Articles

What are Articles?

Articles defines noun as specific or unspecific.  Articles are the word a, an, the use to modify the noun.

The articles in English are the (definite article), a, and an (indefinite articles).

Articles define a noun as specific or unspecific.

After the long day, the cup of tea tastes particularly good.

By using the, we’ve shown that it was one specific day that was long, and one specific cup of tea that tasted good.

After a long day, a cup of tea tastes particularly good.

By using a, we’ve created a general statement, saying that any cup of tea would taste good after any long day.

The words a or an and the are called articles. Articles come before nouns.

There are two articles – a/an and the

The article a or an is called the indefinite article because it doesn’t state which person or thing we are talking about.

·         For example, a doctor means any doctor.

·         A child means any child.

The article the is called the definite article because it points out a particular person or thing.

Compare:

·         You must consult the doctor. (Which doctor? It could be your family doctor.)

·         You must consult a doctor. (Which doctor? It could be any doctor. Here the speaker does not have a particular doctor in mind.)

The indefinite article (a/an) is used before singular countable nouns. It cannot be used before plural nouns.

·         We can say an apple or a tree, but not an apples or a trees.

The definite article (the) can be used before singular countable nouns, plural countable nouns and uncountable nouns.

·         We can say, the book, the books, the rice or the milk.

A or an

The choice between a and an is determined by sound and not spelling. A is used before words beginning with a consonant sound. Examples are: a boy, a tree, a ball, a flower, a horse, a hole, a European and a university.

An is used before words beginning with a vowel sound. Examples are: an elephant, an egg, an orange, an umbrella, an hour, an heir etc.

Interjections

What are Interjections?

Interjections are words which convey an emotion or sentiment, disgust, joy, excitement.

An interjection is one of the eight major parts of speech, along with verbs, nouns, pronouns, adjectives, adverbs, prepositions and conjunctions. Some grammarians believe that interjections are the least important part of speech. This is because interjections are not generally required in order for the meaning of a sentence to become clear.

An interjection is a word solely designed to convey emotion. It expresses meaning or feeling. It does not:

·         relate grammatically to the other parts of the sentence

·         help the reader understand the relationship between words and phrases in the sentence

Instead, it simply conveys to the reader the way the author is feeling. Interjections are rarely used in academic or formal writing, but are common in fiction or artistic writing. They are usually, but not always, offset by an exclamation point (which is also used to show emotion).

Use of Interjections

Beginning of Sentences

When people think of interjections, they commonly think of them being used at the beginning of the sentence. Many also associate interjections with a punctuation mark designed to convey emotion: the exclamation point.

This is often true. Interjections can and do appear in the beginning of sentences. For example:

·         “Yikes, I didn’t realize that there was a test on grammar today!”

·         “Oh no, I can’t believe that it is snowing here again!”

In both of these sentences the interjection - “yikes” and “oh no” appear at the beginning of the sentence. In addition, in both of the sentences, the emotion is a strong emotion and the sentence itself ends with an exclamation point.

Middle or End of Sentences

Interjections do not always have to be at the beginning of a sentence. They can appear in the middle, at the end, or anyplace else where the author wants to interject a bit of feeling and emotion.

For example, in the sentence “So, it’s snowing again, huh?” the interjection is found at the end. Here, the interjection is designed to express confusion (or perhaps dismay) at the continued snow falling. In this sentence, the emotion wasn’t an emotion that necessitated an exclamation point--instead, the interjection ‘huh’ turned the sentence into a question.

The sentence “In my opinion, my gosh, this is just the smartest thing you have ever said” the interjection is found in the middle. It designed to express or convey the author’s emphasis on his opinion that the statement was smart. Again, no exclamation point is required.

Stand-alone Sentence

An interjection can also be used by itself as a stand-alone sentence. For example, look at the two sentences: “Oh gosh! I can’t believe how late it is.” The interjection “oh gosh” is a stand-alone sentence. This is grammatically correct, although “Oh Gosh” does not contain a subject and action that is normally required for a complete thought to be expressed. The interjection--or the emotion felt--is the entire point of the sentence.

Types of Interjections

There are literally hundreds, if not thousands, of interjections in the English language. Most are designed to express strong emotions, such as love, hate, surprise, happiness, anger, enthusiasm, disgust, boredom, confusion or unhappiness. However, this is not always true. Some interjections can express either a mild emotion, or can be expressions, such as “Excuse me.”

A sample list of interjections includes words such as:

·         Aha

·         Boo

·         Crud

·         Dang

·         Eew

·         Gosh

·         Goodness

·         Ha

·         Oh

·         Oops

·         Oh no

·         Ouch

·         Rats

·         Shoot

·         Uh-oh

·         Uh-huh

·         Ugh

·         Yikes

·         Yuck

This is by no means an exhaustive list, but is representative of the types of interjections you may use on a daily basis. For more examples see Examples of Interjections.

Identifying Interjections

Now that you’ve looked at a list of interjections, practice identifying them in these ten sentences:

1.    Yowza! That is a fine looking car.

2.    Hurray! It is a snow day and school is cancelled.

3.    It is so exciting, my goodness, I just can’t believe it.

4.    Joe was late to school and yikes, the teacher was mad.

5.    Oh! I can’t believe how nice you look.

6.    Well, gee, that sure is a kind thing to say.

7.    Boo! I scared you.

8.    Woops, I dropped the milk and it spilled.

9.    Yay, it is finally Friday and the work week is over.

10. Oh well, all good things must come to an end.

Answers to Identifying Interjections:

1.    Yowza! That is a fine looking car: Yowza is the interjection here. It is expressing the emotion of being quite impressed with the car.

2.    Hurray! It is a snow day and school is cancelled Hurray is the emotion here. Clearly, it is expressing happiness.

3.    It is so exciting, my goodness, I just can’t believe it. My goodness is the interjection here, expressing excitement.

4.    Joe was late to school and yikes, the teacher was mad. Yikes is the emotion being expressed here.

5.    Oh! I can’t believe how nice you look. Oh, the interjection, acts as a classic interjection at the beginning of a sentence. It is offset by its exclamation point.

6.    Well, gee, that sure is a kind thing to say. Here, we have two interjections: well and gee.

7.    Boo! I scared you. Boo is the rather obvious (and scary) interjection in this sentence.

8.    Woops, I dropped the milk and it spilled. Woops is the interjection used to express the error.

9.    Yay, it is finally Friday and the work week is over. Yay is another interjection that expresses the emotion of happiness, just as hurray did in sentence #2.

10. Oh well, all good things must come to an end. Oh well is the emotion here, an interjection with a tinge of resignation.

Interjections in Writing

Interjections are not commonly used in formal or academic writing. Because of the function that interjections serve, there is virtually no place for them in an academic paper that is designed to convey facts. By definition, facts should be devoid of emotion or opinion such as the emotions conveyed by interjections.

Interjections are used most often in speech. While people don’t necessarily pause to think about it, they use interjections all the time. This is even more true when you consider the fact that common words used in pauses, such as “uh,” and “um” are interjections.

Interjections can find their way into fictional pieces, most often in the form of dialogue. They can also be used in informal written communication between two people, such as letters or emails.

What is a preposition?

What is a preposition?

Preposition is a word that shows relation between two other two nearby words.

There are approximately 80 to 100 prepositions in the English language. Prepositions are words that introduce information to the reader. This information can include where something takes place (such as 'at' the store), when or why something takes place (such as 'before' dinner), or general descriptive information (such as the girl 'with' the cool tattoo).

Examples of Prepositions

Here are some examples of commonly-used prepositions:

about	above	across	after	against
along	behind	below	beneath	beside
besides	between	down	during	except
for	from	in	off	on
onto	opposite	out	outside	till
to	toward	under	underneath	until
with	within	without

Prepositions don't stand alone. They work in groups of words that we call prepositional phrases. A prepositional phrase begins with a preposition and ends in a noun. That noun is called the object of the preposition.

Prepositional Phrases

Here are some examples of prepositional phrases:

'Under' the desk
'during' the lecture
'across' the yard
'after' lunch
'behind' the tree

The word in quotes is the preposition and the words that follow the preposition make up the prepositional phrase. Think about a mountain, for instance. A prepositional phrase is just about anything that we can say in relation to a mountain, like 'to the mountain,' 'over the mountain,' 'under the mountain,' 'toward the mountain.' This is a good way to test a group of words in order to see if they do, indeed, fit the definition of prepositional phrases.

The object of the preposition is the noun that follows the preposition. It is also the stopping point for each prepositional phrase. For instance, we might say, 'to the store.' The word 'to' is the preposition and 'store' is the object of the preposition. Here's another example, 'in the light.' The word 'in' is the preposition and 'light' is the object of the preposition.

What is a Conjunction?

What is a Conjunction?

Conjunction is the word which  use to connect clauses and sentences together.

There are three different kinds of conjunctions––coordinating, subordinating, and correlative––each serving its own, distinct purpose, but all working to bring words together.

What Is a Coordinating Conjunction?

Coordinating conjunctions are what come to most people’s minds when they hear the word “conjunction.” They can join together words, phrases and independent clauses. There are seven of them, and they’re easy to remember if you can just remember FAN BOYS:

·         For - Explains reason or purpose (just like “because”) I go to the park every Sunday, for I love to watch the ducks on the lake.

·         And - Adds one thing to another I go to the park every Sunday to watch the ducks on the lake and the shirtless men playing soccer.

·         Nor - Used to present an alternative negative idea to an already stated negative idea I don’t go for the fresh air nor really for the ducks. Honestly, I just like the soccer.

·         But - Shows contrast The soccer in the park is entertaining in the winter, but it’s better in the heat of summer.

·         Or - Presents an alternative or a choice The men play on teams: shirts or skins.

·         Yet - Introduces a contrasting idea that follows the preceding idea logically (similar to “but”) I always take a book to read, yet I never seem to turn a single page.

·         So - Indicates effect, result or consequence I’ve started dating one of the soccer players, so now I have an excuse to watch the game each week.

Learn more about coordinating conjunctions.

What Is a Subordinating Conjunction?

A subordinating conjunction always introduces a dependent clause, tying it to an independent clause. In contrast to coordinating conjunctions, a subordinate conjunction can often come first in a sentence. This is due simply to the nature of the relationship between the dependent and the independent clause. In English, there are lots of subordinating conjunctions, but the most common ones are "after," "although," "as," "because," "before," "how," "if," "once," "since," "than," "that," "though," "until," "when," "where," "whether," and "while." Here are a few examples of how subordinating conjunctions are used:

·         “Because of you, I never stray too far from the sidewalk” (Kelly Clarkson).

·         “If you leave me now, you’ll take away the biggest part of me” (Peter Cetera/Chicago).

·         “When I see you smile, I can face the world” (Bad English).

·         “[You] don’t know what you’ve got ‘til it’s gone” (Cinderella).

·         “I guess I’ll never be the same since I fell for you” (B.B. King).

·         “As I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I take a look at my life and realize there’s nothing left” (Coolio).

 Learn more about subordinating conjunctions.

What Are Correlative Conjunctions?

Correlative conjunctions are sort of like tag-team conjunctions. They come in pairs, and you have to use both of them in different places in a sentence to make them work. They include pairs like “both/and,” “whether/or,” “either/or,” “neither/nor,” “not/but” and “not only/but also.”

·         I either want the cheesecake or the frozen hot chocolate.

·         I’ll have both the cheesecake and the frozen hot chocolate.

·         I didn’t know whether you’d want the cheesecake or the frozen hot chocolate, so I got you both.

·         Oh, you want neither the cheesecake nor the frozen hot chocolate? No problem.

·         I’ll eat them both - not only the cheesecake but also the frozen hot chocolate.

·         I see you’re in the mood not for dessert but appetizers. I’ll help you with those too.

Learn more about correlative conjunctions.

Now that you know what a conjunction is, how many different kinds there are and how they’re used, you can make all manner of compound and complex sentences, but whether you’re using them for work or play, just make sure you use them for good and not for evil.

Adjectives Word List

Adjectives Word List

A

abandoned able absolute adorable adventurous academic acceptable acclaimed accomplished accurate aching acidic acrobatic

active actual adept admirable admired adolescent adorable adored advanced afraid affectionate aged aggravating

aggressive agile agitated agonizing agreeable ajar alarmed alarming alert alienated alive all altruistic

amazing ambitious ample amused amusing anchored ancient angelic angry anguished animated annual another antique

anxious any apprehensive appropriate apt arctic arid aromatic artistic ashamed assured astonishing athletic

attached attentive attractive austere authentic authorized automatic avaricious average aware awesome awful awkward

B

babyish bad back baggy bare barren basic beautiful belated beloved

beneficial better best bewitched big big-hearted biodegradable bite-sized bitter black

black-and-white bland blank blaring bleak blind blissful blond blue blushing

bogus boiling bold bony boring bossy both bouncy bountiful bowed

brave breakable brief bright brilliant brisk broken bronze brown bruised

bubbly bulky bumpy buoyant burdensome burly bustling busy buttery buzzing

C

calculating calm candid canine capital carefree careful careless caring cautious cavernous celebrated charming

cheap cheerful cheery chief chilly chubby circular classic clean clear clear-cut clever close closed

cloudy clueless clumsy cluttered coarse cold colorful colorless colossal comfortable common compassionate competent complete

complex complicated composed concerned concrete confused conscious considerate constant content conventional cooked cool cooperative

coordinated corny corrupt costly courageous courteous crafty crazy creamy creative creepy criminal crisp

critical crooked crowded cruel crushing cuddly cultivated cultured cumbersome curly curvy cute cylindrical

D

damaged damp dangerous dapper daring darling dark dazzling dead deadly deafening dear dearest

decent decimal decisive deep defenseless defensive defiant deficient definite definitive delayed delectable delicious

delightful delirious demanding dense dental dependable dependent descriptive deserted detailed determined devoted different

difficult digital diligent dim dimpled dimwitted direct disastrous discrete disfigured disgusting disloyal dismal

distant downright dreary dirty disguised dishonest dismal distant distinct distorted dizzy dopey

doting double downright drab drafty dramatic dreary droopy dry dual dull dutiful

E

each eager earnest early easy easy-going ecstatic edible educated

elaborate elastic elated elderly electric elegant elementary elliptical embarrassed

embellished eminent emotional empty enchanted enchanting energetic enlightened enormous

enraged entire envious equal equatorial essential esteemed ethical euphoric

even evergreen everlasting every evil exalted excellent exemplary exhausted excitable

excited exciting exotic expensive experienced expert extraneous extroverted extra-large extra-small

F

fabulous failing faint fair faithful fake false familiar famous fancy fantastic far faraway far-flung far-off

fast fat fatal fatherly favorable favorite fearful fearless feisty feline female feminine few fickle

filthy fine finished firm first firsthand fitting fixed flaky flamboyant flashy flat flawed flawless flickering

flimsy flippant flowery fluffy fluid flustered focused fond foolhardy foolish forceful forked formal forsaken

forthright fortunate fragrant frail frank frayed free French fresh frequent friendly frightened frightening frigid

frilly frizzy frivolous front frosty frozen frugal fruitful full fumbling functional funny fussy fuzzy

G

gargantuan gaseous general generous gentle genuine giant giddy gigantic

gifted giving glamorous glaring glass gleaming gleeful glistening glittering

gloomy glorious glossy glum golden good good-natured gorgeous graceful

gracious grand grandiose granular grateful grave gray great greedy green

gregarious grim grimy gripping grizzled gross grotesque grouchy grounded

growing growling grown grubby gruesome grumpy guilty gullible gummy

H

hairy half handmade handsome handy happy happy-go-lucky hard

hard-to-find harmful harmless harmonious harsh hasty hateful haunting

healthy heartfelt hearty heavenly heavy hefty helpful helpless

hidden hideous high high-level hilarious hoarse hollow homely

honest honorable honored hopeful horrible hospitable hot huge

humble humiliating humming humongous hungry hurtful husky

I

icky icy ideal idealistic identical idle idiotic idolized ignorant ill illegal

ill-fated ill-informed illiterate illustrious imaginary imaginative immaculate immaterial immediate immense impassioned

impeccable impartial imperfect imperturbable impish impolite important impossible impractical impressionable impressive improbable

impure inborn incomparable incompatible incomplete inconsequential incredible indelible inexperienced indolent infamous infantile

infatuated inferior infinite informal innocent insecure insidious insignificant insistent instructive insubstantial

intelligent intent intentional interesting internal international intrepid ironclad irresponsible irritating itchy

J

jaded jagged jam-packed

jaunty jealous jittery

joint jolly jovial

joyful joyous jubilant

judicious juicy jumbo

junior jumpy juvenile

K

kaleidoscopic keen

key kind

kindhearted kindly

klutzy knobby

knotty knowledgeable knowing

known kooky kosher

L

lame lanky large last lasting late lavish lawful

lazy leading lean leafy left legal legitimate light

lighthearted likable likely limited limp limping linear lined liquid

little live lively livid loathsome lone lonely long

long-term loose lopsided lost loud lovable lovely loving

low loyal lucky lumbering luminous lumpy lustrous luxurious

M

mad made-up magnificent majestic major male mammoth married marvelous

masculine massive mature meager mealy mean measly meaty medical mediocre

medium meek mellow melodic memorable menacing merry messy metallic mild

milky mindless miniature minor minty miserable miserly misguided misty mixed

modern modest moist monstrous monthly monumental moral mortified motherly motionless

mountainous muddy muffled multicolored mundane murky mushy musty muted mysterious

N

naive narrow nasty natural naughty

nautical near neat necessary needy

negative neglected negligible neighboring nervous new

next nice nifty nimble nippy

nocturnal noisy nonstop normal notable noted

noteworthy novel noxious numb nutritious nutty

O

obedient obese oblong oily oblong obvious occasional

odd oddball offbeat offensive official old

old-fashioned only open optimal optimistic opulent

orange orderly organic ornate ornery ordinary

original other our outlying outgoing outlandish

outrageous outstanding oval overcooked overdue overjoyed overlooked

P

palatable pale paltry parallel parched partial passionate past pastel peaceful peppery perfect perfumed

periodic perky personal pertinent pesky pessimistic petty phony physical piercing pink pitiful plain

plaintive plastic playful pleasant pleased pleasing plump plush polished polite political pointed pointless poised

poor popular portly posh positive possible potable powerful powerless practical precious present prestigious

pretty precious previous pricey prickly primary prime pristine private prize probable productive profitable

profuse proper proud prudent punctual pungent puny pure purple pushy putrid puzzled puzzling

Q

quaint qualified

quarrelsome quarterly

queasy querulous

questionable quick

quick-witted quiet quintessential

quirky quixotic quizzical

R

radiant ragged rapid rare rash raw recent reckless rectangular

ready real realistic reasonable red reflecting regal regular

reliable relieved remarkable remorseful remote repentant required respectful responsible

repulsive revolving rewarding rich rigid right ringed ripe

roasted robust rosy rotating rotten rough round rowdy

royal rubbery rundown ruddy rude runny rural rusty

S

sad safe salty same sandy sane sarcastic sardonic satisfied scaly scarce scared scary scented scholarly scientific scornful scratchy scrawny second secondary second-hand secret self-assured self-reliant selfish sentimental

separate serene serious serpentine several severe shabby shadowy shady shallow shameful shameless sharp shimmering shiny shocked shocking shoddy short short-term showy shrill shy sick silent silky

silly silver similar simple simplistic sinful single sizzling skeletal skinny sleepy slight slim slimy slippery slow slushy small smart smoggy smooth smug snappy snarling sneaky sniveling snoopy

sociable soft soggy solid somber some spherical sophisticated sore sorrowful soulful soupy sour Spanish sparkling sparse specific spectacular speedy spicy spiffy spirited spiteful splendid spotless spotted spry

square squeaky squiggly stable staid stained stale standard starchy stark starry steep sticky stiff stimulating stingy stormy straight strange steel strict strident striking striped strong studious stunning

stupendous stupid sturdy stylish subdued submissive substantial subtle suburban sudden sugary sunny super superb superficial superior supportive sure-footed surprised suspicious svelte sweaty sweet sweltering swift sympathetic

T

tall talkative tame tan tangible tart tasty tattered taut tedious teeming

tempting tender tense tepid terrible terrific testy thankful that these

thick thin third thirsty this thorough thorny those thoughtful threadbare

thrifty thunderous tidy tight timely tinted tiny tired torn total

tough traumatic treasured tremendous tragic trained tremendous triangular tricky trifling trim

trivial troubled true trusting trustworthy trusty truthful tubby turbulent twin

U

ugly ultimate unacceptable unaware uncomfortable uncommon unconscious understated unequaled

uneven unfinished unfit unfolded unfortunate unhappy unhealthy uniform unimportant unique

united unkempt unknown unlawful unlined unlucky unnatural unpleasant unrealistic

unripe unruly unselfish unsightly unsteady unsung untidy untimely untried

untrue unused unusual unwelcome unwieldy unwilling unwitting unwritten upbeat

upright upset urban usable used useful useless utilized utter

V

vacant vague vain valid

valuable vapid variable vast velvety

venerated vengeful verifiable vibrant vicious

victorious vigilant vigorous villainous violet

violent virtual virtuous visible

vital vivacious vivid voluminous

W

wan warlike warm warmhearted warped wary wasteful watchful waterlogged watery wavy

wealthy weak weary webbed wee weekly weepy weighty weird welcome well-documented

well-groomed well-informed well-lit well-made well-off well-to-do well-worn wet which whimsical whirlwind whispered

white whole whopping wicked wide wide-eyed wiggly wild willing wilted winding windy

winged wiry wise witty wobbly woeful wonderful wooden woozy wordy worldly worn

worried worrisome worse worst worthless worthwhile worthy wrathful wretched writhing wrong wry

Y

yawning yearly

yellow

yellowish

young

youthful

yummy

Z

zany

zealous

zesty

zigzag