Preface P ractic al S u g g e s tio n s for Writing Pa rt (1 LESSON The S e n t e n c e T h e P a r t s of S p e e c h • • • • • • • • LESSON S u bject and Verb (Stage One) • • • • • • Contents Noun 10 Pronoun 10 Verb 10 Adjective 11 Adverb 11 Conjunction 12 Preposition 13 Interjection 13 16 Verbs of One Word 17 Verbs of More Than One Word 18 Verbs, Not Modifiers 19 Finding the Subject 20 Compound Subjects and Verbs 23 Compound Sentences 24 LESSON S u b je ct Verb, and " C o m p l e t e r ” (Stage Two) 27 Subject Complements After Linking Verbs 28 Direct Objects After Action Verbs 29 Subjects and Verbs, Not Adjectives and Adverbs 30 Verbs, Not Verbals 31 LESSON k S u b je c ts , Verbs P h rases, and Clauses (Stage Three) • Verbal Phrases as Subjects 35 • Clauses as Subjects 36 • The Subject and Verb in a Sentence with a Modifying Clause 36 • Explanatory Words (Appositives) 38 iii CONT E NT S P a r t Gr ammar L E S S O N A g r e e m e n t ( L e v e l 1) 43 • The Subject Separated from Its Verb by a Prepositional Phrase 44 • Compound Subjects 45 • Sentences Beginning with Here and There 45 • Collective Nouns 46 • Each, Either , and Neither 47 • The Pronoun and Its Antecedent 48 L E S S O N Agreement (Level • • • • • 2) 51 Nouns Plural in Form but Singular in Number 52 Nouns Singular in Sense but Plural in Use 52 None , Any, Some , All, and Most (NASAM) 53 The Number and a Number 54 Who and That Clauses 54 L E S S O N P r o n o u n s _5 • • • • • The Subject Forms of Pronouns 58 The Object Forms of Pronouns 58 Self-Words 60 Comparisons After As or Than 60 The Possessive Form with -ing Words 61 L E S S O N Verbs 64 • I f (and Wish) Clauses 64 • The Correct Forms of Certain Verbs 65 • Double Negatives 67 LESSON A d j e c t i v e s and A d v e r b s • Adjectives and Adverbs 71 • The Articles A and An 72 iv 70 • Comparing Two or More Adjectives or Adverbs 72 • This, That, These , and Those 74 L E S S O N 10 Prepositions 77 • Errors in the Use of Prepositions 77 • Special Prepositions with Certain Words 79 L E S S O N 11 Grammar Practice P a r t 83 P u n c t u a t i o n L E S S O N 12 P u n c t u a t i o n of t h e S i m p l e S e n t e n c e 91 • Words in a Series 92 • Adjectives in a Series 93 • Explanatory Words (Appositives) 93 • Parenthetical Expressions 94 • Direct Address 96 • Introductory Words 96 L E S S O N 13 P u n c t u a t i o n of t h e S i m p l e S e n t e n c e (Continued) 99 • Verbal Phrases 99 • Introductory Prepositional Phrases 100 • Dates and Addresses 101 L E S S O N 14 P u n c t u a t i o n of t h e C o m p o u n d S e n t e n c e 04 • The Comma in a Compound Sentence 104 • The Semicolon in a Compound Sentence 106 • The Comma in a Command Sentence 106 L E S S O N 15 P u n c t u a t i o n of t h e C o m p l e x S e n t e n c e • Introductory Clauses 109 • Who and Which Clauses 111 109 ONTENTS • Parenthetical Expressions and Clauses 112 • Direct Quotations 112 LESSON 16 Punctuation Practice LESSON 115 17 The Pe rio d Question Mark, and E x c la m a tio n Point 120 • The Period for Sentence Endings, Abbreviations, Ellipsis Marks, and Decimal Points 121 • The Question Mark for a Direct Question, to Express Doubt, for Partly Interrogative Sentences, and for a Series of Questions 122 • The Exclamation Point After Groups of Words Expressing Strong Feeling and After Interjections 123 LESSON 18 T h e A p o s t r o p h e ( L e v e l 1) 127 • The Singular Possessive 128 • The Plural Possessive 129 LESSON 19 T h e A p o s t r o p h e ( L e v e l 2) • • • • 132 Proper Nouns 132 Joint and Separate Possession 133 The Noun Understood 134 Abbreviations 134 LESSON 20 The Dash and P a r e n th e s e s 137 • The Dash 137 • Parentheses 139 LESSON 21 The Colon • The Colon for Statements or Lists 142 142 CONTENTS L E S S O N The Hyphen • • • • 22 146 Compound Words 147 Compound Numbers from 21 to 99 148 Unit Measures 149 The Prefixes Self, Ex, and All 149 LESSON 23 Quotation Marks and Italics 152 • Quotations Marks for Direct Quotations 153 • Quotation Marks for Articles, Chapters, Short Stories, and the Like 154 • Italics for Books, Magazines, and Newspapers 155 LESSON 24 Capitalization 158 • Capitalize the First Word of Every Sentence 158 • Capitalize Proper Nouns 159 LESSON 25 Numbers 164 • Certain Numbers Written Out 164 • Figures for Certain Numbers 165 • Dates 166 Part (4 LESSON Spelling 26 Spelling Demons LESSON 27 Noun Plurals • • • • 171 177 The Plurals of M ost Nouns 177 Compound Nouns 178 Proper Nouns 179 Nouns of Foreign Origin 180 vii :0 NT ENT S P a r t Style L E S S O N 28 Clear and F orc eful Words • • • • Simple Words 185 Specific Words 186 Outdated Expressions 187 Negative and Offensive Words 188 L E S S O N 29 Unified Sentences • • • • • 185 191 Complete Sentences 192 Keeping to One Point of View 193 Using Only Related Ideas in a Sentence 193 Including Necessary Words 194 Avoiding Run-On Sentences 195 L E S S O N 30 Clear Sentences 198 • Dangling Modifiers 198 • Parallel Structure 199 • Illogical Order 200 L E S S O N 31 Forceful Sentences • • • • • Placing Important Words in Emphatic Positions 204 Varying the Beginnings of Sentences 205 Avoiding Choppiness 206 Using Active Verbs 207 Being Concise 208 LESSON 32 The Paragraph • • • • viii 203 Unity 213 Coherence 214 Emphasis 215 Four Kinds of Paragraphs 215 212 CONTENTS LESSON 33 Research Skills • • • • • • • Using the Library 220 Using the Internet 221 Weighing Authorities 222 Taking Notes 223 Writing a Summary 223 Citing Your Sources 224 Being Original— Avoiding Plagiarism 224 LESSON Composition • • • • 219 34 227 Unity 228 Coherence 228 Emphasis 229 The Essay 231 LESSON 35 234 The Final Steps • Revise 234 • Prepare Your Finished Copy 235 APPENDI X A APPENDI X B C o n s i d e r the Re a d er 243 A p p l y It! S o l u t i o n s 245 Index 25 ( p) r e f a c e Better Writing presents a new method of teaching and learning about the sentence, grammar, punctuation, spelling, and style It is based on two facts: (1) before students can learn to write well, they need to learn to write correctly, and (2) learning to write correctly— and effectively— can be made easy The presentation of this new method is timely Across the nation, students are graduating—even from college— without the necessary writing skills Surveys reveal that students not know basic grammar rules or how to construct a proper sentence Better Writing is an answer to these concerns By means of the Five-Way Method, it presents not only what to know but also how to write in an organized way for easier and more effective writing The Five Ways The Sentence Knowledge o f the sentence provides the necessary background fo r understanding grammar, punctuation, and the advanced w o rk o f style Grammar The grammar section eliminates technical language and unnecessary theory, emphasizing the most common errors to ensure th a t w riters never make these mistakes Punctuation Learning critical rules on how to punctuate the simple, compound, and complex sentence and doing special exer cises to form correct habits can help elim inate errors Spelling Better Writing provides easy-to-remember clues fo r spelling problem words, helping students learn to spell them correctly Style This section gets w riters to th in k about the words they use and the ways in which they construct th e ir sentences, paragraphs, and compositions It presents the great principles o f unity, coherence, and emphasis in teaching students how to w rite well PREFACE Objectives Better Writing is intended for an introductory English or composition course It can be used for both classroom instruction and independent study After completing the text, students will be able to • Understand and apply basic rules o f gram mar and punctuation • W rite unified, coherent, and emphatic sentences, paragraphs, and compositions • Think and w rite critically, keeping an open mind on questions until all the facts are in Better Writing can also serve as a complete reference guide to gram mar, punctuation, style, and writing Even after they have completed the textbook, students should be encouraged to continue to use it at home, at school or college, or at their place of employment Special Features Better Writing presents not only what to know in our language but also how to use it for easier, more effective writing The following features of the text help improve writing skills: The only way to success in © writing is to lay a foundation hefore trying to paint the eaves —Anonymous • The Sentence The Sentence in Three Stages is a special step-by-step program th a t gives students a proper knowledge o f the sentence Stage 1: Recognize the subject and verb in a sentence Stage 2: Recog- ^ nize the subject, verb, and "com pleter" \ o f a sentence Stage 3: Recognize phrases \ and clauses as subjects; identify the main \ subject and verb in a sentence w ith a m odifying clause Do You Make These Sentence Errors? \ \ ^ A n g e la w ro te th e le tte r, th e n she m a ile d it A n g e la w ro te th e le tte r T h e n she m a ile d it H u rry up , n o w is th e tim e t o go H u rry up N o w is th e tim e t o go " I c a n 't," h e said, " it's to o b itte r " " I c a n 't," h e said " It's to o b itte r " T he b a n k w ill b e closed Since M o n d a y is a h o lida y T h e b a n k w ill b e closed since M o n d a y is a h o lid a y T he y cam e a g re a t d ista nce D esp ite th e se ve rity o f th e w in te r T he y cam e a g re a t dista n ce d e s p ite th e seve rity o f th e w in te r Do you know what a sentence is? If you are among the many students who not know, you can readily learn it in Lessons through of Part 1, “The Sentence in Three Stages,” a special program for learning the sentence quickly and easily Th e S ta g e Recognize th e sub ject an d ve rb in a sentence You are m ore th a n lfw a y th e re w h e n you k n o w these S ta g e Recognize th e subject, verb, an d "c o m p le te r" o f a sentence If you kn o w th ese, yo u kn o w m ost o f th e sentence S ta g e Recognize phrases and clauses as subjects Id e n tify th e m ain su b ject and v e rb in a sentence w ith a m o d ify in g clause C on gratulatio ns! You n o w recognize a sentence xi o J Consider the Reader Considering the reader—the “you” attitude—is an important aspect of the writing process It is a viewpoint that practically guarantees you will write an effective composition or letter since you will want to make your writing as clear as possible in order to save your reader time and energy The following questions will help you to have this “you” attitude In addition, they will help you get along well with others, a key skill desired by employers Even if you find you already have a good atti tude, learn how to put your good intentions into practice by asking yourself these questions and following these guidelines Can you be depended on to w hat you say you w ill do? Do not promise, for example, to go to a school function with a friend, write an article for the school newspaper, or w ork late unless you are reasonably sure that you can this Trying to w hat you said you would is important for this reason: It helps make you a dependable person W hen someone reneges on a promise, most of us are not only disappointed in the broken promise but in the person w ho made the promise Do you go out of you r w a y to help others? If a friend asks for help w ith a hom ework assignment or someone asks you to volunteer for a good cause and you can honestly it, say yes Being in the habit of helping others w hen possible is a positive thing It tells others you care about them — and in the end can result in a benefit to you Are you careful not to exaggerate? W hen w riting a letter of appli cation and a resume, for example, be cautious not to overstate your qualifications; instead, present your abilities honestly and truthfully Exaggerating your abilities can actually backfire on you If you are hired for a position and then not have certain abilities, you could cause yourself great stress— and even possibly lose the position 243 Do you resist the temptation to be sarcastic? Even when a person is truly insufferable, refrain from answering sarcastically Although sarcasm is never acceptable, criticism and sarcasm are particularly offensive in e-mail Do you try to keep from feeling superior to others? If you are in the capacity of supervising others, you especially need to guard against becoming impatient with their progress Tolerance of those w ho are less knowledgeable can be a difficult task Keep in mind, though, that this principle is considered one of the outstanding qualities of leadership Do you always try to control yo u r tem per? If someone deliberately antagonizes you, it is often difficult to refrain from becoming angry Always keep in mind that " A soft answer turns away wrath, but a harsh w ord stirs up anger." Putting your reaction in w riting, incidentally, is not only counterproductive but can bring you great distress later Can you forgive and forget? You cannot get along with people if you carry grudges The other person may be wrong, but in the end it serves no purpose to be unpleasant because of a misunderstanding that occurred months or even years ago Such a practice could be injurious to your own well being Do you avoid asking favors of others and borrow ing items? Such actions place your friends and associates in a compromising position If they not really w a nt to comply w ith your requests, they could find themselves hesitant to deny w hat you w a nt for fear of offending you Are you careful not to gossip? Even if true, malicious gossip can mar a person's good name and ultimately reflect back on your reputation M aking unsubstantiated negative comments can cause even greater difficulty, including lawsuits for libel 10 Do you refrain from telling people they are w rong? It's been sug gested that you try to understand w h y people act as they and then ask yourself how you w ould feel if you were in their place If it is neces sary to point out another's errors, however, a good suggestion is first to mention your ow n mistakes 11 Are you fair? As explained in Practical Suggestions for W riting, unfair ness is usually the result of selfishness, and there are many opportunities to be honest and fair In business, fairness plays an im portant part in let ters intended to adjust differences But even in matters such as w ho pays for lunch, making sure you not take advantage of others is not only sensible but fair 12 Are you tactful? Tact, the perception of the right thing to say w ithout offending others, summarizes all the other qualities As explained in Practical Suggestions for W riting, the Golden Rule— unto others as you w ould have them unto you— is perhaps the best definition of this great skill ( a) ppendix b / Apply It! Solutions Parti Part L e s s o n 1— T h e Par ts of S p e e c h L e s s o n 5— W r i t i n g f or I n f o r m a t i o n Answers noun verb noun preposition adjective noun noun verb adjective 10 noun 11 noun 12 verb 13 adjective 14 noun Note: Correct verbs are underlined and in bold type In writing for information, you need to be clear in your mind as to exactly w hat it is you w ant to know After you decide this, arrange your letter to make it easy for your reader to find the items you are request ing If a variety of points is being covered, tabulation is often useful Requests for routine information should be as brief as possible— consistent with courtesy and clarity In writing for a pamphlet, using a letterhead and keep ing your request to the essentials can be of great help The quality of stationery and envelopes is important to show that you are in business or have financial responsibility L e s s o n — S t a ge One of the S e n t e n c e Answers day/was opportunities/are offered Neither/has been ordered company/has pur chased They/smiled, continued container/ cooled, solidified Many/were sold president/ did report amount/was 10 letters, gifts/pour 11 [You]/sound 12 manager/is 13 ticket/is stamped; it/is 14 They/practiced, they/had 15 charges/are; tax/is required L e s s o n — St a ge Two of the S e n t e n c e Answers managers/are/professionals students/can learn/lessons pronunciation/is/incorrect workers/ received/bonus I/do understand/appraisal book keeper/found/errors manager/drew/plan we/ added/room She/presented/gift 10 fire/warmed/ hands 11 scout/followed/parade 12 leaves/dropped 13 They/walked 14 He/manages/business 15 game/ was/exciting L e s s o n — St age T h r e e of the S e n t e n c e Answers students/left she/will correct/it I/will be person/was/associate Riding a bicycle/ can be/strenuous That she is a famous actress/is known Ms Tucker/is/founder half/will disappear account/will be cancelled 10 We/listened 11 People/ look/facts 12 Roger/brought/books 13 I/will secure/ loan 14 they/attended/meetings 15 telegram/ arrived Lesson 6— Increasing Vocabulary Note: Correct verbs are underlined and in bold type A C indicates that the sentence is correct The number of words in the English language is over 600,000 C This news, useful for success in life, appears in many articles Four Ways to Increase Your Vocabulary is a valu able reference C A number of students were using crossword puz zles to increase vocabulary Twenty dollars, in fact, is the correct price for the speed-reading course C Penny is one of those students w ho find the vocabulary practice helpful C Most of the students also find drill and practice effective C The number of people seeking improvement is increasing C 245 APPENDIX B Some of the advice includes talking to wellinformed people and reading good books and magazines C 10 Most of it involves using the dictionary and finding new words C 11 Some of the new telecommunications terms have been accepted by the general public C 12 A thesaurus is one of the most useful references that are required for composition classes L e s s o n 7— On C a m p u s Note: Correct pronouns are underlined and in bold type The English class is traveling to Russia with Regina and me Ellen, Eugene, and I were appointed tutors The loud explosion did not frighten my friend and m e No one signed up for the Saturday class except Paul and me June and i arrived at the dorm itory at the same time David sent my friend and me tw o tickets to the homecoming game The testing schedule was sent to my classmates and m e The debating club sent Grace and me a book The lecturer gave the instructor and me a copy of the speech 10 The librarian and I made the decision 11 The instructor objected to my inability to complete the assignments on time 12 The academic awards went to Marilyn and me 13 Few students can keyboard as accurately as I 14 Do you approve of m y representing the college at the upcoming debate? 15 Neither Craig nor i was able to eliminate the com puter virus L e s s o n 8— Lyi ng on a Cloud Note: Correct verbs are underlined and in bold type June W hite was just looking to buy a new head board for her bed when she strolled into a store near her home in W hite Plains, New York She was there with her husband and children, she said, when they started trying out mattresses just for the fun of it "M y husband lay down on one of them and just said to the salesperson, 'I w ant this bed,'" she recalls, laughing "W hen I lay on it, I couldn't get up It was so nice, like lying on a cloud." They bought it that day They did not know that they had joined one of the fastest-growing home trends— foam Several years ago, all the mattresses were made with a framework of metal innersprings surrounded by a layer of foam Today, more mattresses are made entirely of foam Such mattresses are not 246 cheap, most costing at least $1,000 That is w hy June whispered that she wished that she were wealthy L e s s o n 9— Pa t i e n ce Note: Correct adjectives and adverbs are underlined and in bold type The researchers found an article on the virtue of patience This kind of docum ent is not usually really clear or well written, but this one is the better of the tw o found previously It reads, "Patience comforts the poor and moderates the rich; it makes us humble in prosperity, cheerful in adversity, and unmoved by calumny." The researchers concluded that patience, which means the capacity for calm or endurance, is the best of the three character traits they investigated L e s s o n — M e m o on P r e p o s i t i o n s Note: Correct words are underlined and in bold type In the future, try to express yourself more clearly Hunter dived into the water from the pier The committee differed w ith me about the plans Destiny's standards of living are different from yours The manager has agreed to my proposition The work should be divided am ong the three con sultants The vice president said the employees should have attended the meeting Please keep off the grass The workers are angry w ith the sales manager 10 This workstation is different from that workstation L e s s o n 1 — Le t t e r of A p p l i c a t i o n Note: Correct words are underlined and in bold type In response to your recent Wall Street Journal advertisement, I would appreciate your considering me an applicant for Developmental Editor As I will explain, I believe I meet your requirements for this position On my ow n, I have assisted the Board of Trustees in its effort to provide a program in which there is a variety of positions Every one of the employees has found me to be a person w ho never lies dow n on the job Recently my supervisor praised my associate and me for our w riting ability She felt bad that the oth ers did not recommend us Part L e s s o n — T h e P o w e r of P e r s u a s i o n Note: The commas to be added are underlined and in bold type Many sales letters fail because they lack the impor tant element of persuasion Suppose, for example, APPENDIX that in your letter you gain the attention and interest of your reader, explain the benefits of your product, and prove its real merit If you bring your remarks abruptly to a close and sign your name, you will prob ably get some orders Suppose, however, that instead you show your reader how your product will be of practical value Perhaps your readers have never thought of the matter in just that way Your letter persuades them that your product will put dollars and cents into their pocket Yes, they are made to see the profit rather than the expense B what we have to say and not for ourselves; this is exactly the reverse of a friendly letter This is w hy the chief virtue of a business letter is brevity Those w ho read it w ant to know w hat w e have to say about our business as quickly as possible; they w ant to be able to act on it if it is related in any way to their own business and lose no time The Anglo Saxon bisig is the word from which are derived both business and busy; a businessperson is supposed to be a busy person Businesspersons, there fore, are too busy to read rambling letters where the message is neither clearly stated nor properly formatted L e s s o n — C l e a r n e s s in B u s i n e s s Wr i t i n g Note: The commas to be added are underlined and in bold type Business writing needs to be extraordinarily clear For this reason, the average paragraph should be short— much less than one hundred words and no more than four or five sentences In business, in fact, even single-sentence paragraphs are sometimes accept able and even effective (A long series of two-sentence or so paragraphs, on the other hand, should be avoided since such a monotonous arrangement may distract the reader.) In order for a paragraph to be clear, the sentences must be in logical order In addition, words such as however, moreover, and consequently should be used to help the flow of sentences Lesson U — Postponement Note: The commas and semicolons to be added are underlined and in bold type Postponement is a common fault If you want to fail, try putting off until to m o rro w w hat you can just as well today If you w ant to succeed, on the other hand, consider the value of time There is an inexhaustible market for it W henever you pur chase an article of value, you are buying mostly time Manufacturers take several hundred dollars worth of materials; then they turn them into expensive machines Watchmakers buy ten dollars' w orth of steel; later they turn them into fine springs w orth thousands of dollars Your success depends not only on the kind of time you have to sell but on w hat you with the time you have Do not procrastinate The road to success is paved with the good intentions of people w ho not postpone anything L e s s o n — B r e v i t y is Best Note: The commas and semicolons to be added are underlined and in bold type W hen you write a business letter, you should remember that the person addressed cares only for L e s s o n — C o u r t e s y Count s Note: The commas and semicolon to be added are underlined and in bold type It is important that you be courteous since discour tesy injures personal relations Try to be sincere and direct; also, not attempt to get even with a person w ho has been discourteous to you Remember that what may sound all right when spoken may be inter preted entirely differently by your reader For example, the following sentence might not have been written discourteously: W e have already explained to you the manner in which your orders are handled by us If this sentence, however, is read aloud in an angry tone, the effect is entirely changed Since discourtesy injures business relations, it is important that you be courteous L e s s o n — P u n c t u a t i o n Pitfalls Note: The marks of punctuation to be added are underlined and in bold type In your writing, you ever leave out a question mark or an exclamation point? Pity the poor writers w ho so habituallyl Are they likely to well in composition? Neverl The period is another mark of which we need to say something No one with a col lege— or even high school— education should get into the careless habit of putting commas where periods belong Three states gave the railroad its n a m e jt was one of the longest and best systems in the country W e spent several years in Ita ly jt is called the land of laughter and flowers Mr Barlow was born in a small Iowa village, and he is now the president of a large telecommunica tions company Correct The house had stood empty for seven y e a rs jh e former owners had moved to another state 247 APPENDIX B The road is overshadowed by giant tre e s jh e y have been growing there for hundreds of years Despite the severity of the weather, the students came that great distance Correct We had not driven far when we had a flat tire This was caused by a nail that we picked up some where along the highway Dr O'Brien is an instructor at the collegeJShe is also the faculty adviser for the student newspaper L e s s o n — T he W i s d o m of P r o v e r b s Note: The apostrophes to be added are underlined and in bold type Another person's burden is always light An idle brain is the devil's workshop Another's misfortune does not cure my pain It is a silly goose that comes to a fox^s sermon Industry is fortune's right hand, and frugality her left Repentance is the heart's medicine Kind words heal friendship's wounds The noblest task is to command one's self A prudent haste is wisdom's leisure 10 Order is heaven's first law 11 Nobody's sweetheart is ugly 12 A man's home is his castle 13 The rainbow at night is the shepherd's delight 14 We carry our neighbors' failings in sight; we th ro w our own over our shoulders 15 One person's loss is another person's gain 16 A t last, the foxes all meet at the furrier's 17 A great man's foolish sayings pass for wise ones 18 Hope is grief's best music 19 A king's favor is no inheritance 20 That which is everybody's business is nobody's business L e s s o n — A M a r k in Di s t r ess Note: The apostrophe corrections are underlined and in bold type • • • • • • Mindy's Sub Shop Open Days a Week Women's and children's fashion accessories A friend of Mr Kelly's A CEO's plan for reorganization The Maroneys have gone to Kansas "Ace Funeral Association Takes Care of its O w n " (a slogan) L e s s o n — A b u s e d M a r k s of P u n c t u a t i o n Note: The tw o single dashes, tw o sets of dashes, and one set of parentheses to be added are underlined and in bold type Now we have to consider the dash— a muchabused mark of punctuation O ur thoughts may be 248 running on smoothly when we suddenly digress— and unbelievable as it may seem— need a mark to indicate the abruptness of the change You see how our sen tences become examples of their own rules concerning other marks of punctuation Merely remarking that the dash is used generally in enumerations, we will also discuss other instances where there may be doubt as to the best usage^dashes in pairs and parentheses W hen w e come to discuss parentheses (see page 81 for a fuller discussion of this subject), we find that it is sometimes convenient to break into a sentence with an "aside" grammatically independent of the main statement But sometimes= and this sentence is a case in point= tw o dashes are preferable, for they indicate a close connection between the "aside" and the sentence it interrupts L e s s o n — C l a r i f y i n g Col ons Note: The six colons to be added are underlined and in bold type The colon has tw o uses: It is used before a formal quotation or enumeration It is infrequently used between tw o clauses of a sentence in which the sec ond stands in some sort of apposition with the first W e need not go far for an illustration of the second use: the very sentence we write furnishes it To make sure you are not confused by the colon, insert a colon where needed in each of the following sentences If not needed, write a C Am ong the qualities everyone should develop are these: tact, loyalty, perseverance, and resourcefulness This is our advice: Stay in school and prepare for a career The seasons of the year are fall, winter, spring, and summer Correct These are the four courses you should take: English, algebra, chemistry, and accounting The five Great Lakes are Lake Erie, Lake Ontario, Lake Huron, Lake Michigan, and Lake Superior Correct Wanted: experienced accountant Lesson 22— A Valuable Mark Note: The three hyphens to be added are underlined and in bold type In addition to contributing to clarity, the use of the hyphen can also contribute to conciseness and emphasis, a little-known fact Study the sentence that follows: The teachers have gone to a meeting that will last for three hours Now if you wish to emphasize teachers and three hours, this sentence is fine But if you wish to emphasize j APPENDIX teachers and meeting, you should spotlight the word meeting at the end of the sentence— and using the long-lived hyphen can make this possible It can also result in conciseness, a savings of four words The teachers have gone to a three-hour meeting B and believes that over ten teachers will attend each workshop The cost of the brochures is $225 There is a 10 percent discount if the bill is paid before April 30 It is disappointing that only one half the class plans to attend W e will be happy to send Dr Francis the 65 copies L e s s o n — A Sal es M e s s a g e Note: The quotation mark corrections are underlined and printed in bold type; underlining is used to indi cate italics Physicians, nurses, and health care professionals— all make a claim for one of the best nutritional magazines on the market today— Nutrition Today Dr Jonathon Lopez states, "I am a regular reader of this magazine and can honestly say it has no equal." Nutrition Today can be described as an educa tional magazine, providing readers w ith practical information about diet, lifestyle, vitamins, minerals, and other nutrients Recently, it has published out standing articles such as "N utrient Profile" and "Science Update." In the past year, it has also fea tured such articles as "Sports Nutrition: Stocking Your Sports Medicine Chest," "The New Vitamin on the Block," and "Treatm ent Plan for the Cold." Be sure therefore to order Nutrition Today It is a decision you will never regret As Dr Lopez maintains, "It has no equal." L e s s o n I k — C o u r t e s y Days Note: The 18 words to be capitalized are in bold type Dear Ms Rains: As you are one of our preferred customers, we are telling you about Courtesy Days, the August Furniture Sale that will begin Thursday, August We would like our charge customers to have first choice of the great values before they are announced to the public W e hope therefore that you will join us on one of our three Courtesy Days— Thursday, Friday, and Saturday of this week— when you may come in and make your selections at the sale prices You will find greater variety than usual because we now carry popular brands such as Timberline and Natura W orld You will also find attractive prices this year W e look forward to having you visit us on the most important event of our year— Courtesy Days! Sincerely, Lesson 25— Name That Number Note: The five corrected numbers are printed in bold type Dr Francis asked that we send her 65 copies of our latest brochure She is conducting four workshops Part k L e s s on — T h e A b s e n t - M i n d e d Pr o f e s s o r Note: The four spelling corrections are printed in bold type Professor Wilson's principal failing was her absentmindedness This often led her to misplace articles necessary to her teaching One day as she and another professor were walking on campus, Professor Wilson suddenly stopped, looked perplexed, and said to her friend, "W hy, my notes for today's lecture have disap peared If I don't find those notes, I will disappoint my class." "W hat is that in your hand?" her colleague asked "Copies of the law review I just picked up at the printing center," she replied "M y notes were in a sep arate envelope of about the same size." "W ait a m inute," said the other professor W ith a knowing look, he went to the center and took an envelope from the top of the cabinet This he then brought to Professor Wilson, saying, "D o n 't misplace these notes again." Professor Wilson, happy at being relieved of her anxiety, seized the envelope and said gratefully, "Thank you so much I promise never to lose them again— at least not today." L e s s o n — S w e e t Potato C a s s e r o l e Note: The six spelling corrections are printed in bold type Mrs Britney's Sweet Potato Casserole medium sweet potatoes Vegetable oil spray 1/4 teaspoonful nutmeg tablespoonfuls chopped walnuts 1/4 cupful of orange juice Cook whole sweet potatoes in boiling water 25 to 30 minutes or until tender Meanwhile, preheat oven to 375 degrees Lightly spray a 1-quart casserole dish with vegetable oil spray Remove potatoes from heat, and add cold water until potatoes are cooled slightly Peel and mash Add remaining ingredients, and mix thoroughly Place in casserole dish, and bake uncovered 25 minutes Serve hot Garnish with tomatoes 249 APPENDIX B L e s s o n — Wr i t e Ef f ect i ve P a r a g r a p h s Part L e ss on — Wor d G a me s for Better Wo r d s Answers, rise above, dog, begin, lie, goal, under stand; oatmeal, puffed rice, chair, desk, bookcase, bed, school, house, garage, barn; c a b Lesson 29— A Matching Exercise Answers 10 a a c e / e c d b / Answers Students should have made notes for a sketch of their life or a family member's life Students should have tried to think of at least five details for each paragraph Students should have chosen tw o of the topic sentences listed in the activity and should have expanded each into a paragraph Students should have tried to include at least five details in each para graph Students should have chosen one of the listed topics and should have written several para graphs on it L e s s o n — Our Na t i ona l P a r ks L e s s o n 3 — Get the Fact s Note: Corrections are underlined and in bold type Students may have chosen to correct some sentences in different ways An E indicates that the sentence is effective Olympic National Park has effective glacier-capped mountains, rainforests, and old-grow th trees W e had to w ait only ten minutes to see Old Faithful erupt W hen visiting Gettysburg, I thought of President Lincoln's famous speech W hile eating pancakes at Carlsbad Caverns, we watched 300,000 bats dive into a cave A t Lassen Volcanic National Park, every type of volcano on Earth can be seen E Her goals were to hike the Appalachian Trail and to visit M ount Rushmore As a student volunteer, you can dig for fossils in Badlands National Park E A t Assateague Island, we glimpsed not only wild horses but also sika deer W hile snorkeling at Everglades National Park, w e saw three manatees 10 Emma said "Julie I might like to see Devil's Tower." Answers Students should have found the infor mation requested and should have listed the books or Internet sources they consulted Students should have researched one of the listed topics and should have found at least three authoritative sources that they could use to write a three- to five-page paper L e s s o n — I m p r o v e a Letter Answers 250 B A B D B and D C D L e s s o n — Wr i t e an E s s a y Answers Students should have written a three- to five-page essay on the topic that they selected in Step of the Lesson 33 Apply It! activity L e s s o n — Rev i se and F o r m a t an Es s a y Answers Students should have revised the essay they wrote in the Lesson 34 Apply It! activity using the checklist presented at the beginning of the lesson and appropriate features of their w ord processing soft ware Students should have formatted the revised essay using the formatting guidelines presented in the lesson and appropriate features of their w ord process ing software Students should have proofread their essay using the steps and guidelines for proofreading given in the lesson and should have made any needed corrections , O IDEX ETTER A A, 72 Abbreviations, apostrophe and, -1 periods and, 121 plurals of, 180 A bout , 50 A bove, 136 Academic subjects, capitalization and, 160 Across, 141 Addresses, punctuation of, 1 -1 Adjective(s), 11, 30, -7 in series, 93 two or more, compared, 72-7 varied, -1 Adjective clause, 37 Adverb(s), 1 -1 , -3 , 37, -7 two or more, compared, 72-73 Adverbial clause, 37 After, 37 Again, 126 Against, 63, 88, 103 Agree to, 80 Agree with, 80 Agreement, -5 , -5 All, 53, -1 Among, 78, 98 An, 72 Angry at, 80 Angry with, 80 Ante, 33 Antecedent, pronouns and, 48^49 Any, 53 Apart, 76 Apostrophe, -1 Application, letter of, 87 Appositives, 38 definition of, 38 punctuation of, -9 Around, 50 Articles, quotation marks and, 154 Artistic works, capitalization and, 161 As, -7 comparisons after, -6 Author, qualifications of, assessment of, 222 Authorities, for paper, weighing of, 2 -2 Away from , 82 B Back, 126 Bad, 176 Before, 33, 103, 114, 119 Below, 131 Beside, 78 Besides, 78 Between, 78, 98 Beyond, 136, 141 Bi, 40 W R I T I N G Bibliography, 239 Books, italics for, 155 Brackets, 138 Bring, 161 By, 108 C Cap, 145 Capitalization, -1 Cede, 151 Ceed, 151 Cep, 145 Cess, 151 Chapters, quotation marks and, 154 Choppiness, avoiding of, 206 Ctp, 145 Circum, 50 Citations, formatting of, 39 internal, , 38, 239 Clause(s), 34 adjective, 37 adverbial, 37 as subjects, 36 dependent, 37 if, -6 introductory, punctuation of, -1 main, 37 modifying, -3 noun, 36 parenthetical, punctuation of, 112 w ho and that, -5 w ho and which, punctuation of, 111 wish, -6 Cliches, annoying, 187 Collective nouns, -4 Colon, -1 Com, 56 Command sentence, comma in, -1 Comma(s), adjectives in series and, 93 appositives and, -9 dates and addresses and, 1 -1 direct address and, 96 direct quotations and, 12-113 explanatory words and, -9 for parenthetical clauses, 112 for who and which clauses, 111 in command sentence, 10 -1 in compound sentence, 24, -1 introductory clause and, -1 251 INDEX Comma(s), adjectives in series and (continued) introductory prepositional phrases and, 100-101 introductory words and, -9 parenthetical expressions and, -9 quotation marks and, 153 verbal phrases and, 9 -1 0 words in series and, -9 Common nouns, 159 Complements, subject, 27, 28 “Completer(s),” 27 Complex sentence(s), definition of, 109 punctuation of, -1 Composition, 2 -2 3 coherence of, 2 -2 emphasis in, 2 -2 essay as, -2 revision of, 235 space allotment in, 230 transitions in, 229 unity in, 228 Compound nouns, plural of, 178-1 Compound numbers, hyphen and, -1 Compound predicate, compound sentence into, 209 Compound sentence(s), 24 into compound predicate, 209 punctuation of, -1 Compound subjects, 30, 45 Compound verbs, 23 Compound words, hyphens in, -1 permanent, 147 temporary, 147-148 Con, 56 Conciseness, -2 Conjunction(s), 12 coordinating, 12, 24 subordinating, 12, 37 Contra, 63 Different from , 80 Different than, 80 Direct address, punctuation of, 96 Direct objects, 27, 29 Direct quotations, punctuation of, 1 -1 Dis, 76 D o, 168 Double negatives, 67 Down, 69 Draw, 161 Due, 161 Duct, 161 Due to, 78 E E, 82 Each, -4 Either, -4 Ellipsis marks, 121 Elliptical sentences, 110 Emphasis, in composition, 2 -2 in paragraph, 215 Emphatic positions, important words in, 204 Endnotes, 239 Essay, body of, 231 conclusion of, -2 outline for, 231 paragraphs of, 231 Events, 160 Evil, 176 Ex, 82, -1 Exclamation point, -1 Explanatory words, 38 punctuation of, -9 Expressions, outdated, -1 8 transitional, 214 Contro, 63 Coordinating conjunctions, 12, 24 Counter , 63 D Dangling modifiers, -1 9 Dash, -1 Dates, as proper nouns, 160 numbers in, 6 -1 punctuation of, 1 -1 De, 69 Decimal points, 121 Dependent clauses, 37 Diet, 157 Dictionaries, in library, 220 on Internet, 222 Differ with, 80 252 Fac, 168 Fact, 168 Family relationships, capitalization and, 160 Feet, 168 Fie, 168 Fold, 0 -2 Footnotes, 239 For, 119 Forceful sentences, -2 Formatting, -2 body of paper, of references, 239 references page, 238 Forth, 119 Forward, 119 From, 69 INDEX G Geographical locations, 160 Gerund, 61 Go, 151 Grammar, -8 eight basic rules of, 41 mistakes in, 41 Grammar practice, -8 Grasp, 145 Linking verbs, 11, 17, 28 Lists, colon for, -1 Literary works, capitalization and, 161 L o o k at, 218 -ly, 71, 73 H Hang, 197 Hanging indent, 238 Helping verbs, 11 Here, or there, sentences beginning with, -4 Hyphen, -1 I I, 61, 62 I f clauses, -6 Illogical order, 0 -2 In, 79, 88 In the way, 103 Information, writing for, 49 -ing words, possessive form with, 61 Inter, 98 Interjection(s), 13, 124 Internet, dictionaries on, 222 general reference sites of, 2 -2 2 miscellaneous sites on, 222 plagiarism from, 224 search engines of, 221 use of, 2 -2 2 Interrogative sentences, 123 Into, 79, 88 Introductory clause, punctuation of, -1 Introductory prepositional phrases, punctuation of, 100-101 Introductory words, punctuation of, -9 Italics, 152, 155 L Lay, 66 Lead, 161 L et go, 190 Letter, business, colon and, 143 of application, 87 Library, biographies in, 221 dictionaries in, 220 encyclopedias in, 220 library catalogs of, 220 online databases of, 221 reference books in, 220 use of, 2 -2 Lie, 66 L ike, -7 Magazines, italics for, 155 Main clauses, 37 M ake, 168 Mai, 176 Me, 57, 61, 62 Measures, unit, hyphen and, -1 Miss, 190 Misspelled words, -1 Mit, 190 Mnemonic, 12 Modifiers, 19 dangling, -1 9 Modifying clause, -3 More, 73 Most, 53, 73 Move, 151 N Negative words, 8 -1 Negatives, double, 67 Neither, -4 Newspapers, italics for, 155 N one, 53 Not, 76, 88 Notes, taking of, 223 Noun(s), 10, 16 collective, -4 common, 159 compound, plural of, -1 of foreign origin, plural of, -1 plural in form, singular in number, 52 plural of, 7 -1 precise, 186 proper See Proper nouns singular in sense, plural in use, -5 singular or plural, determination of, 44 understood, apostrophe and, 134 Noun clause, 36 Noun phrase, 36 Numbers, -1 compound, hyphen and, -1 figures for, -1 6 in dates, 6 -1 the and a, 54 written out, -1 , 166 253 INDEX n O b, 103 Object(s), direct, 27, 29 forms of pronouns, 58 O f, 78 O ff, 79 O ff of, 79 Orc, 88 Opposite, 63 Order of subject, 22 Organizations, 160 Owf, 82 Out of, 82 Over, 136, 141 P Paragraph(s), 2 -2 coherence in, 214 descriptive, -2 emphasis in, 215 expository, 216 facts in, 213 four kinds of, -2 narrative, 215 of essay, 231 persuasive, 216 revision of, 235 sentence summarizing, -2 topic sentence of, 213 transitional expressions in, 214 unity in, -2 , 228 Parallel structure, 9 -2 0 Parentheses, 137, -1 Parenthetical expressions, 204 and clauses, punctuation of, 112 punctuation of, -9 Parts of speech, -1 Pen, 197 Pend, 197 Per, 108 Period(s), -1 2 quotation marks and, 153 Personal pronouns, 10 Phrase(s), 20, 34 noun, 36 prepositional See Prepositional phrase(s) verbal, 35 punctuation of, 9 -1 0 Place, 211 Plagiarism, avoiding of, 224 Pli, 0 -2 Plie, 0 -2 Plural, of nouns, 7 -1 254 Port, 211 Pond, 197 Pos, 211 Possession, joint and separate, apostrophe and, 3 -1 Possessive(s), -1 plural, 129 singular, -1 Possessive form, with -ing words, 61 Pre, 114 Predicate, 16 compound, compound sentence into, 209 Prefixes, and roots, 15, 26, 33, 40, 50, 56, 63, 69, 76, 82, 88, 98, 103, 108, 119, 126, 136, 141, 145, 151, 157, 163, 168, 176, 182, 190, 197, 202, 11, 218, 26, 233 hyphen a n d ,1 -1 Preposition(s), 13, 7 -8 errors in use of, 7 -7 memo on, 81 special, with certain words, -8 Prepositional phrase(s), 20 introductory, punctuation of, 0 -1 subject and, 44 Pro, 119 Pronoun(s), 10, 16, -6 and antecedent, -4 as subjects, 21 object forms of, -5 personal, 10 plural, and plural subject, 48 subject forms of, 58 Proofreading, 240 Proper nouns, -1 apostrophe and, -1 3 capitalization of, 159 plural of, -1 Punctuation, -1 mistakes made in, 89 of compound sentence, -1 of simple sentence, -1 practice in, 1 -1 Q Question mark, 2 -1 Questions, 2 -1 Quotation marks, -1 for articles, chapters, and short stories, 154 for direct quotations, 153 Quotations, direct, punctuation of, 1 -1 quotation marks for, 153 R Re, 126 References, 239 formatting of, 239 INDEX Short stories, quotation marks and, 154 References page, 238 Regions, capitalization and, 161 Research skills, -2 Revise, -2 Roots See Prefixes, and roots Run-on sentences, 195 Some, 53 Sources, citing of, 224 Speak, 157 Spect, 218 S Say, 157 See , 218 Seize, 145 Self, -1 Self-words, 60 Semicolon(s), 24 in compound sentence, 106 Send, 190 Sentence(s), arrangement in paragraph, 214 beginning with here or there, -4 beginnings of, varying of, 205 capitalization and, -1 choppy, 206 clear, 8-201 command, comma in, 106-1 complete, -1 complex, definition of, 109 punctuation of, -1 compound, 24 into compound predicate, 209 punctuation of, -1 condensing elements of, 208 errors in, forceful, -2 in three stages, logical order in, 200 necessary words in, -1 one point of view in, 193 parallel structure in, 9 -2 0 partly interrogative, 123 periods and, 121 placement of, 2 -2 related ideas in, -1 revision of, 235 run-on, 195 simple, definition of, 91 punctuation of, -1 stage three of, 39 stage two of, 32 summarizing paragraph, -2 topic, of paragraph, 213 unified, -1 varying of, -2 Series, adjectives in, 93 of questions, 123 words in, -9 Spelling, -1 mistakes made in, 169 words commonly misspelled, -1 Spic, 218 Statements, colon for, -1 Strain, 226 Stretch, 226 Style, -2 Sub, 131 Subject(s), 16, 27, 34 and verbs, -2 , 30, 36 clauses as, 36 complete, 20 compound, , 45 finding of, -2 forms of pronouns, 58 order of, 22 plural, and plural pronoun, 48 prepositional phrase and, 44 pronouns as, 21 separated from verb, 44 simple, 20 verbal phrases as, 35 Subject complements, 27, 28 Subordinating conjunctions, 12, 37 Summary, writing of, 223 Super, 136 T Take, 145 Tangle, 0 -2 Tend, 226 Tens, 226 Tent, 226 Than, comparisons after, -6 That, -5 , 59, -7 There, or here, sentences beginning with, 45^46 These, -7 Thesis statement, -2 This, -7 Those, -7 Through, 108, 141 Title page, 236 Titles, 160 Together, 56 Trans, 141 Transitional expressions, 214 Transitions, in composition, 229 Try to, 80 255 I NDEX W Turn, 233 Twice, 40 Two, 40 u Under, 131 Unit measures, hyphen and, -1 Unity, in paragraphs, -2 , 228 V Verb(s), -1 , 16, 27, 31, 34, -6 action, 10, 17, 29 active, 20 compound, 23 correct forms of, -6 helping, 11 linking, 11, 17, 28 not modifiers, 19 of more than one word, 18 of one word, 17 passive, singular or plural, determination of, 44 subject separated from, 44 subject(s) and, -2 , 30 vivid, 186 Verbal(s), -3 , 35 Verbal phrases, 35 punctuation of, 9 -1 0 Vert, 233 Vocabulary, improving of, 15, 26, 40, 50, 56, 63, 69, 76, 82, 88, 98, 103, 108, 119, 126, 136, 141, 145, 151, 157, 163, 168, 176, 182, 190, 197, 202, 11, 18, 226, 3 , 241 increasing of, 55 256 Was, 64 Weigh, 197 Well, 71 Were, 64 Which, 59 Which clauses, punctuation of, 111 Who, -5 , 59 Who clauses, punctuation of, 111 Whom, 59 Wish clauses, -6 With, 56 Words, clear and forceful, -1 commonly misspelled, -1 explanatory, 38 punctuation of, -9 important, in emphatic positions, 04 introductory, punctuation of, -9 necessary, in sentence, 19 -1 negative and offensive, 8 -1 revision of, 235 simple, -1 specific, -1 unnecessary, deletion of, 208 Works Cited, 239 Writing, concise, -2 final steps in, -2 for information, 49 mistakes made in, 1, 183 practical suggestions for, -6 “you” attitude in, -2 Y Yield, 151 [...]... 3 14 The w ork should have been done sooner 3 4 (fr) auop uaaq aAeq p|noqs > i (E) 6 u|>|jom uaaq peq £i ( ) uauuM aq pinoqs zi pa6 u|q uaaq peq u ( £ ) juas uaaq peq o i (Z ) spnpuj pinoqs ’6 ( z ) 6u|ddjqs aje g (Z ) 9 A e M pinoqs l ( ) asn p|noqs-g (i) >pruis s (l) sj (L)se/v\-£ (i) paqsjUjj z (O aiojM 't -sjbmsuv ( ) SUBJECT AND VERB (STAGE ONE) 2c 'erbs Not Modifiers Words that tell something... correct verb enclosed in parentheses 1 T here (is, are) m any fa cts th a t y ou s ho uld k n o w a b o u t d o w n lo a d in g files 2 W h e re (is, are) th e m an ag er an d his assistant? 3 H ere (is, are) A n g e lin a an d h e r s ta ff m em bers 4 H ere (is, are) th e backpack y ou lost 5 T here (go, goes) th e s tu d e n t an d h e r sister 6 H ere (was, w ere) fo u n d m any evidences o f c iv iliz... to refer back to Lesson 1 (lb), though, to review the list of these pronouns Meanwhile, study the following sentences to see how these pronouns function as subjects Neither o f the coats fits him (Subject) Each o f the contestants was right (Subject) Either o f the jo b applicants w ould be successful (Subject) Anybody w ho takes keyboarding acquires a critical skill (Subject) None o f our computers... following sentences: Down jum ped the cat (The cat jum ped down .) Are you sure? ( You are sure .) The subjects of most interrogative (questioning) sentences are not in their natural order To find the subject, it may be necessary to change the interrogative sentence to declarative form W ho is th a t person? (That person is w h o ) W hat do you want? (You w a nt w h a t .) In sentences introduced by there or... abstract, to draw from Abdicate, to proclaim from ; give up (die, diet , to proclaim) Abhor, to shudder from ; shrink back from in dread or horror (horrero , to shudder) Absolve, to loosen from ; to free from guilt, {solv, to loosen) Abscond, to conceal from ; leave secretly, (condo, to conceal) Abstruse, thrust away, hard to understand, (trudere, to thrust) The manager abdicated his responsibilities, withdrawing... the sub ject with the word or words that follow it The linking verbs are is, am, are, was, were, been The graphics software is new (Linking verb) I am happy w ith my keyboarding class (Linking verb) The w indows are open (Linking verb) They were friends (Linking verb) Check Your Understanding of Verbs of One Word Underline the verb in each sentence 1 The other check-out lines at the grocery store... assume, and attract Adjacent, to; adjoining (jacere, to lie) Adm ire, to wonder at; to esteem highly, (mirari, to wonder) Admonish, to warn tow ard; reprove mildly, (m onere, to warn) A/Fable, to speak to; pleasant, friendly (fari, to speak) A/fluent, to flow to; an abundance, (fluere, to flow) The house adjacent to yours lies next to it To adm ire a person means literally to wonder at him When parents adm... (the words that make a statement about the sub ject), with the core word of the subject usually being a noun or pronoun and the core word of the predicate being a verb Most importantly, be sure you are able to find the verb of the sentence easily 16 SUBJECT AND VERB (STAGE ONE) 2a A verb may be one word It may be either an action verb or a linking verb The students greeted each other (Action verb)... may be either an action verb or a linking verb The students greeted each other (Action verb) A blank space means a missing design (Action verb) The thesis provides an overview o f the m ajor points (Action verb) Planners usually remember every element o f the plan (Action verb) Many action verbs, such as provides and remember , do not seem to be moving or doing anything, but they are action verbs You’ll... twenty-three words are helping verbs (The first eight are also linking verbs .) Hel pi ng Verbs is am are was were been be being shall w ill must m ight may can have has had do does did could w ould should Id An adjective modifies or in some way makes the meaning of a noun or pronoun more exact An adjective can describe a noun (the rocky ledge) or limit a noun (two dollars) They worked in a busy office He