Common and Proper Nouns
A Noun is a person, place, thing, or idea. If you can touch it, see it, or taste it then it is a noun.
If it is a specific noun, such as a name or a title that begins with a capital letter then it is known as a proper noun.
Nouns that do not need to be capitalized are known as common nouns.
Proper Nouns: Mrs. Budde, Harry Potter, Lucy, Colorado
Common Nouns: book, story, chair, pen, kids
Abstract and Concrete Nouns
A Concrete Noun is a noun that you can see or touch.
An Abstract Noun is an “idea” noun. You cannot see or touch an abstract noun.
Concrete Nouns: book, novel, Mrs. Budde, pen
Abstract Nouns: happiness, anger, fear
PRONOUNS
A Pronoun is a word used in place of a noun. They usually refer to people. However, the pronoun “it” refers to a thing.
MOST COMMON: I, you, he, she, it, we, they
ADDITIONAL FORMS: his, hers, her, its, me, myself, us, yours, yourself, himself, their, theirs, mine, ours, them, somebody, anybody, this, that, these, those, anyone, anything, everything, etc.
VERBS
Most Verbs are action words. If it is something that you “do,” it is a verb. Verbs often end in “ing” or “ed.”
Examples: ran, walking, smiling, poked, saw, opened, whispered, took, etc.
Helping Verbs: help a main verb in a sentence to show verb tense and voice of the main verb. They are also called auxiliary verbs.
Common Helping Verbs are:
am, are, is, was, were, be, being, been
has, have, had, having
do, does, did
can, could, must, may, might
shall, should, will, would
Examples:
He should have bought a book.
I am writing this sentence.
You should have cleaned your room.
Verb Tenses show when the action in a sentence takes place. The verb tenses are past tense, present tense, and future tense.
Examples:
Past Tense: I read Coraline.
Present Tense: I am reading Coraline.
Future Tense: I will read Coraline.
Linking Verbs
A Linking Verb connects the subject with a word that gives information about the subject, such as a condition or relationship. They do not show any action; but, they link the subject with the rest of the sentence. For example, in the sentence "They are a problem," the word "are" is the linking verb that connects "they" and "problem" to show the relationship between the two words.
The most common linking verbs are forms of the verb be, is, are, was, were, been, am and verbs such as smell, look, taste, remain, feel, appear, sound, seem, become, grow, stand, and turn.
Examples:
The sky looked ominous.
John is nice.
Lauren was at the theater.
The fireworks are amazing.
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Homonyms
A Homonym is a word that sounds the same as another word but has a different spelling and a different meaning.
A Homonym is also known as a Homophone.
Look at the following Suffixes and their meaning:
phone = sound or voice
nym = name
THE FOLLOWING ARE EXAMPLES OF COMMON HOMONYMS:
Examples: to, two, and too
To = means in the direction of; towards; along with; in agreement with; in relation to or comparison with
I went to the store.
Skip to the music.
It’s made to order.
This one is similar to that one.
We won ten to six.
Two = the number 2
I have two cats.
Too= this word has two meanings.
Means more than enough or an extra amount.
I have too much money in my pocket.
There are too many people in the theater.
2. Means also or as well as
I am going too.
I would like some bread, too.
Examples: Their, There, They’re
Their = possessive pronoun indicating something belongs to “them”
The gamblers lost their money quickly.
There = indicates a place or position
There is a moose outside.
My book is over there on the table.
They’re = a contraction made up of they + are
They’re going to Elitch Gardens today.
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Examples: its, it’s
Its = shows possession, answers the question, Whose?
I could hear its footsteps.
It’s = contraction of it is
It’s the third Sunday of the month.
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Examples: new, knew
New = not old
Every summer I buy a new swimsuit.
Knew = past tense of know
I knew the answer but did not raise my hand.
Examples: your, you’re
Your = shows possession
Those are your dirty shoes.
You’re = contraction of you are
You’re always late to class.
Examples: accept, except
Accept = to accept or receive, admit or take on responsibility
I accept this piece of cake.
Except = not including; other than
I have every card except the ace of spades.
Examples: affect, effect
Affect = usually a verb meaning to have an influence on, to bring about a change
Eating too much can affect your weight.
Effect = usually a noun meaning result
The effect of the frost will be higher fruit prices.
Examples: here, hear
Here = at this location; used when introducing something
He told me to meet him here.
Hear = to listen; to be aware of
I can hear the birds chirping.
Period
A Period (.) is a punctuation mark used to end a sentence that makes a statement or gives a command. It is also used at the end of abbreviations.
Example: I love reading.
Abbreviation Example: Please mail a check to Dr. Benson.
COMMAS
Use commas to separate independent clauses when they are joined by any of these seven coordinating conjunctions: and, but, for, or, nor, so, yet.
Example: The game was over, but the
crowd refused to leave.
2. Use commas after introductory a) clauses, b)
phrases, or c) words that come before the main
clause.
Example: Because her alarm clock was broken, she was late for class.
3. Common introductory words that should be
followed by a comma include yes, however,
well.
Examples:
Yes, the package should arrive
tomorrow morning.
However, you may not be satisfied
with the results.
4. Use a pair of commas in the middle of a
sentence to set off clauses, phrases, and words
that are not essential to the meaning of the
sentence. Use one comma before to indicate
the beginning of the pause and one at the end
to indicate the end of the pause.
Clause:
That Tuesday, which happens to be my birthday, is the only day when I am available to meet.
Phrase:
This restaurant has an exciting atmosphere. The food, on the other hand, is rather bland.
Word:
I appreciate your hard work. In this case, however, you seem to have over-exerted yourself.
4. Use commas to separate three or more words, phrases, or clauses written in a series.
Examples:
I need to bring my LA folder, silent reading book, and a pencil to Language Arts class.
I love reading realistic fiction, science fiction, and supernatural fiction novels.