Editing and Proofreading-Compiled by Dr. Bazzi

Editing and
Proofreading
Compiled by
Dr. Fatemah Bazzi
References
Anker, S. (2010). Real writing with readings:

Paragraphs and essays for college, work, and
everyday life. Bedford/St. Martin’s.
Ann, R. (1998). Grammar troublespots: An Editing

Guide for Students. Cambridge University Press.
Smith, B. (2003). Proofreading, revising & editing

skills success in 20 minutes a day. Learning Express.
L E S S O N
Understanding
1 the Writing
Process
LESSON SUMMARY
In order to proofread, revise, and edit you need to understand the
writing process—from prewriting to drafting, editing, revising, and writ-
ing a final draft. This lesson discusses the writing steps and then gives
you strategies to help you write the best possible final draft.
T he writing process has only just begun when you write the last word of your first draft. It is in
the process of revising and editing that the draft takes shape and becomes a crafted piece of
writing. Writing is an art, and like any good artist, a good writer continues to work on a piece
until it has the desired impact.
Prewriting/Brainstorming
First, it is important to figure out what you know about a topic. Since many ideas come to mind when you
begin to think about a topic, take time to write them down. First thoughts are easily forgotten if they are
not committed to paper. You can do this with a prewriting technique such as brainstorming, clustering,
mapping, or listing. You can use graphic organizers like charts, story maps, diagrams, or a cluster like the
example on the next page.
Prewriting can take place in all sorts of inconvenient locations, and you may only have a napkin, a piece
of scrap paper, or an envelope on which to write. Just don’t think a napkin with scribbles on it is the final
draft. You still have much work to do.
13
–U N D E R S T A N D I N G T H E W R I T I N G P R O C E S S –
M.L.K.
workers
unions civil rights
driving
Lincoln
Cesar racial slavery
Chavez
minors discrimination recent immigrants

in the U.S.
voting age
equal rights
mandatory sexual amendment
retirement
military
service
seniors suffrage
movement
Drafting R e v i s i n g A s Yo u G o
The next step is turning those thoughts into a first Most writers revise as they write. That’s why pencils
draft. Those of you who skip the prewriting step with erasers were invented. If you are a writer who
and jump right into a first draft will find that the uses pen and paper, feel free to fill your first drafts
editing stage takes more time than it should. You with arrows and crossed-out words. You may con-
may even find that you have changed your mind tinue a sentence down the margin or on the back of
from the beginning to the end of a piece, or that the the page, or use asterisks to remind you of where you
first paragraph is spent getting ready to say some- want to go back and add an idea or edit a sentence.
thing. That’s fine, but be prepared to reorganize If you use a computer to compose, use sym-
your entire draft. bols to remind you of changes that need to be
Writing with a plan makes the entire writing made. Put a questionable sentence in boldface or
process easier. Imagine you are a famous writer of a different color so you can remember to return to
mystery novels. If you don’t know whodunit, how it later. A short string of unusual marks like
can you write the chapters that lead up to the part #@$*%! will also catch your eye and remind you to
where the detective reveals the culprit? It is the same return to a trouble spot. Typing them may even
with your writing. Without an organizational plan, relieve some of the tension you’re feeling as you
the paper you write may not take the right shape struggle with your draft. Just remember that if
and may not say all you intended to say. you’re planning to show your draft to someone,
like a teacher or coworker, you may want to clean
it up a little first.
Computers also make it easier to make
changes as you go, but remember that a computer’s
14
grammar check or spell check is not foolproof. Example

Computers do not understand the subtle nuances of the russian Ballet travel’s. all over the world, Per-
our living language. A well-trained proofreader or forming to amazed Audiences. in each new city;
editor can.
This sentence jerks along like an old car driven
by someone who doesn’t know how to use the
Proofreading brakes.
Proofreading is simply careful reading. As you Edited Example

review every word, sentence, and paragraph, you The Russian Ballet travels all over the world, per-
will find errors. When you locate them, you can use forming to amazed audiences in each new city.
proofreading symbols to shorten the amount of
time you spend editing. It is an excellent idea to Every sentence begins with a capital letter.
become familiar with these symbols. At the bottom That’s the easy part. Many other words are capital-
of this page are a few examples of the most common ized, too, however, and those rules can be harder to
ones, but be sure to check Appendix A for a com- remember. Lesson 12 reviews all the rules of capi-
plete list. talization for you.
Of course, in order to find errors, you must While every sentence begins with a capital let-
know what they are. Read on to discover the culprits ter, every sentence ends with some sort of punctu-
that can sabotage a good piece of writing. ation. The proper use of end marks like periods,
exclamation points, and question marks (Lesson
13) and other punctuation like commas, colons,
Capitalization and semicolons, apostrophes, and quotation marks
Punctuation (Lessons 14–17) will help your reader make sense of
your words. Punctuation is often the difference
Capitalization and punctuation are like auto between a complete sentence and a sentence frag-
mechanics for your writing. They tune up your sen- ment or run-on (Lesson 2). Other punctuation
tences and make them start, stop, and run smoothly. marks like hyphens, dashes, and ellipses (Lesson 18)
SYMBOL EXAMPLE MEANING OF SYMBOL
Stevenson High school Capitalize a lower-case letter.

/ /
the Second string Make a capital letter lower-case.
right
^ Go at the light. Insert a missing word, letter, or punctuation
^
mark.
I had an an idea Delete a word, letter, or punctuation mark.
recieve Change the order of the letters.
. . . . to the end . Add a period.
. . . apples oranges, and . . . Add a comma.
15
give flare to your writing and should be used for Example

function as well as style. He read thru the entire paper looking for a story
on the protest march.
Spelling Spell check suggests replacing “thru” with

“through,” “threw,” or “thorough.” The dictionary
Correct spelling gives your work credibility. Not will tell you that the correct spelling is “through.”
only will your reader know that you are educated, Choosing a suggested spelling from spell
but also that you are careful about your work. You check that is incorrect in the context of your sen-
should have a dictionary handy to confirm that you tence can affect an entire piece. As teachers and
have correctly spelled all unfamiliar words, espe- employers become more familiar with spell check
cially if they are key words in the piece. In the work- programs, they learn to recognize when a writer has
place, a memo with a repeatedly misspelled word relied on spell check. For example, homonyms such
can be embarrassing. An essay with a misspelled as pane and pain and commonly confused words,
word in the title, or a word that is spelled incorrectly such as where, wear, and were (Lesson 19) present a
throughout the piece, can affect your final grade. problem for spell check, just as they do for many
Avoid embarrassing situations like these by check- writers. Ultimately, there is no substitute for a dic-
ing your spelling. tionary and a set of trained eyes and ears.
Even if you know all the spelling rules by
heart, you will come across exceptions to the rules.
Words that come from other languages (bourgeois, Grammar
psyche), have silent letters (dumb, knack), or are
technical terms (cryogenics, chimerical) can present Unfortunately, there is no “grammar dictionary,”
problems. In addition, the spelling can change when but there are thousands of reliable grammar hand-
the word is made plural (puppies, octopi). books. In order to communicate in standard written
Homonyms like bear/bare or course/coarse can be English, you have to pay attention to the rules. You
easily confused, as can words that have unusual need to understand the parts of speech when you
vowel combinations (beauty, archaeology). When in write, and you have to combine them properly.
doubt, check it out by consulting a dictionary.
Example
Spell Check Programs The dance team felt that they had performed bad.
If you use a computer, most word processing pro- “Bad” in this form is an adjective, and adjec-
grams contain a spell check and a dictionary, so use tives modify nouns. The word “bad” must be
them. Just be aware that spell check doesn’t always replaced by an adverb to modify the verb had per-
provide the right answer, so double-check your formed. To turn bad into an adverb, you must add
choices. If your spell check gives three suggestions, the ending -ly.
you will have to consult a dictionary for the right
one.
16
Edited Example Example

The dance team felt that they had performed I have one pairs of pants.
badly.
Edited Example
One of the best ways to check for grammatical I have one pair of pants.
errors is to read your writing aloud. When you read
silently, your eyes make automatic corrections, or There is no substitute for understanding the
may skip over mistakes. Your ears aren’t as easily rules governing grammar and careful proofreading.
fooled, however, and will catch many of your mis-
takes. If you are in a situation where you can’t read
aloud, try whispering or mouthing the words as you Editing
read. If something doesn’t sound right, check the
grammar. Once you are finished proofreading, you will prob-
ably need to cut words out of your piece in some
places and add more material in other places.
Grammar Check Repetitive words or phrases and awkward or wordy
sentences (Lesson 3) can be edited. If you begin to
Computers that use grammar check programs write without an organizational plan, you may have
cannot find every error. Grammar check will to cut some good-sized chunks from your writing
highlight any sentence that has a potential error, because they wander from the main idea. You may
and you should examine it. The program is help- also need to expand ideas that you did not explain
ful for correcting some basic grammatical issues, fully in your first draft. Editing is about streamlin-
but it also functions in other ways. Many gram- ing your piece. Good writing is clear, concise, and to
mar check programs flag sentences in the passive the point.
voice (Lesson 8), which is a style choice. While the
passive voice is not wrong, it can lead to some very
flat and sometimes confusing writing. It may be a Revision
good idea to change some of the passive verbs to
active ones. Reading your writing a few times allows you to
Many programs also highlight sentence frag- work on different aspects of your piece. Some revi-
ments and sentences that are over 50 words long sion takes place as you write, and some takes place
(Lesson 2). Sentence fragments are never correct after you have read the whole piece and are able to
grammatically, although they may be used inten- see if it works. Most writers revise more than once,
tionally in certain informal situations. and many writers proofread and edit each draft.
It is important to remember that not only do If your draft has errors that make it difficult to
grammar check programs sometimes point out understand, you should start by proofreading.
sentences that are correct, but they also do not Print out your paper, mark it with proofreading
always catch sentences that are incorrect. symbols, and make any necessary corrections in
grammar or mechanics. Proofreading and editing
can help make your meaning clear, and clarity
makes your piece easier to understand.
17
If your draft is cohesive, you can concentrate places where re-ordering paragraphs might help?
more on the big picture. Are your paragraphs in the You may want to move three or four paragraphs
right order? Do they make sense and work and see if this improves the piece.
together? Are your transitions smooth and your “Cut and paste” editing like this is easy to do
conclusions strong? Have you avoided sounding on a computer. In a word processing program, you
wishy-washy or too aggressive? Is the voice too can highlight, cut, and paste sentences and whole
passive? Some writers prefer to think about these paragraphs. If you are uneasy or afraid you may
issues during the first reading. Others proofread, destroy your draft, you may want to choose “select
edit, and rearrange while they read the draft. It all” and copy your work into a new blank document
doesn’t matter which approach you use, but plan to just so your original draft is safe and accessible.
read each draft at least twice. Read it once focusing Now, you can experiment a little with moving and
on the big picture, and once focusing on the changing your text.
smaller details of the piece. If you are working with a handwritten draft,
Real revision is the process of transforming a making a photocopy is a good way to revise with-
piece; the results of your revisions may not look out destroying the original. Remember to double-
much like your first draft at all. Even if you start space or skip lines on the first draft to give yourself
with an organizational plan, it is possible that you room to revise. To move paragraphs, simply number
will decide that the piece needs to be reorganized them and read them in your new order. If you are
only after you have written an entire draft. If the working from a copy, take out your scissors and
piece is research-based, discovering new informa- literally cut the paragraphs into pieces. Instead of
tion can require a completely new treatment of the using glue or paste, use tape, or thumbtack the
subject. If your piece is supposed to be persuasive, pieces to a bulletin board. That way you can con-
maybe you will discover it is not persuasive enough. tinue to move the pieces around until they are in an
Thinking of your writing as a work in progress order that works best for you. No matter how you
is the ideal approach. Writing and revising several approach revising, it is a valuable part of the writing
drafts takes time, however, and time is a luxury process. Don’t be afraid to rearrange whole para-
many writers do not have. Perhaps you have a press- graphs and fine-tune your tone, voice, and style
ing due date or an important meeting. You can still (Lesson 7) as you revise.
improve your writing in a short period of time.
One strategy for revising is to create an outline
from your draft. This may sound like you are work- To n e
ing backward because usually the outline precedes
the draft, but even if you originally worked from an The tone of the piece is the way in which the writer
outline, this second outline can be helpful. Read conveys his or her attitude or purpose. The tone is
your writing and summarize each paragraph with a the “sound” of your writing, and the words you
word or short phrase. Write this summary in the choose affect the way your writing sounds. If you
margin of your draft. When you have done this for use qualifying words (Lesson 3) like “I believe” and
the entire piece, list the summary words or phrases “to a certain extent,” your piece has a less confident
on a separate sheet. If you originally worked from tone. If you use imperative words like “must” and
an outline, how do the list and outline compare? If “absolutely,” your piece sounds assertive. Just like
you did not work from an outline, can you see the tone of your speaking voice, your tone when you
18
L E S S O N
2 Writing
Sentences
LESSON SUMMARY
In this lesson, you will look at the parts of a sentence, learn to spot
complete and incomplete sentences, and revise sentence fragments
and run-on sentences.
S uccessful writing means putting sentences together precisely. It can be compared to baking.
If you don’t follow the recipe or if you leave out a key ingredient, the cake will not turn out
right. To ensure baking success, it is important to follow a recipe. To ensure writing success,
it is important to know that sentences have recipes too. As you proofread, edit, and revise your work, remem-
ber that the basic recipe is very simple: Combine one subject with one predicate to yield one complete
thought.
Examples
Bears stand in cold mountain streams.
{
{{
Subject Predicate
The girl ate macaroni and cheese.
{
Subject Predicate
21
–W R I T I N G S E N T E N C E S –
Sometimes the predicate appears first in the Example

sentence. Juan has ridden his bicycle to work.
Example In the example sentence, the simple predicate

Lucky are the few who survived the Battle of the is has ridden.
{
{
Predicate Subject
Bulge.
Compound Subjects and
Compound Predicates
Simple Subjects and
A sentence can have more than one subject that uses
Simple Predicates
the same verb. When there are two subjects con-
nected by and, or, or nor, they are called compound
Subjects are nouns (a person, place, thing, or idea).
subjects.
The simple subject is the key word in the sentence.
The subject of the sentence can appear almost any-
Example
where in the sentence, so it can often be difficult to
Manuel and Jonathan held the flag.
locate. One strategy for finding the subject is to find
the verb (an action or linking word) or predicate
The compound subject in the example sen-
first.
tence is Manuel and Jonathan.
A sentence can have a compound predicate,
Example
also connected by and, or, or nor.
The children carved the pumpkins.
Example
Carved is the verb in this sentence. When you
Julian cannot speak or read French.
ask “Who or what did the carving?” the answer is
children, so children is the subject.
The compound predicate is speak or read.
Example
Exercise 1
Down the street rolled the car.
Underline the subject once and the predicate twice
in the following sentences. Remember, it is often
The verb in the example sentence is rolled.
easier to find the predicate (verb, or action word)
Who or what rolled? The answer is car, so car is the
first and then the subject (the noun that is per-
subject.
forming the action). Answers can be found at the
The verb that you identify is the simple pred-
end of the lesson.
icate—the main action of the subject. Just as the
simple subject is the key noun in a sentence, the
1. Larry ate the sushi.
simple predicate is the key verb. The verb can be one
word or a verb phrase such as are jumping, will
2. Akiko changed the diaper.
jump, has jumped, might have jumped, etc. When the
verb is a phrase, all parts of the verb phrase make up
3. In the haunted house went the children.
the simple predicate.
22
4. Bobby and Devone sat in their chairs. This sentence has two objects—a direct object,
present, and an indirect object, Sarah.
5. Campbell fished and hunted in the Cascade You will read more about objects in Lesson 10,
Mountains. which discusses pronoun agreement and the proper
use of the objective case.
6. They were running to catch the bus.
7. Mary and Al skipped the previews and Clauses

watched only the feature presentation.
Together, the subject and predicate make up a
8. Adam and I made a soap box derby car. clause. If the clause expresses a complete thought, it
is an independent clause. Independent clauses can
9. The paper route was taking too long. stand alone as complete sentences, as you can see in
the following examples.
10. The building and the house caught on fire.
Examples
The team won the game.
Objects Amy and Georgia live in New Mexico.
The direct object of a sentence is the part of the If the clause does not express a complete
predicate that is receiving the action of the verb or thought, it is not a complete sentence and is called
shows the result of the action. For example, if the a dependent or subordinate clause. Dependent or
subject of a sentence is Mary, and the verb is throws, subordinate clauses are often incorrectly separated
you need an object—what Mary throws. from the sentence where they belong. When this
happens, a sentence fragment is created, as you can
Example see in the following examples.
Nina brought a present to the birthday party.
Example
The subject of the sentence is Nina, the verb is though I was tired
brought, and the object is present.
Some sentences also contain an indirect object, Example
which tells to whom or for whom the action of the when he caught his breath
verb is done and who is receiving the direct object.
A sentence must have a direct object in order to
have an indirect object. A common type of indirect Sentence Fragments
object is an object of a preposition.. Prepositions are
words such as to, with, of, by, from, between, and Sentence fragments do not make complete sen-
among. tences all by themselves. Often they occur as a
result of faulty punctuation. If you put a period in
Example the wrong place, before a complete thought is
Nina gave a present to Sarah. expressed, you will create a fragment. If you omit
23
a subject or predicate, you will also create a sen- 14. Chose the new soccer team captains, Michael
tence fragment. and Jose
Example ____________________________________
FRAGMENT: I thought I saw. The new teacher
taking the bus. ____________________________________
To correct this example, simply change the
punctuation. 15. Played the electric guitar in her new band
COMPLETE THOUGHT: I thought I saw the new
teacher taking the bus. ____________________________________
Example 16. Sent me an e-mail with a virus

FRAGMENT: “An American in Paris.” A great
movie. ____________________________________
To correct this example, you must add a predi-
cate or verb. 17. The cat while she ate
COMPLETE THOUGHT: “An American in Paris”
is a great movie. ____________________________________
Exercise 2 18. After the accident happened in front of the

Proofread and revise the following sentence frag- school
ments. Make them complete sentences by adding
the missing subject or predicate. Write the revised ____________________________________
sentences on the lines provided. Note: There may be
many ways to revise the sentences depending on the ____________________________________
words you choose to add. Some need both a subject
and a predicate. Try to make them the best sen- 19. Put too much syrup on his pancakes
tences you can, and don’t forget to add the appro-
priate end punctuation. Answers can be found at ____________________________________
the end of the lesson.
20. Rarely gets up before noon on Saturdays
11. Ran for student body president
____________________________________
____________________________________
Sentence fragments also occur when a subor-
12. Was wearing my shin guards dinating conjunction—like after, although, as, as
much as, because, before, how, if, in order that, inas-
____________________________________ much as, provided, since, than, though, that, unless,
until, when, where, while—precedes an independent
13. Luis to Puerto Rico rather frequently clause.
____________________________________
24
Example 23. Our basketball team won the state title. Three
FRAGMENT: Until the players began stretching. years in a row.
This sentence fragment can be remedied by
either eliminating the conjunction, or by adding a ____________________________________
clause to the fragment to form a complete
thought. ____________________________________
COMPLETE THOUGHT: The players began
stretching. 24. Although Oregon is a beautiful state. It tends
COMPLETE THOUGHT: Until the players began to rain a lot.
stretching, they had many pulled muscles.
____________________________________
Coordinating conjunctions—like and, but,
or, nor, and for—are often a quick fix for both sen- ____________________________________
tence fragments and run-on sentences.
25. The two-point conversion. Made football
Example games more exciting.
FRAGMENT: The newspaper and a loaf of bread
on your way home. ____________________________________
COMPLETE THOUGHT: Pick up the newspaper
and a loaf of bread on your way home. ____________________________________
Exercise 3 26. Sewing the Halloween costume. I stuck my

Proofread and revise the following sentences and finger with the needle.
then add the proper punctuation. Write the revised
sentences on the lines provided. Answers can be ____________________________________
found at the end of the lesson.
____________________________________
21. After we saw the movie. We went to the café
and discussed it. 27. Unless you know how to drive a manual
transmission car. Buy an automatic.
____________________________________
____________________________________
____________________________________
____________________________________
22. Because the announcer spoke quickly. We
didn’t understand. 28. Because dock workers had no contract. They
discussed going on strike.
____________________________________
____________________________________
____________________________________
____________________________________
25
29. After the concert was over. I bought a T-shirt 36. Antonio is tired. Because he just moved again
of the band.
____________________________________
____________________________________
37. Jose played soccer. Although he had never
____________________________________ played before
30. Since we had eaten a big breakfast. We just ____________________________________

snacked the rest of the day.
____________________________________
____________________________________
38. Since Tom has a new class
____________________________________
____________________________________
Exercise 4
Proofread and revise the following sentence frag- 39. The crowd cheered. When the union leader
ments so that they form complete sentences. Write finished his speech
the revised sentences on the lines provided. Answers
can be found at the end of the lesson. ____________________________________
31. While the taxi driver drove faster ____________________________________
____________________________________ 40. After our lunch of tuna fish sandwiches
32. My daughter. After she wrote a letter ____________________________________
____________________________________
Run-On Sentences
33. Before we start the show
Run-on sentences are like the person at the all-you-
____________________________________ can-eat buffet who overfills a plate when he or she
could have simply gone back for a second helping.
34. When Andrew gave his closing argument Run-on sentences are two or more independent
clauses written as though they were one sentence.
____________________________________ The main cause of run-on sentences, like fragments,
is faulty punctuation. End marks like periods, excla-
35. Unless you would like Olga to buy them for mation points, and question marks (Lesson 13) can
you make or break a sentence.
____________________________________ Example
This run-on sentence is missing punctuation:
____________________________________ RUN-ON: Julie studies hard she is trying to win a
fellowship next year.
26
CORRECT: Julie studies hard. She is trying to win Example

a fellowship next year. RUN-ON: Isabel sang I played music.
CORRECT: When I played music, Isabel sang.
Semicolons (Lesson 15) can also be used to
revise run-on sentences.. Exercise 5
Add end marks, commas, or semi-colons to fix the
Example following sentences. Write the revised sentences on
RUN-ON: The soccer game ended at four, it was the lines provided. Answers can be found at the end
too late to go to the birthday party. of the lesson.
CORRECT: The soccer game ended at four; it was
too late to go to the birthday party. 41. Will you come to the party we think you’ll
have fun.
Commas, when used with a conjunction, can
transform run-on sentences. Conjunctions come ____________________________________
in three types: coordinating, correlative, and sub-
ordinating. Coordinating conjunctions (and, but, ____________________________________
or, nor, so, for, yet) can be used to correct run-on
sentences. 42. We spent a year traveling in Asia, conse-
quently, we speak some Chinese.
Example
RUN-ON: Gillian lived in Portland she lived in ____________________________________
New York.
CORRECT: Gillian lived in Portland, and she lived ____________________________________
in New York.
43. The Avinas live on Old Germantown Road,
Correlative conjunctions (both . . . and, they’ve lived there for thirty years.
neither . . . nor, not only . . . but also, whether . . . or,
either . . . or) join similar kinds of items and are ____________________________________
always used in pairs.
____________________________________
Example
44. Powdered fruit drinks taste good, neverthe-
RUN-ON: They saw aquatic animals like moray
less, they are not as nutritious as juice.
eels and sharks they saw gorillas and chimpanzees.
CORRECT: They not only saw aquatic animals
____________________________________
like moray eels and sharks, but they also saw goril-
las and chimpanzees. ____________________________________
Subordinating conjunctions (after, although, 45. Mrs. Michaels introduced me to the reading
as far as, as if, as long as, as soon as, as though, instructor. A neighbor of mine.
because, before, if, in order that, provided that, since,
so that, than, that, unless, until, when, whenever, ____________________________________
where, wherever, whether, while) join clauses with
the rest of a sentence. ____________________________________
27
46. I sent her flowers. Hoping she would forgive CORRECT: I bought a new motorcycle. However,
me. my license had expired.
____________________________________
Ty p e s o f S e n t e n c e s
____________________________________
A simple sentence contains only one independent
47. Neil locked the gate then we left the ranch. clause and is typically short. If you write with only
simple sentences, your writing will not have the
____________________________________ variety and complexity of good writing. As you
learn to vary your sentences by using compound,
48. I found it therefore I get to keep it. complex, and compound-complex sentences, you
will find that you are able to express more complex
____________________________________ relationships between ideas.
A compound sentence contains more than
49. The flag has thirteen stripes. As most U.S. citi- one independent clause and no subordinate clauses.
zens know.
Example
____________________________________ The children couldn’t finish the race,
Independent clause
____________________________________ but the adults could easily.
Independent clause
50. The hockey team also travels to southern
states. Such as Texas and Louisiana. A complex sentence contains only one inde-
pendent clause and at least one subordinate clause.
____________________________________
Example
____________________________________ As soon as we sat at the table,
Subordinate clause
Sometimes, run-on sentences occur when writers the waiter brought menus.
use adverbs such as then, however, or therefore as if Independent clause
they were conjunctions. This type of error is easily
fixed. By using correct punctuation—such as a A compound-complex sentence contains
semicolon—or by making two sentences out of one more than one independent clause and at least one
run-on, the writing takes the correct shape and subordinate clause.
form.
Example
Example When Danny finally enrolled in college,
RUN-ON: I bought a new motorcycle however my Subordinate clause
license had expired. he studied very hard,
CORRECT: I bought a new motorcycle; however, Independent clause
my license had expired. for he had missed the first two weeks of classes.
Independent clause
28
Remember, compound, complex, and com- 56. I can’t have dessert I eat my dinner.
pound-complex sentences add depth to your writ-
ing, but they need to be punctuated correctly or ____________________________________
they become run-on sentences. If you use only sim-
ple sentences, your writing sounds very choppy. 57. I finish my homework I am going to watch
Simple sentences are short. They say one thing. T.V.
They don’t give much detail. They don’t flow. A
good piece of writing uses both short and long sen- ____________________________________
tences (see Lesson 4) for variety. When you write,
alternating the length of sentences is a good idea, as ____________________________________
long as the short sentences aren’t fragments and the
long sentences aren’t run-ons. 58. There’s a need. We will be there to help out.
Exercise 6 ____________________________________
Fix the following sentence fragments and run-on
sentences by adding a conjunction and any neces- 59. I made the bed my room passed inspection.
sary punctuation. Write the revised sentence on the
lines provided. Answers can be found at the end of ____________________________________
the lesson.
60. You can fix my broken alarm clock you can
51. I wanted to buy a bicycle. My paycheck wasn’t buy me a new one.
enough.
____________________________________
____________________________________
____________________________________ Summary
52. I ate the ice cream my stomach hurt. Knowing the parts of a sentence and the
kinds of sentences that are a part of good
writing will help you proofread, revise, and
____________________________________
edit your work. As you examine your own
writing, mark the places where faulty punc-
53. I wore my new shoes I got blisters. tuation has created sentence fragments or
run-on sentences. Revise them by using
____________________________________ proper end marks, semicolons, or con-
junctions.
54. You play the guitar. I practice my singing.
____________________________________
55. It rains. The field turns to mud.
____________________________________
29
L E S S O N
Checking
12 Capitalization
and Spelling
LESSON SUMMARY
Capitalization and spelling are two of the most important parts of your
writing. The first half of this lesson discusses which words to capital-
ize in a sentence, including proper nouns and adjectives. The second
half offers general spelling rules and a list of commonly misspelled
words. To proofread your writing expertly, it is good to have knowl-
edge of these fundamentals.
F■
ollowing are some general rules that can be applied to almost any situation in your writing.
First Words
Capitalize the first word of a sentence. If the first word is a number, write it as a word.
Example
Thirty-five soldiers lined up in front of the barracks.
■ I, B.C.E., A.D.
Capitalize the pronoun I, including when it is used in the contraction I’m. The abbreviations B.C.E.
and A.D. appear as small caps.
109
–C H E C K I N G C A P I T A L I Z A T I O N A N D S P E L L I N G –
■ Quotation 2. a. We studied cave paintings dated some time

Capitalize the first word of a direct quotation. before 600 b.c.e.
A direct quotation contains a person’s exact b. we studied cave paintings dated some time
words, whether they were spoken or written. before 600 B.C.E.
c. We studied cave paintings dated some time
Example before 600 B.C.E.
Theodore Roosevelt said, “Speak softly and carry a
big stick.” 3. a. Shirley said, “My cactus has been over-
watered!”
■ Do not capitalize the first word of a quoted b. Shirley said, “my cactus has been over-
sentence fragment. watered!”
c. shirley said, “My cactus has been over-
Example watered!”
I agree with Theodore Roosevelt when he said to
“carry a big stick.” 4. a. I have never heard of a plant being “Over-
watered.”
■ Poetry b. i have never heard of a plant being “Over-
Traditionally in poetry, the first word in each watered.”
line is capitalized, although poetry is a form of c. I have never heard of a plant being “over-
writing that commonly breaks the rules of watered.”
grammar. Many contemporary poets do not
always use the traditional forms. Very often
you will read poetry in which the first lines are Proper Nouns and
not capitalized, and sometimes there are no Proper Adjectives
capitalized words in the entire poem.
All nouns and adjectives that name a specific per-
son, place, or thing must be capitalized. These are
E xe r c i s e 1 called proper nouns and proper adjectives. You must
know which words to capitalize in order to success-
Select the letter for the correctly capitalized sentence. fully proofread, edit, and revise your paper.
Answers can be found at the end of the lesson.
Names of People
1. a. my coffee was cold, so I asked the waiter to Examples
bring me a fresh cup. Doug Forrest, Madonna, Martin Luther King, Jr.,
b. My coffee was cold, so I asked the waiter to Liam McAndrew, Christine MacMurray, James
bring me a fresh cup. McDonald, Bob O’Casey, Juan de la Cruz, Jean
c. My coffee was cold, so i asked the waiter to LaFitte, Ali ben-Ari
bring me a fresh cup.
It is necessary to find out exactly how to spell and
capitalize names, as the custom varies. It is impor-
tant to get names right as a sign of respect and
because incorrect capitalization of a name could
indicate a different person.
110
Family Members Examples

Examples Mall of the Americas, Bridge of the Gods, Tavern
Uncle Jeff, Aunt Sharon, Cousin Heidi, Grandma, on the Green
Grandpa, Dad, Mom, my cousin Karl
Exercise 2
When a possessive like my comes first, do not capi- Select the letter for the correctly capitalized sentence.
talize the relationship word. Answers can be found at the end of the lesson.
Example 5. a. He made a sandwich out of wonder bread®

my dad and oven-gold turkey.
b. He made a sandwich out of Wonder Bread®
Brand Names of Products and Ovengold® turkey.
Examples
Boar’s Head® ham, Band-Aid®, Kleenex®, Volk- 6. a. Uncle Fred sat next to my cousin Brenna.
swagen® Jetta b. Uncle Fred sat next to my Cousin Brenna.
Official Titles 7. a. Many citizens appreciated mayor Giuliani’s

Examples presence at the many funerals.
Mayor Jefferson, Governor Davis, Justice O’Con- b. Many citizens appreciated Mayor Giuliani’s
nor, President Carter, Superintendent Levy, Dean presence at the many funerals.
Ross, Prime Minister Sulla, Secretary General
Annan, Queen Elizabeth 8. a. Her cycling trip did not cross the Bridge of
the Gods.
Capitalize the title only when followed by a name. If b. Her cycling trip did not cross the bridge of
the person is a high government official or someone the Gods.
to whom you wish to show respect, you may capi-
talize the title when it is not followed by a name. Ethnic Groups, Races,
Languages, and Nationalities
Examples Examples
Dr. Fitzgerald, chancellor of schools; Halle Chap- Asian American, French, Latino, Japanese
man, class president; the Secretary of State; the
Prince of Wales Avoid capitalizing words modified by proper adjec-
tives such as the ones above.
Names of Structures and
Buildings Examples
Examples Mexican restaurant (unless the restaurant is
Empire State Building, Golden Gate Bridge, Space named, such as Consuela’s Mexican Restaurant),
Needle, Veteran’s Stadium British beer, African music
Do not capitalize the unimportant words of the

name of a structure or building.
111
Historical Events, Periods, 12. a. The Indianapolis 500 is a huge event for
Documents Indianans.
Examples b. The Indianapolis 500 is a huge event for
Revolutionary War, Middle Ages, Bronze Age, Bill indianans.
of Rights
Days of the Week
Cities, States, and Examples
Governmental Units Sunday, Monday, Tuesday
Examples
Tuscaloosa, North Dakota; People’s Republic of Months
China Examples
June, November
Capitalize the proper adjective form of cities and
states, also. Special Events and Calendar
Events
Examples Examples
Alabaman, Seattleite, Idahoan, Rhode Islander Fall Harvest Festival, The Great American Smoke-
out, Spring Break, Groundhog’s Day, Father’s Day
Institutions, Organizations,
and Businesses Holidays
Examples Examples
Evergreen State College, Wesleyan University, Girl Christmas, Ramadan, Yom Kippur, Kwanzaa, Chi-
Scouts®, First Independence Bank nese New Year
Exercise 3 Exercise 4
Circle the letter for the correctly capitalized sentence. Select the letter for the correctly capitalized sentence.
Answers can be found at the end of the lesson. Answers can be found at the end of the lesson.
9. a. President Lincoln wrote the gettysburg 13. a. My birthday falls on a sunday.

address. b. My birthday falls on a Sunday.
b. President Lincoln wrote the Gettysburg
Address. 14. a. The Fourth of July is my favorite holiday.
b. The fourth of july is my favorite holiday.
10. a. For my birthday, we ate Chinese food and
saw a movie. 15. a. My friend hopes to run in the boston
b. For my birthday, we ate chinese food and marathon.
saw a movie. b. My friend hopes to run in the Boston
Marathon.
11. a. My brother Dean attended North Seattle
Community College. 16. a. It was not as cold last February.
b. My brother Dean attended north seattle b. It was not as cold last february.
community college.
112
Works of Art and Literature 20. a. We rode a Trailways® bus to Mount

Examples Rushmore.
Romeo and Juliet (play), The Scarlet Letter (book), b. We rode a trailways® bus to Mount
Mean Streets (film), “Where the Sidewalk Ends” Rushmore.
(poem), Girl with a Pearl Earring (painting)
Names of Trains, Ships, and To C a p i t a l i z e o r N o t t o

Other Modes of Transportation Capitalize
Examples
Discovery, Mayflower, United Airlines, Starlight Direction Words
Express Avoid capitalizing directions on the compass unless
they name a specific area of the country.
Streets, Highways, and Roads
Examples Example
Broadway, Interstate 80, Best Road, Fiftieth Several population centers are on the East Coast.
Avenue
Example
Public Parks and Bodies of Many African-Americans headed north to find
Water factory work.
Examples
Deception Pass, Rio Grande, Washougal National Seasons
Forest, Arctic National Wildlife Reserve, Central Avoid capitalizing the seasons or the parts of an aca-
Park demic year.
Exercise 5 Example
Select the letter for the correctly capitalized sentence. In the fall term, I hope to take Mr. Lackey’s class.
School Subjects
17. a. Amanda sailed across the pacific ocean Avoid capitalizing school subjects unless they name
from Seattle to Maui. a specific course. Always capitalize English because
b. Amanda sailed across the Pacific Ocean it is the name of a language.
from Seattle to Maui.
Example
18. a. Jessica brought her cat home to Woodlawn I still have the textbook from that history course.
Avenue.
b. Jessica brought her cat home to Woodlawn Example
avenue. I don’t know why we have to take Biology I before
we can do lab work.
19. a. Of all of Edward Hopper’s paintings,
Nighthawks is still my favorite. Example
b. Of all of Edward Hopper’s paintings, My English class met at 1:00 in the afternoon.
nighthawks is still my favorite.
113
Exercise 6 ie vs. ei
Select the letter for the correctly capitalized sen- The Rule
tence. Answers can be found at the end of the When the ie combination sounds like long e (ee),
lesson. the rule is: i before e except after c.
21. a. For the series with the Giants, the Braves Examples
headed west. belief fierce cashier fiend wield yield
b. For the series with the Giants, the Braves series chief achieve niece hygiene relieve
headed West.
Exceptions
22. a. Kara needs to be excused from math class The ie combination comes after c when it sounds
today. like sh or sy.
b. Kara needs to be excused from Math class
today. Examples
deficient conscience omniscient ancient
23. a. I plan to go to Puerto Rico in the Summer. society science
b. I plan to go to Puerto Rico in the summer.
The examples above come from the Greek
24. a. The Midwest had a very mild winter last root scient, which means knowing. Science means
year. knowing.
b. The midwest had a very mild winter last
year. The Rule
When the combination of e and i sounds like ay, the
rule is: e before i.
General Spelling Rules
Examples
The English language combines words from many neighbor weigh eight feint freight reign
different languages, and they do not always look the sleigh surveillance veil vein weight skein
way they sound. If you know another language,
such as Spanish, French, Greek, or Latin, that will Exceptions
help you spell in English because many English Sometimes the combination of e and i sounds like
words are derived from those languages. It will also ee.
help you practice spelling correctly, just like you
must practice increasing your vocabulary. When Examples
you learn a new word, concentrate not only on what either weird seizure sheik leisure seize
it means, but how to spell it. There are also many
rules to help you spell, and almost as many excep- Sometimes the combination of e and i sounds
tions. Knowing the rules will help you when you like long i.
write a word that you are not sure how to spell.
Examples
height sleight stein seismology
114
Sometimes the combination of e and i sounds Examples

like short e. civilian brilliant alleviate familiar genial
congenial menial guardian
Examples
their heifer foreign forfeit Sometimes ia are combined with t or c to
make a sh sound.
Exercise 7
Select the correctly spelled word in each of the fol- Examples
lowing sentences. Answers can be found at the end artificial glacial beneficial martial
of the lesson. commercial
25. He did not know his exact (hieght, height).

S i l e n t Vo w e l s
26. The tape player broke, so the songs sounded
(wierd, weird). American English makes several vowels silent, but
there is no general rule for silent vowels. For exam-
27. The dentist told the girls about dental ple, sometimes a silent e on the end of a word makes
(hygeine, hygiene). the vowel before it long, sometimes not. The best
way to approach these oddly spelled words is to
28. I did not mean to (deceive, decieve) you. become familiar with them by sight.
Examples
Vo w e l C o m b i n a t i o n s carriage marriage every chocolate
miniature parliament privilege sophomore
The Rule boundary towel vowel bowel
When two vowels are together, the first one is usu-
ally long and the second one is silent. Exercise 8
Select the correctly spelled word in each of the fol-
Examples lowing sentences. Answers can be found at the end
reach cheapen conceal caffeine paisley of the lesson.
abstain acquaint juice nuisance buoy
29. The (captain, captian) sounded the alarm.
Exceptions
Sometimes the pair ai makes an uh sound. 30. Pleased to make your (acquiantance,
acquaintance).
Examples
Britain porcelain fountain villain curtain 31. Jill is a (sophomore, sophmore) in college.
certain captain chieftain
32. The hotel bathroom had a (porcelan, porce-
Sometimes you pronounce both parts of the lain) sink.
vowel pair ia.
115
Consonants Rule #3
When the suffix begins with a consonant, keep the
In addition to silent vowels, the English language final n when adding -ness and keep the final l when
uses silent consonants. Like silent vowels, silent con- adding -ly.
sonants do not follow a general rule. The best way
to learn these words is by sight, just like with silent Examples
vowels. Mean becomes meanness.
Lean becomes leanness.
Examples Legal becomes legally.
answer autumn calm debt ghost gnarled Formal becomes formally.
gnaw indict kneel knight know
knowledge often subtle blight pseudonym
psychology rhetorical thorough through The Exceptions
write
There are only a few exceptions to the above rules.
Below are just a few examples.
Doubling Consonants
Examples
Consonants are usually doubled when adding an Draw becomes drawing.
ending, or suffix, to a word. Bus becomes buses.
Chagrin becomes chagrined.
Rule #1
When the suffix begins with a vowel (such as –ed,
-ing, -ance, -ence, or –ant) and the word ends with C and G
one vowel and one consonant, double the last con-
sonant. The letters c and g can be either soft or hard. A hard
c sounds like k, a soft c sounds like s. A hard g
Examples sounds like the g in girl, a soft g sounds like j.
Cut becomes cutter or cutting.
Slip becomes slipping or slipped. The Rule
Quit becomes quitter or quitting. The letters c and g are soft when followed by e, i, or
y. Otherwise, they are hard.
Rule #2
When the final consonant of the word is accented Examples
and there is only one consonant in the last syllable, SOFT SOUNDS
double the final consonant. circus cycle cell circle cyclone central
giant gyrate genius gipsy gymnastics
Examples gentle
Commit becomes committing or committed. HARD SOUNDS
Defer becomes deferring or deferred. case cousin corporate couple click crop
Prefer becomes preferring or preferred. go gab gobble glue grimy gout
116
The Exceptions Desire becomes desirable.

When a word ends in hard c, add a k before a suffix Erase becomes erasable.
that begins in -e, -i, or -y. Grieve becomes grievous.
Desire becomes desirous.
Examples Opportune becomes opportunity.
Traffic becomes trafficking Scarce becomes scarcity.
Mimic becomes mimicking
The Exceptions
The Exceptions to the Keep the final e after a soft c or soft g to keep the soft
Exception sound.
Very few words keep the soft c sound when a suffix
beginning with i is used. Examples
Peace becomes peaceable.
plasticity elasticity Advantage becomes advantageous.
Outrage becomes outrageous.
Exercise 9
Select the correctly spelled word in each of the fol- Keep the final e when the pronunciation of the
lowing sentences. Answers can be found at the end word would be changed if you dropped the e.
of the lesson.
Examples
33. He gave me a (suttle, subtle) hint about my Guarantee becomes guaranteeing.
gift. Snowshoe becomes snowshoeing.
34. Sharon was not guilty of (commiting, com- Rule #2

mitting) the crime. Keep the final e before endings that begin with con-
sonants, such as -ment, -ness, -less, and -ful.
35. When the subway suddenly stopped, some
people began (panicing, panicking). Examples
advertisement enforcement amusement
36. The contract was (legally, legaly) binding. politeness fierceness appropriateness wireless
tireless blameless disgraceful tasteful
peaceful
Final E
The Exceptions
Drop the final e when it comes after the letters u
Rule #1 or w.
Drop the final e when adding a suffix that begins
with a vowel, such as -ing, -able, -ous, or -ity. Examples
argue becomes argument
Examples true becomes truly
Surprise becomes surprising. awe becomes awful
Leave becomes leaving.
117
Final Y The Exceptions

When you add -ing, keep the final y.
When adding a suffix, a final y is sometimes
changed to an i. Examples
Copy becomes copying.
Rule #1 Busy becomes busying.
When you add a suffix to a word ending in y, keep Study becomes studying.
the y if it follows a vowel.
Examples -able and -ible

attorneys chimneys monkeys keys stayed
delayed played relayed playing relaying -able Rule #1
staying saying annoyance conveyance If a root word takes the -ation suffix, it usually takes
employable playable -able.
The Exceptions Examples

Examples demonstration–demonstrable
say becomes said imagination–imaginable
money becomes monies application–applicable
day becomes daily
-able Rule #2
Rule #2 If a root word is a complete word by itself, it usually
When you add a suffix to a word ending in y, change takes -able.
the y to an i if it follows a consonant.
Examples
Examples drink–drinkable
Mercy becomes merciful. read–readable
Pity becomes pitiful. search–searchable
Beauty becomes beautiful. bear–bearable
Busy becomes business.
Crazy becomes craziness. -able Rule #3
Lazy becomes laziness. If a word ends in hard c or g, it uses the suffix -able.
Angry becomes angrily.
Busy becomes busily. Examples
Healthy becomes healthily. despicable navigable applicable
Salary becomes salaries.
Busy becomes busies. -ible Rule #1
Flurry becomes flurries. If a word ends in soft c or g, it takes –ible.
Example
forcible invincible legible incorrigible
118
-ible Rule #2 -al and -el

If a word ends in –ss, it usually takes –ible.
The Rule
Examples The rule here is that most words use –al. Unfortu-
repress–repressible nately, there is no real rule. These words call for
access–accessible sight memorizing.
permiss–permissible
dismiss–dismissible Examples of -al words
choral dismissal legal literal tribal
-ible Rule #3 personal several neutral moral magical
If a root word is not a whole word, it usually takes lyrical festival
–ible.
Examples of -el words
Example cancel model kennel jewel tunnel travel
responsible shovel panel cruel towel channel hovel
-ible Rule #4
If a word takes the -ion suffix, it usually takes -ible. P r e f i xe s
Examples The Rule
collection–collectible Usually, when you add a prefix to a root word, the
vision–visible spelling of neither the root nor the prefix changes.
division–divisible
Examples
Exception misinformed unprepared disillusioned
Predict–prediction becomes predictable. infrequent illegitimate misspelled unnerved
dissatisfied
-ary and -ery Exercise 10

Select the correctly spelled word in each of the fol-
The Rule lowing sentences. Answers are provided at the end
The rule is that only two common words end in of the lesson.
-ery: cemetery and stationery (as in “paper and
envelopes for letter-writing”). The rest take -ary. 37. She became the (Secretery, Secretary) of
State.
Examples
stationary (as in “unmoving”) dictionary 38. The (desirable, desireable) parking spot is
military library secretary vocabulary next to the entrance.
solitary secondary voluntary
39. The lost dog looked so (pitiful, pityful).
119
L E S S O N
13 Punctuating
Sentences
LESSON SUMMARY
As you fine-tune your writing, you will need to punctuate declarative,
imperative, interrogatory, and exclamatory sentences with end marks
such as periods, exclamation points, and question marks. The rules
are provided for you in this lesson.
Periods
Use a period at the end of a declarative sentence (a sentence that makes a statement).
Example
The coffee shop closes soon.
Example
If the weather warms up, I will mow the lawn.
Use a period at the end of an imperative sentence (a sentence that makes a request, gives an instruc-
tion, or states a command).
Example
Drop your time sheet in the manager’s box.
121
–P U N C T U A T I N G S E N T E N C E S –
Example Use a period after an abbreviation, including

It is best to turn off the power strip before titles such as Mr., Mrs., and Dr.
unplugging the computer.
Example
Example The note said to call Dr. Nayel Mon. or Wed. in
Make a left turn at the light. the evening.
Use a period at the end of a sentence that asks Note that if the abbreviation comes at the end
an indirect question. of the sentence, you should use only one period.
Use a period after abbreviations.
Examples
Have you read the Harry Potter books? (direct Example
question) This year Thanksgiving falls on Nov. 28.
My friend asked me if I had read the Harry Potter Example

books. (indirect question) I take the train to the Ditmars Blvd. stop.
Examples Example
Did you turn in the earnings report? (direct ques- I will return to my 6 ft. by 10 ft. dorm room in Jan.
tion)
Example
Our boss wanted to know if we had turned in our Mrs. Feretovic told Oscar to be ready at 6 P.M.
earnings report. (indirect question)
Note that if the abbreviation is followed by a
Examples comma, you should use both a period and a comma.
Will you help me change the tire? (direct question)
Example
The man asked me to help him change the tire. My first exam is on Thurs., and my second is the
(indirect question) following week.
Use a period after an initial. Example

My alarm clock was set for 6 P.M., so I did not
Example wake up in time.
The girl’s favorite character is Junie B. Jones.
Exception #1
Example Some abbreviations have become acronyms. Acro-
E.M. Forster wrote for many years. nyms are either abbreviations that are pronounced
as a word, like AIDS, or widely recognized names,
Example like FBI or NASA. They do not receive periods.
Ned A. Garnett goes by his middle name
Archibald, or Archie. Example
Agents at the Detroit office of the CIA traced the
purchase back to Canada.
122
Example Example
On Saturday, I am going to watch NASCAR with George’s grade point average was a 3.2.
my friends.
Example
Example To simplify, we will round pi off to 3.14 when
Seven Baltic states were just admitted into NATO. solving the next series of problems.
In formal writing, it is best to avoid using Use a period between dollars and cents.
abbreviations when possible, because they are con-
sidered informal shorthand. Titles, such as Mr., Example
Mrs., Dr., Jr., etc., are acceptable in formal writing, The portrait will cost $37.50 for the basic package.
as are very common abbreviations, like “P.M.”
Months, days of the week, and any shorthand like Example
“b/c” for “because” should be spelled out. There is talk of raising the bus fare from $1.50 to
The first time an acronym is used in a piece of $2.00 per ride.
writing, it is wise to write the name in full followed
by the acronym in parentheses. Use a period in place of the dot when writing
about the Internet. In other words, when people talk
Example about the Internet, they say “dot,” as in “dot-com.”
The National Association for the Advancement of When writing about the Internet, the “dot” is a
Colored People (NAACP) has been working period and is not typically written as a word.
toward increased civil rights for decades.
Example
Exception #2 We searched for information on Riddle.com.
If an abbreviation has become a commonly used
name, no period is needed. Example
The non-profit group has a new website at Free-
Example Billy.org that is really great.
We had to go to the auto shop. (abbreviation for
automobile) Note that a period is not used after the Inter-
net abbreviations that are part of the Internet
Example address, such as .com, .org, or .net.
On the way to the dorm, I had to stop for gas.
(abbreviations for dormitory and gasoline) Exercise 1
Select the letter of the correctly written sentence.
Example Answers can be found at the end of the lesson.
At the gym, they offered free vision exams. (abbre-
viations for gymnasium and examinations) 1. a. Dr Theodore Langley specializes in
dermatology
Use a period (also known as a decimal point) b. Dr. Theodore Langley specializes in
before a decimal. dermatology.
c. Dr. Theodore Langley specializes in
dermatology
123
2. a. My appointment is Tues at 6:15 PM. Example

b. My appointment is Tues. at 6:15 PM. Why is everybody looking out the window?
c. My appointment is Tues. at 6:15 P.M.
Example
3. a. My neighbor, Mrs Dougherty, had to get an Who is that masked man?
M.R.I.
b. My neighbor, Mrs. Dougherty, had to get In dialogue, where and when can also begin
an M.R.I.. answers to questions. These answers are statements
c. My neighbor, Mrs. Dougherty, had to get and are punctuated with a period.
an M.R.I.
Example
4. a. Mr. E. wanted to know if he could have his “Do you know where my book is?”
job back. “Where you left it, probably.”
b. Mr E. wanted to know if he could have his
job back? Example
c. Mr. E wanted to know if he could have his “When will you finish the proposal for the proj-
job back. ect?”
“When I get the time.”
5. a. Jeanine’s dorm. room is 60 sq ft.
b. Jeanine’s dorm room is 60 sq. ft. To make a statement into a question, place the
c. Jeanine’s dorm. room is 60 sq. ft. subject of the sentence between the verbs of the
verb phrase. In the examples below, the verb phrase
is underlined.
Question Marks
Example
Use a question mark after an interrogatory sentence He could have played today. (statement)
(a word or group of words that asks a direct ques- Could he have played today? (question)
tion).
Example
Example Howard is going to the movie. (statement)
Who? Is Howard going to the movie?
Example The verb phrase is not always separated by the

All right? subject in interrogatory sentences. In fact, questions
can be declarative sentences with a question mark at
Example the end. When read aloud, the speaker raises his or
Has anybody seen my keys? her voice at the end of the sentence to make it clear
to the listener that it is a question.
Remember, indirect questions are punctuated
with a period as discussed above. Example
Sentences that begin with the 5 W’s and 1 H of The lunch break has ended?
journalism: Who, what, where, when, why and how
are usually questions.
124
Example Exercise 2
It is time to go shopping? Correctly punctuate and rewrite each of the follow-
ing sentences on the lines provided. Answers can be
Exclamation Points
6. When do you think you will arrive
Use an exclamation point after an exclamatory sen-
tence (a sentence that expresses strong feeling). ____________________________________
Example 7. Hooray The new phone books are here

I can’t believe we made it!
____________________________________
Example
8. I fly from Wash, DC to San Diego, CA.
Watch out for that bus!
____________________________________
Use an exclamation point after an interjection
(a word or group of words used to express surprise 9. Help The sink is overflowing
or other emotion).
____________________________________
Example
Wow! 10. Mr Owen heard the lecture by Howard T
Sloan
Example
____________________________________
Congratulations!
____________________________________
Example
For Heaven’s sakes! 11. On Wed I have tickets to the NASCAR event
An interjection has no grammatical relation- ____________________________________

ship to the rest of the sentence. It is not a necessary
part of speech, like a noun or verb. 12. My sister asked if I had seen her notebook
When writing, it is best to use exclamation
points only when necessary because when they are ____________________________________
used too frequently, they lose their impact. Reading
a paragraph with several exclamatory sentences is 13. Cool shoes Where did you get them
like sitting next to someone who yells in your ear. It
____________________________________
can become annoying very quickly.
14. Will you check my homework for me
____________________________________
125
Answers
Editing
Proofreading
Dr. Fatemah Bazzi

Editing
Proofreading
Dr. Fatemah Bazzi

Editing
Proofreading
Dr. Fatemah Bazzi

Editing
Proofreading
Dr. Fatemah Bazzi

L E S S O N
Using
17 Quotation
Marks
LESSON SUMMARY
Quotation marks are used when quoting someone’s exact words,
when writing dialogue, when punctuating the titles of magazines and
parts of books, and when setting apart words that are unusual in
standard English. To add to the confusion, there are single and dou-
ble quotation marks. This lesson will teach you how to apply quota-
tion marks in your writing.
Direct Quotations
Direct quotations are someone’s exact words. Use quotation marks to set apart a direct quotation.
Example
The assistant manager said I am a “very quick learner.”
Example
I remember him saying, “We always have meatballs on Thursday.”
Example
“Who left the storage closet unlocked?” I asked myself.
Words written in print or on signs receive quotation marks.
147
–U S I N G Q U O T A T I O N M A R K S –
Example middle, or end of a quotation. Tags are punctuated

The sign at the laundromat read, “Use tables for differently depending on their placement in the sen-
folding clean laundry only.” tence.
Example Example of tag at the beginning

The website advertised, “Free shipping on orders Tyrone wondered, “What would happen if I used
over $100.” photographs from the Internet in my report?”
Note that the tag is followed by a comma, and
In academic writing, famous people are often the first word in the quotation marks is capital-
quoted. Because these quotes are well known, it is ized.
doubly important to ensure that the quote is writ-
ten exactly as it was originally said. Example of tag in the middle of a sentence
“If I win the match,” thought Beatrice, “they will
Incorrect Example have to win three in a row to be champions.”
As Franklin Delano Roosevelt once said, “The only Note that a comma follows the last word in the
thing we need to fear is fear.” first part of the quote and is placed inside the
quotation marks. The tag is followed by a comma,
Corrected Example and the second part of the quote is not capitalized.
As Franklin Delano Roosevelt once said, “The only
thing we have to fear is fear itself.” Example of tag in the middle of two complete sen-
tences
“Throughout history, there have been only a
Dialogue handful of leaders who came to power only in
time to finish what their predecessor had begun,”
Dialogue is a form of direct quotation because you stated Florence. “Our President Harry S. Truman
are writing someone’s exact words. Dialogue is a was one of them.”
conversation between two or more people, either Note that a comma follows the last word in the
real or invented, depending on whether you are first part of the quote and is placed before the
writing fiction or non-fiction. Punctuating dialogue quotation marks. However, when the first part of
correctly involves understanding some rules beyond the quote is a complete sentence, a period follows
the rules that govern quotation marks. Dialogue the tag. Quotation marks start and end the second
requires knowledge of commas, capitalization, and part of the quote, and it is capitalized.
end marks such as periods, exclamation points, and
question marks, as well. Example of tag at the end
“Yesterday was a long time ago,” remarked Bon-
Example nie’s mother.
“In the olden days, we walked two miles to school The above quotation is a sentence that would
each day,” said Grandpa. normally be punctuated with a period. Instead, a
comma followed by quotation marks is used. A
The expression said Grandpa is known as a period is used after the tag.
tag. The tag in dialogue can appear at the beginning,
148
Example of tag at the end with question mark 1. The director of the program asked “who are
“How often does this train run?” wondered Jorge. the violin players”
Note the question mark appears inside the
quotation marks, but the tag is not capitalized. ____________________________________
Example of tag at the end with exclamation point ____________________________________

“Clear the way!” shouted Jan.
Note the exclamation point appears inside the 2. “No trespassing” read the sign on the post.
quotation marks, but, as with question marks, the
____________________________________
tag is not capitalized.
3. The professor told us to “line up according to

If the quote itself is not a question or an excla-
height”
mation, but is included in a sentence that is a ques-
tion or exclamation, the punctuation is placed after
____________________________________
the quotation marks.
____________________________________
Example
Does anyone know who said, “Speak softly and 4. “I am positive” muttered Walter “that I left my
carry a big stick”? keys here”
Note that the tag is a question, and the quota-
tion is part of that question. However, the quota- ____________________________________
tion itself is not a question, so the question mark
follows the quotation marks. No more than one ____________________________________
comma or end mark is ever used at the end of a quo-
tation. 5. “Get out of the building” shouted the custo-
dian “there is an electrical fire in the switch
Each time there is a new speaker in the dia- room”
logue, begin a new paragraph by indenting.
____________________________________
Example
“Have you fed the cat today?” asked Miriam. “Yes- ____________________________________
terday, when I came home from work, she would
not stop meowing until I gave her some food.” ____________________________________
“I haven’t fed her yet,” replied Alistair, “but as
soon as I can find the can opener, I will.” 6. Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address begins “four
score and seven years ago”
Exercise 1
____________________________________
Rewrite the following sentences adding the correct
punctuation. Use the lines provided. Answers can be
____________________________________
149
Ti t l e s your sources. (See the LearningExpress Skill Builder

entitled Research and Writing Skills for instruction
Quotation marks are used to punctuate the titles of in this area.)
shorter works, or works that are parts of a larger The titles of longer works such as novels,
work. When you refer to a published piece in your movies, epic poems, collections of poetry, the
writing, be sure to cite your sources. This will elim- names of magazines or newspapers, plays, musicals,
inate the problem of plagiarism. or long musical compositions are typically itali-
cized, or underlined if they are written by hand.
Example of a short story title
The class discussed Leslie Marmon Silko’s “Tony’s
Story.” U n u s u a l Wo r d s
Example of a chapter title Use quotation marks to set apart technical terms,
Your assignment tonight is to read Chapter 12, slang words, nicknames, or any unfamiliar terms.
“Civil Rights in America.”
Example
Example of the title of a poem My grandmother’s recipe required a “zabaglione
“The Lamb,” by William Blake, reads like a prayer. pan.”
Example of the title of a song Example

We listened to “Strange Fruit” by Billie Holliday. According to the magazine, the new teen singer is
both “hot” and “cool.”
Example of the name of a T.V. show
“The Cosby Show” changed television comedy in Example
the 1980s. They call him “Red” even though all his red hair
fell out years ago.
Example of the title of an article in a magazine or
journal Quotation marks are also used to indicate the
Our homework was to read “The Maginot Line” use of irony.
from Smithsonian Magazine.
Example
Note that with academic writing, it is impor- The “taxi” was actually a motorcycle with a poorly
tant to cite your sources properly. Check with your attached sidecar.
supervisor or instructor to determine whether you
are expected to use the Modern Languages Associ- Example
ation or the American Psychological Association The “magnificent roof garden” was actually two
format. There are many popular citation guides that potted plants.
can help you; just be sure to follow the format
exactly. When you conduct research, it is important
to write down all the relevant information from
150
Single Quotation Marks 9. The choir practiced Amazing Grace for the
upcoming concert.
Single quotation marks (‘) set apart a quotation
within a quotation. ____________________________________
____________________________________
Example
“We all heard the boss say, ‘The store will be closed
10. Because of her black hair, she was nick-named
on New Year’s Day.’”
Raven.
Example
____________________________________
“Has anybody read ‘Do Not Go Gentle Into That
Good Night’ by Dylan Thomas?” asked Ms. ____________________________________
Dwyer.
11. “The coach told us to Start playing like we
Exercise 2 want to win! and then she stormed out of the
Rewrite the following sentences on the lines pro- locker room.”
vided using the correct punctuation. Answers can
be found at the end of the lesson. ____________________________________
7. What do you suppose Carolyn meant when ____________________________________

she said, I’m going to do something about
this? ____________________________________
____________________________________ 12. The teenagers thought the old, dented van was
mad wack.
____________________________________
____________________________________
____________________________________
____________________________________
8. The English teacher told the class, “Today we
are going to read Jabberwocky by Lewis
Carroll.” Summary
____________________________________ The correct use of quotation marks can be

confusing. When you are proofreading
____________________________________ your writing, pay close attention to dia-
logue and other uses of quotation marks.
____________________________________ Follow the rules you have learned in this
lesson and your writing will be clear and
graceful.
151
EVER THOUGHT THIS?
“I know sometimes the verb is
supposed to end with -s and
24
sometimes it isn’t, but I always
get confused.”
— Mayerlin Fana, Student
This chapter
• explains what agreement be-
tween subjects and verbs is
• explains the simple rules for
regular verbs
• identifies five trouble spots
Problems with that can cause confusion

• gives you practice finding
and fixing errors in subject-
Subject-Verb verb agreement
Agreement
When Subjects and Verbs Don’t Match
Understand What Subject-Verb Agreement Is

TIP In the examples In any sentence, the subject and the verb must match — or agree — in
throughout this chapter, number. If the subject is singular (one person, place, or thing), then the verb
subjects are underlined,
and verbs are double-
must also be singular. If the subject is plural (more than one), the verb must
underlined. also be plural.
SINGULAR The skydiver jumps out of the airplane.

PLURAL The skydivers jump out of the airplane.
Regular verbs (with forms that follow standard English patterns) have
two forms in the present tense: one that ends in -s and one that has no end-
Regular Verbs, Present Tense

SINGULAR PLURAL
First person I walk. ⎫ We walk.

⎬ no -s
Second person You walk. ⎭ You walk.
Third person He (she, it) walks. ⎫ They walk.
⎪
Joe walks. ⎬ all end in -s Joe and Alice walk.
⎪
The student walks. ⎭ The students walk.
360
THE FOUR MOST SERIOUS ERRORS
Understand What Subject-Verb Agreement Is 361
ing. The third-person subjects he, she, it, and singular nouns always use the
form that ends in -s. First-person subjects (I ), second-person subjects (you),
and plural subjects use the form with no ending.
LANGUAGE NOTE: Some nouns that do not end in -s are plural and thus need
plural verbs. For example, children and people do not end in -s, but they in-
dicate more than one child or person, so they are plural.
INCORRECT These children is making me crazy.
CORRECT These children are making me crazy.
In the Real World, Why Is It Important to Correct

Errors in Subject-Verb Agreement?
SITUATION:Regina Toms (name changed) wrote the following brief report
about a company employee whom she was sending to the employee assis-
tance program. (These programs help workers with various problems, such
as alcoholism or mental illness, that may affect their job performance.)
Mr. XXX, who has been a model employee of the company for five
years, have recently behaved in ways that is inappropriate. For example,
last week he was rude when a colleague asked him a question. He has
been late to work several times and has missed work more often than
usual. When I spoke to him about his behavior and asked if he have
problems, he admitted that he had been drinking more than usual. I
would like him to speak to someone who understand more about this
than I do.
STUDENT VOICES
WALTER SCANLON’S RESPONSE: When Wal-

ter Scanlon, program and workplace
consultant, received Regina’s report, he re-
sponded in this way:
I immediately formed an opinion of her

based on this short piece of correspon-
dence: that she was either not well educated
or not considerate of the addressee. Ms.
Toms may indeed be intelligent and consid-
erate, but those qualities are not reflected in
this report. In this fast-paced world we live
in, rapid-fire faxes, e-mails, and brief tele-
phone conversations are likely to be our first
mode of contact. Since one never gets a
second chance to make a first impression,
make the first one count!
(See Walter’s PROFILE OF SUCCESS on p. 210.)

362 Chapter 24 • Problems with Subject-Verb Agreement
Find and Correct Errors in Subject-Verb

Agreement
To find problems with subject-verb agreement in your own writing, look for
five trouble spots that often signal these problems.
1. The Verb Is a Form of Be, Have, or Do

The verbs be, have, and do do not follow the rules for forming singular and
plural forms; they are irregular verbs.
Forms of the Verb Be

PRESENT TENSE SINGULAR PLURAL
First person I am we are

Second person you are you are
Third person she, he, it is they are
the student is the students are
PAST TENSE
First person I was we were

Second person you were you were
Third person she, he, it was they were
the student was the students were
Forms of the Verb Have, Present Tense

SINGULAR PLURAL
First person I have we have

Second person you have you have
Third person she, he, it has they have
the student has the students have
Find and Correct Errors in Subject-Verb Agreement 363
Forms of the Verb Do, Present Tense

SINGULAR PLURAL
First person I do we do
Second person you do you do
Third person she, he, it does they do
the student does the students do
These verbs cause problems for writers who in conversation use the
same form in all cases (He do the cleaning; they do the cleaning). People also
sometimes use the word be instead of the correct form of be (She be on
vacation).
In college and at work, use the correct forms of the verbs be, have, and
do as shown in the charts above.
are
They is sick today.
is^
She be at the library every morning.
^ does
Carlos do the laundry every Wednesday.
^
has
Joan have the best jewelry.
^
Finding and Fixing Problems with Subject-Verb Agreement:

Making Subjects and Verbs Agree When the Verb Is Be, Have, or Do
Find
I (am / is / are) a true believer in naps.
1. Underline the subject.

2. Ask: Is the subject in the first (I), second (you), or third person (he/she)?
First person.
3. Ask: Is the subject singular or plural? Singular.
Fix
I (am / is / are) a true believer in naps.
4. Choose the verb by matching it to the form of the subject (first person,
singular).
PRACTICE 1 Identifying Problems with Subject-Verb Agreement
Find and underline the four problems with subject-verb agreement in Regina
Toms’s paragraph on page 361.
PRACTICE 2 Choosing the Correct Form of Be, Have, or Do
TIP For more practices on In each sentence, underline the subject of the verb be, have, or do, and circle the
subject-verb agreement, correct form of the verb.
visit Exercise Central at
bedfordstmartins.com/ EXAMPLE: Most people (does / do) not get enough sleep.
realwriting.
1. Sleep (is / are) necessary for people to function well.

2. Most people (has / have) to get eight hours or more of sleep to be com-
pletely alert.
3. Electric lights (was / were) once uncommon, so people usually went to
bed when the sun went down.
4. Today, darkness (does / do) not make us go to sleep.
5. Almost every home (has / have) electricity, so people stay up long after
sundown.
6. Modern Americans (has / have) such busy lives that they often sleep less
than they should.
7. Often, a working college student (does / do) not have time to get eight
hours of sleep.
8. Job duties (has / have) to be done, but schoolwork is equally important.
9. If you study when you (be / are) tired, you remember less information.
10. Busy people today try to get by on little sleep, but it (is / are) unhealthy
to be sleep-deprived.
PRACTICE 3 Using the Correct Form of Be, Have, or Do
In each sentence, underline the subject of the verb be, have, or do, and fill in the
correct form of the verb indicated in parentheses.
EXAMPLE: She has (have) often looked at the stars on

clear, dark nights.
1. Stars (be) clustered together in constellations.

2. Every constellation (have) a name.
3. I (do) not know how they got their names.
4. Most constellations (do) not look much like the

people or creatures they represent.
5. You (have) to use your imagination to see the pictures
in the stars.
6. Twelve constellations (be) signs of the zodiac.
7. One (be) supposed to look like a crab.
8. Other star clusters (have) the names of characters
from ancient myths.
9. Orion, the hunter, (be) the only one I can recognize.
10. He (do) not look like a hunter to me.
2. Words Come between the Subject and the Verb

When the subject and verb are not right next to each other, it is more diffi-
cult to find them to make sure they agree. Most often, either a prepositional
phrase or a dependent clause comes between the subject and the verb.
Prepositional Phrase between the Subject and the Verb

A prepositional phrase starts with a preposition and ends with a noun or TIP For a list of common prepo-
pronoun: I took my bag of books and threw it across the room. sitions, see page 315.
The subject of a sentence is never in a prepositional phrase.
When you are looking for the subject of a sentence, you can cross out any
prepositional phrases.
A volunteer in the Peace Corps (serve / serves) two years.
The speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives (give / gives) many

interviews.

Making Subjects and Verbs Agree When They Are
Separated by a Prepositional Phrase
Find
Learners with dyslexia (face / faces) many challenges.

2. Cross out any prepositional phrase that follows the subject.
3. Ask: Is the subject singular or plural? Plural.
Fix
Learners with dyslexia (face / faces) many challenges.
4. Choose the form of the verb that matches the subject.
PRACTICE 4 Making Subjects and Verbs Agree When They Are

Separated By a Prepositional Phrase
In each of the following sentences, cross out the prepositional phrase between
the subject and the verb, and circle the correct form of the verb. Remember, the
subject of a sentence is never in a prepositional phrase.
EXAMPLE: Life in these fast-paced times (does / do) not leave much
time for rest.
1. Stress from a job or family commitments (makes / make) sleeping diffi-

cult for some.
2. Crying fits after midnight (wakes / wake) parents of small children,
giving the parents little rest.
3. Also, people with cable television often (wants / want) to stay up to see
their favorite shows.
4. A recent report on sleeping habits (is / are) revealing.
5. People from all parts of our society (is / are) going to bed late.
6. One out of every three adult Americans (gets / get) to bed after midnight
during the week.
7. Adults across America also (sleeps / sleep) less than people from many
other countries.
8. The report on sleeping habits (shows / show) that 19 percent of Ameri-
cans sleep six or fewer hours a night.
9. But most of us (needs / need) about eight hours of sleep a night to
function well.
10. Even a nap during afternoon hours (helps / help) a person feel refreshed.
Dependent Clause between the Subject and the Verb

A dependent clause has a subject and a verb, but it does not express a
complete thought. When a dependent clause comes between the subject and
the verb, it usually starts with the word who, whose, whom, that, or which.
The subject of a sentence is never in a dependent clause. When

you are looking for the subject of a sentence, you can cross out any depen-
dent clauses.
The coins that I found last week (seem / seems) valuable.
The person who delivers our street’s newspapers (throw / throws) them
everywhere but on people’s porches.

Making Subjects and Verbs Agree When They
Are Separated by a Dependent Clause
Find
The security systems that shopping sites on the Internet provide
(is / are) surprisingly effective.

2. Cross out any dependent clause that follows the subject. (Look for the
words who, whose, whom, that, or which because they can signal such a
clause.)
3. Ask: Is the subject singular or plural? Plural.
Fix
The security systems that shopping sites on the Internet provide
(is / are) surprisingly effective.
4. Choose the form of the verb that matches the subject.
PRACTICE 5 Making Subjects and Verbs Agree When They Are

Separated by a Dependent Clause
In each of the following sentences, cross out any dependent clauses. Then, cor-
rect any problems with subject-verb agreement. If the subject and the verb agree,
write “OK” next to the sentence.
EXAMPLE:My cousins who immigrated to this country from Ecuador

have
has jobs in a fast-food restaurant.
^
1. The restaurant that hired my cousins are not treating them fairly.
2. People who work in the kitchen has to report to work at 7:00 A.M.
3. The boss who supervises the morning shift tells the workers not to
punch in until 9:00 A.M.
4. The benefits that full-time workers earn have not been offered to my
cousins.
5. Ramón, whose hand was injured slicing potatoes, need to have physical
therapy.
6. No one who works with him has helped him file for worker’s compen-
sation.
7. The doctors who cleaned his wound and put in his stitches at the hospi-
tal expects him to pay for the medical treatment.
8. The managers who run the restaurant insists that he is not eligible for
medical coverage.
9. My cousins, whose English is not yet perfect, feels unable to leave their
jobs.
10. The restaurant that treats them so badly offers the only opportunity for
them to earn a living.
3. The Sentence Has a Compound Subject

A compound subject is two (or more) subjects joined by and, or, or nor.
And /Or Rule: If two subjects are joined by and, use a plural verb. If two
subjects are joined by or (or nor), the verb should agree with whatever sub-
ject it is closer to.
Plural subject = Plural verb
The teacher and her aide grade all of the exams.
TIP Whenever you see a com- If two subjects are separated by the word or or nor, they are not combined.
pound subject joined by and, The verb should agree with whichever subject is closer to it.
try replacing it in your mind
with they.
Subject or Singular subject = Singular verb
Either the teacher or her aide grades all of the exams.
Subject or Plural subject = Plural verb
The teacher or her aides grade all of the exams.
Subject nor Plural subject = Plural verb
Neither the teacher nor her aides grade all of the exams.

Making Subjects and Verbs Agree in a Sentence
with a Compound Subject
Find
Watermelon or cantaloupe (makes / make) a delicious and
healthy snack.
1. Underline the subjects.

2. Circle the word between the subjects.
3. Ask: Does that word join the subjects to make them plural or keep them
separate? Keeps them separate.
4. Ask: Is the subject that is closer to the verb singular or plural? Singular.
Fix
Watermelon or cantaloupe (makes / make) a delicious and
healthy snack.
5. Choose the verb form that agrees with the subject that is closer to the verb.
PRACTICE 6 Choosing the Correct Verb in a Sentence

with a Compound Subject
In each of the following sentences, underline the word (and or or) that joins the
parts of the compound subject. Then, circle the correct form of the verb.
EXAMPLE: My mother and my sister (has / have) asked a nutritionist

for advice on a healthy diet.
1. A tomato and a watermelon (shares / share) more than just red-colored

flesh.
2. A cooked tomato or a slice of watermelon (contains / contain) a nutrient
called lycopene that seems to protect the human body from some
diseases.
3. Fruits and vegetables (is / are) an important part of a healthy diet, most
experts agree.
4. Nutrition experts and dietitians (believes / believe) that eating a variety
of colors of fruits and vegetables is best for human health.
5. Collard greens or spinach (provides / provide) vitamins, iron, and protec-

tion from blindness to those who eat them.
6. Carrots and yellow squash (protects / protect) against cancer and some
kinds of skin damage.
7. Too often, a busy college student or worker (finds / find) it hard to
eat the recommended five to nine servings of fruits and vegetables
a day.
8. A fast-food restaurant or vending machine (is / are) unlikely to have
many fresh vegetable and fruit selections.
9. A salad or fresh fruit (costs / cost) more than a hamburger in many
places where hurried people eat.
10. Nevertheless, a brightly colored vegetable and fruit (adds / add) vitamins
and healthy fiber to any meal.
4. The Subject Is an Indefinite Pronoun

An indefinite pronoun replaces a general person, place, or thing or a
general group of people, places, or things. Indefinite pronouns are often
singular, though there are some exceptions, as shown in the chart on
page 371.
SINGULAR Everyone wants the semester to end.

PLURAL Many want the semester to end.
SINGULAR Either of the meals is good.
Often, an indefinite pronoun is followed by a prepositional phrase or

dependent clause. Remember that the verb of a sentence must agree with
the subject of the sentence, and the subject of a sentence is never in a prepo-
sitional phrase or dependent clause. To choose the correct verb, focus on the
indefinite pronoun — you can cross out the prepositional phrase or depen-
dent clause.
Everyone in all of the classes (want / wants) the term to end.
Few of the students (is / are) looking forward to exams.
Several who have to take the math exam (is / are) studying together.
Indefinite Pronouns
MAY BE SINGULAR
ALWAYS SINGULAR OR PLURAL
another everybody no one all

anybody everyone nothing any
anyone everything one (of) none
anything much somebody some
each (of)* neither (of)* someone
either (of)* nobody something
*When one of these words is the subject, mentally replace it with one. One is
singular and takes a singular verb.

Making Subjects and Verbs Agree When
the Subject Is an Indefinite Pronoun
Find
One of my best friends (lives / live) in California.

2. Cross out any prepositional phrase or dependent clause that follows the
subject.
3. Ask: Is the subject singular or plural? Singular.
Fix
One of my best friends (lives / live) in California.
4. Choose the verb form that agrees with the subject.
PRACTICE 7 Choosing the Correct Verb When the Subject Is

an Indefinite Pronoun
In each of the following sentences, cross out any prepositional phrase or depen-
dent clause that comes between the subject and the verb. Then, underline the
subject, and circle the correct verb.
EXAMPLE: One of the strangest human experiences (results / result)

from the “small-world” phenomenon.
1. Everyone (remembers / remember) an example of a “small-world”

phenomenon.
2. Someone whom you have just met (tells / tell) you a story.
3. During the story, one of you (realizes / realize) that you are connected
somehow.
4. One of your friends (lives / live) next door to the person.
5. Someone in your family (knows / know) someone in the person’s
family.
6. Each of your families (owns / own) a home in the same place.
7. One of your relatives (plans / plan) to marry his cousin.
8. Some (believes / believe) that if you know one hundred people and talk
to someone who knows one hundred people, together you are linked to
one million people through friends and acquaintances.
9. Someone in this class probably (connects / connect) to you in one way
or another.
10. Each of you probably (knows / know) a good “small-world” story of
your own.
5. The Verb Comes before the Subject

In most sentences, the subject comes before the verb. Two kinds of sen-
tences often reverse the usual subject-verb order: questions and sentences
that begin with here or there. In these two types of sentences, check carefully
for errors in subject-verb agreement.
Questions
In questions, the verb or part of the verb comes before the subject. To find
the subject and verb, you can turn the question around as if you were going
to answer it.
Where is the bookstore? / The bookstore is . . .
Are you excited? / You are excited.
When is the bus going to leave? / The bus is going to leave . . .

LANGUAGE NOTE: For reference charts showing how to form questions, see
pages 504–05 and pages 507–10, in Chapter 33.
Sentences That Begin with Here or There

When a sentence begins with here or there, the subject often follows the verb.
Turn the sentence around to find the subject and verb.
Here is your key to the apartment. / Your key to the apartment is here.
There are four keys on the table. / Four keys are on the table.
LANGUAGE NOTE: There is and there are are common in English. These ex-
pressions have the general meaning of have/has.
There is time to finish = We have time to finish.

Making Subjects and Verbs Agree When
the Verb Comes before the Subject
Find
What classes (is / are) the professor teaching?
1. If the sentence is a question, turn the question into a statement: The

professor (is / are) teaching the classes.
There (is / are) two good classes in the music department.
2. If the sentence begins with here or there, turn it around: Two good classes
(is / are) in the music department.
3. Identify the subject in each of the two new sentences. It is “professor” in
the first sentence and “classes” in the second.
4. Ask: Is the subject singular or plural? “Professor” is singular; “classes” is
plural.
Fix
The professor (is / are) teaching the classes.
Two good classes (is / are) in the music department.
5. Choose the form of the verb in each sentence that matches the subject.
PRACTICE 8 Correcting a Sentence When the Verb Comes

before the Subject
Correct any problem with subject-verb agreement in the following sentences. If a
sentence is already correct, write “OK” next to it.
does
EXAMPLE:What electives do the school offer?
^
1. What are the best reason to study music?
2. There is several good reasons.
3. There is evidence that music helps students with math.
4. What is your favorite musical instrument?
5. Here is a guitar, a saxophone, and a piano.
6. There is very few people with natural musical ability.
7. What time of day does you usually practice?
8. There is no particular time.
9. What musician does you admire most?
10. Here are some information about the importance of regular practice.
Edit for Subject-Verb Agreement

Use the chart, Finding and Fixing Problems with Subject-Verb Agreement,
on page 379, to help you complete the practices in this section and edit your
own writing.
PRACTICE 9 Correcting Various Problems with Subject-Verb

Agreement
In the following sentences, identify any verb that does not agree with its subject.
Then, correct the sentence using the correct form of the verb.
are
Thousands of people is actually being paid to go shopping.
EXAMPLE:
^
1. The shoppers who take on this work earns money for checking on a
store’s quality of service.
2. There is two names for them: mystery shoppers and secret shoppers.
3. Chain stores across the nation hires mystery shoppers.
Edit for Subject-Verb Agreement 375
4. Fast-food restaurants and retail stores uses these shoppers the most.
5. What reasons motivates a person to become a mystery shopper?
6. Mystery shoppers with a sense of justice says they do their work to make
sure consumers are treated well.
7. Others say they has only one reason: the money they are paid.
8. The pay and benefits appeals to many mystery shoppers; they typically
get $7 to $30 per store visit, plus money to cover purchases.
9. One do not have to pay a fee to become a mystery shopper.
10. Anybody who likes the idea of getting paid to visit stores are advised to
visit www.mysteryshop.org.
PRACTICE 10 Editing Paragraphs for Subject-Verb Agreement
Find and correct six problems with subject-verb agreement in the following
paragraphs.
(1) You probably does not have a mirror at your computer desk, but
if you did, you might notice something about yourself you had not been
aware of before. (2) As you sit there, hour after hour, your shoulders are
rounded, your back is slumped, and your posture are awful.
(3) Do not worry; you are not alone. (4) Most students spend hours
in front of a computer monitor with terrible posture. (5) Then, they
make things worse by getting up and heading off to school with painfully
heavy backpacks on their backs. (6) Young people who carry a heavy
burden is forced to hunch forward even more to balance the weight,
adding strain to already seriously fatigued muscles. (7) Everyone who
studies these trends are concerned.
(8) The study of people and their surroundings is known as ergo-
nomics. (9) Improperly slouching at the computer and toting around
a heavy backpack are both examples of poor ergonomics. (10) These
bad habits is two causes of chronic back pain that can interfere with
school, work, and sports. (11) Everyone, according to experts, need to
sit up straight while at the computer, take frequent breaks to get up and
walk around, and carry less in his or her backpack.
PRACTICE 11 Editing Subject-Verb Agreement Errors and Using

Formal English
A friend of yours has been turned down for a course because of high enrollment,
even though she registered early. She knows that her e-mail to the instructor teach-
ing the course has a few problems in it. Help her by correcting any subject-verb
TIP For more advice on using agreement errors. Then, edit the informal English in the e-mail.
formal English, see Chapter 3.
For advice on choosing appro-
priate words, see Chapter 34.
(1) Hey Prof Connors,
(2) I am e-mailing you to make sure you gets the e-mail I sent before
about registering for your Business Writing course this semester.
(3) IMHO, it is one of the best classes this college offers. (4) I does not
miss the deadline; I signed up on the first day, in fact. (5) I plans to
graduate with a degree in business and economics, so your class is
important to me. (6) Could you please check yur class roster to see if I
was somehow skipped or missed? (7) I would sure appreciate it a ton,
LOL. (8) Plz let me know what you finds out. (9) If I cannot get into
your class this semester, I will have to rearrange my schedule so that I
can takes it next semester instead. (10) I look forward to taking your
class and learning all about business writing. (11) You rocks, prof.
(11) Sincerely,
Cameron Taylor
PRACTICE 12 Editing Regina’s Report
Look back at Regina Toms’s report on page 361. You may have already under-
lined the subject-verb agreement errors; if not, do so now. Next, using what you
have learned in this chapter, correct each error.
PRACTICE 13 Editing Your Own Writing for Subject-Verb

Agreement
Use your new skill at editing for subject-verb agreement on a piece of your own
writing — a paper you are working on for this class, a paper you have already
finished, a paper for another course, or a recent piece of writing from your work
or everyday life. Use the chart on page 379 to help you.
Chapter Test 377
Chapter Review
1. The and the in a sentence must LEARNING JOURNAL If you
found errors in subject-verb
agree (match) in terms of number. They must both be , agreement in your writing, were
they one of the five trouble
or they must both be plural. spots (pp. 362–374)? What is
the main thing you have learned
2. Five trouble spots can cause errors in subject-verb agreement: about subject-verb agreement
that you will use? What is one
• When the verb is a form of , , or thing that remains unclear?
.
• When a or a comes between
the subject and the verb.
• When the sentence has a subject joined by and, or,
or nor.
• When the subject is an pronoun.
• When the comes the subject.
Chapter Test
Circle the correct choice for each of the following items. Use the Finding and TIP For advice on taking tests,
Fixing Problems with Subject-Verb Agreement chart on page 379 to help you. see Appendix A.
1. If an underlined portion of this sentence is incorrect, select the revision

that fixes it. If the sentence is correct as written, choose d.
There is only certain times when you can call to get technical
A B C
support for this computer.
a. There are c. getting

b. you could d. No change is necessary.
2. Choose the correct word to fill in the blank.
Dana’s dog Bernard just a puppy, but he moves so

slowly that he seems old.
a. be c. being
b. am d. is

The umpire was not happy to see that everyone were watching him
A B
argue with the baseball player.
C
a. umpire were c. argues with
b. everyone was d. No change is necessary.
The woman who rented us our kayaks now

paddling her own kayak down the river.
a. are b. be c. is
5. Choose the item that has no errors.

a. Alex and Dane likes to travel now that they have retired from their
jobs.
b. Alex and Dane liking to travel now that they have retired from their
jobs.
c. Alex and Dane like to travel now that they have retired from their jobs.
The builders of this house used the best materials

they could find.
a. have b. having c. has
The calm before hurricanes most people with

anxiety.
a. fill b. filling c. fills

a. Sheryl and her sons go to the beach whenever they can find the time.
b. Sheryl and her sons goes to the beach whenever they can find the time.
c. Sheryl and her sons is going to the beach whenever they can find the
time.
Where the children’s wet swimsuits?
a. are b. is c. be
Chapter Test 379

Anybody who can speak several languages are in great demand to

A B
work for the government, especially in foreign embassies.
C
a. could c. working
b. is d. No change is necessary.
Finding and Fixing Problems

with Subject-Verb Agreement
Five trouble spots can cause problems

with subject-verb agreement.
Verb is a form Words come Sentence has a Subject is an Verb comes

of be, have, between subject compound indefinite before
or do and verb subject pronoun subject
(see p. 362) (see p. 365) (see p. 368) (see p. 370) (see p. 372)
If you find one of these

trouble spots in your writing . . .
1. Make sure you find the real subject and the

real verb of the sentence.
2. Read them aloud to make sure they sound

right together.
3. If you are unsure about the correct form of the

verb, check the charts in this book.
4. Correct any problems you find with subject-

verb agreement.
L E S S O N
Turning
8 Passive Verbs
into Active
Verbs
LESSON SUMMARY
In this lesson, you will learn to revise your writing to change the pas-
sive voice to the active voice and capture your reader’s interest and
attention.
W hen the subject performs the action expressed in the verb, the verb is in the active voice.
When the subject receives the action of the verb, the verb is in the passive voice.
Example of Active Voice

The hunter shot the bird.
The subject hunter performs the action expressed in the verb shot.
Example of Passive Voice

The bird was shot by the hunter.
The subject bird receives the action of being shot.
In general, using the active voice makes for cleaner and clearer writing. It is clearer because it is more
specific, and cleaner because the active voice usually uses fewer words.
75
–T U R N I N G P A S S I V E V E R B S I N T O A C T I V E V E R B S –
Example 3. a. The pilot was asked by the control tower to

The table was set by George. (six words) delay the flight.
b. The control tower asked the pilot to delay
Revised Example the flight.
George set the table. (four words)
4. a. The surprise party was organized by Jamie’s
Example mother.
The dinner was cooked by Eileen. (six words) b. Jamie’s mother organized the surprise
party.
Revised Example
Eileen cooked the dinner. (four words) 5. a. Many consider Alex to be the best shortstop
in the league.
Example b. Alex is considered by many to be the best
The sugar crop on the coast was damaged by shortstop in the league.
stormy weather. (eleven words)
Active voice is clear and concise, two trade-
Revised Example marks of good writing. In some situations, however,
The stormy weather damaged the sugar crop on passive voice is acceptable. For example, when the
the coast. (ten words) actor who performed the action is not known, or
when the writer does not want to reveal the actor
Example for effect, it is appropriate to use the passive voice.
The game was won by the Seattle Mariners. (eight
words) Example
My backpack was stolen.
Revised Example In this sentence, the person who stole the
The Seattle Mariners won the game. (six words) backpack is not known, so the passive voice is
acceptable.
Exercise 1
Select the letter for the sentence that uses the active Passive voice is correct in some other situa-
voice in each of the sentence pairs in this exercise. tions as well. Occasionally, a sentence constructed in
Answers can be found at the end of the lesson. the passive voice will be shorter than an active con-
struction.
1. a. Escobar held the phone.
b. The phone was held by Escobar. Example of Active Voice
The creators of the computer game told the play-
2. a. The night was filled by the sound of the ers to download their personal statistics before
stray cat’s howling. they began to play. (nineteen words)
b. The sound of the stray cat’s howling filled
the night.
76
Example of Passive Voice R e v i s i n g t h e P a s s i v e Vo i c e

The players were told to download their personal
statistics before they began to play. (fourteen To turn a passive sentence into an active sentence,
words) the subject of the verb must perform the action.
Move the object of the passive sentence so that it
Example of Active Voice appears before the verb and becomes the subject.
The framer framed the house, the roofers put the Eliminate the form of the verb to be, and turn the
roof on, and the construction crew made it ready subject of the passive sentence into the object.
to be occupied. (twenty-one words) Imagine that the verb is the middle of a see-
saw. The subject of a passive sentence is on the left
Example of Passive Voice and the object is on the right. To turn the sentence
The house was framed, roofed, and made ready to into an active sentence, they must switch places.
be occupied. (eleven words)
Example of passive construction
The choice whether to use active or passive The mail was opened by my daughter.
voice is a matter of style rather than correctness. Subject verb object
However, if the passive voice is used too often, it
makes for weak and awkward passages. In the same Switch the places of the subject and object to
way that good writing has variety in aspects like eliminate the form of “to be.”
sentence length and word choice, it also should have
variety in its voice. Long passages in which all the Example of active construction
verbs are passive will make your readers look for My daughter opened the mail.
another way to spend their time. Subject verb object
Example in the passive voice Example of passive construction

Sam was brought by his mother, Joan, for his first Bernie was taught to read by his first grade teacher.
haircut. His hair was cut by the barber, and then Subject verb object
he was given a lollipop by the receptionist. Sam
was nervous when he saw the scissors so close to Example of active construction
his head, but he was reassured by his older brother His first grade teacher taught Bernie to read.
that haircuts are no big deal. Subject verb object
Example in the active voice

Sam’s mother, Joan, brought him for his first hair-
cut. The barber cut his hair, and then the recep-
tionist gave him a lollipop. Sam was nervous when
he saw the scissors so close to his head, but his
older brother reassured him that haircuts are no
big deal.
77
Exercise 2 Revising State-of-Being

Revise the following sentences to change the passive Ve r b s
voice to the active voice. Write the revised sentence
on the lines provided. Answers can be found at the State-of-being verbs are forms of the verb “to be.”
end of the lesson. The table at the bottom of this page lists all of the
state of being verbs.
6. A firefly was captured by the boy. Unnecessary state-of-being verbs slow the
action of a sentence. To keep your reader involved
____________________________________ and to keep your sentences as concise as possible,
revise state-of-being verbs whenever possible. The
7. The lasagna was prepared by Dan. following paragraph demonstrates the overuse of
state-of-being verbs.
____________________________________
Example
8. A memo was delivered to me by the director The fall foliage in New England was beautiful. The
of marketing. trees were orange and yellow. At the top of a hill
was one particularly interesting tree. Its leaves
____________________________________ were shaped like hearts and were deep red. The
sun was bright and the air was cold, but it was a
____________________________________ good day to hike.
9. He was ordered to move by his superior. Revised Example

The fall foliage in New England looked beautiful.
____________________________________ Orange and yellow leaves filled the trees. One par-
ticularly stately tree—with deep red, heart-shaped
10. Several novels were read by the book club. leaves—stood at the top of a hill. An ineffective,
but bright, sun made it a perfect day for hiking.
____________________________________
SUBJECT PRESENT PAST PAST PARTICIPLE FUTURE CONDITIONAL
I am was have been will be would be
You are were have been will be would be
He/She/It is was has been will be would be
We are were have been will be would be
You (plural) are were have been will be would be
They are were have been will be would be
78
The second paragraph moves along more Example

quickly and conveys the feeling in a livelier manner. George had gone to get coffee, but he had forgot-
It is also more concise, trimming the first paragraph ten his money.
from fifty-three words to forty-three.
Revised example
George went to get coffee but forgot his money.
Tu r n i n g Ve r b s i n t o N o u n s
Exercise 3
Occasionally, it may be tempting to turn verbs into Revise the following sentences to eliminate unnec-
nouns as a way of sounding more “academic” or essary state-of-being and auxiliary verbs. Write the
“intellectual,” but it usually makes the writing less new sentence on the line provided. Suggested
clear. Using “sophisticated” vocabulary does not answers can be found at the end of the lesson.
improve upon good, clear writing.
11. The test was on the Civil War.
Example with verbs as nouns
The front office made the decision to begin a fea- ____________________________________
sibility study regarding the development of a bet-
ter mousetrap. 12. I had hoped to find my necklace by the swim-
ming pool.
Revised example
The front office decided to study the feasibility of ____________________________________
developing a better mousetrap.
____________________________________
Adding Unnecessary 13. We would run twice around the track during
A u x i l i a r y Ve r b s our lunch break.
Auxiliary verbs such as have, had, is, are, was, were, ____________________________________
will, would and so on are unnecessary if they don’t
help convey the meaning of the sentence. Eliminate ____________________________________
them if the meaning of the sentence stays the same.
14. If you want to be eating ice cream, let’s go get
Example some.
Every day we would eat donuts before practice.
____________________________________
Revised example
Every day we ate donuts before practice. ____________________________________
79
15. I had had the flu, but now I am being healthy U s e L i v e l y Ve r b s

with what I eat.
Clear writing means the reader understands what
____________________________________ you mean. Many verbs do not clearly express the
idea of the sentence as well as a livelier verb could.
____________________________________
Example
One cook does the prep work, one is the line cook
Starting with there or it who uses the barbecue, and one does the desserts.
Sentences sometimes unnecessarily begin with Revised example

phrases like there is, there was, there were, it is, and One cook prepares the food to be cooked, one
it was. The use of these phrases delays the beginning grills the food to perfection, and one cuts desserts
of the idea in a sentence. Eliminating them during and arranges them on the plate.
revision will make your writing clearer and more
direct. Use lively verbs to be specific and entertaining.
Why should someone walk when they can stroll,
Example meander, stride, clamber, skip, hike, saunter, amble,
There are a number of people who can touch their march, totter, toddle, or stagger?
noses with their tongues.
Exercise 4
Revised example Revise the following sentences to turn nouns into
A number of people can touch their noses with verbs and to eliminate there or it at the beginning of
their tongues. the sentences. Write the revised sentence on the
lines provided. Suggested answers can be found at
Example the end of the lesson.
It was too rainy of a day for soccer.
16. There are twenty different drills on sale at the
Revised example hardware store.
The day was too rainy for soccer.
____________________________________
Example
There were eight or nine children home with the ____________________________________
flu.
17. We did a study on frogs in the rain forest.
Revised example
Eight or nine children were home with the flu. ____________________________________
80
18. It was too cold of a day to go hiking.

Summary
____________________________________
This lesson has shown you how to change
passive verbs and state-of-being verbs into
19. The development of the child was faster than
active verbs. While there are situations when
the other second grade students. the passive voice is the best way to express
yourself, but in general, the active voice does
____________________________________ a better job of keeping your reader reading.
Editing unnecessary auxiliary verbs to make
____________________________________ your writing direct and concise has been
covered as well.
20. There can be no other way to climb the
mountain.
____________________________________
____________________________________
81
How to revise and edit state-of-being verbs?
1. Replace the ”verb to be” with more a specific verb.
My sister is loud when she is telling her children to do their

homework.
 My sister shouts when telling her children to do their
homework.
Editing
Proofreading
2. Change one or more of the nouns in the sentence into a

verb.
Jennifer Lawrence is the star of The Hunger Games.

 Jennifer Lawrence stars in The Hunger Games.
3. Combine short, choppy sentences to eliminate the “verb

to be”.
Dr. Fatemah Bazzi
4. Avoid overusing there is, there are, there were, this is, etc.
The restaurant’s parking lot is narrow. There are not very

many parking spaces and those that are available are too
cramped.
The restaurant suffers from a narrow parking lot with only a

Editing
Proofreading
few cramped spaces.
In the example above, we not only combined sentences to

eliminate “verb to be”, but we also deleted “there are” and
“that are”. Such expressions delay or minimize the subject and
add needless words.
Dr. Fatemah Bazzi

5. Replace a “verb to be” + a prepositional phrase with a

verb.
Electric car technology was in existence as early as 1830.

 Electric car technology existed as early as 1830.
Editing
Proofreading
6. Replace a “verb to be” + an “-ing” word with a simple

verb.
The stock market was fluctuating wildly before the crash.

 The stock market fluctuated wildly before the crash.
Dr. Fatemah Bazzi

Revise and edit the state-of-being verbs.
1. The restaurant’s food is excellent.

2. Our mother was the driver of the bus.
3. The food at the restaurant is excellent. The hamburgers are
juicy. The onion rings are crispy. The pie is the best I have ever
eaten.
Editing
Proofreading
4. a. It is my intention to transfer to a four-year university.

b. There were some important findings resulting from this
experiment.
c. He struggled with the paper that was assigned by the
professor.
Dr. Fatemah Bazzi

Revise and edit the sate-of-being verbs.
5. a. Negative advertising is influential on voters’

perceptions of candidates.
b. I am in receipt of your letter.
Editing
Proofreading
6. a. The new students were fighting in front of the

principle’s office.
b. The concept of immortality is intriguing to me.
Dr. Fatemah Bazzi

L E S S O N
Making Sure
10 Nouns and
Pronouns Agree
LESSON SUMMARY
This lesson will show you how to proofread, revise, and edit your work
to be sure that your nouns and pronouns agree.
A
Example
pronoun is a word that replaces one or more nouns. Pronouns must agree with nouns in a
sentence in much the same way that subjects must agree with verbs.
The students complained to the principal about the quality of the cafeteria food. They claim that he isn’t
concerned about whether it is healthy for them to eat.
The pronouns they and them replace the noun students. The pronoun he replaces the noun principal.
The pronoun it replaces the noun food.
Example
The clown wore big shoes and a big nose. They were both red.
The pronoun they replaces the nouns shoes and nose.
A pronoun can also replace another pronoun.
91
–M A K I N G S U R E N O U N S A N D P R O N O U N S A G R E E –
Example Example
One of the DVD players is disconnected. It is Nobody brought his or her favorite dessert to the
missing a cable. potluck dinner.
The pronoun it replaces the pronoun one in
this sentence.
Plural Pronouns
Antecedents Here is a list of plural pronouns:
An antecedent is the word to which the pronoun several few both many
refers. In the previous example, one is the
antecedent of it. To use pronouns correctly, you If two or more singular nouns or pronouns
must make sure they agree in number with their are joined by and, use a plural pronoun.
antecedent. In other words, a singular antecedent
requires a singular pronoun and a plural antecedent Example
requires a plural pronoun. When a noun is the If he and she were on time, they wouldn’t have
antecedent, it is usually pretty clear whether it is sin- missed the bus.
gular or plural. It gets more confusing when a pro-
noun is the antecedent. Thankfully, the rules for Example
noun/pronoun agreement are very similar to the Brad and Janet believe in their chances to win the
rules for subject/verb agreement. election.
If two or more singular nouns or pronouns

Singular Pronouns are joined by or, use a singular pronoun.
Here is a list of singular pronouns: Example

Walt or Jim will provide his expertise.
each anybody everyone
Two or more singular pronoun antecedents
one either anyone
followed by singular pronouns can make for some
no one somebody neither awkward sentences. It follows the pronoun agree-
everybody nobody someone ment rule, but you should consider revising any
sentences that use this construction.
A pronoun with one of the words from this
list as its antecedent must be singular. Example
He or she wants his or her notebook back.
Example
Each of the women tried to swim her fastest and If a singular and a plural noun or pronoun are
win the race. joined by or or nor, the pronoun agrees with its clos-
est antecedent.
92
Example Exercise 1
Neither the photographer nor his models like the Select the correct pronoun in each of the following
setting for the shoot. sentences. Answers can be found at the end of the
lesson.
Example
Neither the models nor the photographer likes the 1. Anyone who wants a ride to the concert must
setting for the shoot. put (his, their) name on the sign-up sheet.
Example 2. Neither Alex nor his classmates could find

David disagrees with the council about how to (his, their) homework.
proceed. Either he or they will get their way.
3. Almost anybody can make (his, their) own
Example birdhouse.
The council disagrees with David about how to
proceed. Either they or he will get his way. 4. Melissa or Tamica will loan you (her, their)
pencil.
While it is important to know the rules when
using pronouns, occasionally their use does not 5. Frank and Andre made (his, their) script into
make for clear and concise writing. When editing a video.
and revising your paper, rearranging the structure
of a sentence or paragraph can allow you to elimi-
nate awkward pronouns. Cases of Pronouns
Personal pronouns come in three cases: nominative,

objective, and possessive. The table below shows the
cases of all the personal pronouns, both singular
and plural.
NOMINATIVE OBJECTIVE POSSESSIVE
First person: I me my
Second person: We us our
You you your
Third person: He him his
She her hers
They them their
It it its
93
Nominative Case Pronouns Possessive Case Pronouns

The subject of a verb is in the nominative case. Possessive case pronouns show possession.
When a pronoun is the subject of the verb in a sen-
tence, the pronoun must be in the nominative case. Example
Most writers do this without thinking. The shoes are his.
The shoes belong to him, so he possesses them.
Example The possessive pronoun his is used.
He is a good worker.
Not “him is a good worker,” or “his is a good Example
worker.” He is the subject, so it appears in the That is our way of celebrating the new season.
nominative case. Whose way is it? The way belongs to us, so it is
our way.
When the pronoun follows a linking verb,
however, the correct usage may sound awkward. The possessive case rarely presents problems.
The nominative and objective cases, however, can
Examples be tricky.
The landscape architect who designed the garden
is he.
Pronoun Case Problems
“It is I,” said my brother.
Most writers do not have agreement problems when
Objective Case Pronouns pronouns are used alone in a sentence.
Objective case pronouns are used as the object in a
sentence. They usually follow an action verb or act Example
as the object of a preposition. He sat at the table.
Example When pronouns are used with a noun or

The crossing guard gave him a wave. another pronoun, it can be confusing.
The pronoun him follows the action word
gave, so it is in the objective case. Examples of incorrect usage
The taxi driver drove my neighbor and I to the
Example store.
We went to the park with Jordan and her.
The pronoun her is the object of the preposi- Jimmy and me are going to work in Georgia.
tion with, so it is in the objective case.
The mechanic spoke to he and I about the repairs.
Example
This is between you and me. One strategy for ensuring that you are using
The pronoun me is the object of the preposi- the correct case with your pronouns is to separate
tion between, so it is in the objective case. the sentence into two sentences.
94
Examples of separated sentences Exercise 2

The taxi driver drove my neighbor to the store. Select the correct pronouns in each of the following
sentences. Answers can be found at the end of the
The taxi driver drove I to the store. lesson.
The second sentence should read: The taxi 6. The conductor let (he, him) and (I, me) stand
driver drove me to the store. at the podium.
Jimmy is going to work in Georgia. 7. My good friend and (I, me) want to join the
chess club.
Me is going to work in Georgia.
8. “It is (I, me),” he said. “I have come to vote.”
The second sentence should read: I am going
to work in Georgia. 9. Deena and (she, her) went to the playground
with Frances and (I, me).
The mechanic spoke to he about the repairs.
This sentence should read: the mechanic spoke 10. Have you heard the gossip about (she, her)
to him about the repairs. and (they, them)?
The mechanic spoke to I about the repairs. 11. Neither my teacher nor my classmates know
This sentence should read: the mechanic spoke what (he, they) will read next.
to me about the repairs.
12. The guests thanked Gita and (she, her) for the
When a sentence contains the preposition party.
between, splitting sentences does not work. Try sub-
stituting with for between. 13. What were you telling Earl and (we, us)
before?
Example of incorrect usage
The problem is between she and I. 14. I remember Jan and (she, her).
Examples of separated sentences 15. You and (he, him) have been studying all
The problem is with she. weekend.
This sentence should read: The problem is
with her.
Ambiguous Pronoun
The problem is with I. Reference
This sentence should read: The problem is
with me. Sometimes a sentence is written with more than one
antecedent, making it ambiguous. Ambiguous
Example of correct sentence means it can have two or more possible meanings;
The problem is between her and me.
95
therefore, the antecedent to which the pronoun Nominative case pronouns are never used to
refers is unclear. make reflexive pronouns.
Example Example
Markella screamed at Stephanie, and she seemed I took the ball Iself.
scared.
It is unclear whether the pronoun she refers to In fact, to create reflexive pronouns, you add
Stephanie or Markella. self or selves to the objective case pronouns for the
third person, which are him, her, and them. You add
Example self or selves to the first and second person in the
Edgar told Greg he was supposed to leave. possessive case, which are my, our, and your. If this
It is unclear whether the pronoun he refers to sounds confusing, look at the table of pronouns in
Edgar or Greg. the three cases in this lesson, and use your ear. You
cannot make the pronouns me, us, you, his, or their
Example reflexive.
Separate the fern from the flower and replant it.
It is unclear whether it refers to the fern or the Examples of incorrect usage
flower. They were determined to complete the project
theirselves.
To eliminate this problem, revise your sen-
tences so that it is clear to which antecedent the pro- I will drink the last of the milk meself.
noun refers.
Boris took over the responsibilities hisself.
Examples of revised sentences
Markella screamed at Stephanie, and Stephanie Examples of correct usage
seemed scared. They were determined to complete the project
themselves.
Edgar was supposed to leave, so he told Greg.
I will drink the last of the milk myself.
Replant the flower after separating it from the fern.
Boris took over the responsibilities himself.
I m p r o p e r R e f l ex i v e P r o n o u n s When a personal pronoun works in a sen-

tence, do not use a reflexive pronoun.
A reflexive pronoun is one that includes the word
self or selves. The table below shows the most com- Examples of incorrect usage
mon reflexive pronouns. The plans to tear down the barn were known only
by ourselves.
myself yourself himself
Three good singers and myself were chosen for the
herself ourselves themselves
vocal group.
96
L E S S O N
11 Using Modifiers
LESSON SUMMARY
In this lesson, you will learn how to insert single-word modifiers—such
as adjectives, adverbs, and phrase modifiers—to give your writing
accuracy and detail.
W ords and phrases that describe other words are called modifiers. Adjectives and adverbs
are known as single-word modifiers. When revising your writing, correct usage of mod-
ifiers should be a top priority.
Adjectives
Adjectives modify a noun or a pronoun in a sentence. They answer one of three questions about another
word in the sentence: which one? what kind? or how many?
Example
I remember the first time I drove a car.
Which time was it? The first time.
99
–U S I N G M O D I F I E R S –
Example Example
It was a green car. The plane taxied slowly to the runway.
What kind of car was it? A green car. How did the plane taxi to the runway? Slowly.
Example Example
I accidentally bumped three cars when I parallel I could hardly wait until takeoff.
parked. To what extent could I wait? Hardly.
How many cars did I bump? Three cars.
Adjective or Adverb?
Adverbs
It can be confusing to determine whether an adjec-
Adverbs modify verbs, adjectives, and other tive or an adverb is appropriate in a sentence.
adverbs. Whenever a modifier is placed directly before an
action verb, an adjective, or another adverb, it is
Example always an adverb. When an adverb comes after the
The man ate quickly. word it modifies, it can be tempting to use an adjec-
The adverb quickly modifies the verb ate. tive instead. A common error occurs when writers
use an adjective in place of an adverb.
Example
He made an extremely annoying sound. Incorrect Example
The adverb extremely modifies the adjective Move the piano very careful.
annoying. Careful is used incorrectly as an adjective in
the sentence.
Example
The other patrons were quite understandably dis- Edited Example
turbed. Move the piano very carefully.
The adverb quite modifies the adverb under-
standably. Incorrect Example
We sang as loud as we could.
Adverbs answer one of four questions about Loud is used incorrectly as an adjective in the
another word in the sentence: where?, when?, how?, sentence.
and to what extent?
Edited Example
Example We sang as loudly as we could.
I put my carry-on bag below the seat.
Where did I put my carry-on bag? Below the
seat. L i n k i n g Ve r b s
Example An adjective rather than an adverb almost always

I will need my book later. follows a linking verb. The linking verb to be does
When will I need my book? Later. not cause much confusion, but most of the other
100
linking verbs can also be used as action verbs. Fol- 3. The manager (quick, quickly) made her way
lowing is a list of confusing linking verbs: to the front desk.
look appear smell ____________________________________

stay grow seem
4. Wally’s fingerpainting was displayed (promi-
sound feel taste nent, prominently) on the fridge.
remain become act
____________________________________
Example
The police officer appeared angry. 5. The two boys talked (loud, loudly) about the
Angry is an adjective describing the officer. game.
Example ____________________________________
The police officer appeared suddenly.
Suddenly is an adverb that tells how the officer 6. Oswald’s injury looks (bad, badly).
appeared.
____________________________________
If you are not sure whether to use an adjective
or an adverb following a verb, determine whether 7. The bulldog looked (shy, shyly) at his master.
the verb is used as a linking verb. If so, use an adjec-
tive. ____________________________________
Exercise 1 8. Why does every book in this series end so

Select the correct word for each sentence and write (sad, sadly)?
whether it is an adjective or an adverb on the line
provided. Answers can be found at the end of the ____________________________________
lesson.
1. Yelena completed the translation (easy, Confusing Adjectives and

easily). Adverbs
____________________________________ Fewer and Less

Fewer and less are both adjectives, and their use can
2. Billy seemed (nervous, nervously) as he got be confusing. Fewer is used to describe things that
up to speak. can be counted. Less refers to quantity or degree.
____________________________________ Example
Joan has fewer earaches than she used to have.
You can count the number of earaches, so
fewer is used.
101
Example Edited Example

There has been less wind this week. Are you going with them?
Wind cannot be counted. It refers to quantity,
as in “how much wind?” Less is used. Good, Bad, Well, and Badly
Good and bad are adjectives. Well and badly are
Example adverbs. Occasionally, good and bad are mistakenly
This project is less important than the last. used to describe a verb when well or badly should be
Importance cannot be counted. It is a matter of used.
degree, so less is used.
Incorrect Example
This, That, These, and Those The jazz band performed good at the conference.
This, that, these, and those are being used as pro-
nouns when they are not modifying another noun Edited Example
in the sentence. When used as adjectives, this and The jazz band performed well at the conference.
that modify singular nouns, and these and those Well modifies the verb performed.
modify plural nouns.
Example
Example The tree house was badly built.
This newspaper is my favorite. Badly modifies the verb built.
Example Example
Those dogs keep barking. Lena felt good after her massage.
Good describes how Lena feels.
Kind, sort, and type require singular modifiers.
Example
Example He is a bad photographer.
This kind tastes like orange. Bad describes the noun photographer.
Example Real and Really

That sort of bad acting can be hard to watch. Real should not be used as an adverb. Really is the
proper adverbial form.
Them
Them is always a pronoun and never an adjective. Incorrect Example
I had a real bad accident.
Incorrect Example
Are you going with them guys? Edited Example
I had a really bad accident.
Edited Example
Are you going with those guys? Slow and Slowly
Slow is an adjective and slowly is an adverb. A com-
mon mistake, and a very public one, has been made
102
on highway signs that instruct drivers to go slow or 15. They forgot his birthday, so he feels (bad,
drive slow. When you use slow in your writing, use badly).
it as an adjective. Do not let this common mistake
affect your writing. Next time you pass one of those ____________________________________
signs, you can take the role of editor and smile to
yourself. Just remember to drive slowly. 16. There were (fewer, less) cool breezes on the
beach today.
Exercise 2
____________________________________
Select the correct word for each sentence and write
whether it is an adjective or an adverb on the line
17. It was a (real, really) hot day.
provided. Answers can be found at the end of the
lesson. ____________________________________
9. The windshield wipers did not work (good, 18. (Them, those) houses are all the same.
well).
____________________________________
____________________________________
10. There were (fewer, less) cars on the road this Comparative and Superlative
summer.
Adjectives and adverbs change form when they are
____________________________________
used to compare degrees of qualities. There are
three degrees of comparison: positive, comparative,
11. The damage from the flooding looks (bad,
and superlative. The comparative form is used
badly).
when describing two items. There are two ways to
____________________________________ create the comparative form:
12. Take off (them, those) wet shoes. ■ Add -er to the modifier if it is a short word of
one or two syllables.
____________________________________ ■ Use the word more or the word less before the
modifier if it is a longer word with more than
13. When there is ice on the road, remember to go two syllables.
(slow, slowly).
If you are comparing more than two items,
____________________________________ use the superlative form. Like the comparative form,
the superlative form is created in two ways:
14. The kiwi fruit did not taste (good, well).
■ Add -est to the modifier if it is a short word of
____________________________________
one or two syllables.
■ Use the word most or least before the modifier
if it is a longer word with more than two
syllables.
103
Examples are provided in the table below.
MODIFIER COMPARATIVE SUPERLATIVE
shiny shinier shiniest
funny funnier funniest
strong stronger strongest
intelligent more (or less) intelligent most (or least) intelligent
accurately more (or less) accurately most (or least) accurately
incredible more (or less) incredible most (or least) incredible
If these rules held true all the time, then the these rules. Some modifiers change form completely.
comparative form and the superlative form would be Examples are provided in the table below.
easy to master. However, there are exceptions to
MODIFIER COMPARATIVE SUPERLATIVE
good better best
well better best
many more most
much more most
bad worse worst
little less or lesser least
far farther or further farthest or furthest
Examples Stevenson High School is the best high school in

Air freight is a better way to ship than on the the Bronx. (comparing more than two high
ground. (comparing two ways) schools)
Blue looks better than any other color we’ve seen.

(comparing two colors many times) Av o i d i n g D o u b l e
Comparisons
Grilling salmon is the best way to cook it. (compar-
ing more than one way) A double comparison occurs when a writer uses
more with a modifier containing the comparative
104
ending -er or most with a modifier containing the Edited Example

superlative ending -est. I can hardly hear you in this heavy rain.
Incorrect Example Incorrect Example

Julio is more sleepier than I am. The snow won’t barely cover the walkway.
Sleepier already implies more, so it is unneces-
sary. Edited Example
The snow will barely cover the walkway.
Edited Example
Julio is sleepier than I am.
Av o i d i n g I l l o g i c a l
Incorrect Example Comparisons
That song was the least likeliest Grammy winner I
have ever heard. Other or Else
Use the words other or else when making compar-
Edited Example isons between an individual member and the rest of
That song was the least likely Grammy winner I a group.
have ever heard.
Incorrect Example
Matthew is smarter than any man.
Av o i d i n g D o u b l e N e g a t i v e s In the above example, Matthew himself is a
man, so the comparison implies that Matthew is
When a negative word is added to a statement that smarter than himself.
is already negative, a double negative results. Double
negatives are not always obvious, like the use of Edited Example
not no. Matthew is smarter than any other man.
Incorrect Example Incorrect Example

There is not no room in the car. Lily is as talented as anyone in her violin class.
Incorrect Example Edited Example

The school doesn’t have no textbooks for Latin. Lily is as talented as anyone else in her violin class.
Remember, the contraction doesn’t is short for
does not. Clearly Stated Comparisons
To avoid confusing your reader, clearly state both
Often, double negatives occur when words parts of a comparison.
that function as negative words, like hardly or
barely, are used with other negative words. Example
I like her more than Mrs. Schnitzer.
Incorrect Example
I can’t hardly hear you in this heavy rain.
105
Edited Examples Example

I like her more than Mrs. Schnitzer does. To move across the country, Sofia leased just a car.
Instead of leasing a truck or a trailer, Sofia
I like her more than I like Mrs. Schnitzer. leased only a car.
M i s p l a c e d S i n g l e - Wo r d Misplaced Phrase Modifiers

Modifiers
Phrase modifiers (see Lesson 4) that describe nouns
The clearest way to use modifiers is to place them as and pronouns must also be placed as closely as pos-
closely as possible to the words they describe. A mis- sible to the words they describe.
placed modifier can confuse your reader..
Example
Example A child stood next to the car who was screaming
Evelyn only ate the fried rice. loudly.
This sentence is confusing because the modi- Was the car screaming loudly? Most likely it
fier is placed close to the verb ate. If the intended was the child who was screaming, so place the
meaning of the sentence is that Evelyn did not eat phrase modifier who was screaming loudly next to
any other dish, place the modifier closer to fried a child in the sentence.
rice.
Edited Example
Edited Example A child who was screaming loudly stood next to
Evelyn ate only the fried rice. the car.
Example Example
Peyton almost passed three classes. I found a bag in the ditch full of rare coins.
The sentence above implies that Peyton did Was the ditch full of rare coins? If not, move
not pass any of the three classes. the phrase modifier.

Peyton passed almost three classes. I found a bag full of rare coins in the ditch.
The sentence above implies that Peyton passed When proofreading your writing, check care-
two, almost three classes. The placement of the fully to make sure that the modifiers give your
modifier almost changed the meaning of the sen- sentences the correct meaning.
tence.
Exercise 3
Example Revise the following sentences to correct the mis-
To move across the country, Sofia just leased a car. placed modifiers. Write the corrected sentence on
The above sentence implies that Sofia did not the lines provided. Answers can be found at the end
buy or borrow a car, but leased one instead. of the lesson.
106
19. I ordered a sweater from a catalog for my Dangling Modifiers

mother that was too small.
Words, phrases, and clauses that begin a sentence
____________________________________
and are set off by commas are called dangling mod-
____________________________________ ifiers. They sometimes modify the wrong noun or
pronoun. To revise dangling modifiers, add a word
20. Taisha bought a hamburger last night that was so that it is more clear which noun or pronoun they
burnt. are modifying, or turn the phrase into a clause by
giving it a subject.
____________________________________
Incorrect Example
____________________________________ Studying for the test, many facts can be learned.
Are the facts studying for the test? Add a clear
21. My friends and I were told about dangerous subject for the dangling modifier to modify more
Halloween candy by the teacher. clearly.
____________________________________
Edited Example
____________________________________ Studying for the test, I can learn many facts.
22. Maxim nearly ran the mile in four minutes Incorrect Example
flat. To learn more, the school offers night classes.
The school wants to learn more? Turn the dan-
____________________________________ gling modifier into a clause by adding a subject.
____________________________________ Edited Example

For the students to learn more, the school offers
23. I only watched the first half of the game. night classes.
____________________________________
Exercise 4
Revise the following sentences to correct the dan-
24. I got a cut on my finger from a fire hydrant
gling modifiers. Write the corrected sentence on the
that is bleeding.
line provided. Answers can be found at the end of
____________________________________ the lesson.
____________________________________ 25. Reading the encyclopedia, many important

facts are learned.
____________________________________
____________________________________
107
Editing
Proofreading
Dr. Fatemah Bazzi

EVER THOUGHT THIS?
“I hear the word tense and I get
all tense. I don’t understand all
25
the terms.”
— Ken Hargreaves, Student
This chapter
• explains what verb tense is
• explains the present and past
tenses of verbs
• gives you a list of irregular
verbs
• gives you practice finding
Verb Tense and correcting verb errors
Using Verbs to Express Different Times
Understand What Verb Tense Is

TIP In the examples Verb tense tells when an action happened: in the past, in the present, or in
throughout this chapter, the future. Verbs change their form and use the helping verbs have, be, or will
subjects are underlined,
and verbs are double- to indicate different tenses.
underlined.
PRESENT TENSE Rick hikes every weekend.
PAST TENSE He hiked ten miles last weekend.
FUTURE TENSE He will hike again on Saturday.
LANGUAGE NOTE: Remember to include needed endings on present-tense

and past-tense verbs, even if they are not noticed in speech.
PRESENT TENSE Nate listens to his new iPod wherever he goes.
PAST TENSE Nate listened to his iPod while he walked the dog.
In the Real World, Why Is It Important to Use

the Correct Verb Tense?
TIP To find and correct SITUATION: Cal is a summer intern in the systems division of a large company.
problems with verbs, you He would like to get a part-time job there during the school year because he
need to be able to identify
subjects and verbs. For a is studying computer science and knows that the experience would help him
review, see Chapter 21. get a job after graduation. He sends this e-mail to his supervisor.
380
Practice Using Correct Verbs 381
I have work hard since coming to Technotron and learn many new
things. I enjoy learning about systems analysis and know that it help me
in the future. Mr. Joseph tell me he like my work and that I shown good
motivation and teamwork. I been working part-time while in school and
would like to continue my work here beyond the summer. I would like
an opportunity to discuss this with you and hope that you considers me.
Sincerely,
Cal Troppo
STUDENT VOICES
KAREN UPRIGHT’S RESPONSE: Karen Upright,

systems manager, read Cal’s e-mail, and
made the following comments:
I would probably not hire him because

of the many errors in his writing. While he is
in school, he should take a writing course
and learn more about using correct verbs
and verb tenses. Otherwise, his writing will
be a barrier to his employment, not just at
Procter & Gamble, but anywhere.
(See Karen’s PROFILE OF SUCCESS on p. 145.)
Using verbs incorrectly is an error that people notice.
Practice Using Correct Verbs

This section will teach you about verb tenses and give you practice with
using them. The best way to learn how to use the various verb tenses cor-
rectly, however, is to read, write, and speak them as often as possible.
PRACTICE 1 Identifying Verb Errors
Find and underline the eight verb errors in Cal’s e-mail above.
Regular Verbs
Most verbs in English are regular verbs that follow standard rules about
what endings to use to express time.
382 Chapter 25 • Verb Tense
Present-Tense Endings: -s and No Ending

The present tense is used for actions that are happening at the same time
that they are being written about (the present) and for things that happen
all the time. Present-tense, regular verbs either end in -s or have no ending
added.
-S ENDING NO ENDING
jumps jump
walks walk
lives live
Use the -s ending when the subject is he, she, it, or the name of one
person or thing. Use no ending for all other subjects.
Regular Verbs in the Present Tense

SINGULAR PLURAL
TIP For more about making First person I jump. We jump.

verbs match subjects, see
Chapter 24. Second person You jump. You jump.
Third person She (he, it) jumps. They jump.
The child jumps. The children jump.
Do not confuse the simple present tense with the present progres-
sive, which is used with a form of the helping verb be to describe actions
that are in progress right now.
SIMPLE PRESENT I eat a banana every day.

PRESENT PROGRESSIVE I am eating a banana.
LANGUAGE NOTE: Some languages do not use the progressive tense. If you
have trouble using the present progressive, see Chapter 34.
PRACTICE 2 Using Present-Tense Regular Verbs Correctly
TIP For more practices on verb In each of the following sentences, first underline the subject, and then circle the
problems, visit Exercise Central correct verb form.
at bedfordstmartins.com/
realwriting. EXAMPLE: I (tries / try) to keep to my budget.
1. My classes (requires / require) much of my time these days.

2. In addition to attending school, I (works / work) twenty hours a week in
the college library.
3. The other employees (agrees / agree) that the work atmosphere is

pleasant.
4. Sometimes, we even (manages / manage) to do homework at the library.
5. The job (pays / pay) a fairly low wage, however.
6. My roommate (helps / help) with the rent on the apartment.
7. Because he is not in school, he often (wonders / wonder) how I get by.
8. I (uses / use) my bicycle to get everywhere I need to go.
9. The bicycle (allows / allow) me to stay in shape both physically and
financially.
10. I know that I will not be in school forever, so for now, life on a budget
(satisfies / satisfy) me.
One Regular Past-Tense Ending: -ed

The past tense is used for actions that have already happened. An -ed end-
ing is needed on all regular verbs in the past tense.
PRESENT TENSE PAST TENSE
First person I avoid her. I avoided her. TIP If a verb already ends in -e,
just add -d: dance/danced. If
Second person You help me. You helped me. a verb ends in -y, usually the
-y changes to -i when -ed is
Third person He walks fast. He walked fast.
added: spy/spied; try/tried.
PRACTICE 3 Using the Past Tense of Regular Verbs Correctly
In each of the following sentences, fill in the correct past-tense forms of the verbs
in parentheses.
(1) Last winter, I (display) the clear signs of a

cold. (2) I (sneeze) often, and I
(develop) a sore throat. (3) The congestion in my nose and throat
(annoy) me, and it (seem) that
blowing my nose was useless. (4) However, I (visit)
with my friends and (attend ) classes at college.
(5) I (assume) that I could not give anyone else my
cold once I showed the symptoms. (6) Unfortunately, many people
( join) me in my misery because of my ignorance.
(7) Later, I (learn) that I (remain)
contagious for several days after I first showed symptoms. (8) My
doctor (explain) to me that I (start)

spreading my cold about one day after I became infected with it.
(9) However, after my symptoms (disappear), I
( pass) on my cold to others for up to three days more.
(10) I (want) to apologize to everyone I had infected,
but I also (realize) that others had given me their
colds as well.
One Regular Past-Participle Ending: -ed

The past participle is a verb that is used with a helping verb, such as have
or be. For all regular verbs, the past-participle form is the same as the past-
tense form: It uses an -ed ending. (To learn about when past participles are
used, see pp. 392–97.)
PAST TENSE PAST PARTICIPLE
My kids watched cartoons. They have watched cartoons before.

George visited his cousins. He has visited them every year.
PRACTICE 4 Using the Past Participle of Regular Verbs Correctly
In each of the following sentences, underline the helping verb (a form of have),
and fill in the correct form of the verb in parentheses.
EXAMPLE: Because of pressure to keep up with others, families have

started (start) to give fancier and fancier birth-
day parties.
1. We have all (receive) invitations to simple birthday par-

ties where children played games and had cake, but those days are gone.
2. Kids’ birthday parties have (turn) into complicated
and expensive events.
3. Price tags for some of these parties have (climb) to
$1,000 or more.
4. By the time she had finished planning her daughter’s birthday, one
mother had (devote) hundreds of dollars to the event.
5. She discovered that she had (hand ) out $50 for a
clubhouse rental, $200 for a cotton-candy maker, and $300 for an actor
dressed as the Little Mermaid.
6. The money spent on gifts has (increase) as well.
7. At the end of each year, many parents find that they have
( purchase) an average of twenty gifts costing $20
each — $400 total.
8. However, some families have (decide) to go against the
trend.
9. My best friend has (save) money and effort by having
small birthday parties for her son.
10. The savings have (reach) $500, and she is putting the
money toward his college education.
Irregular Verbs
Irregular verbs do not follow the simple rules of regular verbs, which have
just two present-tense endings (-s or -es) and two past-tense endings (-d or
-ed). Irregular verbs show past tense with a change in spelling, although
some irregular verbs, such as cost, hit, and put, do not change their spelling.
The most common irregular verbs are be and have (see p. 388). As you write
and edit, use the following chart to make sure you use the correct form of
irregular verbs.
Irregular Verbs
PAST PARTICIPLE
PRESENT TENSE PAST TENSE (USED WITH HELPING VERB)
be (am /are /is) was /were been

become became become
begin began begun
bite bit bitten
blow blew blown
break broke broken
bring brought brought
build built built
buy bought bought
catch caught caught
choose chose chosen
come came come
cost cost cost
(continued)
PAST PARTICIPLE
dive dived, dove dived

do did done
draw drew drawn
drink drank drunk
drive drove driven
eat ate eaten
fall fell fallen
feed fed fed
feel felt felt
fight fought fought
find found found
fly flew flown
forget forgot forgotten
get got gotten
give gave given
go went gone
grow grew grown
have/has had had
hear heard heard
hide hid hidden
hit hit hit
hold held held
hurt hurt hurt
keep kept kept
know knew known
lay laid laid
lead led led
leave left left
let let let
lie lay lain
light lit lit
lose lost lost
PAST PARTICIPLE
make made made

mean meant meant
meet met met
pay paid paid
put put put
quit quit quit
read read read
ride rode ridden
ring rang rung
rise rose risen
run ran run
say said said
see saw seen
seek sought sought
sell sold sold
send sent sent
shake shook shaken
show showed shown
shrink shrank shrunk
shut shut shut
sing sang sung
sink sank sunk
sit sat sat
sleep slept slept
speak spoke spoken
spend spent spent
stand stood stood
steal stole stolen
stick stuck stuck
sting stung stung
strike struck struck, stricken
swim swam swum
(continued)
PAST PARTICIPLE
take took taken

teach taught taught
tear tore torn
tell told told
think thought thought
throw threw thrown
understand understood understood
wake woke woken
wear wore worn
win won won
write wrote written
Present Tense of Be and Have

The present tense of the verbs be and have is very irregular, as shown in the
chart.
Present Tense of Be and Have

BE HAVE
I am we are I have we have

you are you are you have you have
he, she, it is they are he, she, it has they have
the editor is the editors are
Beth is Beth and Christina are
PRACTICE 5 Using Be and Have in the Present Tense
In each of the following sentences, fill in the correct form of the verb indicated in
parentheses.
EXAMPLE: Because of my university’s internship program, I am
(be) able to receive academic credit for my summer job.

1. I (have) a job lined up with a company that provides

private security to businesses and residential developments.
2. The company (have) a good record of keeping its
clients safe from crime.
3. The company (be) part of a fast-growing industry.
4. Many people no longer (have) faith in the ability of
the police to protect them.
5. People with lots of money (be) willing to pay for their
own protection.
6. Concern about crime (be) especially noticeable in
so-called gated communities.
7. In these private residential areas, no one (have) the
right to enter without permission.
8. If you (be) a visitor, you must obtain a special pass.
9. Once you (have) the pass, you show it to the security
guard when you reach the gate.
10. In a gated community, the residents (be) likely to
appreciate the security.
Past Tense of Be
The past tense of the verb be is tricky because it has two different forms: was
and were.
Past Tense of Be
SINGULAR PLURAL
First person I was we were

Second person you were you were
Third person she, he, it was they were
the student was the students were
PRACTICE 6 Using Be in the Past Tense
In the paragraph that follows, fill in each blank with the correct past tense of the
verb be.
EXAMPLE: During college, my sister was excited about a

big decision she had made.
(1) My sister always afraid of visits to the doctor.

(2) Therefore, my parents and I surprised when she
announced that she wanted to become a doctor herself. (3) We thought
that medicine a strange choice for her. (4) “Since you
a little girl, you have disliked doctors,” I reminded
her. (5) I sure she would quickly change her mind.
(6) She admitted that she still afraid, but she hoped
that understanding medicine would help her overcome her fears. (7) Her
premedical courses in college difficult, but finally she
was accepted into medical school. (8) We very proud
of her that day, and we knew that she would be a great doctor.
PRACTICE 7 Using Irregular Verbs in the Past Tense
In each of the following sentences, fill in the past tense of the irregular verb in pa-
rentheses. If you do not know the answer, find the word in the chart of irregular
verb forms on pages 385–88.
EXAMPLE: It took (take) many years for baseball players

in the Negro Leagues to get recognized for their abilities.
1. The Negro Leagues (begin) in 1920, founded by

pitcher Andrew “Rube” Foster.
2. Segregation (make) it impossible for black players to
play on the all-white major league teams at that time.
3. The Negro Leagues (give) black athletes the opportu-
nity to play professional baseball.
4. Some Negro League players (become) legendary.
5. People across the country (know) the name of Satchel
Paige, the pitcher for the Kansas City Monarchs.
6. The Kansas City Monarchs’ infielder, Jackie Robinson,
(lay) the groundwork for all future black baseball players.
7. Robinson (leave) the Negro Leagues in 1947 to

become the first black player to join a major league team, the Brooklyn
Dodgers.
8. Other Negro League players (hit) home runs and
(steal ) bases but did not become famous.
9. The Negro Leagues (shut) down in 1960.
10. Supporters (build ) the Negro Leagues Baseball
Museum in Kansas City, Missouri.
PRACTICE 8 Using Irregular Verbs in the Past Tense
In the following paragraph, replace any incorrect present-tense verbs with the
correct past tense of the verb.
(1) In 1900, my great-grandfather grows wheat and raised a few

cattle on his farm in Wyoming. (2) When my grandmother and her
brothers were young, they go to the fields every day to help their father.
(3) The family does not have much money, and they hoped for good
weather every year. (4) Droughts and damaging storms often cost them
a lot. (5) One year, high winds blow down the barn, and hailstones break
their windows. (6) Another year, very little rain falls, and they almost
lose the farm. (7) Somehow, they keep going in spite of their difficulties.
(8) Their life was hard, but the whole family understands that the
rewards of owning their own land were worthwhile.
For irregular verbs, the past participle is often different from the past
tense.
PAST TENSE PAST PARTICIPLE
REGULAR VERB I walked home. I have walked home before.

IRREGULAR VERB I drove home. I have driven home before.
It is difficult to predict how irregular verbs form the past participle.

Until you are familiar with them, find them in the chart on pages 385–88.
PRACTICE 9 Using the Past Participle of Irregular Verbs
In each of the following sentences, fill in the correct helping verb (a form of have)
and the correct past-participle form of the verb in parentheses. If you do not
know the correct form, find the word in the chart on pages 385–88.
EXAMPLE: For some time, Rob Wrubel and George Lichter

had known (know) that their stressful jobs were
damaging their health.
1. They were top executives of an Internet search engine company, and

their lives (become) full of work and travel.
2. For a long time, their bodies (be) telling them that
they were paying a high price for their busy schedules.
3. Lichter (begin) to feel pain in his back and legs, and
Wrubel had gained a lot of weight and had high blood pressure.
4. By the time the two executives met, each of them
(find) relief in practicing yoga.
5. Late in 2001, the two men discussed new business opportunities, saying
how they ( grow) tired of stressful work.
6. By this time, they (leave) their companies.
7. Now, they ( put) their business skills and passion for
yoga to work in creating a new corporation.
8. They (build ) a small chain of yoga studios and hope
to open locations nationwide.
9. For several years now, their company, Yoga Works,
(run) fourteen studios in California and New York.
10. Wrubel and Lichter (show) that hard work and a little
imagination can turn a negative situation into a positive one.
Past Participles
A past participle, by itself, cannot be the main verb of a sentence. But when
a past participle is combined with another verb, called a helping verb, it can
be used to make the present perfect tense and the past perfect tense.
Have /Has + Past participle = Present perfect tense
The present perfect tense is used for an action that began in the past
and either continues into the present or was completed at some unknown
time in the past.
Present tense of Past participle
have (helping verb)
PRESENT PERFECT TENSE My car has stalled several times recently.

[This sentence says the stalling began in the past but
may continue into the present.]
PAST TENSE My car stalled.

[This sentence says that the car stalled once and that it’s over.]
Past Present (now) Future

⎭
⎪
⎪
⎪
⎪
⎪
⎬
⎪
⎫
Present Perfect
My car stalled. My car has stalled. . . .
Present Perfect Tense

SINGULAR PLURAL
First person I have laughed. We have laughed.

Second person You have laughed. You have laughed.
Third person She /he /it has laughed. They have laughed.
The baby has laughed. The babies have laughed.
LANGUAGE NOTE: Be careful not to leave out have when it is needed for the
present perfect. Time-signal words like since and for may mean that the
present perfect is required.
INCORRECT I drive since 1985. We wait for two hours.
CORRECT I have driven since 1985. We have waited for two hours.
PRACTICE 10 Using the Present Perfect Tense
In each of the following sentences, circle the correct verb tense.
EXAMPLE: For many years now, the laws of most states

(allowed / have allowed) only doctors to write prescriptions
for patients.
1. In the past few years, a number of states (began / have begun) to allow
physician assistants and nurse practitioners to write prescriptions.
2. Before the changes in the laws, physician assistants and nurse practi-
tioners (saw / have seen) patients with common illnesses.
3. However, if the patients (needed / have needed) a prescription, a doctor
had to write it.
4. Many doctors (said / have said) that the changes are a good idea.
5. Physician assistants and nurse practitioners (spent / have spent) years in

training by the time they get their licenses.
6. Since the new laws took effect, physician assistants and nurse practi-
tioners (wrote / have written) many common prescriptions.
7. Recently, some people (expressed / have expressed) concern that physi-
cian assistants and nurse practitioners might make mistakes in writing
prescriptions.
8. However, the possibility of a mistake in a prescription (always existed /
has always existed).
9. For the past several years, pharmacists (kept / have kept) track of pre-
scription errors.
10. Doctors made all but one of the mistakes they (found / have found) so far.
Had + Past participle = Past perfect tense
Use had plus the past participle to make the past perfect tense. The
past perfect tense is used for an action that began in the past and ended be-
fore some other past action.
Had (helping verb) Past participle
PAST PERFECT TENSE My car had stalled several times before I called the
mechanic.
[This sentence says that both the stalling and calling the
mechanic happened in the past, but the stalling happened
before the calling.]
Past Present (now) Future
car mechanic
stalled called
PRACTICE 11 Using the Past Perfect Tense
In each of the following sentences, circle the correct verb tense.
EXAMPLE: When musician Ray Charles was born in September 1930,

the Depression already (caused / had caused) many
Americans to lose hope.
1. His family (was / had been) poor even before the Depression started.
2. Until he was four years old, Ray (enjoyed / had enjoyed) normal vision.
3. However, by the time he was seven, he (became / had become) totally

blind.
4. When he (tripped / had tripped) over furniture and asked for his
mother’s help, often she just watched him and remained silent.
5. In this way, she (encouraged / had encouraged) him to learn how to help
himself get back up.
6. She (come/ had come) to recognize how important it was for Ray to find
his way on his own.
7. Ray later (spent / had spent) several years in Florida’s state school for
the deaf and blind.
8. By the time he left the school, he (developed / had developed) his
unusual gift for playing, composing, and arranging music.
9. By the time he became a star, Ray Charles (refined / had refined) his
unique musical style.
10. By the time of his death in 2004, Charles understood that he (inspired /
had inspired) many people.
Be + Past participle = Passive voice
A sentence that is written in the passive voice has a subject that does
not perform an action. Instead, the subject is acted upon. To create the pas-
sive voice, combine a form of the verb be with a past participle.
Form of be Past participle

(helping verb)
PASSIVE The newspaper was thrown onto the porch.

[The subject, newspaper, did not throw itself onto the porch. Some
unidentified person threw the newspaper.]
Most sentences should be written in the active voice, which means

that the subject performs the action.
ACTIVE The delivery person threw the newspaper onto the porch.
[The subject, delivery person, performed the action: He or she
threw the newspaper.]
Use the passive voice when no one person performed the action, when
you do not know who performed the action, or when you want to emphasize
the receiver of the action. When you know who performed the action, it is
usually preferable to identify the actor.
ACTIVE The bandleader chose Kelly to do a solo.

PASSIVE Kelly was chosen to do a solo.
[If you wanted to emphasize Kelly’s being chosen rather than the
bandleader’s choice, you might decide to use the passive voice.]
Finding and Fixing Verb-Tense Errors:

Changing from Active to Passive Voice
Find
He sent the payment over two weeks ago.
1. Underline the subject, and double-underline the verb.

2. Ask: What word in the sentence is receiving the action? Payment.
3. Cross out the subject.
Fix
The payment
^
4. Make the word that is receiving the action the subject by moving it to the be-
ginning of the sentence.
The payment was
^
5. Add the correct form of the verb be in front of the main verb.
The payment was by him
^ ^
6. You can either delete the performer of the action or put this information after
the verb and the word by.
NOTE: If the original sentence uses a form of have followed by a past participle,
form the passive voice by using a form of have + been + the past participle:
The payment been .
He has sent the payment.
^ ^ ^
LANGUAGE NOTE: Avoid confusing the passive voice and the present perfect
tense, which only uses been in sentences with be as the main verb.
INCORRECT My aunt and uncle have been trained the dogs.
CORRECT My aunt and uncle have trained the dogs.
(present perfect)
CORRECT The dogs have been trained by my aunt and uncle.
(passive)
PRACTICE 12 Changing the Passive Voice to the Active Voice
Rewrite the following sentences, changing them from the passive voice to the
active voice.
The legislature cut funding
EXAMPLE: Funding for animal shelters.was cut by the legislature.
^ ^
1. Some shelters were going to be closed by the owners.
2. What would become of the animals was unknown.
3. A campaign was started by animal lovers.
4. Interviews were given by the owners and volunteers at shelters.
5. The animals were filmed by news teams.
6. The stories were aired on all the local television stations.
7. A protest was staged by animal lovers across the state.
8. Fund-raisers of all sorts were held.
9. Some funds were restored by the legislature.
10. Enough money was raised to keep the shelters open.
Consistency of Verb Tense

Consistency of verb tense means that all actions in a sentence that hap-
pen (or happened) at the same time are in the same tense. If all of the ac-
tions happen in the present or happen all the time, use the present for all
verbs in the sentence. If all of the actions happened in the past, use the past
tense for all verbs.
As you edit your writing, make sure that whenever a verb tense changes,
it is because the action the verb describes happened at a different time.
Otherwise, the shift in tenses causes an inconsistency.
Past tense Present tense
INCONSISTENT The movie started just as we take our seats.

[The actions both happened at the same time, but started is in the
past tense, and take is in the present tense.]
Present tense Present tense
CONSISTENT, The movie starts just as we take our seats.

PRESENT TENSE
[The actions and verb tenses are both in the present.]
Past tense Past tense
CONSISTENT, The movie started just as we took our seats.

PAST TENSE
[The actions started and took both happened in the past, and both
are in the past tense.]
PRACTICE 13 Using Consistent Verb Tense
In each of the following sentences, double-underline the verbs, and correct any
unnecessary shifts in verb tense. Write the correct form of the verb in the blank
space provided.
EXAMPLE: have Although some people dream of having

their picture taken by a famous photographer, not many
had the chance.
1. Now, special stores in malls take magazine-quality

photographs of anyone who wanted one.
2. The founder of one business got the idea when she
hear friends complaining about how bad they looked in family
photographs.
3. They feel they were always blinking or making a
funny face.
4. She decide to open a business to take studio-style
photographs that did not cost a lot of money.
5. Her first store included special lighting and offers
different sets, such as colored backgrounds and outdoor scenes.
TIP For answers to odd- 6. Now, her stores even have makeup studios for people
numbered practice items, see
pp. AK-1–10 at the back of the who wanted a special look for their pictures.
book.
7. Some stores even provide consultants who advised
customers on the best colors to wear and poses to take.
8. These locations kept extra clothing on hand in case a
customer chooses to wear a more flattering color.
9. All of the stores use professional photographers who
liked the high volume of business they get at mall studios.
10. A set of ten headshots from a mall studio costs about
$50, while a typical professional photographer charged hundreds of
dollars for this type of package.
Edit for Verb Problems 399
Edit for Verb Problems

Use the chart on page 403, Finding and Fixing Verb-Tense Errors, to help
you complete the practices in this section and edit your own writing.
PRACTICE 14 Correcting Various Verb Problems
In the following sentences, find and correct any verb problems.

is
EXAMPLE: Sheena be tired of the tattoo on her left shoulder.
^
1. Many of Sheena’s friends was getting tattoos ten years ago.
2. Sheena had never consider a tattoo until several of her friends got them.
3. Sheena was twenty-two when she goes to the tattoo parlor.
4. After looking at many designs, she choose a purple rose, which she gave
to the tattoo artist.
5. Her sister liked the tattoo, but her mother faints.
6. Many people who now reached their thirties want to get rid of their old
tattoos.
7. Dermatologists have saw the development of a new trend toward tattoo
removal.
8. A few years ago, when a person decides to have a tattoo removed,
doctors had to cut out the design.
9. That technique leaved scars.
10. Today, doctors using laser light to break up the ink molecules in the skin.
11. Six months ago, Sheena start to have treatments to remove her tattoo.
12. The procedure hurted every time she saw the doctor, but she hoped it
would be worth the pain.
PRACTICE 15 Editing Paragraphs for Correct Verbs
Find and correct seven problems with verb tense in the following paragraphs.
(1) When you thought about a farm, you probably imagine acres of
cornfields and stalls full of noisy animals. (2) Although that is an under-
standable vision, it may not be a particularly accurate one in the near
future. (3) Some experts believes that farms of the future will be found
inside the top floors of a city’s tallest skyscrapers. (4) This concept have
been referred to as “vertical gardening.”
(5) Indoor city gardening not only would help make places become
more self-sufficient but also could provide new uses for the variety of
abandoned buildings that are finded scattered throughout large cities.
(6) Experts has suggested that the water used for these small farms and
gardens could be recycled from indoor fish ponds. (7) False sunlight
could be created through the use of artificial lights. (8) Thermostats
could control the indoor temperatures.
(9) Although this technology is not currently available, architects has
been toying with possible designs. (10) In the future, farms will most
likely include everything from solar panels and windmills to generators
that run on biofuels. (11) It is about five to ten years before all of these
ideas will be commonplace.
PRACTICE 16 Editing Verb Problems and Using Formal English
Your sister has a bad case of laryngitis and wants to bring a note about her con-
dition to her doctor. Help her by correcting the verb problems in the note. Then,
edit the informal English.
(1) What’s up, Doc Kerrigan?

(2) Your assistant ask me to tell you about my symptoms, so I describe
them as well as I can. (3) I becomed sick about a day ago. (4) Now, my
throat hurt every time I swallowed, and I cannot speak. (5) Also, I has a
high fever, and I be wicked tired. (6) I do not think I has ever feeled so
crappy before. (7) I looked forward to seeing you during my appointment.
(8) Thanks mucho,
Corrine Evans
PRACTICE 17 Editing Cal’s E-Mail
Look back at Cal’s e-mail on page 381. You may have already underlined the
eight verb errors; if not, do so now. Next, using what you have learned in this
chapter, correct each error.
PRACTICE 18 Editing Your Own Writing for Verb Tense
Edit verbs in a piece of your own writing — a paper you are working on for this
class, a paper you have already finished, a paper for another course, or a recent
piece of writing from your work or everyday life. Use the chart on page 403 to
help you.
Chapter Test 401
Chapter Review
1. Verb indicates when the action in a sentence happens LEARNING JOURNAL If you
found verb errors in your writ-
(past, present, or future). ing, what kind were they? What
is the main thing you have
2. What are the two present-tense endings for regular verbs? learned about verb tense that
you will use? What is one thing
3. How do regular verbs in the past tense end? that remains unclear?
4. The past participle is used with a verb.

5. Verbs that do not follow the regular pattern for verbs are called
.
6. An action that started in the past but might continue into the present
uses the .
7. An action that happened in the past before something else that happened
in the past uses the .
8. You should usually avoid using the voice, which has a
subject that performs no action but is acted upon.
9. Verb tenses are consistent when actions that happen at the same
are in the same .
Chapter Test
Circle the correct choice for each of the following items. Use the Finding and TIP For advice on taking tests,
Fixing Verb-Tense Errors chart on page 403 and the Verb Reference charts on see Appendix A.
pages 404–07.

It has became difficult to tell whether Trisha is tired of her work or

A B
tired of her boss.
C
a. become c. tiring
b. be d. No change is necessary.

a. By the time we arrived, Michelle already gave her recital.
b. By the time we arrived, Michelle had already given her recital.
c. By the time we arrived, Michelle has already given her recital.

I likes Manuel’s new car, but I wish he wouldn’t park it in my space

A B
when he comes home from work.
C
a. like c. came
b. wishing d. No change is necessary.

a. Patrick has such a bad memory that he has to write down everything
he is supposed to do.
b. Patrick had such a bad memory that he has to write down everything
he is supposed to do.
c. Patrick had such a bad memory that he having to write down every-
thing he is supposed to do.
5. Choose the correct word(s) to fill in the blank.
For many years, Steven the manual typewriter

that his grandfather had given to him.
a. keeped b. kept c. was keeping

a. I have be cutting back on the amount of coffee I drink.
b. I has been cutting back on the amount of coffee I drink.
c. I have been cutting back on the amount of coffee I drink.
We had intended to visit Marina’s parents while we

in town, but we did not have time.
a. was b. had were c. were
Each family a dish and brought it to our knitting

club’s annual dinner.
a. prepares b. prepared c. have prepared

Chapter Test 403

The boy jumped out of the way just before the car is about to hit him.
A B C
a. jumping c. hitted
b. was d. No change is necessary.
Who has the train to New York before?
a. taken b. take c. taked
Finding and Fixing Verb-Tense Errors
Regular verbs follow Irregular verbs do not

All verbs must be
standard rules to form follow standard rules
consistent in tense
different tenses to form different tenses
(see p. 397).
(see p. 381). (see p. 385).
For the For the For the past All verbs

For the For the
present present tense and that describe
past past
tense, tense of past parti- actions
tense, participle,
use the be and have, ciple of happening
use the use the
verb with an memorize irregular at the same
verb verb
-s ending the forms or verbs, consult time should
with an with an
or with consult the the chart be in the
-ed ending -ed ending
no ending chart on on pages same tense
(see p. 383). (see p. 384).
(see p. 382). page 388. 385–88. (see p. 397).
Use have or has plus Use had plus the Use a form of be
the past participle past participle to plus the past
to form the present form the past participle to form
perfect tense perfect tense the passive voice
(see p. 393). (see p. 394). (see p. 395).
Make sure that anytime

a verb tense changes, it is
because the action the
verb describes happened
at a different time
(see p. 397).
THE SIMPLE TENSES

TENSE
Simple Present STATEMENTS

In the third-person singular, regular verbs end in -s or -es.
TIMELINE: situations that exist
always (now, in the past, and in I / you like pizza. We like pizza.
the future)
She / he likes pizza. They like pizza.
Present
Past (now) Future
NEGATIVES
present of DO + not + base verb
I like pizza. I / you do not like pizza. We do not like pizza.
She / he does not like pizza. They do not like pizza.
QUESTIONS
present of DO + subject + base verb
Do I / you like pizza? Do we like pizza?
Does she / he like pizza? Do they like pizza?
Simple Past STATEMENTS
TIMELINE:situations that began

base verb + -d or -ed (regular verbs)
and ended at a specific time in
the past I / you worked last night. We worked last night.
Present She / he worked last night. They worked last night.
Past (now) Future
NEGATIVES
past of DO (did) + not + base verb

I worked
last night. I / you did not work last night. We did not work last night.
She / he did not work last night. They did not work last night.
QUESTIONS
past of DO (did) + subject + base verb
Did I / you work last night? Did we work last night?
Did she / he work last night? Did they work last night?
The Simple Tenses 405
TENSE
Simple Future STATEMENTS
TIMELINE: situations that will begin

will + base verb
in the future
Present Maybe I / you will work tomorrow.
Past (now) Future
Maybe she / he will work tomorrow.
Maybe we / you / they will work tomorrow.
I will work NEGATIVES

tomorrow.
will + not + base verb
Maybe I / you will not work tomorrow.
QUESTIONS
will + subject + base verb
Will I / you work tomorrow?
Will she / he work tomorrow?
Will we / you / they work tomorrow?

THE PERFECT TENSES

TENSE
Present Perfect STATEMENTS
TIMELINE: a situation that began

present of HAVE + past participle of base verb
in the past and either is still
happening or ended at an un- I / you have attended every class.
known time in the past
She / he has attended every class.
Present
Past (now) Future We have attended every class.
They have attended every class.
I have attended NEGATIVES
every class.
present of HAVE + not + past participle of base verb
I / you have not attended every class.
She / he has not attended every class.
We have not attended every class.
They have not attended every class.
QUESTIONS
present of HAVE + subject + past participle of base verb
Have I / you attended every class?
Has she / he attended every class?
Have we attended every class?
Have they attended every class?
Past Perfect STATEMENTS
TIMELINE: a situation that began

past of HAVE (had) + past participle of base verb
and ended before some other past
situation occurred I / you had left before Gil arrived.
Present She / he had left before Gil arrived.
Past (now) Future
We had left before Gil arrived.
They had left before Gil arrived.
(somebody) Gil’s
left arrival
The Perfect Tenses 407
TENSE
Past Perfect NEGATIVES
past of HAVE (had) + not + past participle of base verb
Usually used for “if ” situations
If you had not left, you would have seen him.
If she / he had not left, she / he would have seen him.
If we had not left, we would have seen him.
If they had not left, they would have seen him.
QUESTIONS
past of HAVE (had) + subject + past participle of base verb
Had I / you left before Gil arrived? Had we left before Gil arrived?
Had she / he left before Gil arrived? Had they left before Gil arrived?
Future Perfect STATEMENTS
TIMELINE: a situation that will be

will have + past participle of base verb
completed in the future before
another future situation I / you will have graduated before I / you move.
Present She / he will have graduated before you move.
Past (now) Future
We will have graduated before you move.
They will have graduated before you move.
graduation
moving NEGATIVES
will not have + past participle of base verb
I / you will not have graduated before I / you move.
She / he will not have graduated before you move.
We will not have graduated before you move.
They will not have graduated before you move.
QUESTIONS
will + subject + will + past participle of base verb
Will I / you have graduated before I / you move?
Will she / he have graduated before you move?
Will we have graduated before you move?
Will they have graduated before you move?

Inconsistent tenses
Consistency of tenses is one of the most common problems ESL students face. The tense
form used in a sentence indicates the time of the action mentioned in the sentence. English
tenses are a bit complex. For example, we do not always use future tense forms to talk about
the future. In the same way, sometimes we use present tenses to talk about the past. This
can confuse an ESL student. Sometimes it doesn’t really matter which tense you use. For
example, if you are writing a story, you can use either present tense or past tense. In this
case, you just need to maintain consistency of tenses.
Mistakes in the use of tenses can be due to a variety of reasons. Sometimes students don’t
know how to construct certain tense forms. Sometimes they don’t know whether they should
use the present or past tense.
Here are some general guidelines
The simple past tense is common in story-telling. This tense is also used when we are telling
people about past events.
Once upon a time there lived a princess. She was very beautiful. One day the princess
decided to roam about the country.
Note that all verbs are in the past tense.
The present perfect tense is the most normal tense for giving news of recent events.
There has been an explosion near the castle.
Note that after using the present perfect tense to announce a piece of news, we usually
change to simple past or past continuous tenses to give the details.
There has been an explosion near the castle. Eye witnesses said that the bomb had
been placed in a car parked outside the castle. At least sixteen people died in the
explosion and scores of others were severely injured.
If you begin writing in the past, do not change to the present. In the same way, if you begin
writing in the present do not change to the past.
Fifty years before Jesus was born, Romans landed in Britain. They fought the Britons
and captured much of their land.
© www.englishpractice.com
Editing
Proofreading
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Then
After
Although
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of
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Dr. Fatemah Bazzi

L E S S O N
6 Using
Transitions
LESSON SUMMARY
The word “transition” means to pass from one to another. This lesson
will show you different ways to use transitional words and phrases to
unify a piece of writing.
I magine you are playing music at a dance party. Your goal is to keep the dance floor filled with happy
people. To do this, you must keep the beat and the energy going from one song to the next, because
people often decide to sit down when there is an awkward break between songs. If you make a smooth
transition, the dancing never stops.
When writing an essay, transitions are just as important. You are trying to keep your reader reading,
and that means making smooth transitions between words and ideas within sentences, between sentences,
and between paragraphs.
57
–U S I N G T R A N S I T I O N S –
Linking Expressions closely examine the transitions between sentences.

As always, it is helpful if your draft is double-spaced.
Linking expressions help your writing flow. Follow- First, draw a box around the last word of the first
ing is a list of words and phrases that serve as tran- sentence and the first word of the next sentence.
sitions. Identify the relationship that connects the sen-
tences. If the relationship is clear, then move on the
therefore furthermore next sentence. If the relationship is unclear, and you
consequently however cannot identify it, try adding a linking expression to
accordingly as a result serve as a transition.
an example of this similarly
finally besides Exercise 1
lastly nevertheless Revise the following sentences by writing a linking
also on the contrary expression on the line provided. Your answers will
meanwhile on the other hand vary depending on your word choice, but suggested
soon after all answers can be found at the end of the lesson.
in other words such
in addition likewise
1. We wanted to go to a movie, ______ the
then again as might be expected
theater was closed.
2. Joey’s car was full of gas, ______ we drove it

to the beach.
Tr a n s i t i o n s W i t h i n a
Sentence 3. The ballet did not impress the students.
______, the break dancers were a big hit.
Linking expressions can be used within a sentence
to connect two related clauses. 4. We visited Phoenix, Tucson, Albuquerque,
Santa Fe, and ______, Las Vegas.
Example
To plant similar trees, on the other hand, could 5. Some chili recipes do not include kidney
result in one disease wiping out all the trees on the beans. ______ would be the traditional West
block. Texas chili.
If used to connect two sentences, transition The purpose of using transitions between sen-
words will appear at the beginning of the second tences is to create unified paragraphs. Like the rungs
sentence. of a ladder, unified paragraphs allow the reader to
move one step at a time and to follow the main idea
Example to its conclusion.
Skateboarding is prohibited in certain public
areas. As a result, many skaters use designated
skating areas and are working hard to convince Tr a n s i t i o n s B e t w e e n
the city council to build more skate parks. Paragraphs
A strategy for revising your writing to clarify As discussed in Lesson 5, paragraphs are organized
and reinforce the connections between ideas is to in many ways. The same transitions—or linking
58
expressions—used to connect sentences can be used lively interest in me several months before there
to connect paragraphs, and will help clarify the rela- was any possibility of us becoming personally
tionship between ideas in paragraphs. acquainted, first, that I was destined to be unlucky
Checking to see that your transitions between in life; and secondly, that I was privileged to see
paragraphs are clear is similar to the method you ghosts and spirits; both these gifts inevitably
used when checking transitions between sentences. attaching, as they believed, to all unlucky infants
Place a box around the last sentence of a paragraph of either gender, born towards the small hours on
and the first sentence of the next paragraph. Iden- a Friday night.”
tify the relationship that connects the two ideas. If —David Copperfield
the relationship is clear and the transition is
smooth, then there is no need to revise. If the rela- Spatial Order
tionship is not clear and there is not a smooth tran- Transition words that show spatial order are beside,
sition, sentences within the paragraphs may need to in the middle, next to, to the right, on top of, in front
be rearranged, the paragraphs may need to be bet- of, behind, against, and beneath. Spatial order is
ter organized, or the transition between the para- helpful when describing a place or the setting of a
graphs may need to be revised. Transitions between story.
paragraphs are very important for maintaining
coherence. Example
Against the wall, there is a dresser. On top of the
Chronological Order dresser is where Brad keeps his spare change.
Chronological order is shown by using such transi-
tion words as first, second, finally, next, then, after- Example
ward, later, before, eventually, and in the future. There is a damp cave beneath the house. If you
enter the cave, take the fork to the right, or, as leg-
Example end has it, you might disturb the ancient spirits.
Before the employees arrive in the morning, the
building is empty. It is then that the janitor can Order of Importance
clean thoroughly. Transition words that show the order of importance
are more, less, most, least, most important, least
Example important, and more importantly.
First, it is necessary to collect sources about your
research topic. Second, you must put these sources Example
in order of importance. Finally, you must read the Yesterday was a beautiful, sunny day, but more
information and take notes. importantly, it was my birthday.
Chronological order is a common organiza- Comparison and Contrast

tional technique for writers of fiction, as you will see Transition words that show comparison and con-
in the next example. trast are likewise, however, similarly, in contrast, a
different kind, unlike this, and another difference.
Example
“In consideration of the day and hour of my birth, Example
it was declared by the nurse, and by some sage The book Of Mice and Men begins with George
women in the neighbourhood who had taken a and Lennie walking through the woods. In
59
contrast, the movie begins with a woman in a red Example

dress running through a field. One example of a Greek tragedy is Antigone.
Example Example
My mother and grandmother both taught pre- Most insects have very short life spans. For
school. I chose, however, to become an engineer. instance, the fruit fly can expect to complete its life
cycle in less than 48 hours.
Cause and Effect
Transition words used to show cause and effect are
therefore, as a result of, consequently, thus, one cause, Introducing Contradictions
one effect, another cause, and another effect.
When comparing and contrasting in a piece of writ-
Example ing, you often must introduce contradictions. They
Security officers guarded the gates of the airport. can be very effective tools for persuasion. Transition
As a result, traffic slowed considerably on the words that introduce contradictions are nonetheless,
highway. however, in spite of, otherwise, instead, and on the
contrary.
Example
The recipe calls for two tablespoons of butter, and, Example
consequently, the cookies will be thin and crisp. The storm continued to toss the ship and man-
aged to snap off the tip of the mast. In spite of this,
Classification they sailed on, desperate to reach Hawaii.
Transition words that show classification are help-
ful, especially in scientific writing where classifica- Example
tion is an important step in understanding the Growers have recently marketed prunes as dried
natural world. Transition words include another plums. Nonetheless, most people still refer to them
group, the first type, one kind, other sorts, other types, as prunes.
and other kinds.
Example Introducing Conclusions,

One type of tennis player, like John McEnroe, lets Summaries, or
his emotions show on the court. Another type of Generalizations
player stays calm throughout the match, whether
the calls are bothersome or not. Wrapping up your piece is a form of transition. As
you conclude your work, you need to lead your
reader to the end. Transition words for concluding
Introducing Examples are in conclusion, therefore, and as a result. Sum-
maries and generalizations can be effectively intro-
To introduce examples in your piece of writing, you duced using in summary or in general.
can use transition words such as for example, one
example, one kind, one type, one sort, and for
instance.
60
Example the second sentence with a transition word

Therefore, Cinco de Mayo is celebrated differently that shows comparison and contrast.)
in the United States than in Mexico.
____________________________________
Example
____________________________________
In general, the phenomenon of the Bermuda Tri-
angle is believed to be coincidental.
10. We kept adding water to the paint. It was too
thin to use. (Begin the second sentence with a
Exercise 2
transition word used for concluding.)
Revise the sentences below by following the direc-
tions in parentheses. Write the new sentences on the ____________________________________
lines. Suggested answers can be found at the end of
the lesson. ____________________________________
6. It rained all morning. We went to the park.

(Begin the second sentence with a transition P r o n o u n s a s L i n k i n g Wo r d s
word that introduces contradiction.)
Parts of a paragraph can be linked in other ways
____________________________________ besides using traditional transition words. Pro-
nouns link words and sentences when they refer to
____________________________________
a noun or another pronoun from a previous sen-
tence.
7. The company wants to hire experienced
employees. Those people with no experience
Example
need not apply. (Combine these sentences
John left work early to go to a doctor’s appoint-
using a cause and effect transition word.)
ment. He is getting his annual physical.
____________________________________
The pronouns he and his refer to the noun
____________________________________ John from the first sentence. Without the first sen-
tence, the reader would not know who he is. There-
8. Sylvia greeted all of her guests at the door. She fore, the sentences are linked together by a pronoun.
seated them at the dinner table. (Combine Pronouns can link entire pieces of writing
these sentences using a transition word that together. Make sure, however, that if you use pro-
shows chronological order.) nouns frequently in a piece of writing, they clearly
refer to their antecedents. A string of unclear or
____________________________________ ambiguous pronouns will confuse the reader.
____________________________________
N o u n s a s L i n k i n g Wo r d s
9. Bob Marley used Sly and Robbie for a rhythm
section. Peter Tosh recorded with Sly and
Robbie on at least one of his records. (Begin Nouns can serve as linking words when repeated
from one sentence to another.
61
L E S S O N
Avoiding
3 Awkward
Sentences
LESSON SUMMARY
This lesson deals with identifying and revising awkward sentences.
When sentences are so long that they are hard to follow or so short
that they sound choppy, they need thorough revision. Careful and
skillful revising techniques will give a piece of writing a natural rhythm
and flow.
T oo often, writers use poorly chosen, inappropriate, or unnecessary language that can confuse
a reader. Like a carpenter who has a tool for every task, writers should have words in their
writer’s toolbox that fit every task. Selecting the words and the order in which they appear takes
practice. In this chapter you will learn strategies for revising sentences that are awkward, carry on too long,
or are too short and choppy.
Wo r d s t h a t H a v e L i t t l e o r N o M e a n i n g
When we write, we sometimes take on the same habits we have when we speak. Words or phrases that have
little or no meaning fill space when we talk but have limited use in writing. Words such as kind of, actually,
in particular, really, certain, various, virtually, individual, basically, generally, given, and practically give our
brains a chance to collect our thoughts when speaking. When writing, we should have our thoughts already
collected because this helps convey ideas more efficiently.
33
–A V O I D I N G A W K W A R D S E N T E N C E S –

Procrastination actually makes certain people The football team made plans to concentrate on
really unsuccessful more than virtually any other the fundamentals of each position.
particular habit.
Some other common redundancies include
Edited Example whole entire, big fat, complete truth, terrible tragedy,
Procrastination makes people unsuccessful more pitch black, various different, true facts, free gift, and
than any other habit. final outcome.
Words also imply categories, so you can often
Example eliminate a word that names a category.
I am of the opinion that we should not prohibit
children from talking in the hallways entirely and Example
completely. The dinosaurs that were green colored were few in
number during that period in history.
Revised Example
We should allow children to talk in the hallways Edited Example
on occasion. There were few green dinosaurs during that
period.
Periods, such as the one in the sentence, are
Redundancy always periods in history.
Often, writing assignments require a minimum These doubled words often occur in phrases,
number of words. Because of this, it is tempting to and sometimes these phrases are clichés (Les-
use several words of description instead of one well- son 19).
chosen word with the same meaning. This redun-
dancy, however, makes sentences awkward and Example
interrupts the flow to a piece of writing. To write I hope you give this matter your full and complete
effectively, you must eliminate words that simply attention.
rephrase other words for no purpose.
Edited Example
Example I hope you give this matter your complete atten-
The football team made future plans to completely tion.
concentrate on the basic fundamentals of each
individual position. Some common doubled word phrases are pick
and choose, full and complete, hope and trust, any
Plans are always for the future; concentrating and all, true and accurate, each and every, basic and
implies complete focus; fundamental means basic; fundamental, hopes and desires, and first and fore-
and positions are individual. Therefore, the itali- most. Often it works best to eliminate both words,
cized words are unnecessary modifiers. but occasionally eliminating one of the two words
works best.
34
Negatives 1. Actually, a basic and fundamental part of

cooking is making sure you don’t have the
Changing negatives to affirmatives also eliminates wrong ingredients.
extra words. Look for sentences that use not and see
____________________________________
if you can rewrite the sentence to make it affirmative.
____________________________________
Example
NEGATIVE: She wore a sweater that was not dif- 2. Each and every student deserves a fair and
ferent than mine. equal chance to try out for intramural sports.
Edited Example ____________________________________

She wore the same sweater as mine.
____________________________________
Double negatives make your writing sound
more confusing. Some words are negative by defi- 3. First and foremost, the Board of Directors
nition, such as the verbs preclude, exclude, fail, reject, cannot make a decision without a consensus
avoid, deny, prohibit, and refuse and such preposi- of opinion.
tions (Lesson 4) as against or without. Using a com-
____________________________________
bination of these negative words will make your
point very difficult to understand. ____________________________________
Example ____________________________________
DOUBLE NEGATIVES: Without failing to refuse
denying an invitation, you have not avoided pre- 4. At an earlier time today, my sister told me she
cluding buying a gift. would pick me up after the end of work.
Edited Example ____________________________________

By accepting an invitation, you have agreed to buy
____________________________________
a gift.
5. Various different people in our office were not
Exercise 1
against moving the water cooler to a location
Edit the following wordy sentences by eliminating
that would be less difficult for everyone to
words that have little or no meaning, words that are
reach.
repetitive, words implied by other words, or by
changing negatives to affirmatives. Write your ____________________________________
answers on the lines provided. Answers can be
found at the end of the lesson. ____________________________________
____________________________________
____________________________________
35
6. One accidental mistake some beginning Edited Example

swimmers make is not remembering to kick. The cheese overpowered the pasta and made the
dish difficult to eat.
____________________________________
Exercise 2
____________________________________ Locate the unnecessary qualifiers in the following
sentences. Eliminate them and rewrite the sentences
on the lines provided. Answers can be found at the
Qualifiers end of the lesson.
The best writing requires confidence. Starting sen- 7. In certain respects, the telephone appears to
tences with phrase such as I feel, I think, I believe, in have done more to change the way we com-
my opinion, or I am of the opinion that can dilute municate than almost any other invention.
what you have to say. Instead of using qualifying
phrases like those, say exactly what you mean. ____________________________________
Examples ____________________________________
WITH QUALIFIER: I believe that homework
____________________________________
should be eliminated.
WITHOUT QUALIFIER: Homework should be
8. Obviously, the V-8 engine is very powerful,
eliminated.
but it certainly isn’t the only good engine
WITH QUALIFIER: I am of the opinion that
design.
bungee jumping should be an Olympic sport.
WITHOUT QUALIFIER: Bungee jumping should
____________________________________
be an Olympic sport.
Without unnecessary qualifiers, your writing ____________________________________
takes on a more confident tone.
9. Several students inevitably fail, even though
You should also be careful not to over-use the curriculum is quite clear.
words such as very, pretty, quite, rather, clearly, obvi-
ously, certainly, always, of course, indeed, inevitably, ____________________________________
and invariably. These words can be useful in helping
you make your point, but if you are using powerful ____________________________________
language to begin with, you may find they are clut-
tering up your sentences rather than strengthening 10. Apparently, scientists find it virtually impossi-
them. ble to estimate the size of the universe, but
usually they can come pretty close.
Example
The cheese clearly overpowered the pasta and, of ____________________________________
course, made the dish rather difficult to eat.
____________________________________
____________________________________
36
11. Clearly, the very best skiers almost always suf- “fought for liberty” is probably close enough. In the
fer rather serious injuries. thesaurus under “freedom,” you would also find
“looseness,” which could possibly replace “freedom”
____________________________________ if your sentence is discussing a piece of clothing.
However, our founding fathers did not fight for
____________________________________ “looseness.” This is an extreme example, but it illus-
trates the point that not all words in the thesaurus
will work in all situations.
Vo c a b u l a r y A thesaurus does not help you replace phrases
either, which is important when you are trying to
There is no substitute for an extensive vocabulary. shorten sentences. Some common phrases can be
The more words you know, the more able you are to shortened: in the event that becomes if; concerning
replace whole phrases with one accurate word. the matter of becomes about; are in a position
Increase your vocabulary and you make your writ- becomes can; the reason for becomes why; because of
ing more powerful. Start by keeping a list of words the fact becomes because.
that you do not know, list their definitions, and use
them in your everyday life. Using context clues can Example
also help you increase your vocabulary. When you In the event that every union member decides to
see a word that you do not know, examine the vote, we will have a huge turnout.
words that surround it to see if you can discover the
meaning. Often, a word can be deciphered by exam- Edited Example
ining the clues the other words give. If every union member decides to vote, we will
Understanding word parts will help you have a huge turnout.
understand words you do not know as well. Prefixes
and suffixes have meanings that can change the def- Try to find the clearest way to write by elimi-
inition of a word or its part of speech. Greek and nating unnecessary words from your sentences.
Latin roots appear often in English, and the more Make sure, however, that you don’t end up with a
roots that are familiar to you, the more words you series of short, choppy sentences.
can figure out in your reading and use in your
writing.
A thesaurus can help you find words to use, Short, Choppy Sentences
but like spell check or grammar check, it can change
your piece in ways you may not realize. Your voice Short sentences have their purpose. They tend to be
(Lesson 7) can become inconsistent, or you can use clear and direct. A series of short sentences, how-
words incorrectly. ever, can make the writing feel choppy and monot-
Not all words offered in a thesaurus are exact onous. There are many methods to revise short,
synonyms. For example, if your piece repeats the choppy sentences, such as combining sentences
word “freedom” too often, and you use a thesaurus (Lesson 4), or using verbal phrases. Verbal phrases
to find a word to replace it, you would find “liberty.” are formed from verbs, but act like nouns, adjec-
This would work if your sentence says, “Our found- tives, or adverbs in a sentence. The most common
ing fathers fought for liberty.” “Freedom” and “lib- verbal phrases are participial phrases, gerund
erty” do not mean exactly the same thing, but phrases, infinitive phrases, and appositives.
37
Participles and Participial Example

Phrases Until I revise many times, I am not happy with my
writing.
A participle is a verb form that can be used as an Writing is formed from the verb write and is
adjective, and a participial phrase is a phrase that used as a noun in this sentence.
contains a participle and any modifiers (Lesson 11).
For example, when you change the verb “develop” to Gerund phrases occur when a gerund is com-
“developing” to describe something, you have cre- bined with modifiers.
ated a participle. Adding modifiers to “developing”
gives you a participial phrase. Example
Working on the shrimp boat was a good summer
Example job.
Developing off the coast of Haiti, a tropical storm The phrase working on the shrimp boat serves
brought rain and high winds to the West Indies. as a noun in the sentence.
The participial phrase developing off the coast Example

of Haiti describes the tropical storm. My brother enjoys skiing at Crystal Mountain.
The phrase skiing at Crystal Mountain serves as
Example a noun in the sentence.
We saw Lance Armstrong receiving the yellow jer-
sey after the first mountain stage of the Tour de
France. Infinitives and Infinitive
Phrases
The participial phrase receiving the yellow jer-
sey describes Lance Armstrong. Infinitive phrases can also take the monotony out of
Participial phrases can transform short, your writing. An infinitive is a verb form composed
choppy sentences by adding description and detail. of to plus the verb base.
Example
Gerunds and Gerund Phrases to walk to speak to cry to leave to eat
These verbs are often part of a verb chain, but
Gerund phrases can also bring variety to your sen- are not the main action verb of the sentence.
tences. A gerund is a verb ending in -ing that serves
as a noun. Example
Fred tried to speak quickly.
Example The main verb is tried; what Fred tried is to
Running is a good way to stay in shape. speak quickly.
Running is formed from the verb run and is
used as a noun in this sentence. Example
There must be a way to get past the road block.
38
The infinitive phrase to get past the road block 13. The doctor will try to diagnose the illness.
completes the phrase must be a way. The main
verb in the sentence is be. ____________________________________
14. Having scored the winning goal, Christopher

Appositives and Appositive celebrated.
Phrases
____________________________________
Appositives add description and detail to your writ-
ing to make it clearer. An appositive is a noun or ____________________________________
pronoun used to identify or explain another noun.
15. Mr. Ouimet enjoys jogging to work.
Example
My cousin Alejandro can play the piano. ____________________________________
The noun Alejandro identifies the noun cousin,
so it is an appositive. 16. Invented for the U.S. military, compact discs
have many uses.
Appositives are also combined with modifiers
to make appositive phrases. ____________________________________
Example ____________________________________
My grandmother, a talented cook, used to make an
excellent pot roast. 17. I can’t find my shoes, the ones with the red
The phrase a talented cook is used to describe stripes.
the noun my grandmother.
____________________________________
Exercise 3
Identify the italicized phrase in each of the follow- ____________________________________
ing sentences as a participial phrase, a gerund
phrase, an infinitive phrase, or an appositive phrase. 18. Vasili was glad to be invited to the birthday
Write the type of phrase on the lines provided. party.
____________________________________
12. Steve Largent, a former football player, is now a
politician. ____________________________________
____________________________________
____________________________________
39
33_121719 appa.qxp 3/29/07 8:26 PM Page 335
Appendix A
Commonly Misspelled Words

A s you plug away at proofreading or catch mistakes while copyediting,
you’ll see all sorts of ways people misspell words. Writing down the wili-
est of the lot is not only extremely entertaining, but it also trains your brain
to recognize the wonky spelling when it comes up the next time. Here’s a list
to get you started.
absence believe deceive

abundance benefit defendant
accessible broccoli definitely
accommodate business desiccate
achievement calendar desperate
ad nauseam camouflage dictionary
alcohol carburetor disastrous
a lot Caribbean dumbbell
amateur cemetery ecstasy
apology characteristic eighth
apparent chili eligible
arctic committee embarrass
argument conceive environment
ascend condescend exceed
atheist congratulations exercise
auxiliary conscious exhaust
balloon controversial facsimile
barbecue courteous Fahrenheit
beggar daiquiri familiar
beginning Dalmatian February
33_121719 appa.qxp 3/29/07 8:26 PM Page 336
336 Part VII: Appendixes
fiery irresistible missile

fluorescent island misspell
forfeit jealousy mortgage
forty jewelry muscle
friend judicial nauseous
fulfill Juilliard necessary
Gandhi knight neighbor
gauge knowledge neutron
genius laboratory newsstand
government legitimate ninety
grammar length ninth
guarantee leprechaun noticeable
guerrilla liaise nuisance
guttural liaison obedience
handkerchief license obstacle
harass lieutenant occasionally
height lightning occurred
hemorrhage liquefy occurrence
heroes luxury official
hierarchy maintenance omission
hors d’oeuvre maneuver omit
hypocrisy marriage omitted
idiosyncrasy marshmallow opinion
ignorance medicine opportunity
immediately memento oppression
implement millennium optimism
independence miniature optimistic
independent minuscule orchestra
inoculate miscellaneous ordinarily
introduce mischievous outrageous
33_121719 appa.qxp 3/29/07 8:26 PM Page 337
Appendix A: Commonly Misspelled Words 337

overrun preceding reference
pamphlets preference referring
parallel preferred relevant
particular prejudice relieving
pastime preparation religious
pavilion presence remembrance
peaceable prevalent reminiscence
peculiar principal renowned
penetrate principle reservoir
perceive privilege resistance
performance probably restaurant
permanent proceed restaurateur
permissible professor rhyme
permitted pronunciation rhythm
perseverance propaganda ridiculous
persistence psychology roommate
personnel publicly sacrifice
perspiration puerile sacrilegious
pharaoh pursue safety
physical quantity salary
physician quarantine sandals
piece questionnaire schedule
pleasant quizzes secede
portray raspberry secretary
possession realistically seize
possibility realize seizure
practically recede sentence
practice receipt separate
precede receive sergeant
precedence recommend simile
33_121719 appa.qxp 3/29/07 8:26 PM Page 338
338 Part VII: Appendixes
simultaneous temperamental vehicle

sincerely temperature vengeance
sophomore tendency village
souvenir theories villain
specimen therefore vinaigrette
sponsor though violence
spontaneous threshold visible
strategy through vision
strength tomorrow warrant
stubbornness tournament weather
subpoena twelfth Wednesday
subtle tyranny weird
succeed unanimous wholly
sufficient unforgettable withdrawal
supersede unfortunately withhold
suppress unique yacht
surprise unnecessary yield
susceptible until young
syllable usage
symmetrical usually
synonymous utilization
technical vacuum
technique valuable

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Anker, S. (2010). Real writing with readings:

Ann, R. (1998). Grammar troublespots: An Editing

Smith, B. (2003). Proofreading, revising & editing

minors discrimination recent immigrants

grammar check or spell check is not foolproof. Example

Proofreading is simply careful reading. As you Edited Example

SYMBOL EXAMPLE MEANING OF SYMBOL

Stevenson High school Capitalize a lower-case letter.

give flare to your writing and should be used for Example

Spelling Spell check suggests replacing “thru” with

Edited Example Example

Sometimes the predicate appears first in the Example

Example In the example sentence, the simple predicate

7. Mary and Al skipped the previews and Clauses

Example 16. Sent me an e-mail with a virus

Exercise 2 18. After the accident happened in front of the

Exercise 3 26. Sewing the Halloween costume. I stuck my

30. Since we had eaten a big breakfast. We just ____________________________________

31. While the taxi driver drove faster ____________________________________

____________________________________ 40. After our lunch of tuna fish sandwiches

32. My daughter. After she wrote a letter ____________________________________

CORRECT: Julie studies hard. She is trying to win Example

55. It rains. The field turns to mud.

■ Quotation 2. a. We studied cave paintings dated some time

Family Members Examples

Example 5. a. He made a sandwich out of wonder bread®

Official Titles 7. a. Many citizens appreciated mayor Giuliani’s

Do not capitalize the unimportant words of the

9. a. President Lincoln wrote the gettysburg 13. a. My birthday falls on a sunday.

Works of Art and Literature 20. a. We rode a Trailways® bus to Mount

Names of Trains, Ships, and To C a p i t a l i z e o r N o t t o

Sometimes the combination of e and i sounds Examples

25. He did not know his exact (hieght, height).

The Exceptions Desire becomes desirable.

34. Sharon was not guilty of (commiting, com- Rule #2

Final Y The Exceptions

Examples -able and -ible

The Exceptions Examples

-ible Rule #2 -al and -el

-ary and -ery Exercise 10

Example Use a period after an abbreviation, including

My friend asked me if I had read the Harry Potter Example

Use a period after an initial. Example

2. a. My appointment is Tues at 6:15 PM. Example

Example The verb phrase is not always separated by the

Example 7. Hooray The new phone books are here

An interjection has no grammatical relation- ____________________________________

14. Will you check my homework for me

Dr. Fatemah Bazzi

Dr. Fatemah Bazzi

Dr. Fatemah Bazzi

Dr. Fatemah Bazzi

Words written in print or on signs receive quotation marks.

Example middle, or end of a quotation. Tags are punctuated

Example Example of tag at the beginning

Example of tag at the end with exclamation point ____________________________________

3. The professor told us to “line up according to

Ti t l e s your sources. (See the LearningExpress Skill Builder

Example of the title of a song Example

7. What do you suppose Carolyn meant when ____________________________________

____________________________________ The correct use of quotation marks can be

Problems with that can cause confusion

Understand What Subject-Verb Agreement Is