Grammar in

Academic Writing
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Contents
The following things are to be kept in mind:
Syntax
Run on Sentence
Use of tense
Use of Voice
Use of Article
Punctuation
Abbreviation
Paraphrasing
Diction
Signal Verbs

Contd.
Linking verbs and phrases
Person

I. Syntax
Syntax is the systematic orderly arrangement
of words and phrases in order to form
sentences.
It explains the rules for grammatical
arrangement of words in sentences.
Simply put, it is the study of the rules for forming
admissible sentences.
Rules:
Clear, concise, and well-structured sentences
should be used in academic writing.
Long sentences should be concise or broken into

II. Run on Sentences

A run-on is a sentence in which two or more
independent clauses (i.e. complete sentences)
are joined without an appropriate
punctuation or conjunction
For example:
It is nearly half past five we cannot reach town
before dark.

Ways to Correct Run on Sentences

Insert a semicolon or dash
Example: It is nearly half past five; we cannot reach town
before dark.
Write the two clauses as two separate sentences
(Note: this may disconnect related independent
clauses and cause some of the meaning to be lost)
It is nearly half past five. We cannot reach town before
dark.
Insert a coordinating conjunction with a comma
It is nearly half past five, so we cannot reach town before
dark.
Make one clause dependent on the other
Because it is nearly half past five, we cannot reach town
before dark.

III. Tenses
Tense is a verb-based method used to indicate
the time, and sometimes the continuation or
completeness, of an action or state in relation
to the time of speaking.
consistency in using a tense in a write-up.
When a writer uses a particular tense, the
same tense must be used throughout the
write-up.
Present tense is the most preferable tense in
academic writing

IV. Use of Voice

The voice (also called diathesis and (rarely) gender (of
verbs)) of a verb describes the relationship between
the action (or state) that the verb expresses and the
participants identified by its arguments (subject, object,
etc.).
When the subject is the agent or doer of the action,
the verb is in the active voice.
When the subject is the patient, target or undergoer of
the action, the verb is said to be in the passive voice.
Active voice should be preferred in academic writing
over passive voice.

V. Use of Article
An article is a word (or prefix or suffix) that is
used with a noun to indicate the type of reference
being made by the noun.
Articles specify grammatical definiteness of the
noun, in some languages extending to volume or
numerical scope.
There are three types of article in English: a, an,
the
The articles must be used following grammar
rules

VI. Punctuation
Punctuation refers to the marks, such as
full stop, comma, and brackets, used in
writing to separate sentences and their
elements and to clarify meaning.
Refer to
http://www.thepunctuationguide.com/
to learn the proper usage of the
punctuation marks.

VII. Abbreviation
shortened form of a word or phrase. It consists
of a group of letters taken from the word or
phrase. For example, the word abbreviation can
itself be represented by the abbreviation abbr.,
abbrv. or abbrev.
should have complete word or phrase followed
by its shortened form in bracket. [For examples:
World Health Organisation (WHO)]
After using the abbreviation first time, the
shortened form should always be used
thereafter throughout the write-up.

VIII. Paragraphing
In academic writing, effective paragraphs serve as
building blocks to construct a complex analysis or
argument.
Paragraphing helps readers to understand and
process your ideas into meaningful units of thought.
Follow the suggested structure for a paragraph.
A paragraph must have at least 5 sentences or at
least 150 words in the main body.
A paragraph needs to show its association with the
earlier discussion and therefore it should start with
transition sentences.

IX. Diction
Diction refers to the choice and use of words and phrases in
speech or writing.
Do Not Use Colloquialisms
Do Not Use Slang
Do Not Use Jargon
Do Not Use Vague Adjectives and Adverbs
Do Not Include Feeling Words
Do Not Use Big Words Just for the Sake of Using Big Words
Do Not Use Meaningless Words
Do Not Use Metaphors
Do Not Use Clichs
Do Not Use Platitudes
Do Not Use Pejoratives

X. Signal Verbs
Signal verbs are verbs that show your understanding of an
author's purpose and alert the reader to the context in
which the source's statement should be viewed.
help your reader understand the author's intentions and
the degree to which the author supports his statements.
The following signal words are more frequently used in
academic writing.
acknowledges, concludes, emphasises, replies,
advises, concurs, asserts, expresses, reports,
agrees, confirms, interprets, responds, allows,
criticises, lists, reveals, answers, declares, objects,
says, describes, observes, states, believes,
disagrees, offers, suggests, changes, discusses,
opposes, thinks, claims, disputes, remarks, writes

XI. Linking Verbs

connects the subject with a word that gives
information about the subject, such as a
condition or relationship.
They do not show any action; but, they link the
subject with the rest of the sentence.
For example, in the sentence "They are a
problem," the word "are" is the linking verb that
connects "they" and "problem" to show the
relationship between the two words

XII. Person
refers to the form of a word as it relates to the subject. In
English there are three persons.
First personrefers to the speaker. The pronounsI, me,
myself, my, mine, we, us, ourselves, our,andoursare
first person.
Second personrefers to the one being spoken to. The
pronounsyou, yourself, your,andyoursare second person.
Third personrefers to the one being spoken about. The
pronounshe, she, it, him, her, himself, herself, himself,
his, her, hers, its, they, them, themselves,
their,andtheirsare third person.
In academic writing, one should always make use of third
person.
In case of a reflective assignment, first and second person can
be used.