Basics of Grammar

Basis for GMAT Sentence Correction

Parts of Sentence:
Sentences are created by parts of speech. A sentence at its raw form can contain only a noun and a verb:

Asif(n) died(vb).

Or a sentence can contain several or all of the parts of speech.

As we have seen, some words can function as several different parts of speech.

It is imperative to understand the seven parts of speech. Not only they are the foundation of grammar and usage, but also they are the key to understanding specific errors on the test. You can review each part of speech now, or refer back to those pages as you encounter specific errors in the following chapters.

The Subject and the Predicate:
A sentence can be divided into to parts: a subject and a predicate.
Subject(subj) – the part of the sentence that contains the word or phrase which performs the action of the verb in the sentence. The subject is a noun, pronoun, or noun phrase and names whom or what the sentence is about.

Predicate(pred) – the part of the sentence that contains the verb as well as the objects and phrases controlled by the verb.

All sentences must have both a subject and a predicate. The subject can be simple, containing only a noun or pronoun:

Bilal(subj)           |           won the race(pred).

Or the subject can be more complex:

Bilal, the boy who had spent a year on training(subj)           |           won the race(pred).

The complete subject of this sentence is Bilal, the boy who had spent a year on training. On exams like this, you’ll usually only need to locate the simple subject, which is the main noun or pronoun with its modifiers removed. The simple subject of the sentence in the example is simply Bilal.

Bilal and Imran(subj)           |           ran in the race(pred).

In this sentence, Bilal and Imran is a compound subject.

To find the subject, find the verb and ask yourself “who or what [insert verb]?”

The little girl waved to the crowd.

Who waved? The little girl
Simple subject? girl

The little girl(subj)           |           waved to the crowd(pred).

Predicates can also be simple:

The little boy(subj)           |           pouted(pred).

Or more complex:

The little boy(subj)           |           pouted about the split milk(pred).

A simple predicate contains just the verb, verb phrase, or compound verb. In the previous sentence, the simple predicate is pouted.

A compound predicate formed when two or more verbs are performed by the same subject:

The little boy(subj)           |           pouted about the split milk(pred) and cried in the corner(pred).

In this sentence, the little boy completed two actions: pouted about the split milk and cried in the corner. The sentence also has a simple compound predicate: pouted and cried.

Inverted sentences exist when a predicate come before its subject:

At the end of the movie are the credits.

Inversion can be dangerous to the novice test taker who is searching for the subject. Many students are tempted to choose end or movie as the subject. However, if this sentence were rearranged, the subject is more obvious:

The credits(subj)           |           are at the end of the movie(pred).

Inverted sentences often (but not always) begin with words here or there:

There were eight people in the office.

Rearranged:

Eight people(subj)           |           were in the office(pred).

Inversion also comes with a split predicate, in which part of the predicate comes after the subject and other part comes before the subject. Authors might split a predicate to add variety to their writing:

At the height of its popularity, the TV show went off the air.

The beginning clause at the height of its popularity is actually a part of the predicate:

The TV show(subj)           |           went off the air at the height of its popularity(pred).

Look at one more example of a split predicate:

In 2005, despite my recent knee surgery, I ran a marathon.

The previous sentence creates more drama than its rearranged counterpart:

I(subj)           |           ran a marathon in 2005 despite my recent knee surgery(pred).

Locating the subject of a sentence and its predicate verb is an important skill on such exams which we will discuss in more detail later on.

Direct and Indirect Objects:
Many predicates contain a direct object or indirect object.

Direct Object(do.) – the noun or pronoun in the predicate that receives the action of the verb.

Indirect Object(io.) – the noun or pronoun in the predicate that is indirectly affected by the verb.

While the subject is the noun or pronoun that performs the action, the direct object is the noun or pronoun that receives the action.

Bilal(subj)           |           hit(vb) th all(do) out of the park.

Who hit? Bilal. Bilala is the subject. But what received the action? i.e what was hit? The ball. Ball is the direct object.

To locate the direct object, ask “What was [insert verb]?” Look at another example and ask yourself, “what was found?”

Imran found the keys(do.) in the backyard.

Sentences may also have an indirect object:

Mom(subj)           |           gave(vb) me(io) my allowance(do).

Who gave? Mom. Mom is the subject. What was given? The allowance. Allowance is the direct object. But what about the word me? Me cannot be the direct object because Mom did not give me, rather she give allowance.

In short, direct object is that object which is directly related to the verb, as allowance is directly related to gave; While indirect object is that object which is not directly related to the verb, as me is not directly related to gave, there is a gap between gave and me. And that gap fills by the direct object. In other words, if you are confused with which one should be direct object and which one is indirect object, just eliminate that object and see whether the sentence makes sense, if it does it means it’s a direct object which directly relates to the verb. If the sentence doesn’t make sense and requires something that need to fill the gap between verb and the object, then that object is indirect object.

For instance from above example, if you are confused which one is direct object, just eliminate one object, for instance if we eliminate ‘me’:

Mom           |           gave my allowance.

This sentence makes sense and stands alone; you don’t feel anything as gap, so my allowance is direct object.

On contrary, if we eliminate ‘my allowance’:

Mom           |           gave me.

Well, she gave me what? It doesn’t make sense and it creates a gap between game and me, i.e what thing was given, me? or something else?

Similarly look at few examples and spot direct object and indirect object:

1.   The agent sold Mrs. Shahzad the house by the lake.

2.   The city raised the speed limit by 15 miles per hour after conducting a traffic study.

3.   Bilal sent his mother flowers on her birthday.

4.   Upon her death, the lonely old woman left her gardener her entire estate, causing the neighbors to speculate on their relationship.

5.   While the catcher chased the overthrown ball, one runner easily stole third base and another scored.

6.   As a homework assignment, each student in the school wrote the governor a letter about the loss of the statewide music program.

Solution:
1.   The agent sold Mrs. Shahzad(io) the house(do) by the lake.

2.   The city raised the speed limit(do) by 15 miles per hour after conducting a traffic study.
   (there is no indirect object in this sentence, because object must be noun or pronoun)

3.   Bilal sent his mother(io) flowers(do) on her birthday.

4.   Upon her death, the lonely old woman left her gardener(io) her entire estate(do), causing the neighbors to speculate on their relationship.

5.   While the catcher chased the overthrown ball(do), one runner easily stole third base(do) and another scored.

6.   As a homework assignment, each student in the school wrote the governor(io) a letter(do) about the loss of the statewide music program.

Phrases:

Phrase – a group of related words that do not contain a subject or a verb or both.

In other words phrase can have a subject, or a verb, but not both. A phrase may have neither a subject nor a verb. It doesn’t have both subject and verb at a time, because this would become sentence, rather than phrase.

Phrases, if separated from the sentence, cannot stand on their own as complete sentences. Sentences may contain phrases in the subject, in predicate, or in both. We have already examined some phrases in our discussion of verbs, adjectives and adverbs, but a review is below along with an introduction to some other phrases:

Noun Phrase – a phrase that contain a noun and any words that modify the noun

Examine a noun phrase in the following sentence:

The first gold medal from high school hangs in my office now.

Medal is the main subject of the sentence. It is modified by first, gold and from high school. All of these elements combined create the phrase first gold medal from high school. Notice that the phrase cannot stand alone as a sentence.

Prepositional Phrase – a phrase including a preposition with a noun or pronoun. They also may include one or more adjectives.

Prepositional phrases are the most important and most common phrases in English language:

The ship sailed through(prep) the fierce storm, finding port in(prep) the Florida Keys.

Prepositions are always accompanied by prepositional phrase.

Adjective Phrase – a phrase that modifies a noun or a pronoun.

Adjective phrases may contain actual adjectives, or just be a phrase that acts as an adjective:

Jamie(n), the star athlete at my high school(adj), runs every day.

As we learned earlier, adverb phrase are similar.

Adverb Phrase – a phrase that modifies a verb, adjective, or adverb.

Jamie runs(vb) like the wind(adv).

Sentences can contain several different types of phrases:

In the early evening, I often find myself thinking back on the purple sunsets of my childhood.

This sentence contains a noun phrase, verb phrase, and prepositional phrase:

Noun phrase: purple sunsets of my childhood
Verb phrase: thinking back on
Prepositional phrases: in the early evening, of my childhood

Clauses:

Clauses are similar to phrase, but clauses must contain both a subject and a verb but is not a sentence.

There are two types of clauses:

Independent Clause – a clause that could act as a sentence if a period were added to the end. Independent clauses carry the most weight or importance in a sentence.

Dependent Clause – a clause that depends on an independent clause to make sense. Dependent clauses could not stand alone as a sentence, even if a period were added. Dependent clauses carry less weight and importance than an independent clause.

If a dependent clause appears in a sentence, it will always have an independent clause on which the dependent clause depends. Look at an example:

Although he was acquitted of embezzlement charges, Mike lost his job and his home.

Independent clause: Mike lost his job and his home
Dependent clause: Although he was acquitted of embezzlement charges

If we put a period after charges, we create a fragment, not a sentence. This clause depends on the remainder of the sentence in order to make sense.

Dependent clauses function as a noun adjective or adverb.

Dependent clauses often begin with subordinating conjunctions, such as: although, as, because, before, even though, despite, even though, regardless, of, since, so that, unless, which, and while.

The most important piece of information in the previous example sentence, that Mike lost his job and his home, is carried by independent clause. The fact that he was acquitted of the embezzlement charges is in the dependent clause, and is not the main reason for the sentence. This fact is less important.

Dependent clauses do not have to contain a subordinating conjunctions; they simply must have a subject and a verb:

Mr. Flynn, who is a paramedic, helped the woman who had fallen.
(Remember that here ‘who had fallen’ is not a clause; it’s a phrase – noun phrase).

The relative clause, who is a paramedic, contains the relative pronoun who and the verb is. Although the clause cannot make sense without the rest of the sentence, it contains a subject and a verb, thus making it a dependent clause.

An independent clause can be accompanied by a dependent clause, as just demonstrated, or by another independent clause. When two independent clauses separated by a coordinating conjunction, this is called coordination:

The man had a confirmed seat on the flight, but the airline would not let him board the plane.

Conjunction: but
Independent clause: The man had a confirmed seat on the flight
Dependent clause: the airline would not let him board the plane.

In a coordinating sentence, the two independent clauses carry the same weight. It is of equal importance to know that the man had a confirmed seat and that he was denied access to the plane.

We can turn the first independent clause (the man had a confirmed seat on the flight) into a dependent clause and still convey the same meaning, but diminish the importance of the confirmed seat:

Even though the man had a confirmed seat on the flight, the airline would not let him board the plane.

This is called subordinating a clause. It takes on of the clauses and reduce its importance (even though the man had a confirmed seat on the flight), thus increasing the importance of the remaining independent clause (the airline would not let him board the plane). You may encounter a question which requires you to select the correct subordinating clause.

Spotting the Main Subject and Verb in complex sentences:
Your ability to locate the main subject and verb is tested in sentence correction questions with ‘subject-verb agreement error’, one of the most common question types on the test; we’ll discuss it in Study Plan for Advance Level.

Every sentence must have a subject and a verb. Your first step to ace the sentence Correction section is to be able to identify these two parts of the sentence, because nearly one-fourth of the questions are going to test your knowledge of subjects or verbs. If another type of error does not immediately present itself to you, you must search out the subject and the verb.

As we discussed earlier, the subject of a sentence is the noun or pronoun that performs the action in the sentence. To identify the subject, it is easiest to first locate the verb:

Fatima’s skateboard flew through the air.

Verb: flew
What flew? Skateboard.

Additionally, many students might be tempted to select Fatima as the subject. Thankfully, though, Fatima was not flying through the air – the skateboard flew through the air. Skateboard is the subject of the sentence. Fatima, normally a noun, and confuse you to feel like a subject, but it’s not Fatima; it’s in fact Fatima’s which takes on the function of an adjective when the possessive is used. Fatima’s modifies skateboard. We’ll discuss these tiny things and mistakes later on in Study Plan for Advance Level.

Verbs appear in both dependent and independent clauses. However, the main verb is always in an independent clause.

Errors frequently happen when the subject becomes lost in the sentence, and the writer of the test will attempt to trick you into incorrectly identifying the subject. They may do this by using a complex sentence with multiple nouns or verbs:

Although her grade point average was falling, Falak’s GMAT score rose after taking a preparation course.

Verb: rose
What rose? Score

The novice student might select was falling as the main verb. However, was falling is located in a dependent clause. The main verb must be in an independent clause.

The sentence might also confuse you because there are so many noun-like words to pick from in finding subject. Remember, Falak’s is a possessive and thus an adjective, just as GMAT is an adjective, rather than a subject. The only true nouns in the sentence are average, score, and course. Score is in the independent clause and it performs the verb, rose, so score is the main subject.

To help identify the subject of a sentence, there is an important rule to remember:

The main subject of the sentence is never in prepositional phrases, in phrases or clauses separated by commas, or in dependent clauses.

Look at another example:

Even though they faced the obvious obstacles, veterinarians and oncologists administered chemotherapy to Bubba, a 154-pound Queensland grouper, at the Shedd Aquarium in Chicago.

The first part of the sentence, even though they faced the obvious obstacles, is a dependent clause. It has a subject (they) and a verb (faced), but based on the rule that a sentence’s main subject cannot be in a dependent clause, we know that these are not the main subject and verb for the entire sentence.

Also, there are three prepositional phrases in the sentence (to Bubba, at the Shedd Aquarium and in Chicago), and we know that the subject cannot be in there, either. Finally, we can cross out the phrase in the center of the sentence because it is separated by commas (a 154-pound Queensland grouper). Using the rule for finding the main subject, you can begin to find the subject of more complex sentences by mentally crossing out the phrases and dependent clauses.

Even though they faced the obvious obstacles, veterinarians and oncologists administered chemotherapy to Bubba, a 154-pound Queensland grouper, at the Shedd Aquarium in Chicago.

By crossing out the dependent clause and preposition phrase, the subject and verb become clear:

Verb: administered
Who administered? Veterinarians and oncologists

Veterinarians and oncologists is the compound subject. The remaining word, chemotherapy is the direct object.

While most sentences will have an easily-identifiable subject, complex questions may require you to cross out the phrases and clauses in order to locate the subject. Look at the sentence below:

Because the school board concentrated on English and mathematics as the fundamental cores of education, rather than supplementing the curriculum with a music program, many students from East Lake High School were robbed of an opportunity to apply for the Lake Country Scholarship, as it was awarded to those who excelled in orchestra.

Furthermore, some test takers might be able to pinpoint the subject immediately, but others will need to start slashing the phrases and dependent clauses. Start with the dependent clauses, as they are easy to spot for not making sense while reading it separate from other part of the sentence:

Because the school board concentrated on English and mathematics as the fundamental cores of education, rather than supplementing the curriculum with a music program, many students from East Lake High School were robbed of an opportunity to apply for the Lake Country Scholarship, as it was awarded to those who excelled in orchestra.

Then kill the prepositional phrases:

Because the school board concentrated on English and mathematics as the fundamental cores of education, rather than supplementing the curriculum with a music program, many students from East Lake High School were robbed of an opportunity to apply for the Lake Country Scholarship, as it was awarded to those who excelled in orchestra.

Finally remove any phrase separated by commas that may interrupt the flow of the sentence:

Because the school board concentrated on English and mathematics as the fundamental cores of education, rather than supplementing the curriculum with a music program, many students from East Lake High School were robbed of an opportunity to apply for the Lake Country Scholarship, as it was awarded to those who excelled in orchestra.

Now, put them all together:

Because the school board concentrated on English and mathematics as the fundamental cores of education, rather than supplementing the curriculum with a music program, many students from East Lake High School were robbed of an opportunity to apply for the Lake Country Scholarship, as it was awarded to those who excelled in orchestra.

The verb, were robbed, appears, and you do not even need to ask, “Who were robbed?” The only subject left is the subject of the sentence: students.

Finally, in actual exams you are not allowed to cross sentences like that, but as this is the learning stage, after becoming expert, you may easily spot and select the subject immediately while first look, even before reading the whole question.