GRAMMAR AND WORD CHOICEperegrine.ysn.com/.../uploads/2016/08/GrammarWordChoice.pdf · 2016-08-30 · Now replace the word “man” with “he” or “him”: Option 1: I saw he.

GRAMMAR AND WORD CHOICE

1

Chapter 3, Unit 3

2

SECTION 3: GRAMMAR

This section will cover :

• Who vs. Whom

• Its vs. It’s

• Who, That, or Which

• Affect vs. Effect

• Me, Myself, or I

• There, Their, or They’re

• Your vs. You’re

• To, Too, or Two

• e.g. vs. i.e.

• Pluralizing words ending in “s”

• Making a word that ends in “s” possessive

• Subject and verb agreement

3

Who vs. Whom

Misusing who and whom is a very common error. Here is the rule to determine which one is correct.

Who is used when referring to the subject of the sentence.Whom is used when referring to the object of the sentence.

For example:Sarah is the woman (who/whom) restructured the committee.

In this sentence, “who/whom” refers to the subject of the sentence, to Sarah, the woman. Because of this, you should use the subjective word who.

The correct sentence is:

Sarah is the woman who restructured the committee.

4

Who vs. Whom, continued

If in doubt about whether to use who or whom, try this easy trick:

• If you can replace the word “who/whom” with “she,” “he,” or “they” and the sentence is still grammatically correct, then use WHO.

• If you can replace the word “who/whom” with “her,” “him,” or “them” and the sentence is still grammatically correct, then use WHOM.

For example:Sarah is the woman (who/whom) restructured the committee.

Now, first pull the phrase in question out of the sentence, so it reads:

“(who/whom) restructured the committee.

Then, try replacing “(who/whom)” with “she” and “her” and see which one is grammatically correct.

Option 1: She restructured the committee.Option 2: Her restructured the committee.

Obviously, option 1 is correct. Since you can replace the word with “she,” then the correct word choice is “who.”

5

Who vs. Whom, continued

Here’s another example using the same trick:

• The man who/whom I saw In that movie was at the convention.

This one is a little tricky. Start by breaking the sentence into two parts.

• “The man was at the convention,” is the main sentence• “(Who/whom) I saw in that movie” is a phrase that describes the man

Concentrate on the grammar of only the phrase in question, the one with the “who/whom” question.

6

Who vs. Whom, continued

To use the simple trick, rephrase this as the answer to the question: “(Who/whom) did I see in the movie?”

The answer is: I saw the man.

Now replace the word “man” with “he” or “him”:

Option 1: I saw he.Option 2: I saw him.

Clearly, option 2 is correct. Therefore, whom is the correct word choice.

The correct sentence should read, “The man whom I saw in that movie was at the convention.”

Who/whom can be confusing. If you are unsure, either have a good editor proofread your writing for you or avoid this sentence structure altogether.

7

Its vs. It’s

Be very careful about this one!

When to use “It’s” (with an apostrophe s):

“It’s” is a contraction that means “it is.” If you cannot replace the word it’s in your sentence with it is, then it’s IS NOT THE CORRECT WORD.

There are NO exceptions to this!

8

Its vs. It’s ContinuedExample 1:

It’s really cold today. This is the same as saying, “It is really cold today,” so this sentence is correct.

Example 2:

The toddler ate it’s banana.This is NOT the same as saying, “The toddler ate it is banana.” In fact, that doesn’t even make sense! Therefore, this sentence is incorrect. The correct sentence is, “The toddler ate its banana.”

9

When to use “Its”

Its is a possessive pronoun, meaning something belongs to the “it” to which you are referring.

If you cannot replace the word with it is, then the correct version is its (no apostrophe).

Example 1: The cat picked up its toy and left.

In this sentence, its is the possessive pronoun that identifies the toy as belonging to the cat. Therefore this sentence is correct. (Also, you can’t replace “its” with “it is” in this sentence and have it still make sense.)

Example 2: Its a nice day.

In this sentence, the “its” is not possessive and is instead a replacement for “it is.” Therefore, this sentence is incorrect and should read, “It’s a nice day.”

10

Who, That, or Which

The words which, that, and who are used to refer to different things.

11

USING “WHO”

Use the word who only when referring to individual people.

For example:

Jeff is the student who always comes to class late.

12

USING “THAT”

Use the word that when referring to a group of people.

For example:The band that won the competition had five trumpet players.

The word that can also be used to introduce descriptive information that is essential to the meaning of the sentence. In other words, if you cannot understand the meaning of the sentence without the descriptive information, introduce it with that.

For example:I only trust inventions that come from scientists I know.

The phrase that comes from scientists I know is essential to understanding the meaning of the sentence. Therefore, use the word that to introduce it.

13

USING “WHICH”

Use the word which to introduce descriptive information that is not essential to the meaning of the sentence, In other words, if you can understand the meaning of the sentence without the descriptive information, introduce it with which.

For example:The student needed a good grade on his history test, which was very difficult.

The phrase which was very difficult is not essential to the overall meaning of the sentence, which is about the student needing a good grade. Therefore, introduce it by which.

• When using the word which in the manner above, precede it with a comma. This signals the reader that the description is just extra information.

• Never use the word which to refer to people or groups of people.

14

Affect vs. Effect

Another common error is confusing the words “affect” and “effect.”

Affect is a verb meaning “to influence” or “to act on.”

For example:The weather has affected our delivery plans.

Effect is a noun that means “result” or “to bring about.”

For example:The weather had a terrible effect on our delivery schedule.

15

Me, Myself, or I

Choose pronouns wisely, and don’t be afraid to use “me.” There are plenty of times it is correct!

16

USING “I”

Use “I” if you are the subject of a sentence.

For example:I took the train to work today.

17

USING “MYSELF”

Use “myself” if you are referring back to yourself as the subject of the sentence.

For example:I gave myself a bunch of flowers for my birthday.

• Don’t use the word “myself” in an attempt to sound more important or more formal.

For example:

Write: I wrote the memo.NOT: I wrote the memo myself.

18

USING “ME”

Use “me” if you are the object in a sentence.

For example:Please give the memo to me.

Often times, people are scared to use “me” because they don’t want to sound uneducated. We all know that the sentence, “Bob and me went to the meeting” is incorrect. Because of this, many people assume that whenever you are referring to yourself and another person, “me” is incorrect. But this is not true! Writing, “Here’s a photo of Bob and I at the meeting” is just as incorrect. For a handy trick to determining whether you should use “me” or “I” when referring to yourself and another person, read on!

19

A Handy Trick: “Me” vs “I”

If you are unsure how to refer to yourself in writing when referring to yourself and another person or other people, think about how you would write or say the sentence if you removed any mention of the other people.

How you refer to yourself if you were to remove any mention of other people from your sentence will be the correct way.

For example:Look at the sentence: Please send the memo to Bob, Xi Lo, and (me, myself, or I)

Which is correct? To figure this out, remove the mention of the other people so the sentence reads:

Please send the memo to (me, myself, or I).

When you read it this way, it’s easy to see that the correct sentence would be Please send the memo to me. Therefore, “me” is the correct usage even when you add back the names of the other people. The correct sentence would read:

Please send the memo to Bob, Xi Lo, and me.

20

There, Their, or They’re

There is a great deal of confusion about which form of this word to use. These each mean something different, so you want to be sure to get it right!

21

USING “THERE”

There is used to:

1. Refer to a place or position.

For example: I went to France and stayed there for two weeks.

2. Attract someone’s attention.

For example:Hey there!

3. Indicate a fact or the existence of something.

For example: There is a metro station around the corner.

22

USING “THEIR”

Their is possessive and always indicates belonging or ownership.

For example:It is their report.

23

USING “THEY’RE”

They’re is a contraction of “they are,” and should be used only when you can replace it with “they are” and have the sentence still make sense. For example:

They’re going to France.

Combined example:They’re going to France and will stay there for two weeks. I will finish theirreport while they’re gone.

24

Your vs. You’re

This is another extremely common mistake, but one that is easily caught if you take a moment to understand what these two words mean.

25

USING “YOU’RE”

“You’re” is a contraction, made up from the words “you are.” Use this in a sentence when it is short for “you are.” If you cannot replace the word with “you are” and still have the sentence make sense, this is not the correct word.

For example:

Correct: You’re the one who just got the promotion.

This sentence is the same as: “You are the one who just got the promotion.” Therefore the contraction “you’re” is correct.

Incorrect: Can I borrow you’re pen?

This sentence makes no sense if you replace you’re with you are: “Can I borrow you are pen?” The correct sentence is: “Can I borrow your pen?”

26

USING “YOUR”

“Your” is the possessive form of you. Use this word when you are trying to say that something belongs to the other person. For example:

Correct: That’s your parking space.

This sentence is the same as: “That parking space belongs to you,” or “You possess the parking space.” Therefore the possessive form your is correct.

Incorrect: Your supposed to go talk to him.

This sentence is not possessive. The your in this sentence is meant to mean you are. The correct sentence is: “You’re supposed to go talk to him.”

27

To, Too, or Two

Again, these all mean different things.

28

USING “TO”

To is used to:

1. Indicate a direction or movement. For example:

I’m going to the meeting.

2. Identify a relationship. For example:

Ann is married to Mike.

3. Indicate two things are attached. For example:

The bicycle is chained to the fence.

29

USING “TOO”

Too means:

1. To a higher degree, excessive. For example:

He was driving too fast.

2. More than, in addition to, also. For example:

Is Ann going to the convention too?

30

USING “TWO”

• Two is the number following one. For example:

One, two, three…

31

e.g. vs. i.e.

These abbreviations both help clarify your writing, but they have different uses.

32

USING “i.e.”

i.e. is short for the Latin phrase id est, which means “that is to say,” “in other words,” or “namely.” It is used to provide further clarification.

For example:

My cousin loves watching The Three Stooges, i.e., Moe, Larry, and Curly.

33

USING “e.g.”

e.g. is short for the Latin phrase exempli gratia, which means “for example.”

Therefore, e.g. is to introduce examples.

For example:

My cousin loves watching old sitcoms, e.g., The Three Stooges, Gun Smoke, and Charlie’s Angels

In North America, it’s standard to write these with the periods and follow them with a comma (“i.e.,” and “e.g.,”). Outside of North America, the periods and commas are omitted (ie and eg).

34

Pluralizing Words That End in “S”

Most of us have no problems making nouns plural… just add “s,” right? But what about when the word already ends in an “s”?

To make words that end in “s” plural, add “es.”

For example: • Bus becomes buses• Business becomes businesses • Kiss becomes kisses

35

Making Nouns that End in “S” Possessive

Making a noun possessive simply entails adding an apostrophe s (‘s) to the end of the noun. If that noun already ends in “s,” there are a few rules.

If it is a singular noun that ends in “s,” simply add an apostrophe s as you normally would.

For example: The boss’s office door was open.

If it is a proper name that ends in “s,” you have two choices:

1. Add the apostrophe s as you would for any other name. For example:

Frances’s report was groundbreaking.

2. Add an apostrophe without the additional “s.” For example:

Frances’ report was groundbreaking.

Both are correct, so just be sure you are consistent in your usage. If your place of work prefers a certain style guide, be sure to check that guide for the preference.

36

Subject-Verb Agreement

Subject-verb agreement simply means that the subject and the verb in a sentence agree in terms of plurality. They must match, with both being either singular or plural.

Whether the subject is singular or plural determines which verb form to use.

For example:

Apps work with your phone. “Apps” is a plural noun, and therefore takes the plural form of the verb work.

That app works with your phone.“That app” is a singular noun, and therefore takes the singular form of the verb work.

37

Other rules for subject-verb agreement:

1. Two or more singular nouns joined by “and” require a plural verb.

For example:

The boss and her partner walk into the meeting. “Walk” is the plural form of the verb “to walk.”

2. Two or more singular nouns joined by “or” or “nor” require a singular verb.

For example:

Neither the boss nor her partner walks into the meeting.Walks is the singular form of the verb.

38

Other rules for subject-verb agreement, continued

3. The verb in sentences that use either/or or neither/nor should agree with the noun or pronoun closest to it.

For example:Neither the boss nor her partner thinks about taxes.

Thinks is the singular form of the verb to think, and agrees with the singular noun “partner” that comes before it.

Neither the boss nor her many partners think about taxes.

Think is the plural form of the verb to think, and agrees with the plural noun “partners” that comes before it.

39

Other rules for subject-verb agreement, continued

4. Use a singular verb form after the following words: each, each one, either, neither, everyone, everybody, anybody, anyone, nobody, somebody, someone, and no one.

40

Other rules for subject-verb agreement, continued

5. If there is a prepositional phrase between the subject and the verb, be sure the verb agrees with the subject, not with a noun or pronoun in the phrase.

A prepositional phrase is a phrase that begins with a preposition—such as of, around, on, or in—and includes the object of the preposition.

Example 1:

One of the doors is open.

The subject in this sentence is the singular word “One.” Therefore, the correct form of the verb “to be” needs to be the singular word “is.”

It is a common mistake to try to match the verb to the noun found in the prepositional phrase. The prepositional phrase in this sentence is, “of the doors,” which contains the plural noun “doors,” but the verb should match the subject of the entire sentence, which is “one.”

41

Other rules for subject-verb agreement, continued

Example 2:

The team captain, as well as the fans, is anxious.

The subject of this sentence is “team captain,” which is singular.The prepositional phrase is “as well as the fans.”The verb should match the subject, which is singular. Therefore, the correct form of the verb to be is the singular is.

Example 3:

The woman with all the birds works in my office.

42

Other rules for subject-verb agreement, continued

5. When words indicate portions—such as a lot, a majority, some, or all—use the noun after the word “of” to determine the tense of the verb. For example:

A lot of the pie is moldy. A lot of the pies are moldy.

6. There are some special nouns that require singular verbs. These include the words news, civics, mathematics, dollars, and measles.

7. There are other nouns that indicate single items but have an “s” on the end, such as scissors, tweezers, trousers, and shears. These words require plural verbs.

8. Use singular verbs when talking/writing about distances, periods of time, sums of money, and other things like that when they are considered as a unit. For example:

Three kilometers is too far to walk. Five trillion dollars is a high price to pay.

43