It  is your task to learn how to communicate effectively (successfully) in the English language: to read, write and speak college-level American English. 

 

Let us first understand (recognize) that communication among human beings is a tricky process that is made all the more difficult because all people think differently. 

 

For example, some people think in a fashion (manner, way in which) one might consider to be very logical. This could be illustrated by 

​

1,2,3,4,5,6,7...

​

This thought pattern can be called a sequence (or series or progression), and I am using this example to represent sequential thinking. In this case, for example, it could represent thinking about one thing at a time, in order, and then thinking about the next thing. This can be a slow way of thinking, but also can be an accurate way to proceed. 

 

Another, different, sequential way of thinking could be represented as, for example, 

 

    2, 4, 6, 8, 10…

 

This is also a logical sequence. Both of these are understandable (recognizable or discernable or identifiable) as simple patterns.  The idea is that almost anyone could follow such thought patterns.

 

However, suppose a thought pattern looked like this:

 

23, 67, 98, 168…

 

Might it not be more difficult to follow

 

The thought process of still other individuals might be represented as:

 

                        

11 # Z (

or even: 

*&^%@ >8$

 

Neither of which do I understand (conceptualize or visualize).

 

Our different ways of thinking are related to our different ways of perceiving (sensing, distinguishing or observing).  Through our five senses (which are sight, sound, touch, taste, smell), each of us interprets the experiences we have in our own way.  

 

One representation of this, offered by the British philosopher John Locke (who was born in 1632 and died in 1704; this is commonly written 1632-1704), was that the human mind was similar to a blank slate (tabula raza in Latin) or chalkboard upon which the experiences of life are written. 

 

After reading Locke’s essays, another philosopher, Immanuel Kant (1724-1804), called the senses “the spectacles through which we view the world” (spectacles are eyeglasses). He meant that the unique (one of a kind) experiences each one of us has changes our view of reality and forms our unique (the only one of its kind) perspective on our experiences and on the world. This is what makes each of us an individual with our own thoughts, feelings, decisions, judgments and dreams. 

 

An earlier, Italian philosopher, Giordano Bruno (1548-1600), wrote that, when he finally left the isolated (remote, cut-off, inaccessible) valley of his youth, and glanced around at the outside world, he realized how one’s visual horizon (how far and wide one can see from where one is standing) influences (has an effect on) one’s perspective on the world. For the first time in his life he realized that the world was much bigger than he had imagined. The visual (seen through the eye) image he saw, of many other mountains and valleys, made him realize how much more there was to the world. When his eyes were opened in this way, his mind and thoughts followed and he became an independent thinker. (Bruno went on in life to write of multiple universes, other inhabited planets and perfect societies. He was burnt at the stake as a heretic (an unbeliever) by the Catholic Church for these views.

 

By now, the idea I am communicating may be clear:  

 

Due to our unique perceptions and, therefore, unique experiences, we all think differently; and this means that in order to understand each other, we need some common ways of expressing ourselves. 

 

For this reason, we have standard language (rules, common ways of speaking) so that we can communicate with each other. Very likely you already communicate informally in English. Now your goal is to learn the standard or formal ways of communication.

 

Be advised that face-to-face communication between individuals is facilitated (made easier) by the fact that we can see each other and take note of the actions and reactions of the person with whom we are speaking. 

 

For example, as a classroom teacher, I can see which students are looking at me when I speak, which students are sleeping, which are taking notes and which could be daydreaming. This and other body language (such as students shifting in their seats or students walking out of the room) assists me; these things give me clues as to how effectively I am communicating. 

 

My audience is my students: if they can’t understand me, or if the manner in which I deliver the knowledge and wisdom I hope to impart interferes with the message, then I must change what I am doing, and how I am speaking, in order to 

improve my communication.  

 

There is a well-known story about improving one’s communication skills: an ancient Greek orator (speechmaker), Pericles

(approximately 495-429 BCE; BCE indicates Before the Common Era; notice how the dates decrease in BCE until the year 1). 

 

When he was young Pericles had a difficult time being understood by others. He garbled his words badly when he addressed (spoke to) a crowd. To overcome this deficit (something that is lacking or missing), he filled his mouth with marbles and practiced speaking that way. After a while, he overcame the challenge of being understood while speaking with a mouthful of marbles and he was able to project his voice without the marbles.   He became a great orator (public speaker). 

 

Fortunately, your task is much more mundane (everyday, ordinary). You need to learn standard, formal English because that is what is expected of you at the college level and in formal settings such as in the courtroom, correspondence with the government or in the workplace.  

 

Speaking, reading and writing standard English is of great benefit when seeking employment, communicating with officials, speaking with customers, explaining situations to patients or clients, and interacting with others in public. 

 

Formal language enables one to be more precise, more specific, and more exact when communicating thoughts to others. In this way, complex ideas, thoughts, judgments, knowledge, and wisdom can be effectively communicated.

 

INFORMAL VS. FORMAL LANGUAGE

 

Remember, you are not to use any informal language when you write or speak at the college level, or in any formal or professional setting. Informal language includes jargon, slang, and familiar forms: 

 STAY AWAY FROM JARGON

 

Jargon is vocabulary or terminology that is only known to specialists in the field. 

Unless you are writing for an audience of specialists (say, people who spin fiber into yarn or doctors who specialize in bones)

 

For example, unless you are a computer user, the term boot-up might not mean anything to you. (It means to start up a computer.)

 

DO NOT USE JARGON IN FORMAL WRITING!

 

Slang refers to words we use every day in place of more formal language and they ruin our ability to converse (speak) formally. If you have learned most of your English vocabulary from listening to others speak, or watching television or listening to the radio, then this can be your most serious enemy!

 

DO NOT USE SLANG!

                                  If you are not sure whether a word is slang, Look it up! 

 

Pronoun Forms not to use include the first and second person, both singular and plural. These forms all indicate that the writer is directly involved in the presentation. The First-person pronouns (I, we, us, me, mine, our, ours) and the Second-person pronouns (you, your, yours) all mean that either you or I are participating, which means giving our opinions. Academic/formal writing/discourse all focus on fact, not opinion. And only the Third-person pronouns are the ones that indicate facts.

​

DO NOT USE THESE WORDS IN FORMAL WRITING!

 

I, you (singular), we, and you (plural):

​

DO NOT WRITE:    I think rainbows are colorful.

DO WRITE:            Rainbows are colorful. 

DO NOT WRITE:    You should think before you speak.

DO WRITE:            People should think before they speak 

DO NOT WRITE:    When watching the play, we were excited.

DO WRITE:            When watching the play, the audience was excited.

​

and do not use the related pronouns: 

me, you (singular), us, you (plural)

my, your (singular), our, your (plural)

mine, yours (singular), ours, yours (plural)

​

DO NOT WRITE:      My view is that rainbows are colorful.

DO WRITE:      Rainbows are colorful.

DO NOT WRITE:    The teacher gave us a test.

DO WRITE:             The teacher gave the students a test.

 

You are not to use these words at the college level.  At least not in writing and not at the beginning, as I have said before, until you have mastered the fundamentals of reading and writing formal English. 

 

I am using much informal language in this pre-college level book. Please understand that the vocabulary I am using in this book is designed so that you, who are first learning formal English, can understand it all thoroughly. I have gradually raised the vocabulary level as the book progresses, so that your skills are enhanced as you read.

 

You should not use the first person (I, we) for one simple reason, although it might upset you somewhat: 

 

NO ONE WILL LISTEN TO YOU OR READ YOUR WRITING SERIOUSLY UNTIL YOU CAN CONVERSE (COMMUNICATE) 

IN STANDARD FORMAL ENGLISH.

 

First you must learn to speak, to read and to write formal English and to master the details of your area of study (also called an academic discipline). 

 

For the most part, college professors believe that students must first demonstrate that they can communicate in standard English and have learned what the academic community believes students should know before expressing their own opinions.  This perspective is partly the result of respect for all the thinkers, writers and intellectual explorers who have come before us.               

 

It is also related to the idea that independence of thought comes from a mastery of the fundamentals of thinking. 

 

This is one of the skills that this book is targeted to teach you. I am encouraging you to think about what you are learning at the same time as you are learning it. 

 

In this way, as a self-conscious and self-confident learner, you can understand why you are learning what you are learning, how it fits into your life and the world, and how best to use your newly acquired 

knowledge and skills to make a better life for yourself and your loved ones. 

​

If you have never seen a chart such as the one below, it shows the ways in which the words we use have to change depending on what we are trying to express. This is a table of what are called declensions or, how pronouns (and sometimes nouns) change depending on case, which means whether the statement is about oneself, another individual or several other people. These are referred to as first, second and third person.  Singular means when only one individual is involved; plural is used when more than one individual is involved.

 

Case                First Person                Second Person           Third Person

Singular        I (do not use)             You (do not use)             He, She, It

Plural            We (do not use)         You (do not use)                They

 

Here are some formal alternatives (substitutes) for the third person pronouns:

                                                                                                  

THEY

One (as in “one person”)

Many (as in “many people”)

A person

People, persons

Anyone

Everyone

Someone

All (as in “all people”)

A proper name (Sigmund)

Proper names (Freud or Marx)

Singular nouns (book)

Plural nouns (books)

 

The formal alternatives are what you must strive (try, attempt) to use when writing and speaking at the college level.  One way that students have achieved this has been to write in their own informal language first and then ‘translate’ to formal language by substituting the correct, formal term for the informal one that students ordinarily (usually) use. This will help to get you started right away.

 

For example, a student wrote

 

 “I like to shop, ski and go to the movies because these activities are fun.”

 

The formal manner of expressing this would be:

 

 “One can enjoy such activities as shopping, skiing and attending the movies.”

​

Chapters VIII, IX and X contain lists of the most common informal words and expressions used by students and their formal equivalents.

 

Structure of Written Communication: The Essay

 

When you are a college student, you will need to read textbooks and write essays.  In the beginning, you will be asked to write essays that discuss, describe, compare, contrast, or explain. Later, your essays will be answers to questions, as on an exam. Even later on (eventually) in your college career, you will be asked to write research papers (5 to 10 or more pages, typed, double-spaced). 

 

This book focuses on the fundamental skills of reading and writing essays. Once you have learned this skill, you can continue on to learn how to write research papers. 

 

College-level essays are different from other forms of writing: they are not poems, plays, fiction, news, letters, or e-mails. Essays have an expected form, length and style. You are expected to write essays that conform to these guidelines (rules).  If you do, your college professors will think highly of you and your work. If you don’t, your professors will think that you have not yet learned what you must and your grades will reflect this.

 

This is an important point.  It is difficult for a teacher to assess how well a student has learned, other than by testing the student: asking the student to perform, to demonstrate the skills and knowledge that he or she is expected to have learned. For this reason, tests, by their nature, ask students to confirm that knowledge has been received and understood by the student. A good grade demonstrates that the teacher thinks that the student understands and appreciates what has been taught. 

 

Consequently, in the beginning of your college career, most teachers will ask the students to give back to them in writing what they have said in class.

 

This means that you should be able to present the ideas in writing, if not the exact words that the teacher has presented in class.

 

Certainly, at the start of your studies, you will be asked to demonstrate your skill at conforming to educational standards, and the chief standard is proper use of formal language.

​

SENTENCES: WHAT IS A SENTENCE?

 

​The Sentence (also called an independent clause):

 

The fundamental building block of formal language is the sentence.  We all use them; we probably think we know all about them. But, what is a sentence?

 

Most beginning students first answer this question with a statement like, 

 

 “It is a bunch of words…”.  

Then, after some more thought, students reach into their past knowledge and say, 

 

 “It must have a subject, it must have a verb…”. 

Once or twice I actually heard the answer, 

 

“A sentence is a complete thought.” 

 

This last is the definition I would like you to retain (remember).

 

For example, this is a sentence: 

 

 “Students must learn all of the rules about writing sentences.”

 

This example has all the components of a complete thought:

 

The subject of the thought is the noun students.

The predicate is ‘learn’, from the verb to learn. Predicate is the term used for the verb that expresses the action (feeling or thought) of the subject of the sentence.

 

 What the students must learn is called the direct object; in this case the direct object is the phrase (a group of words without a verb)/; all of the rules about writing sentences.

 

And this is a sentence:

 

“Students must learn all of the rules about writing sentences in order to be able to express themselves in formal English.”

 

The words “in order to be able to express themselves in formal English” form a dependent clause that modifies (or further explains) the independent clause (sentence) “Students must learn all of the rules about writing sentences.”

 

Sentence Fragments (also called ‘dependent clauses’)

 

If a sentence is a complete thought, then an incomplete thought is called a sentence fragment (sometimes abbreviated as frag”). These often look like sentences, but they are not!  There might be a missing subject or a missing verb or both. 

                                                                                                                       

Please note that a phrase or even a single word could constitute

 a sentence fragment as well.

 

            For example, these are not sentences:

 

“The way to school” is not a sentence because there is no verb (‘predicate’)! 

 

A group of words like this is called a “phrase”.

​

One could write, “That is the way to school.” and it would be a sentence.

 

“The cottage along the shore” ” is not a sentence, again because there is no verb! One could write:

 

 “The cottage along the shore was large enough for everyone.” and it would be a sentence. 

The fragment is a serious breach of (failure in) formal communication because it does not communicate a complete thought: the reader is forced to guess at the meaning of the words.  This means that it the thought is vague (unclear) and leaves much room for the reader to interpret (guess) what you are really trying to say.

 

Fragments are, however, very useful in informal settings or in works of fiction (stories). When you are conversing with a friend, for example, and discussing sentences, your conversation might proceed as follows:

 

You might say, “I know what a sentence is.” [This is a sentence.]

Your friend might ask, “What is it?” [Also a sentence.]

You might answer, “A subject and a verb.”  [A sentence fragment.]

 

Notice that the last statement is not a sentence because there is not any verb. It is a sentence fragment.  Nevertheless, in the course of ordinary conversation, the statement, “A subject and a verb.” is sufficient (enough, satisfactory) to answer the question. Formally stated, this would be: 

Formal: “A sentence is a complete thought that contains a subject (noun) and a predicate (verb).”

This example illustrates how, in formal communication, one cannot skip elements (parts), leave out important words, or attempt to communicate in a “short hand” (jargon) or “short cut” manner. Formal communication does not allow for short cuts.  Again, this is necessary because formal language is used to communicate complex (complicated) thoughts that require specific information with precise (exact) definitions.  It is acceptable for informal language to be sloppy because we are not trying (attempting) to be precise.  

 

Run-on sentences: 

 

A run-on sentence attempts to express more than one thought at the same time. 

 

Incorrect: “The man went to the store and bought some fruit, including apples and oranges and went to the next store and picked up his dry cleaning, which consisted of two suits and a dozen shirts, and had lunch with an old friend from high school and went home to see his wife and two children because it was his younger daughter’s birthday.”

 

This sentence contains several ideas, going from one thought to the next without stopping (ending a sentence). Reading it out loud almost makes one breathless. This is a run-on sentence, as it seems to ‘run on’ without end. The reader does not get a chance to stop and think about what is being said. To fix a run-on sentence, simply divide the different ideas into separate sentences.

 

Corrected:  

 

“The man went to the store and bought some fruit, including apples and oranges. He then went to the next store and picked up his dry cleaning, which consisted of two suits and a dozen shirts. Following that, he had lunch with an old friend from high school. Lastly, he went home to see his wife and two children because it was his younger daughter’s birthday.” 

 

 

1. Compound (or complex) sentences:

 

Please do not confuse run-on sentences with compound or complex sentences. A compound sentence uses a conjunction (for example: and, or, but) to combine two independent clauses (or two short sentences).

 

 Compound sentence: 

 

“The man went to the store and bought some fruit, including apples and oranges.”

 

You should begin your writing with simple sentences and then progress to writing more complex sentences.  This is part of the ‘learning curve’, the process of acquiring (learning) new skills and knowledge that all human beings experience.  

 

At first, it is difficult to learn the new words and rules. The learning curve is said to be ‘flat’. After a while, as one becomes increasingly skillful, the learning comes faster. When this happens, and the student learns more rapidly, the learning curve is said to become ‘steeper’.

 

For more review of these and other English grammar issues, see your grammar handbook. 

 

 In other words, Look it up!

 

WRITING FORMAL SENTENCES

 

At the college level, your sentences should be 7 to 10 words, at a minimum. Short sentences, such as the following, can be ‘choppy” or “disjointed” and can communicate to your reader that you have difficulty expressing complex thoughts. This shows that you do not have a command of the language.

 

• For example, read the following ‘choppy’, short sentences:

 

“A man went to the store.  He bought fruit.  He bought apples, pears and oranges.”

 

These short sentences of 6 words, 3 words and 6 words, re-written more formally, would be one sentence:

 

Formal sentence: “A man went to the store and bough fruit: apples, pears and oranges.”

 

This more formal sentence has 13 words and communicates exactly the same idea!

 

 

Formal Sentence Components (parts)

 

All formal sentences have rules that must be followed. These include:

 

Capital Letters: Begin every sentence with a capital letter. Capital letters are reserved for certain uses in the English language: proper names (names of people), names of places (cities, countries) and at the beginning of every sentence to show that a new thought will begin. A reader may pause (and a speaker may take a breath) at this point.

 

For example, in English, we always capitalize the names

 of countries, such as America or the United States. 

Statue of Liberty New York harbor 

 A symbol of immigrant freedom

 

We also always capitalize the names of languages, such as English, French, Russian, Ukrainian, Turkish, Albanian or German.

 

I ask my students, “If these (A, B, C) are called capital letters, then what are these: (a, b, c) called? 

 

Students sometimes answer small letters; others use the expression common letter’. Other terminology (called nomenclature) includes uppercase letters as opposed to lowercase letters. What do you call them? There does not seem to be consensus (agreement) on this!

 

Punctuation: End every sentence with proper punctuation: 

• Declarative sentences (sentences that make a statement) end with a period [.] 

• Questions (interrogative sentences) end with a question mark [?] 

• Exclamations (when you are shouting) end with an exclamation point [!]

 

 

As a beginning student writer, you should not use the exclamation point in your formal writing.

 

The Comma: “When in doubt, leave it out.” 

 

There are certain uses of the comma that are easy to learn. However, correct use of the comma is one of the most difficult things to learn in the English language. The comma is often misused even by seasoned (experienced) writers. This is one skill that you probably won’t master immediately. This skill will come with time. Be patient. The English language is full of oddities (strange things) and the use of the comma is one of them.

 

I find that beginning writers overuse the comma. That is why I suggest the ‘when in doubt leave it out’ guideline. When you are not sure, then you should not use the comma.

 

There are some uses of the comma that you can be sure of. The most recognizable use of the comma is in lists, for example, in the sentence:

 

“A man went to the store and bought fruit, including apples, pears, plums, grapes and oranges.”

 

Note that the commas are used in two different ways here:

 

a. The first comma, following the word ‘fruit’ is used to introduce the examples.

 

b. The other commas in the sentence are used to separate items in the list. 

 

The last item in the list is preceded by the word “and” which does not take a comma.  The use of a comma with the last item in a list can be reserved for more complex lists, such as in the sentence:

 

“A man went to the store and bought a dozen golden delicious apples, two brown pears, two green pears, sixteen plums, red seedless grapes, green seeded grapes, and several different types of oranges.” 

 

There are many other proper uses of the comma (identified in your grammar text) but for the beginner, the best rule is 

 “When in doubt, leave it out.”

 

The Semi-colon: for now, only use them to combine two independent clauses or to join a dependent clause to an independent clause. This could mean making one sentence out of two short sentences (that is, joining two independent clauses):

 

For example: “A man went to the store and bought fruit.” “It was rotten to the core!”

Combined: “A man went to the store and bought fruit; it was rotten to the core!”

 

Or by adding a few words, joining a dependent clause (or a fragment) to an independent clause (a sentence):

 

 “A man went to the store and bought fruit. Peaches in addition to apples and oranges.”

 

The words “Peaches in addition to apples and oranges” constitute a sentence fragment, because there is not any verb describing action, feeling or thought. To correct this, the fragment should be combined with the sentence, adding the words ‘this included’ to make the fragment into a clause, as follows:

​

Correct: “A man went to the store and bought fruit; this included peaches in addition to apples and oranges.”

 

The Colon: for now, use these for lists and examples only. 

 

For example: (note the use of the colon)

 

 “A man went to the store and bought fruit: a dozen apples, two dozen pears, some plums, a bunch of grapes and a dozen oranges.”

 

Etcetera or etc.: this is a Latin abbreviation meaning ‘and so on’ and so forth', ‘and that', 'and all that', 'and the rest' and is perfectly acceptable in formal English writing.

 

However, please be sure to use this abbreviation correctly, as follows: 

 

1. Always follow the abbreviation with a period.

2. Always have a comma before etcetera.

3. Use the abbreviation at the end of a non-specific list, as in the sentence:

 

“A man went to the store and bought fruit, including apples, peaches, pears, etc.”

 

Note that we do not know exactly what fruit the man bought in addition to apples, peaches and pears and it is left to reader to guess.

 

i.e., and e.g.: these are also acceptable Latin abbreviations for formal communication. 

 

They have a similar use, to substitute for the words: ‘for example’ or ‘such as’. They both can precede (come before) a list and a comma follows both. 

Please be sure to use these abbreviations correctly. 

 

•  e.g. means for example (exempli gratia, in Latin) as in including such things as, and similar things, as in the sentence:

 

 “A man went to the store and bought fruit, e.g., apples, peaches, pears, bananas, grapes, etc.” 

 

The e.g. signifies that the examples are not specific, but general.  They are examples of what the author means by the word fruit and the actual fruits listed might not actually be what the man bought at the store. 

 

Certainly, he bought more fruit than what is listed, as noted by the etc.  The use of etc. (meaning and so forth) is acceptable here, because both etc. and e.g. are non-specific.

 

• i.e., means it is (id est in Latin) a specific or precise example: as in that is to say, specifically, explicitly, to be exact, or to be precise.

 

“A man went to the store and bought the fruit to make salad, i.e., apples, pears, and bananas.”

 

In this sentence, because of the i.e., we know exactly what fruit was purchased. 

​

Use i.e. when your examples are exact and specific.

 

Another use of i.e. is for purposes of clarification. When you are re-wording (repeating in different words) what you are saying you may use i.e.

 

For example,

 

 “A man went to the store and bought the makings of a salad, i.e., he bought vegetables.”

 

Which means the same as:

 

“A man went to the store and bought the makings of a salad, that is to say, 

            he bought vegetables.” 

​

WHAT IS A PARAGRAPH?

 

A paragraph is a group of sentences that express an idea.  

 

Paragraphs usually begin with a topic sentence. This is the main sentence of the paragraph that tells what the paragraph is about. For beginning writers, it is best to think of the topic sentence as the first sentence in the paragraph.  

 

As a beginning reader, be aware that the topic sentence of a paragraph could be anywhere in the paragraph: the beginning, the end or even the middle. 

 

Paragraphs must often be indented, especially if you are handwriting and not typing your work! This is a common error when learning English.  When handwriting, always indent the paragraph five spaces. This is easy on a keyboard or typewriter; the standard tab setting is 5 spaces. 

 

YOU CANNOT WRITE A ONE-SENTENCE PARAGAPH IN A FORMAL ESSAY.

 

Paragraphs cannot be only one sentence.

 

Do not make this mistake!

 

Your paragraphs should be several sentences long, but at least three.

 

I find that students often find it useful to try thinking of each paragraph as having the following components:

 

1. Make a statement or ask a question related to the topic. (Sometimes this is called the topic sentence.)

2. Define any terms that you are using that your reader might interpret differently than you do. 

3. Explain why the statement or question is important to the topic. 

4. Give an example or two.

5. Explain how the example illustrates (shows) the importance of the statement or question to the topic.

6. Use a transition technique to move to the next paragraph.

 

In this way, your paragraphs will have enough sentences in every paragraph. 

​

Summary of Terms (with sample sentences as examples):

​

Sentence (Independent Clause)

A group of words that express a complete thought, with a subject (noun or pronoun) and a predicate (verb).

“A sentence is a complete thought that contains a subject and a verb.”  or

“Students must learn all of the rules about writing sentences in order to be able to express themselves in formal English.”

Subject

​

A noun (person, place or thing) or group of nouns that serve as the focal point of the sentence.

“The word sentence is the subject of this sample sentence.”

​

Predicate

A verb or group of verbs that describe the actions, feelings or thoughts of the sentence.

“A form of the verb ‘to be’ is the predicate of this sentence.”

​

Phrase

A group of words that indicate or define something.

“all of the rules about writing”

​

Dependent Clause

A group of words that contains a verb but is without a subject.

“that necessarily contains a subject and a verb”

​

Sentence fragment 

An incomplete thought; could be a phrase or a clause.

“to express themselves in formal English”

​

Noun

A word that designates a person, place or thing.

In American English, nouns are not generally capitalized. 

“Tree”, “dog” and “car” are all nouns.

​

Verb

A word that designates action, thought or feeling.

The infinitive form of the verb uses the auxiliary word “to” as in “to see”, “to love”.

“To run”, “to think”, and “to feel” are all verbs.

​

Adjective

A word that modifies (describes) a noun or another adjective.

“The big train.”  “Big” is an adjective modifying the noun “train”.   “The big black train.” “Big” and “black” are both adjectives modifying “train”.

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Adverb

A word that modifies a verb, an adjective or another adverb. “To modify” means “to explain” or “to describe” as in “very simply” or “very good”. Adverbs usually end in “y” or “ly”.

“The train was traveling quickly.” – Quickly is an adverb describing the verb of motion traveling (to travel).  “The very large train.” – Very is an adverb modifying large, which is an adjective modifying train.