Grammar Definitions

Front 1

Declarative sentence

Back 1

sentence that makes a statement and tells about a person, place, thing, or idea

Front 2

Interrogative sentence

Back 2

sentence that asks a question - Is that my son Jimmy?

Front 3

Imperative sentence

Back 3

sentence that issues a command - Please clear the dinner table.

Front 4

Exclamatory sentence

Back 4

sentence that communicates strong ideas or feelings - That was a great shot!

Front 5

Simple sentence

Back 5

sentence with a single subject or compound subject and a single predicate or a compound predicate - this has only one independent and no dependent clauses

Front 6

Single subject, single predicate

Back 6

type of simple sentence - My dog growls.

Front 7

Compound subject, single predicate

Back 7

type of simple sentence - My dog and my cat growl.

Front 8

Compound subject, compound predicate

Back 8

type of simple sentence - My dog and my cat growl and appear agitated.

Front 9

Independent clause with two phrases

Back 9

type of simple sentence - I must have two vicious pets from the pound in my town.

Front 10

Compound sentence

Back 10

sentence made up of two independent clauses - clauses must be joined by a semicolon or by a comma and a coordinating conjunction - My dog growls at the mailman, but my cat growls at her littermate.

Front 11

Complex sentence

Back 11

sentence with one independent clause and one or more dependent clauses - When you pass the test, you'll enjoy a career in teaching.

Front 12

Compound/complex sentence

Back 12

sentence that has two or more independent clauses and one or more dependent clauses - I just earned my teaching degree, and I plan to get a teaching job because I need a career.

Front 13

Common nouns

Back 13

nouns that do not name specific people, places, or things and are not capitalized - person, animal, car

Front 14

Proper nouns

Back 14

nouns that name particular people, places, or things and are capitalized - President Bush, Chicago, Judaism

Front 15

Concrete nouns

Back 15

nouns that name a thing that is tangible (can be seen, heard, touched, smelled, or tasted) - dog, Campus Cinema, football

Front 16

Abstract nouns

Back 16

nouns that name an idea, condition, or feeling (something that is not concrete) - ideals, justice, Americana

Front 17

Collective nouns

Back 17

nouns that name a group or unit - gaggle, herd, community

Front 18

Singular nouns

Back 18

number of nouns such as book, library, bacterium, man

Front 19

Plural nouns

Back 19

number of nouns such as books, libraries, children, bacteria, men

Front 20

Masculine nouns

Back 20

gender of nouns such as father, brother, uncle, men, bull

Front 21

Feminine nouns

Back 21

gender of nouns such as mother, sister, aunt, women, cow

Front 22

Neuter nouns

Back 22

gender of nouns such as window, shrub, door, college, car

Front 23

Indefinite nouns

Back 23

gender of nouns such as chairperson, politician, president, professor, flight attendant

Front 24

Nominative case noun

Back 24

case of noun that can be the subject of a clause or the predicate noun when it follows the verb be

Front 25

Possessive case noun

Back 25

case of noun that shows possession or ownership

Front 26

Objective case noun

Back 26

case of noun that can be a direct object, an indirect object, or an object of a preposition

Front 27

Transitive verb

Back 27

type of verb that takes direct objects - words or word groups that complete the meaning of a verb by naming a receiver of the action - The secondary English student

Front 28

Intransitive verb

Back 28

type of verb that takes no objects or complements - An airplane flew overhead.

Front 29

Linking or connecting verb

Back 29

type of verb that connects the subject and the subject complement (an adjective, noun, or noun equivalent) - It was rainy.

Front 30

Auxiliary or helping verb

Back 30

type of verb that comes before another verb - She must have passed the semester exam.

Front 31

Past tense verb

Back 31

tense of verb used to tell about what happened in the past - They attended Wakefield Elementary School.

Front 32

Future tense verb

Back 32

tense of verb used to express action that will take place in the future - Next year, they will attend Broad Rock High School.

Front 33

Present perfect tense verb

Back 33

tense of verb used when action began in the past but continues into the present - Annie has attended a charter school for two years.

Front 34

Past perfect tense verb

Back 34

tense of verb used to express action that began in the past and happened prior to another past action - Dr. Hicks reported that redistricting had alleviated the crowding problem in schools

Front 35

Future perfect tense verb

Back 35

tense of verb used to express action that will begin in the future and will be completed in the future - By this time next year, Tory and Celia will have graduated

Front 36

Infinitive phrase

Back 36

phrase usually made up of “to” and the base form of a verb, such as to order or to abandon, can function as an adjective, adverb, or noun

Front 37

Participle

Back 37

verb form that usually ends in -ing or –ed and operates as adjectives but also maintain some characteristics of verbs - barking dog, painted faces

Front 38

Gerund phrase

Back 38

phrase made up of a present participle and functioning as a noun - Gardening is my favorite leisure activity.

Front 39

Simple pronoun

Back 39

type of pronoun such as I, you, he, she, it, we, they, who, what

Front 40

Compound pronoun

Back 40

type of pronoun such as itself, myself, anybody, someone, everything

Front 41

Phrasal pronoun

Back 41

type of pronoun such as each other, one another

Front 42

Antecedent

Back 42

the noun to which a pronoun refers - Jimmy is playing in a basketball tournament tomorrow. He hopes to play well.

Front 43

Personal pronoun

Back 43

class of pronoun that takes the place of nouns - Coach Spence change his starting line-up and won the game.

Front 44

Relative pronoun

Back 44

class of pronoun that relates adjective clauses to the nouns or pronouns they modify - A basketball player who plays with intensity and skill gets a place in the

Front 45

Indefinite pronoun

Back 45

class of pronoun that usually refers to unnamed or unknown people or things - Perhaps you know somebody who can slam-dunk a basketball.

Front 46

Interrogative pronoun

Back 46

class of pronoun that asks a question - Who are you and why do you play basketball?

Front 47

Demonstrative pronoun

Back 47

class of pronoun that points out people, places, or things without naming them - This should be an easy win, they are undefeated.

Front 48

Modifiers

Back 48

words, clauses, or phrases that limit or describe other words or groups of words

Front 49

Adjective

Back 49

type of modifier that describes nouns or pronouns

Front 50

Adverb

Back 50

type of modifier that describes time, place, manner, or degree

Front 51

Phrases

Back 51

groups of related words that operate as a single part of speech, such as a verb, verbal, prepositional, appositive, or absolute - "in the doghouse"

Front 52

Clauses

Back 52

groups of related words that have both a subject and a predicate - "(I have a tendency to procrastinate) when I have a high-stakes assignment"

Front 53

Comma

Back 53

type of punctuation used between two independent clauses, to separate adjectives, to separate contrasted elements, to set off appositives, to separate items in a list, to enclose explanatory words, after an introductory phrase, after an introductory clause, to set off a nonrestrictive phrase, to ensure clarity, in numbers, to enclose titles, in a direct address, to set off dialogue, to set off items in an address, and to set of dates

Front 54

Period

Back 54

type of punctuation used at the end of a sentence, after an initial or abbreviation, or as a decimal point

Front 55

Question mark

Back 55

type of punctuation used at the end of a direct or indirect question and to show uncertainty

Front 56

Semicolon

Back 56

type of punctuation used to separate groups that include commas and to set of independent clauses

Front 57

Exclamation point

Back 57

type of punctuation used to express strong feeling

Front 58

Apostrophe

Back 58

type of punctuation used in contractions, to form plurals, to form singular possessives, to form plural possessives, in compound nouns, to show shared possession, and to express time or amount

Front 59

Dash

Back 59

type of punctuation used for emphasis, to set of interrupted speech, to set off an introductory series, and to indicate a sudden break

Front 60

Parentheses

Back 60

type of punctuation used to set off explanatory information and to set off full sentences

Front 61

Hyphen

Back 61

type of punctuation used between numbers, between fractions, in a special series, to create new words, and to join numbers

Front 62

Conditional sentence

Back 62

sentence that expresses wishes or conditions contrary to fact - If you were to hang onto the basketball rim, then you could experience the glory of every NBA player.

Front 63

Transitive verb

Back 63

type of verb that takes direct objects - words or word groups that complete the meaning of a verb by naming receiver of the action - The secondary English student learns the methods of the master teacher.

Front 64

Future perfect tense verb

Back 64

tense of verb used to express action that will begin in the future and will be completed in the future - By this time next year, Tory and Celia will have graduated eighth grade.

Front 65

Relative pronoun

Back 65

class of pronoun that relates adjective clauses to the nouns or pronouns they modify - A basketball player who plays with intensity and skill gets a place in the starting line-up.