6: Grammar and Mechanics
- Page ID
- 344409
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\(\newcommand{\avec}{\mathbf a}\) \(\newcommand{\bvec}{\mathbf b}\) \(\newcommand{\cvec}{\mathbf c}\) \(\newcommand{\dvec}{\mathbf d}\) \(\newcommand{\dtil}{\widetilde{\mathbf d}}\) \(\newcommand{\evec}{\mathbf e}\) \(\newcommand{\fvec}{\mathbf f}\) \(\newcommand{\nvec}{\mathbf n}\) \(\newcommand{\pvec}{\mathbf p}\) \(\newcommand{\qvec}{\mathbf q}\) \(\newcommand{\svec}{\mathbf s}\) \(\newcommand{\tvec}{\mathbf t}\) \(\newcommand{\uvec}{\mathbf u}\) \(\newcommand{\vvec}{\mathbf v}\) \(\newcommand{\wvec}{\mathbf w}\) \(\newcommand{\xvec}{\mathbf x}\) \(\newcommand{\yvec}{\mathbf y}\) \(\newcommand{\zvec}{\mathbf z}\) \(\newcommand{\rvec}{\mathbf r}\) \(\newcommand{\mvec}{\mathbf m}\) \(\newcommand{\zerovec}{\mathbf 0}\) \(\newcommand{\onevec}{\mathbf 1}\) \(\newcommand{\real}{\mathbb R}\) \(\newcommand{\twovec}[2]{\left[\begin{array}{r}#1 \\ #2 \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\ctwovec}[2]{\left[\begin{array}{c}#1 \\ #2 \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\threevec}[3]{\left[\begin{array}{r}#1 \\ #2 \\ #3 \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\cthreevec}[3]{\left[\begin{array}{c}#1 \\ #2 \\ #3 \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\fourvec}[4]{\left[\begin{array}{r}#1 \\ #2 \\ #3 \\ #4 \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\cfourvec}[4]{\left[\begin{array}{c}#1 \\ #2 \\ #3 \\ #4 \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\fivevec}[5]{\left[\begin{array}{r}#1 \\ #2 \\ #3 \\ #4 \\ #5 \\ \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\cfivevec}[5]{\left[\begin{array}{c}#1 \\ #2 \\ #3 \\ #4 \\ #5 \\ \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\mattwo}[4]{\left[\begin{array}{rr}#1 \amp #2 \\ #3 \amp #4 \\ \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\laspan}[1]{\text{Span}\{#1\}}\) \(\newcommand{\bcal}{\cal B}\) \(\newcommand{\ccal}{\cal C}\) \(\newcommand{\scal}{\cal S}\) \(\newcommand{\wcal}{\cal W}\) \(\newcommand{\ecal}{\cal E}\) \(\newcommand{\coords}[2]{\left\{#1\right\}_{#2}}\) \(\newcommand{\gray}[1]{\color{gray}{#1}}\) \(\newcommand{\lgray}[1]{\color{lightgray}{#1}}\) \(\newcommand{\rank}{\operatorname{rank}}\) \(\newcommand{\row}{\text{Row}}\) \(\newcommand{\col}{\text{Col}}\) \(\renewcommand{\row}{\text{Row}}\) \(\newcommand{\nul}{\text{Nul}}\) \(\newcommand{\var}{\text{Var}}\) \(\newcommand{\corr}{\text{corr}}\) \(\newcommand{\len}[1]{\left|#1\right|}\) \(\newcommand{\bbar}{\overline{\bvec}}\) \(\newcommand{\bhat}{\widehat{\bvec}}\) \(\newcommand{\bperp}{\bvec^\perp}\) \(\newcommand{\xhat}{\widehat{\xvec}}\) \(\newcommand{\vhat}{\widehat{\vvec}}\) \(\newcommand{\uhat}{\widehat{\uvec}}\) \(\newcommand{\what}{\widehat{\wvec}}\) \(\newcommand{\Sighat}{\widehat{\Sigma}}\) \(\newcommand{\lt}{<}\) \(\newcommand{\gt}{>}\) \(\newcommand{\amp}{&}\) \(\definecolor{fillinmathshade}{gray}{0.9}\)- 6.1: Parts of Speech
- This page covers key grammatical concepts including parts of speech such as nouns, pronouns, verbs, adjectives, and adverbs, detailing their classifications and uses. It emphasizes pronoun-antecedent agreement and common writing challenges. Additionally, it explores conjunctions, prepositions, interjections, and sentence structures, highlighting the active vs. passive voice and types of clauses (independent, dependent, and types of wh-questions).
- 6.2: Parts of the Sentence
- This page details the four main components of English sentences: subject, predicate, complement, and modifiers. The subject performs the action as expressed in the predicate, which describes that action. Complements provide additional meaning to the subject and predicate, while modifiers enhance the sentence through various types. The page also notes that sentences may include compound elements, allowing for more complex structures.
- 6.3: Types of Sentences
- This page provides an overview of sentence types categorized by structure (simple, compound, complex, compound-complex) and purpose (declarative, imperative, interrogative, exclamatory). It highlights the importance of varied sentence types for enhancing reader interest and flow, discusses different clauses (independent, subordinate, complement), and illustrates the function of relative clauses.
- 6.4: Active and Passive Voice
- This page explores the importance of active and passive voice in English writing, noting that active voice highlights the doer of the action, whereas passive voice emphasizes the recipient. The text explains how the choice impacts formality, emphasis, and narrative flow, with passive forms often used in formal writing for objectivity.
- 6.5: Punctuation
- This page emphasizes the importance of punctuation in academic writing for clarity and credibility, highlighting the role of punctuation in conveying meaning and fostering community understanding. It details punctuation rules, particularly regarding semicolons, and explores the multiple syntactic functions of the word "that" in English, providing examples for each function. Mastery of these elements is essential for effective communication in academia.
- 6.6: Commas
- This page provides an overview of comma usage, highlighting the distinction between nonrestrictive and restrictive clauses, and detailing their role in joining independent clauses, setting off introductory elements, and addressing common errors. It covers contexts such as nonessential phrases, multiple adjectives, quotations, lists, dates, and addresses, and emphasizes the importance of structure in enhancing clarity.
- 6.7: Semicolons
- This page explains the use of semicolons, noting their function in clarifying lists and linking independent clauses. It emphasizes proper placement and common misuses, like incorrect positioning with subordinate clauses and appositives, while also stating their relationship with conjunctions and quotation marks.
- 6.8: Colons
- This page explains the proper use of colons in writing, including their role in introducing lists, appositives, quotations, and separating related independent clauses. It also covers their presence in formal greetings and time notation, while highlighting common misuses that can lead to grammatical errors. Correct usage improves clarity, whereas misplacement can create confusion.
- 6.9: Apostrophes
- This page explains the use of apostrophes for possession and contractions. It details when to add 's for singular nouns, how to treat plural nouns, and the handling of joint versus individual possession. Additionally, it notes the use of apostrophes in compound nouns with dashes and advises against their use in non-possessive nouns and possessive pronouns.
- 6.10: Quotation Marks
- This page explains the use of quotation marks for direct quotations, emphasizing their absence in paraphrasing. It notes that long quotations should be indented. Short work titles need quotation marks, and punctuation rules affect their placement. Specific punctuation guidelines apply when integrating quotations into writing. Additionally, it mentions a bibliography entry for "Strunk & White: The Elements of Style."
- 6.11: Hyphens and Dashes
- This page explains the different functions of dashes and hyphens in writing. Dashes (em and en) indicate sentence interruptions and can replace parentheses, while hyphens join compound words and clarify meanings. Em dashes are wider than hyphens, and en dashes are wider than hyphens but shorter than em dashes. Proper usage of these punctuation marks is crucial for enhancing clarity in writing.
- 6.12: Parentheses
- This page explains the use of parentheses to include interjected remarks, separate mathematical quantities, and label list items. It emphasizes that the information within parentheses is incidental and not essential for the sentence's completeness, supported by examples of their application in communication and citation.
- 6.13: Capitalization
- This page explains capitalization rules: Proper nouns and names are always capitalized, common nouns are capitalized only in full names, and the first word of every sentence and quote should be capitalized. In titles of artistic works, main words are capitalized. Formal titles before names are capitalized, but not after. Academic titles should be spelled out and capitalized when preceding a name.
- 6.14: Common Errors
- This page explores personal experiences and grammatical precision. It shares Elsabeth Belecaw's journey in Dubai, focusing on cultural adaptation and communication challenges, while also detailing common grammar issues like subject-verb agreement, punctuation, run-on sentences, and modifiers. The text emphasizes clarity and accuracy in writing, offering guidance on avoiding common mistakes, understanding restrictive vs. non-restrictive elements, and differentiating frequently confused words.
- 6.15: Writing Feedback
- This page provides guidance for teachers on giving constructive writing feedback, highlighting the importance of addressing specific errors like enumeration consistency and unclear pronoun references. It emphasizes balanced, clear comments and suggests various feedback styles tailored to student needs. Additionally, it encourages the use of external resources such as Purdue OWL to enhance writing skills.
- 6.16: MLA and APA
- This page covers essential citation practices to avoid plagiarism in academic writing, emphasizing both APA and MLA formats. It details APA requirements like cover pages and references, along with citation rules for various sources. Additionally, it highlights Hemingway's opposition to Alaskan oil exploration for environmental preservation.
- 6.17: Plagiarism
- This page discusses plagiarism, defined as using others' ideas or writings without proper acknowledgment. It emphasizes the importance of citing sources to clarify borrowed content and recognize assistance. Plagiarism can arise from failing to cite, misusing quotation marks, or slightly altering existing text. To avoid it, one should quote accurately, paraphrase well, and credit original ideas.