4.5: Vocabulary Focus Word-Building

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Indefinite Pronouns

Indefinite pronouns, just like pronouns, take the place of nouns and noun phrases. However, indefinite pronouns are not specific. Look at some examples. The nouns have been replaced with indefinite pronouns.

Complete noun phrases	Indefinite pronouns
The entire world loves music.	Everyone loves music.
A stranger helped the man who fell.	Somebody helped someone who fell.
No students in the class failed the exam.	No one in the class failed the exam.
The items in my bag are wet.	Everything in my bag is wet.
I have no tasks to do today.	I have nothing to do today.

Common Indefinite Pronouns

Indefinite Pronouns referring to nonspecific nouns	Indefinite Pronouns referring to specific nouns
anybody	all
anyone	another
anything	any
everybody	both
everyone	each
everything	either
nobody	few
none	many
no one	neither
nothing	one
somebody	some
someone	several
something

Sometimes an indefinite pronoun can act as an adjective. Look at the difference here:

Many passed the exam. Few failed.

In these sentences, “many” and “few” are indefinite pronouns.

Many students passed the exam. Few students failed.

In these sentences, “many” and “few” are adjectives describing “students.”

Scan “Luna and Violeta’s Story” and look for indefinite pronouns. Did you find them all? Make a list in your notebook.

Exercise \(\PageIndex{1}\):

Indefinite Pronouns

Choose the correct indefinite pronoun for each sentence below. Some sentences may have more than one possible answer. Check the chart on the previous page and write down other words that will also fit.

Luna heard ___________ playing a musical instrument in the next room.
a. anybody

b. somebody

c. nobody

d. everything
__________ went wrong when Violeta tried to save her document.
a. Anything

b. Something

c. Nothing

d. Everything
Molly doesn’t have ____________ to wear to work tomorrow.
a. anything

b. something

c. nothing

d. everything
Tests are difficult. ___________ are more difficult than others.
a. Any

b. Some

c. None

d. All
____________ is home right now. Try calling them later.
a. None

b. No one

c. Nobody

d. Nothing
Is _______ in the classroom yet?
a. anybody

b. somebody

c. nobody

d. everybody
You will have two tests in this class. ___________ is worth 50 points.
a. Each

b. Both

c. One

d. Some
You will have two tests in this class. ___________ are worth 50 points.
a. Each

b. Both

c. One

d. Some
Is ___________ wrong? I heard a strange noise.
a. anything

b. something

c. nothing

d. everything
We will take many quizzes in this class. _______ will be given at the beginning of class on Fridays.
a. All

b. Any

c. Each

d. Many

Exercise \(\PageIndex{2}\):

Singular or Plural

Indefinite pronouns can be singular or plural. Choose the correct verb to make your indefinite pronoun agree with your verb.

When I call, someone ____________ the phone, but I can’t hear them.
a. answer

b. answers
Violeta likes strawberries and blueberries. Both ___________ available seasonally.
a. are

b. is
Stephanie gave her students a quiz on Wednesday. Another _____ scheduled for Monday.
a. are

b. is
Everybody _________ talking about the difficult quiz.
a. are

b. is
If anybody __________, I’ll be studying in the library.
a. ask

b. asks

Exercise \(\PageIndex{3}\):

Fill in the Blank

Read the paragraph below. Fill in the blanks with an appropriate indefinite pronoun. There may be more than one possible answer for some blanks.

Luna and Violeta were walking to their favorite coffee shop. They saw ____________ crossing the street. He was having a hard time because _________ of the cars were stopping. The traffic signals were broken and ______________ knew what to do. Finally, two police officers arrived. _____________ began to help. ______________ directed the traffic, and ____________ helped pedestrians cross the street. ________________ was relieved that they could safely get where they wanted to go.

Now, write your own paragraph about Luna and Violeta. Use at least 5 indefinite pronouns.

Suffix: -er and –or

One function is to identify a noun as “a person who” does the work or job of the rest of the word. For example, a “teacher” is “a person who teaches.” In the same way, a “manager” is “a person who manages.”
The second function is to identify an action verb. Verbs such as cover, gather, honor, matter, and remember are all examples of these verbs.

Noun: a person who…

Verb: an action

Exercise \(\PageIndex{4}\):

Tables

Look through the “Luna and Violeta’s Story” and divide the words ending with “-or” and “-er” into two categories: nouns and verbs.

Nouns: A person who…		Verbs: An action

Exercise \(\PageIndex{5}\):

Read the sentences below and label the bolded “-er” and “-or” words with NOUN or VERB.

Juan Carlos is a construction worker. His employer is 5th Street Construction. The company employs 60 people. They offer great wages and benefits to all their employees.
Stephanie is Luna’s teacher. Stephanie advised Luna to try and make some good friends among her classmates. Luna took Stephanie’s advice and considers Violeta to be a good friend now.
Baby Nathan caught a cold. He isn’t improving, so Molly wants to take him to the doctor. She really hopes that he recovers soon.
Violeta volunteers at an elementary school twice a week. She teaches a short Spanish lesson to the students. She is a valuable volunteer, and everyone really appreciates her.
Since Nathan was sick, Molly called a coworker to cover for her. She stayed home with her son until he felt better.
Luna and Violeta didn’t bother to look up their assignment on the class website. They remembered what they were supposed to do.
It doesn’t matter if you are a student or an instructor, there is always too much work.

Exercise \(\PageIndex{6}\):

Use

Practice using words with the suffix “-er” or “-or.”

Make a list of other words you can think of that end with the suffix “-er” or “-or.” Make sure you know if they are nouns or verbs.
Write 5 original sentences about “Luna and Violeta’s Story” using words with the suffix “-er” or “-or.”

Example:

Violeta and Luna are partners in class. They are problem solvers.

Suffix: -ation

Adding this to a verb forms a noun. It shows the state or result of the action.

Some common examples are:

inform + ation = information

explore + ation = exploration

combine + ation = combination

Exercise \(\PageIndex{7}\):

Suffixes

Follow the directions below.

Find all the words in the story that end in “-ation,” and highlight the sentences you find them in.
Read the sentences below and match the bolded “-ation” word to the definitions below by writing the word next to its definition.
a. Violeta and Luna had an interesting conversation about their families.

b. Teachers have expectations about their students, and students have expectations about their teachers.

c. Violeta’s difficult family situation was caused by not communicating.

d. Violeta doesn’t enjoy confrontation, but she is willing to confront her brother.

e. Luna learned a lot of information about her classmate from their discussions.

f. Dr. is the abbreviation for the word “doctor.”

g. Violeta is planning a party for her sister-in-law. She needs to make a lot of preparations.
1. the circumstances a person is in
2. facts provided or learned about something
3. something done to get ready for an event
4. beliefs about how someone or something should be
5. exchange of ideas by speaking
6. the shortened form of a word or phrase
7. an argumentative meeting between opposing people or groups

Exercise \(\PageIndex{8}\):

Use

Practice using words with the suffix “-ation.” 1. Make a list of other words you can think of that end with the suffix “-ation.” 2. Write 5 original sentences about “Luna and Violeta’s Story” using words with the suffix “- ation.”

Example:

Violeta and Luna had many conversations about school and life.