THE LITTLE GOLD Grammar Book MASTERING THE RULES THAT UNLOCK THE POWER OF WRITING Brandon Royal Published by Maven Publishing © 2010 by Brandon Royal All rights reserved. No part of this work may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical↜—↜including photocopying, recording, or any information storage and retrieval system↜—↜without permission in writing from the author or publisher. Reviewers, however, may quote brief passages in a review, and individuals wanting to reference material from this book for academic or non-commercial purposes may do so provided the book, with title and author’s name, is cited as a source. Published by: Maven Publishing 4520 Manilla Road Calgary, Alberta, Canada╇ T2G 4B7 www.com Library and Archives Canada Cataloguing in Publication: Royal, Brandon The little gold grammar book : mastering the rules that unlock the power of writing / by Brandon Royal.
ISBN 978-1-897393-30-7 Library of Congress Control Number: 2009909354 In addition to the paperback edition, this book is available as an eBook and in the Adobe PDF file format. Technical Credits: Cover Design: George Foster, Fairfield, Iowa, USA Editing: Jonathan K. Cohen, Irvine, California, USA This book’s cover text was set in Minion. The interior text was set in Scala and Scala Sans.
Contents Introduction 5 Chapter 1: The 100-Question Quiz 7 Subject-Verb Agreement 8 Pronoun Usage 12 Modification 16 Parallelism 18 Comparisons 21 Verb Tenses 23 Diction Review 27 Idioms Review 29 Answers to The 100-Question Quiz 33 Chapter 2: Grammatical Munchkins 53 The Eight Parts of Speech 54 Parts of Speech vs. The Seven Characteristics 56 Other Grammatical Terms 58 Chapter 3: Word Gremlins 71 Diction Showdown 72 200 Common Grammatical Idioms 92 Chapter 4: Putting It All Together 99 30 All-Star Grammar Problems 100 Answers and Explanations 119 Editing I – Tune-up 147 Editing II – Punctuation Highlights 173 American English vs. British English 193 Traditional Writing vs. Digital Writing 201 Selected Bibliography 207 Index 209 About the Author Introduction This book is based on a simple but powerful observation: Individuals who develop outstanding grammar skills do so primarily by mastering a limited number of the most important grammar rules, which they use over and over.
What are these recurring rules? The answer to this question is the basis of this book. In everyday writing, we may not always think it necessary to know the intimate rules of grammar. As long as we reach our goal of communicating through our writing, why is there need to know precisely how everything works? After all, as long as we can drive a car, why do we need to know how its engine works? The individual who desires to become truly proficient in basic writing skills needs to look under the “hood” to better understand how the writing engine works. How do we navigate this magnificent ensemble↜—↜the act of accurately stringing words and word groups into sentences? The answer is part science and part art.
First, we review the common categories that capture the vast 5 majority of recurring grammar problems. Next, we familiarize ourselves with the names of grammatical terms that describe the words and word groups used in building sentences. Lastly, we see how these parts interact as a whole by testing them through multiple-choice problems that integrate key concepts. Our journey would not be complete without coverage of a few areas that closely impact “grammar.” These include: diction and idioms, editing tips, American English versus British English, and traditional writing versus digital writing.
This book is your “grammar mechanic’s” guide to writing. Let’s get started. Chapter 1 The 100-Question Quiz The following 100-question quiz (Q1 to Q100) provides a highly distilled review of grammar, diction, and idioms. The first segment of this quiz addresses grammar and is built on the “big six” grammar categories: subject-verb agreement, modification, pronoun usage, parallelism, comparisons, and verb tenses.
The “big six” grammar categories provide a way to break grammar into those areas where errors are most likely to occur. Once we study the rules within each category, we can immediately apply them to many practical writing situations. 7 THE LITTLE GOLD GRAMMAR BOOK Subject-Verb Agreement The overarching principle regarding subject-verb agreement is that singular subjects require singular verbs while plural subjects take plural verbs. Our objective is to identify the subject in order to determine whether the verb is singular or plural.
Rule: “And” always creates a compound subject. Q1 An office clerk and a machinist (was / were) present but unhurt by the on-site explosion. Note that the only connecting word that can make a series of singular nouns into a plural subject is “and.” In fact, “and” always creates a plural subject with but one exception, as noted in the next rule. Rule: If two items joined by “and” are deemed to be a single unit, then the subject is considered singular, and a singular verb is required.
Q2 Eggs and bacon (is / are) Tiffany’s favorite breakfast. Rule: “Pseudo-compound subjects” do not make singular subjects plural. Pseudo-compound subjects include the following: as well as, along with, besides, in addition to, and together with. Q3 A seventeenth-century oil painting, along with several antique vases, (has / have) been placed on the auction block.
8 THE 100-QUESTION QUIZ Rule: Prepositional phrases (i., phrases introduced by a preposition) can never contain the subject of a sentence. Note that some of the most common prepositions include of, in, to, by, for, and from. A definition of the word “preposition,” as well as a glossary of other grammatical terms, can be found in chapter 2. Q4 The purpose of the executive, administrative, and legislative branches of government (is / are) to provide a system of checks and balances.
Rule: “There is/there are” and “here is/here are” constructions represent special situations where the verb comes before the subject, not after the subject. The normal order in English sentences is subject-verb-object (think S-V-O). “There is/ there are” and “here is/here are” sentences are tricky because they create situations in which the verb comes before the subject. Thus, these sentence constructions require that we look past the verb↜—↜“is” or “are” in this case↜—↜in order to identify the subject.
Q5 Here (is / are) the introduction and chapters one through five. Q6 (Is / are) there any squash courts available? Rule: When acting as subjects of a sentence, gerunds and infinitives are always singular and require singular verbs. 9 THE LITTLE GOLD GRAMMAR BOOK Q7 Entertaining multiple goals (makes / make) a person’s life stressful. Q8 To plan road trips to three different cities (involves / involve) the handling of many details.1 Chart of Indefinite Pronouns Singular or Plural Examples Certain indefinite pronouns Anyone, anybody, anything, are always singular someone, something, everyone, everybody, everything, every, one, no one, nobody, nothing, each, either, neither Certain indefinite pronouns Both, few, many, several are always plural Certain indefinite pronouns All, any, most, none, some can be either singular or plural Rule: “-One,” “-body,” and “-thing” indefinite pronouns are always singular.
Q9 One in every three new businesses (fails / fail) within the first five years of operation. Rule: Certain indefinite pronouns↜ —↜ “both,” “few,” “many,” and “several”↜—↜are always plural. Q10 Few of the students, if any, (is / are) ready for the test. 10 THE 100-QUESTION QUIZ Rule: “Some” and “none” indefinite pronouns may be singular or plural.
Q11 Some of the story (makes / make) sense. Q12 Some of the comedians (was / were) hilarious. Q13 None of the candidates (has / have) any previous political experience. Rule: In “eitherâ•›…â•›or” and “neitherâ•›…â•›nor” constructions, the verb matches the subject which comes directly after the “or” or “nor.” Q14 Either Johann or Cecilia (is / are) qualified to act as manager.
Q15 Neither management nor workers (is / are) satisfied with the new contract. Rule: Collective nouns denote a group of individuals (e., family, government, assembly, crew). If the collective noun refers to a group as a whole or the idea of oneness predominates, use a singular verb. If not, use a plural verb.
Q16 Our group (is / are) meeting at 6 p. Q17 A group of latecomers (was / were) escorted to their seats. Rule: “The number” is a singular noun and takes a singular verb. “A number” is plural and takes a plural verb.
11 THE LITTLE GOLD GRAMMAR BOOK Q18 The number of road accidents (has / have) decreased. Q19 A number of train accidents (has / have) occurred. Rule: Percents or fractions, when followed by an “‘of’ phrase,” can take a singular or plural verb. The key lies in determining whether the noun within the “‘of’ phrase” is singular or plural.
Q20 Fifty percent of video gaming (is / are) having great reflexes. Q21 Two-thirds of their classmates (has / have) wake� boards. Rule: Measurements involving money (e., dollars, pounds), time (e., five years, the fifties), weight (e., pounds, kilograms), or volume (e., gallons, kilograms) are always singular and take singular verbs. Q22 Ten dollars (is / are) an average daily wage for many people in the developing world.
Pronoun Usage Problems relating to pronoun usage typically center on personal pronouns. Three areas of confusion may include: choosing between the subjective or objective forms of personal pronouns, making sure pronouns agree in number with their antecedents, and ensuring that pronouns are not ambiguous in context. 12 THE 100-QUESTION QUIZ Exhibit 1.2 Chart of Personal Pronouns Subjective Possessive Objective first-person I my, mine me singular second-person you your, yours you singular third-person his, her, he, she, it him, her, it singular hers, its first-person we our, ours us plural second-person you your, yours you plural third-person they their, theirs them plural who who whose whom Rule: As a general guide, pronouns at or near the front of a sentence take their subjective forms; pronouns at or near the back of a sentence take their objective forms. The precise rule, however, is that pronouns take their subjective form when they are subjects of a verb; they take their objective form when they are objects of a verb.
Q23 The present is from Beth and (she / her). Q24 Cousin Vinny and (he / him) are both valedic� torians. 13 THE LITTLE GOLD GRAMMAR BOOK Rule: Pronouns take their objective form when they are the direct objects of prepositions. Q25 Between you and (I / me), this plan makes a lot of sense.
Q26 Do not ask for (who / whom) the bell tolls. Q27 People like you and (I / me) should know better. Rule: When forming comparisons using “than” or “asâ•›…â•›as,” supply any “missing words” (e., a verb in the examples below) in order to determine whether the subjective or objective form of the pronoun is correct. Q28 My son is more sports minded than (I / me).
Q29 We skate as fast as (they / them). Q30 During our group presentation, our teacher asked you more questions than (I / me). Rule: Who vs. “Who” is the subjective form of the pronoun, and “whom” is the objective form of the pronoun.
If “he,” “she,” or “they” can be substituted for a pronoun in context, the correct form is “who.” If “him,” “her,” or “them” can be substituted for a pronoun in context, the correct form is “whom.” Q31 The woman (who / whom) is responsible for pension planning is Mrs. Q32 This gift is intended for (who / whom)? 14 THE 100-QUESTION QUIZ Rule: Do not use a reflexive pronoun (a pronoun ending in “-self”) if an ordinary personal pronoun will suffice. Q33 The tour leader told Julie and (me / myself) to turn off our cell phones. Q34 Young Robert hurt (him / himself) while climbing alone.
Rule: Pronouns must agree in number with their antecedents. Q35 A not-for-profit, like any other organization, has (its / their) own rules and regulations to follow. Q36 Everybody should mind (his or her / their) own business. Rule: Pronouns should not be ambiguous in context.