A humble guide for English learners

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What We Talk About

When We Talk About
English
Grammar
A humble guide for English learners

Joe Thanks
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Introduction
English grammar involves the formation of words, phrases, clauses, and sentences.

English grammar may seem complicated; there are many exceptions besides rules, and one
word can denote multiple different meanings, falls into multiple different word classes, and be
used in multiple different ways. However, we should not be worried.

This text aims to present the most essential parts of English grammar in a digestible form. We
will not learn everything about English grammar here, but we will learn enough to have an
effective use of English.

WHY IS GRAMMAR NECESSARY?

In informal situations, it is fine to use English with less-than-perfect grammar. However, proper
grammar is important in English tests and examinations because it will always be one of the
main criteria. Besides, having an appropriate command of grammar will help us communicate
effectively and confidently in any situation.
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
Chapter 1 An Overview of English Grammar ........................................1—7
Overview................................................................................................................................................. 1—7
The English alphabet ............................................................................................................................. 1—8
Basic Grammatical Units ...................................................................................................................... 1—9
Words...................................................................................................................................................... 1—9
Phrase ...................................................................................................................................................... 1—9
Clause ...................................................................................................................................................... 1—9
Sentence .................................................................................................................................................. 1—9
Word .....................................................................................................................................................1—10
Phrase ....................................................................................................................................................1—20
Clause ....................................................................................................................................................1—31
Sentence, Paragraph, and Essay ........................................................................................................1—32
Chapter 2 Verb Tenses and Formation of Verb Phrase .................... 2—33
Overview...............................................................................................................................................2—33
Singularity and Plurality of the Subject ...........................................................................................2—34
Verb Tense and Aspect......................................................................................................................2—35
Tenses ....................................................................................................................................................2—38
Continuous Tense-aspects ................................................................................................................2—51
Perfect Tense-aspects ........................................................................................................................2—58
Perfect-continuous Tense-aspects...................................................................................................2—65
Common Tenses and Tense-aspects for Daily Use ....................................................................2—71
Formation of Verb Phrase .................................................................................................................2—72
Predicate with More Than One Main Verb ...................................................................................2—92
Verb Phrase and Phrasal Verb ..........................................................................................................2—93
Chapter 3 Modal Verbs ........................................................................... 3—94
Introduction to Modal Verb..............................................................................................................3—94
Tense of Modal Verb ..........................................................................................................................3—95
Modal Verb in Detail ..........................................................................................................................3—96
Other Expressions and Verbs with Modal Meaning ................................................................. 3—103
Chapter 4 Passive Voice ........................................................................ 4—104
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Introduction to Passive Voice ....................................................................................................... 4—104

Formation of the Passive Voice..................................................................................................... 4—106
Omitting Performer of the Action ............................................................................................... 4—107
Converting Prepositional Object and Clausal Object into Passive Voice ........................... 4—108
Verbs Change Their Types in Passive Voice .............................................................................. 4—109

‘False Passive Voice’ ......................................................................................................................... 4—109

Passive Construction of ‘Have’...................................................................................................... 4—110

Passive Participle Modifier .............................................................................................................. 4—111
Chapter 5 Formation of Noun Phrase................................................ 5—112
Overview............................................................................................................................................ 5—112
Formation of Noun Phrases........................................................................................................... 5—113
Pre-head Modifier............................................................................................................................. 5—114
Post-head Modifiers ......................................................................................................................... 5—131
Singularity and Plurality of the Subject ........................................................................................ 5—134
Chapter 6 Making Comparison ............................................................ 6—139
Overview............................................................................................................................................ 6—139
Making Comparison with Adjective ............................................................................................. 6—140
Making Comparison with Adverb ................................................................................................. 6—150
Constructions for Equal Comparison.......................................................................................... 6—153
Chapter 7 Type of Clause ..................................................................... 7—155
Overview............................................................................................................................................ 7—155
Main Clause ....................................................................................................................................... 7—156
Subordinating Clause ....................................................................................................................... 7—157
Relative Clause.................................................................................................................................. 7—160
Free Relative Clause ........................................................................................................................ 7—186
That-clause ......................................................................................................................................... 7—227
Differentiate Relative Clause, Free Relative Clause, and That-Clause ................................. 7—236
Chapter 8 Empty Subject ...................................................................... 8—238
Overview............................................................................................................................................ 8—238
To Describe the Weather.............................................................................................................. 8—239
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To Describe a Process .................................................................................................................... 8—239

To Emphasize .................................................................................................................................... 8—240
Infinitive Construction .................................................................................................................... 8—242
That-clause Construction to Express Necessities .................................................................... 8—243
To Express Sentimentalities ........................................................................................................... 8—244

‘When it comes to…’....................................................................................................................... 8—244

‘It’s Ok’ ............................................................................................................................................... 8—244

Empty Subject of ‘Here’ and ‘There’............................................................................................ 8—245

Chapter 9 Grammatical Mood ............................................................. 9—246

Overview............................................................................................................................................ 9—246
Indicative Mood ................................................................................................................................ 9—247
Imperative Mood .............................................................................................................................. 9—247
Subjunctive Mood ............................................................................................................................. 9—248
Conditional Mood ............................................................................................................................ 9—249
Chapter 10 Conjunction and Punctuation ....................................... 10—255
Overview.......................................................................................................................................... 10—255
Conjunction ..................................................................................................................................... 10—256
Punctuation ...................................................................................................................................... 10—268
Null clause........................................................................................................................................ 10—274
Reference ................................................................................................. 10—275
Special Thanks......................................................................................... 10—275
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What We Talk About When We Talk About

English Grammar
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Chapter 1
An Overview of English Grammar
Overview
In this chapter, we will take a look at the basic units of English grammar and their relationships
with each other. Specifically, we will be introduced to the following items:

1. different classes of words

2. the formation of phrases and clauses
3. the brief definitions of sentences, paragraphs, and essays.
This chapter aims to provide a comprehensive structure of English grammar before we delve
into more details in the upcoming chapters.
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The English alphabet

The English alphabet consists of 26 letters:

ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ
The letters a, e, i, o, u are called vowels.

The rest are called consonants.

The letter ‘y’ and ‘u’ can be both consonants and vowels
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Basic Grammatical Units

Words
Words in English can be categorized into seven classes, namely noun, verb, determiner,
adjective, adverb, preposition, and conjunction. Nouns and verbs are the two main word
classes, while other others can be considered supporting word classes.

Phrase
A common phrase is a group of words with a particular meaning.

A grammatical phrase is a group of words or a single word functioning as a grammatical unit.

Each grammatical phrase has a main word that is called the head (of the phrase) and other
supporting words that is called modifiers.

Clause
A clause consists of two constituents called the subject and the predicate. The subject is
composed of one or more noun phrases and the predicate is composed of one or more verb
phrases. Clauses are building blocks of sentences.

Sentence
A sentence is the smallest grammatical unit that can express a complete thought or idea. A
sentence is composed of one or more clauses. A sentence starts with a capitalized word and
ends with a period ‘.’ (declarative sentence), an exclamation mark ‘!’ (exclamatory sentence), or a
question mark ‘?’ (interrogative sentence, commonly known as question).
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Word
Main Word Classes
Nouns
Nouns denote objects, people, places, ideas, and many other things, for example:

objects people places ideas

book, laptop he, she, Bill Gates supermarket, Africa math, literature, happiness

 Nouns can be singular or plural.

There are three subtypes of nouns in English:

Common Nouns
Common nouns denote things (such as ‘book’, ‘game’, ‘water’), ideas (such as ‘hope’, ‘respect’,
‘present’), and roles (such as ‘police’, ‘parents’, ‘professor’).

There are two subtypes of common nouns: countable nouns and uncountable nouns.

1) Countable nouns can be singular or plural.

 To turn a singular countable noun into a plural countable noun:

add the letter ‘s’ to the end of the noun (one book -> two books),

add ‘es’ if the noun ends with ‘s’, ‘x’, ‘z’, ‘sh’, or ‘ch’ (1 inch -> 2 inches),

if the noun ends with a consonant + ‘y’, replace the letter ‘y’ with ‘ies’
(an ability -> many abilities).

 Some countable nouns have irregular plural forms, for example:

one child -> three children, one person -> one hundred people

2) Uncountable nouns are always considered singular and cannot be plural, for example:
‘Air’, ‘water’, ‘fire’, ‘money’, ‘math’, ‘literature’, ‘happiness’
3) Certain nouns with multiple meanings can be both countable and uncountable, for
example:

‘Room’, as in ‘space to be occupied’: uncountable (e.g. ‘There is room for many people’).

‘Room’, as in ‘part of a house separated by walls’: countable (e.g. ‘There are five rooms in the house’).
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Proper Nouns
Proper nouns are proper names of people, things, and places, for example:

Joe, Sarah, Microsoft, Google, Greece, Rome

 Sometimes common nouns are used as names, so they become proper nouns, such as:

Windows, Family Mart, Android, Apple

Singularity and plurality of proper nouns

 Most proper nouns are singular because they often represent only one entity.
 A name with plural spelling noun are still singular if it represent a single entity, for example:

The United States of America, the United Kingdoms, the Philippines, the United Nations.

 However, a proper name with a plural spelling is plural if it represent a group of people.
This mainly applies to families represented by their family names, for example:

the Simpsons, the Smiths.

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Pronouns
Pronouns denote people and things in a general or unspecific way.

Personal pronouns have grammatical cases, which means they have different spellings when having
different grammatical functions (try to imagine the same person wearing different clothes to do
different jobs). Modern English have three grammatical cases: subjective case (also known as
nominative case), objective case (also known as accusative case), and possessive case (also known as
genitive case).

Personal Pronouns
Possessive Case
Subjective Case Objective Case
possessive possessive
used for the subject used for the object
determiner pronoun/adjective
I me my mine
you you your yours
we us our ours
they them their theirs
he him his his
she her her hers
it it its its
who whom whose
whoever whomever whosever
(‘It’ is not a personal pronoun, but it is also in this list because it has a possessive case.)

 Personal pronouns are inherently singular or plural. However, non-personal pronouns often
have singular and plural forms, for example:

Non-personal Pronoun
Singular Plural
this these
that those
another others
one ones
(non-personal pronouns can represent both human and non-human entities)
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Interrogative Pronoun
There are interrogative pronouns that can be used to make interrogative sentences (questions).
These pronouns are what, which, when, where, why, who/whom/whose, and how.

 ‘What’ and ‘which’ can be combined with a noun to inquire more specifically, for example:

‘What/which color’, ‘what/which name’, ‘what/which type’

 ‘How’ can be combined with an adjective or an adverb to inquire more specifically, for
example:

‘How much’, ‘how many’, ‘how cold’, ‘how quickly’

Singularity and Plurality of Pronouns

 Pronouns are singular if they represent one person or thing, for example: he, she, it, this,
that.
 Pronouns are also singular if they represent unknown or unspecific entities, for example:
who, what, which, whoever, whatever, whichever.
 Pronouns are plural if they can represent more than one person or thing, for example: you,
we, they, these, those.
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Verb
There are two main types of verbs in English: action verbs and copula verbs.

1) Action verbs denote actions that direct outward and interact with the world, for example:

love, hug, smile, run, study, play, watch, listen, understand.

2) Copula verbs (also known as stative verbs or linking verbs) denote actions that direct inside
its subject, for example:

the verb ‘be’ (the most notable), perceptive verbs such as ‘look’, ‘sound’, ‘taste’, ‘smell’, ‘feel’, and
descriptive verbs such as ‘become’, ‘seem’, and ‘remain’.

 Some verbs can be both action verbs and copula verbs, depending on how we use them, for
example:

feel, refer, consider

Verb form
Similar to the singular and plural forms of nouns, verbs can also be in different forms depending
on their grammatical functions.

 Most verbs in English have a total of five forms (except for ‘be’ and a few verbs in the
subtype of verb called ‘modal auxiliary verbs’). Let us take the verb ‘listen’ for example:

Form Infliction
1) Base form listen
2) Present singular form adding ‘-s’ listens
3) Past form, adding adding ‘-ed’ listened
4) Present participle form, adding adding ‘-ing’ listening
5) Past participle form, adding adding ‘-ed’ listened

 Most verbs have the same past form and past participle form by adding ‘-ed’. However, there are
some verbs that have different past form and past participle form, they are called irregular
verbs. ‘Speak’ is one of them:

Form Infliction
1) Base form speak
2) Present singular form adding ‘-s’ speaks
3) Past form irregular spoke
4) Present participle form adding ‘-ing’ speaking
5) Past participle form irregular spoken
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 The copula verb ‘be’ is the only exception with more forms than all other verbs. All forms
of ‘be’ are irregular:
1) Base form be
2) Present first-person singular form am
Present singular form is
Present plural form are
3) Past singular form was
Past plural form were
4) Present participle form being
5) Past participle form been

Please note that:

 Verbs in present participle form and past participle form can function as adjectives.
 Verbs in present participle form can also function as nouns. They are called ‘gerunds’ in this
function.
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Supporting Word Classes

Determiner
Determiners are words such as: a/an, the, this, that, these, those, my, your, some, every, all.

 Semantically, determiners denote referents, quantities, and possession.

 Grammatically, determiners modify nouns.

For example: a book; the Earth; this pen; my heart, some moments, every day

Adjective
 Semantically, adjectives denote quantity, quality, opinion, feeling, description, purpose, and
other aspects, for example:

quantity attribute opinion

various, several, copious, two, durable, dedicated, trustworthy good, bad, beautiful,
three comfortable

feeling description purpose

cheerful, happy, exciting big, small, blue, wooden, round declarative, protective, industrial,
therapeutic

 Grammatically, adjectives modify nouns and copula verbs, for example:

declarative sentences; become cheerful; the blue sky

Adjective Ending in ‘-ing’ and ‘-ed’

Verbs in present participle forms and past participle forms can function as adjectives.

For example, the adjectives ‘interesting’ and ‘interested’ are, respectively, the present participle
form and past participle form from the verb ‘interest’. Although the meanings that these two
adjectives denote are similar, there is a distinctive difference between their uses:

1. Adjectives from verbs in present participle form (end in ‘ing’) describe a quality or
characteristic of something or someone, for example:

An interesting person = a person who captures attention or provokes curiosity.

2. Adjectives from verbs in past participle form (often end in ‘ed’) describe a feeling or state of
someone or something, for example:

An interested person = a person who is interested in something or someone.

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Adverb
1. Semantically, adverbs denote frequency (time), direction (place), attitude, manner, and
relationship between clauses and sentences.

frequency (time) direction (place)

usually, sometimes, never, recently, nowadays, upward, downward, opposite, nearby, indoors,
yesterday, tomorrow outdoors, here, there
attitude manner
fortunately, unluckily, obviously, apparently happily, meticulously, quickly, fast, late, early

relationship between clauses and

intensity
sentences
very, absolutely, extremely, quite however, additionally, thus, although, that is

2. Grammatically:

 Adverbs of frequency, direction, and manner modify verbs, for example:

always smile, live nearby, work meticulously.

 Adverbs of intensity modify adjectives and other adverbs, for example:

very good, quite boring, absolutely delicious, extremely fast, very early

 Adverbs denoting relationships between clauses and sentences (also known as

conjunctive adverbs or discourse markers) and adverbs of attitude modify an entire clause
or sentence, for example:

‘Living in an apartment has several advantages. However, there exist certain disadvantages.’
(‘however’ marks the sentence as contradictory to the previous sentence.)

‘Doctor Edward Lorenz’s alma mater was Dartmouth College. That is, he graduated from Dartmouth
College. (‘that is’ marks the sentence as the explanation to the previous sentence.)

‘Fortunately, his friends were there for him.’ (‘fortunately’ expresses the speaker/writer’s attitude
toward the information of the sentence.)
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Preposition
Prepositions are words such as: in, on at, of, with, from, to, as, by, before, after, while.

1. Semantically, prepositions denote directions and relationships (in space, time, causality,
purposes, and other features) between two elements.

2. Grammatically:
a) Prepositions can function by themselves to modify verbs. They are considered adverbs in
this use, for example:

wait inside, go outside

b) Prepositions are often combined with a noun or a verb (in case of ‘to’ and ‘by’) to form a
prepositional phrase. A prepositional phrase can have several different grammatical
functions in a clause; we will examine them in the upcoming chapters.

Examples of prepositional phrases with a preposition and a noun phrase:

 in the port, on the round table

Examples of prepositional phrase with a preposition and a verb phrase:

 to stay healthy
 by exercising daily
(if the preposition ‘by’ is followed by a verb, the verb must be in form of a gerund)
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Conjunction
Conjunctions are linking words such as: ‘and’, ‘or’, ‘but’, ‘because’, ‘although’, ‘if’.

Semantically, conjunctions denote relationships between phrases or clauses.

Grammatically, conjunctions connect phrases and clauses. There are two main types of
conjunctions depending on the elements they connect:

1. Coordinating conjunctions connect equal grammatical elements, for example:

‘Large cities provide their citizens with medical services and educational facilities.’

In this example, the coordinating conjunction ‘and’ connect two noun phrases ‘medical services’
and ‘educational facilities’.
The most notable coordinating conjunctions are for, and, nor, but, or, yet, so.

2. Subordinating conjunctions connect a subordinating clause to a main clause. Some

examples of subordinating conjunctions are ‘although’, ‘because’, ‘when’, and ‘if’. We will learn
more about subordinating conjunctions and subordinating clauses in the upcoming chapters.
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Phrase
Common Phrase
A common phrase is a group of words that is often used together and has a particular meaning,
for example:
‘All over again’: from the beginning for a subsequent time.
‘I started my project all over again’
‘Here and now’: at the very present, at the moment of speaking or writing.
‘We can do it here and now.’
 Some common phrases do not follow convenient grammar and cannot be understood by
the meaning of the words that compose them, for example:
‘what have you’: whatever you have.
‘For a binder, you can use soup, gravy, cream, or what have you’ (or whatever you have)
‘be all that’: be very good or attractive
‘Joe thinks he is all that’ = ‘Joe thinks he is very attractive’
 This type of phrases can only be understood by asking the speaker for clarification or in
context and familiarity. For this reason, they should only be used for informal situations; we
should not use this type of phrase in formal situations.

Academic Idiom
On the other hand, certain common phrases are suitable for academic use due to the meanings
they express. This type of phrase can often be understood from the words that comprise them.
They are also called academic idioms.
Appropriate use of academic idioms in the IELTS Speaking test can help us leave a good
impression on the examiner. Here are some examples:
 To navigate uncharted waters: to explore new areas
‘When I graduated from university, I moved to another city because of my desire to navigate uncharted
waters.’

 To pave the way (for something): to allow or prepare for something to happen
‘Technological devices pave the way for creative teaching approaches and interactive classroom
activities.’
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Grammatical Phrase
A grammatical phrase is the grammatical extension of a word. Each grammatical phrase contains
a main word that is also called the head (of the phrase) and other supporting words that are
called modifiers. Modifiers extend the meaning of the. Modifiers can appear before or after the
head based on the types of grammatical phrases.
There are noun phrases, verb phrases, adjective phrases, adverb phrases, and
prepositional phrases.
The grammatical function of a grammatical phrase is the same as the grammatical
function of its main word, that is, a noun phrase functions like a noun, a verb phrase functions
like a verb, an adjective phrase functions like an adjective, an adverb phrase functions like an
adverb. However, prepositional phrases can have several different grammatical functions in a
clause.
The basic idea of how to form a grammatical phrase is introduced below, but there are more to
it that we will study in the upcoming chapters.
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Noun Phrase
Nouns can be modified by determiners and adjectives, so we can form a noun phrase by
modifying a noun with determiners and adjectives. Determiners and adjectives appear before
the noun, therefore they are called ‘pre-head’ modifiers:
a beautiful scenery
determiner adjective noun
pre-head modifiers head
noun phrase

We can also form a noun phrase by modifying a noun with a prepositional phrase. In this
function, the prepositional phrase appears after the noun, therefore it is called ‘post-head’
modifiers:
water in the bottle
noun prepositional phrase
head post-head modifier
noun phrase

Fun fact: in Latin, ‘pre’ means ‘before’, and ‘post’ means ‘after’.
Singularity and plurality of noun phrases
The singularity and plurality of a noun phrase depend solely on its head:
 If the head is a singular noun, then the noun phrase is singular regardless of how many
modifiers it has.
 If the head is a plural noun, then the noun phrase is plural.
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Verb Phrase
We can form a verb phrase by modifying a verb with a suitable adverb. An adverb may appear
before or after the verb:
run quickly quickly run
verb adverb or adverb verb
head modifier modifier head
verb phrase verb phrase

 Some action verbs can form a phrase with a noun. These verbs are called ‘transitive verb’,
and the noun that modifies transitive verbs are called ‘the object’, for example:

‘Study math’, ‘read books’, ‘play a sport, ‘listen to music’, ‘help people’

 Some action verbs can form a phrase with a prepositional phrase of ‘to’. In this function, the
prepositional phrase of ‘to’ is called ‘the infinitive complement’, for example:

‘Want to be strong’, ‘need to exercise’, ‘plan to start a business’

 Some action verbs can form a phrase with a gerund (a verb in present participle form). in
this function, the gerund is called ‘the gerund complement’, for example:

‘Go running’, ‘stop smoking’

 Copula verbs can also form a phrase with adjectives. In this function, the adjective is called
‘the subject complement’, and it follows the copula verb, for example:

‘Be polite’, ‘feel hungry’, ‘sound good’

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Adjective Phrase
We can form an adjective phrase by modifying an adjective with an adverb of intensity. The
adverb of intensity appears before the adjective, for example:
utterly gorgeous
adverb adjective
modifier head
adjective phrase

 Adjectives can also string together when they modify a noun, for example:
‘An orange little kitty’, ‘two blue wooden table’

Adverb Phrase
We can form an adverb phrase by modifying an adverb of manner with an adverb of intensity.
The adverb of intensity appears before the adverb of manner, for example:
extremely quickly
adverb of adverb of
intensity manner
modifier head
adverb phrase
 Please note that only adverbs of manner can be modified by adverbs of intensity.
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PREPOSITIONAL PHRASE
Commonly, a prepositional phrase is formed in one of the following three ways:
 A preposition with a noun as its modifier. The noun appears behind the preposition, for
example:
under water
preposition noun
head modifier
prepositional phrase

 The preposition ‘to’ can form a phrase with a verb in base form as its modifier. A
prepositional phrase of the preposition ‘to’ and a verb in base form is also called an
infinitive or an infinitive verb, for example:
to relax
preposition verb
head modifier
prepositional phrase

 Some prepositions can form a phrase with gerunds, such as ‘before’, ‘after’, ‘while’, ‘when’, ‘by’,
and ‘for’:

‘Before going to work’, ‘after eating’, ‘while driving’, ‘when feeling lonely’, ‘for speeding’
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SPECIAL PREPOSITIONAL PHRASES

In this section, we will examine special prepositional phrases that are formed idiomatically.
‘As’
 The preposition ‘as’ can form a phrase with any word classes, even with another
prepositional phrase, for example:
‘As a teacher’ (as + noun)
‘As expected’ (as + adjective)
‘As firmly’ (as + adverb)
‘As is’ (as + verb in present singular form)
‘As in a dream’ (as + prepositional phrase)
‘In want of’, ‘In need of’
 ‘In want of’ or ‘in wanting of’, and ‘in need of’ take nouns as their modifiers, for example:
‘In want of a wife’, ‘in need of fresh air’
‘In general’, ‘In particular’
 These two prepositional phrases do not take nouns or verbs as modifiers. They often
function as adverbs of manner or frequency, for example:
‘In general, he is a decent man.’ (adverb of frequency)
‘This photograph is important to this collection in general and to my personal life in particular.’
(adverbs of manner)
‘Out of’
 ‘Out of’ only takes nouns as modifiers, for example:
‘out of the storm’, ‘out of the traffic congestion’, ‘out of troubles’
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‘Due to’, ‘Because of’, and ‘Thanks to’

 ‘Due to’ takes nouns as modifiers, for example:
due to his preparation
verb preposition noun phrase
modifier head modifier
prepositional phrase

due to the rain

verb preposition noun phrase
modifier head modifier
prepositional phrase

 ‘Because of’ can take nouns or gerunds as modifiers, for example:

because of his carelessness
conjunction preposition noun phrase
modifier head modifier
prepositional phrase

because of speeding
conjunction preposition gerund
modifier head modifier
prepositional phrase

 ‘Thanks to’ takes nouns as modifiers, for example:

thanks to her kindness
verb preposition noun phrase
modifier head modifier
prepositional phrase

These three prepositional phrases express similar meanings, but ‘thanks to’ has a positive tone,
‘due to’ has a neutral tone, and ‘because of’ often carries a negative tone. They complement a
whole clause instead of a noun or a verb.
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Adjective as Pre-head Modifier

 A prepositional phrase can have an adjective as its pre-head modifier. This type of
prepositional phrase mostly occur with the preposition ‘to’.

When ‘to’ form a phrase with an adjective as the pre-head modifier, it takes nouns or gerunds
as post-head modifiers, for example:

similar to diamond
adjective preposition noun
modifier head modifier
prepositional phrase

compared to last year

adjective preposition noun phrase
modifier head modifier
prepositional phrase

due to their resilience

adjective preposition noun phrase
modifier head modifier
prepositional phrase

 Another common prepositional phrase with an adjective as the pre-head modifier is ‘full of’.
It only takes nouns as post-head modifiers, for example:

‘Full of dollars’, ‘full of wild strawberries’

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PHRASE WITHIN PHRASE

In English, it is common to see a grammatical phrase function as a modifier in another
grammatical phrase, for example:

 An adjective phrase modifies a noun, forming a noun phrase:

utterly gorgeous dresses
adjective phrase noun
modifier head
noun phrase

 An adverb phrase modifies a verb, forming a verb phrase:

run extremely quickly
verb adverb phrase
head modifier
verb phrase
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 A noun phrase modifies a preposition, forming a prepositional phrase:

of the brightest night
preposition noun phrase
head modifier
prepositional phrase

Then this prepositional phrase modifies another noun, forming a bigger noun phrase:
the color of the brightest night
noun prepositional
phrase phrase
head modifier
noun phrase

Then the noun ‘night’ in the prepositional phrase is modified with another prepositional phrase:
the color of the brightest night of June
noun
prepositional phrase
phrase
head modifier
noun phrase

Then we can also modify the noun ‘June’ with another prepositional phrase:
the color of the brightest night of June in the Sahara Desert
noun
prepositional phrase
phrase
head modifier
noun phrase

On theory, this method of adding prepositional phrases can keep repeating endlessly, but for
the sake of clarity and readability, we should try not to use more than four prepositions in the
same clause.
 1—31

Clause
At the minimum, a clause is formed when we put a noun to perform a verb, for example:
‘We smile’
In this clause, the noun ‘we’ performs the verb ‘smile’. From this idea, a clause is divided into
two constituents: the subject and the predicate.
 The subject is the noun or the noun phrase that performs the action. If the subject is a noun
phrase, the main noun of the noun phrase is also referred to as the main noun of the
subject, or the main subject in the broad subject.
 The predicate is the verb or verb phrase that is the action of the subject. If the predicate is
a verb phrase, the main verb of the verb phrase is referred to as the main verb of the
predicate, or the main verb of the clause.
 English is a subject-verb language, which means the subject often appear before the main
verb.
More details about clauses will be presented in the upcoming chapters.

WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN A CLAUSE AND A SENTENCE?

If we ended the sample clause above with a period ‘.’, we would have a sentence. As mentioned
in the previous part of this chapter, clauses are building blocks of sentences, which means a
clause can constitute a sentence by itself, but a sentence can also consist of more than one
clause.
 1—32

Sentence, Paragraph, and Essay

A sentence is a grammatical unit that can present a complete thought or argument. A sentence
can consist of one or more clauses.

A paragraph is an organized group of sentences working together to present one idea or

argument.

An essay is an organized group of paragraphs working together to achieve a specific goal.

The logical relationship between sentences in a paragraph and paragraphs in an essay is called
coherence and cohesion.
 2—33

Chapter 2
Verb Tenses and Formation of Verb Phrase
Overview
In this chapter, we will study the two most important concepts of English grammar:

1. verb tenses and tense-aspects.

2. formation of verb phrases.

These two grammatical concepts will help us effectively understand and create clauses.
 2—34

Singularity and Plurality of the Subject

Before diving into the domain of verbs, we must have a basic understanding of the singularity
and plurality of the subject, because they affect the forms of the main verb. This phenomenon is
referred to as the subject-verb agreement.
The singularity or plurality of the subject is the singularity or plurality of the noun or noun
phrase that composes it.
The subject is singular when it is composed of:
 a singular noun
 a singular noun phrase
 two or more nouns or noun phrases but they are connected by a coordinating conjunction
of alternative (‘or’ is the most typical).
The subject is plural when it is composed of:
 a plural noun
 a plural noun phrase
 two or more noun phrases connected by a coordinating conjunction of additive
(‘and’ is the most typical)
 2—35

Verb Tense and Aspect

VERB TENSE
The main verb of a clause changes its form to express the time of the action in relation to the
time of speaking/writing. This phenomenon is referred to as verb tenses.

There are three verb tenses in English: present, past and future.

 The present tense describes events in the present.

 The past tense describes events in the past.
 The future tense describes events in the future.

The three tenses are referred to as simple past, simple present, simple future.

Verb tenses use verbs base form, present singular form, and past form.
 2—36

VERB ASPECT
Verbs can change their form to express the continuance or completeness of the action. This
phenomenon is referred to as verb aspects. Verb aspects can also express the active or passive
nature of the action.

There are three verb aspects: continuous, perfect, and perfect continuous.

 The continuous aspect expresses the continuance or the active nature of the action.
 The perfect aspect expresses the completeness or the passive nature of the action.
 The continuous aspect and the perfect aspect can be combined into the perfect-
continuous aspect to expresses actions that have happened before a point in time and
are still happening at that point.

Verb aspects use verbs in present participle form and past participle form.
The three aspects can be included with the three tenses to form nine tense-aspects:

Tense
Past Present Future
Aspect
Continuous past continuous present continuous future continuous

Perfect past perfect present perfect future perfect

Perfect
past perfect-continuous present perfect-continuous future perfect-continuous
continuous
Similar to tenses, tense-aspects are only applicable to the main verb of a clause.

 In total, we have three tenses and nine tense-aspects. These 12 tenses and tense-aspects
are conveniently referred to only as ‘verb tenses’ in English language teaching.
 2—37

Auxiliary verb
Auxiliary verbs (also called helper verbs) are verbs that function as modifiers for the main verb in
a verb phrase. Auxiliary verbs are employed to achieve two grammatical notions:
1. Auxiliary verbs help form negative clauses and questions.
2. Auxiliary verbs help express the tense and tense-aspect of the main verb.

In a clause, the auxiliary verb precedes the main verb. A group of auxiliary verbs and the main
verb can be referred to as a verb catena.
The verbs ‘be’, ‘do’, and ‘have’ can function as auxiliary verbs; in this function, they do not
express any semantic meanings.

There exists a subtype of auxiliary verbs called modal auxiliary verbs, or modal verbs. Modal verbs
only function as auxiliary verbs (they cannot function as the main verb), but they express
semantic meanings of modalities.
 2—38

Tenses
There are three tenses in English: the simple present, the simple past, and the simple future.

The Simple Present

The simple present tense describes facts, habits, and long-lasting situations.

Formation with ‘Be’ as the Main Verb

The simple present only uses the present forms of ‘be’, not the base form. While other
verbs only has one present form (which is the present singular form), ‘be’ has three present
forms:
1. Present first-person form: am
2. Present singular form: is
3. Present plural form: are

1. When the subject is the first-person pronoun ‘I’, the main verb ‘be’ takes the form ‘am’:
‘I am Joe’
2. When the subject is singular, the main verb ‘be’ takes the form ‘is’:
‘Joe is my friend’
‘She is a doctor’
‘He is polite’
‘Money is important’
3. When the subject is plural, the main verb ‘be’ takes the form ‘are’:
‘You are great’
‘We are in the building’
‘They are students’
‘My cats are orange’
 2—39

Negative Clause
To form a negative clause with the main verb ‘be’, we add the negative adverb ‘not’ after ‘be’.
We do not need an auxiliary verb here because ‘be’ can also function as an auxiliary verb. In this
case, we can imagine that ‘be’ is functioning as both the main verb and the auxiliary verb at the
same time, for example:
‘I am not Joe’
‘He is not bad’
‘We are not in the building’
Please note that ‘is not’ and ‘are not’ have contracted forms “isn’t” and “aren’t”, respectively.
However, contracted forms are considered informal, so we do not use them in tests and
examinations.

Question
To form a question, we precede the subject with an auxiliary verb (this concept is called
auxiliary-verb inversion, and it applies to all tenses and tense-aspects).

 The main verb ‘be’ precedes the subject in a question:

‘Am I right?’
‘Are they hungry?’
‘Is he here?’
 If the question is formed with an interrogative pronoun, the interrogative pronoun appears
at the beginning of the question:
‘Where is he?’
‘Who are you?’
 2—40

Formation with Other Main Verbs

When the main verb is any other verbs except the verb ‘be’, the simple present uses it in base
form or present singular form.
1. When the subject is the first-person pronoun ‘I’ or plural, the main verb is in base form:
‘I study math’
‘We smile’
‘They speak English’
2. When the subject is singular, the main verb is in present singular form (adding ‘s’):
‘She teaches math’
‘My cat likes you’
‘He comes from Greek’

 For verbs that end in -o, -ch, -sh, -s, -x, or -z, the suffix -es is added:
Go – Goes
Catch – Catches
Wash – Washes
Kiss – Kisses
Fix – Fixes

 For verbs that end in a consonant + y, the letter ‘y’ is replaced by the suffix -ies:
Marry – Marries
Study – Studies
Carry – Carries

 In other cases, the suffix -s is added:

Play – Plays
Say – Says
 A special situation happens with the verb ‘have’ in which the letters ‘ve’ are omitted before
adding ‘s’:
Have – Has
 2—41

Negative Clause
1. If the subject is plural or the pronoun ‘I’, we add the auxiliary verb ‘do’ and the negative
adverb ‘not’ before the main verb:
‘I do not smoke’
‘We do not hate’
‘My cats do not destroy the house’
2. If the subject is singular, the auxiliary verb ‘do’ takes the present singular form ‘does’, and the
main verb stays in base form:
‘She does not work on Sunday’
‘My cat does not destroy the house’
Please note that ‘do not’ and ‘does not’ have contracted forms “don’t” and “doesn’t”, respectively.
However, contracted forms are considered informal, so we do not use them in tests and
examinations.
Fun fact: the use of ‘do’ as an auxiliary verb is called do-support
3. We can also use ‘do/does’ in positive clauses to emphasize the action, for example:
‘I do like instrumental music’ (instead of ‘I like instrumental music’)
‘He does love her’ (instead of ‘he loves her’)

Question
1. The auxiliary verb ‘do’ precedes the subject and the main verb if the subject is plural or the
pronoun ‘I’:
‘Do we study math?’
‘Do you like my cat?’
‘Do I smile too much?’
2. If the subject is singular, the auxiliary verb takes the present singular form instead of the
main verb:
‘Does she teach literature?’
‘Does your cat destroy the house?’
3. If the question is formed with an interrogative pronoun, the interrogative pronoun appears
at the beginning of the question:
‘How do they cook spaghetti?’
‘What does your cat do in the morning?’
 2—42

Detail Use of the Present Simple

1. The present simple is employed to convey facts of nature, for example:
‘The sun rises in the east and sets in the west’
‘Water boils at 100 Celsius degrees’
‘My cat is an American Bobtail’ (a breed of cat)
2. The present simple is employed to convey long-lasting situations, often about occupations
or accommodation, for example:
‘She is a doctor’
‘He works at home’
‘They are students’
‘Joe lives in District 6’
3. The present simple is employed to convey activities that repeat in a range of frequency.
Adverbs of frequency and time are often in this use, for example:
‘I always smile at dogs and cats’
‘Joe sometimes take photographs’
‘He never skips breakfast’ (‘never’ is a special adverb of frequency: its frequency is zero)
‘Do they often exercise?’
What do you usually do in your free time?
(the first ‘do’ functions as an auxiliary verb, the second ‘do’ functions as the main verb)
 2—43

The Simple Present Cheat Sheet

with the verb ‘be’ with other verbs
subject verb subject verb
I am
I, plural subject base form
Positive
plural subject are
clause
singular subject present singular form
singular subject is

I am not
I, plural subject do not + verb base form
Negative
plural subject are not
clause
singular subject does not + verb base form
singular subject is not

Interrogative (wh-word) + am/is/are + (wh-word) + does/do + subject + verb base

clause subject…? form…?
 2—44

The Simple Past

The simple past tense describes events that happened and finished in the past.

Formation with ‘Be’ as the Main Verb

The simple past uses the past forms of ‘be’. While other verbs only has one past form, ‘be’
has two past forms:
 Past singular form: was
 Past plural form: were

1. When the subject is singular, the main verb ‘be’ takes the past singular form ‘was’:
‘I was a decent student in high school’
‘Joe was here yesterday’
‘She was in her room this morning’
‘It was cold last week’
2. When the subject is plural, the main verb ‘be’ takes the past plural form ‘were’:
‘You were great during match’
‘We were at school yesterday morning’
‘Our English teachers were Americans’

Negative Clause
To form a negative clause with the main verb ‘be’, we add the negative adverb ‘not’ after ‘be’:
‘I was not an attentive student in university’
‘He was not bad during the match’
‘We were not at home last night
‘It was not hot yesterday’
Please note that ‘was not’ and ‘were not’ have contracted forms “wasn’t” and “weren’t”,
respectively. However, contracted forms are considered informal, so we do not use them in
tests and examinations.
 2—45

Question
 The main verb ‘be’ precedes the subject in a question:
‘Was my answer correct?’
‘Were they excited this morning?’
‘Was he in at home last night?’
 If the question is formed with an interrogative pronoun, the interrogative pronoun appears
at the beginning of the question:
‘Where were the cats yesterday?’
‘Which one was your answer?’
‘How was their vacation?’
 2—46

Formation with Other Main Verbs

 When the main verb is any other verbs except the verb ‘be’, the simple past uses it in past
form for all types of subjects:
‘I took the test at 8am this morning’
‘She started her job 25 years ago’
‘World War 2 ended on the 2nd of September,1945’
‘It rained yesterday’

Negative Clause
1. We add the auxiliary verb ‘did’ (past form of ‘do’) and the negative adverb ‘not’ before the
main verb in base form for all types of subjects:
‘I did not buy new clothes last month’
‘We did not bring our cat on our trip to the beach’
‘It did not rain last night’
Please note that ‘did not’ has a contracted form “didn’t”. However, contracted forms are
considered informal, so we should not use them in tests and examinations.
2. We can also use ‘did’ in positive clauses to emphasize the action:
‘They did bring an umbrella’ (instead of ‘they brought)
‘He did buy her flowers’ (instead of ‘he bought’)
 2—47

Question
1. The auxiliary verb ‘did’ precedes the subject and the main verb in base form for all types of
subjects:
‘Did they spend the last week on the sea?’
‘Did you receive the email?’
‘Did she see you this morning?’
‘Did it rain last night?’
2. If the question is formed with an interrogative pronoun, the interrogative pronoun appears
at the beginning of the question:
‘How did you cook spaghetti last dinner?’
‘Where did they stay during the trip?’
‘What did he tell you this afternoon?’
 2—48

The Simple Past Cheat Sheet

with the verb ‘be’ with other verbs
subject verb subject verb

singular subject was

Positive
subject past form
clause
plural subject were

singular subject was not

Negative
subject did not + verb base form
clause
plural subject were not

Question (wh-word) + was/were + (wh-word) + did + subject + verb base

subject…? form…?
 2—49

The Simple Future

The simple future tense describes events that the speaker/writer believes to happen in the
future.

Formation of the Simple Future

English verbs do not have an inflicted verb form for the future tense. Instead, the modal
auxiliary verb ‘will’ is employed to convey future possibilities.
 In the simple future, the auxiliary verb ‘will’ precedes the main verb in base form for all types
of subjects:
‘I will do the homework tonight’
‘She will start her business tomorrow’
‘They will be here next week’
‘It will snow on Christmas’

Negative Clause
To form a negative clause in the simple future, we place the negative adverb ‘not’ between the
auxiliary verb ‘will’ and the main verb in base form:
‘You will not fall’
‘He will not be late tomorrow’
‘We will not forget your performance’
Please note that ‘will not’ has a contracted form “won’t”. However, contracted forms are
considered informal, so we do not use them in tests and examinations.

Question
1. The modal auxiliary verb ‘will’ precedes the subject and the main verb in base form for all
types of subjects:
‘Will public transport be more popular in the future?’
‘Will it rain on our camping day?’
‘Will they be here tonight?’
2. If the question is formed with an interrogative pronoun, the interrogative pronoun appears
at the beginning of the question:
‘Where will you do during the weekend?’
‘What will we have for breakfast tomorrow?’
‘When will she leave for Paris?’
 2—50

The Simple Future Cheat Sheet

Subject Verb

Positive clause subject will + verb base form

Negative clause subject will not + verb base form

Question (wh-word) + will + subject + verb base form…?

 2—51

Continuous Tense-aspects
The continuous tense-aspects combines the present, past, and future tenses with the
continuous aspect to signify the continuance of the action.
 The present continuous tense-aspect describes temporary actions that are happening at
the moment of speaking/writing.
 The past continuous tense-aspect describes temporary actions that were happening at a
specific point in the past.
 The future continuous tense-aspect describes temporary actions that will be happening at
a specific point in the future.
All continuous tense-aspects in English follow the general formation of:

subject + be + main verb in present participle form

In this construction, ‘be’ functions as the auxiliary verb, and it takes appropriate forms to reflect
the tenses, while the main verb takes present participle form to reflect the continuous aspect.

 In the present continuous, ‘be’ takes the forms ‘am/is/are’ based on the subject.
 In the past continuous, ‘be’ takes the forms ‘was/were’ based on the subject.
 In the future continuous, the modal auxiliary verb ‘will’ is added before ‘be’ in base form, and
then the main verb in present participle form follows.
 2—52

The Present Continuous

The present continuous tense-aspect describes temporary actions that are happening at the
moment of speaking/writing.

Formation of the Present Continuous

subject + am/is/are + main verb in present participle form

1. When the subject is the pronoun ‘I’, the auxiliary verb ‘am’ precedes the main verb in
present participle form:
‘I am writing a letter’
2. When the subject is singular, the auxiliary verb ‘is’ precedes the main verb in present
participle form:
‘He is running in the park’
‘A technician is installing Windows 11 on my laptop’
‘A customer is waiting in the lobby’
3. When the subject is plural, the auxiliary verb ‘are’ precedes the main verb in present
participle form:
‘You are giving me hope’
‘They are voting for a new president’
‘Social networks are becoming extremely prevalent in the modern world’
4. The present continuous can also be used for events in the near future:
‘I am buying a new pen tomorrow’
‘She is graduating next Monday’
‘Their train is leaving at 3 this afternoon’

 Please note that:

The copula verb ‘be’ and the action verb ‘know’ are generally not used in continuous tense-
aspects because their meanings already implies continuous states (‘I am happy’, not ‘I am being
happy’; ‘I know this road’, not ‘I am knowing this road’). However, the verb ‘be’ can be continuous
if it means ‘behave’, for example: ‘Your cat is being very energetic’.
 2—53

Negative Clause
The negative adverb ‘not’ is added between the auxiliary verb ‘be’ and the main verb:
‘I am not bringing any sweets’
‘The bookstore is not selling that book’
‘The government are not neglecting the environment’

Question
 The auxiliary verb ‘be’ precedes the subject and the main verb:
‘Are we preparing for the presentation?’
‘Is she running for the president?’
‘Is the cat eating my lunch?’
 If the question is formed with an interrogative pronoun, the interrogative pronoun appears
at the beginning of the question:
‘Why is he smiling?
‘What are the students doing in the laboratory?

The Present Continuous Cheat Sheet

subject verb
I am + V-ing
Positive
singular subject is + V-ing
clause
plural subject are + V-ing

I am not + V-ing

Negative
singular subject is not + V-ing
clause

plural subject are not + V-ing

Question (wh-word) + am/is/are + subject + V-ing…?

 2—54

The Past Continuous

The past continuous tense-aspect describes temporary actions that were happening at a
specific point in the past.

Formation of the Past Continuous

subject + was/were + main verb in present participle form

1. When the subject is singular, the auxiliary verb ‘was’ precedes the main verb in present
participle form:
‘I was studying Math at 4pm yesterday’
‘She was staying in France when they got married.’
‘They took the train while it was snowing’
2. When the subject is plural, the auxiliary verb ‘were’ precedes the main verb in present
participle form:
‘They were playing a board game 30 minutes ago’
‘Our friends were studying physics while we were studying biology’

Negative Clause
The negative adverb ‘not’ is added between the auxiliary verb ‘be’ and the main verb:
‘I was not washing dishes at midnight’
‘His speaker was not working properly before she fixed it.’
‘They were not going to school in February’
 2—55

Question
 The auxiliary verb ‘be’ precedes the subject and the main verb:
‘Were you washing dishes at midnight?’
‘Was he smiling at the cat on his way out?’
 If the question is formed with an interrogative pronoun, the interrogative pronoun appears
at the beginning of the question:
‘What was she reading on the airplane?’
‘Which position were you playing during the basketball match?’

The Past Continuous Cheat Sheet

subject verb
Positive singular subject was + V-ing
clause plural subject were + V-ing

Negative singular subject was not + V-ing

clause plural subject were not + V-ing

Question (wh-word) + was/were + subject + V-ing …?

 2—56

The Future Continuous

The future continuous tense-aspect describes temporary actions that will be happening at a
specific point in the future.

Formation of the Future Continuous

subject + will be + main verb in present participle form

 In the future continuous, the modal auxiliary verb ‘will’ is added before ‘be’ in base form, and
then the main verb in present participle form follows. This structure applies to all types of
subjects:

‘I will be studying on Monday morning’

‘We will be enjoying dinner after finishing the job.’
‘She will be running for election next year’
‘The sun will be shining tomorrow’

Negative Clause
The negative adverb ‘not’ is added between the modal auxiliary verb ‘will’ and the auxiliary verb
‘be’:
‘They will not be worrying once the test is done’
‘He will not be working on Sunday’

Question
 The modal auxiliary verb ‘will’ precedes the subject, and then the auxiliary verb ‘be’ and the
main verb follows:
‘Will she be running for election next year?’
‘Will they be working on Sunday?’
 If the question is formed with an interrogative pronoun, the interrogative pronoun appears
at the beginning of the question:
‘What time will they be listening to music tomorrow?’
‘Where will he be having dinner at 8 o’clock?’
 2—57

The Future Continuous Cheat Sheet

subject verb
Positive
subject will be + V-ing
clause

Negative
subject will not be + V-ing
clause

Question (wh-word) + will + subject + be V-ing …?

 2—58

Perfect Tense-aspects
The prefect tense-aspects combine the present, past, and future tenses with the perfect aspect
to signify the completeness of the action.
 The present perfect tense-aspect describes actions that have happened and finished before
the moment of speaking/writing.
 The past perfect tense-aspect describes actions that had happened and finished before a
specified point in the past.
 The future perfect tense-aspect describes actions that will have happened and finished
before a specified point in the future.
All perfect tense-aspects in English follow the general formation of:

subject + have + verb past participle form

In this construction, ‘have’ functions as the auxiliary verb, and it takes appropriate forms to
reflect the tenses, while the main verb takes past participle form to reflect the perfect aspect.

 In the present perfect, ‘have’ takes the forms ‘has/have’ based on the subject.
 In the past perfect, ‘have’ takes the forms ‘had’ for all types subject.
 In the future perfect, the modal auxiliary verb ‘will’ is added before ‘have’ in base form, and
then the main verb in past participle form follows.
 2—59

The Present Perfect

The present perfect tense-aspect describes actions that have happened and finished before the
moment of speaking/writing. In this sense, the present perfect is similar to the simple past, but
there are differences between them:
 The present perfect emphasizes the fact that the action has happened; it reflects the
experience of the subject with the action.
 The simple past, on the other hand, emphasizes the time in the past in which the action
happened.

Formation of the Present Perfect

subject + have/has + verb past participle form

1. When the subject is plural, the auxiliary verb ‘have’ precedes the main verb in past participle
form:
‘You have stolen my heart’
‘They have made a good decision’
2. When the subject is singular, the auxiliary verb ‘has’ precedes the main verb in past
participle form:
‘He has been in this place before’
‘A taxi has taken me here’
3. The present perfect are also used for long-lasting events that happened before the moment
of speaking/writing and are still happening (although the present perfect-continuous can also
be used in this situation):

‘I have lived here since 2004’

‘My supervisor has worked in this company for 20 years’
 2—60

Negative Clause
 The negative adverb ‘not’ is added between the modal verb ‘have’ and the main verb:
‘I have not skipped breakfast for two months’
‘She has not stopped running for the last 20 minutes’
‘The opponent has not surrendered’
Please note that ‘have not’ and ‘has not’ have contracted forms “haven’t” and “hasn’t”,
respectively. However, contracted forms are considered informal, so we do not use them in
tests and examinations.

Question
 The auxiliary verb ‘have’ precedes the subject and the main verb:
‘Have you done the assignment?’
‘Has he had lunch?’
‘Has Mr. Bingley visited this place before?’
 If the question is formed with an interrogative pronoun, the interrogative pronoun appears
at the beginning of the question:
‘Where has the remote control gone?’
‘Why have they bought so many clothes?’
‘How many books have you borrowed from the library?’

The Present Perfect Cheat Sheet

subject verb
Positive singular subject has + verb past participle
clause plural subject have + verb past participle

Negative singular subject has not + verb past participle

clause plural subject have not + verb past participle

Question (wh-word) + has/have + subject + verb past participle …?

 2—61

The Past Perfect

The past perfect tense-aspect describes actions that had happened and finished before a
specified point in the past.

Formation of the Past Perfect

subject + have/has + verb past participle form

 In the past perfect, the auxiliary verb ‘had’ precedes the main verb in past participle form for
all types of subjects:
‘They had cooked dinner by 8pm’
‘Fortunately, she had arrived home before the rain started’
‘I had graduated by the time I moved to another city’

Negative Clause
 The negative adverb ‘not’ is added between the modal verb ‘had’ and the main verb:
‘I had not finished my work when she smiled at me’
‘After they had had dinner, they went for a walk’
‘The game had not finished by the time we arrived at the stadium.’
Please note that ‘had not’ has a contracted form and “hadn’t”. However, contracted forms are
considered informal, so we do not use them in tests and examinations.
 2—62

Question
 The auxiliary verb ‘had’ precedes the subject and the main verb:
‘Had you fed the cat before we went out?’
‘Had the Internet been popular by 1980?’
 If the question is formed with an interrogative pronoun, the interrogative pronoun appears
at the beginning of the question:
‘Where had you visited before you came to this city?’
‘How many albums had the band sold after the world tour?’

The Past Perfect Cheat Sheet

subject verb
Positive
subject had + verb past participle
clause

Negative
subject had + verb past participle
clause

Question (wh-word) + had + subject + verb past participle …?

 2—63

The Future Perfect

 The future perfect tense-aspect describes actions that will have happened and finished
before a specified point in the future.

Formation of the Future Perfect

subject + will have + verb past participle form

 In the future perfect, the modal auxiliary verb ‘will’ precedes the auxiliary verb ‘have’ and the
main verb in past participle form for all types of subjects:
‘The airplane will have landed by 5pm tonight’
‘The concert will have started by the time we get there’
‘I will have finished the book by next Monday’

Negative Clause
 The negative adverb ‘not’ is added between the auxiliary modal verb ‘will’ and the auxiliary
verb ‘have’:
‘He will not have finished working by 8pm’
‘They will not have landed by the time we get to the airport’
 2—64

Question
 The modal auxiliary verb ‘will’ precedes the subject, and then the auxiliary verb ‘have’ and
the main verb follows:
‘Will they have landed by the time we get to the airport?’
 If the question is formed with an interrogative pronoun, the interrogative pronoun appears
at the beginning of the question.
However, in reality, the future perfect and the future perfect-continuous are hardly used to
make questions, especially with interrogative pronouns, because of the inconveniences of their
structures.

The Future Perfect Cheat Sheet

subject verb
Positive
subject will have + verb past participle
clause

Negative
subject will have + verb past participle
clause

Interrogative
Will + subject + have verb past participle …?
clause
 2—65

Perfect-continuous Tense-aspects
The prefect-continuous tense-aspects combine the present, past, and future tenses with both
the perfect aspect and the continuous aspect to signify actions that have started before a point
in time and are still happening at that point.
 The present perfect-continuous tense-aspect describes actions that have happened before
the moment of speaking/writing and are still happening at that moment.
 The past perfect-continuous tense-aspect describes actions that had happened before a
specified point in the past and were still happening at that point.
 The future perfect-continuous tense-aspect describes actions that will have happened
before a specified point in the future and will still be happening at that point.
All perfect-continuous tense-aspects in English follow the general formation of:

subject + have been + verb present participle form

In this construction, ‘have’ and ‘be’ functions as the auxiliary verbs. ‘Have’ takes appropriate
forms to reflect the tenses, ‘be’ takes the past participle form ‘been’ to reflect the perfect
aspect, and the main verb takes present participle form to reflect the continuous aspect.

 In the present perfect-continuous, ‘have’ takes the forms ‘has/have’ based on the subject.
 In the past perfect-continuous, ‘have’ takes the forms ‘had’ for all types subject.
 In the future perfect-continuous, the modal auxiliary verb ‘will’ is added before ‘have’ in base
form, and then ‘been’ and the main verb in present participle form follows.
 2—66

The Present Perfect-continuous

 The present perfect-continuous tense-aspect describes actions that have happened before
the moment of speaking/writing and are still happening at that moment.

Formation of the Present Perfect-continuous

subject + have/has been + verb present participle form

1. When the subject is plural or the pronoun ‘I’, the auxiliary verbs ‘have’ and ‘been’ precedes
the main verb in present participle form:
‘I have been falling for 30 minutes’
‘We have been waiting for you’
2. When the subject is singular, the auxiliary verbs ‘has’ and ‘been’ precedes the main verb in
present participle form:
‘She has been teaching for 33 years’
‘He has been smiling for a whole minute’
3. For long-lasting events that have happened before the moment of speaking/writing and are
still happening, we can use either the present perfect or the present perfect-continuous:

‘I have lived here since 2004’

‘I have been living here since 2004’

‘My supervisor has worked in this company for 20 years’

‘My supervisor has been working in this company for 20 years’
 2—67

Negative Clause
 The negative adverb ‘not’ is added between ‘have’ and ‘been’.
However, in reality, the present perfect-continuous is not often used in negative clauses
because the same idea can be expressed more conveniently with either the present perfect or
the present continuous, for example:
‘I have not been writing anything lately’
 ‘I have not written anything lately’
 ‘I am not writing anything lately’

Question
 The auxiliary verb ‘have’ precedes the subject, and then ‘been’ and the main verb follows:
‘Have you been working here?’
‘Has he been running the whole day?’
 If the question is formed with an interrogative pronoun, the interrogative pronoun appears
at the beginning of the question:
‘How long have you been sitting here?’
‘Where has he been working?’

The Present Perfect-Continuous Cheat Sheet

subject verb
Positive singular subject has been + verb present participle
clause plural subject have been + verb present participle

Interrogative (wh-word) + has/have + subject + been + verb present

clause participle …?
 2—68

The Past Perfect-continuous

 The past perfect-continuous tense-aspect describes actions that had happened before a
specified point in the past and were still happening at that point.

Formation of the Past Perfect-continuous

subject + had been + verb present participle form

 The past perfect uses the combination ‘had been’ as the auxiliary verbs with the main verb
in present participle form for all types of subjects:
‘They had been working for three years until 2023’
‘He had been cleaning the room when the rain began’
‘I was sweating because I had been exercising’

Negative Clause
 The negative adverb ‘not’ is added between ‘had’ and ‘been’.
However, in reality, the past perfect-continuous is not often used in negative clauses because
the same idea can be expressed more conveniently with the past continuous, for example:
‘I had not been working when she smiled at me’
 ‘I was not working when she smiled at me’

Question
 The modal verb ‘had’ precedes the subject, and then ‘been’ and the main verb follows. If the
question is formed with an interrogative pronoun, the interrogative pronoun appears at the
beginning of the question.
 However, in reality, the past perfect-continuous is not often used in questions because the
same idea can be expressed more conveniently with either the past perfect or the past
continuous, for example:
‘Had they been working there in 2001?’
 ‘Had they worked there in 2001?’
 ‘Were they working there in 2001?’
 In case of inquiries about a period of time, the past perfect-continuous may be used in a
question with the interrogative phrase ‘how long’, for example:
‘How long had you been working for that company by 2023?’
 2—69

The Past Perfect-Continuous Cheat Sheet

subject verb
Positive
subject had been + verb present participle
clause

Negative
subject Had been + verb present participle
clause

Question (wh-word) + had + subject + been + verb present participle…?

 2—70

The Future Perfect-continuous

 The future perfect-continuous tense-aspect describes actions that will have happened
before a specified point in the future and will still be happening at that point.

Formation of the Future Perfect-continuous

subject + will have been + verb present participle form

 In the future perfect-continuous, the modal auxiliary verb ‘will’ precedes the auxiliary verbs
‘have’ and ‘been’, and the main verb in present participle form follows for all types of
subjects:
‘The intern will have been working here for 3 months by December’
‘We will have been living in this city for 4 years by the end of this year’

Negative Clause and Questions

In reality, the future perfect-continuous is not often used in negative clauses and questions
because of the inconvenience of its structure.
 2—71

Common Tenses and Tense-aspects for Daily

Use
The tenses and tense-aspects that are most frequently used in real life are:
1. The simple present
2. The simple past
3. The simple future
4. The present continuous
5. The present perfect
 2—72

Formation of Verb Phrase

Most verbs are inherently incomplete in their meanings. To fully express an idea, a verb often
need to form a verb phrase with other words.
Similar to other classes of grammatical phrases, a verb phrase is formed with a verb as the main
word and other supporting words that modify the main verb.

Except for auxiliary verbs, the modifiers of a verb phrase are called complements instead of
modifier, because they complement the meaning of the verb; but complement is just a different
name for modifier, so there is nothing to worry about.

A verb phrase can have four types of complements:

1. The object
2. The infinitive and gerund complement
3. The subject complement
4. The adverb complement
 2—73

The Object
In the previous chapter, we learned that action verbs denote actions that direct outward and
interact with the world. Due to this characteristic, many action verbs must form a phrase with
a target to direct the action to, for example:

‘We study math’

We study math
main
object
verb
subject
verb phrase
predicate

The noun ‘math’ receives the action and completes the meaning of the verb ‘study’. The
grammatical role of ‘math’ is called the object.

 To reiterate, the object is a noun phrase that completes the meaning of the main verb by
receiving the action. Verbs that require objects are called transitive verbs.

However, please note that:

1. Not all verbs in English require an object to complete their meanings; verbs that do not
require an object are called intransitive verbs, such as ‘run’ or ‘arrive’. Both transitive verbs
and intransitive verbs fall under the category of action verbs.

2. Some verbs can be both intransitive and transitive, such as ‘read’:

‘Sasha reads’ (intransitive)

‘Sasha reads The Little Prince’ (transitive)

 2—74

Clausal Object
Declaring verbs (such as ‘promise’, ‘suggest’, ‘confess’, ‘explain’, and ‘claim’) and verb denoting
mental activities (such as ‘think’, and ‘reckon’) can have a that-clause — a clause that begins with
the subordinating conjunction ‘that’ — as their object, for example:
‘They suggest that we prepare for the exam’
‘I think that oranges are delicious’
‘We believe that you are competent’

 In this function, we can omit the conjunction ‘that’:

‘I think  oranges are delicious’

‘We believe  you are competent’

Gerund Object
Some verbs can have a gerund as the object, for example:
(the verb is underlined, and its object is in bold)

‘I like running’

 Since a gerund is a verb in present participle form, it can form its own verb phrase:
‘I like drinking juice’
‘I prefer cooking my meal’
‘I try playing the drums’
 2—75

Prepositional Object
For most verbs that require an object, the object directly follows the verb. However, some
verbs idiomatically require a preposition before the object. In this case, we can regard the
whole prepositional phrase as the object, or we can regard the preposition as an extension of
the verb, for example:

‘I hope for a Christmas present’

‘They think of the dinner’

‘They think about the dinner’

‘We agree with the plan’

‘He cares about your wellbeing’

Additionally, there are some adjectives that can also take prepositional objects to complete
their meanings, for example:

 The adjective ‘proud’ often has a prepositional object with ‘of’ to complete its meaning:
‘We are proud of you’

 The adjective ‘afraid’ can have a prepositional object with ‘of’:

‘He is not afraid of crowded places’

 The adjective ‘eager’ can have a prepositional object with ‘for’:

‘I am eager for the movie’

 2—76

Ditransitive Verb
Some transitive verbs require two objects; they are called ditransitive verbs (‘give’ and ‘send’ are
the most notable). A ditransitive verb can have a direct object and an indirect object.

The indirect object appears before the direct object, for example:

‘I sent my friend a letter’

I sent my friend a letter

main verb indirect direct
subject (ditransitive) object object
verb phrase/predicate
The indirect object receives the direct object, and the direct object receives the action.

 The indirect object can appear in form of a prepositional object with the preposition ‘to’:
I send a letter to my friend
indirect
direct
main verb prepositional
subject object
object
verb phrase/predicate

 Some ditransitive verbs have the direct object idiomatically expressed as a prepositional
object, such as ‘prevent’ and ‘stop’:
(the direct object is bold, and the indirect object is underlined)
‘The umbrella prevented us from getting wet.’
‘She successfully stopped the cats from eating our dinner.’
 2—77

A Few More Objects, Please

When a transitive verb has only one object, the object is understood to be the direct object,
for example:
‘They sell books’
 But by using a coordinating conjunction of additive, such as ‘and’, a transitive verb can have
more than one direct object, for example:
‘They sell books and newspapers’ (both ‘books’ and ‘newspaper’ are direct objects)
 Similarly, by using a coordinating conjunction, a ditransitive verb can have more than one
direct object and more than one indirect object, for example:
(the direct object is bold, and the indirect object is underlined)
‘I send Joe a letter and Carol a postcard’

‘I send Joe a letter and a book’

‘I send Joe and Carol a letter and a book’

 2—78

The Object Complement

The object complement is the expression that follows and describe the object of a
transitive verb. The object complement is often composed of nouns, adjectives, or verbs.

1. Verbs that denote preference (such as ‘like’ or ‘prefer’), and attributes (such as ‘make’, ‘paint’,
or ‘consider’) often have object complements:

(the object is underlined, and the object complement is in bold)

‘I like my coffee black’

‘I prefer my steak well-done’

‘Flowers make her happy’

‘I consider him my soulmate’

2. Some verbs such as ‘want’, ‘need’, ‘force’ can have an infinitive as the object complement:
‘They want you to stay’
‘We need him to play the bass’
‘The storm forces me to stay indoors’
3. Some verbs such as ‘help’, ‘make’, ‘hear’, and other perceptive verbs can have a verb in base
form as the object complement:
‘She helps him prepare for the exam’
‘The band makes me jump through the air’
‘We heard the birds sing’
 2—79

The Infinitive and Gerund Complement

Many verbs can be complemented by another verb. In most situations, the verb that functions
as the complement is in either the infinitive form (to + verb) or present participle form (gerund).
1. Many verbs can be complemented by an infinitive, for example:
(the verb is underlined, and its infinitive complement is in bold)
‘I try to understand the lesson’
‘We stopped to buy some milk’
‘They choose to smile’
‘The students decided to play basketball’
‘They want to dance’
‘We need to take responsibility’
2. Some verbs, such as ‘go’ and ‘stop’, can be complemented by a gerund. In this function, the
gerund can be called the gerund complement, for example:
‘We often go swimming at the weekend’
‘I stopped smoking some time ago’
3. The verb ‘help’ can be complemented by a verb in base form, if the verb is followed by an
object. In this case, we can just call that verb the complement, for example:
‘Public transports help alleviate traffic congestion.’
‘Green areas help reduce air pollution.’
 2—80

The Subject Complement

The subject complement only appears when the main verb is a copula verb.

A copula verb assigns its subject with characteristics, titles, roles, locations, or attaches its
subject with a state of being.

 To achieve these tasks a copula verb must be complemented by nouns, adjectives, or

prepositional phrases. These complements of copula verbs are called the subject complement
because they complement the subject via the copula verb, for example:

‘We feel happy’ (the verb ‘feel’ links the state ‘happy’ to the subject ‘we’)

You are kind and polite (the verb ‘are’ links the subject ‘you’ to the characteristics ‘kind’ and
‘polite’)

She is an engineer (the verb ‘is’ links the subject ‘she’ to the title ‘an engineer’)

Joe is my friend (the verb ‘is’ links the subject ‘Joe’ to the role ‘my friend’)

They are in the garden (the verb ‘are’ links the subject ‘they’ to the location ‘in the garden’)

He looks healthy (the verb ‘look’ links the subject ‘he’ to the state ‘healthy’)

This salad tastes delicious (the verb ‘taste’ links the subject ‘this salad’ to the state ‘delicious’)

 A prepositional phrase of ‘to + verb’ (an infinitive) can function as the subject complement to
specify the purpose or duty of the subject, for example:

‘My job is to do the laundry’

‘We are to stay here until the sun sets’

 2—81

The Adverb Complement

Adverbs as Adverb Complement
The adverb complement is the name for the grammatical function of adverbs in a clause. The
adverb complement provide additional context and information about the action. There can be
more than one adverb complement in a verb phrase.

1. Adverbs of frequency appear after the verb ‘be’, but before any other verbs:

‘The birds are often there’

‘We usually study math’

2. Adverbs of time can appear at the beginning of a clause or at the end of the verb phrase:

‘Today we will study math’

‘We will study math today’

3. Adverbs of direction appear after the verb or at the end of the verb phrase:

‘They stepped forward’

‘We need to go out’

4. Adverbs of location often appear at the end of the verb phrase:

‘We study math here’

‘They play badminton outdoors’

5. Adverbs of manner often appear before the verb, but they can also appear at the end of the
verb phrase:

‘We happily study math’

‘We study math happily’

Please note that adverbs of manner can only modify action verbs, not copula verbs.

6. Conjunctive adverbs and adverbs of attitude can appear at the beginning of a clause or at the
beginning of the predicate, after the subject; or, less commonly, at the end of the clause.
Additionally, conjunctive adverbs and adverbs of attitude are marked by commas:

‘Fortunately, we bring an umbrella.’

‘The literature teacher comes in. She, however, teaches us math.’

‘It rained, and we forgot to bring an umbrella, unfortunately.’

 2—82

Prepositional Phrase as Adverb Complement

Besides adverbs, any other constructions that denote similar meanings to adverbs can also
function as the adverb complement. Such constructions can be called adverbial phrases.

The prepositional phrase is one of the most common constructions that can function as the
adverb complement, besides adverbs.

When a prepositional phrase functions as the adverb complement, it can appear at the
beginning of a clause or at the end of the verb phrase. If a prepositional phrase appears at the
beginning of a clause, it is marked by commas.

1. Prepositional phrases can denote the time of the action:

‘We study math in the morning’

‘In the morning, we study math’

2. Prepositional phrases can denote the location of the action:

‘We study math in school’

‘In school, we study math’

3. Prepositional phrases can denote the manner of the action:

‘With pens and paper, we study math’

‘I walk in the rain by using an umbrella’

4. Prepositional phrases can denote the purpose of the action:

We study math for the test

For the test, we study math

5. Prepositional phrases of ‘from’ can denote the source of the action:

‘We come from Brazil’
‘My friends and I watched the firework from the balcony’
 2—83

Prepositional phrase of ‘To’

‘To’ is an exceptionally flexible preposition. Prepositional phrases of ‘to’ are used in many
different situations. In this section, we will look at their most common usages as the adverb
complement.
1. A prepositional phrase of ‘to + noun’ can denote the direction of the action; it often follows
a verb of movement, such as ‘go’, or ‘travel’, for example:
‘We go to the supermarket’

‘They travelled to another continent’

2. A prepositional phrase of ‘to + noun’ can also denote a reciprocal relationship between two
elements. These two elements can be a noun and another noun, or an adjective and a noun,
for example:
‘His goldfish is everything to him’
‘That gift is important to Joe’
3. A prepositional phrase of ‘to + noun’ can also identify a person or a thing affected by an
adjective, for example:
‘They were friendly to me’
‘She is polite to everyone’
4. A prepositional phrase of ‘compared to + noun’ can be employed to compare two elements,
for example:
‘The weather today is more pleasant compared to yesterday’
‘The new product sells better compared to the old one’
5. A prepositional phrase of ‘to + verb in base form’ (an infinitive) can denote the purpose of
the action, for example:

‘We study math to graduate’

‘To graduate, we study math’

6. When a clause has an adjective as the subject complement, an infinitive can be employed to
denote the source of that adjective, for example:
‘I am happy to help’ (the feeling ‘happy’ comes from the action ‘help’)
‘He will be glad to see you’ (the feeling ‘glad’ comes from the action ‘see you’)
 2—84

Difference between a prepositional phrase as the object and a

prepositional phrase as the adverb complement
 In the section about the object, we learned that a prepositional phrase can be the object of
a verb.
 In this section, we learned that a prepositional phrase can be the adverb complement of a
verb.
Now, if we see a prepositional phrase in a clause, how can we tell whether it is the object or
the adverb complement? Let us consider these two examples:
1) ‘They agree with the plan’ (prepositional object)
The object receives the action. In this example, we can see that ‘the plan’ receives the action
‘agree’ through the preposition ‘with’.
2) ‘We study math with pencils and paper’ (adverb complement)
The nouns ‘pencils’ and ‘paper’ do not receive the action ‘study’; rather, they provide information
about the manner in which ‘study’ is conducted. Therefore, the prepositional phrase ‘with pencils
and paper’ functions as the adverb complement in this clause.
 Furthermore, as the object, a prepositional phrase must follow the verb, while as the adverb
complement, a prepositional phrase can be placed either at the beginning or at the end of
the clause.
 2—85

Participle Modifier as Adverb Complement

Verbs in present participle and past participle forms can also function as an adverb complement;
they are called participle modifiers in this function. A participle modifier provides context about
the time, the manner, or the reason for the main verb.
In this section, we will examine verbs in present participle forms as participle modifiers.
Participle modifiers of verbs in past participle forms will be examined in the chapter about the
passive voice.
Since a participle modifier is a verb, it can form a verb phrase on its own.
 A participle modifier often appears at the beginning of the clause. The subject of the clause
is understood to be the subject of the participle modifier, for example:
‘Walking down the street, Joe enjoys the sunshine’ (‘Joe’ is understood to be the subject of
‘walking’)
‘Using a laptop, we edit our assignment’ (‘we’ is understood to be the subject of ‘using’)
‘Coming from my best friend, this gift is important’ (‘this gift’ is understood to be the subject of
‘coming from’)
 2—86

Participle Modifier of Time

Participle modifiers can provide the time of the main verb, for example:
(the participle modifier is in bold, and its implied subject is underlined)
‘Walking down the street, Joe enjoys the sunshine’
‘Coming home, we prepare our dinner’
‘Studying algebra, I often make mistakes’
 Participle modifiers that provide the time of the main verb can be turned into prepositional
phrases that denote time, for example:
‘Walking down the street, Joe enjoys the sunshine’
 ‘While walking down the street, Joe enjoys the sunshine’
‘Coming home, we prepare our dinner’
 ‘After coming home, we prepare our dinner’
‘Studying algebra, I often make mistakes’
 ‘When studying algebra, I often make mistakes’
 2—87

Participle Modifier of Manner

Participle modifiers can describe the manner of the main verb, for example:
‘Using an umbrella, Joe walks in the rain’
‘Using a laptop, we edit our assignment’
‘Driving a car, they go fishing’
 Participle modifiers that describe the manner of the main verb can be turn into a
prepositional phrase by using the prepositions ‘by’:
‘Using a laptop, we edit our assignment’
 ‘By using a laptop, we edit our assignment’
‘Driving a car, they go fishing’
 ‘By driving a car, they go fishing’

 If the participle modifier is ‘using + object’, it can be turned into a prepositional phrase of
‘with + object’, for example:
‘Using an umbrella, Joe walks in the rain’
 ‘With an umbrella, Joe walks in the rain’
‘Using a laptop, we edit our assignment’
 ‘With a laptop, we edit our assignment’

 However, not all prepositional phrases of ‘with + object’ can be turned into a participle
modifier of ‘using + object’, for example:
‘With my dictionary, I travel to the beach’ cannot be turned into ‘Using my dictionary, I travel to the
beach’
 2—88

Participle Modifier at the End of the Clause

Participle modifiers that can be turned into prepositional phrases can appear at the end of the
clause, for example:
‘Walking down the street, Joe enjoys the sunshine’
 ‘Joe enjoys the sunshine walking down the street’
‘Staring at the night sky, we talk about the stars’
 ‘We talk about the stars staring at the night sky’
‘Using an umbrella, Joe walks in the rain’
 ‘Joe walks in the rain using an umbrella’
‘Driving a car, they go fishing’
 ‘They go fishing driving a car’
However, to avoid potential confusion, participle modifiers should be placed at the beginning of
the clause.
 2—89

Participle Modifier of Reason

Participle modifiers can provide the reason for the main verb. This type of participle modifier
can be paraphrased into a clause with the subordinating conjunction ‘because’, for example:
‘Coming from my best friend, this gift is important’
 ‘This gift is important because it comes from my best friend’
‘Listening to the weather forecast, Joe brings an umbrella’
 ‘Joe brings an umbrella because he listens to the weather forecast’
‘Being a student, I do homework daily’
 ‘I do homework daily because I am a student’

Participle Modifier in the Perfect Aspect

Using ‘have’ as the auxiliary verb, we can add the perfect aspect to the verb functioning as a
participle modifier. The perfect aspect implies that the action has happened before the moment
of speaking or writing, for example:
‘Having watched the new movie, he walked out of the cinema with newfound inspiration.’
In this case, the auxiliary verb ‘have’ takes the present participle form, and the participle
modifier takes the past participle form to conform with the perfect aspect. However, please
note that this is still a participle modifier of a verb in present participle form, not a participle
modifier of a verb in past participle form.
 A participle modifier in the perfect aspect can be paraphrased into a clause in the perfect
tense-aspect, for example:
‘Because Joe has watched the new movie, he walked out of the cinema with newfound
inspiration.’
 2—90

Dangling Modifier
Sometimes, the subject of the main clause is not the implied subject of the participle modifier,
for example:
‘Going to work, my cat always meows at me’
 In this example, the implied subject of ‘going to work’ is ‘me’ instead of ‘my cat’, because we
can assume that a cat does not go to work.
It is good practice to ensure that the subject of the clause is also the implied subject of the
participle modifier. This prevents the participle modifier from becoming a dangling modifier.
A dangling modifier is a participle modifier without an implied subject, or its implied
subject is unambiguous. When creating a participle modifier, we must ensure that it is not a
dangling modifier.
1. A dangling modifier without a subject:
‘Looking out the window, the sun is shining’
In this example, ‘the sun’ is the subject of the clause, but it cannot be the implied subject of
‘looking’ because ‘the sun’ does not have a visual perceptive organ, as far as we know.
Rather, ‘looking’ is the action of the narrator. Therefore, to fix this dangling modifier, we must
include the narrator in the clause:
‘Looking out the window, I see that the sun is shining’ (acceptable participle modifier)

2. A dangling modifier with an ambiguous subject:

‘Waking up in the morning, my cat meows at me for food.’
In this example, both the subject ‘my cat’ and the object ‘me’ are capable of ‘waking up in the
morning’, so the reader/listener cannot be sure which one is the implied subject of the participle
modifier. In cases like this, the sentence should be paraphrased to avoid confusion, for example:
‘When I wake up in the morning, my cat meows at me for food.’
‘When my cat wakes up in the morning, it meows at me for food.’
‘When my cat and I wake up in the morning, it meows at me for food.’
 2—91

3. A prepositional phrase as the adverb complement can also be a dangling modifier, for
example:
‘At the age of 8, my family finally adopted a dog’
In this example, the prepositional phrase ‘at the age of 8’ should attach to the narrator, but
since the narrator is not mentioned in the clause, the prepositional phrase is confusingly
attached to ‘my family’ instead. This sentence should be paraphrased to avoid confusion:
‘When I was at the age of 8, my family finally adopted a dog’

Absolute Clause
The absolute clause (also called the nominative absolute, the absolute construction, or the absolute)
is a participle modifier with its own subject, for example:
‘The sun shining, I go out for a walk’
‘The song being loud, we turn down the volume’
‘The weather being unpredictable, I always bring an umbrella’
To avoid creating a dangling modifier, we can use an absolute clause instead. Additionally, we
can always paraphrase an absolute clause into a convenient clause:
‘The sun shining, I went out for a walk.’
 ‘When the sun was shining, I go out for a walk.’
‘The song being loud, we turned down the volume.’
 ‘Because the song was loud, we turned down the volume.’
‘The weather being unpredictable, I always bring an umbrella.’
 ‘Because the weather is unpredictable, I always bring an umbrella.’
 2—92

Predicate with More Than One Main Verb

 The predicate of a clause can contain more than one main verb. These verbs are connected
by a coordinator conjunction, for example:
‘He watered the tree and fed the cat this morning.’
He watered the tree and fed the cat this morning
main coordinator main adverb
object object
subject verb 1 conjunction verb 2 complement
predicate

This clause has two main verbs, ‘watered’ and ‘fed’; each main verb has its own object, but they
both shares the same adverb complement ‘this morning’.
 However, when two or more main verbs are in different tenses/tense-aspects, we should
separate them into different clauses for clarity:
‘He has watered the tree, and he will feed the cat this evening.’
He has watered the tree, and he will feed the cat this evening
coordinator
clause 1 clause 2
conjunction
 2—93

Verb Phrase and Phrasal Verb

In English, there exist verb phrases and phrasal verbs.
 A verb phrase is formed when a verb is complemented by complements, such as the object
or the adverb complement.
 A phrasal verb is the phenomenon where a verb is idiomatically used together with one or
more prepositions to express a specific meaning, for example:
Phrasal verb Meaning Example
place, install, or establish
‘Set up’ ‘The working desk was set up this morning.’
something
‘The city’s charms boil down to its coastline and
‘Boil down to’ be summarized as
cuisine.’

 The meaning that a phrasal verb expresses is idiomatic; it may not be directly related to
the original meanings of the composing verb and prepositions. A phrasal verb functions as
one linguistic unit, although it is composed of more than one word.
 Phrasal verbs can be used in formal speech to showcase a native and natural use of English,
but in formal writing, precise and technical vocabulary should be opted for.

Phrasal Verb and Verb with Prepositional Adverb Complement

Verbs can be complemented by prepositions that function as the adverb complement, for
example:
‘They went out a few minutes ago.’
In this example, ‘went out’ is not a phrasal verb, but a verb phrase formed with the verb ‘went’
(past form of ‘go’) and the preposition ‘out’, which functions as the adverb complement. ‘Went
out’ expresses a combined meaning of ‘went’ and ‘out’.

Phrasal Verb and Verb with Prepositional Object

Some verbs, such as ‘care’ or ‘think’, idiomatically express their object with a preposition. These
verbs, however, are not phrasal verbs, because the prepositions only appear with the object,
and such verbs express the same meanings with or without the preposition, for example:
‘He cares about your wellbeing.’
‘He may seem indifferent, but he does care.’
‘She must be thinking about the weekend.’
‘I do not often think when I run.’
 3—94

Chapter 3
Modal Verbs
Introduction to Modal Verb
Modal verbs, or modal auxiliary verbs are a group of special auxiliary verbs which expresses
modalities, that is, the speaker or writer’s attitude toward the possibility, necessity, ability, or permission
of the action.
In modern English, there are six main modal verbs: can, may, will, should, must, and ought to.

 Modal verbs are used in a clause with the structure:

Modal verb + main verb in base form
Modal verbs need to be accompanied by a main verb to complete their meanings, but they also
contribute modalities to the meaning of the verb phrase:
Modal verb
Modal meaning
base form/past form
can/could express abilities or permission
may/might express possibilities or permission
should express necessities and possibilities
must express necessities and possibilities
will/would express future possibilities
ought to express necessities and possibilities
 3—95

Tense of Modal Verb

Modal verbs are defective, which means they do not possess all the verb forms like other verbs.
Although ‘can’, may’, and ‘will’ have past forms of ‘could’, ‘might, and ‘would’, respectively; ‘should’,
‘must’, and ‘ought’ do not, and none of them have present singular or present participle form.
However, modal verbs can express the continuous, perfect, and perfect-continuous aspects by using
their respective structures. Additionally, some modal verbs express modified meanings when
they are used in certain aspects.

 Modal verbs expressing the continuous aspect:

‘modal verb + be + main verb in present participle form’

 Modal verbs expressing the perfect aspect:

‘modal verb + have + main verb in past participle form’

 Modal verb expressing the perfect-continuous aspect:

‘modal verb + have been + main verb in present participle form’
Except with ‘will’, whose use is attributed to the future tense, a clause formed with any other
modal verbs does not belong to the convenient tenses and tense-aspects of English. Such a
clause is referred to as a clause expressing modalities in the present or in the past.
 3—96

Modal Verb in Detail

‘Can’ and ‘Could’
1) ‘Can’, and its past form ‘could’, express abilities and permission:
‘A computer can perform various tasks’ (expressing the ability of a computer)
‘Can I use your soundtrack for my YouTube video?’ (asking for permission)
2) ‘Could’ is used when describing abilities in the past:
‘My old motorbike could start its engine in one second.’
3) You can also use ‘could’ in the present, especially when asking for permission or making a
request, to express politeness or tentativeness, for example:
‘Could I use your artwork as the wallpaper of my laptop?’
‘Could you take a photograph for me?’
This use of ‘could’ relates to the conditional mood, a grammatical notion that we will study in the
upcoming chapter
4) We can use ‘can’ in the continuous aspect to emphasize that the action can be happening at
a specific point in time:
‘We can be preparing for the exam now instead of playing video games’
‘He could be running at 6am yesterday.’
5) The perfect aspect ‘could have’ is used to express a hypothetical of a past situation, with the
implication that the expressed action had the ability to happen, but did not happen in reality:
‘He could have bought milk yesterday’ implies ‘He had the ability to buy milk
yesterday, but he did not’.
 3—97

‘May’ and ‘Might’

1) ‘May’ and ‘might’ express possibilities and permission. Although ‘might’ is the past form of
‘may’, in modern English, it is also use for present expressions.
‘It may be a hot day today’ (expressing possibilities)
‘Might I visit you at the weekend?’ (asking for permission)
Similarly to ‘could’, we use ‘might’ to express tentativeness or politeness when asking for
permission or making a request.
2) We can combine ‘may’ with the continuous aspect to emphasize that the action may be
happening at a specific point in time:
‘He may be studying now’

 However, only with ‘may’ that we can combine ‘may be’ into ‘maybe’ and use it as an adverb:
‘Maybe he is studying now’
3) To express possibilities in the past, we use ‘might’ with the perfect aspect. Unlike ‘could have’,
‘might have’ does not imply that the expressed action did not happen in reality:
‘He might have bought milk yesterday’ can mean any of these statements:
a. He bought milk yesterday.
b. He did not buy milk yesterday.
 3—98

‘Should’
1) ‘Should’ expresses the necessity of an action in the present. It is often employed when giving
or asking for advice:
‘Everyone should recycle plastic items’
‘Should I bring her flowers or chocolate?’
2) The continuous aspect ‘should be’ can be used to emphasize the continuity of the action:
‘You should be sleeping instead of playing video games’
3) ‘Should’ and ‘should be’ are also used to deduce a situation in the present or in the future:
‘At this rate the project should finish in three weeks’
‘Joe should be at school now because it is Monday’
4) The perfect aspect ‘should have’ is used to express regret over a past event:
‘We should have brought an umbrella’ implies ‘we did not bring an umbrella, and now it is raining’
 3—99

‘Must’
1) ‘Must’ express the necessity of an action in the present at a higher degree than ‘should’. It is
often used to express obligations:
‘You must bring your passport when travelling internationally’
2) In informal situations, we can use ‘must’ to convince someone to try something:
‘You must watch this movie’ implies ‘you should watch this movie, it is really good’
We can also say: ‘this movie is a must-watch’.
3) The continuous aspect ‘must be’ is also used to deduce a situation at the moment of speaking
or writing, with emphasis on its continuity. Using ‘must be’ instead of ‘should be’ for this
purpose expresses a higher degree of confidence on the deduction:
‘Joe must be making beef stakes because he received three kilograms of beef this morning.’

 We can also use the perfect-continuous ‘must have been’ for this purpose:
‘Joe must have been going to the gym lately because he looks slightly more muscular.’
Note that only ‘must be’ and ‘must have been’ can be used this way, not ‘must’.
4) The perfect aspect ‘must have’ can be employed to deduce a situation in the past with a high
degree of confidence:
‘The cat must have eaten my fish because her footprints are on the table’
 3—100

‘Will’ and ‘Would’

The use of ‘will’ to express future possibilities is considered the future tense and was explained in
the previous chapter. In this section, we will mainly discuss its past form ‘would’ and perfect
aspect ‘would have’.
1) ‘Would’ can express a thought, which occurred in the past, about the future.
For example, if yesterday we thought ‘I think that it will rain in the evening’, then today we say:
‘Yesterday I thought that it would rain in the evening’.
2) We can also use ‘would’ to express a desire or to make a polite offer, for example:
‘I would love to see the Sahara Desert’ (expressing a desire)

‘Would you like a pie?’ (making a polite offer)

3) The perfect aspect ‘would have’ is used to express a hypothetical of a past situation, with the
implication that the expressed action had the possibilities to happen, but did not happen in
reality:
‘We would have gone for a picnic yesterday if it had not rained.’
This use of ‘would have’ is referred to as the conditional mood, an important grammatical notion
that we will study in the upcoming chapter.
 3—101

‘Ought to’
Unlike with other modal verbs, the main verb that follows ‘ought’ is in infinitive form.
1) ‘Ought’, similar to ‘should’, express necessities, for example:
‘Everyone ought to recycle plastic items’
2) ‘Ought’, similar to ‘should’, can be employed to deduce a situation in the present or in the
future
‘At this rate the project ought to finish in three weeks’
‘Joe ought to be cooking now’
 ‘Ought’ can express the continuous aspect, but it cannot express the perfect or perfect-
continuous aspects.
 3—102

‘Shall’
‘Shall’ and ‘should’ were once the same modal verb, with ‘shall’ the present/base form and
‘should’ the past form. However, in contemporary English, the use of ‘shall’ is no longer
prevalent, and when we express necessity, ‘should’ is used.
‘Shall’ express necessity and obligation, we can think of it as a combination of ‘should’ and ‘must’.
Using ‘shall’ forces the will of the speaker/writer onto the listener/reader, similar to giving
order.
In the past, ‘shall’ was often used by a figure of authority; nowadays, we can find ‘shall’ being
used in archaic texts, most notably the Holy Bible.
The only commonly expected use of ‘shall’ in modern days is to suggest or offer in first person,
for example:
‘Shall we dance?’
‘Shall I open the window?’
 3—103

Other Expressions and Verbs with Modal

Meaning
Besides the modal verbs mentioned above, there are other verbs and verb phrases that can also
express modalities:
Verb phrases with
modal meanings Meaning
be able express abilities
be capable express abilities
want express necessities
need express necessities

1) ‘Want’ and ‘need’ are not considered modal verbs because they function as the main verb in
a clause, not as an auxiliary verb:
‘Trees need water’
‘Joe wanted some water this morning’
 When ‘want’ and ‘need’ are followed by a verb, the verb is in infinitive form, and this
infinitive functions as the infinitive complement of ‘want’ and ‘need’:
‘They need to exercise more’
They need to exercise more
adverb
main infinitive
subject complement
verb complement
(of ‘exercise’)

‘He wants to cook for her’

He wants to cook for her
adverb
main infinitive
subject complement
verb complement
(of ‘cook’)

2) ‘Be able’ and ‘be capable’ are not modal verbs because the modalities are expressed through
the adjectives ‘able’ and ‘capable’, for example:
‘He is capable of holding a game night.’
‘She is able to provide real time translation.’
 4—104

Chapter 4
Passive Voice
Introduction to Passive Voice
The passive voice is a grammatical construction that allows us to use the object of a transitive
verb as the subject of a clause.
To demonstrate, first we will examine this clause with a transitive verb and a direct object:
‘Joe feeds the cat every day.’
Joe feeds the cat every day
main adverb
subject object
verb complement

In this example, ‘Joe’ is the subject, ‘feeds’ is the action of ‘Joe’, and ‘the cat’ is the object — the
receiver of the action.
Now if we want to expression the same idea while bringing attention on the object ‘the cat’, we
can bring ‘the cat’ to the beginning of the clause and use it as the subject; however, we cannot
just say:
‘The cat feeds Joe every day.’
because now ‘feed’ is the action of ‘the cat’, while ‘Joe’ becomes the receiver of the action.
In the original clause, ‘feed’ is the action of ‘Joe’, and ‘the cat’ is the receiver of the action. To
maintain this relationship between ‘Joe’ and ‘the cat’, we must use the passive voice, that is, we
add the verb ‘be’ (in appropriate form to the tense-aspect of the clause) as an auxiliary verb
before the main verb, and we change the main verb into past participle form:
‘The cat is fed by Joe every day.’
The cat is fed by Joe every day
auxiliary adverb
subject main verb
verb complements

In this passive clause, ‘the cat’ functions as the subject and also as the receiver of the action ‘fed’.
Information about ‘Joe’, the performer of the action, is expressed through a prepositional
phrase of ‘by’; ‘by Joe’ functions as an adverb complement.
 4—105

 Please note that only transitive verbs can be in passive voice. Intransitive verbs (such as
‘arrive’, ‘live’, ‘stand’) and copula verbs cannot be in passive voice because they cannot be
followed by a grammatical object.
 4—106

Formation of the Passive Voice

All tenses and tense-aspects, including modal verbs — except for the perfect-continuous tense-
aspects, due to the awkwardness of their passive structures — can be used in passive voice.
 The passive voice expresses the continuous aspect by adding ‘being’ between the auxiliary
verb ‘be’ and the main verb, for example:
‘Climate change is being accelerated by carbon dioxide emission.’
Climate change is being accelerated by extreme carbon dioxide emission
auxiliary
subject main verb adverb complement
verbs

 The passive voice expresses the perfect aspect by adding ‘been’ between the auxiliary verb
‘be’ and the main verb, for example:
‘The Moon has been reached by humans.’
The Moon has been reached by humans
auxiliary main adverb
subject
verbs verb complement

PASSIVE VOICE CHEAT SHEET

Tense-aspects,
Passive voice formation
modal verbs

Simple present subject + am/is/are + main verb in past participle form

Simple past subject + was/were + main verb in past participle form
Simple future subject + will be + main verb in past participle form

Present continuous subject + am/is/are + being + main verb in past participle form
Past continuous subject + was/were + being + main verb in past participle form
Future continuous subject + will be + being + main verb in past participle form

Present perfect subject + have/has + been + main verb in past participle form
Past perfect subject + had + been + main verb in past participle form
Future perfect subject + will + have been + main verb in past participle form

Modal verbs subject + modal verb + be + main verb in past participle form
 4—107

Omitting Performer of the Action

In cases where the performer of the action is unspecific or unimportant to the reader/listener,
it can be omitted completely in the passive clause, for example:
‘People use a lot of plastic bags every day.’
 ‘A lot of plastic bags are used by people every day.’ (unspecific performer of the action)
‘Joe feeds the cat every day.’
 ‘The cat is fed by Joe every day.’ (the performer of the action is deemed unimportant to the
reader/listener)
 4—108

Converting Prepositional Object and Clausal

Object into Passive Voice
 In a passive clause, when the main verb has a prepositional object, the preposition is
stranded after the verb:
‘They think about dinner.’
 ‘Dinner was thought about.’ (by them)
‘I hope for a Christmas present.’
 ‘A Christmas present is hoped for.’ (by me)

 When we need to convert an active clause with a that-clause as the object into a passive
clause, these steps are taken:

1. The subject of the that-clause becomes the subject of the passive clause.
2. The main verb of the active clause is still the main verb of the passive clause (but in past
participle form).
3. The predicate of the that-clause becomes the infinitive complement of the passive
clause.
4. The subordinate coordinator ‘that’ is omitted.
For example:
‘They suggest that we prepare for the exam.’
 ‘We are suggested to prepare for the exam.’
‘They think that oranges are delicious.’
 ‘Oranges are thought to be delicious.’
 4—109

Verbs Change Their Types in Passive Voice

Some verbs, such as ‘consider’ and ‘refer’, are transitive verbs in active voice:
‘We are considering the offer.’
We are considering the offer
auxiliary main verb
subject object
verb (transitive)

‘He always refers to a dictionary when coming across a new word.’

He always refers to a dictionary when coming across a new word
adverb main verb prepositional
subject adverb complement
complement (transitive) object

 But in passive voice, they become copula verbs:

‘The wheel is considered one of the most crucial invention of humans.’
The wheel is considered one of the most crucial invention of humans
auxiliary main verb
subject subject complement
verb (copula)

‘Galileo Galilei is referred to as the father of modern science.’

Galileo Galilei is referred to as the father of modern science
auxiliary main verb
subject subject complement
verb (copula)

‘False Passive Voice’

Verbs in past participle form can be used as adjectives, and in this function, they make the
clause look similar to a passive clause. One way to distinguish is that in a construction with an
adjective, the subject actively experiences the feeling, not receive an action. For example:
‘He is interested in the park.’ (not passive voice)
‘They are excited about the movie.’ (not passive voice)
This phenomenon is sometimes referred to as the false passive voice.
 4—110

Passive Construction of ‘Have’

We can form a passive construction with the verb ‘have’, for example:
‘My car will be fixed this afternoon.’
 ‘I will have my car fixed this afternoon.’
 ‘I will have a mechanic fixed my car this afternoon.’

 In informal situations, we can also form passive constructions with the verb ‘get’, for
example:
‘My car got fixed.’
‘I will get my car fixed this afternoon.’
‘I will get a mechanic fixed my car this afternoon.’
 4—111

Passive Participle Modifier

 A participle modifier is in the passive voice when it is made from a verb in past participle
form. A passive participle modifier can be paraphrased into a passive clause, for example:
‘Drawn by the convenient modern facilities, young people are in search of a chance to settle in a
large city.’
 ‘Because young people are drawn by the convenient modern facilities, they are in
search of a chance to settle in a large city.’
‘Designed with usability and accessibility in mind, the new car has become prevalent in the
market.’
 ‘Because the new car was designed with usability and accessibility in mind, it has
become prevalent in the market.’

 There can also be passive absolute clauses, for example:

‘Lunch eaten, Joe returned to work.’
 ‘Because lunch had been eaten (by Joe), Joe returned to work.’
‘The dragon defeated, the knight rescued the princess.’
 ‘Because the dragon had been defeated (by the knight), the knight rescued the princess.’
 5—112

Chapter 5
Formation of Noun Phrase
Overview
A noun phrase can function as the subject, the object, or the subject complement in a clause.
In many cases, a noun phrase can be as simple as one noun. However, in other times, a noun
can take various pre-head and post-head modifiers to extend its meaning.
In this chapter, we will study in detail the formation of noun phrases.
 5—113

Formation of Noun Phrases

In a noun phrase, modifiers can appear before or after the main noun (the head of the phrase).
If they appear before the head, they are called pre-head modifiers, and if they appear after the
head, they are called post-head modifiers.

The grammatical structure of a noun phrase:

pre-head main noun post-head

modifier (head) modifier

 A noun phrase can have more than one noun as the main noun. When this is the case, the
main nouns are connected by a coordinating conjunction.
COMPATIBILITY OF NOUN AND MODIFIER
1. Common nouns take all pre-head modifiers and post-head modifiers.
2. Proper nouns take post-head modifiers, and pre-head modifiers that specify their professions
or roles in a specific context.
3. Most pronouns only take post-head modifiers but ‘one’ and ‘other’ can also take pre-head
modifiers.
 5—114

Pre-head Modifier
Pre-head modifiers appear before the main noun of a noun phrase. Determiners and adjectives
can function as pre-head modifiers of a noun phrase.
 If a noun is modified by both determiners and adjectives, the determiners appear before the
adjectives, for example:

the green book

determiner adjective head
pre-head modifiers (main noun)
noun phrase

We can use any number of adjectives to modify a noun, but there can only be a maximum of
two determiners in a noun phrase.
 5—115

Determiners as Pre-Head Modifiers

Determiners denote referents, quantities, and possession. In this text, they are categorized into
three types:

1. indefinite determiners
2. definite determiners
3. universal determiners

Note that many words that function as determiners can also function as pronouns, adjectives, verbs or
adverbs. Here we only discuss their use as determiners.

Indefinite Determiner
Indefinite determiners mark a noun as indefinite, that is, it is unspecified or mentioned for the
first time in the context.

‘A/an’ is the most typical indefinite determiner.

‘A/an’
 ‘A/an’ is employed to mark an unspecific singular countable noun, for example:

‘I need a pen’

‘We saw a man with long hair at the supermarket’

 ‘A’ it becomes ‘an’ if it precedes a vowel, for example:

‘An apple’, ‘an orange’, ‘an umbrella’

 ‘A/an’ is employed to refer to someone or something for the first time in the context:

‘A cat walks into a bar’

 ‘A/an’ is employed to generally refer to a class of people or things:

‘Rene Descartes was a mathematician’

‘Joe is a decent man’

‘They bought a remote-controlled toy car’

‘That is a husky dog’

 5—116

‘Other’
 ‘Other’ is employed to mark an unspecific plural noun, for example:
‘A cat walks into a bar. There were other cats in the bar’

‘That is a husky dog, but I do not know the breeds of other dogs.’
‘Another’
‘Another’ means ‘a different one’ or ‘one more’. It is employed to introduce a following item in a
set, for example:
‘Just give me another drink and then I will leave.’
(‘Another’ derives from the determiner ‘an’ and ‘other’.)
‘No’
‘No’ can precede a singular noun or an uncountable noun to signify its absence, for example:
‘No human is born without a heart’
‘He has no ill intention’
 5—117

Definite Determiner
Definite determiners mark a noun to be definite. A noun is definite if it has previously been
specified, mentioned, implied, or otherwise presumed to be familiar between the
speaker/writer and the listener/reader.

‘The’ is the most typical definite determiner.

‘The’
1. ‘The’ can go with both countable nouns and uncountable nouns:

‘The rain this morning cleared the air’

‘The books on the table are hers’

2. Certain nouns always need to be modified by ‘the’:

 Nouns that are unique in existence, for example:

‘The sun’, ‘the moon’, ‘the Sahara Desert’

 Nouns that are a group of many constituents, for example:

‘The United States of America’, ‘the United Kingdom’, ‘the Philippines’
 5—118

‘This’, ‘That’, ‘These’, ‘Those’

‘This’ and ‘that’ modify singular countable nouns or uncountable nouns.
‘These’ and ‘those’ modify plural nouns.
1. ‘This’ and ‘these’ denote a sense of closeness in space and time:
‘Air pollution causes harm to many people. This environmental issue needs to be addressed.’
‘Air pollution and water contamination cause harm to many people. These environmental issues
need to be addressed.’
‘This year has been turbulent for me’
‘These cats are extremely friendly’
2. ‘That’ and ‘those’ denote a sense of distance in space and time:
‘That cloud floats in a most peculiar way’
‘I have watched the sun rise from the surface of the sea. I have heard the sound of the waves under
the night sky full of stars. Those moments remind me how beautiful this planet is.’
3. ‘Those’ go before plural nouns that have been mentioned in the previous paragraph, but if it
is singular, ‘the’ is used instead of ‘that’:
‘Those beneficial effects mentioned above prove the necessity of doing exercise’
‘The beneficial effect mentioned above prove the necessity of doing exercise’
 5—119

Possessive Determiners: my, your, our, their, his, her, its

 Possessive determiners mark the noun they modify as a definite unit of noun because it
belongs to a specific person or entity.
Possessive determiners can modify all countable and uncountable nouns:
‘The high ground is their advantage’
‘He was struck with her fine eyes’
Such
 ‘Such’ mark the noun it modifies as a definite unit of noun because it is similar to certain
aspects mentioned previously, for example:
‘Police: “Your son kicked a cat and punched a mouse.”
Mom: “My boy will never do such things!” (‘ such things’ = kicking a cat, punching a mouse)
1. When ‘such’ modify a singular countable noun, the noun is preceded by the indefinite
determiner ‘a/an’:
‘Police: Your son kicked a cat.
Mom: My boy will never do such a thing!’
2. Another use of ‘such’ is to express appreciation to the noun it marks. In this use, ‘such’ must
be used with one or more adjectives of positive feelings or qualities, for example:
‘You are such a kind person’
‘Their cookies are such delicious desserts’
 5—120

Universal Determiner
Universal determiners can mark both indefinite and definite nouns, //or they can refer to one or
more nouns in an indefinite or definite set.
When a universal determiner modifies an indefinite noun, it directly precedes the noun.
When a universal determiner modifies a definite noun, it forms a phrase of determiners in this
structure: ‘universal determiner + ‘of’ + definite determiner + noun’. Due to the use of the
preposition ‘of’, some sources consider the universal determiner in this function a pronoun.
‘Every’, ‘Each’
1. ‘Every’ modifies a singular countable noun to emphasize that a certain aspect applies
universally to that noun:
‘Every day is a good day’
 ‘Every’ must be followed by the determiner ‘one’ when it modifies a definite noun, for
example:
‘Every one of his T-shirts is black’
However, the universal determiners ‘all’ is often used in this context instead of ‘every’:
‘All of his T-shirts are black’
2. ‘Each’ also modifies a singular countable noun to emphasize that a certain aspect applies
universally to that noun, but this aspect may vary from one noun to another, for example:
‘Each of their pets has a different name’
(‘each’ emphasizes that ‘all of their pets have a name’, but their names are different from each
other)
‘Each encounter is unique and precious’
(‘each’ emphasizes that ‘all encounters are unique and precious’, but these uniqueness and
preciousness are different from one encounter to another)
 5—121

‘Either’, ‘Neither’
1. ‘Either’ is employed to refer to exactly 2 units of a definite noun but acknowledges only one
or the other.
 ‘Neither’ is employed to refer to exactly 2 units of a definite noun but acknowledges none of
them.
 The noun phrases created by ‘either/neither’ are singular, for example:
‘Either of the meals is enough for me’ (there are two meals)
‘Neither of his friends has yet arrived’ (he has two friends)
 ‘Either way’ is an idiomatic expression in which ‘either’ directly precedes the definite noun:
‘You can take the road around the coast, or you can take the one between the mountains. Either way
leads to that homestay.’
‘He may walk, or he may take the bus; but either way, he will have his hair cut.’
2. When ‘either/neither’ refers to two different nouns, the nouns are separated by ‘or/nor’; and
in this case, ‘either…or…’ and ‘neither…nor…’ are considered pairs of correlative
conjunctions because they can connect any two phrases and clauses, not just modifying
nouns.
(correlative conjunctions are coordinating conjunctions that work in pairs)
 When ‘either…or…’ and ‘neither…nor…’ modify two nouns and form a noun phrase, the
singularity and plurality of the noun phrase are decided by the noun after ‘or/nor’, for
example:
‘Either the comics or the movie is good enough for me’
‘Neither the movie nor the comics are unattractive’
 5—122

‘Both’
‘Both’ are employed to refer to and acknowledge exactly 2 units of a definite noun; therefore, a
noun phrase formed with ‘both’ are always plural, for example:
‘Both of their cats are orange’
‘Both of the books are in English’
 When the definite noun that ‘both’ modifies inherently comes in a pair, ‘both’ directly
precedes that noun without any other determiners, for example:
‘Both of the sides of the argument have been thoroughly deliberated’
 When ‘both’ refers to two different nouns, the nouns are separated by ‘and’; and in this case,
‘both…and…’ is considered a pair of correlative conjunctions because they can connect any
two phrases and clauses, not just modifying nouns.
(correlative conjunctions are coordinating conjunctions that work in pairs)
 5—123

‘Some’, ‘Any’
‘Some’ and ‘any’ are employed to refer to a small and unspecific quantity (but more than one) of
people or things. ‘Some’ and ‘any’ can be used with both countable nouns and uncountable
nouns.
 ‘Some’ carries a more positive tone. It is often used in affirmative statements, or offers where
a positive response is expected:
‘I have some good news for you’
‘Would you like to try some of the cookies?’
 ‘Any’ carries a more neutral tone and often emphasizes the absence of something or
someone. It is often used in negative or conditional statements, or questions:
‘Please let me know if you have any problems’
‘He did not drink any of the milk’
‘Have you seen any of your teammates today?’
‘All’
‘All’ can be used with both countable and uncountable nouns to refer to a noun in general and
as a whole
‘All gold is excavated from the earth’
‘All birds are born in eggs’
‘All of the books on the shelf are for rent’
7. In informal situations, the preposition ‘of’ is needed between ‘all’ and the definite determiner
can be omitted:
‘All of the books on the shelf are for rent’
 5—124

Cardinal Number
 Cardinal numbers can be used as universal determiners, especially in units of measurement,
for example:
‘I only have 2 dollars in my pocket’
‘Two pillows are on the bed’
‘3 pounds of meat was cooked for dinner yesterday’
‘This tree is 5 feet tall’
8. If cardinal numbers modify definite nouns, the definite determiner ‘the’ precedes the
number:
‘The two t-shirts on the floor were bought secondhand’
‘The six poorest students in the class received some notebooks’
9. When cardinal numbers are employed to refer to a quantity within a group of a definite
noun, there are two situations:

a. If we want to emphasize the quantity, then the cardinal determiner follows the usual
structure of universal determiners modifying a definite noun, with the preposition ‘of’:
‘Five of the 40 students in the class are male’
‘Two of the six books on the table are in English’
b. If we want to emphasize the proportion between the quantity and the sum, we use the
prepositions ‘in’ or ‘out of’ instead of ‘of’:
‘Nine out of ten dentists recommend this toothpaste’
‘The study found out that three in five people in this city exercise daily’
 5—125

‘Fractions’, ‘Double’, ‘Triple’

1. Fractions can function as universal determiners. In this function, fractions always need to be
followed by ‘of’, even when modifying an indefinite noun.
(An indefinite noun can only be modified by a fraction if it is singular and countable. Indefinite
plural or uncountable nouns cannot be modified by fractions)
‘We can buy two-thirds of a chicken in that deli’
‘Half of the students in the class do not have a compass’
‘Three-fifths of the money came from his salary’
 The fraction ‘half’ does not need ‘of’ when it modifies an indefinite singular countable noun:
‘We can buy half a chicken in that deli’
2. ‘Double’ and ‘triple’ can function as universal determiner to modify a definite quantity (which
is often refer to as ‘the number’, ‘the amount’, ‘the cost’, ‘the price’, or ‘the money’), and they
directly precede the definite determiner without the need for ‘of’:
‘The restaurant is serving double the number of expected customers’
‘In the end, he paid triple the money initially calculated for their wedding’
3. Fractions and cardinal numbers can be modified by some adverbs of degree such as ‘nearly’,
‘around’, ‘about’, ‘almost’, and ‘approximately’ to represent a rounded quantity:
‘Approximately one-seventh of the world population lives in India’
‘Today the store sold nearly double the number of products compared to yesterday’
‘About 6,700 copies of the game were sold this morning’
4. When a fraction modifies a plural noun, it is widely accepted that the noun phrase formed is
plural. Nonetheless, American English can still acknowledge such a noun phrase to be
singular, for example:
‘Half of the players are running’ (British English, but widely accepted in American English)
‘Half of the players is running’ (American English)
 5—126

Adjectives as Pre-Head Modifiers

There are six main types of adjectives:

quantity quality opinion

various, several, copious, two, durable, dedicated, trustworthy good, bad, beautiful, comfortable
three

feeling descriptive purpose

cheerful, happy, exciting big, small, blue, wooden, round declarative, protective, industrial,
therapeutic

1. When functioning as pre-head modifiers in a noun phrase, adjectives can be strung together,
that is, they can directly follow each other without the need for comma or conjunctions, in
this order: quantity  quality/opinion/feeling  description  purpose + noun. For example:
‘two durable blue protective shoes’
2. Opinion adjectives can be divided into two subtypes:

a. General opinion adjectives, applicable to almost any nouns, for example:

good, bad, beautiful
b. Specific opinion adjectives, only applicable to specific nouns, for example:
delicious, comfortable, intelligent

 Opinion adjectives can be strung in this order: general opinion  specific opinion
e.g. a beautiful intelligent parrot
3. Descriptive adjectives can be divided into five subtypes of this order: size  age  shape 
color  origin/material/nationality. For example:
‘a small young round orange American Bobtail cat’
10. However, when we use two adjectives of the same type, they must be separated by comma
or a coordinating conjunction, for example:
‘A trustworthy, reasonable person’
‘A nutritious and delicious lunch’
 5—127

Noun as Adjective
1. Many nouns can be used as the pre-head modifiers of other nouns. In this function, they are
referred to as attributive nouns (also known as qualifying nouns, noun adjuncts, or noun
premodifiers), for example:
(the attributive noun is in bold, and the main noun is underlined)
‘Art museum’
‘Board game’
‘Chicken soup’
‘Glass window’

 Attributive nouns can directly follow each other in a longer sequence to modify a main
noun, with each added noun modifies the noun that follows it, for example:
‘A chicken soup bowl’ (‘chicken’ modifies ‘soup’, ‘chicken soup’ modifies ‘bowl’)
Alternatively, this phrase can be expressed as ‘a bowl of chicken soup’.
2. Some nouns have their own adjective versions, for example:
art (noun) – artistic (adjective)
face (noun) – facial (adjective)
vision (noun) – visual (adjective)
 A noun phrase with an attributive noun may carry a different meaning from a noun phrase
with the adjective version of that noun, for example:

• art museum: • artistic museum:

a museum that showcases artworks, such a museum that is aesthetically pleasing.
as paintings and sculptures.

• face mask: • facial mask:

a mask that people often wear to cover a a cosmetic product that is used for skin
part of their face. care.

• vision examination: • visual examination:

an examination of a person’s eyesight. an examination that is conducted visually.

 However, in some cases both forms are interchangeable, for example:

‘Cell cycle’ and ‘cellular cycle’
‘Spine cord’ and ‘spinal cord’
 5—128

Differences between attributive nouns and adjectives

 Attributive nouns do not have comparative or superlative forms. For example, the phrase
‘chickener soup’ is not grammatical.
 Attributive nouns cannot be modified by adverbs of degree. For example, the phrase ‘very
chicken soup’ is not grammatical.
 Attributive nouns cannot function as the subject complement after a copula verb. For
example, ‘the soup was delicious’ is grammatical, but ‘the soup was chicken’ is not grammatical.

Adjectives as Noun
Many adjectives can be used as nouns to indicate a collective group of people by combining with
the definite determiner ‘the’. This grammatical notion is referred to as nominalization, and the
adjective that is used as a noun is called a nominalized adjective.
Some common examples of nominalized adjectives:
 The rich = rich people
 The poor = poor people
 The homeless = homeless people
 The English = English people, people from England
These nominalized adjectives are treated as plural nouns because they indicate a group of
people.

Compound Noun
A compound noun is created when two or more words are grouped together to describe a
specific concept, for example: ‘check-in’, ‘ice cream’, and ‘lifestyle’.
As demonstrated above, a compound noun can be written in one of three ways:
• solid (‘teapot’)
• open (‘washing machine’)
• hyphenated (‘that-clause’)
The English-speaking world has not yet agreed on a concrete way to write compound nouns,
and in some cases, we can freely choose between one of the three alternatives for a compound
noun, such as ‘lifestyle’, ‘life style’, or ‘life-style’.
However, for non-native English speakers (the author of this text is one of those), checking a
compound noun on Google to see which written way is the most commonly accepted is an
effective way to conform to the language.
 5—129

Compound Adjective
Compound adjectives are mostly hyphenated to avoid confusion. To see where this confusion
may stem from, we will take a look back at the characteristics of adjectives as pre-head
modifiers.
Due to their ability to string, understanding a noun modified by multiple adjectives can be
tricky.
 The most straightforward situations are when the adjectives are of the same type, and thus,
connected by a comma or a coordinating conjunction, for example:
‘a trustworthy, reasonable person’
‘a nutritious and delicious lunch’
In these examples, we mean ‘a person who is both trustworthy and reasonable’ and ‘a lunch which is
both nutritious and delicious’; each adjective separately modifies the noun.
 When the adjectives are of different types and they are strung together, the phrase starts to
become tricky to understand, for example:
‘a low monthly fee’
‘a wrinkled blue shirt’
Although we can interpret these examples as ‘a fee which is both low and monthly’ and ‘a shirt
which is both wrinkled and blue’, these phrases are intended to be understood as ‘a monthly fee
which is low’ and ‘a blue shirt which is wrinkled’
This is the reason why there exists compound adjectives with hyphenated spelling, for example:
‘low-level clouds’
‘a well-known person’
In these examples, we do not mean ‘clouds which are low and level’ or ‘a person who is well and
known’, but we mean ‘clouds which are at a low level’ and ‘a person who is popular’. The adjectives
work together as a unit to modify the noun, and they are connected by a hyphen to avoid
confusion. Compound adjectives are also referred to as unit modifiers for this reason.
 5—130

Formation of Compound Adjectives

Anytime two or more words become a single term to describe a noun, they form a compound
adjective.
 A compound adjective can consist of two adjectives, or an adjective and a verb in
present/past participle form (which can be used as an adjective), for example:
‘Spanish-speaking’, ‘deep-fried’, ‘fast-talking’
 A compound adjective can consist of an adverb and a verb in past participle form, for
example:
‘well-played’, ‘hard-earned’
 A compound adjective can also consist of an adjective and a noun, or a noun and an
adjective for example:
‘short-term’, ‘long-term’, ‘ice-cold’, ‘sky-blue’, ‘cruelty-free’

 A compound adjective can also consist of two nouns, for example:

‘seasick’, ‘bulletproof’
 A compound adjective can also consist of a number (either cardinal or ordinal number) and
a noun, for example:
‘second-place’, ‘nineteenth-century’, ‘four-wheel’

 A compound adjective can consist of more than two words, for example:
‘28-year-old’, ‘never-seen-before’
 Although most compound adjectives are hyphenated, some of them have solid spelling, for
example:
‘undercooked’, ‘overslept’

 Many compound adjectives are formed with the prefix ‘non’ and an adjective, for example:
‘non-native’, ‘non-toxic’, ‘non-fiction’, ‘non-verbal’
 5—131

Post-head Modifiers
Post-head modifiers appear after the main noun of a noun phrase. Prepositional phrases,
appositives, and relative clauses can function as the post-head modifier in a noun phrase.

We will learn about relative clauses in the upcoming chapters, for now, let us focus on
prepositional phrases and appositive.

Prepositional Phrases as Post-head Modifier

When functioning as the post-head modifier in a noun phrase, prepositional phrases often give
information about the appearance, characteristic, location, or relationship of the main noun.

1. Prepositional phrases with the preposition ‘with’ or ‘without’ often give information about the
appearance or characteristic of the main noun:

wooden doors without keyholes

adjective noun prepositional phrase
pre-head head post-head
modifier modifier
noun phrase

2. Prepositional phrases with the preposition ‘in, ‘within’, ‘on’, or ‘at’ often give information
about the location of the main noun:

the clothes on the floor

determiner noun prepositional phrase
pre-head head post-head
modifier modifier
noun phrase
 5—132

3. Prepositional phrases with the preposition ‘to’ and ‘for’ give information about the purpose
or the direction of the main noun:

a trip to the beach

determiner noun prepositional phrase
pre-head head post-head
modifier modifier
noun phrase

apartments for rent

noun prepositional phrase
head post-head
modifier
noun phrase

4. Prepositional phrases with the preposition ‘of’ give information about the ownership or the
genitive relationship between the main noun and the noun within the prepositional phrase:

the bike of Joe

determiner noun prepositional phrase
pre-head head post-head
modifier modifier
noun phrase

the son of Joe

determiner noun prepositional phrase
pre-head head post-head
modifier modifier
noun phrase

 Prepositional phrases with ‘of’ can also be used to give additional description about the main
noun, for example:

the month of December, the season of travelers, a friend of mine, two bags of gold

This use of ‘of’ leads to the categorization of universal determiners as pronouns when they
modified a definite noun, such as: ‘some of the songs’
 5—133

Certain Adverbs as Post-head Modifier

Some adverbs of location (‘here’, ‘there’, ‘everywhere’) and of time (‘today’, ‘tonight’, ‘yesterday’,
‘tomorrow’) can also function as the post-head modifier in a noun phrase, for example:
(the main noun is in bold, and the modifiers are underlined)
‘We hope you have a good time there’
‘Does he like the atmosphere here?’
‘Laptops are used by students everywhere’

‘We have finished the work today’

‘They are preparing for the movie tonight’
‘Are you discussing our lecture yesterday?’
‘I am ready for the trip tomorrow’

Appositives as Post-head Modifier

An appositive is a noun phrase or an adjective phrase that functions as the post-head modifier
of another noun phrase. An appositive is marked by commas or em dashes, or both.

 Appositives give additional explanations or descriptions about the main noun, for example:

(the appositive is in bold, and the noun it modifies is underlined)

‘The Sun — the largest entity in our solar system, is a star’

‘Larry Page and Sergey Brin, two computer scientists and friends, founded Google’

‘I can see the sky, merciful and eternally blue.’

 The pronouns ‘something’ ‘someone’, and ‘somewhere’ can take adjectives as post-head
modifiers directly without commas, for example:

‘I want to eat something nutritious’

‘We saw someone familiar’

‘Can you take me somewhere nice?’

 5—134

Singularity and Plurality of the Subject

In English, it is important to ascertain whether the subject of a clause is singular or plural,
because the singularity or plurality of the subject affects the form of the main verb. This
relationship between the subject and the main verb is referred to as the subject-verb agreement,
one of the most essential concepts in English grammar.

Singular Subject
The subject is singular when it is composed of:
 One singular noun
 One singular noun phrase
 Two or more singular nouns or noun phrases but they are connected by a coordinating
conjunction of alternative (‘or’ is the most typical).
We will take a look at the examples of these three situations.
 5—135

1. Singular subjects of one singular noun:

‘He likes playing games’
‘Antoine de Saint-Exupery wrote the book “The Little Prince”’
2. Singular subjects of one singular noun phrase:
‘An American Bobtail cat walks into a bar’
An American Bobtail cat
determiner adjective phrase main noun
pre-head modifiers (singular)
noun phrase

‘Much air flows in from the window’

Much air
determiner
main noun
pre-head
(uncountable)
modifier
noun phrase

‘That which is done out of love is beyond good and evil’

(from the book ‘Beyond Good and Evil’ by Friedrich Nietzsche)
That which is done out of love
main noun relative clause
(singular) post-head modifier
noun phrase

3. A singular subject of two singular noun phrases connected by ‘or’:

‘A cup of tea or a bottle of milk is his choice in the morning’
A cup of tea or a bottle of milk
noun phrase coordinating noun phrase
1 conjunction 2
subject
 5—136

Plural Subject
The subject is plural when it is composed of:
 one or more plural nouns
 one or more plural noun phrases
 two or more singular nouns or noun phrases, and they are connected by a coordinating
conjunction of additive (‘and’ is the most typical).

1. Plural subjects of plural nouns:

‘We were walking when it started to rain’
‘Those are the birds of the spring’
2. Plural subjects of plural noun phrases:
‘Those clouds float in a most peculiar way’
Those clouds
determiner
main noun
pre-head
(plural)
modifier
noun phrase

‘Two days in the Sahara Desert have broadened my horizon’

Two days in the Sahara Desert

determiner prepositional phrase
main noun
pre-head
(plural) post-head modifier
modifier
noun phrase

3. Plural subjects of two singular nouns connected by ‘and’:

‘Both water and air have oxygen as their component’
‘Robert Pattinson and Loyalbones Censei are my favorite actors’
 5—137

Special Situation with Group Nouns

There are disputes about the singularity and plurality of group nouns between British English
and American English. A group noun represented a group of people or things,
such as ‘team’, ‘class’, and ‘group’.
 British English acknowledges the plurality of a group, so a group noun is considered plural:
‘The team are wearing pantaloons’ (British English)
 American English, on the other hand, treat a group as a single unit, so a group noun is
singular:
‘The team is wearing pantaloons’ (American English)
If we are in neither the United Kingdom nor the United States, then it is up to us to choose a
style more reasonable.
 5—138

Verbs in Present Participle Forms as the Subject

Verbs in present participle form can function as nouns, and they are called gerunds in this
function. Therefore, we can use gerunds as the subject.
 A subject that is composed of a gerund is treated as a singular subject, because a gerund is
considered an uncountable noun, for example:
(the subject is in bold, and the main verb is underlined)
‘Talking is necessary’
The main verb takes the present singular form ‘is’ because the action of ‘talking’ is uncountable.

 A gerund can take pre-head and post-head modifiers in the same way that a noun can:
‘Prolonged talking about myself is unnecessary’
Prolonged talking about myself is unnecessary
pre-head main noun post-head
verb phrase
modifier (gerund) modifier
noun phrase/subject predicate

 However, please note that many verbs have their own noun versions, either in present
participle form or in base form, for example:
verb gerund noun version
writing (noun):
writing:
write 1. the occupation of writing text for publication
the action of writing
2. books, stories, articles, and other written works
work (noun):
working: 1. mental or physical activities which are done to
work
the action of working achieve a result.
2. a task or tasks to be done.
play (noun):
playing:
play 1. a piece of writing which is performed by actors in a
the action of playing
theatre.

Based on the idea we want to express, we can choose between a gerund or a noun version of a
verb.
 6—139

Chapter 6
Making Comparison
Overview
There are two types of comparisons:
 comparative comparison
 superlative comparison
In this chapter, we will learn how to compare using adjectives and adverbs.
 6—140

Making Comparison with Adjective

We can make comparisons by using comparative and superlative forms of adjectives.

Comparative and Superlative Form of Adjective

1. Adjectives with one syllable have inflicted comparative and superlative forms:

Comparative form Superlative form

Base form
‘er’ ‘est’
cold colder coldest
hot hotter hottest
small smaller smallest
big bigger biggest
weak weaker weakest
strong stronger strongest

2. Adjectives with three or more syllables are paired with ‘more’ and ‘most’ to create
comparative and superlative forms:

Comparative form Superlative form

Base form
with ‘more’ with ‘most’
comfortable more comfortable most comfortable
passionate more passionate most passionate
sympathetic more sympathetic most sympathetic

Please note that ‘more’ and ‘most’ themselves are comparative and superlative forms of the
adjective ‘many’. When ‘more’ and ‘most’ are paired with adjectives, they are treated as adverbs
of intensity.
 6—141

3. Adjectives with two syllables show great variety in their comparative and superlative forms:

Those that end in ‘-ow’ or ‘-er’ have inflicted forms:

Base form Comparative form Superlative form

narrow narrower narrowest
clever cleverer cleverest

 Those that end in ‘-y’ or ‘-le’ can go both ways, for example:

Base form Comparative form Superlative form

happy happier/more happy happiest/most happy
simple simpler/more simple simplest/most simple

 Those that end in ‘-ful’, ‘-less’, ‘-ous’, ‘-al’, ‘-ive’ are paired with ‘more’ and ‘most’:

Base form Comparative form Superlative form

useful more useful most useful
useless more useless most useless
joyous more joyous most joyous
special more special most special
active more active most active

 Some adjectives have irregular comparative and superlative forms:

Base form Comparative form Superlative form

good better best
bad worse worst
far further furthest
many/much more most
few fewer fewest
little less least
 6—142

Comparative Construction of Adjective

Adjectives can function as the pre-head modifier or the post-head modifier (appositive) in a
noun phrase, or as the subject complement after a copula verb. Therefore, a comparative
construction of an adjective can be made with the adjective in one of these roles.

Subject Complement Construction

Comparative constructions are often made to compare two elements. When the comparative
adjective functions as the subject complement, these two elements are connected by the
coordinating conjunction ‘than’, for example:

(two elements of the comparison are underlined)

‘My cat is cleverer than me’

While this example is perfectly acceptable in informal and semi-formal situations, it is

considered inappropriate for formal situations. This is because ‘than’ is a coordinator
conjunction, which means it connects two elements of the same grammatical function. Let us
examine the two elements that ‘than’ connects in this example:

My cat is cleverer than me

st nd
1 element: subject 2 element:
conjunction
subject + main verb complement object

As we can see, the two elements of the comparison are not of the same grammatical function.
To create formal comparative constructions, we ought to grammatically equalize the two
elements, in this case, by ensuring that the 2nd element also contains a subject and a verb:

My cat is cleverer than I am

st nd
1 element: subject 2 element:
conjunction
subject + main verb complement subject + main verb

This comparison is formal and grammatical with two balanced elements; the two respective
main verbs share the same subject complement ‘cleverer’.
 6—143

 However, we do not need to always use an exact parallel structure for the two elements in
a comparative construction.
 For instance, if two elements of a comparison are in the same tense-aspect with ‘be’ as the
main verb, as in this example, it is grammatical to null the main verb of the second element
completely, leaving only the subject:

My cat is cleverer than I

1st subject coordinator
2nd element
element complement conjunction

 Another situation is when the two elements are only different in time or in location, we
only need to mention the time or the location of the 2nd element without needing to repeat
everything, for example:
Example a): ‘This year, the number of new students matriculating is more than last year.’
In this example:
 The 1st element is ‘the number of new students matriculating this year’
 The 2nd element is ‘the number of new students matriculating last year’
Since their only difference is the time, we only need to mention ‘last year’ as the 2nd element.
Example b): ‘The graduation rate at school A is higher than at school B.’
 The 1st element is ‘the graduation rate at school A’
 The 2nd element is ‘the graduation rate at school B’
Since their only difference is the location, we only need to mention ‘at school B’ as the 2nd
element.
 6—144

 On the other hand, when the difference between two elements is a genitive or ownership
notion, which is often denoted by the prepositional phrase ‘of…’, it is not grammatical to
mention only the prepositional phrase. For example, this construction is not grammatical:
‘The percentage of men who do housework is lower than of women.’ (not grammatical)

 In this case, we need to use a parallel structure:

‘The percentage of men who do housework is lower than the percentage of women who do
housework.’
 However, repeating word by word (unless there is no suitable alternative) is the last thing
we want to do in an English exam, especially the IELTS test, because it would reflect that
our ranges of vocabulary and grammar are limited. To avoid repetition, we should
paraphrase the 2nd element.
 In this situation, the most convenient way to paraphrase is to use the pronoun ‘that’ to
represent everything besides the preposition ‘of…’, for example:
‘The percentage of men who do housework is lower than that of women.’
We can also use synonyms to paraphrase. For example, we can paraphrase ‘the percentage of
men who do housework’ by using synonyms of ‘percentage’ and ‘housework’:
• "The proportion of men engaging in housework"
• "The share of men participating in household chores"
• "The fraction of men who perform housework"
• "The ratio of men who contribute to housework"
• "The number of men who carry out household tasks as a percentage"
 6—145

Specify the Difference

Specify a General Difference
To specify a general difference between two elements in the comparison, we can modify the
comparative adjective with certain adverbs of intensity.

 Big Difference
If the difference between two elements is big, we can modify the comparative adjective with
adverbs of degree such as: ‘significantly’, ‘considerably’, ‘remarkably’, and ‘notably’. In informal
context, the phrase ‘a lot’ and ‘much’ can also be used. For example:
‘Bill Gate is significantly richer than I will ever be’

‘The percentage of men who do housework is notably lower than that of women.’

 Alternatively, we can use the prepositional phrase ‘to a … extent/degree’, which function as
the adverb complement in the clause, to specify the difference, for example:

‘The percentage of men who do housework is lower than that of women to a notable extent.’

 Small Difference

If the difference between two elements is small, we can use adverb phrases such as: ‘slightly’,
‘moderately’, and ‘marginally’, for example:

‘The number of active users on platform A is slightly higher than that on platform B.’

 Alternatively, we can use the prepositional phrase ‘to a … extent/degree’, for example:

‘The number of active users on platform A is higher than that on Instagram to a slight degree.’
 6—146

Specify a Detail Difference

To specify a detail difference, such as a number or a unit of measurement, between two
elements in the comparison, we can directly front the comparative adjective with that number
or unit of measurement, for example:
‘The graduation rate at school A is 7 percents higher than at school B.’
 Please not that in this case, it is the number that functions as the subject complement of the
clause; the comparative adjective becomes an appositive that modifies the number, but it is
idiomatically not marked with commas.
 If the number is rounded, we can modify it with an adverb of degree such as ‘approximately’,
‘around’, ‘about’, or ‘nearly’, for example:
‘In June, the number of new students matriculating is approximately 400 more than in October.’
 6—147

Pre-head Modifier Construction

A comparative construction can be made with the comparative adjective as the pre-head
modifier of the object in the clause, for example:
‘Platform A has more users than Platform B.’
 The comparative adjective can also function as the pre-head modifier of the subject
complement in a clause with the empty subject ‘there’, for example:
‘In 2021, there was higher growth in monthly income than in 2020’
 Additionally, the 2nd element of the comparison can also be introduced with the
prepositional phrase ‘compared to…’ instead of ‘than’:
‘Platform has more users compared to platform B.’
‘In 2021, there was higher growth in monthly income compared to 2020’
 Please note that in this construction, the 2nd element does not contain a verb because it the
object or the subject complement that is being compared, not the action.

Specify the Difference

 To generally specify the difference between two elements of the comparison, we modify the
comparative adjective with a suitable adverb of degree, for example:
‘Facebook has considerably more users compared to Instagram.’
‘In 2021, there was slightly higher growth in monthly income compared to 2020’
 If the difference is a number, we directly front the comparative adjective with it.
Grammatically, this number functions as an adjective of quantity that modifies the noun
along with the comparative adjective, for example:
‘Platform A has 520,000 more users than platform B.’
 If the difference is a unit of measurement, we also directly front the comparative adjective
with it. Grammatically, this unit of measurement functions as a compound adjective of
quantity that modifies the noun along with the comparative adjective; therefore, the unit of
measurement is hyphenated, and the noun within it is always singular, for example:
‘In 2021, there was 7-percent higher growth in monthly income compared to 2020’
 6—148

Post-head Modifier Construction

We can place the comparative construction in an appositive of a noun phrase, for example:
‘University A has 6000 student enrollments, marginally fewer compared to University B.’
University A has 6000 student enrollments, marginally fewer compared to university B
main noun phrase post-head modifier
subject
verb object

‘In 2010, a person on average consumed 140 kilograms of fruit, 60 kilograms more than in 1950.’
60 kilograms more
In 2010, a person on average consumed 140 kilograms of fruit,
than in 1950.
post-head
adverb adverb main noun phrase
subject modifier
complement complement verb
object

 We can give further details about the 2nd element with a relative clause, for example:
‘University A has 6000 student enrollments, marginally fewer compared to University B, which
has 6,200 students enrolled.’
marginally fewer compared to university b, which
University A has 6000 student enrollments,
has 6,200 students enrolled.
main noun phrase post-head modifier
subject
verb object

 We can also put the comparative construction in a relative clause instead of an appositive,
for example:
‘In 2010, a person on average consumed 140 kilograms of fruit, which was 60 kilograms more
than in 1950.’
 6—149

Superlative Construction of Adjective

When adjectives are used in their superlative forms, they are preceded by the definite
determiner ‘the’:

‘This lake is the most beautiful in spring’ (compared to other seasons)

‘Dogs are the most common pet in the country.’

‘In the given data set, platform A has the greatest number of users.’

Irregular superlative expressions

We can use superlative constructions without any comparative element for emphatic purposes
in the same way that we use the adverbs of intensity ‘very’ or ‘extremely’:

‘Going against this guy is the most unfortunate’ (is very unfortunate)

‘Chatting with you is the best’ (is very good)

 In this use, if the superlative construction functions as the pre-head modifier in a noun
phrase, then it is preceded by the determiner ‘a’ instead of ‘the’:

‘I bought a prettiest shirt on that street’ (a very pretty shirt)

‘A most wonderful event happened tonight’ (a very wonderful event)

 In the context of a competition between two competitors, we can use superlative

constructions, regardless of the fact that it is a comparison between two elements where
comparative constructions should be used:

‘The audience wants the best team to win’ (instead of ‘the better team’)
 6—150

Making Comparison with Adverb

Comparative and Superlative Form of Adverb
Many adjectives can be turned into adverbs by inflicting with the suffix ‘-ly’, especially adjectives
of quality (effective  effectively), opinion (beautiful  beautifully), feeling (cheerful  cheerfully),
and purpose (industrial  industrially).

There are also many words that can function as both adjectives and adverbs without changing
their forms, for example: early, late, fast, high, low, near, far, many, few, little

These adverbs also have comparative and superlative forms, and we can use them to make
comparisons.

 Adverbs that are also adjectives have inflicted forms:

Base form Comparative form Superlative form

early earlier earliest
late later latest
fast faster fastest
high higher highest
low lower lowest
near nearer nearest
far further furthest
many/much more most
few fewer fewest
little less least

 Adverbs that end in ‘-ly’ are paired with ‘more’ and ‘most’:

Base form Comparative form Superlative form

effectively more effectively most effectively
beautifully more beautifully most beautifully
cheerfully more cheerfully most cheerfully
industrially more industrially most industrially
 6—151

Comparative Construction of Adverb

The primary function of adverbs is as the adverb complement of a verb. Therefore, when we
make comparisons with adverbs, the comparative adverb always follows the main verb. The 2nd
element of the comparison can be introduced with ‘than’ or ‘compared to’, for example:
‘A bird can fly faster and higher than a butterfly can’

‘Products from company A sold faster than those from company B did.’

‘The number of employees in industry A decreased more steeply compared to that in industry B.’

‘Plan A costs less than plan B does.’

Specify the Difference

We cannot directly specify the difference between two comparative elements when the
comparison is made with an adverb.
 However, if we add a figure as the object after the verb, then we can modify this figure with
an appositive or relative clause that contains the comparative construction and the
difference between two comparative elements, for example:
(the object is underlined)
‘Products from company A sold at the rate of 200 units per month, which is 20 units faster than
the rate at which products from company B sold.’

‘The number of employees in industry A decreased from 2,000 to 1,200, notably steeper
compared to that in industry B, which dropped from 1,900 to 1,700.’

‘Plan A costs 500 dollars, which is 60 dollars less than plan B.’
 6—152

Superlative Construction of Adverb

The superlative construction of adverbs, although can be formed, is not often used in reality.
Instead, it is often paraphrased by using other constructions.

1. When the superlative construction of adverbs is actually used for comparative purposes, it
is often paraphrased by using noun phrases:

‘Usain Bolt runs the fastest in the world’ = ‘Usain Bolt is the fastest runner in the world’

 Or by using the comparative construction with ‘any other’, ‘anything/anyone else’:

‘Usain Bolt runs faster than anyone else can’

2. The superlative construction of adverbs can be employed to emphasize on the adverb the
same way you can use of the adverbs of intensity ‘very’ or ‘extremely’:

‘She sings the most technically’ = ‘She sings very technically’

 This use is often paraphrased by using a prepositional phrase formed with the irregular
superlative expression of adjectives mentioned in the previous part:

‘She sings the most technically’ = ‘She sings in a most technical way’
 6—153

Constructions for Equal Comparison

There are three common constructions that we can use for equal comparisons.

‘Same’
As an adjective, ‘same’ can function as the pre-head modifier in a noun phrase, or as the subject
complement in a clause. Additionally, due to its meaning, ‘same’ is always fronted by the definite
determiner ‘the’, for example:
‘The dependent clause and the subordinating clause are the same thing.’ (‘same’ functions as the
pre-head modifier)

‘These two t-shirts look exactly the same.’ (‘same’ functions as the subject complement but still
fronted by ‘the’)

 The 2nd element of the comparison is placed in a prepositional phrase of ‘as’ when it is
introduced after ‘same’, for example:

‘A four-seat car has the same number of wheels as a seven-seat car.’

‘Similar’
As an adjective, ‘similar’ can function as the pre-head modifier in a noun phrase or as the subject
complement in a clause, for example:
‘Industry A and industry B experienced similar trends in development.’ (‘similar’ functions as the
pre-head modifier)

‘My experiences in high school and in university were similar.’ (‘similar’ functions as the subject
complement)

 The 2nd element of the comparison is placed in a prepositional phrase of ‘to’ when it is
introduced after ‘similar’, for example:

‘The rate of monthly wage growth in 2014 was similar to that in 2015.’

 ‘Similar to’, as a prepositional phrase, can function as the post-head modifier in a noun
phrase or as the adverb complement of a clause, for example:
‘He has a lunchbox similar to yours.’ (‘similar to’ functions as the post-head modifier)

‘His suitcase functions similar to a table.’ (‘similar to’ functions as the adverb complement)
 6—154

‘As…as…’
‘As’ is a special prepositional that can be followed with any word class. ‘As…as…’ is a structure
that we can use to make equal comparisons, for example:

‘We saw a kangaroo as tall as a man.’ (‘as…as…’ functions as the post-head modifier)

‘Activity A was as favorable in country X as in country Y.’ (‘as…as…’ functions as the subject
complement)

‘Some birds can fly as high as an airplane.’ (‘as…as…’ functions as the adverb complement)

 Additionally, ‘as…as…’ can also function as the pre-head modifier in a noun phrase to
emphasize a large quantity, for example:

‘As much as three-fourths of the area was used for apartments and shops.’ (‘as…as…’ functions
as the pre-head modifier to emphasize the quantity ‘three-fourths of the area’)
 7—155

Chapter 7
Type of Clause
Overview
In this chapter, we will study the following items:
 Two types of clauses in English: the main clause and the subordinating clause.
 How to categorize sentences by the number and the type of clauses they have.
 Special types of subordinating clauses.
The information in this will help us create grammatical sentences with complicated structures,
as well as effectively understand them.
 7—156

Main Clause
The main clause, also known as the independent clause, principal clause, or matrix clause, is a
clause that can be a sentence by itself.

Single Sentence
A sentence with one main clause is called a single sentence, for example:
‘Chess is not the oldest board game.’
Chess is not the oldest board game
main adverb
subject subject complement
verb complement
main clause

Compound Sentence
A sentence with two or more main clauses is called a compound sentence. The main clauses
in a complex sentence must be connected by a coordinating conjunction and a comma, or by a
semicolon, for example:
‘Chess is 1500 years old, and it was invented in India.’
‘Chess is 1500 years old; it was invented in India.’
Chess is 1500 years old, and it was invented in India
coordinating
main clause 1 main clause 2
conjunction

 Both of the clauses in this example are main clauses, so we can separate them into two
single sentences without compromising the original expression of the compound sentence:
‘Chess is 1500 years old. It was invented in India.’
 Fun fact: connecting two main clauses with only a comma and without a coordinating
conjunction is a grammatical error called comma splice.
 7—157

Subordinating Clause
The subordinating clause, also known as the subclause, or dependent clause, is a clause that
cannot constitute a sentence by itself due to insufficient information. Because of this, a
subordinating clause always appear alongside or inside a main clause.

Complex Sentence
A sentence with one main clause and one or more subordinating clauses is called a complex
sentence, for example:
(the subordinating clause is in bold)
‘When the printing press was invented, Euclid’s Elements was one of the first mathematic
work to be printed.’
subordinating clause main clause

If our sentence is only ‘When the printing press was invented’, the listener/reader will wonder the
reason why we use the word ‘when’ at the beginning of the sentence. Therefore, a
subordinating clause cannot be a sentence by itself.

Compound-complex Sentence
A sentence with two or more main clauses and one or more subordinating clauses is called a
compound-complex sentence, for example:
‘The phi number, commonly known as the Golden Ratio, is a special number, and it has been
researching extensively because it appears in a plethora of natural structures.’
The phi number, commonly it has been
because it appears in a plethora of
known as the Golden Ratio, and researching
natural structures
is a special number, extensively
coordinating
main clause 1 main clause 2 subordinating clause
conjunction

 We can separate this compound-complex sentence into a single sentence and a complex
sentence:
‘The phi number, commonly known as the Golden Ratio, is a special number.’ (single sentence)
‘It has been researching extensively because it appears in a plethora of natural structures.’
(complex sentence)
 7—158

Roles of the Subordinating Clause

Most of the time, the subordinating clause provides additional information to the main clause. In
some cases, the information of the subordinating clause is essential to the main clause, so that if
we remove the subordinating clause, the main clause is no longer functional due to insufficient
information.
The subordinating clause often gives information similar to the information that the adverb
complement can provide to the main clause. Therefore, we can think of the subordinating
clause as a clause that has the function of the adverb complement.
 We know a clause to be a subordinating clause when it begins with a subordinating marker.
The subordinating marker is often a subordinating conjunction, such as ‘although’, ‘because’,
‘when’, ‘where’, and ‘if’.
 The subordinating marker also informs us about the type of information that the
subordinating clause provides to the main clause, for example:
Subordinating Example
Type of information
marker/conjunction (the subordinating clause is in bold)
precondition of the main
if, unless, when If you hold my hand I will melt.
clause
because, since cause of the main clause I am not lost because I bring a map.
when, while, until,
Time or timing of the main
since, before, after, We arrived home when the rain began.
clause
as
Wherever the sun shines, people can be
where, wherever location of the main clause
happy.
He cooks how he writes, simple but
how manner of the main clause
adequate.

A subordinating clause is marked with commas when it appears before the main clause in a
sentence. When it follows the main clause, commas are not grammatically compulsory, but we
can still mark it with a comma to make it more visible, especially in a long sentence.
 7—159

Special Types of Subordinating Clause

Besides the usual roles that resemble the adverb complement, there are three special types of
subordinating clauses that function as a grammatical component in the main clause or in a noun
phrase, they are referred to as:
 Relative clause
 Free relative clause
 That-clause
These three types of subordinating clauses are also referred to as the embedded clause, because
they only appear inside a main clause. In the next sections, we will examine them with various
examples.
 7—160

Relative Clause
Overview
A relative clause is a subordinating clause that has the ability to function as the post-head
modifier in a noun phrase. A relative clause gives additional information about the noun it
modifies. The noun that a relative clause modifies is called the antecedent of the relative clause.

 The antecedent means the one before.

Subordinating marker of relative clause

A relative clause is introduced by an interrogative pronoun, therefore, the subordinating

marker of a relative clause is an interrogative pronoun. In this function, the interrogative
pronoun is called the relative word, or the relative pronoun.

Roles of the relative word

The relative word serves as the link between the relative clause and its antecedent, but it can
also represent a grammatical component in the relative clause.

Two Subtypes of Relative Clause

There are two subtypes of relative clauses:

1. Non-restrictive relative clause

A non-restrictive relative clause gives additional but non-essential information about the
antecedent noun. If we remove the non-restrictive relative clause, the sentence is still
functional.

2. Restrictive relative clause

A restrictive relative clause gives essential information about the antecedent noun. If we
remove the restrictive relative clause, the sentence is no longer functional due to insufficient
information.
 7—161

Non-Restrictive Relative Clause

A non-restrictive relative clause gives additional but non-essential information about the
antecedent noun. If we remove the non-restrictive relative clause, the sentence is still
functional.

 A non-restrictive clause is marked by commas or em dashes.

 A non-restrictive relative clause begins with the relative words ‘which’ if its antecedent is
a non-human noun.
 A non-restrictive relative clause begins with the relative word ‘who’, ‘whom’ (objective
case of ‘who’), or ‘whose’ (possessive case of ‘who’) if its antecedent is a human noun.

In this section, we will examine:

1. Various examples of non-restrictive relative clauses with the relative word in different
functions
2. The situation where a non-restrictive relative clause gives information about the
consequence or effect of the main clause
3. The short form of non-restrictive clauses
 7—162

Situation 1, the Subject

When the relative word functions as the subject of a relative clause, the antecedent is the true
subject of the relative clause. We will examine two examples of this phenomenon.

Example 1
(the relative clause is in bold, and its antecedent is underlined)

‘My math teacher, who is 28 years old, is really kind and thoughtful.’

My math teacher, who is 28 years old is really kind and thoughtful

pre-head
main noun post-head modifier main
modifier subject complement
verb
noun phrase/subject
main clause

The noun phrase ‘my math teacher’ is modified by the relative clause ‘who is 28 years old’. The
relative word ‘who’ represents the subject of the relative clause, but the true subject of the
relative clause is the noun phrase ‘my math teacher’.

who is 28 years old

main subject
subject
verb complement
non-restrictive relative clause

The information in the non-restrictive relative clause is understood to be non-essential. Thus,

in this example, ‘is 28 years old’ is non-essential information, while ‘is a really kind and thoughtful’
is essential information.

 If we want both pieces of information to be equally essential, we should separate the

sentence into two sentences:

‘My math teacher is 28 years old. She is really kind and thoughtful.’
 7—163

Example 2
‘Yesterday I bought this book, which is really interesting.’

Yesterday I bought this book, which is really interesting

pre-head
adverb main noun post-head modifier
subject modifier
complement verb
noun phrase/object
main clause

The noun phrase ‘this book’ is modified by the relative clause ‘which is really interesting’. The
relative word ‘which’ represents the subject of the relative clause, but the true subject of the
relative clause is the noun phrase ‘this book’.

which is really interesting

subject
subject main verb
complement
non-restrictive relative clause
 7—164

Short Form of Non-Restrictive Relative Clause

A relative clause with the relative word as the subject can be shortened. In its short form, a
non-restrictive relative clause is essentially an appositive.

There are two ways to shorten a relative clause:

1. If a relative clause is in the active voice, we omit the relative word and any auxiliary verb (if
there are any), then turn the main verb of the relative clause into present participle form,
for example:

‘My math teacher, who encouraged me before the exam, is really kind and thoughtful.’

 My math teacher, encouraging me before the exam, is really kind and thoughtful.

Most of the time, the active short form of a relative clause is used in a noun phrase that serves
as the description of something, for example:

Figure 1: A kitty, lying in an inconvenient manner behind a person's back.

 7—165

2. If a relative clause is in passive voice, we omit the relative word and the auxiliary verbs, then
turn its main verb into past participle form, for example:

This T-shirt, which was given to me by my friend, is really comfortable.

 This T-shirt, given to me by my friend, is really comfortable.

The passive short form of a non-restrictive relative clause does not make the sentence
awkward. Therefore, we can use it when convenient.

Fun fact:

 The act of shortening a relative clause is also known as ‘whiz deletion’.

 The term ‘whiz deletion’ is a portmanteau (a blend word) pun. It stems from the fact that
several of the relative words start with ‘wh-’ and from the ‘is’ form of ‘be’.
 7—166

Situation 2, the Object

When the main verb of a relative clause is a transitive verb, but it has no object, then the
antecedent is the object of the relative clause. We will examine three examples of this
phenomenon.

Example 1
‘This T-shirt, which I bought yesterday, is very comfortable.’

This T-shirt, which I bought yesterday, is very comfortable

pre-head
main noun post-head modifier main subject
modifier
verb complement
noun phrase/subject

The noun phrase ‘this T-shirt’ is modified by the relative clause ‘which I bought yesterday’:

which I bought yesterday

main adverb
object subject
verb complement
non-restrictive relative clause

 The main verb of the relative clause, ‘bought’, is a transitive verb, but it has no object. The
relative word ‘which’ represents the object, but the true object of ‘bought’ is the noun
phrase ‘this T-shirt’.
 7—167

Example 2
In this example, the relative word represents a prepositional object, so it is fronted by a
preposition:

‘My bed, on which my cat is sitting, is secondhand furniture’

My bed, on which my cat is sitting is secondhand furniture

pre-head main
post-head modifier main subject
modifier noun
verb complement
noun phrase/subject

The noun phrase ‘my bed’ is modified by the relative clause ‘on which my cat sleeps’. The relative
phrase ‘on which’ represents the prepositional object of the verb ‘sitting’.

on which my cat is sitting

prepositional auxiliary
subject main verb
object verb
non-restrictive relative clause

 In this example, the verb ‘sitting’ requires the preposition ‘on’ before its object, so ‘on’
appears before ‘which’ at the beginning of the relative clause. Still, the true object of the verb
‘sleep’ is the noun phrase ‘my bed’.
 In informal situations, we can strand the preposition at the end of the relative clause:

‘My bed, which my cat is sitting on, is really comfortable.’ (informal)

 7—168

Example 3
‘My math teacher, whom I admire, is really kind and thoughtful.’

My math teacher whom I admire is really kind and thoughtful

pre-head
main noun post-head modifier main
modifier subject complement
verb
noun phrase/subject
main clause

The noun phrase ‘my math teacher’ is modified by the relative clause ‘whom I admire’:

whom I admire
object subject main verb
non-restrictive relative clause

The relative word ‘whom’ represents the object of the verb ‘admire’, but the true object of
‘admire’ is the noun phrase ‘my math teacher’. The relative word takes the form ‘whom’ because
it represents a human object.
 7—169

Situation 3, the Subject Complement

When the main verb of a relative clause is a copula verb, but it has no subject complement,
then the antecedent is the subject complement of the relative clause. We will examine two
examples of this phenomenon.

Example 1
‘A cow, which a calf becomes after some time, is an important domestic animal.’

which a calf becomes after

A cow, is an important domestic animal
some time,
pre-head
main noun post-head modifier main
modifiers object
verb
noun phrase/subject

The noun phrase ‘a cow’ is modified by the relative clause:

which a calf becomes after some time

subject adverb
subject main verb
complement complement
non-restrictive relative clause

 The main verb of the relative clause, ‘becomes’, is a copula verb, but it has no subject
complement. The relative word ‘which’ represents the subject complement, but the true
subject complement of ‘becomes’ is the noun phrase ‘a cow’.
 7—170

Example 2
‘A postgraduate, who an undergraduate may become, can achieve a master’s degree or a
doctorate.’

who an undergraduate a master’s degree

A postgraduate, can achieve
may become, or a doctorate
pre-head modal
main noun post-head modifier main
modifier auxiliary object
verb
noun phrase/subject verb
main clause

The relative word ‘who’ represents the subject complement of the relative clause:

whom an undergraduate may become

subject modal auxiliary
subject main verb
complement verb
non-restrictive relative clause

However, the true subject complement of the relative cause is the noun phrase ‘a postgraduate’.
The relative word takes the form of ‘who’ when it represents the subject complement.
 7—171

Situation 4, ‘Whose’
We can also introduce a non-restrictive relative clause with the relative word ‘whose’
(possessive case of ‘who’).

Example 1:

‘My math teacher, whose hair is blonde, is really kind and thoughtful.’

The noun phrase ‘my math teacher’ is modified by the relative clause ‘whose hair is blonde’. The
relative word ‘whose’ functions as the possessive determiner of ‘hair’. Here, ‘whose hair’ means
“my math teacher’s hair”.

Example 2:

Although ‘whose’ is the possessive case of ‘who’, it can be used for non-human subjects, for
example:

‘Andrzej Sapkowski, whose works was inspired by Polish fairy tales, is famous fantasy writer.’

The noun phrase ‘Andrzej Sapkowski’ is modified by the relative clause ‘whose works was inspired
by Polish fairy tales’. The relative word ‘whose’ functions as the possessive determiner of ‘works’.
Here, ‘whose works’ means “Andrzej Sapkowski’s works”.
 7—172

Situation 5, Non-Restrictive Clause Complements a Clause

Besides modifying a noun, a non-restrictive relative clause can also complement a whole clause.
Due to this characteristic, such a relative clause can only begin with ‘which’. In this function:

1. The relative clause gives information about the consequence of the main clause.
2. The main clause is the antecedent of the relative clause.
3. The relative word can only represent the subject of the relative clause.
4. The relative clause is often shortened.

Example 1

‘The team practiced tenaciously, which gave them an edge during the game.’

an edge during the

The team practiced tenaciously, which gave them
game
main adverb main indirect
subject subject direct object
verb complement verb object
main clause non-restrictive relative clause

In this example, the relative word ‘which’ represents the subject of the relative clause. However,
the true subject of this relative clause is the main clause ‘the team practiced tenaciously’.

We can shorten this relative clause:

‘The team practiced tenaciously, giving them an edge during the game.’
 7—173

Example 2

‘Many people gather in Athen for the Olympics, which makes the city lively.’

Many people gather in Athen for the Olympics, which makes the city lively
main main object
subject adverb complements subject object
verb verb complement
main clause non-restrictive relative clause

In this example, the relative word ‘which’ represents the subject of the relative clause, but the
true subject of this relative clause is the main clause ‘many people gather in Athen for the
Olympics’.

We can shorten this relative clause:

‘Many people gather in Athen for the Olympics, making the city lively.’
 7—174

Restrictive Relative Clause

A restrictive relative clause, also known as an essential clause or an essential phrase, gives
essential information about the antecedent noun. If we remove the restrictive relative clause,
the sentence is no longer functional due to insufficient information.

The construction of a restrictive relative clause is similar to the construction of a non-

restrictive relative clause, except for these points:

 A restrictive relative clause is not marked by commas.

 A restrictive relative clause can begin with the relative word ‘that’ for both non-human
and human nouns.
 In a restrictive relative clause, we can omit the relative word when it does not function
as the subject.

In this section, we will examine various examples of restrictive relative clauses with the relative
word in different functions.
 7—175

Situation 1, the Subject

Example 1:
(the relative clause is in bold, and its antecedent is underlined):

‘The teacher that teaches me math is really kind and thoughtful’

The noun phrase ‘the teacher’ is modified by the relative clause ‘that teaches me math’. The
relative word ‘that’ represents the subject of the relative clause, but the true subject of the
relative clause is the noun phrase ‘the teacher’.

We can use the relative word ‘who’ instead of ‘that’ in this example.

Example 2
‘My cat is sitting on a sofa that was bought secondhand.’

The noun phrase ‘a sofa’ is modified by the relative clause ‘that was bought secondhand’. The
relative word ‘that’ represents the subject of the relative clause, but the true subject of the
relative clause is the noun phrase ‘a sofa’.

We can use the relative word ‘which’ instead of ‘that’ in this example.
 7—176

Short Form of Restrictive Relative Clause

A relative clause with the relative word as the subject can be shortened.

There are three ways to shorten such a restrictive relative clause:

1. If a relative clause is in active voice, we omit the relative word and the auxiliary verbs (if
there are), then turn the main verb into present participle form, for example:

‘The teacher that teaches me math is really kind and thoughtful’

 ‘The teacher teaching me math is really kind and thoughtful’

2. If a relative clause is in passive voice, we omit the relative word and the auxiliary verbs, then
turn the main verb into past participle form, for example:
‘My cat is sitting on a sofa that was bought secondhand.’

 ‘My cat is sitting on a sofa bought secondhand.’

3. If a restrictive relative clause has:

• its relative word as the subject
• the copula verb ‘be’ as its main verb
• an adjective as its subject complement

Then such a restrictive relative clause can be shortened by omitting both the relative word and
the copula verb ‘be’, for example:

‘There are many cities which are larger than this one’

 ‘There are many cities  larger than this one’

This construction gives the adjective the appearance of a post-head modifier in a noun phrase,
for example:
‘…there was something about her more reprehensible and wrong…than any other person
present.’ (‘Pride and Prejudice’, Jane Austine, 1813)
 7—177

Situation 2, the Object

We can omit the relative word when it does not function as the subject of a restrictive relative
clause.

Example 1
‘The teacher that I admire is really kind and thoughtful’

The noun phrase ‘the teacher’ is modified by the relative clause ‘that I admire’. The relative word
‘that’ represents the object of the verb ‘admire’, but the true object of the verb ‘admire’ is the
noun phrase ‘the teacher.

We can use ‘whom’ as the relative word in this example.

 We can omit the relative word when it does not represent the subject of the restrictive
relative clause:

‘The teacher  I admire is really kind and thoughtful.’

Example 2
In a restrictive relative clause, we cannot use ‘that’ as the relative word if there is a fronted
preposition. In this case, ‘whom’ or ‘which’ is used.

‘That is the bakery from which I often buy cookies.’

The noun phrase ‘the bakery’ is modified by the relative clause ‘from which I often buy cookies’.
The relative phrase ‘from which’ represents the prepositional (indirect) object of the verb ‘buy’,
but its true indirect object is the noun phrase ‘the bakery’.

 We can omit the relative word when it does not represent the subject of the restrictive
relative clause:

‘That is the bakery  I often buy cookies from.’

7—178
 7—179

Situation 3, the Subject Complement

Example 1
‘The international corporation that their business has become is consolidating its position.’

The noun phrase ‘the international corporation’ is modified by the relative clause ‘that their
business has become’. The relative word ‘that’ represents the subject complement of the verb
‘become’, but the true subject complement is the noun phrase ‘the international corporation’.

We can use ‘which’ as the relative word in this example.

 We can omit the relative word in this example:

‘The international corporation  their business has become is consolidating its position.’

Example 2
‘We are proud of the kind person that you have become.’

The noun phrase ‘the kind person’ is modified by the relative clause ‘that you have become’. The
relative word ‘that’ represents the subject complement of the relative clause, but the true
subject complement is the noun phrase ‘the kind person’.

We can use ‘who’ as the relative word in this example.

 We can omit the relative word in this example:

‘We are proud of the kind person  you have become.’

 7—180

Situation 4, the Adverb Complement

In a restrictive relative clause, we cannot use ‘that’ as the relative word if there is a fronted
preposition. In this case, ‘whom’ or ‘which’ is used.

We will examine four examples where the relative word represents the adverb complement of
the relative clause.

Example 1
‘They have rebuilt the apartment in which I stayed last year.’

The noun phrase ‘the apartment’ is modified by the restrictive relative phrase ‘in which I stayed
last year’. The relative phrase ‘in which’ represents the adverb complement of location of the
verb ‘stayed’, but the noun phrase ‘the apartment’ is the true adverb complement.

 We can omit the relative word in this example. When this is the case, the preposition is
stranded after the main verb of the relative clause:

‘They have rebuilt the apartment  I stayed in last year.’

Example 2
‘I will remember the day which we met’

The noun phrase ‘the day’ is modified by the restrictive relative phrase ‘which we met. The
relative word ‘which’ represents the adverb complement of time of the verb ‘meet’, but the
noun phrase ‘the day’ is the true adverb complement.

We can use ‘that’ as the relative word in this example.

 We can omit the relative word in this example:

‘I will remember the day  we met’

 7—181

Example 3
In this example, the relative word represents the adverb complement of purpose of the main
verb in the relative clause

‘Earning money is the reason that they work’

The noun phrase ‘the reason’ is modified by the restrictive relative phrase ‘that they work’. The
relative word ‘that’ represents the adverb complement of purpose of the verb ‘work’, but the
noun phrase ‘the reason’ is the true adverb complement.

We can use ‘which’ as the relative word in this example.

 We can omit the relative word in this example:

‘Earning money is the reason  they work’

Example 4
‘This is the pen with which he writes letters’

The noun phrase ‘the pen’ is modified by the restrictive relative phrase ‘with which he writes
letters’. The relative phrase ‘with which’ represents the adverb complement of manner of the
verb phrase ‘writes letters’, but the phrase (with) ‘the pen’ is the true adverb complement.

 We can omit the relative word in this example; the preposition will then be stranded at the
end of the verb phrase:

‘This is the pen  he writes letters with’

 Please note that although it can be grammatical for a non-restrictive relative clause to have
its relative word represented the adverb complement, such a construction is often
awkward. Therefore, a relative word that represents the adverb complement mostly
appears in a restrictive relative clause.
 7—182

Situation 5, ‘Whose’
Example 1
‘The author whose works inspired her was born in Europe.’
The noun phrase ‘the author’ is modified by the relative clause ‘whose work inspire her’. The
relative word ‘whose’ functions as the possessive determiner of ‘works. Here, ‘whose works’
means “the author’s work”.

 This sentence can be paraphrased into:

‘She was inspired by the work of an author. This author was born in Europe.’
Example 2
‘He bought a book whose cover he liked.’
The noun phrase ‘a book is modified by the relative clause ‘whose cover he liked’. The relative
word ‘whose’ functions as the possessive determiner of ‘cover’. Here, ‘whose cover’ means “the
book’s cover”.

 This sentence can be paraphrased into:

‘He bought a book. He liked the cover of this book.’
 7—183

‘Where’, ‘When’, ‘Why’ as Relative Words

In a restrictive relative clause, three other interrogative pronouns, namely ‘where’, ‘when’, and
‘why’ can also function as the relative word instead of ‘which’ in certain situations.

Where
‘Where’ can be used as a relative word of a restrictive relative clause if these two conditions are
met:

a. the relative word represents the adverb complement of the relative clause
b. the relative clause modifies a noun of location

Additionally, the fronted preposition (if there is one) is omitted if we use ‘where’ instead of
‘which’ as the relative word, for example:

‘That is the bakery from which I often buy cookies.’

 ‘That is the bakery where I often buy cookies.’

‘The company in which I worked last year was a local business.’

 ‘The company where I worked last year was a local business.’

When
‘When’ can be used as a relative word of a restrictive relative clause if these two conditions are
met:

a. the relative word is the adverb complement of the relative clause

b. the relative clause modifies a noun of time

Additionally, the fronted preposition (if there is one) is omitted if we use ‘when’ instead of
‘which’ as the relative word, for example:

‘She has emailed us the day on which we have a meeting.’

 ‘She has emailed us the day when we have a meeting.’

‘I graduated in the year that covid-19 started.’

 ‘I graduated in the year when covid-19 started.’

 7—184

Why
‘Why’ can be used as a relative word of a restrictive relative clause if these two conditions are
met:

a. the relative word is the adverb complement of the relative clause

b. the relative clause modifies the noun ‘reason’

For example:

Earning money is the reason that they work

 Earning money is the reason why the work

Greediness and imprudence are the reasons that he failed

 Greediness and imprudence are the reasons why he failed

 However, please remember that we can omit the relative word in all of these examples
because it is not the subject of the restrictive relative clause:

‘The school at which I studied during my secondary years has been refurnished.’

 The school where I studied during my secondary years has been refurbished.
 The school  I studied at during my secondary years has been refurbished.

‘I graduated in the year that covid-19 started.’

 I graduated in the year when covid-19 started.

 I graduated in the year  covid-19 started.

‘Greediness and imprudence are the reasons that he failed.’

 Greediness and imprudence are the reasons why he failed.

 Greediness and imprudence are the reasons  he failed.
 7—185

Relative Word without Grammatical Function

In some restrictive relative clauses, the sole purpose of the relative word is to link the relative
clause to the antecedent; other than that, the relative word does not represent any
grammatical components in the relative clause. This phenomenon often occurs when a
restrictive relative clause modifies perceptive nouns, such as ‘idea’, ‘concept’, ‘sense’, ‘way’, or
‘method’, for example:
‘The invention of the computer are impactful in the sense that it helps facilitate virtually all
aspects of modern life.’
In this example, the noun phrase ‘the sense’ is modified by the restrictive relative clause ‘that
they help preserve information and ideas’, which provides essential information to identify the
noun phrase. Without the relative clause, the word ‘sense’ does not carry any meaning in this
context. The relative word ‘that’ does not represent any grammatical components in the
relative clause.
In this case, the relative word cannot be omitted.
 7—186

Free Relative Clause

Overview
The free relative clause — which has the ability to function as the subject, the object, or the
subject complement of the main clause — is a special subtype of the relative clause.

A free relative clause can use the interrogative pronouns ‘what’ ‘which’, ‘who/whom’, ‘where’,
‘when’, ‘why’ or ‘how’ as the relative word.

Characteristics of free relative clauses

1. A free relative clause does not have an antecedent because it does not function as the post-
head modifier inside a noun phrase nor provide information about the consequence of the
main clause. This is also the reason why the relative word ‘whose’, which always requires an
antecedent, cannot be used in a free relative clause.
2. All free relative clauses can be converted to a noun phrase with a restrictive relative clause,
but not any noun phrase with a restrictive relative clause can be converted into a free
relative clause.
3. We can think of a free relative clause as a noun because it can function as the subject, the
object, or the subject complement in the main clause; but a free relative clause cannot
conveniently take pre-head or post -head modifiers the way a noun can.

Roles of the relative word

 ‘What’ and ‘who/whom’ can function as the subject, the object or the subject complement of
a free relative clause.
 ‘Where’, ‘when’, ‘why’, and ‘how’ mostly function as the adverb complement of a free relative
clause.
 7—187

Modal Verb without a Main Verb

In a free relative clause, we can use a modal verb without a main verb when the free relative
clause functions as the object in a main clause. In this case, the main verb of the main clause is
understood to be the main verb of the free relative clause, for example:

‘We do what we should.’

We do what we should
main
subject object
verb
main clause

In this example, the free relative clause does not have a main verb:

what we should
modal
object subject auxiliary
verb
free relative clause

The main verb ‘do’ of the main clause is understood to be the main verb of the free relative
clause. This example is understood to be: ‘We do what we should do’. This phenomenon is
referred to as a null clause; we will examine it in detail later in this chapter.
 7—188

What
A free relative clause of ‘what’ can function as the subject, object, or subject complement of the
main clause.

Characteristics of free relative clauses of ‘what’

1. Similar to ‘what’ as an interrogative pronoun, ‘what’ as a relative word can also form a
phrase with a noun for more specification, such as ‘what color’, ‘what type’, ‘what movie’.
2. Any free relative clause of ‘what’ can be converted into a restrictive relative clause by
substituting ‘what’ with the phrase ‘the thing(s) + that/which’. Additionally, you can use other
nouns instead of ‘thing’ if they are suitable to the context.

Roles of ‘what’ as the relative word

 The relative word ‘what’ can function as the subject, the object, or the subject complement
of a free relative clause.
 7—189

Example 1
(the free relative clause is in bold)

In this example, the free relative clause functions as the subject of the main clause, and the
relative word functions as the subject of the free relative clause:

‘What was here is gone now.’

What was here is gone now

main subject adverb
subject
verb complement complement
main clause

what was here

subject
subject main verb
complement
free relative clause

 We can use ‘whatever’ as the relative word in this example because the thing that the free
relative clause represents is not specified:

‘Whatever was here is gone now.’

 We can convert this free relative clause into a noun phrase with a restrictive relative clause
by substituting ‘what’ with the phrase ‘the thing(s) + that/which’:

‘What was here is gone now.’

 The thing that was here is gone now.

(the relative clause is in bold, and its antecedent is underlined)

 7—190

Example 2
In this example, the free relative clause functions as the subject of the main clause, and the
relative word functions as the subject complement of the free relative clause:

‘What dark matter is remains a mystery.’

What dark matter is remains a mystery

main subject
subject
verb complement
main clause

In this example, the relative word ‘what’ functions as the subject complement of the relative
clause:

what dark matter is

subject main
subject
complement verb
free relative clause

 We can use ‘whatever’ as the relative word in this example because ‘what dark matter is’ is
identified to be ‘a mystery’, therefore, it is not specified:

‘Whatever dark matter is remains a mystery.’

 We can convert this free relative clause into a noun phrase with a restrictive relative clause
by substituting ‘what’ with the phrase ‘the thing + that/which’:

‘What dark matter is remains a mystery.’

 The thing (that) dark matter is remains a mystery.

 We can also convert a free relative clause with its relative word as the subject complement
into a noun phrase with the phrase ‘the nature of’:

‘What dark matter is remains a mystery.’

 ‘The nature of dark matter remains a mystery.’

 7—191

Example 3
In this example, the free relative clause functions as the object of the main clause, and the
relative phrase ‘what movie’ functions as the object of the free relative clause:

‘I know what movie you are talking about.’

I know what movie you are talking about

main
subject object
verb
main clause

what movie you are talking about

auxiliary
prepositional object subject main verb
verb
free relative clause

 We cannot use ‘whatever’ as the relative word in this example because ‘what movie you are
looking for’ implies a specific movie.

 We can convert this free relative clause into a noun phrase with a restrictive relative
clause.:

‘I know what movie you are talking about.’

 ‘I know the movie (that) you are talking about.’

 7—192

Example 4
In this example, the free relative clause functions as the subject complement of the main clause,
and the relative word functions as the object of the infinitive complement in the free relative
clause:

‘This letter is what I have always wanted to say to you.’

This letter is what I have always wanted to say to you

main
subject subject complement
verb
main clause

what I have always wanted to say to you

direct object auxiliary adverb main infinitive
subject
(of ‘to say’) verb complement verb complement
free relative clause

 We cannot use ‘whatever’ as the relative word in this example because ‘what I have always
wanted to say to you’ implies specific information.

 We can convert this free relative clause into a noun phrase with a restrictive relative clause
by substituting ‘what’ with the phrase ‘the thing(s) + that/which’:

‘This letter is what I have always wanted to say to you.’

 This letter is the thing (that) I have always wanted to say to you.
 7—193

Relative Word as the Object of Perceptive or Mental Verb

When a free relative clause of ‘what’ has

 a perceptive or mental verb (such as ‘believe’ or ‘think’) as the main verb

 the relative word functions as the object of said verb

Then an infinitive verb phrase often follows the verb. Such an infinitive verb phrase functions as
the object complement to complete the meaning of the free relative clause, for example:

‘What I thought to be impossible emerged doable.’

What I thought to be the impossible emerged doable

main subject
subject
verb complement
main clause

What I thought to be impossible

object main object
subject
(of ‘thought’) verb complement
free relative clause

 We cannot use ‘whatever’ as the relative word in this example because ‘what I thought to be
impossible’ implies a specific action.

However, if we add the adverb ‘always’ or ‘often’ to the sentence, then ‘what I thought to be
impossible’ no longer implies a specific action; therefore, we can use ‘whatever’ as the relative
word:

‘Whatever I thought to be impossible always emerged doable.’

 We can convert this free relative clause into a noun phrase with a restrictive relative clause
by substituting ‘what’ with the phrase ‘the thing(s) + that/which’:

‘What I thought to be impossible emerged doable.’

 The thing (that) I thought to be impossible emerged doable.

 7—194

Free Relative Clause of ‘Which’

In theory, we can form free relative clauses with ‘which’ in the same way we can form free
relative clauses with ‘what’. However, in reality, due to the limitation in meaning of the word
‘which’, this construction is rarely used.

To form some examples, we can just replace ‘what’ with ‘which’ in all of the examples in this
section. Such constructions will still be grammatical, but their meanings are often unnatural.

Nonetheless, here are three examples where a free relative clause of ‘which’ is appropriate:

 Example 1, when we are referring to a small number of colors:

‘I remember which color she likes.’

I remember which color she likes

subject main verb object
main clause

 Example 2, when we are looking at two almost identical cats:

‘Your cats look so alike; I cannot tell which is which.’

Your cats look so alike; I cannot tell which is which

auxiliary main
subject object
main clause 1 verb verb
main clause 2

 Example 3, when the raisin cookie and the chocolate chip cookie are identical in
appearance:

‘He wants to know which one is the raisin cookie, and which one is the chocolate chip
cookie.’

(‘which’ forms a phrase with the pronoun ‘one’; here ‘one’ is a substitution for ‘cookie’.)

He wants to know which one is the raisin cookie, and which one is the chocolate chip cookie
infinitive
main objects (of ‘know’)
subject verb
verb
infinitive complement
main clause
 7—195

Who
A free relative clause of ‘who’ can function as the subject, object, or subject complement of a
main clause.

Characteristics of free relative clauses of ‘who’

Any free relative clause of ‘who/whom’ can be converted into a noun phrase with a restrictive
relative clause by substituting ‘who/whom’ with the phrase ‘the person(people) +
that/who/whom’.

Roles of ‘who’ as the relative word

The relative word ‘who’ can function as the subject, the object, or the subject complement of
the free relative clause:

 The relative word ‘who’ takes the subjective case ‘who’ when it functions as the subject
of the free relative clause.
 The relative word ‘who’ takes the objective case ‘whom’ when it functions as the object
of the free relative clause.
 The relative word ‘who’ takes the subjective case ‘who’ when it functions as the subject
complement of the free relative clause.
 7—196

Example 1
In this example, the free relative clause functions as the subject of the main clause, and the
relative word functions as the subject of the free relative clause:
‘Who was here is gone now.’

Who was here is gone now

main subject adverb
subject
verb complement complement
main clause

who was here

main subject
subject
verb complement
free relative clause

 We can use ‘whoever’ as the relative word in this example because the person that the free
relative clause represents is not specified:

‘Whoever was here is gone now.’

 We can convert this free relative clause into a noun phrase with a restrictive relative clause
by substituting ‘who’ with the phrase ‘the person + that/who’:

‘Who was here is gone now.’

 The person that was here is gone now.

(the relative clause is in bold, and its antecedent is underlined)

 7—197

Example 2
In this example, the free relative clause functions as the object of the main clause, and the
relative word functions as the subject of the free relative clause:

‘He talked to who/whom was there.’

He talked to who/whom was there.

subject main verb object
main clause

In this example, the relative word can take either the subjective case ‘who’ or the objective case
‘whom’:

who/whom was there

main subject
subject
verb complement
free relative clause

 This duality occurs because:

a. If we consider the free relative clause as the object in the main clause, then the relative
word should take the objective case ‘whom’.
b. However, if we consider the relative word as the subject of the free relative clause, then
it should take the subjective case ‘who’.
 To avoid the confusion that arises from this situation, we should convert the free relative
clause into a noun phrase with a restrictive relative clause by substituting ‘who/whom’ with
the phrase ‘the person + that’:

‘He talked to who/whom was there.’

 He talked to the person that was there.

 7—198

Example 3
In this example, the free relative clause functions as the object of the main clause, and the
relative word functions as the subject complement of the free relative clause:
‘Your actions defines who you are.’

Your actions defines who you are

main
subject object
verb
main clause

who you are

subject main
subject
complement verb
free relative clause

The duality between ‘who’ and ‘whom’ does not occur in this example the way it does in
example 2 because when the relative word functions as the subject complement, it is attached
to the subject of the free relative clause. Therefore, it can only take the subjective case ‘who’.

 We cannot use ‘whoever’ as the relative word in this example because the person that the
free relative clause represents has already been specified as ‘you’.

 We can convert this free relative clause into a noun phrase with a restrictive relative clause
by substituting ‘who’ with the phrase ‘the person + that/who’:

‘Your actions defines who you are.’

 Your actions defines the person (that) you are.

 7—199

Example 4
In this example, the free relative clause functions as the subject complement of the main clause,
and the relative word functions as the subject complement of the free relative clause:
‘An ordinary human with a decent heart is who he is.’

An ordinary human with a decent heart is who I am

main subject
subject
verb complement
main clause

who I am
subject main
subject
complement verb
free relative clause

 We cannot use ‘whomever’ as the relative word in this example because the person that the
free relative clause represents has already been specified as ‘an ordinary human with a decent
heart’ and ‘he’.

 We can convert this free relative clause into a noun phrase with a restrictive relative clause
by substituting ‘who’ with the phrase ‘the person+ that/who’:

‘An ordinary human with a decent heart is who he is.’

 ‘An ordinary human with a decent heart is the person that he is.’
 7—200

Relative Word as the Object of Perceptive or Mental Verb

Similar to ‘what’, when the relative word ‘whom’ functions as the object of a perceptive/mental
verbs (such as ‘believe’ or ‘think’), it often has an infinitive verb phrase as the object complement,
for example:

‘Whom I believe to be one of the best MMA fighters of all time is George Saint Pierre.’

Whom I believe to be one of the best MMA fighters of all time is George Saint Pierre
main
subject subject complement
verb
main clause

The object complement completes the meaning of the free relative clause:

Whom I believe to be one of the best MMA fighters of all time

Object main
subject object complement
(of ‘believe’) verb
free relative clause

 We cannot use ‘whomever’ as the relative word in this example because ‘Whom I believe to
be one of the best MMA fighters of all time’ has already been specified as ‘George Saint Pierre’.

 We can convert the free relative clause into a noun phrase with a restrictive relative clause
by substituting ‘whom’ with the phrase ‘the person + that/whom’:

‘Whom I believe to be one of the best MMA fighters of all time is George Saint Pierre.’

 The person that I believe to be one of the best MMA fighters of all time is George
Saint Pierre.
 7—201

When
A free relative clause of ‘when’ mostly functions the adverb complement of time in the main
clause, so it is often generally identified as a subordinating clause instead of specifically as a free
relative clause.

However, in some situations, a subordinating clause of ‘when’ can also function as the subject,
the object, or the subject complement of the main clause, then, we should identify it as a free
relative clause.

Characteristics of free relative clauses of ‘when’

Any free relative clause of ‘when’ can be converted into a noun phrase with a restrictive relative
clause by substituting ‘when’ with ‘the time + when’

Roles of ‘when’ as the relative word

The relative word ‘when’ mostly functions as the adverb complement in the free relative clause.
However, in some rare cases, ‘when’ can also function as the subject of the free relative clause.
 7—202

Example 1
In this example, the free relative clause functions as the subject of the main clause, and the
relative word functions as the adverb complement of the free relative clause:
‘When the package arrives depends on the delivery company.’

When the package arrives depends (on) on the delivery company

subject main verb object
main clause

when the package arrives

adverb main
subject
complement verb
free relative clause

 We can use ‘whenever’ as the relative word in this example because the time that the free
relative clause represents is unspecific:

‘Whenever the package arrives depends on the delivery company.’

 We can convert this free relative clause into a noun phrase with a restrictive relative clause
by substituting ‘when’ with ‘the time + when’:

‘When the package arrives depends on the delivery company.’

 The time (when) the package arrives depends on the delivery company.

We can also use ‘which’ as the relative word, but it will need a fronted preposition depending
on what type of time is implied:

a. ‘At which’ if the time is implied to be an hour.

b. ‘On which’ if the time is implied to be a day.
c. ‘In which’ if the time is implied to be a week, month, year, or longer.

In this example, the time that is represented by the free relative clause is unspecific, so ‘when’ is
more grammatical than ‘which’.
 7—203

Example 2
In this example, the free relative clause functions as the object of the main clause, and the
relative word functions as the subject of the free relative clause:
‘I wonder when should be a good time to smile.’

I wonder when should be a good time to smile

main
subject object
verb
main clause

 The relative word ‘when’ can only function as the subject of a free relative clause when its
main verb is ‘be’ (often combined with a modal verb), and its subject complement is the
noun ‘time’:

when should be a good time to smile

modal main subject
subject
verb verb complement
free relative clause

 We can also idiomatically express this construction with the free relative clause as the
object appearing before the subject of the main clause. In this case, the free relative clause is
marked by a comma:

‘When should be a good time to smile, I wonder.’

When should be a good time to smile, I wonder

object subject main verb
main clause

 It is also worth noting that this construction look similar to as if it is a question:

‘When should be a good time to smile?’

However, if the construction is expressed as a question, the subject of the question will be ‘a
good time to smile’:

When should be a good time to smile?

modal
interrogative main
auxiliary subject
word verb
verb
question
 7—204

Example 3
In this example, the free relative clause functions as the subject complement of the main clause,
and the relative word functions as the subject of the free relative clause:
‘The question is, when would be a good time to push.’

The question is, when would be a good time to push

main
subject subject complement
verb
main clause

 The relative word ‘when’ can only function as the subject of the free relative clause when
the main verb is a copula verb ‘be’ (often combined with a modal verb), and the subject
complement is the noun ‘time’:

when would be a good time to push

modal
main subject
subject auxiliary
verb complement
verb
free relative clause

 This example can be idiomatically expressed in this manner:

‘When would be a good time to push, that is the question.’

When would be a good time to push, that is the question

main subject
subject
verb complement
main clause

In this idiomatic expression, the free relative clause is the subject of the main clause, but it is
separated from the main clause by a comma, and the pronoun ‘that’ is employed to represent it.
 7—205

Relative Word as the Object of Perceptive or Mental Verb

The relative word ‘when’ cannot function as the object of a free relative clause; therefore, we
cannot use it the same way we can use ‘what’ or ‘whom’ in this situation.

For example, this sentence is not grammatical:

‘When I thought to be a gloomy day, the good news came.’ (not grammatical)

 The grammatical construction should be:

‘When I thought that it was a gloomy day, the good news came.’

 In this example, the when-clause functions as the adverb complement of time for the main
clause, so we should identify it as a subordinating clause with ‘when’ as the subordinating
conjunction. Still, it is not wrong to identify it as a free relative clause that functions as the
adverb complement:

When I thought that it was a gloomy day, the good news came
subordinating main
subject clausal object subject main verb
conjunction verb
subordinating clause main clause
 7—206

Where
A free relative clause of ‘where’ mostly functions as the adverb complement of location in the
main clause, so it is often identified generally as a subordinating clause instead of specifically as a
free relative clause.

However, in some situations, a subordinating clause of ‘where’ can also function as the subject,
the object, or the subject complement of the main clause, then, we should identify it as a free
relative clause.

Characteristics of free relative clauses of ‘when’

Any free relative clause of ‘where’ can be converted into a noun phrase with a restrictive
relative clause by substituting ‘where’ with ‘the place + where’

Roles of ‘where’ as the relative word

The relative word ‘where’ mostly functions as the adverb complement in the free relative clause.
However, in some rare cases, ‘where’ can also function as the subject of the free relative clause.
 7—207

Example 1
In this example, the free relative clause functions as the subject of the main clause, and the
relative word functions as the adverb complement in the free relative clause:
‘Where orioles migrate interests zoologists.’

Where orioles migrate interests zoologists

subject main verb object
main clause

where orioles migrate

adverb
subject main verb
complement
free relative clause

 We cannot use ‘wherever’ as the relative word in this example because the place that the
free relative clause represents is implied to be a specific place.

 We can convert this free relative clause into a noun phrase with a restrictive relative clause
by substituting ‘where’ with ‘the place + where’:

‘Where orioles migrate interests zoologists.’

 The place where orioles migrate interests zoologists.

We can also use ‘which’ as the relative word, but in this example, it will need ‘to’ as the fronted
preposition:

‘The place to which orioles migrate interests zoologists.’

 7—208

Example 2
In this example, the free relative clause functions as the subject of the main clause, and the
relative word functions as the adverb complement in the free relative clause:
‘He told her where he was going.’

He told her where he was going

subject main verb indirect object direct object
main clause

where he was going

adverb auxiliary main
subject
complement verb verb
free relative clause

 We cannot use ‘wherever’ as the relative word in this example because the place that the
free relative clause represents is implied to be a specific place.
 However, if we add the adverb ‘always’ or ‘often’ to the sentence, then the place that the
free relative clause represents is no longer implied to be a specific place, so we can use
‘wherever’ as the relative word:

‘He always told her wherever he was going.’

 We can convert this free relative clause into a noun phrase with a restrictive relative clause
by substituting ‘where’ with ‘the place + where’:

‘He told her where he was going.’

 He told her the place where he was going.

We can also use ‘which’ as the relative word, but in this example, it will need ‘to’ as the fronted
preposition:

‘He told her the place to which he was going.’

 7—209

Example 3
In this example, the free relative clause functions as the subject complement of the main clause,
and the relative word functions as subject of the free relative clause:

‘The question is, where would be an economical place to have dinner.’

The question is, where would be an economical place to have dinner

main
subject subject complement
verb
main clause

 The relative word ‘where’ can only function as the subject of the free relative clause when its
main verb is ‘be’ (often combined with a modal verb), and its subject complement is the
noun ‘place’:

where would be an economical place to have dinner

modal
main
subject auxiliary subject complement
verb
verb
free relative clause

 This example can be idiomatically expressed in this manner:

‘Where would be an economical place to have dinner, that is the question.’

Where would be an economical place to have dinner, that is the question

main subject
subject
verb complement
main clause

In this idiomatic expression, the free relative clause is the subject of the main clause, but it is
separated from the main clause by a comma, and the pronoun ‘that’ is employed to represent it.
 7—210

Relative Word as the Object of Perceptive or Mental Verb

The relative word ‘where’ cannot function as object of a free relative clause; therefore, we
cannot use it the same way we can use ‘what’ or ‘whom’ in this situation.

For example, this sentence is not grammatical:

‘The Sahara Desert is where I believe to be an interesting place.’ (not grammatical)

 To make it grammatical, we should use a restrictive relative clause:

‘The Sahara Desert is a place where I believe to be interesting.’

The Sahara Desert is a place where I believe to be interesting

main
subject subject complement
verb
main clause

The noun phrase ‘a place’ is modified by the restrictive relative clause ‘where I believe to be
interesting’. The relative word ‘where’ represents the adverb complement in the relative clause:

where I believe to be interesting

adverb main infinitive
subject
complement verb complement
restrictive relative clause
 7—211

Why
A free relative clause of ‘why’ can function as the subject, the object, or the subject complement
of a main clause.

Characteristics of free relative clauses of ‘why’

 Any free relative clause of ‘why’ can be converted into a noun phrase with a restrictive
relative clause by substituting ‘why’ with ‘the reason + why’.
 Any free relative clause of ‘why’ can be converted into a free relative clause of ‘what…for’.

In this use, ‘what for’ can be considered a relative phrase introducing a relative clause, but it is
idiomatically expressed with the preposition following the relative word, instead of fronting it. In
a complete free relative clause, ‘for’ is stranded at the end of the clause.

 However, please note that a free relative clause of ‘why’ or ‘what…for’ is considered
informal. In formal situations, it should be in form of a restrictive relative clause with the
phrase ‘the reason why’.

Roles of ‘why’ as the relative word

The relative word ‘why’ functions as the adverb complement of the free relative clause.
 7—212

Example 1
In this example, the free relative clause functions as the subject of the main clause, and the
relative word functions as the adverb complement in the free relative clause:
‘Why he bought this T-shirt is beyond me.’ (informal)

Why he bought this t-shirt is beyond me

main subject
subject
verb complement
main clause

why he bought this t-shirt

adverb main
subject object
complement verb
free relative clause

 We can express this sentence with the phrase ‘what for’:

‘What he bought this T-shirt for is beyond me.’ (informal)

 In formal situations, this sentence should be expressed with a restrictive relative clause of
‘the reason why’:

‘Why he bought this T-shirt is beyond me.’ (informal)

 The reason (why) he bought this T-shirt is beyond me. (formal)

 7—213

Example 2
In this example, the free relative clause functions as the subject of the main clause, and the
relative word functions as the adverb complement in the free relative clause:
‘He told her why he was smiling.’ (informal)

He told her why he was smiling

main indirect
subject direct object
verb object
main clause

why he was smiling

adverb auxiliary main
subject
complement verb verb
free relative clause

 We can express this sentence with the phrase ‘what for’:

‘He told her what he was smiling for.’ (informal)

 In formal situations, this sentence should be expressed with a restrictive relative clause of
‘the reason why’:

‘He told her why he was smiling.’ (informal)

 He told her the reason (why) he was smiling.’ (formal)

 7—214

Example 3
In this example, the free relative clause functions as the subject of the main clause, and the
relative word functions as the adverb complement in the free relative clause:
‘Self-improvement is why they practice.’ (informal)

Self-improvement is why they practice

main subject
subject
verb complement
main clause

why they practice

adverb main
subject
complement verb
free relative clause

 We can express this sentence with the phrase ‘what for’:

‘Self-improvement is what they practice for.’ (informal)

 In formal situations, this sentence should be expressed with a restrictive relative clause of
‘the reason why’:

Self-improvement is why they practice (informal)

 Self-improvement is the reason (why) they practice. (formal)

 7—215

Relative Word as the Object of Perceptive or Mental Verb

The relative word ‘why’ cannot function as the object in a free relative clause; therefore, we
cannot use it the same way we use ‘what’ or ‘whom’ in this situation.

For example, this sentence is not grammatical:

‘Why I think to be the reason he bought that T-shirt is his fondness for Robert Pattinson.’
(not grammatical)

 It can be grammatical if we use ‘what’ as the relative word instead of ‘why’, but the sentence
will still be awkward:

‘What I think to be the reason he bought that T-shirt is his fondness for Robert Pattinson.’
(grammatical but awkward)

What I think is the reason he bought that T-shirt is his fondness for Robert Pattinson
main
subject subject complement
verb
main clause

 It will be the most understandable if we paraphrase with a that-clause:

‘I think (that) the reason (why) he bought that T-shirt is his fondness for Robert Pattinson.’

I think (that) the reason (why) he bought that t-shirt is his fondness for Robert Pattinson.
main
subject clausal object
verb
main clause

that the reason (why) he bought that t-shirt is his fondness for Robert Pattinson
subordinating main
subject (free relative clause) adverb complement
conjunction verb
that-clause
 7—216

How
A free relative clause of ‘how’ can function as the subject, the object, and the subject
complement in a main clause. With help of appositives, a free relative clause of ‘how’ can also
function as the adverb complement.

Characteristics of free relative clauses of ‘how’

 Any free relative clause of ‘how’ can be converted into a noun phrase with a restrictive
relative clause by substituting ‘how’ with ‘the way + that/which’.
 Similar to ‘how’ as an interrogative pronoun, ‘how’ as a relative word can form a phrase with
an adjective or an adverb for more specification.

Roles of ‘how’ as the relative word

 The relative word ‘how’ mostly functions as the adverb complement in the free relative
clause. However, when the relative word ‘how’ forms a phrase with an adjective, the relative
phrase can function as the subject complement in the free relative clause.
 7—217

Example 1
In this example, the free relative clause functions as the subject complement of the main clause,
and the relative word functions as the adverb complement (of manner) in the free relative
clause:
‘Gravitational pull is how the Earth orbits around the Sun.’

Gravitational pull is how the Earth orbits around the Sun

main
subject subject complement
verb
main clause

how the Earth orbits around the Sun

adverb main adverb
subject
complement verb complement
free relative clause

 We can convert this free relative clause into a noun phrase with a restrictive relative clause
by substituting ‘how’ with ‘the way + that/which’:

‘Gravitational pull is how the Earth orbits around the Sun.’

 Gravitational pull is the way (that) the Earth orbits around the Sun. (ambiguous)

However, using the restrictive relative clause instead of the free relative clause makes this
sentence ambiguous, because ‘the way the Earth orbits around the Sun’ can mean either ‘the
mechanism of the Earth’s orbit around the Sun’ or ‘the path that the Earth orbits around the Sun’.

To avoid this confusion, we can paraphrase using the noun phrase ‘the mechanism of’:

 Gravitational pull is the mechanism of the Earth’s orbit around the Sun.
 7—218

Example 2
In this example, the free relative clause functions as the subject complement of the main clause,
and the relative word ‘how’ forms a phrase with the adverb ‘consistently’ to function as the
adverb complement (of manner) in the free relative clause:
‘How consistently they work is impressive.’

How consistently they work is impressive

main subject
subject
verb complement
main clause

how consistently they work

adverb main
subject
complement verb
free relative clause

 We can convert this free relative clause into a noun phrase with a restrictive relative clause
by substituting ‘how’ with ‘the way + that/which’, then place the adverb ‘consistently’ at a
suitable position in the restrictive relative clause:

‘How consistently they work is impressive.’

 The way that they consistently work is impressive.

 The way that they work consistently is impressive.
 7—219

Example 3
In this example, the free relative clause functions as the object of the main clause, and the
relative word ‘how’ forms a phrase with the adjective ‘sturdy’ to function as the subject
complement in the free relative clause:
‘I can feel how sturdy the table is.’

I can feel how sturdy the table is

modal
main
subject (auxiliary) object
verb
verb
main clause

how sturdy the table is

subject main
subject
complement verb
free relative clause

 In a free relative clause of ‘how’ where the relative word does not function as the adverb
complement, we cannot convert the clause into a noun phrase with a restrictive relative
clause using ‘the way + that/which’.

However, if we can find a noun version of the adjective that forms the relative phrase – ‘sturdy’,
in this example – then we can paraphrase the free relative clause into a noun phrase, for
example:

‘I can feel how sturdy the table is.’

 I can feel the sturdiness of the table. (‘sturdiness’ is the noun version of ‘sturdy’)
 7—220

Free Relative Clause of ‘How’ as the Adverb Complement

As mentioned in the Overview section, when a free relative clause functions as the adverb
complement in the main clause, it is generally identified as a subordinating clause. However,
when a free relative clause of ‘how’ functions as the adverb complement in the main clause, it
should be identified specifically as a free relative clause. This is because a free relative clause of
‘how’ takes post-head modifiers to function as the adverb complement.

Only nouns can take post-head modifiers, so a subordinating clause cannot take post-head
modifiers, because it is a clause, not a noun. Even free relative clauses, which function similar to
nouns on the clausal level, cannot conventionally take pre-head or post-head modifiers; but the
free relative clause of ‘how’ is an exception.

A free relative clause of ‘how’ can take prepositional phrases and appositives of adjectives as
post-head modifiers to function as the adverb complement in the main clause. We will take a
look at two examples of this phenomenon.
 7—221

Example 1
In this example, the free relative clause of ‘how’ takes appositives of adjectives as the post-head
modifier to function as the adverb complement in the main clause, and the relative word
functions as the adverb complement (of manner) in the relative clause:

‘He cooks how he writes, simple but adequate.’

He cooks how he writes, simple but adequate

subject main verb adverb complement
main clause

how he writes, simple but adequate

adverb main post-head modifier (of the entire
subject
complement verb free relative clause)
free relative clause

 We can convert this free relative clause into a noun phrase with a restrictive relative clause
by substituting ‘how’ with ‘the way + that/which’.

‘He cooks the way that he writes, simple but adequate.’

the way that he writes,

simple but adequate
appositive
noun phrase
post-head modifiers
noun phrase

In this case, the appositive is the post-head modifier of the entire noun phrase ‘the way that he
writes’, not just the noun phrase ‘the way’.

However, this may lead to ambiguity because ‘the way that he writes’ can be mistakenly
understood as the object of the verb ‘cooks’. To avoid this ambiguity, we can use the phrase ‘in
the same way’ instead:

‘He cooks in the same way that he writes, simple but adequate.’

in the same way that he writes, simple but adequate

pre-head modifiers noun post-head modifiers
preposition
noun phrase
prepositional phrase
 7—222

Example 2
In this example, the free relative clause of ‘how’ takes a prepositional phrase as the post-head
modifier to function as the adverb complement in the main clause. However, please note that
the prepositional phrase in this function is marked by commas, which are not conventionally
required when a prepositional phrase functions as the post-head modifier of a noun:

‘The teacher ends every class how he begins it, with a smile on his face.’

The teacher ends every class how he begins it, with a smile on his face
main
subject object adverb complement
verb
main clause

The relative word ‘how’ functions as the adverb complement (of manner) in the relative clause:

how he begins it, with a smile on his face

adverb main
subject object post-head modifier
complement verb
free relative clause

 We can convert this free relative clause into a noun phrase with a restrictive relative clause
by substituting ‘how’ with ‘the way + that/which’:

‘The teacher ends every class the way that he begins it, with a smile on his face.’

the way that he begins it,

with a smile on his face
appositive
noun phrase
post-head modifiers
noun phrase

In this case, the appositive is the post-head modifier of the entire noun phrase ‘the way that he
begins it’, not just the noun phrase ‘the way’.
 7—223

Relative Word as the Object of Perceptive or Mental Verb

The relative word ‘how’ cannot function as the object in a free relative clause; therefore, we
cannot use it the same way we use ‘what’ or ‘whom’ in this situation.

For example, this construction is not grammatical:

‘How scientists explain the way volcanoes form is through the movements of the Earth’s crusts.’
(not grammatical)

 It can be grammatical if we use ‘what’ as the relative word instead of ‘how’, but the sentence
is awkward:

‘What scientists explain the way volcanoes form is through the movements of the Earth’s
crusts.’ (grammatical but awkward)

What scientists explain the way volcanoes form is through the movements of the earth’s crusts
main
subject subject complement
verb
main clause

 The sentence is the most grammatical and understandable if we paraphrase with a that-
clause:

‘Scientists explain that volcanoes form through the movements of the Earth’s crusts.’

Scientists explain that volcanoes form through the movements of the earth’s crusts
main
subject clausal object
verb
main clause

that volcanoes form through the movements of the earth’s crusts

subordinating main
subject adverb complement
conjunction verb
that-clause
 7—224

Other Special Construction of Interrogative Pronoun

Some interrogative pronouns can form special phrases.

Interrogative Pronoun + Infinitive

‘What’, ‘which’, ‘who/whom’, ‘when’, ‘where’, ‘how’ and ‘what for’ (but not ‘why’) can form a phrase
with an infinitive verb. These phrases can function as the subject, the object or the subject
complement, for example:

‘What to buy as a gift has been on her mind for a few days.’

What to buy as a gift has been on her mind for a few days
auxiliary main subject adverb
subject
verb verb complement complement

‘Joe is who to contact for detailed information.’

Joe is who to contact for detailed information

main
subject subject complement
verb

‘The professor will tell us when to submit the assignment.’

The professor will tell us when to submit the assignment

auxiliary main indirect
subject direct object
verb verb object

‘We are finding where to stay on holiday.’

We are finding where to stay on holiday
auxiliary main
subject object
verb verb

‘How to dance with another person is something (that) I have not learned.’

How to dance with another person is something (that) I have not learned
main
subject subject complement
verb
 7—225

‘No one should worry about what to live for.’ (informal)

No one should worry (about) (about) what to live for

auxiliary
subject main verb prepositional object
verb

 Additionally, in informal situations, we can form a question with ‘why + noun’. This
construction is used in a popular joke:

‘A horse walks into a bar. The bartender asks: “Why the long face?”
 7—226

When/Where + Adjective
‘When’ and ‘where’ can form a phrase with an adjective that denotes necessity or suitability, such
as ‘necessary’, ‘needed’, ‘appropriate’, ‘suitable’, or ‘convenient’. This construction is used as the
adverb complement in a clause, for example:

‘You can use my car when necessary.’

You can use my car when necessary

modal
main adverb
subject (auxiliary) object
verb complement
verb

‘The government have sent aid to where needed.’

The government have sent aid to where needed

auxiliary main adverb
subject object
verb verb complement

‘They are placing furniture where appropriate.’

They are placing furniture where appropriate

auxiliary main adverb
subject object
verb verb complement

‘I will forward you the file when suitable.’

I will forward you the file when suitable

modal
main indirect direct adverb
subject (auxiliary)
verb object object complement
verb

‘We should stop for lunch where convenient.’

We should stop for lunch where convenient

modal
main
subject (auxiliary) adverb complements
verb
verb
 7—227

That-clause
Overview
The that-clause is a special type of subordinating clause which has the ability to function as the
subject, the object, and the subject complement of the main clause.
A that-clause is introduced by the subordinating conjunction ‘that’; therefore, the subordinating
marker of a that-clause is the word ‘that’.
Characteristic of that-clauses

A that-clause can often be converted into a noun phrase with a restrictive relative clause by
using the phrase ‘the idea + that/which’. Besides ‘idea’, we can use other closely related nouns
suitable to the context, such as, ‘theory’, ‘belief’, ‘phenomenon’, or ‘fact’.

Roles of the subordinating marker

 The word ‘that’ only functions as the subordinating conjunction and marker in a that-clause.
It has no other grammatical functions.
 When the that-clause functions as the object in the main clause, the subordinating
conjunction/marker ‘that’ can be omitted. However, doing this may confuse the
listener/reader, so we should consider carefully.

In this section, we will examine various examples of that-clauses in different functions.

 7—228

Example 1
In this example, the that-clause functions as the subject of the main clause:
‘That modern humans originated from Africa has been theorized by scientists for many years.’
That modern humans originated
has been theorized by scientists for many years
from Africa
auxiliary main
subject adverb complements
verbs verb
main clause

That modern humans originated from Africa

subordinating adverb
subject main verb
conjunction complement
that-clause

 We can convert this that-clause into a noun phrase with a restrictive relative clause:
‘The hypothesis that modern humans originated from Africa has been theorized by scientists for
many years.’
 7—229

Example 2
In this example, two that-clauses function as the object of the verb ‘believe’. This verb
idiomatically expresses its object with the preposition ‘in’, but when the object is a that-clause,
the preposition in is omitted.
Additionally, when a that-clause functions as the object in the main clause, the subordinating
conjunction ‘that’ can be omitted:
‘Einstein believed that light is a particle – photon, and that the flow of photons is a wave.’
(that) light is a particle – (that) the flow of photons is
Einstein believed and
photon, a wave
main coordinating
subject clausal object 1 clausal object 2
verb conjunction
main clause

that light is a particle – photon

subordinating main subject
subject
conjunction verb complement
that-clause 1

that the flow of photons is a wave

subordinating main subject
subject
conjunction verb complement
that-clause 2

 If we convert these that-clauses into noun phrases with restrictive relative clauses, then the
preposition ‘in’ is required again:
‘Einstein believed in the ideas that light is a particle – photon, and that the flow of photons is
a wave.’
 7—230

Example 3
In this example, the that-clause function as the object of the verb ‘thought’:
‘Charles Darwin thought that his ‘Origin of Species’ might upset the religious community.’
Charles Darwin was afraid that his ‘Origin of Species’ might upset the religious community
main subject
subject object
verb complement
main clause

that his ‘Origin of Species’ might upset the religious community

modal
subordinating main
subject auxiliary object
conjunction verb
verb
that-clause

When the that-clause functions as the object of the verb ‘think’, it should not be converted into
a noun phrase with a restrictive relative clause because such a phrase will be awkward.
 7—231

Example 4
‘The gist of the Chaos Theory is that the present determines the future, but the approximate
present does not approximately determine the future.’
that the present determines the future, but the approximate
The gist of the chaos theory is
present does not approximately determine the future
main
subject subject complement
verb
main clause

In this example, the that-clause includes two clauses:

the present determines the the approximate present does not
that but
future, approximately determine the future
subordinating coordinating
clause 1 clause 2
conjunction conjunction
that-clause

Technically speaking, both of the clauses inside the that-clause — let us call them clause 1 and
clause 2 — are main clauses because they can constitute a sentence by themselves. However, if
we separate clause 1 and clause 2, they can no longer represent ‘the gist of the Chaos Theory’. In
other words, to describe ‘the gist of the Chaos Theory’, both pieces of information must work
together in this exact order. Therefore, in this example, a single that-clause contains two
different clauses.
Even if we convert this that-clause into a noun phrase with a restrictive relative clause, the
restrictive relative clause must also include both clause 1 and clause 2:
‘The gist of the Chaos Theory is the concept that the present determines the future, but the
approximate present does not approximately determine the future.’
 7—232

Special Construction of That-Clause

Now That
A that-clause cannot conveniently function as the adverb complement of the main clause.
However, when we front the subordinating conjunction ‘that’ with the adverb ‘now’, forming the
phrase ‘now that’, then the that-clause can function as the adverb complement of causality.
In this case, the now-that-clause should be identified generally as a subordinating clause instead
of specifically as a that-clause.
Due to the meaning of ‘now’, a clause with ‘now that’ can only be used in the present
tense/tense-aspects. Additionally, the idea of the main clause that contains the now-that-clause
is often expressed with a modal verb:
‘We can go now that the rain has stopped.’
We can go now that the rain has stopped
modal
main
subject auxiliary adverb complement
verb
verb
main clause

Technically speaking, ‘now’ functions as the adverb complement in the main clause, but it
idiomatically fronts the subordinating conjunction ‘that’, so we should treat ‘now that’ as a
subordinating conjunction phrase:
now that the rain has stopped
subordinating auxiliary main
subject
conjunction verb verb
subordinating clause

A now-that-clause cannot be converted into a noun phrase with a restrictive relative clause, but
it can be paraphrased into a subordinating clause with the subordinating conjunction ‘because’:
‘We can go now because the rain has stopped.’
 7—233

So…That…
When a clause has an adjective functioning as the subject complement, and this adjective is
modified by ‘so’ (as an adverb of degree), then a that-clause will follow the subject complement
to give information about the consequence or effect of the main clause.
In this example, the that-clause should be identified generally as a subordinating clause.
We will examine two examples of this construction.

Example 1
‘…this truth is so well fixed in the mind of the surrounding families, that he is considered the rightful
property of someone or other of their daughters.’
(‘Pride and Prejudice’, 1813, Jane Austine)
this truth is so well fixed in the mind of the surrounding families,
main
subject subject complement
verb
main clause

The that-clause follows the subject complement to provide information about the consequence
of the main clause:
the rightful property of some one or other of
that he is considered
their daughters
subordinating auxiliary main
subject subject complement
conjunction verb verb
subordinating clause
 7—234

Example 2
‘Her eyes are so blue that he thought the sky and the oceans were inspired by them.’
her eyes are so blue
subject
subject main verb
complement
main clause

The that-clause follows the subject complement to provide information about the effect of the
main clause:
that he thought (that) the sky and the oceans were inspired by them
subordinating main
subject clausal object
conjunction verb
subordinating clause

 We can paraphrase this sentence with the subordinating conjunction ‘because’:

‘Because her eyes are so blue, he thought the sky and the oceans were inspired by them.’
 7—235

Not That
The subordinating conjunction ‘that’ of a that-clause can form a phrase with the negative adverb
‘not’, forming a subordinating conjunction phrase ‘not that’.
 A not-that-clause excludes an implication that the main clause may imply to the
listener/reader.
In this case, the not-that-clause should be identified generally as a subordinating clause.
We will examine two examples of this construction.

Example 1
‘The book “The Universe in a Nutshell” by Doctor Stephan Hawking is a challenging read, not that I
mind reading something I do not really understand.’
The book ‘The Universe in a Nutshell’ by Doctor Stephan Hawking is a challenging read,
main subject
subject
verb complement
main clause

In this example, the not-that-clause prevents the listener/reader from thinking that the narrator
minded reading something he/she did not really understand:
not that I mind reading something I do not really understand
subordinating main
subject gerund object
conjunction verb
subordinating clause

Example 2
‘We thoroughly enjoyed the movie, not that it was without flaws.’
We thoroughly enjoyed the movie
adverb main
subject object
complement verb
main clause

In this example, the not-that-clause prevents the listener/reader from thinking that the movie
had been without flaws:
not that it was without flaws
subordinating main subject
subject
conjunction verb complement
subordinating clause
 7—236

Differentiate Relative Clause, Free Relative

Clause, and That-Clause
Relative clauses, free relative clauses, and that-clauses all belong to the category of
subordinating clauses, because they cannot constitute a sentence by themselves. They share
some similarities in functions and in the subordinating marker, but between them there are
some inherent differences.

Difference in Function
A relative clause can function as the post-head modifier inside a noun phrase or provides
information about the consequence of the main clause.

A free relative clause can function as the subject, the object, the subject complement, or the
adverb complement inside the main clause.

A that-clause can function as the subject, the object, or the subject complement inside the
main clause, but it cannot conveniently function as the adverb complement. Additionally, a that-
clause cannot function as the post-head modifier inside a noun phrase or provide information
about the consequence of the main clause.

Difference in the Subordinating Marker

 The subordinating marker of a relative clause can function as its subject, object, subject
complement or adverb complement.
 The subordinating marker of a that-clause only functions as the subordinating marker; it has
no other grammatical functions.
 7—237

Confusion Between Relative Clause and That-Clause

Both a restrictive relative clause and a that-clause can begin with the subordinating marker
‘that’, but a that-clause cannot function as the post-head modifier inside a noun phrase, and a
restrictive relative clause function cannot function as the subject, the object, or the subject
complement of the main clause. Therefore:

 If we see a clause which begins with the word ‘that’ and follows a noun phrase, then we
identify it as a restrictive relative clause, not a that-clause, for example:

‘Her pet is a cat that was adopted.’ (restrictive relative clause)

 If we see a clause which begins with the word ‘that’ at the beginning of a sentence or
after a verb, then we identify it as a that-clause, not a restrictive relative clause, for
example:

‘That she adopted a cat is admirable.’ (that-clause)

‘I admire that you adopted a cat.’ (that-clause)

On the other hand, both a free relative clause and a that-clause can function as the subject, the
object, or the subject complement of the main clause, but a free relative clause cannot begin
with the subordinating marker ‘that’.

‘He must be thinking about what an ideal gift for her should be.’ (free relative clause)

‘He must be thinking that he should give her an ideal gift.’ (that-clause)

 Free relative clauses and that-clauses are referred to as noun-clauses by some sources,
because they function similar to a noun on the phrasal level.

‘Because’
Besides that-clauses and free relative clauses, a subordinating clause of ‘because’ can also
function as the subject complement after the copula verb ‘be’. This construction typically begins
with the phrase ‘this is because…’ or ‘that is because…’ to give explanation to the previous
statement, for example:
‘Cacti can survive in desert conditions where rain is sporadic. This is because they can store a large
amount of water in their stems.’
‘Sunlight is essential for the growth of green plants. That is because these plants rely on sunlight to
create their food.’
 8—238

Chapter 8
Empty Subject
Overview
The empty subject — also known as the ambient ‘it’ or the empty ‘it’— is the phenomenon
where we can use the pronoun ‘it’ as the subject of a clause, but this ‘it’ does not carry any
semantic meaning and only serves a grammatical function.
The empty subject is employed for several specific purposes that we will discover in this
chapter.
 8—239

To Describe the Weather

The empty ‘it’ is used when we describe the weather, for example:
‘It is sunny.’
‘It is cold outside.’

To Describe a Process
The empty ‘it’ is employed to give information about the resources which a process consumes,
for example:
‘It takes me 20 minutes to go to school.’
It takes me 20 minutes to go to school
main indirect direct infinitive
subject
verb object object complement

 This construction is often employed to indicate the time consumed by a process, but it is
applicable to any other types of resources, for example:
‘It takes 110 bees and 400,000 flowers to make 100 grams of honey.’
 8—240

To Emphasize
When we want to emphasize a grammatical component of a clause, we can paraphrase the
clause into a construction of the empty ‘it’ and the copula verb ‘be’ (in appropriate tense), for
example:
1. Emphasizing the subject:
‘Honesty always impresses.’
 ‘It is honesty that always impresses.’
It is honesty that always impresses
main noun post-head modifier
subject
verb subject complement

‘Modern facilities has encouraged young people to live in big cities.’

 ‘It has been modern facilities that has encouraged young people to live in big cities.’
It has been modern facilities that has encouraged young people to live in big cities
main noun phrase post-head modifier
subject
verb subject complement

 The subject of the original clause is turned into the subject complement of the empty ‘it’
clause, and the rest of the original clause is turned into a relative clause that modifies the
subject complement.
We can use this empty ‘it’ construction to emphasize any grammatical component of a clause,
but the subject complement of the empty ‘it’ clause must always be a noun or a gerund, for
example:
2. Emphasizing the object:
‘Joe sent this letter.’
 It was this letter that was sent by Joe.
 It was this letter that Joe sent.
‘Joe spoke to this person.’
 ‘It was this person who was spoken to by Joe.’
 ‘It was this person to whom he spoke.’
 8—241

3. Emphasizing the subject complement:

‘He became an astronaut.’
 ‘It was an astronaut that he became.’
‘He felt hopeful.’
 ‘It was hope that he felt.’

4. Emphasizing the infinitive complement:

‘He wants to watch the new movie.’
 ‘It is watching the new movie that he wants.’

• Emphasizing the object of the verb inside the infinitive complement:

‘He wants to try fishing.’
 ‘It is fishing that he wants to try.’

5. Emphasizing the gerund complement:

‘He stopped smoking.’
 ‘It was smoking that he stopped.’

6. Emphasizing the adverb complement:

‘They graduated in 2019.’
 ‘It was 2019 when they graduated.’ (the preposition is omitted because we use ‘when’ as
the relative word)
‘They took that photo in this city.’
 ‘It was this city where they took that photo.’ (the preposition is omitted because we use
‘where’ as the relative word)
 8—242

Infinitive Construction
We can use an infinitive construction with the empty ‘it’:
It + be (in appropriate form) + adjective/noun as subject complement + infinitive
For example:
‘It is important to have breakfast.’
 In this construction, the infinitive is understood to be the true subject of the copula verb
and the subject complement; therefore, we can paraphrase with the infinitive as the subject
by turning it into gerund form:
‘Having breakfast is important.’
 However, we can further specify a subject of the infinitive and the subject complement with
a prepositional phrase of ‘for’. This prepositional phrase can appear before the infinitive or
at the beginning of the clause, for example:
Example 1: ‘It is important for him to have breakfast.’
‘For him, it is important to have breakfast.’

Grammatically, ‘for him’ functions as an adverb complement, but semantically, the person ‘him’ is
understood to be the subject of the infinitive and the subject complement.
 If the subject of the subject complement is not the same as the subject of the infinitive, we
can specify two subjects using two different prepositional phrases of ‘for’. The subject of the
subject complement is placed at the beginning of the clause, and the subject of the infinitive
is placed before the infinitive, for example:
‘For us, it is important for him to have breakfast.’
 If the construction only contains one subject (besides the empty ‘it’), then it is understood
to be the subject of both the subject complement and the infinitive, as example 1
demonstrates.
 8—243

That-clause Construction to Express

Necessities
We can use a that-clause with the empty ‘it’ to express necessities in this construction:

It + be (in suitable form) + subject complement of necessity + that-clause with ‘should/must’

For example:
‘It is important that he should/must have breakfast.’
In this construction, the that-clause is understood to be the true subject of the copula verb and
the subject complement; therefore, we can always paraphrase with the that-clause as the
subject:
‘That he should/must have breakfast is important for us.’
 If the modal verb in the that-clause is ‘should’, then it can be omitted, but the main verb in
the that-clause will still be in base form, regardless of its subject and tenses, for example:
‘It is important for us that he should have breakfast.’
This particular that-clause construction of the empty ‘it’ is referred to as the subjective mood.
 The that-clause construction is often used when there is much information to express, for
example:
‘It is a truth universally accepted, that a single man in possession of a good fortune must be in want of
a wife.’ (‘Pride and Prejudice’, 1813, Jane Austine)
 8—244

To Express Sentimentalities
We can express sentimentalities with the empty ‘it’ by using the following construction:

It + be (in appropriate form) + only + subject complement, but + clause.

For example:
‘It is only nine people, but they are my entire world.’ (‘Deadpool 2’ trailer, 2024)
‘It was only a short read, and I did not even entirely understand it, but it impressed me deeply.’
(In this example, only the first ‘it’ is the empty ‘it’, the second and third ‘it’ represent ‘a short
read’.)

‘When it comes to…’

‘When it comes to + noun phrase’ is an idiomatical expression of the empty ‘it’, which can be
interpreted as ‘in the field of…’ or ‘in regard to…’. This construction serves as a subordinating
clause, for example:
‘When it comes to chess, there are many child prodigies.’
‘When it comes to sightseeing, there are plenty to see New York City.’

‘It’s Ok’
‘It’s ok.’
In informal situations, the empty ‘it’ is often used idiomatically with ‘ok’ to express acceptance
or to reassure.
 8—245

Empty Subject of ‘Here’ and ‘There’

We can also use the adverbs ‘here’ and ‘there’ as the empty subjects.

Introductory Purpose
We can use ‘here’ as the empty subjects to introduce something or someone, for example:
‘Here comes the endgame.’
‘Here is my brother with his new haircut.’

Describing Location
We can use ‘there’ as the empty subjects when giving information about the location of
something or someone.

 Sometimes, we may find ourselves using sentences such as:

‘My neighborhood has many convenience stores.’
This sentence is grammatical, and it is acceptable in informal and semi-formal context; however,
the subject ‘my neighborhood’, being inanimate, cannot logically perform the verb ‘has’. In such a
case, we should use ‘there’ as the empty subject to express the idea:
‘There are many convenient stores in my neighborhood.’

 Here are two more examples:

‘There is a squirrel on that tree.’
‘There is method in his madness.’ (‘method is one’s madness’ is an idiom)

Indicating the Existence of Something or Someone

We can use ‘there’ as the empty subject when giving information about the existence of
something or someone, for example:
‘There are rumors about the acquisition of the company.’
‘There exists artificial diamonds.’

 ‘There’ as the empty subject is used in a famous quote:

‘There is no such thing as a free lunch.’ (‘The Moon Is a Harsh Mistress’, Robert. A. Heinlein, 1966)
 9—246

Chapter 9
Grammatical Mood
Overview
There are four grammatical moods in English: indicative, subjunctive, conditional, and imperative.
We can employ these moods for certain purposes:
 Indicative mood is the default mood of English. It describes factual statements and
opinions.
 Imperative mood exerts commands to the listener/reader.
 Subjunctive mood expresses necessities.
 Conditional mood expresses conditional situations.
 9—247

Indicative Mood
The indicative mood describes factual statements and opinions. It is the default mood of English.

Imperative Mood
1) The imperative mood is employed to express commands, rules, or regulations by a body of
authority.
2) Sentences in the imperative mood are without a subject; they start with a verb in base form
or auxiliary verb in case of a negative sentence. The subject of a sentence in the imperative
mood is understood to be the listener/reader, for example:
‘Turn off the lights before leaving the room.’
‘Do not throw trash into the river.’
3) Two common uses of the imperative mood in daily life are with the verb ‘let’ and the adverb
‘please’:
‘Let us (Let’s) go.’
‘Please take a seat.’
Read more about the imperative mood at: [Link]
 9—248

Subjunctive Mood
The subjunctive mood expresses the necessity of an action. The main verb in the subjective
mood is always in base form, regardless of its subject and tense-aspect.
The subjunctive mood is often used in these three situations:
1. In a that-clause functioning as the clausal object of a verb of necessities, such as: ‘suggest’,
‘advise’, ‘demand’, ‘insist’. For example:
‘The doctor advised that she eat 1500 calories a day.’
‘We insist that your cat sit here with us.’
2. In a that-clause of an empty ‘it’ construction which denotes necessities, for example:
‘It is essential that tomatoes be peeled before being cooked.’
‘It is important that he have breakfast.’

 Originally, the modal verb ‘should’ is used in such constructions:

‘The doctor advised that she should eat 1500 calories a day.’
‘We insist that your cat should sit here with us.’
‘It is essential that tomatoes should be peeled before being cooked.’
‘It is important that he should have breakfast.’
Over time, ‘should’ is idiomatically omitted, creating the subjunctive mood. In British English,
however, ‘should’ is still often included in such a that clause. When this is the case, the that-
clause is a usual clause with a modal verb.
 When the necessity is of a higher degree and turns into an obligation, the modal verb ‘must’
can be used instead of ‘should’. In this case, ‘must’ cannot be omitted, for example:
‘It is a truth universally accepted, that a man in possession of a good fortune must be in want of a
wife.’ (‘Pride and Prejudice’, 1813, Jane Austine)
3. In a subordinating clause of ‘lest’
‘Lest’ is a special subordinating conjunction that can, by itself, introduce a subordinating clause in
the subjunctive mood, for example:
‘He carefully took notes of the lecture lest he forget the details.’
‘They brought an umbrella lest it rain on the walk to the restaurant.’

 In British English, the modal verb ‘should’ is used in a clause of ‘lest’:

‘He carefully took notes of the lecture lest he should forget the details.’
 9—249

Conditional Mood
The conditional mood allows the speaker/writer to express conditional situations. A sentence
in the conditional mood is called a conditional sentence.
A conditional sentence can be a complex sentence or a compound-complex sentence, with the
subordinating clause often introduced by the subordinating conjunction ‘if’. The if-clause
provide the precondition for the main clause; subsequently, the main clause is the consequence
of the if-clause.
In a conditional sentence, either the if-clause or the main clause can appear first.
Conditional sentences are often categorized under the headings:
conditional type 0 (or zero conditional)
conditional type 1 (or first conditional; conditional 1)
conditional type 2 (or second conditional; conditional 2)
conditional type 3 (or third conditional; conditional 3)
mixed conditional
 9—250

Conditional Type 0
The conditional type 0 is employed to describe facts of nature. In a conditional sentence type 0,
the subordinating conjunctions ‘if’ and ‘when’ are used interchangeably.
 Most commonly, a conditional sentence type 0 is expressed with both clauses in the simple
present, for example:
‘If/when water reaches 100 degrees Celsius, it boils.’
‘If/when the temperature of water falls below 0 degree Celsius, it freezes.’

 In a more formal style:

a. the if-clause is expressed with the modal verb ‘should’ and an auxiliary-verb-inversion
b. the main clause is expressed with the modal verb ‘will’.

For example:
‘Should water reach 100 Celsius degrees, it will boil.’
‘Should the temperature of water fall below 0 degree Celsius, it will freeze.’
 9—251

Conditional Type 1
The conditional type 1 is employed to describe hypotheticals that are possible at the present or
in the future.
In a conditional sentence type 1, the subordinating conjunction ‘if’ is used interchangeably with
the idiomatic phrases ‘provided that’ and ‘given that’. Additionally, the subordinating conjunction
‘unless’ can also be used with the meaning of ‘if not’.

 In a conditional sentence type 1:

a. the if-clause in the simple present
b. the main clause is expressed with the modal verbs ‘will’ or ‘can’.
For example:
‘If the sun shines, I will take a walk.’
‘We can bring more books if there is room.’
 We can use ‘unless’ with the meaning of ‘if not’, for example:
‘Unless it rains, I will take a walk.’
‘Unless it rains’ is equal to ‘if it does not rain’ or ‘as long as it does not rain.’
 Another idiomatical expression of the conditional type 1 is the use of an infinitive as the
subject complement in the if-clause, for example:
‘If I fail this test, I will take it again next month.’
 ‘If I am to fail this test, I will take it again next month.’
‘If I am to fail this test’ essentially has the same expression as ‘If I fail this test’, but using an
infinitive emphasizes that the action has not happened and gives the sentence a more formal
tone.
 9—252

Conditional Type 2
The conditional type 2 is employed to describe hypotheticals that are untrue to reality;
therefore, it is also referred to as the present counter-factual condition.

 In a conditional sentence type 2:

a. the if-clause is in the simple past or expressed with the modal verb ‘could’
b. the main clause is expressed with the modal verbs ‘would’ or ‘could’.
For example:
‘If I had a million dollar, I could quit my job.’
‘If my cat could fly, he would catch all the birds.’
 If the copula verb ‘be’ is used in the if-clause of a type 2 conditional sentence, it can be in
the past plural form ‘were’ for all types of subjects. This use of ‘were’ is referred to as the
past subjunctive mood by some sources. However, in contemporary English, ‘was’ can also
be used for appropriate subjects, for example:
‘If I were/was you, I would exercise more.’
 The conditional type 2 allows for an idiomatical expression with the empty ‘it’ in this
structure:

If it were not for + noun phrase, main clause with ‘would’ or ‘could’

In this construction, ‘for’ can be understood as ‘because of’, for example:

‘If it were not for his resilience, his business would not be successful.’
 Additionally, this construction is often idiomatically expressed with an auxiliary-verb
inversion:
‘Were it not for his resilience, his business would not be successful.’
 9—253

Conditional Type 3
The conditional type 2 is employed to describe hypotheticals of past situations; therefore, it is
also referred to as the past counter-factual conditional.

 In a conditional sentence type 3:

a. the if-clause in the past perfect.
b. the main clause is expressed with the perfect aspects ‘would have’ or ‘could have’.
For example:
‘If the supermarket had had a sale yesterday, we would have bought more meat.’
‘If the airplane had landed late this morning, we could not have returned in time for lunch.’
 The conditional type 3 allows for an idiomatical expression with the empty ‘it’ in this
structure:

If it had not been for + noun phrase, main clause with ‘would have’ or ‘could have’

In this construction, ‘for’ can be understood as ‘because of’, for example:

‘If it had not been for the storm, the bookstore would not have been flooded.’
 Additionally, this construction is often idiomatically expressed with an auxiliary-verb
inversion:
‘Had it not been for the storm, the bookstore would not have been flooded.’
 9—254

Mixed Conditional
The mixed conditional is a mixed construction between the conditional type 2 and type 3, for
example:
‘If he had not had malnutrition as a child, he would be taller now.’
conditional type 3 conditional type 2

In this example, the information in the if-clause is in the past (counter-factual); therefore, it is in
the past perfect to conform to the conditional type 3. However, the consequence in the main
clause is in the present (counter-factual), so it is expressed with the modal verb ‘would’ to
conform to the conditional type 2.
Example 2:
‘If they could speak Spanish, the store would have offered them a sale.’
conditional type 2 conditional type 3

This example describe a hypothetical in the past, with both the precondition and the
consequence are past counter-factual. However, the use of ‘could’ in the if-clause implies that
the precondition ‘speak Spanish’ is not only untrue in the past, but also in the present.
 If the subject could not speak Spanish in the past, but now they have learned to speak
Spanish, then example 2 must be expressed entirely in the conditional type 3:
‘If they had been able to speak Spanish then, the store would have offered them a sale.’
conditional type 3
 10—255

Chapter 10
Conjunction and Punctuation
Overview
This chapter consolidates the use of conjunctions and punctuation.
 10—256

Conjunction
Conjunctions are linking words that connect phrases or clauses in a sentence. There are two
subtypes of conjunctions: subordinating conjunctions and coordinating conjunctions.

Subordinating Conjunction
Subordinating conjunctions only connect a subordinating clause to a main clause. They do not
have any other functions.
However, please note that the words that function as subordinating conjunctions may have
other grammatical functions, such as adverb (‘before’, ‘after’), preposition (‘as’, ‘until’), or
pronouns (‘when’, ‘where’, ‘that’).

 We know such a word to be a subordinating conjunction when it introduces a clause.

Coordinating Conjunction
The most fundamental function of coordinating conjunctions is to connect elements of equal
grammatical functions. They connect phrases to phrases and clauses to clauses.
While the function of coordinating conjunctions is straightforward at the phrasal level, it has a
shift at the clausal level.
 10—257

Coordinating Conjunction on Phrasal Level

At the phrasal level, there is no confusion about the use of coordinating conjunctions. We will
examine the most notable coordinating conjunctions on the phrasal level, namely ‘for’, ‘and’,
‘but’, ‘neither…nor’, ‘either…or’, and ‘yet’.

 Example 1, ‘for’:
‘In that store you can trade a book for a tree.’
‘For’ connects two noun phrases, ‘a book’ and ‘a tree’. Both noun phrases function as the objects
of the verb ‘trade’.

 Example 2, ‘and’:
‘He watched a movie and bought an ice cream.’
‘And’ connects two verb phrases, ‘watched a movie’ and ‘bought an ice cream’. The main verbs in
both verb phrases, ‘watched’ and ‘bought’, function as the main verbs of the sentence.

 Example 3, ‘nor’:
‘The weather was not hot nor cold.’
‘Nor’ must be in a predicate containing a negative adverb, and if we use ‘nor’, we can use ‘neither’
instead of a negative adverb:
‘The weather was neither hot nor cold.’
‘Nor’ connects two adjective, ‘hot’ and ‘cold’, but regards to none of them. Both adjectives
function as the subject complements after the copula verb ‘was’.
‘Neither…nor’ is called a pair of correlative conjunctions; correlative conjunctions are
coordinating conjunctions that work in pairs.
 10—258

 Example 4, ‘but’, and ‘yet’:

Both ‘but’ and ‘yet’ indicate contrasts, and they are often interchangeable. However, one minor
difference between these two conjunctions is that ‘but’ indicate a straightforward contrast,
while ‘yet’ indicate a surprising or unexpected contrast.
‘But’ and ‘yet’ emphasize the second element of the contrast, for example:
‘The broadcasters talk fast but/yet clearly.’
‘But’ connects two adverbs, ‘fast’ and ‘clearly’. Both adverbs function as the adverb complements
of the verb ‘talk’, but the emphasis is on ‘clearly’.

 Example 5, ‘or’:
‘He will either go for a walk or play basketball.’
‘Or’ connects two verb phrases, ‘go for a walk’ and ‘play basketball’, but regard to only one or the
other. The verbs ‘go’ and ‘play’ function as the main verbs of the sentence.
With ‘or’, we can add ‘either’ before the first element to be connected, to form a pair of
correlative conjunctions. However, in this function, ‘either’ does not contribute anything to the
meaning of the clause, it is only to emphasize that ‘or’ is in the sentence.
‘Either…or’ is called a pair of correlative conjunctions; correlative conjunctions are coordinating
conjunctions that work in pairs.
 10—259

Coordinating Conjunction on Clausal Level

On the clausal level, a coordinating conjunction often connects two or more main clauses
within a compound sentence or within a compound-complex sentence.
Since a coordinating conjunction connects main clauses, we should be able to remove the
coordinating conjunction and split the compound sentence into single sentences without
compromising the original expression of the compound sentence.
However, at clausal level, only ‘and’ and ‘nor’ retain this characteristic, while ‘so’, ‘for’, ‘but’, ‘yet’,
and ‘or’ function similarly to subordinating conjunctions. To prove this grammatical notion, we
will examine these coordinating conjunctions at clausal level.

‘And’, and ‘neither…nor’

First, we will examine ‘and’ and ‘neither…nor’.

 Example 1, ‘and’:
‘Chess is 1500 years old, and it was invented in India.’
 ‘Chess is 1500 years old. It was invented in India.’
With ‘and’, we can split the compound sentence into single sentences without compromising
the original expression.

 Example 2, ‘neither…nor’:
‘They neither doubted their ability after losing the first point, nor did their will break.’
(we can do an auxiliary verb inversion in the clause with ‘nor’)
 ‘They did not doubt their ability after losing the first point. Their will did not break.’
With ‘neither…nor’, we can split the compound sentence into single sentences without
compromising the original expression.
 10—260

‘So’, ‘For’, ‘But’, ‘Yet’, ‘Or’

At clausal level, the other five notable coordinating conjunctions, namely ‘so’, ‘for’, ‘but’, ‘yet’, and
‘or’ function similarly to subordinating conjunctions. This phenomenon is evident due to the two
following reasons:
1. We cannot split the clauses connected by ‘so’, ‘for’, ‘but’, ‘yet’, or ‘or’ into single sentences
without compromising the original expression. To compensate for the loss of meaning,
we must add a suitable adverb complement to one of the single sentences.
2. When we replace ‘so’, ‘for’, ‘but’, or ‘yet’ with a suitable subordinating conjunction, the
meaning of the sentence remains exactly the same. In case of ‘or’, we can paraphrase the
sentence by using the subordinating conjunction ‘if’.
To demonstrate this grammatical notion, we will examine of ‘so’, ‘for’, ‘but’, ‘yet’, and ’or’ at
clausal level.
 10—261

Example 1, ‘so’ and ‘for’

Both ‘so’ and ‘for’ connect two clauses of cause and effect (causal relationship), but ‘so’ stands
before the effect clause, while ‘for’ stands before the cause clause.

 Compound sentence of ‘so’:

‘They must stay healthy for the job, so they exercise in the morning and in the afternoon.’
 ‘They must stay healthy for the job. They exercise in the morning and in the afternoon.’

 Compound sentence of ‘for’:

‘They exercise in the morning and in the afternoon, for they must stay healthy for the job.’
 ‘They exercise in the morning and in the afternoon. They must stay healthy for the job.’

 As demonstrated, when we remove ‘so’ or ‘for’ and split the compound sentence into two
single sentences, the causal relationship is lost. To compensate for this loss of meaning, we
must implement a suitable conjunctive adverb, for example:
‘They must stay healthy for the job. Consequently, they exercise in the morning and in the afternoon.’
 Furthermore, the meaning of the original sentence remains exactly the same when we
replace ‘so’ or ‘for’ with the subordinating conjunction ‘because’:
‘They exercise in the morning and in the afternoon because they must stay healthy for the job.’
Now the sentence has become a complex sentence with a subordinating clause of ‘because’.
 10—262

Example 2, ‘but’ and ‘yet’

‘Many people say that goldfish have a memory span of five seconds, but/yet the truth is quite the
opposite.’
 ‘Many people say that goldfish have a memory span of five seconds. The truth is quite the
opposite.’

 When we remove ‘but’ or ‘yet’ and split the compound sentence into two single sentences,
the contrast is lost. To compensate for this loss of meaning, we must implement a suitable
conjunctive adverb, for example:
‘Many people say that goldfish have a memory span of five seconds. However, the truth is quite the
opposite.’
 Furthermore, the meaning of the original sentence remains exactly the same when we use
the subordinating conjunction ‘although’ instead of ‘but’ or ‘yet’:
‘Although many people say that a goldfish have a memory span of five seconds, the truth is quite the
opposite.’
Now the sentence has become a complex sentence with a subordinating clause of ‘although’.
 10—263

Example 3, ‘either…or’
‘Joe will either purchase a ticket and go to a concert, or he will play basketball with his friends.’
 ‘Joe will purchase a ticket and go to a concert. He will play basketball with his friends.’

 When we remove ‘or’ and split the compound sentence into two single sentences, the
original expression is no longer retained, because ‘or’ indicates that only one of the actions
will happen, while two single sentences lost this indication. To compensate for the loss of
meaning, we need to implement a suitable conjunctive adverb:
‘Joe will purchase a ticket and go to a concert. Alternatively, he will play basketball and save some
money.’

 We can paraphrase the original sentence by using the subordinating conjunction ‘if’:
‘If Joe does not purchase a ticket and go to a concert, he will play basketball with his friends.’
‘If Joe does not play basketball with his friends, he will purchase a ticket and go to a concert.’
Now the sentence has become a complex sentence with a subordinating clause of ‘if’.
 10—264

Coordinating Conjunction in Complex Sentence and Compound-

Complex Sentence
 In a complex sentence, coordinating conjunctions can connect multiple subordinating
clauses, for example:
‘He practices kendo because it is a good game, and because practicing it is an efficient way to
exercise.’
because practicing it is an efficient way to
He practices kendo because it is a good game, and
exercise
main clause subordinating clause 1 subordinating clause 2

However, a subordinating clause cannot be a sentence by itself, so we cannot split them into
single sentences.
 In a compound-complex sentence, coordinating conjunctions can connect a main clause to
another main clause, or a group of a main clause and subordinating clauses to another group
of a main clause and subordinating clauses, for example:
‘He has long hair because he likes the look, but he wears a hat to cover it when he goes out since
he does not want it to get messy.’
He has long because he likes the he wears a when he goes since he does not
but
hair look, hat to cover it out want it to get messy
subordinating subordinating
main clause subordinating clause main clause
clause clause

We can split this compound-complex sentence into two complex sentences in the same way
we split a compound sentence into single sentences:
‘He has long hair because he likes the look. However, he wears a hat to cover it when he goes out
since he does not want it to get messy.’
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Special Conjunctions
‘Not’
The negative word ‘not’, with the help of commas, can also connect two phrases of the same
grammatical function, for example:
‘That was a bird, not an airplane.’
In this example, ‘not’ is technically a negative adverb complementing the main verb ‘was’, but it
functions similar to a coordinating conjunction connecting two noun phrases, ‘a bird’ and ‘an
airplane’. Both noun phrases function as the subject complements.

 However, we can still use a coordinating conjunction before ‘not’ if necessary:

‘He is reckless and pugnacious, but not a bully.’
This type of phrase with ‘not’ is referred to as an interruptive phrase (appositives and relative
clauses also belong to this category). An interruptive phrase is marked by commas or em
dashes, and we can use an interruptive phrase of ‘not’ to connect two phrases of any
grammatical function, for example:
• Interruptive phrase of ‘not’ connecting two noun phrases in the subject:
‘He, not I, opened the window.’ (in this case, the subject is singular because the second noun ‘I’ is
both connected and negated by ‘not’)
• Interruptive phrase of ‘not’ connecting two noun phrases functioning as the objects:
‘I have a pen, not a pencil.’
• Interruptive phrase of ‘not’ connecting two noun phrases functioning as the subject
complements:
‘It should have been me, not him.’
• Interruptive phrase of ‘not’ connecting two adverb phrases functioning as the adverb
complements:
‘The story is written simply, not half-heartedly.’
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‘Albeit’ and ‘Despite’

We can also form interruptive phrases with the conjunctions ‘albeit’ and ‘despite’. ‘Albeit’ and
‘despite’ can be followed by a noun phrase, an adjective phase, a prepositional phrase, or an
adverb phrase.
‘Albeit’ and ‘despite’ are considered subordinating conjunctions although they only introduce
phrases, not clauses. This phenomenon happens because an interruptive phrase of ‘albeit’ or
‘despite’ functions similar to a subordinating clause of ‘although’.
We will examine this construction with examples of both ‘albeit/despite’ and ‘although’.

Example 1
 Expressing an idea with a subordinating clause of ‘although’:
‘Stamina was humans’ first hunting tool, although it is not a weapon.’
 An interruptive phrase of ‘albeit’ or ‘despite’, which can appear at the end of the clause or
after the subject, expresses the same idea as the subordinating clause of ‘although’:
‘Stamina was humans’ first hunting tool, albeit not a weapon.’
‘Stamina, albeit not a weapon, was humans’ first hunting tool.’
(‘albeit’ and ‘despite’ can be used interchangeably)

Example 2
 Expressing an idea with a subordinating clause of ‘although’:
‘His life is organized, although it is quite hectic.’

 Expressing the same idea with an interruptive phrase of ‘albeit’ or ‘despite’:

‘His life is organized, albeit quite hectic.’
‘His life, albeit quite hectic, is organized.’

Example 3
 Expressing an idea with a subordinating clause of ‘although’:
‘He is working efficiently, although he has only one arm.’

 Expressing the same idea with an interruptive phrase of ‘albeit’ or ‘despite’:

‘He is working efficiently, albeit having only one arm.’
‘He, albeit having only one arm, is working efficiently.’
 10—267

Example 4
 Expressing an idea with a subordinating clause of ‘although’:
‘He has been improving his position, although he is doing it at a slow pace.’

 Expressing the same idea with an interruptive phrase of ‘albeit’ or ‘despite’:

‘He has been improving his position, albeit at a slow pace.’
‘He, albeit at a slow pace, has been improving his position.’

Example 5
 Besides, we can also use ‘albeit’ or ‘despite’ to connect two phrases of the same grammatical
function in the same way we can use the coordinating conjunction ‘but’, for example:
‘They sell affordable but high-quality products.’
‘They sell high-quality, albeit affordable, products.’

 In informal situations, we can use ‘though’ instead of ‘albeit’ or ‘despite’.

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Punctuation
Punctuation marks are marks that separate phrases, clauses, and sentences in a piece of written
text. In speech, punctuation is signal by pausing, long or short, in between speaking.
In certain situations, the use of punctuation is grammatically compulsory; in other cases, it is
optional and can be employed arbitrarily by the writer for a specific purpose.
In this text, we will examine some of the most common punctuation marks in English, namely
the period, the comma, the semicolon, the colon, the parentheses, the dashes, and the
apostrophe.

Period
A period is employed to mark the end of a sentence. In speaking, it is signaled by a notable
pause.
Besides the period, we can also mark the end of a sentence with a question mark if it is a
question, or an exclamation mark if it is an exclamatory sentence.
 10—269

Comma
A comma is employed to separate phrases or clauses within a sentence. In speech, it is signaled
by a short pause.

 Compulsory Use
The use of commas are grammatically compulsory in many situations that were mentioned
throughout the chapters of this text. Here, we will take a look back at the most common
situations.
Compulsory use of commas
Situations Example
between three or more phrases of the
‘She likes long walks, sunshine, and pretty
same grammatical function when they are
hair.’
connected by a coordinating conjunction
‘Joe, a friend of mine, arrived at the
At before and after the appositive
airport.’
phrasal
level after a prepositional phrase when it ‘In the cafeteria, he wanted to buy a cup
appears at the beginning of the clause of coffee.’
‘He, however, realized that he forgot his
before and after a conjunctive adverb
wallet.’
‘Fortunately, a man dressed as a dinosaur
before and after an attitude adverb
lent him some money.’
between the main clauses when they are ‘He has hair of teal color, and he wear a
At connected by a coordinating conjunction beige long-sleeve t-shirt.’
clausal ‘Because the t-shirt is comfortable and
level after the subordinating clause suitable for many occasions, he likes it a
lot.’

 Optional Use
Besides those compulsory uses, we can use commas in other optional situations.
We can use commas before a subordinating conjunction (if the subordinating conjunction
appears in the middle of the sentence) to make it more visible, especially in a long sentence, for
example:
‘Any square is a rectangle, but not any rectangle is a square, because some rectangles do not have four
side of equal length.’
We can also use commas after any phrase to emphasize it. This use is sometimes idiomatical,
sometimes arbitrary by the writer. When using commas arbitrarily for certain purposes, we
should ensure that the commas do not make the sentence awkward.
 10—270

Semicolon
As its shape suggests, the semicolon is the hybrid between a comma and a period. It appears
where a comma is insufficient, but a period is too divisive. Below are the three common
situations where the use of the semicolon is appropriate.
1. We can use the semicolon to join two main clauses. The two main clauses connected by a
semicolon often have different subjects, but their information is logically related to each
other.
In this function, the semicolon functions similar to a coordinating conjunction, so we do not
need to use one on top of the semicolon, for example:
‘I went to the supermarket; the bread was in the sale.’
However, we can still throw in a coordinating conjunction for its semantic notion, for example:
‘I went to the supermarket; and the bread was in the sale.’
2. If a period is too divisive, we can use the semicolon with a conjunctive adverb, for example:
‘I went to the supermarket to buy some breads; however, it was closed for maintenance.’
We cannot use a comma in this situation because then the reader cannot be sure which clause
the conjunctive adverb is complementing:
‘I went to the supermarket to buy some bread, however, it was closed for maintenance.’ (ambiguous)
3. Besides, we can use the semicolon between items in a list, if the items require internal
punctuation, for example:
‘The painting portrays a scene of various European roof tile houses, graced in sunshine; a high-rise —
albeit not necessarily notable — tower; obtuse hills scattering on the horizon; and the peaceful blue sky
with fluffy white clouds.’
(‘View from the Drawing Classroom, Klosterneuburg’, Egon Schiele, 1905)
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Colon
A colon can be used for the following purposes:
1. To introduce a list, for example:
‘There are three types of muscles in a human body: skeletal muscles, cardiac muscles, and smooth
muscles.’
2. To give examples, with or without adverbial phrases such as ‘such as’, ‘for example’, ‘for
instance’:
‘Length can be measured by various measurements: inches, centimeters, feet, meters, miles, or
kilometers.’
3. To give explanations, equal to ‘because’ or ‘which is’, for example:
‘He had a feeling that the Sunday would be nice: the sun was shining, and the birds were singing.’ (the
colon equals to ‘because’)
‘Two streamers are having a heated debate about zebras: are zebras white horses with black stripes,
or are they black horses with white stripes?’ (the colon equals to ‘which is’)
4. To quote, for example:
‘At the end of “The Terminator 2”, the terminator said to Conner: “I will be back.”’
 However, a colon should not separate a verb from its object or subject complement, or a
preposition from its post-head modifier in a prepositional phrase, for example:
‘Three types of human muscles are: skeletal muscles, cardiac muscles, and smooth muscles.’
(not grammatical)
 This use of the colon is not grammatical because it separates the copula verb ‘are’ from its
subject complements. We should remove the colon in this case.
‘These citruses are from: Africa, America Asian, Europe, and Oceania.’ (not grammatical)
 This use of the colon is not grammatical because it separates the preposition ‘from’ from its
post-head modifiers. We should remove the colon in this case.
 10—272

Parentheses (Brackets)
The parentheses, also called the brackets, are employed to mark additional but non-essential
information. If we remove the phrase within parentheses, the sentence will still be functional,
for example:
‘World Health Organization (WHO) was founded in 1948.’
‘This bag of gummy bears was really cheap (only 99 cents).’
 Due to this characteristic, we can also use parentheses to mark appositives or non-
restrictive relative clause, but we should only do this in informal or semi-formal context, for
example:
‘”Snatch” (directed by Guy Ritchie) is a good movie.’
 10—273

Em Dash, En Dash, and Hyphen

The em dash, en dash, and hyphen are three types of dashes that are often used in English. They
look similar, but there are actually differences between their lengths and their functions.
 The em dash is the longest dash, equal to the length of the letter m. Em dash is mostly
employed to mark interruptive phrases, for example:
‘JavaScript — a programming language — was invented by Brenden Eich.’ (em dashes marking an
appositive)
‘I want to take her to a nice — albeit not necessarily expensive — dinner.’ (em dashes marking an
interruptive phrase of ‘albeit’)
 The en dash is shorter than em dash, equal to the length of the letter n. The en dash is used
with the combined meaning of ‘from’ and ‘to’, for example:
‘They worked there 2019–2024’ (from 2019 to 2024)
‘Taipei–Taichung flight check-ins at 3pm.’ (from Taipei to Taichung)
 The hyphen is the shortest dash, shorter than en dash. The hyphen is used in compound
words, such as ‘that-clause’, ‘check-in’, ‘self-esteem’.

Apostrophe
The apostrophe is employed along with the letter s to mark a possessive or genitive
relationship, often between a human noun and a non-human noun, or between two human
nouns. For example:
‘This is Joe’s car’ = ‘This is the car of Joe’
‘That was Joe’s friend’ = ‘That was a friend of Joe’
 10—274

Null clause
A null clause is a clause that has its component omitted or replaced with a placeholder of no
semantic information, but the clause itself is still considered grammatical. A clause is nulled in
certain context to avoid unnecessary repetition.

1. If the information that would be repeated is in the predicate, then the whole predicate of
the null clause is reduced to an auxiliary verb of appropriate tense-aspect, for example:

• ‘My friends have not watched the new movie, but I have watched the new movie’
• ‘The computers are working, but the television is not working’
• ‘Joe did not buy her flowers, but he should have bought her flowers’
• ‘My hometown is not a coastal city, but the city where I am living is a coastal city’
• ‘A: Were there any convenience stores?
B: Yes, there were convenience stores’
2. This also applies for predicates with expressions and verbs that express modalities, for
example:

‘Joe did not watch the new movie, but he wanted to watch the new movie’

 If a gerund is to be nulled in a modal expression, then it is represented by the pronoun ‘it’:

‘Joe passed the test; he was totally capable of it’ (it = passing the test)

3. Besides, the adverbs ‘too’ and ‘so’ are often used in a null clause to emphasize similarity
between the null clause and the clause before it. Additionally, ‘so’ leads to a subject-verb
inversion in the null clause:

‘Time has changed, and I have changed, too.’

‘My cat can speak English, and so can I speak English’

Null Clause in Casual Conversation

In casual conversations, null clauses are used extensively. An informal null clause can be
understood even when it does not have a subject nor a predicate. For example, before parting
with someone, we can just say ‘Later!’, and it is understood to be ‘I will see you later!’.
 10—275

Reference
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Special Thanks
The author of this text would like to express gratitude to [Link] and ChatGPT, whose
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