PRONOUN

PRONOUNS

Definition

A pronoun (I, me, he, she, herself, you, it, that, they, each, few, many, who, whoever, whose, someone, everybody, etc.) is a word that takes the place of a noun. In the sentenceJoe saw Jill, and he waved at her, the pronouns he and her take the place of Joe and Jill, respectively. There are three types of pronouns: subject (for example, he); object (him); orpossessive (his).

KINDS OF PRONOUNS                        

A.   Personal Pronouns:  

                          

SINGULAR				PLURAL
	subjective	objective	possessive	subjective	objective	possessive
1st person	I	me	my, mine	we	us	our, ours
2nd person	you	you	your, yours	you	you	your, yours
3rd person	he she it	him her it	his her,  hers its	they	them	their, theirs

                         

Personal pronouns have the following characteristics:

1.  three persons (points of view)        1st person - the one(s) speaking  (I  me my  mine  we  us our ours)        2nd person - the one(s) spoken to  (you your yours)        3rd person - the one(s) spoken about  (he  him  his  she her hers  it  its  they  their  theirs)         Examples          2.  three genders        feminine  (she  her  hers)        masculine (he  him  his)        neuter  (it its  they them their theirs)              Examples              3.  two numbers        singular (I  me  my  mine  you  your  yours  he  him  his  she  her  hers it its)        plural  (we  us  our  ours  you  your yours  they  them  their  theirs)             Examples            4.  three cases       subjective (I  you  he  she  it  we  they)       possessive  (my  mine  your  yours  his  her  hers  our  ours  their  theirs)       objective   (me  you  him  her  it  us  them)            Examples - subjective case

Examples - possessive case                           Examples - objective case            NOTE:  Because of pronoun case, the pronoun's form changes with its function in the sentence.  Follow this link to pronoun case for more information.

B.      Demonstrative Pronouns:

                    

                   

Demonstrative pronouns can also be used as determiners.

Example:

Hand me that hammer. (that describes the noun hammer)

                           

Demonstrative pronouns can also be used as qualifiers:

Example:

She wanted that much money? (that describes the adjective much)

                

C. Reflexive / Intensive Pronouns :  the "self" pronouns

                 

These pronouns can be used only to reflect or intensify a word already there in the sentence.

              

Reflexive / intensive pronouns CANNOT REPLACE personal pronouns.

                        

Examples:

I saw myself  in the mirror. (Myself is a reflexive pronoun, reflecting the pronoun I.)

I’ll do it myself. (Myself is an intensive pronoun, intensifying the pronoun I.)

                                     

Note:  The following words are substandard and should not be used:

                          

             theirselves       theirself          hisself         ourself

                                   

D. Indefinite Pronouns:

                            

Singular:

one	someone	anyone	no one	everyone
each	somebody	anybody	nobody	everybody
(n)either	something	anything	nothing	everything

                                    

Examples:

Somebody is coming to dinner.

Neither of us believes a word Harry says.

Plural :

     

Examples:

Both are expected at the airport at the same time.

Several have suggested canceling the meeting.

Singular with non-countables / Plural with countables:

Examples:

Some of the dirt has become a permanent part of the rug.

Some of the trees have been weakened by the storm.

Indefinite pronouns use apostrophes to indicate possessive case.

Examples:

The accident is nobody’s fault.

How will the roadwork affect one's daily commute?

Some indefinite pronouns may also be used as determiners.

one, each, either, neither, some, any, one, all, both, few, several, many, most

Note the differences:

Each person has a chance.

(Each is a determiner describing person.)

Each has a chance.

(Each is an indefinite pronoun replacing a noun.)

Both lawyers pled their cases well.

(Both is a determiner describing  lawyers.)

Both were in the room.

(Both is an indefinite pronoun replacing a noun.)

E. Interrogative Pronouns:

Interrogative pronouns produce information questions that require more than a “yes” or “no” answer.

Examples:

What do you want?

Who is there?

F. Relative Pronouns:

Relative pronouns introduce relative (adjectival) clauses.

Note:	Use who, whom, and whose to refer to people.
	Use that and which to refer to things.

https://webapps.towson.edu/ows/pronouns.htm

SUBJECT- VERB AGREEMENT

SUBJECT-VERB AGREEMENT

Being able to find the right subject and verb will help you correct errors of subject-verb agreement.

Basic Rule. A singular subject (she, Bill, car) takes a singular verb (is, goes, shines), whereas a plural subject takes a plural verb.

Example : The list of items is/are on the desk.

If you know that list is the subject, then you will choose is for the verb.

ü  Rule 1. A subject will come before a phrase beginning with of. This is a key rule for understanding subjects. The word of is the culprit in many, perhaps most, subject-verb mistakes.

Hasty writers, speakers, readers, and listeners might miss the all-too-common mistake in the following sentence:

Incorrect: A bouquet of yellow roses lend color and fragrance to the room.

Correct: A bouquet of yellow roses lends . . . (bouquet lends, not roses lend)

ü  Rule 2. Two singular subjects connected by or, either/or, or neither/nor require a singular verb.

Examples :

1. My aunt or my uncle is arriving by train today.
2. Neither Juan nor Carmen is available.
3. Either Kiana or Casey is helping today with stage decorations.

ü  Rule 3. The verb in an or, either/or, or neither/nor sentence agrees with the noun or pronoun closest to it.

Examples :

1. Neither the plates nor the serving bowl goes on that shelf.
2. Neither the serving bowl nor the plates go on that shelf.

This rule can lead to bumps in the road. For example, if I is one of two (or more) subjects, it could lead to this odd sentence:

Awkward: Neither she, my friends, nor I am going to the festival.

If possible, it's best to reword such grammatically correct but awkward sentences.

Better:
Neither she, I, nor my friends are going to the festival.
OR
She, my friends, and I are not going to the festival.

ü  Rule 4. As a general rule, use a plural verb with two or more subjects when they are connected by and.

Example : A car and a bike are my means of transportation.

But note these exceptions:

Exceptions:
Breaking and entering is against the law.
The bed and breakfast was charming.

In those sentences, breaking and entering and bed and breakfast are compound nouns.

ü  Rule 5. Sometimes the subject is separated from the verb by such words as along with, as well as, besides, not, etc. These words and phrases are not part of the subject. Ignore them and use a singular verb when the subject is singular.

Examples :

1. The politician, along with the newsmen, is expected shortly.
2. Excitement, as well as nervousness, is the cause of her shaking.

ü  Rule 6. In sentences beginning with here or there, the true subject follows the verb.

Examples :

1. There are four hurdles to jump.
2. There is a high hurdle to jump.
3. Here are the keys.

NOTE:

The word there's, a contraction of there is, leads to bad habits in informal sentences likeThere's a lot of people here today, because it's easier to say "there's" than "there are." Take care never to use there's with a plural subject.

ü  Rule 7. Use a singular verb with distances, periods of time, sums of money, etc., when considered as a unit.

Examples :

1. Three miles is too far to walk.
2. Five years is the maximum sentence for that offense.
3. Ten dollars is a high price to pay.
BUT
Ten dollars (i.e., dollar bills) were scattered on the floor.

ü  Rule 8. With words that indicate portions—e.g., a lot, a majority, some, all—Rule 1 given earlier in this section is reversed, and we are guided by the noun after of. If the noun after of is singular, use a singular verb. If it is plural, use a plural verb.

Examples :

1. A lot of the pie has disappeared.
2. A lot of the pies have disappeared.
3. A third of the city is unemployed.
4. A third of the people are unemployed.
5. All of the pie is gone.
6. All of the pies are gone.
7. Some of the pie is missing.
8. Some of the pies are missing.

NOTE

In recent years, the SAT testing service has considered none to be strictly singular. However, according to Merriam-Webster's Dictionary of English Usage: "Clearly none has been both singular and plural since Old English and still is. The notion that it is singular only is a myth of unknown origin that appears to have arisen in the 19th century. If in context it seems like a singular to you, use a singular verb; if it seems like a plural, use a plural verb. Both are acceptable beyond serious criticism." When none is clearly intended to mean "not one," it is followed by a singular verb.

ü  Rule 9. With collective nouns such as group, jury, family, audience, population, the verb might be singular or plural, depending on the writer's intent.

Examples :

1. All of my family has arrived OR have arrived.
2. Most of the jury is here OR are here.
3. A third of the population was not in favor OR were not in favor of the bill.

NOTE

Anyone who uses a plural verb with a collective noun must take care to be accurate—and also consistent. It must not be done carelessly. The following is the sort of flawed sentence one sees and hears a lot these days:

The staff is deciding how they want to vote.
Careful speakers and writers would avoid assigning the singular is and the plural they to staffin the same sentence.

Consistent: The staff are deciding how they want to vote.

Rewriting such sentences is recommended whenever possible. The preceding sentence would read even better as:

The staff members are deciding how they want to vote.

ü  Rule 10. The word were replaces was in sentences that express a wish or are contrary to fact :

Example : 

 If Joe were here, you'd be sorry.

Shouldn't Joe be followed by was, not were, given that Joe is singular? But Joe isn't actually here, so we say were, not was. The sentence demonstrates the subjunctive mood, which is used to express things that are hypothetical, wishful, imaginary, or factually contradictory. The subjunctive mood pairs singular subjects with what we usually think of as plural verbs.

Examples :

1. I wish it were Friday.
2. She requested that he raise his hand.

In the first example, a wishful statement, not a fact, is being expressed; therefore, were, which we usually think of as a plural verb, is used with the singular subject I.

Normally, he raise would sound terrible to us. However, in the second example, where a request is being expressed, the subjunctive mood is correct.

Note: The subjunctive mood is losing ground in spoken English but should still be used in formal speech and writing.

http://www.grammarbook.com/grammar/subjectVerbAgree.asp

SIMPLE PRESENT TENSE, PRESENT CONTINOUS, SIMPLE PAST, PAST CONTINOUS

1.    SIMPLE PRESENT TENSE

A.   THE SIMPLE PRESENT TENSE IS USED:

ü  To express habits, general truths, repeated actions or unchanging situations, emotions and wishes :
I smoke (habit); I work in London (unchanging situation); London is a large city (general truth)

ü  To give instructions or directions :
You walk for two hundred meters, then you turn left.

ü  To express fixed arrangements, present or future :
Your exam starts at 09.00

ü  To express future time, after some conjunctions: after, when, before, as soon as, until :
He'll give it to you when you come next Saturday.

B.   FORMS OF THE SIMPLE PRESENT TENSE

Simple present tense dibentuk dari verb-1 (present tense) atau linking verb “be” (is, am, are). Apa itu verb-1? Verb-1 merupakan bare infinitive dengan tambahan -s atau -es (contoh verb-1: does, goes, wants) khusus untuk subject berupa singular noun (kata benda tunggal: Tita, book, car) atau third person singular pronoun (kata ganti orang ketiga tunggal: she, he, it); atau tanpa tambahan apapun (contoh verb-1: do, go, want) untuksubject berupa plural noun (boys, men, books) atau plural pronoun (we, they), pronounI/you, atau compound subject (you and me, Tina and Ratih).

Dengan demikian rumus simple present tense untuk kalimat positif, negatif, dan interogatif sebagai berikut.

Bentuk	Rumus Simple Present Tense	Contoh Kalimat
Statement (+)	S + V-1 S +/- auxiliary (do/does) + bare infinitive	She likes eating out
	S + be (am/is/are)	The children are naughty.
negative (-)	S + auxiliary (do/does) + not + bare infinitive	She doesn’t like eating out
	S + be(am/is/are) + not	The children aren’t naughty
question (?)	Do/Does + S + bare infinitive ?	Does she like eating out ?
	Be(am/is/are) + S ?	Are the children naughty ?

Catatan:

Pada kalimat positif, normalnya auxiliary verb (do/does) tidak digunakan, melainkan hanya digunakan jika perlu untuk memberi penekanan pada keharusan melakukan aksi.

C.   NOTES ON THE SIMPLE PRESENT, THIRD PERSON SINGULAR

§  In the third person singular the verb always ends in -s:
he wants, she needs, he gives, she thinks.

§  Negative and question forms use DOES (= the third person of the auxiliary 'DO') + the infinitive of the verb.
He wants ice cream. Does he want strawberry? He does not want vanilla.

§  Verbs ending in -y : the third person changes the -y to -ies:
fly --> flies, cry --> cries
Exception: if there is a vowel before the -y:
play --> plays, pray --> prays

§  Add -es to verbs ending in:-ss, -x, -sh, -ch:
he passes, she catches, he fixes, it pushes

D.   EXAMPLE OF EACH TENSE

1.    Working whole day makes my body so tired, I need to take a rest

2.    She goes to campus every morning

3.    Regina takes a shower every day

4.    I usually eat lunch at the cafetaria

5.    The earth revolves around the sun

2.    SIMPLE PRESENT CONTINOUS TENSE

A.   FUNCTIONS OF THE PRESENT CONTINUOUS

As with all tenses in English, the speaker's attitude is as important as the time of the action or event. When someone uses the present continuous, they are thinking about something that is unfinished or incomplete

THE PRESENT CONTINUOUS IS USED:

ü  To describe an action that is going on at this moment: You are using the Internet. You are studying English grammar.

ü  To describe an action that is going on during this period of time or a trend: Are you still working for the same company? More and more peopleare becoming vegetarian.

ü  To describe an action or event in the future, which has already been planned or prepared: We're going on holiday tomorrow. I'm meeting my boyfriend tonight. Are they visiting you next winter?

ü  To describe a temporary event or situation: He usually plays the drums, but he's playing bass guitar tonight. The weather forecast was good, butit's raining at the moment.

ü  With "always, forever, constantly", to describe and emphasise a continuing series of repeated actions: Harry and Sally are always arguing!You're constantly complaining about your mother-in-law!

BE CAREFUL! Some verbs are not usually used in the continuous form

B.   FORMING THE PRESENT CONTINUOUS

The present continuous of any verb is composed of two parts - the present tense of the verb to be + the present participle of the main verb.

(The form of the present participle is: base+ing, e.g. talking, playing, moving, smiling)

Affirmative
Subject	+ to be	+ base + ing
She	is	talking.
Negative
Subject	+ to be + not	+ base + ing
She	is not (isn't)	talking
Interrogative
to be	+ subject	+ base + ing
Is	she	talking?

C.   VERBS THAT ARE NOT USUALLY USED IN THE CONTINUOUS FORM

The verbs in the list below are normally used in the simple form because they refer to states, rather than actions or processes.

SENSES / PERCEPTION

• to feel*
• to hear
• to see*
• to smell
• to taste

OPINION

• to assume
• to believe
• to consider
• to doubt
• to feel (= to think)
• to find (= to consider)
• to suppose
• to think*

MENTAL STATES

• to forget
• to imagine
• to know
• to mean
• to notice
• to recognise
• to remember
• to understand

EMOTIONS / DESIRES

• to envy
• to fear
• to dislike
• to hate
• to hope
• to like
• to love
• to mind
• to prefer
• to regret
• to want
• to wish

MEASUREMENT

• to contain
• to cost
• to hold
• to measure
• to weigh

OTHERS

• to look (=resemble)
• to seem
• to be (in most cases)
• to have(when it means "to possess")*

EXCEPTIONS

Perception verbs (see, hear, feel, taste, smell) are often used with can: : I can see... These verbs may be used in the continuous form but with a different meaning

·         This coat feels nice and warm. (your perception of the coat's qualities)

·         John's feeling much better now (his health is improving)

·         She has three dogs and a cat. (possession)

·         She's having supper. (She's eating)

·         I can see Anthony in the garden (perception)

·         I'm seeing Anthony later (We are planning to meet)

D.   EXAMPLES OF EACH TENSE

1.    I'm meeting my mother at the airport tomorrow.

2.    Our grandmother is visiting us at Christmas.

3.    Sorry, I can't stay after school today; I'm playing tennis with Jun-Sik.

4.    My mother's going to the dentist tomorrow.

5.    I'm not going home at Christmas, so I can come to your party after all!

3.    SIMPLE PAST

A.   FUNCTIONS OF THE SIMPLE PAST TENSE

The simple past is used to talk about a completed action in a time before now. Duration is not important. The time of the action can be in the recent past or the distant past.

EXAMPLES

ü  John Cabot sailed to America in 1498.

ü  My father died last year.

ü  He lived in Fiji in 1976.

ü  We crossed the Channel yesterday.

You always use the simple past when you say when something happened, so it is associated with certain past time expressions

·         

        frequency: often, sometimes, always
I sometimes walked home at lunchtime.
I often brought my lunch to school.

·         a definite point in time: last week, when I was a child, yesterday, six weeks ago
We saw a good film last week.
Yesterday, I arrived in Geneva.
She finished her work atseven o'clock
I went to the theatre last night

·         an indefinite point in time: the other day, ages ago, a long time ago People lived in caves a long time ago.

·         She played the piano when she was a child.

Note: the word ago is a useful way of expressing the distance into the past. It is placed after the period of time: a week ago, three years ago, a minute ago.

Be Careful: The simple past in English may look like a tense in your own language, but the meaning may be different. 

B.   FORMING THE SIMPLE PAST TENSE

PATTERNS OF SIMPLE PAST TENSE FOR REGULAR VERBS

Affirmative
Subject	+ verb + ed
I	skipped.
Negative
Subject	+ did not	+ infinitive without to
They	didn't	go.
Interrogative
Did	+ subject	+ infinitive without to
Did	She	arrive?
Interrogative negative
Did not	+ subject	+ infinitive without to
Didn't	You	play?

SIMPLE PAST TENSE OF TO BE, TO HAVE, TO DO

Subject	Verb
	Be	Have	Do
I	Was	had	did
You	Were	had	did
He/She/It	Was	had	did
We	Were	had	did
You	Were	had	did
They	Were	had	did

NOTES ON AFFIRMATIVE, NEGATIVE, & INTERROGATIVE FORMS

AFFIRMATIVE

The affirmative of the simple past tense is simple.

I was in Japan last year

She had a headache yesterday.

We did our homework last night.

NEGATIVE AND INTERROGATIVE

For the negative and interrogative simple past form of "do" as an ordinary verb, use the auxiliary "do", e.g. We didn't do our homework last night.

The negative of "have" in the simple past is usually formed using the auxiliary "do", but sometimes by simply adding not or the contraction "n't".

The interrogative form of "have" in the simple past normally uses the auxiliary "do".

C.   EXAMPLES OF EACH TENSE

1.    Thomas Edison invented the telephone.

2.    Rocks float.

3.    You took a taxi to school today.

4.    You’re sitting on a soft, comfortable sofa.

5.    You stayed home all day yesterday.

4.    SIMPLE PAST CONTINOUS

A.   FUNCTIONS OF THE PAST CONTINUOUS

The past continuous describes actions or events in a time before now, which began in the past and is still going on at the time of speaking. In other words, it expresses an unfinished or incomplete action in the past.

It is used:

ü  Often, to describe the background in a story written in the past tense, e.g. "The sun was shining and the birds were singing as the elephant came out of the jungle. The other animals were relaxing in the shade of the trees, but the elephant moved very quickly. She was looking for her baby, and she didn't notice the hunter who was watching her through his binoculars. When the shot rang out, she was running towards the river..."

ü  to describe an unfinished action that was interrupted by another event or action, e.g. "I was having a beautiful dream when the alarm clock rang."

ü  to express a change of mind: e.g. "I was going to spend the day at the beach but I've decided to get my homework done instead."

ü  with 'wonder', to make a very polite request: e.g. "I was wondering if you could baby-sit for me tonight."

Note: with verbs not normally used in the continuous form, the simple past is used.

B.   FORMING THE PAST CONTINUOUS

The past continuous of any verb is composed of two parts : the past tense of the verb "to be" (was/were), and the base of the main verb +ing.

Subject	was/were	base + ing
They	were	watching
Affirmative
She	was	reading
Negative
She	wasn't	reading
Interrogative
Was	she	reading?
Interrogative negative
Wasn't	she	reading?

C.   EXAMPLES OF EACH TENSE

1.    They were waiting for the bus when the accident happened.

2.    Caroline was skiing when she broke her leg.

3.    When we arrived he was having a bath.

4.    When the fire started I was watching television.

5.    I was playing footbal .