Basics of Grammar
3. Verb(vb):
It’s a word showing action or state of being.
Every sentence must contain a verb. The most simple sentence in the English language is only three letters long, containing a pronoun and a verb.
I am
I do
Most sentences are more descriptive, but they all contain at least one verb:
I went to the Joyland Park.
The journey was too long.
Some verbs are made up of more than one word. Helping-verbs(hv) such as be, shall, can ,must, and would are added to action verbs to help express time and mood. Look at the following sentence:
The band is playing at Main Street Café.
In this sentence, is joins playing to show that the band is currently at Main Street Café. If was were substituted for is, the sentence could take on a new meaning because then the band had played at Main Street Café in the past. Other helping verbs include can, could, may , might, must, need, ought to, shall, should, will, would, and used to. The verb phrase may contain several helping verbs:
In January, Jenica will have been working here for four years.
The helping-verbs(hv) in this sentence indicate that Jenica began working in past and will continue working into future. Helping verbs are necessary to convey timing.
Linking verbs(lv) on other hand rather than showing action, links a noun or pronoun to additional information about that noun or pronoun:
The smoked herring is(lv) delicious.
In this sentence the noun herring, is not performing any action (such as swimming or fleeing). Instead, a linking verb provides information about the herring: it is delicious. Look another:
I am(lv) a sales representative for a paper company.
Other linking verbs include sensory verbs (see, hear, tase, smell, feel) and verbs that reflect a state of being (such as appear, become, prove, remain, seem).
Sara seems(lv) moody.
The dirty sock smells(lv) repulsive.
Remember that many linking verbs can also be regular verbs which show action:
The boy smells(vb) the dirty sock.
In this sentence, smells is an action verb because it shows what the boy is doing. To test a sensory verb or a state of being verb for its classification as a linking verb or an action verb, substitute the verb to be in the sentence. If the sentence still makes sense, the original verb is a linking verb. If the sentence no longer makes sense, the original verb is an action verb:
The dirty sock smells repulsive.
The dirty sock is repulsive.
Smell = linking verb
This sentence makes sense, so smells is functioning as linking verb in the original sentence.
The boy smells the dirty sock.
The boy is the dirty sock
Smells = action verb.
The second sentence does not make sense in this example, thus smells occurs as an action verb in the first sentence.
Verbals:
are words that are based on verbs, but function as other parts of speech in sentence. One type of verbal is infinitive, which is root of the verb combined with the word to:
To draw
To eat
To remember
To waste
Infinitives can act as adjectives and adverbs but are most often nouns:
I learned(vb) to cook(n) when I was in college.
Some students may struggle with this concept, wanting to group to cook with the verb, learned. But replace to cook with a true noun:
I learned(vb) biology(n) when I was in college.
This should help you clearly see that to cook is a noun which follows the verb.
Another verbal is the gerund. Gerunds are often mistaken with verbs because they end in –ing, but gerunds function as a noun. Look at how running can be used as an action verb or a gerund:
I was(hv) running(vb) for my life!
Running(n) is(lv) my favorite form of exercise.
Again, if you have trouble visualizing running as a noun in the second sentence, replace it with an unquestionable noun:
Running is my favorite form of exercise.
Aerobics is my favorite form of exercise.
Few students will question that aerobics is a noun, and it should help you see that running functions as a noun in the same sentence.
The final verbal is the participle. Participles are verb forms that function as adjectives and most often end in –ing (present participles) or –ed (past participles). Look at how the word frighten can be used as verb and as verbal adjective:
The dog is(hv) frightening(vb) the mailman.
The frightening(adj.) dog lunged at the mailman.
The frightened(adj.) dog hid from the mailman.
As with the two previous verbals, substitute a true adjective into the sentence in order to confirm the verbal is a participle:
The frightening(adj.) dog lunged at the mailman.
The scary(adj.) dog lunged at the mailman.
And
The frightened(adj.) dog hid from the mailman.
The timid(adj.) dog hid form the mailman.
Because every sentence contains a verb, errors with verbs are extremely popular test questions, and we’ll discuss verb tense and verb form in more detail later.
Every sentence must contain a verb, so it should be no surprise that verb errors are prevalent on such exams. If you can discern verbs from infinitives, gerunds, and participles, you can quickly catch errors in agreements, tense, and form. Verbs are thoroughly covered later on.
4. Prepositions (prep):
Preposition – word used to link a noun or pronoun to other words.
Prepositions describe a relationship or situation between words in the sentence. Try to define one, like above, around or on. The most common prepositions include:
about, across, after, against, among, around, as, at, before, behind, between, by, during, for, from, in, including, into, like, off, on, over, through, to, towards, under, upon, with, within, and without.
Prepositions never come alone; they are always in a prepositional phrase. Prepositional phrases begin with a preposition and end with a noun or pronoun, which is called the object of the preposition. Look at several prepositional phrases with the preposition and its object identified:
to(prep) the store(n)
from(prep) a distant land(n)
Prepositions most often describe time (at, by, during), place (above, on, within), or movement (to, towards).
Because many prepositions are only two or three letters long, they are popular errors on such exams. The test makers hope that you will not notice an error in such a small word.