Topic SVA
Stop Signs S & V must agree in number
SVA
A long, complex subject or great distance between S & V A plural subject made up of singular nouns that are connected by and
SVA
Pseudo-plural singular subject
SVA
a collective noun A subject in the form of Verb+ing or to+verb
SVA
SVA
SVA SVA
an X of Y subject the verb comes before the subject
SVA
Or, Either… Or, & Neither .. Nor
SVA SVA
Indefinite pronouns that end with -one, -body, -thing (someone, nobody, anything) SANAM pronouns - Some, Any None, All, More/Most
SVA
Each, Every
SVA
The number of..
What to check correct verb is used
Good Example John is a tall man
Bad Example The kids plays football
S&V
In the waning days of the emperor's life, the conquest of new lands on the borders of the empire was considered vital
The tidal forces to which an object falling into a black hole is subjected is sufficient to tear the object apart
the verb is plural Nouns that end with -s: news, thesis, crisis. Collective nouns: audience, committee, family, team. POLICE is an exception its actually plural
John and Jane are lovers John and Jane is lovers Mathematics is a mandatory highschool subject The news are very interesting The police are looking for the criminal.
The audience enjoy the show bening played.
the subject is always singular
Swimming is very healthy
Swimming are very healthy
Verbs must agree with the X part of the subject
Three members of an organization are waiting outside
S&V
There are boys in the playground
A test of 150 questions are long There are a boy in the playground
Verbs must agree with the noun nearest to the verb
The verb is singular the of pharse which usually follows the pronoun singular verb for a subject following Each/Every
singular verb only
Neither the coach nor the players Neither the players nor the are going to the game coach are going to the game
everybody loves dogs Some of the money was stolen from the vault. Every dog HAS paws
everybody love dogs Some of the documents was stolen from me. Each of these shirts are pretty
the number of companies The number of hardworking which are affected by students in this class is quite large software piracy is huge.
In the Senate, the majority A number of students in the class have coalesced into a unifed are hard workers. voting block Having good friends IS a Whatever they want to do wonderful thing are fine with me
SVA
quantites or parts: A number of, half of,the majority of
the noun in the of-prepositional phrase
SVA
subject pharses and clauses
always singular
Parallelism
A list of 3 items or more, separated by commas and and/or before the last item
all item must belong to the same part of speech
Jane likes skiing, watching movies and reading books, magazines and dictionaries
Jane likes skiing, watching movies, reading books, magazines and dictionaries
Parallelism
A list of 3 items or more, separated by commas and and/or before the last item
if the list items are verbs, all verbs should be conjugated or unconjungated, if the verbs are unconjugated, they must be of the same type (to verb, verb+ing, or V3)
I like to eat, to swim and to run
I like to eat, to swim and running
Parallelism
Not only A but Also B, (n)either A (n) B, A is/means B, A rather than B, A and/or/but B
I want to retire to a place where I can relax AND where the taxes are Ralph likes both those who A and B must be of the same part of speech low are popular AND who are not
Parallelism
Not only A but Also B, (n)either A (n) B, A is/means B, A rather than B, A and/or/but B, So much A as B
. According to one expert, . According to one expert, the the cause of genetic cause of genetic irregularities in irregularities in many breeds many breeds of dog is not so of dog is not as much their much that dogs are being bred for being bred for looks or looks or to meet other narrow meeting other narrow criteria as that the breeds have criteria as much as that the relatively few breeds have relatively few
Parallelism
Not only A but Also B, (n)either A (n) B, A is/means B, A rather than B, A and/or/but B
Pronouns
Pronouns
A and B must be logically parallel
Either/Neither cannot be followed by nor/or, He met them Either at the park or He met them at the park but Not only/but also cannot be alone at the train station also at the train station Bill Clinton is a former Every pronoun in the underlined a pronoun must agree with the noun to Bill Clinton is a former president. president. She is no longer a part of the sentence or after it which it refers in number, gender and person He is no longer a president. president. New papers incorporating tiny cellulose fibers, which allegedly Check for ambiguity for every if the pronoun can refer to more than one give these materials the strength John told the boy that he pronoun antecedent and it is a logical one. of cast iron. was quick.
Pronouns
The word/term … it is …
a word/term should refer to something, to describe something, or to mean something
Pronouns
the pronoun it refering to a verb
use the pharse to do so or doing so instead
Pronouns
the pronoun one It - referring to a singular nonhuman noun / as a subject replacement
one agrees only with itself
The word precipatioation does not only mean rain. It also refers to snow and hail. John is playing tennis. He enjoys doing so. One must work hard for one to succeed
it may switch roles between answer choices as a pronoun or as a subject
The baby is asleep. It was tired after eating.
This, That, These and Those
That/those indicating a new copy must be modfied
Her Company is outperforming THAT OF her competitor Her Company is outperforming THOSE OF her competitors
Pronouns
Pronouns
The word precipaitation is not only rain. It is also snow and hail. John is playing tennis. He enjoys it. One must work hard for him to succeed The baby is asleep.she was tired after eating.
Pronouns
That/Those
That/those must agree in number with the previous version.
Her Company is outperforming THE COMPANIES OF her competitors
Pronouns
This/These
do not use this or these in place of nouns, and unless modified That or those also.
Her products are unusual; many consider THEM unique
Her products are unusual; many consider THESE unique
the entity that is singular mus be one of something plural
Able to synthesize chemical energy or obtain it from an external source in both the presence and the absence of oxygen, kingdom Eubacteria is the only one of the six-kingdom classification systems who displays the full range of metabolic diversity
A noun and its modifier should touch each other
Bursting with fascination, the professor read the old book Resigned to the bad news, the office workers made no commotion
Able to synthesize chemical energy or obtain it from an external source in both the presence and the absence of oxygen, kingdom Eubacteria is the only one of the sixkingdom classification system who displays the full range of metabolic diversity Bursting with fascination, the old book was read by the professor Resigned to the bad news, there was no commotion in the office
Pronouns
Modifiers
Modifiers
one of verb+ing or V3, at the beginning of the sentence, and separated the modifier must appear immediately before by a comma or after the noun it describes
Noun modifier
Modifiers
Which,That,Who,Whose,Whom, Where,When
Modifiers
Who/Whom
clauses led by the pronoun that cannot modify people Who is used as the subject of the verb, whereas whom is used as the object
That/Whom
That or Whom can be dropped when the modified noun is the object of the clause
Modifiers
Modifiers
Where
Modifiers
When
Modifiers
Modifiers
Modifiers
That Which
That/Which
The scientists WHO made the The scientists THAT made discovery were rewarded the discovery were rewarded The security guard WHOM we met The security guard WHO we was nice met was nice The movie (THAT) we watched last Friday was scary
where can modify a noun place but not a "metaphorical" one (condition,situation) use we had an arrangement IN WHICH in which instead he cooked and I cleaned when can modify a noun event or time, you I went to the park when the can also use in which instead. clouds became dark.
That which is always incorrect
-
Financial success often results from certain decisions made by check if the modifying clause is essential or individuals, specifically, decisions not. When the clause is not essential it will be that differ from those made by usually separated by commas the majority of the market.
We had an arrangement WHERE he cooked and I cleaned
the growth of the global economy between 1990 and 2000 exceeds that which had been for 10,000 years from the beginning of agriculture to 1950 Financial success often results from certain decisions made by individuals, specifically, decisions which differ from those made by the majority of the market.
Recently documented examples of neurogenesis, Recently documented examples of the production of new brain neurogenesis, the production of cells, include. the brain new brain cells, include. brain growth in mice when placed growth in mice that are placed in in a stimulating environment a stimulating environment or an or the increase in canaries' when + PAST PARTICIPLE refers to the subject increase in neurons in canaries neurons when they learn When + PAST PARTICIPLE vs. That of the sentence. Check if it is a logical one. that learn new songs. new songs.
Modifiers
Modifiers
Which vs. the -Ing form
Adjective/Adverb (-ly)
Modifiers
Verb/infinitive - Adverb Verb/infinitive
Modifiers
Resulting from
Modifiers
Comma + Noun (, Noun)
must modify the immediately preceding noun only, it cannot modify the action of an entire clause. To modify a clause use the -ing form. Adjective must modify only noun or pronouns. Adverbs modify anything but noun and pronouns. (pay attention to the -ly added in answer choices)
Crime has recently decreased in our negihborhood, leading to a rise in propery values
the textbook's chapter on genetics is surprisingly tentative, which leads one to doubt the author's scholarship in that particular area.
James Joyce is Max's supposed irish ancestor
James Joyce is Max's supposedly irish ancestor
Although his early critics had viewed Christopher Although his early critics had Marlowe as a talented and viewed Christopher Marlowe as a brilliant writer and had talented and brilliant writer and often compared his plays to had often compared his plays to those of Shakespeare, until the adverb can only modify one those of Shakespeare, it was not almost 1950, modern critics verb/infinitive, if it logically can modify both until almost 1950 that modern and biographers did not sourronding verbs/infinitives than it is critics and biographers seriously begin seriously to consider ambigous and should be placed where it is began considering the literary the literary merits of his not. merits of his works. works. creatures of the seabed were suffering from dwindling food supplies, possibly resulting from the flooding resulting from the increasing sea surface abnormally strong storms had temperatures during the 'resulting from' after a comma is generally left six inches of standing water in same period. considered unacceptable the street.
is the noun abstract or not. Abstract noun is allowed to stand for the ENTIRE IDEA OF THE PRECEDING CLAUSE. while concreate nouns usually stands for the DIRECTLY PRECEDING NOUN.
the coach tried to put 5 receivers on the line , a strategy that failed. OR i went to the bar with john smith , a consultant in los angeles.
one goal of semiconductor research is to develop a silicon chip that can transmit and receive light signals directly , which may one day lead to smaller, faster semiconductors.
Modifiers
's or s'
Tenses
Present Simple - the first Verb is in V1
If the object is a concrete noun - something tangible, can be sensed with one of the five senses action that occurs in a certain frequency/facts & generalizations/"eternal" states
The dog's hair is curly.
The festival's week actually lasted more than seven days.
it rains here all the time
The earth is revolving around the sun
Tenses
Present Progressive - am/is/are + Verb+ing actions that are in progress at present Past Simple - the first Verb is in describe historical facts/actions that occurred V2 at a specific point in the past an action that was in progress: at a certain Past Progressive - was/were + point the past/when another action Verb+ing occurred/took place
last night at ten I was training
Sandy is playing soccer yesterday
Tenses
Verbs that express general state: know or signify these verbs are not using the progressive form
The inscription SIGNIFIES the emperor's birth
The inscription is signifying the emperor's birth
John has had his tonsils removed The child DREW a square in the sand, but the ocean HAS ERASED it.
they had known each other since 1987 The child HAS DRAWN a square in the sand, but the ocean HAS ERASED it.
Tenses Tenses
Tenses
Tenses
Present Perfect - has/have + V3
actions that occurred at [an unknown or unspecified time/several times] in the past
Present Perfect - has/have + V3
actions that began in the past and are still relevant/in progress at present
Tenses
Within the past [some time frame]
Tenses
Past perfect - had + V3
I am eating my dinner now John missed the bus to work yesterday
Quentin IS MEETING Harvey for lunch tomorrow John had met Jane in 2005
An examination of scandals An examination of scandals within within the past few years the past few years involving involving insider insider trading reveals that most trading reveals that most accused accused employees had employees have chosen to leave chosen to leave their jobs their jobs preemptively rather than Indicates an action that started in the past preemptively rather than face the face the embarrassment of and continues in the present, hence the verb embarrassment of being fired. being fired. should be in the present perfect. actions that had been completed before [a certain point in time/another action] in the John had moved to Seattle before John moved to Seattle past he met Jane before he met Jane
Tenses
Tenses
Tenses
Tenses
Tenses
Tenses
Tenses
Comparisons
Comparisons
Comparisons
if the reporting verb is in the past tense, reported Speech with reporting present -> past, past -> past perfect, future -> Jane said that she would arrive at Jane said that she will arrive verb in Past tense conditional noon at noon PRRR IS MAD propose/recommend/require/re The law mandates that a quest/insist/suggest/mandate/as The law mandates that a person person will be tried by a jury k/demand that the next verb must be in its base form be tried by a jury of one's peers of one's peers
if/unless
if/unless
if/unless should never be followed by will or would
was is never used in the condition part; use were instead
IF you study diligently, you will score highly
IF you will study diligently, you will score highly
IF she ate pizza tomorrow, then she would become ill
students will take ethics only if it would be taught as a separate, required course
Conditional 1 - future situations; IF john drops the pen, it will land IF Sophie will eat pizza, then the result is realistic or possible condition in present, result in future/present on the floor she will become ill Conditional 2-hypothetical situations; the result is unrealistic because the condition in past simple, result in future IF john owned a dog, it would be IF john owned a dog, it will condition is never fulfilled past (conditional) a Labrador be a Labrador Conditional 3-situations that could have happened but did condition in past perfect, result in future If john had met Jane 5 years ago, If john had met Jane 5 years not; result is "too late" past perfect (conditional perfect) she would have married him ago, she would marry him
Like,Unlike,Than,As
Like/Unlike
As
1. The comparison uses equality/inequality words 2. The things being compared are logically comparable and grammatically parallel 3. Preferably there is a conjugated verb in the second part of the comparison. Comparing the essence of two nouns, must always be followed by a noun, the section beginning with like/unlike must never include a conjugated verb. comparing verbs (actions), the section beginning with as must always include a conjugated verb
Jane is a better painter than John Jane is a better painter than is. John's paintings.
Like skiing, snowboarding is a winter sport.
Like skiing is, snowboarding is a winter sport
As John once did, Jane is now starting her training
As John, Jane is now starting her training
Comparisons
Comparisons
As/Like
That/It
Comparisons
Greater / Higher
Comparisons
Superlatives - most
Redundancy
or not after whether/ if without a condition and result
When comparing two clauses use as
if you want to compare one thing to another use that, and if you want to compare something to itself, use it
In even upper middle-class Amercan homes during the Great Depression, the potato was the staple of the family diet, just as it had once been in relatively welloff English households during the Industrial Revolution.
The seat of chair A is more worn than that of chair B / The seat of chair A is more worn than it was last week
In even upper middle-class Amercan homes during the Great Depression, the potato was the staple of the family diet, just like it once had been in relatively welloff English households during the Industrial Revolution. Between 1990 and 2000 the growth of the global economy was more than that (it did) during 10,000 years, from when agriculture began to 1950
Although, according to several studies, the costs of Although, according to several treating acute otitis media studies, the costs of treating acute (AOM) episodes amounted otitis media (AOM) episodes to higher than 2 percent of amounted to greater than 2 the estimated $3 billion the percent of the estimated $3 nation spent on illness last billion the nation spent on illness year, doctors say that these When describing the magnitude of a last year, doctors say that these costs can be mitigated if quantity, use great and greater; one such costs can be mitigated if parents parents take preventative magnitude includes the portion of a whole, a take preventative measures for measures for their children. percent. their children. the most adjective or the adjective-est. , include a definition of the group being Jane is the most pleasant person Jane is the most pleasant compared in town person Jane is not sure if John is answer choice that uses whether (preferred Jane is not sure whether John is making dinner tonight or to if) without the or not making dinner tonight. not.
Redundancy
Though/Although/Even though/Despite/In spite of... later followed by but/yet/however/still/neverthel two opposition conjunctions when referring ess to the same relation is redundant
John is tall, nevertheless he is shorter than jack
Redundancy
Because/Since/Due to/As later using both a reason conjunction and a followed by conclusion conjunction referring to the same so/therefore/thus/consequently relation.
Since Jane cannot fly, she takes the train
using both the reason and "is because" is redudndant. The correct sentence will use only one of these two expressions it is redundant to use both annual and a year - should always be corrected
The reason Airline X is closing down after 30 years is that it cannot afford to upgrade its planes to meet the new safety regulations. John's annual salary is ten thousand dollars.
Since Jane cannot fly, so she takes the train The reason Airline X is closing down after 30 years is because it cannot afford to upgrade its planes to meet the new safety regulations. John annual salary is ten thousand dollars a year.
John is so scared of spiders that he freezes when he sees one.
John is scared of spiders to such a large degree that he freezes when he sees one
Although John is tall, nevertheless he is shorter than jack
Redundancy
The reason .. Is because
Redundancy
annual + year
Redundancy
to such a large degree / to a large enough degree
should be replaced with so
Redundancy
x or (even) more than x
should be replaced by the expression at least - should always be corrected
I want to lose at least ten pounds
I want to lose ten or even more than ten pounds
Redundancy
amount to a sum
should be amount to
the annual fees amount to ten million dollars
the annual fees amount to a sum of ten million dollars
John does not know anything
John does not know nothing
John won the running competition twice.
John won the running competition two times.
John like collecting stamps and model trains
John like collecting stamps as well as model trains
Maybe I will go to the park.
Perhaps I will go to the park
Redundancy
Redundancy
more than one negation word
one/two/three/four times
Redundancy
as well as
Redundancy
Maybe
two or more negation words: no,notneither,never,none-nothing,nobody,no onehardly,seldom,rarely,scarcely,barely use once,double,twice,triple,thrice,quadruple instead
use and instead - should always be corrected Maybe is a forbidden word, use perhaps, possibly or probably
Odds & Ends
Many/Much, Few/Less, Number/Amount, More/Great
Odds & Ends
relating 2 things or more
Odds & Ends
;
Odds & Ends
-
Odds & Ends
:
Odds & Ends
rate / height
Odds & Ends
THE
Odds & Ends
a comma followed by a FANBOYS - For And Nor But Or Yet So
is the noun countable or not (Countable/Non There were fewer Numidian kings Countable) than roman emperors I mediated a dispute among Maya, Logan and Kalen Earl walked to school; he later ate his lunch Post MBA compensation for 1. separate an aooisutuve from items in a investment bankers tend to surge list. 2. Restate or explain an earlier part of the far ahead of that for management sentence. 3. Unlike the colon (:) the dash consultants - by tens, if not does not need to be immediately preceded hundereds , of thousnds of dollars by the part needing explanation a year provides further explanation for what comes before it. The words preceding the colon can I love listening to many kinds of stand alone as a sentence. music: classical, rock and pop. 2 things - between, 3 or more - among connects 2 closely related statements. Each must be able to stand alone.
There were less Numidian kings than roman emperors I mediated a dispute between Maya, Logan and Kalen Earl walked to school, he later ate his lunch
I love listening to: classical, rock, rap and pop music.
To meet the rising marketing demand for fish To meet the rising marketing and seafood, suppliers are demand for fish and seafood, growing fish twice as fast suppliers are growing fish twice as as their natural growth rate can't be fast the rate can be high, the fast as they grow naturally, rate, cutting their feed increase itself can be fast. similarly,a height cutting their feed allotment by allotment by nearly half can't be tall (a person can be tall, or a height nearly half and raising them on and raising them on special diets. can be greater than...) . special diets.
the cannot be followed by a list of items
I never read this book, but I read the other books on the shelf.
I never read this book, but I read the other books on the shelf, such as "Right Hand, Left Hand" and "The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich."
the "FANBOYS" can only connect two indepdent clauses
the shipping company was understaffed last holiday season, and it decided to hire more employees
the shipping company was understaffed last holiday season, it decided to hire more employees
