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Improve Your English: X Each of You Have Been Given A Pencil. Incorrect

This document provides guidance on proper pronoun and verb agreement in English. It explains that singular pronouns like "each" require a singular verb form, while plural pronouns like "they" require a plural verb form. Collective nouns representing a group, like "government", also require a singular verb. Examples are given of both correct and incorrect usages. The document then discusses using adjectives and adverbs to enhance writing through vivid description, and defines the roles of prepositions, conjunctions, relative pronouns, phrases, and other parts of speech.

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Maradine Tep
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133 views3 pages

Improve Your English: X Each of You Have Been Given A Pencil. Incorrect

This document provides guidance on proper pronoun and verb agreement in English. It explains that singular pronouns like "each" require a singular verb form, while plural pronouns like "they" require a plural verb form. Collective nouns representing a group, like "government", also require a singular verb. Examples are given of both correct and incorrect usages. The document then discusses using adjectives and adverbs to enhance writing through vivid description, and defines the roles of prepositions, conjunctions, relative pronouns, phrases, and other parts of speech.

Uploaded by

Maradine Tep
Copyright
© Attribution Non-Commercial (BY-NC)
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Improve your English

Pronouns = singular and some are plural X Each of you have been given a pencil. Incorrect

Each of you has been given a pencil. Correct Each is a singular pronoun and therefore has should be used as it refers to one person or thing. Look at the following examples: She (one person) has a pencil. (singular) They (several people) have been given pencils. (plural

Pronouns which are singular and should always be followed by the singular form of the verbs are: everyone, nobody, anything, and something: Everyone comes to the match. Nobody likes her. Anything is better than that. Something has fallen off the desk. Each man brings a hat.

Mistakes are often made with the pronoun everyone, which is singular: Everyone has their own books. Incorrect! Everyone is singular. Their and books are plural so his or her and book should be used Everyone has his or her own book. Correct! Collective nouns such as team or group Collective nouns = must always be followed by the singular form of the verb. The Government are planning a new divorce Bill ,incorrect!! The Government is planning a new divorce Bill, correct! Most collective nouns can, of course, be made plural by adding ans. They are then followed by the plural form of the verb. The Governments of France and England are both democratic. The Writing Crew offers great advice. Writing Crew members offer great advice.

Verbs, too, can be singular or plural. That is to say, a verb will assume one form when the
accompanying noun is singular and another form when the noun is plural:

The child runs away whenever the teacher calls her. The children run away whenever the teacher calls them.

COLOURING YOUR WRITING


You will need to evoke atmosphere, describe vividly and paint a picture with words using Adjective .

Utilising adjectives
Adjectives are words that describe nouns. They add colour and flesh to your sentence. They must always be related to a noun:

He bit into the juicy apple.


Juicy is an adjective which describes the noun apple. It makes the sentence more vivid.

If there is a list of adjectives before a noun, separate them with a comma:


You are the most rude, unkind, objectionable person I have ever met. If the list of adjectives is at the end of the clause, the last one will be preceded by and:

She was elegant, poised, self-confident and beautiful.

Using the participles Both the present and the past participles can be used as adjectives:
The crying child ran to its mother. (present participle) The howling dog kept the family awake. (present participle) The broken doll lay on the floor. (past participle) The wounded soldier died in hospital. (past participle) Make sure that you use the correct participle. The present is used when the subject is doing the action. The past is used when something has been done to the noun . Look at the following.

Adjectives are used to enhance nouns.

Adverbs describe or modify verbs. They are often formed by


adding . . . ly to an adjective: She dances beautifully. He hastily wrote the letter.

Adverbs can also be used to modify or help other adverbs: The doctor arrived very promptly. Very is an adverb modifying the adverb promptly. They can also modify adjectives: The patient is much better today. Much is an adverb modifying the adjective better. Other adverbs are: too, more and however.

USING PREPOSITIONS
A preposition is a word that governs a noun or pronoun and usually comes before it. It indicates the relation of the noun or pronoun to another word. In the following examples the prepositions are underlined. Notice they are all followed by a noun or pronoun. I knew she was at home. She ran across the road. The clouds were massing in the sky. Her book was under the table. He told me about it There has been a tradition that a preposition should be not be placed at the end of clause or sentence but should always precede the noun or pronoun which it governs. Who are you talking to? Should therefore be: To whom are you talking?

To is the preposition and whom is a relative pronoun.


Some other prepositions are: from, above, with, by, of, on, after, for, in, between.

REVISING THE POINTS


Conjunctions or connectives are words that link clauses together. If a sentence begins with a conjunction, there must be two clauses following it and they must be

separated by a comma.
Sentences should not start with and or but. Relative pronouns are used to introduce a dependent

clause in the middle of a main clause.


A phrase is a group of words that does not make sense on its own. Phrases add extra information to the sentence Adjectives describe nouns and add colour to your writing. They can be used singly or in a list. They can precede the noun or be placed after the verb, to be. Present and past participles can be used as adjectives. Adverbs modify or help verbs, adjectives or other adverbs. When modifying a verb, they usually end in . . . ly. Prepositions govern nouns or pronouns.

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