basic grammar and usage

[...]... Although Basic Grammar and Usage is designed for students whose native language is English, it has been used successfully by students learning English as a second language In addition to being a classroom text, Basic Grammar and Usage can be used in writing labs and for individual tutoring Many people have shared in the preparation of Basic Grammar and Usage I wish in particular to thank the instructors and. .. hundreds of instructors and the thousands of students who have used Basic Grammar and Usage during the past four decades We know personally the relief students feel when they realize that English grammar is comprehensible and that it can be studied systematically We hope that your students have similarly successful experiences PREFACE TO THE FIRST EDITION Basic Grammar and Usage was originally written... subjects, verbs, and connecting words Go through them, underlining the subjects once and the verbs twice Sarah laughed and joked Julia and Ben argued and fought The poet, the artist, and the teacher spoke After the game ended, we had lunch Laughter invigorates, and love binds Because it snowed, we stayed home When the movie ended, we left The philosopher and his ideas were exciting As we watched and waited,... proofread for errors and then correct to demonstrate mastery of the material Students who have never before studied grammar systematically will find that working through the text from beginning to end provides an insight into the basic patterns of English grammar As one student commented on an end-of-course evaluation, “The most important thing I learned from Basic Grammar and Usage is that if you... of the program’s English classes, I decided to write a book of my own that would cover the most important areas of grammar and usage in a way that would be easily understood by my students The original version of Basic Grammar and Usage received an enthusiastic response from the students and was used successfully throughout the threeyear duration of the program After the program ended in 1974, many of... many subjects and verbs it has In theory, a sentence can have any number of subjects and verbs, but these are the most common patterns: S–V one subject and one verb S–V–V one subject and two verbs S–S–V two subjects and one verb S–V/S–V two subjects and two verbs Underline the subjects of the following sentences once and the verbs twice The parrot squawked loudly His job started early and ended quite... the instructors asked permission to reproduce the book for use in their new teaching positions By the time copies of Basic Grammar and Usage reached Harcourt Brace Jovanovich in 1975, the text had already been used by more than 1,500 students in nearly a dozen schools Basic Grammar and Usage presents material in small segments so that students can master a particular topic one step at a time The lessons... would like to thank the students she encountered during her forty-one years of teaching English and ESL Their many questions about English grammar inspired her to write the first and subsequent editions of this book She is also grateful to the instructors at Los Angeles City College who used Basic Grammar and Usage during the thirty-two years she taught there Her stepson, Joel Rothman, who taught her... and infinitives, which are never part of the verb, and about adjectives and possessives, which are not part of the subject Underline verbs twice and subjects once My uncles and aunts contribute to our family The long road seemed to run on for miles and miles Duane, José, and Clarence always loved to play soccer The gymnastic tournament finally ended, and the players went home After the spring semester... T E R Multiple Subjects and Verbs S ome sentences have more than one subject Others have more than one verb Many sentences have more than one subject and more than one verb The subjects in the following sentences have been labeled with an “S” and the verbs with a “V.” S V V He swam and fished this summer S S V The dog and kitten became good friends S V S V She danced well, and the director applauded . being a classroom text, Basic Grammar and Usage can be used in writing labs and for individual tutoring. Many people have shared in the preparation of Basic Grammar and Usage. I wish in particular. copies of Basic Grammar and Usage reached Harcourt Brace Jovanovich in 1975, the text had already been used by more than 1,500 students in nearly a dozen schools. Basic Grammar and Usage presents. instructors and the thou- sands of students who have used Basic Grammar and Usage during the past four decades. We know personally the relief students feel when they realize that English grammar