ELEMENTARY GRAMMAR 2 (ENG 1-B)

Task 1: Recognizing the parts of Speech (Verbs and Nouns)

According to the work that they do in the sentence, the words in the English language fall
into eight classes known as the “parts of speech.” The eight classes are verbs, nouns,
pronouns, adjectives, adverbs, prepositions, conjunctions, and interjections. The part of speech
of a word depends entirely upon its use in the sentence.

Activity 1. Recognizing verbs

RECOGNIZING VERBS

1. The verb is the key word of the sentence because there can be no complete thought
expressed without it.
2. (DEFINITION) The verb is the part of speech that shows action or state of being.

The vaulter cleared the bar at thirteen feet. (action)

The soldiers were footsore and hungry. (state of being)

3. A verb may be a single word or a group of words. When several words are used as one
verb, they are called a verb phrase: do sing, will be singing, must have been singing.
4. (DEFINITION) Words that give help to the main verb are known as auxiliary (or helping)
verbs. There are twenty-three auxiliary verbs. Memorize them in these easy groupings.

a) am, is, are, was, were, be, being, been

b) has, have, had
c) do, does, did
d) shall, will, should, would
e) may, might, must, can, could

5. Many of the above verbs may be used as main verbs.

I am ready.

He has been to Quebec.

I had the money.

6. Sometimes a verb is part of a contraction: they’ve (they have); he’ll (he will or he shall;
we’re (we are); I’m (I am); isn’t (is not). When classifying verbs, be sure not to include
an entire contraction. Choose only the part that is a verb.

7. Often the parts of a verb phrase are separated by other words.

I can still hear his angry words.

Who might it have been?

I can’t read the music.

Exercise (52 points)

A. Underline each verb and each verb phrase. Most of the sentences have more than one
verb. Look first for action verbs and then for auxiliary verbs. Do not forget about
contractions and separated parts.
1. The battered car bounced and careened along the rutted road.
2. This virus mystery has never been satisfactorily explained.
3. Miss Mary Grace is teaching the nurses’ aides how to make a patient’s bed.
4. The cowboy roped and tied the first calf in fifteen seconds.
5. Why didn’t the committee anticipate the heavy ticket sale?
6. Congress recessed today and will convene again in the fall.
7. The President was in good humor as he talked with newsmen, posed for
photographs, and waved at passers-by.
8. That’s too big a problem for me to solve alone.
9. How much milk is there in the refrigerator?
10. This box of books has not been opened.

B. Under the correct heading, as indicated in the example, write all the one-word verbs
and all the verb phrases from the following sentences.

Example: The candy had been boiling over.

One-Word Verb Verb Phrase

had been boiling

11. The scales had been moved from the barnyard to the granary.
12. Rebecca weighed herself and the dog.
13. Both were gaining many pounds in the fresh country air.
14. The dog frolicked over every part of the farm.
15. There will be many other pleasures for them.
16. Soon only a few weeks of vacation will be left.
17. The child had forgotten all about the city.
18. What did she bring to the farm with her?
19. Who has been playing with her small brother.
20. He had been left in the city.

C. Construct sentences with verb phrases containing the following one-word verbs.
21. help
22. try
23. call
24. rise
 25. ride
26. ask
27. take
28. save
29. cook
30. paddle
31. swim
32. go
33. come
34. work

D. Essay: What do you plan to do as soon as the quarantine is lifted and society returns to
normal? (10 points)

10 – Excellent grammar and spelling; content answers the question substantially;

thoughts are coherent
8-9 – Very minimal errors in grammar and spelling do not impede understanding of
otherwise substantial essay
6-7 – Some errors in grammar and spelling are obvious; thoughts presented are fairly
coherent though vocabulary used were simple and sentence constructions quite short
4-5 – Grammar and/or spelling errors are conspicuous; sentences are obviously
written in haste and could still be well thought-out; essay has some parts confusing
and suffers from poor creativity
1-3 – Marked errors in grammar and spelling impede understanding; essay has very
little contribution of ideas because of poor vocabulary
0 – No reasonable effort in writing
 Activity 2. Recognizing nouns

THE NOUN

What would happen, do you suppose, if suddenly the world were deprived of names for things?
The frowned-upon habit of pointing would be in common use by everyone, would it not? Even
so, there would be many times when it would be impossible to express an idea without a name
word. How could you talk about something invisible, for example? People, places, and things
have names so that you can better identify them and talk about them. The noun is that part of
speech which names those people, places, and things for you.

RECOGNIZING NOUNS

1. A noun is a name word, It is next in importance to the verb. A noun can be easily
identified because it can be modified by a, an, or the, unless it is a specific name like
Bill or Ann.
a horse
an apple
the river
an idea
the truth

2. Nouns may be classified in the following ways:

a) (DEFINITION) Proper nouns refer to particular persons, places, or things:
Rome, Edward, April.
Proper nouns are always capitalized.

b) (DEFINITION) Common nouns refer to any one of a class of persons, places,

or things: city, boy, month. All nouns that are not proper are common.

c) (DEFINITION) Concrete nouns name something that exists in a physical sense;

that is, anything that can be seen, heard, tasted, smelled, or felt by the body:
bird, thunder, orange, cologne, air.

d) (DEFINITION) Abstract nouns name a quality or an idea that is formed in the

mind: cowardice, faith, generosity, freedom.

e) (DEFINITION) Collective nouns name a group: swarm, flock, herd, class

f) (DEFINITION) Compound nouns consist of two or more words put together to

form a name: living room, Uncle Henry, Declaration of Independence, post office,
sister-in-law.
LEARNING ACTIVITIES IN RECOGNIZING NOUNS

A. Divide your paper into six sections. At the top of each section, write one of the
classifications for nouns as given in this lesson. Write five examples of each kind of noun. Do
not use any of the nouns given in a-f above. Exchange papers for criticism.

B. (1) Copy the following sentences. (2) Underline all nouns. (3) As you go over the papers in
class, tell what kind each noun is.

1. Value often comes in small packages.

2. A covey of quail flew from the hedge.
3. The hail did much damage to the crops in this vicinity.
4. Last quarter the class read three stories by Rudyard Kipling.
5. My brother-in-law owns a large ranch in Oklahoma.
6. Most people take pride in work that they have done well.
7. From the kitchen came the tempting aroma of roast turkey.
8. When the wagon overturned, the spectators rose in excitement.

C. Write and then read in class sentences containing the following:

1. A proper noun, a common noun, and a collective noun

2. A concrete noun and a proper noun
3. A compound noun and a collective noun
4. An abstract noun, a concrete noun, and a collective noun
5. An abstract noun and a proper noun

D. To show that you understand the abstract noun, name five qualities that a candidate for the
Presidency should have. On the board (or in the chat room) make a list of the different nouns
suggested.