is still happening now
The economy has been declining in many parts of the world.
2. Past perfect progressive- emphasize the recentness and duration of a continuous activity which took
place before a particular time in the past
The old woman had been living alone in that dilapidated house.
- To say that something was expected, wished for, or intended before a particular time in the past
I had been expecting a phenomenal rise in his political career.
3. Future perfect progressive- emphasize the duration to an event at a specific time in the future
By January 2011, she will have been serving this university for 38 years.

Voice of the Verb

- pertains to who or what serves as the subject in a clause

Voices:
1. Active voice- the subject of a clause is most often the agent, or doer, of some action.
The lifeguard saved the child (ACTIVE)
2. Passive voice- the subject of a clause is the receiver or undergoer of the action.
The child was saved (by the lifeguard). (PASSIVE)

Transforming the Voice

1. active to passive- move the active sentence's direct object into the sentence's subject slot

2. Place the active sentence's subject into a phrase beginning with the preposition ”by”
3. Add a form of the auxiliary verb be (helping verb) to the main verb and change the main verb's
form

Passive to active
1. Move the passive sentence's subject into the active sentence's direct object slot

2. Remove the auxiliary verb be from the main verb and change main verb's form if needed

3. Place the passive sentence's object of the preposition by into the subject slot.

VERBALS
A verbal is a word formed from a verb but functioning as a different part of speech

1. Gerunds
• A gerund is a verbal ending in -ing that functions as a noun.
• Like an ordinary single-word noun, a gerund may be used as a subject, direct object, subject
complement, object of the preposition, appositive.
• Examples:
• Jogging everyday is my favorite exercise.
• I really enjoy jogging.
• My favorite exercise is jogging.
 • I take pleasure in jogging.
• My favorite exercise, jogging, keeps me fit.

2. Participle
 A participle is a verbal that functions as an adjective.
 Two kinds of participles:
 Present participles, always ending in -ing, are created from the form of a verb used with the
verb to be ( am, is, are, was, were, been) as an auxiliary verb (progressive tense).
o The boiling water on the stove is hot.
o The water boiling on the stove is hot.
 Past participles, usually ending in -ed or -en, are created from the form of a verb used with the
verb to be as an auxiliary verb (passive voice).
o The cracked windows have been fixed.
o The lost coin was never found.

3. Infinitives
- An infinitive is a verbal formed by placing to in front of the simple present form of a verb.
Examples:
to swim to think to read
to be to cut to turn
- Infinitives may function as adjectives, adverbs, or nouns
Examples:
1. This is the best time to start.
2. To win, you need the highest number of points.
3. To climb Mt. Everest was my greatest ambition.

ADJECTIVE
- word which describes or denotes the qualities of something

Properties of Adjectives
1. Adjectives can take a modifying word such as “very”, “extremely”, or “less” before them:
- very cold weather - less violent storms
- extremely large windows

Gradable adjectives: take those modifying words

Non- gradable adjectives: don’t need those modifying words
- principal role ( not: the very principal role)
- electronic devices

2. Adjectives take different forms to indicate their position on a scale of comparison.

Types of Adjectives
1. Descriptive Adjectives- a descriptive adjective describes noun and pronouns.
A. Attributive adjective
- adjectives that appear directly beside the noun, most commonly before, called attributive,
because they attribute a quality to the noun they modify.
Ex.: tropical fish
leafless tree

B. Predicate adjectives
- adjectives that appear after a linking verb are predicative adjectives because they form part of the
predicate. Hence, they modify the subject of the sentence or clause.
Ex.: The pickles are salty.
Tornadoes appear menacing.

2. Limiting Adjectives
-Limiting adjectives limit the noun being described.
- Definite and Indefinite articles
A. Definite article: “the” (specifies a particular noun as opposed to any one.
Ex.: the cat (a specific, identifiable cat)
B. Indefinite articles: “a” & “an” (used with a noun when a specific noun is not being pointed at.
Ex.: a lion (any lion)
an ant (any ant)

C. Possessive Adjectives
- Possessive adjectives: “my”, “your”, “his”, “her”, “its”, “our”, “their” (modify nouns by showing
possession or ownership)
Ex.: I forgot my key at home.
What is your phone number?

D. Demonstrative Adjectives
- Demonstrative adjectives: “this”, “these”, “that”, “those”, and “what” (modify nouns or noun phrases)
Ex.: That dog is so adorable.
He lives in this house.

E. Interrogative Adjectives
- Interrogative adjectives: “which”, “what” (modify nouns or noun phrases rather than standing on its
own)
Ex.: Which method is likely to produce the best results?
What subject did you enjoy most?

F. Indefinite Adjectives
- They are similar to indefinite pronouns except that they modify nouns, pronouns or noun
phrases.
Ex.: Many people do not follow the protocols.
There were a few people sitting at the back of the hall.

G. Cardinal Adjectives
- They modify the noun by numbering it (stating how many).
Ex.: five pens; six tables

H. Ordinal Adjectives
- They indicate the position of a noun in a series.
Ex.: the first date; the third month

I. Proper Adjectives
- They are derived from proper names.
Ex.: Japanese food
Russian opera

J. Nouns used as Adjectives

- Nouns are used as adjectives to define or describe another noun.
Ex.: the computer exhibition
a history teacher

Order of adjectives in noun groups

DET opinion size shape condition age color origin NOUN

Many Pretty Small Round Chipped Antique Blue Chinese vases

ADVERBS
- Words that modify…
o A verb (He drove slowly.)
o An adjective (He drove a very fast car.)
o Another adverb (She moved quite slowly down the aisle.)

Characteristics:
- Adverbs have comparative and superlative forms to show degree
o Walk faster if you want to keep up with me.
o The student who reads fastest will finish first.
o With sneakers on, she could move more quickly among the patients.
o The flowers were the most beautifully arranged creations I’ve ever seen.

- The “as-as” construction can be used to create adverbs that express sameness or equality.
o He can’t run as fast as his sister.

Forms of Adverbs: Adverbs end in –ly and those which do not

- He arrived late.
- Lately, he couldn’t seem to be on time for anything.
Adverbs may function as intensifiers (Emphasizers, Amplifiers, Downtoners)

1. Emphasizers
- I really don’t believe him.
- He literally wrecked his mother’s car.
- She simply ignored me.

2. Amplifiers
- The teacher completely rejected her proposal.
- The heartily endorsed the new restaurant.
- We know this city well.

3. Downtoners
- I sort of felt betrayed by his sister.
- His mother mildly disapproved his actions.
- We can improve on this to some extent.

Using adverbs in a numbered list

- Don’t number items beyond three or four; use nos. instead (1,2, 3, etc.
- Don’t use adverbs with “-ly” ending (not secondly, but second, third)

Kinds of Adverbs
- Adverbs of Manner
- Adverbs of Place
- Adverbs of Frequency
- Adverbs of Time
- Adverbs of Purpose

Adverbs of Manner
- She moved slowly and spoke quietly.
- We need to move fast to catch the bus.

Adverbs of Place
- She has lived on the island all her life.
- She still lives there now.

Adverbs of Frequency
- She takes the boat to the mainland every day.
- She often goes by herself.

Adverbs of Time
- She tries to get back before dark.
- She finished her tea first.
- She left early.

Adverbs of Purpose
- She drives her boat slowly to avoid hitting the rocks.
- She shops in several stores to get the best buys.

Take note:
- Shorter adverbial phrases precede longer adverbial phrases
o Dad takes a brisk walk before breakfast everyday of his life.
- The more specific adverbial phrase comes first
Ex.: My grandmother was born in a sod house on the plains of northern Nebraska.
She promised to meet him for lunch next Tuesday.

Major Types of Adverbs:

1. Adjuncts,
2. Disjuncts, and
3. Conjuncts

1. Adjuncts
- Adjuncts provide optional data and removing them does not affect the central meaning of the clause.
- It is better to celebrate the party in the park.
- He really agrees at your point.
- Due to her carelessness, she lost her money.

2. Disjunct
- A disjunct is an adverb that is not integrated into the structure of the sentence and it normally
expresses an attitude or viewpoint of the speaker.
- Frankly speaking, I do not like your views.
- To their regret, he didn’t take up the job.
- Honestly, his presentation was disappointing.

3. Conjunct
- A conjunct perform connective functions. It joins or connects two phrases, clauses or sentences
- Hardly had she entered when it began to rain.
- No sooner had we closed than the thieves came.

PREPOSITIONS
- Prepositions are commonly used to show a relationship in space or time or a logical relationship
between two or more people, places or things.
- Commonly followed by a noun phrase or pronoun
- Examples:
- The last time I saw him he was walking down the road.
- I’ll meet you in the café opposite the cinema.
- It was difficult to sleep during the flight.
- It was the worst storm since the 1980’s.
- Give that to me.

Some prepositions are:

- About
- Above
- Across
- After
- Against
- Beside
- Between
- Beyond
- Despite
 - near
- Underneath
- Unlike
- Within
- Since
- Inside
- Below
- Without
- Ahead of
- Apart from
- As well as
- Because of
- In spite of
- Near to
- On top of
- In place of

CONJUNCTIONS (Walden University, 2021)

- Process of combining ideas
- Conjunctions are parts of speech that connect words, phrases, clauses or sentences.
- Kinds: coordinating, paired (correlative), subordinating

Forms:
- Coordinating conjunctions: for, nor, but, or , yet, and so or called FANBOYS
- Correlative conjunctions: either… or, not only… but also, and neither… nor
- Subordination- sentence combining or reducing
o Examples are: After
o Although
o As much as
o As soon as
o As long as
o Because
o If
o Once
o Since
o Though
o Unless
o Where/wherever
o Whether
o while

Sentence combining: Melissa topped the test. Melissa was late by twenty minutes.
Although late by twenty minutes, Melissa topped the test.
Reducing: Although late, Melissa topped the test.
PHRASES
A phrase is a syntactic unit headed by a lexical category such as Noun, Adjective, Adverb, Verb
or Preposition. Also we can add conjunctional phrase and interjectional phrase.

Phrases are named for their heads: NP, VP, AdjP, AdvP, PP, CP, and IP

1. Noun Phrase (NP)

- the new student from Hungary

2. Adjective Phrase (AdjP)

- so beautiful

3. Adverb Phrase (AdvP)

- quite happily

4. Verb Phrase (VP)

- ate the cake
- sat in the yard
- seemed very quiet

5. Prepositional Phrase (PP)

- in the yard
- with glasses
- under the apple tree

6. Conjunction Phrase
- As soon as
- So that
- Provided that
- In order that

7. Interjectional Phrase
- What a pity!
- What a pleasure!
- Oh please!

Functions of Phrases:
- Subject
- Direct Object
- Indirect Object
- Subject Complement
- Object Complement
- Adjective
- Adverb

Examples:
- The waterfall, cascading gently, poured down over the rocks.
o The waterfall is a SUBJECT
o Cascading gently (participial phrase) is ADJECTIVE
o Poured down is a VERB
 o Over the rocks is a prepositional phrase functioning as ADVERB
- This wool is the best material to wear in cold weather.
o This wool is a SUBJECT
o The best material is SUBJECT COMPLEMENT/ PN
o To wear is an infinitive functioning as ADJECTIVE
o In cold weather is a prepositional phrase functioning as ADVERB.

CLAUSE
- A clause has at least one subject and at least one predicate.
Basis:
- Structure/ form/ composition
- Functions/ use

Classification of Clauses (structure/ form/ composition)

A. Independent Clause
- A clause that is composed of a subject/s and predicate/s; always serves as a simple sentence
Ex,: Some animals hibernate.
The male and female reproductive parts of a plant are found in the flower.

B. That- Clause (Dependent Clause)

A clause that is introduced by the word “that”; serves as a noun
Ex.: That some animals hibernate
That that lady is a diva

C. Interrogative- Word Clause (Dependent Clause)

- A clause that is introduced by an interrogative pronoun (who, what, which, whose, whom) or
an interrogative adverb (when, where, why, how); serves as a noun
Ex.: who discovered the Philippines
why do people cry

D. Relative Clause (Dependent Clause)

- A clause that is introduced by a relative pronoun (who, that, which, whose, whom, when,
where); serves as an adjective
Ex.: the person who discovered America
The place where we first met

E. Subordinate Clause (Dependent Clause)

- A clause that is introduced by a subordinating conjunction (though, because, if, since, until,
when, where, that, so, that, etc.)
Ex.: because it is not true
though he was late

F. Noun Clause
- A clause that serves as a subject, a subjective complement, a direct object, an indirect object,
an object of the preposition, an objective complement, an appositive, or a nominative address
Ex.: I asked why she has to sacrifice.
That some animals hibernate is a scientific fact.

G. Adjective Clause
- A clause that modifies a noun or a pronoun
 Ex.: You are one of the persons who make me happy.
It is you whom I’ve been waiting for so long.

H. Adverb Clause
- A clause that modifies a verb
Ex.: What you have just said is a lie because it is not true.
They have been studying since it started to rain.

NOTE: Clauses (Subordinate clause) also has the same functions the ff. functions
- As subject
- As direct object
- As subject complement
- As adverbial
- As adjective

Functions of Clauses
A. That she left is fine.- subject
B. The problem is that she reads junk. –subject complement
C. He read books because it was required.- adverbial
D. Sara noticed that the candies had disappeared.- direct object
E. The berries which she picked are fresh.- adjective

SENTENCES
- Combination of phrases and clauses which make up paragraphs and compositions
- They express complete thought or idea
- Parts: subject and predicate

Sentences according to structure

- Simple sentence
- compound sentence
- Complex sentence
- Compound- Complex sentence

1. Simple Sentence
Simple sentence is an independent clause with no conjunction or dependent clause.
Example:
- She wrote.
- She completed her literature review.
- They studied APA rules for many hours.

2. Compound Sentence
A compound sentence contains at least two independent clauses (can be combined with a
comma or a coordinating conjunction or semicolon)
Examples:
- She completed her literature review and she created her reference list.
- He organized his sources by theme; but he did not update his reference list.

3. Complex Sentence
• A complex sentence contains at least one independent clause and at least one dependent
clause.
 • Examples:
• Although she completed her literature review, she still needed to work on her methods
section.
• They studied APA rules for many hours as they were so interesting.

4. Compound- Complex Sentence

• A compound- complex sentence contains at least two independent clauses and at least one
dependent clause.
• Examples:
• She completed her literature review, but she still needs to work on her methods section
even though she finished her methods course last semester.
• With pizza and soda at hand, they studied APA rules for many hours and they decided
that writing in APA made sense because it was clear, concise and objective.

Syntactic Structures

Immediate constituent theory/ analysis

- By Leonard Bloomfield (1933)
- In IC analysis, a sentence is divided up into major divisions or immediate constituents, and these
constituents are in turn divided into further immediate constituents, and this process continues
until irreducible constituents are reached i.e. until each constituents consists of only a word or
meaningful part of a word.
o Tree diagram
o Phrase structure rule

Syntactic Structures:
1. Structure of Predication
Subject- Predicate
Dog- barks
Students- study
People- pray
Example:
• The students study for the exams.
• We are hoping for a better 2021.
• This pandemic taught as valuable lessons in life.

2. Structure of Modification
Modifier- head
widely- famous
almost- beautifully
easy- on the eyes
Examples:
• The sound was loud enough.
• The winner who was a person in need cried hard.
• A house bigger than I thought is for sale.
3. Structure of Complementation
Usually comes in a form of a predicate nominative or appositive
Examples:
• The box is a present.
• Babies smell fresh.
• Practice makes algebra easy.
• The class appointed her treasurer.

4. Structure of Coordination
Connecting ideas using connecting words
A (coordinator) B
Pins and needles
By train or by bus
Read, write or edit
Examples:
 May this new year bring us Covid- free and meaningful memories.
 Either disobedience to protocols or unhealthy diet will lead us to Covid threat.

5. Structure of Subordination
Use of subordinating conjunction
• Sarah completed her report even though she had to stay late to get it done.
• Because the air conditioning was turned up so high, everyone in the office wore sweaters.
• After the meeting had finished, we all went to lunch.

REFERENCES:

• Crystal, D. (2010). The Cambridge encyclopedia of language, 3rd edition. UK: Cambridge
University Press.
• Benjamins, J. (2000). The structure of modern English. An introduction. University of British
Columbia
• Justice, P.W. (2004). Relevant Linguistics: An Introduction to the Structure and Use of English
for Teachers. California: CSLE Pub.
• Newby, M. (n.d.). The structure of english: A handbook of English grammar. Cambridge
University Press.
• Payne, T.E. (2006). Exploring Language Structure: A Students’ Guide. New York: Cambridge
University Press.
• Pavey, E. L. (2010). The Structure of Language: An Introduction to Grammatical Analysis.
Mexico City: Cambridge University press.
• Radform, A. (2009). An Introduction to English Sentence Structure. New York: Cambridge
University Press.

Online Resources:
• Moore, A. (2005). The structure of English language. Retrieved June 18, 2019. Retrieved at
http://www.universalteacher.org.uk/lang/engstruct.htm
• Strauss, J. 12011). The blue book of grammar and punctuation. Retrieved July 1, 2019.
Retrieved at https://www.grammarbook.com/grammar/clause-phrase.asp
• Khan Academy. Phrases and clauses. Retrieved July 1, 2019. Retrieved at
www.khanacademy.org
• Khullar, P. (2014). Contituency tests in syntax. Retrieved July 1, 2019. Retrieved at
http://languagelinguistics.com/2014/10/10/constituency-tests-in-syntax-linguistics/